Damaged Perfection (The Perfection Series Book 1) (4 page)

* * *

              Half way through my workday and I have to leave. I feel myself starting to lose control again and I cannot let anyone see this side of me. I still see him laughing at me and I can smell the coffee on his breath. Hearing the contempt in his voice when he was asking about my drinking brought out the rage in me. I can make it through most days but some I just have to get away. He brings out the worst part of me and I hate him for it.

              I climb into my truck and take a breath. I feel my body ease the further away I get from him. I fucking hate losing control. Even worse, I hate someone watching me.

              As soon as I get to the house, I head for my gym. I need to get rid of some of this anger and nothing is better for that than the bag. I change into shorts and take my shirt off. I put on my gloves, turn the volume up on the music and begin.

              Sweat filled tears begin falling down my cheeks as I pound away at the bag. Although I can feel my body begin to burn from the rigorous workout, I can’t hit the bag hard enough or fast enough to soothe the ache inside.

One hit…two hits… I see his small face, filled with anguish as I stand and do nothing. His cries fill the air around me and I suddenly can’t breathe. Brown eyes staring back at me, pleading with me to make it stop.

Three hits… four hits… I see the face of Satan. Even though his glare is burning a hole through my soul, his glacial laugh makes my blood run cold. His accusations are pinning me to the wall and I cannot move. The punches begin to come faster and I fear that I won’t be able to stop.

Five hits…the face of an angel appears and I am immediately halted in my spot. I shake my head; I haven’t seen her face in a long time. I brace my head on the wall with my arms as I catch my breath. Sweat is pouring off of me. I scream; actually it is more of an anguished cry. I turn to head to the shower but take one more swing at the bag before walking out of the room.

              I strip and stand under the cool spray of the shower, letting the water ease the tension from my muscles. This job gets harder and harder every day. I am ready for the day when I can tell Frank to shove it in his ass; I have been waiting on it for five years. I can’t have too many more days like this one, if I plan to stay sane.

My bar is doing really well and with the money I am making on the side with Gibson, it won’t be long. He won’t be happy of course, he thinks he owns me. I will always be thankful to him to an extent for helping me but I belong to no one; my soul died fifteen years ago.

              “Please Momma, forgive me. I know that I don’t always make the right decisions but I am trying. I can no longer stand to be around him. I am trying, I really am but I think he is part of my problem,” I whisper with my head leaning against the steamy tiles of the shower wall. I close my eyes as tears run down my cheeks. I stand under the water a little bit longer before I can no longer be left alone with my thoughts.

              The music continues to play loudly while I dress. I am either going to need a lot of woman or a lot of drugs to get me through this night. I find my broken piece of straw and pull in the line that is waiting for me on my dresser. I need to get away from Frank soon or I am going to turn into a drug addict. Just the thought of him makes me sick to my stomach.

I look at the clock; I have two hours before I need to head out. That is two hours too long to sit here by myself. I take out my phone and play female roulette. I scroll and wherever it stops is who will be keeping me company for the next few hours. I swipe down on my contact list and when it stops, I smile because I am about to have a great time.

* * *

“You working tonight, brother?” Gibson asks before taking a drink of his beer. He has been the only person I have been able to trust since I was released. He used to work in construction with me but got tired of the long hot days so he started his own security business. He knows how miserable I am so he offered me a part time position; I took it as I need something to keep me busy and out of trouble. Plus, it is helping build funds for my business and each shift puts me that much closer to being finished with Frank so it is a win-win

              “Not tonight man, just out for fun.” I have been good all week but there is only so much I can do at home before I lose my sanity. I need to feel the soft skin of a certain brunette female; maybe then I can get her out of my fucking head. I haven’t put too much effort into finding her yet, but if she doesn’t turn up soon, that will have to change.

              “Alright, but keep your nose clean.” I laugh because he knows me so well. I said I was good all week, I didn’t say I was a saint.

              “Fent man, this place is hoppin’.” I was hoping he forgot. I turn to see…Shit! I don’t even know what this dude’s name is.

              “Just wait, it will get better in a few hours. You want a beer?” I may as well be nice to the guy.

              “Beer? Let’s start with some shots!”

              “Good choice, I was thinking more along the lines of tequila?” I cock my eyebrow in question. If he wants to play with the big boys, we’ll play.

              He walks to the bar and I watch him talk to Camille, the bar tender. Her eyes lift to meet mine and she shakes her head. I smile and wink at her as I am excited for the fun to begin.

              Most of the time you can tell when people can’t hold their liquor and I know this guy won’t make it until midnight.

              Two hours, four shots and four beers later I am surprised he is still holding his own. I feel like I need to up the game a little.

              “You see that girl over there?” I point to the short red head that will probably be dancing on the table here soon.

              “Yeah, you know her?”

              “Not yet. But I am going to be licking shots off of her in a little bit.”

              “Awe shit, Fent.”

              I walk over to the bar. The table she and her friends are occupying is just around the corner from where I am. I grab a shot and a beer from Camille.

              “Be good, Fent!” she warns.

              “Now Camille, am I ever bad?” I tilt my head to the side and smirk at her. She smiles, shakes her head and then walks away. That gets ‘em every time.

              I walk over to the table and give them a few seconds to realize that I am standing there. Once they do, I walk around and place my hand on the red head’s shoulder.

              “Ladies, are you enjoying yourself?”

              “We are now,” the feisty red head says, as I knew she would.

              “Please, have a drink on me.” I look down at my new friend and wink at her. Her cheeks begin to turn a beautiful shade of crimson, letting me know that I am almost there. I take a swig of my beer and walk back over to the table.

              “Well? What now?”

              “Nothing,” I say.

              “What do you mean nothing? I thought we were getting one of those girls?”

              I can only laugh at his dumb ass.

              “WE are not getting anything. I am going to wait for her to come to me and then she and I are going to have some fun.”

              “Whatever you say man,” he says as he walks over to the pool table. I take another long pull of my beer and see the redhead walking over to me. I look over to the pool table to make sure he is watching.

              “I just wanted to thank you for the drink.” I smirk at her but don’t look away from the heated game of pool. “Are you here with someone?”

“You.” I make eye contact, to make her feel like she has my attention.

              She gets a shy smile and begins curling her hair around her finger. I can see the need in her eyes.

              “You wanna dance or somethin’?” I stand up and walk around the table to her.

              I lean down and whisper in her ear. “No. What I want to do is lay you on that bar and lick tequila off your body.” Her eyes widen.

              For a moment, I am not sure what she is going to say but then she smiles and I know that I have won.

              “Ok,” she says and takes off for the bar. She climbs on one of the stools and lays herself out on the bar, waiting for me. I laugh, this chick is gonna be fun.

              “You have gotta be fuckin’ kidding me!” I hear him say from the pool table. I look over to him with a smug smile.

              Camille already has my shot ready when I get to the bar. She hands it to me and rolls her eyes. I pick up the shot and look at the redhead before continuing, to make sure she is still ok with this. When she smiles at me, I know we are good.

              I push her green tank up and am very disappointed; she is as narrow as the bar she is lying on. No curves, nothing to hold onto. Wishing I would have just kept my mouth shut and wanting to get this over with quickly, I pour the shot slowly in her navel. Her breath hitches and I think all of the liquid is going to spill over her sides.

              “Lie still, I am not ready for it to spill over yet.” She doesn’t say anything but I feel her body stiffen.

              I begin by circling her navel with my tongue, stopping only momentarily to make sure she doesn’t move. When she doesn’t, I continue. I make one more lap around before dipping my tongue in the liquid and watching it spill out and all down her sides. I lick my lips because this is my favorite part. Starting on her left side, I follow the line of liquid, making sure to get every last drop. The burning liquid mixed with her salty skin tastes phenomenal. Once her left side is clean, I move my eyes up to hers and see her staring back at me intently; I can tell this is her first body shot. I wink at her to ease her mind a bit.

              I move back to her navel and dip my tongue again, to make sure I haven’t missed anything. Once I am satisfied that I haven’t, I move to the other side. While I am lapping up all of the liquid from her soft skin, my hand finds the string to her panties and snaps it against her skin. She yelps and I smile. When I have drunk in all the juice, I make my way to her mouth which is housing my lime. I take my end of it, making sure our mouths do not touch. She tries to put her hands on my chest but I stop her, finish with the lime and stand. She sits up and starts to talk but I am finished with her, so I just turn and walk back to my table.

“Hey, let’s go out back to smoke,” I say to dude as I pass the pool table.

“Just like that? You’re going to leave that girl.”

“What am I supposed to do with her?”

“Oh. I guess I just thought…”

“There is your problem. Let’s go smoke.”

It really is a pain in my ass that we can no longer smoke in bars .We get out to the designated smoking area and I light one up. I am surprised but glad to see that there are no other people out here. I take the little capsule from my pocket, pop the lid and spread a line on my hand. I take the bump and wait a few before I feel the effects taking over my body. The liquor is wearing off and I need something to keep me going. I open my eyes and hold the vile to him. I can see his internal struggle but he decides to take some. After the poison takes effect, we walk back in the bar, without a word being spoken. I have to stop to take a piss, so he walks back to the table without me.

              When I open the door to leave, there stands my little fireball. I have to let my eyes come back to focus a little as the tequila and powder are really starting to take effect. As I walk by her, I wrap my arm around her shoulder, pulling her along with me. The dude she has quickly recovered with doesn’t seem too happy that I stole his piece of ass. However, when he sees my warning glare, he stays put without a word. She isn’t a brunette but she will have to work.

              “Darlin’, I hope you didn’t have plans of going home with him because now you are going home with me.”

              She looks up to me with her big brown, unfocused and glassy eyes. After a few minutes, she smiles and I know she understands what I am telling her. She wraps her arm around my waist and we walk back to the pool table to find my unwanted friend.

Chapter Four

Piper

Work out, go to work and then go to the bar; this has been my routine for the last week. I have been dreaming about being handcuffed and the sound of a deep masculine voice from behind me. I have to see his face again and hear that voice that has been haunting me. It looks as though tonight is going to be no different, though, as I see he isn’t here…again. I have been at a different bar at the district each night with no luck. This is the last one; I hope he decides he needs to be social tonight. The sooner I can get this guy out of my head the better.

“You wanna play a game?” I turn to see Ty, holding out a pool stick. There was a big crowd of people that I didn’t know when I arrived, so I just found a table back in the corner by myself. I am glad to see a friendly face.

“Hey! It’s great to see you!” Phoebe came with me the first couple of nights but after the second night of no success, she told me that it was a lost cause. I met Ty on the first night I was here by myself. I was weary of him at first, being here by myself and all, but he seems like an ok guy. Plus, after talking to him, we discovered that we work for the same company; that eased my mind a little. He is very funny and a pretty good dancer, so it has been fun hanging out with him.

“Just out to have a good time. You in or not?”

“Yeah, I will play. But don’t be a sore loser when I kick your ass.” I usually suck at pool but this must be my week because I have yet to lose.

He looks up to me as he finishes racking the balls and cocks an eyebrow, “How good are you at breaking balls?”

“Don’t get on my bad side and you won’t have to find out.” I wink at him. His shoulder length dirty blond hair is pulled back out of the way while his long frame leans over the table to rack the balls. His chocolate eyes are intent as he pulls the triangle up and the balls stay perfectly in place.

“Like what you see, baby?”

His comment throws me a little but instead of answering, I bend over the table to take my first shot. I hear Ty ask someone something but I don’t pay attention as I focus.

“Damn man, who do we have here?”

My hands begin shaking just as I am about to commit to the shot and my stick just grazes the top of the white ball and nearly flies out of my hand. Goose bumps form as I hear the voice that has been haunting my dreams all week.

“You ok, baby?” Ty asks.

“Oh you got it like that, huh? Calling her baby already?” The mystery man asks in his deep, psyche penetrating voice.

I stand and turn around to see the man who is making all the smart ass comments. I am met with the most beautiful brown eyes and am momentarily speechless. Then I see the red head he has under his arm. I don’t mean to but I think I snarl at her. I can tell by her glossed over gaze that she probably doesn’t even know where she is and it disgusts me.

I stand there feeling incredibly self conscious when he puts out his hand for me to shake. I look down at it like it is a foreign object before my sense returns and finally take it. As soon as I am in his grasp, he pulls me to him. I look momentarily for the girl he had at his side but she is gone.

“Hey sweet cheeks, glad you’re here playing with my balls tonight,” he whispers in my ear. I close my eyes as his voice has awakened my senses. I place one of my hands on the pool table to steady myself as his seduction has taken me off guard. I am not sure what to do next so I open my eyes to see his very hard chest is staring back at me. I raise my eyes to meet his and am met with a very cocky grin. I back away from him as I don’t want to make a spectacle in the middle of the bar. As I do, I assess him and my mouth begins to water. I bet he is every bit of six feet one or two and it looks like he came to the bar straight from work. He has on dirty work boots and jeans that he pulls together with a very tight fitting black tee. His black hair is crazy and his facial hair outlines his jaw line perfectly.

“Nice to see you again,” he says before walking back to his table. I have to stand there a moment to catch my breath after all that. So much for thinking I could see him again and then move on. I have never met anyone who drives me crazy with only his voice. Even if he never speaks to me again, I will remember that voice for the rest of my life.

When he sits down and realizes that I have just watched him walk back to his seat, he cocks an eyebrow at me, then his attention returns to his red headed friend. I scold myself for giving him the attention that he evidently craves but does not deserve.

Two can play this game. I bend down making sure my shirt falls open a bit but there is enough obstruction that he cannot see anything. My eyes move to his and I see them momentarily widen. Good, I am getting to him. Before I take my shot, I wink to let him know I know exactly what the game is.

To my surprise, the ball goes where I want it. I see him nod his head in approval but still he says nothing as he takes another swig of beer. His girlfriend pulls his attention to her and I am disappointed. No, I am not disappointed I am pissed. I want to go rip that girl away from his side. But I contain myself because I don’t want to take her spot; I just want to have some fun with this guy before I leave.

Ty comes over to take his shot after I miss on my next turn. He expertly puts the ball in the right corner pocket. Feeling cocky, he pulls me into a hug and runs his hand across my ass. I pull back and glare at him.

“What the fuck?” I smack his hand away. I start to walk around the table to grab my drink and feel hands pulling me back. When I turn my head, Ty pulls my face to his and our lips collide. My arms begin flailing as I try to push him away from me but he is much bigger than I am, so he isn’t budging. While I am still struggling to escape, I feel someone pulling him away from me.

“What the fuck man? She clearly is telling you to stop.”

“Fent, you got your own girl, leave mine alone.”

He walks up to Ty so they are nose to nose.

“If I wanted your girl I could have her but she clearly doesn’t want you so keep your hands off of her.”

I pull myself free from both of them and smack Ty across the face. He stumbles back, more in amazement than anything, and then stalks off to the bar.

I don’t know where that came from. We have been having drinks and playing pool all week and he hasn’t once tried anything. Once my adrenaline falls a bit, I realize that mystery man is still standing next to me. I know that he has probably just saved me from that lunatic but I am just ready to go. I turn to thank him but I cannot speak, as his eyes are ferocious. I feel a chill go through me. Instead of making an ass of myself further, I just walk away.

I am only footsteps outside when someone grabs my hand. I don’t even have to look to know who it is as he has ignited my body from just his touch.

“I am leaving, please let go.” My voice is shaky from all that has happened. I am really leaning towards taking a shot of something just to calm my nerves.

“Look at me.”

“No. Why won’t you let me leave?”

I hear an exasperated sigh from behind me. I have been here all week to find this man and now that I have I am just going to leave him and all his gorgeousness?

“Listen, Ty is a scumbag. You should be more careful who you hang around.”

“I appreciate the warning, but I will be the judge of who I am around.”

“Well that speaks volumes. Your track record is great so far,” he laughs. He really has some nerve.

“You are here with your girlfriend but yet you are flirting with me. What does that say about you?”

He turns, walks over to the building and leans up against the wall. After gazing at me for a moment, he latches his hands behind his head and leans it back against them and props his boot up. His shirt rises just a bit when he leans back and his hard stomach peaks out. There has to be a law against being so fucking gorgeous; Or at least against knowing how gorgeous you are, and using it to your advantage.

“Are we going to play this game all night? Or, are you just going to come home with me and get it over with?”

I walk up to him and bring my face to within inches of his and whisper, “Not even in your dreams could you have me.”

Before my nerve falters, I graze my lips against his cheek then turn and walk away. I hear him laughing behind me and I am pretty sure I just unleashed a dragon. He seems the type to get what he wants and I have just told him no.

I silently pat myself on the back while driving home as I have never done anything so bold before. However, both occasions we have been together I have noticed he knows how to bring out that side of me. I will never admit this to him but he was right. I really just wanted to go home with him and I am proud of myself for not doing that very thing.

* * *

            
 
Once I am home, I head straight for Phoebe. Her eyes snap to mine when I walk in her room.

              “What’s up chick?”

              I let out a long sigh as I lie back on her bed. After plopping my arm over my eyes, I hear her start squealing.

              “DID YOU FIND HIM?”

              I move part of my arm and open one eye before covering my face back up.

              “Yes.”

              “Details girl, details!” I hear the excitement in her voice because this rarely happens. This situation is usually happening in reverse.

              “He was a dick!”

              “Most guys are, Pipe. It is probably good that you find that out now, though. Now you can move on.”

              “Yeah, that is the plan.”

              “So I have been thinking…”

              “Phoebe, he is gorgeous!” I interrupt her. I remove my arm from my eyes and look over at her, baffled by her silence.

              “Well?”

              “Well what? It doesn’t matter what I say, you won’t listen. Do what you want,” she says as she begins checking her nails.

              “You’re right it doesn’t matter because I will probably never see him again.” I get up to head to my room and she pulls me back down on the bed.

              “Why won’t you see him again?”

              “Well, Ty was there again tonight but he was a little friskier than I liked and he kind of saved me from him.”

              “Well it sounds like it was a good thing he was there but why would that mean you won’t see him again?”

              “He basically thought I was just going to follow him home and I told him I wasn’t. I’m sure he has a line of ladies waiting for his call.”

              She laughs, “Guys like him aren’t usually told no very often, it may work out after all, Piper.”

              “We’ll see. But I’m not sure I even want to see him again because he oozes trouble.” She smiles and I throw a pillow at her before walking out of the room.

* * *

              “I hear you, shut up!” My phone has been going off for the last half an hour; I guess I had better get up. I have to wear sensible clothes and my steel toes today since I will be working on the site of the new school on a special project. I have been holed up in the office, with paperwork, all last week, so I am excited to actually get to work. Even though I was out on the site a couple of times, I was just shadowing and it was very brief. It just isn’t the same.

              After showering, I throw my hair up in a messy bun, put on jeans and my work boots. I grab my cup of coffee and head out. Thankfully, I have been to this particular site a couple of times. The traffic is a little heavy this early but for the directionally challenged, it is an easy drive. Plus, it is only ten minutes from my apartment which is a good thing for people who roll out of bed minutes before it is times to leave.

              “Hey Liam, I am so excited to get to work,” I say after finding him by a box truck sipping coffee. It is already hotter than hell out here. So, I am glad that I decided to put my hair up and wear a sleeveless top. 

              “Good morning, Piper. Unfortunately, I am being called to a different job site so you will be working with our foreman.”

              “Oh ok, sounds good to me. I love working with new people. And, I don’t think I met him the other day.”

              “I hope so,” he says with a half smile. I am sure he can hear the excitement in my voice but I feel like I am missing something. However, I follow without asking anymore questions.

              I am deep in lust with all that is going on around me when I suddenly run into the back of Liam. He smirks over his shoulder and I grin sheepishly. He turns sideways and my mouth drops to the ground. Standing there in his dirty work clothes and a cup of coffee in his hand is…

              “Good morning, fancy meeting you here,” he says with a wink, cutting off my thoughts. I am immobilized both physically and vocally.

              “Piper, this is Fenton, our foreman. You have to watch him, he can be an ass sometimes but he is the best in the business. Let me know if he gives you any shit,” Liam says. He must see the expression on my face because as he walks by he whispers, “Don’t let him sweet talk you, Piper. He is not a one woman kind of guy.”

              “Don’t listen to him, Piper. Anything he tells you is a lie.” Their friendly banter goes back and forth a few minutes. Before Liam walks away, I watch the two of them exchange a look full of respect and it is clear that these two are very good friends. I begin thinking about the bar the other day and he already seems like such a different person.