Enemies and Playmates (17 page)

Lauren finally stood. She was trembling so badly that she was afraid her legs would collapse. She shook her head but couldn’t speak.

“One other thing, Lauren,” Alex said. “Don’t get any ideas about running away with Ryder. If you leave here with him, your mother may not survive the trauma.”

“Are you threatening to -”

“I am not making threats. Merely observations.” Alex fixed his eyes on Lauren a moment. Then he turned and, as he strolled from the room, said, “Sleep well, my dear.”

***

Lauren arrived at McGuire’s Pub fifteen minutes late. She’d considered not going at all. She’d been circling the block, phone in hand, ready to call Jesse. But tell him what? Simply break their relationship off, with no explanation? Admit that her father was going to kill him if she didn’t stay away? Tell him she needed time? Space? A new family? A lobotomy?

Her head throbbed. Her stomach twisted and churned. The little sleep she’d gotten the previous evening had been riddled with vivid dreams of her father brutally murdering Jesse while she was forced to watch. The blame was hers. She’d been warned.

“Geesh, do I look that bad?” Lauren asked as she slipped into the seat opposite Jesse. He simply looked at her. She sighed and said, “I had a rough night.”

“What happened?”

Lauren’s jaw quivered. The only good in her life was slipping away. Maybe if she knew what had happened between Jesse and her father. Maybe if she understood, she’d be able to fight somehow. She avoided Jesse’s riveting gaze. If she looked into his eyes, the words would never come.

Lauren’s vision blurred with the flood of tears that threatened her eyes. She shook her head, stared down at the table. Jesse said, “This is about your father, right?”

Lauren sucked in a breath, almost a gasp, as she fought the tears. Part of her wanted to flee this place, to run back to her room and hide there forever. She’d known better than to let a man close to her. But the bigger part of her wanted nothing more than to crumble into Jesse’s arms, to be held and protected.

Jesse leaned across the table. “Lauren, look at me,” he said softly. “Is this what you want?”

A tear slid down Lauren’s cheek. She shook her head, unable to speak. She didn’t look up, still hadn’t met Jesse’s eyes. If she did, she would get lost there forever.

Jesse reached across the table. He grasped Lauren’s hand in his, squeezed gently. “Tell me what’s going on,” he said.

Lauren took a deep breath and brought her gaze up to meet Jesse’s. Her attention was immediately drawn to the slight purple bruise beneath his left eye. “What happened to you?” she asked.

Jesse swiped a hand through his hair. He averted his eyes. For a moment he sat quietly, his expression uneasy, conflicted. In that moment, Lauren was sure of the answer. Still, she needed to hear him say it. She needed him to be honest.

“Yes,” Jesse finally said. “Someone who works for him.”

Lauren nodded, not shocked but sickened just the same. “I don’t understand,” she said softly. “But I can’t let him do this to you. I can’t lose another person I…” Lauren stopped, unsure how to end that sentence. She’d almost said another person I love, which would have been disastrous. She let it go and said, “He wants me to stop seeing you. Then he’ll leave you alone.”

Jesse squeezed Lauren’s hand tighter. He leaned close. Shaking his head, he said, “That won’t happen. And I don’t want to lose you.”

Just then, a young waitress with short dark hair and a bright smile appeared. Her gaze lingered on Jesse as she asked about drinks. Jesse quickly interrupted. “I’m sorry,” he said. “We have to go.”

He fished a ten-dollar bill from his pocket and dropped it on the table. Then he grabbed Lauren’s hand, leading her out to his car. Once inside, he pulled her close and murmured, “I’m not afraid of your father, Lauren.”

Jesse nodded. “Okay,” he said. “Your father wanted me to get rid of evidence. And fabricate new evidence. He wanted me to set a guy up for murder so that his client could walk free.”

Lauren took a deep breath, then told Jesse about her conversation with her father. When she’d finished, Jesse asked, “Are you afraid of him?”

Lauren thought for a moment. She was afraid for her mother. Sometimes she was sure her father would go too far. She was certainly afraid for Jesse. She’d once been afraid for Stephen and her fears had proved justified. But was she afraid for herself?

“Sometimes,” she finally said. “But my father usually controls his anger more around me. I don’t understand it. He’s slapped me a few times but he’d never beat me. My mom and Stephen… Now just my mom. He hits her pretty frequently.”

Jesse’s muscles tensed. He held Lauren close. Silence hung between them. The sounds of traffic filtered into the car. A few minutes passed. His voice was quiet and sad when he spoke. “Why does she stay?”

“Fear,” Lauren said. “Money? I really don’t know.”

Then, in the quiet confines of Jesse’s Mustang, Lauren began to share her secrets. At first it was strange to say the words out loud, almost as if she was discussing someone else’s life. Gradually the words came more easily. The stories became real. This was her life. No longer denying that was both terrifying and freeing.

Jesse wiped away her stream of tears with a tenderness that made her heart ache. She drew a deep breath and said, “I’m really afraid of what he’ll do, Jesse.”

Their eyes met, then their lips. In that moment, Lauren had no doubt that she belonged with Jesse. This was the man she wanted to spend forever with. The realization further terrified her.

Lauren eased away from the kiss that had her heart thumping wildly. “You need to get back to work,” she said. “And I need to get to class.”

He traced his fingers lightly over her lips. “I wish this didn’t have to be so difficult,” he said. “But I really love… being with you.”

***

Lauren trudged up the stairs to her room, her arms overloaded with books. No sooner had she dropped them onto her desk than her cell phone rang. She retrieved it from her purse while digging her history book from the bottom of the pile. She answered without bothering to check the caller ID, a mistake she instantly regretted.

Hearing Gina’s voice set Lauren on edge. Her grip grew tight on the phone. Her breath caught in her throat. She was about to disconnect the call when Gina began speaking quickly. “I’m so sorry about what happened,” she said. “I never meant to hurt you.”

“When hell freezes over,” Lauren said. She disconnected the call, squeezing the phone tightly and barely keeping herself from throwing it across the room.

An unexpected sadness swept over her. In a way, Gina was simply another one of her father’s victims. Gina had no idea what he was truly like. She never saw the arrogant, self-righteous bastard that stomped on anyone who happened to be in his way. She’d never experienced his violent mood swings.

Or had she?

Lauren dropped her head into her hands. A sound escaped her throat, something between a groan and a sob. Gina was nothing more than another trophy, one of her father’s playthings. But, unfortunately for Gina, she probably believed his act, believed he loved her.

Lauren remained at her desk for close to an hour. She stared at her history book but didn’t get one page read. She couldn’t concentrate. Finally she gave up the pretense. She had a date to get ready for. The one bright spot in her life.

She took a long shower, then tore her closet apart in search of the perfect outfit. Naturally the perfect outfit did not exist. She settled on a pair of Skinny jeans and a green sweater that matched her eyes. What to wear under her clothes was an even bigger problem. She wanted something sexy but not too obvious. She didn’t want Jesse to think she’d been expecting to sleep with him tonight. Not that she was… really.

Finally deciding on a white lace set by Aubade, Lauren dressed, applied make-up, and fixed her hair. A glance at her clock told her she was running late. Too much procrastination. Since when did panties become such a huge decision?

Lauren hadn’t seen her mother, so she left a note on the kitchen counter. Out in her car, she suddenly felt the urge to throw up. Why were her nerves getting the best of her tonight? It wasn’t like this was their first date. And they’d been alone lots of times.

But now it was different. She could no longer deny that she was in love.

Yes, she admitted it, if only to herself. The thought terrified her. How could she have let this happen? She almost laughed at that. A better question was how could she have stopped it? And what was she going to do about it now?

Lauren managed to get to Jesse’s place without having a nervous breakdown. The building looked larger than she remembered, brand new brick and each apartment had a private balcony. Things she hadn’t noticed before.

She took the elevator up to the fifth floor and walked down the wide hallway toward Jesse’s apartment. Her heart raced. Her hands shook. She silently cursed herself for being so out of control. Several deep breaths did little to relax her.

Jesse pulled the door open, greeting her with a dazzling smile. “Hi beautiful,” he said.

Suddenly he was standing there, sexy and confident, and her nerves dissolved into desire. She heard her own voice greeting him while allowing him to lead her inside. A dream-like fog engulfed her and she understood why people said that loves makes you crazy.

Lauren settled onto the soft black leather sofa. “Something smells good,” she said.

“Lasagna,” Jesse said. “Get comfortable. I’ll grab the wine.”