Resisting Perfection (The Perfection Series Book 2) (14 page)

I flip the cakes to the other side once the bubbles begin forming on the top. I feel the pair of expectant eyes burning a hole in the back of my head waiting for an answer.

“I don’t know what you want me to say. Let’s just see how it goes today, ok?”

“Sure, I can do that. Can I ask one thing though?”

“Ok.”

“How much is it going to affect the pancakes if I forgot to add the butter?” My head whips to the side and his childish snickering makes me laugh.

“Oh my gosh, Shane! How could you forget the butter?” I smack at his chest, playfully.

“I don’t know what is going on in here but I love the sound of my daughter laughing.”

“Well, we were making pancakes but someone forgot to add the butter.” Shane’s hands go up in mock surrender and everyone in the kitchen begins laughing.

“They’ll be fine,” I say, flipping the cakes on a plate. Shane and my dad take their plates to the table while I gather the syrup, forks and butter. Once I have everything, I sit down and relish in the irony of eating breakfast with my father and Shane.

Chapter Ten

Fenton

Dark clouds swirl in my mind as my head rolls from one shoulder to the other. Its heavy pounding is making me sick to my stomach. Lethargy is taking over but I have to fight it.  I can’t figure out where I am if I’m passed out.

The room is deafening quiet. My breathing halts briefly so I can make out the faintest of sounds. Nothing. Sweat beads on the back of my neck as I try to pull my hands from the binds that hold them behind my back. The more I pull at them the more my wrists burn. Good. I need the pain. Pain brings clarity and in my current state, clarity is welcome.

The clarity is beginning to vanish. I shake my head to gain some composure but it only makes it worse as it only moves slightly and then stops. It’s too much movement for my lack of energy. As the haze begins taking over, her silhouette glows with goodness. I try to reach for her but my bound hands put a stop to that. Her long strands of dark hair hanging over her beautiful shoulders become clearer as she moves closer. Her intense brown eyes stare back at me, full of sadness. She brings comfort as her hand cradles my cheek.

“It will be ok,”
her soft voice assures me.

“Piper, I can’t move. Help me!” I plead.

“Shhh! You have to help yourself; I can’t do it for you. Just know I’m standing with you and you can summon strength from me.”
She bends and her soft lips graze mine so gently that I’m not sure if it really happened.

“I have faith in you.”
Her brown eyes twinkle with gentleness and it’s the most calming experience I have ever encountered. However, it only lasts a few seconds.

“Piper?” I call out as she turns to walk away. “Piper, I love you! Don’t leave me!” The warmth begins sliding down my cheeks as she moves farther and farther away. I begin pulling at my bounds. I don’t care if I rip my hands off, I need her. I need to stop her before she leaves me.

“For the last time Piper is not here and I’m really tired of cleaning up your fucking blood. Stop trying to get out of those binds because it’s not happening.”

His voice swirls around me, attacking my incoherence. I begin having flashbacks from last night when Decker was spewing his venom at me in the car. That’s the last thing I remember. I don’t remember walking in here or when we got here or even where here is.

I try to open my eyes but intense pain shoots through my head.

“Relax, my friend. All in due time,” he whispers and I think I am going to be sick.

“What the fuck? Where am I?” Rage begins pouring out of me. If my damn hands weren’t tied to this chair, I would murder him right now. I’d really like to know how he got me in here. His laughter fills the small room at my lack of ability and my heart rate picks up at the thought of him laughing at me.

“GODDAMN IT, DECKER! WHERE AM I?” I scream and immediately feel pain in my left cheek from his large hand.

“I said all in due time.” His voice is smooth, not affected at all by the situation. He’s the same Decker from all those years ago. It didn’t matter what kind of assignment we were on, he kept that cool demeanor the whole time. Even when we were running for our lives and bullets were flying. His voice still lingers in the back of my head telling me if I die, it’s my own fault because if I follow the rules I will always be on offense. That’s the goal of any scenario, being on offense or in charge of the outcome. The moment you give up control of the outcome, you’re finished. This man can walk into any situation no matter what it is, and come out on top. Even when he doesn’t know what he’s walking into. I envied him back then and even now I wish I could be in control of every aspect of my life without having to worry about repercussions. The only problem with the life he leads is sometimes you end up in situations like these, where you are holding your friend hostage. I never had luck with those situations and that’s why I would never have made it in his life as long as he has.

“We were partners, Decker…”

“I thought you knew by now alliances belong with the highest bidder. You made it clear yesterday you walked out on the life a long time ago. Old partners or not, I can’t place trust in someone who gives up so easily. Remember this,” he walks over to the door, adding, “use those street smarts I taught you all those years ago and you may survive.” He slams the door behind him.

The room is silent. I wish I could say the same for the pounding in my head. I wish Piper would show her face again. Although I know she was only here because of my drug induced dream, I will take any comfort she is offering. I need her strength, her strong will to do the right thing in life. I’ve never known someone who had so much passion and strength. She sees something she wants and she takes it. I can’t imagine what she went through going to school to be an architect; a field that is dominated by males. I do know whatever she felt no one knew about it as she always keeps her head held high with confidence.

Just thinking of Piper builds my strength. I raise my head and scan the room for anything that may be of use. There’s nothing, it’s completely empty. I don’t know why I thought he would leave me anything useful. He wants me to go crazy as he knows being caged is one of my worst fears. Although it may not seem this way, I need control in my life and if I am locked in this fucking cage, I can’t keep Piper or Cam safe. I can’t continue my plan to catch Gibson’s killer. In essence, I can’t bring some semblance of peace to my life.

“FUCK!” My voice echoes in the small, bare room. How did I get myself in this situation? I never get in the car with anyone for this very reason. I’ve watched shit happen that would never have gone down if people weren’t so trusting. I lived my life this way and somehow managed to stay alive. The one time I let my guard down, look what happens. In my defense, I never thought I’d have to worry about Decker. Yes, he’s as unpredictable as they come but I thought I was exempt. But according to his logic from earlier, I’m only another pawn in his game and that sucks.

I move my wrists slightly to gauge how tight he’s tied the knot. He hasn’t left much give. I didn’t expect it. First things first, I need to figure out how to get out of this damn chair. The back covers the bottom fourth of my back which is going to present a small challenge but I’ve been known to take on bigger. If I can gain enough momentum, I should be able to stand. However, whether or not I can bring my arms from behind the chair at the same time is a different story. Actually, I’m a little surprised my feet aren’t tied together as well but thank God for small miracles.

Sliding my feet to the side, I take a couple deep breaths so I can build momentum. With my head being so foggy this could be dangerous. Normally, I would take my own advice but I have no time, I need to figure out a way to get out of here.

Once my feet are to the side, I sit back a little and push myself forward. I try to plant my feet flat to keep my balance but all I accomplish is making myself dizzy. Instead of continuing, I try to catch my breath. This is going to be more difficult than I thought. With the room spinning around me, my head rolls to the side and I decide to let it rest on my shoulder until I can stop the pounding that is making my eyes hurt. I don’t know what Decker gave me but fuck!

“I expected better from you, Fent. You’ve seen this scenario too many times to rush it. Granted you were on this side but you should know better than to try to make a run for it before you are able. Let yourself heal and try again when you’re able.”

“I don’t understand. You drug me, tie me in this chair and now you’re giving me advice on when to escape? I don’t follow, Decker.”

“I will explain when it’s time, trust me.”

“I thought I could trust you but evidently not. I left the life. I don’t know why you would take it so personal. We were partners, Decker. I would have given my life for you and you know what? I probably still would have and this is how you repay me.”

“As I said earlier, my allegiance lies with the highest bidder. It’s your turn not to take it personal. If it weren’t you, it would be someone else. We just happen to have a past.”

He leans against the wall while I sit here trying to gain my composure and figure out a plan B.

“Please tell me you’re not going after Piper or Cam?”

“Why are you so worried about Cam,” he asks, cocking his head to the side. “I didn’t think the two of you were together?”

“We aren’t but that doesn’t mean I can’t worry about her.”

“No, there’s more to it than that. What am I missing?”

“Nothing. You just seem to care about no one but yourself so I want to know what to expect.”

“You forget you’re an awful liar and that I know that about you.”

“Just know that when I get out of these bounds, and I will get out of them, I will slit your throat if I find out either of them are hurt. Either way, you have an ass kicking coming.” He laughs and it infuriates me.

“We’ll see. I’m going now but can you do me a favor? Make sure the next time you try to get out of that chair you aren’t just making yourself look like a fool.”

Piper

“One…two...three…FREE PARKING! YES! Give me my money!” I shout as I move my car to the hottest spot on the Monopoly board.

“Piper, we’ve been over this a thousand times. You don’t get the kitty money when you land on free parking.”

“I’m not arguing, read the rules, it states that you do plain as day.”

“That definitely sounds like arguing,” he laughs.

“No, I’m just explaining why I’m right.”

“Can I ask you a serious question?”

“Of course.” Honestly, I don’t know what I’ve just agreed to. At this point in our relationship, his questions have a wide range.

“Where is Fenton and why did you feel the need to drive all the way to Ohio to get away from him.”

“I’m not going to talk about my situation with Fenton; it’s no one’s business but ours. Adding to that, I didn’t only leave because of him. I also wanted some time away from you. I didn’t know how to handle what you told me and coupling that with the situation I was already dealing with, I broke down and thought a change of scenery was necessary.”

“But here I am.”

“Here you are,” I nod my head.

“That has to say something that I am here and he isn’t.”

“Shane, I don’t think that’s fair. You have no idea what is going on with him.”

“Not this time but I do know he always has some kind of issue with something or someone. I also know you don’t need that in your life, Pipe. You are doing so well for yourself; you don’t need someone bringing you down. I know I don’t have a lot of room to talk but I’m working on my faults. Plus, we’ve known each other so long that we can get back to normal like nothing ever happened. That’s why I’m here, to show you what we are missing by letting this one situation come between us.”

“Shane…”

“Shh!” he places his finger over my lips. “I know it’s not just some small situation. I know I have a lot of work in front of me but trust me, when you told me we couldn’t be friends, it broke my fuckin’ heart. You’re my girl, you have my heart. Whether you want to hear it or not, you belong to me.”

He has a good point. We’ve gotten along very well today but that’s because we’re friends and friends have fun together.

“I told myself this morning when I ran into you I needed to put up with you while you were here and get you on your way but I have to admit, we’ve had a great day. I mean, it never gets old beating you at Monopoly.” I wink at him. He stands and my heart skips a beat with anticipation. He slides into the seat next to me and cradles my face in his hand. My eyes close and as much as I want to fight it, his hand brings comfort. Comfort I’m used to, comfort I’ve missed and comfort I don’t want to lose. He scoots in close and my breath hitches just before he brings his lips to mine. His kiss is gentle, tasting of mint from his gum. I give in, resisting the urge to fight against him.

“Pipe, I’ve never tasted lips so sweet. Please tell me you’ve forgiven me. I can’t stand knowing what I’ve done to you. I NEED you. I need your soft skin against mine, I need your beautiful eyes staring back at me when I wake in the morning and I need that beautiful mind of yours to get me through the day. I tried to stay away as you asked but I can’t. I love you so much and I need us to be back to where we were.”

“We’ve never been in a relationship like you’re offering, so it’s not fair to ask me to be normal with you again while telling me you love me.”

“Fair enough but are you willing to give us a shot?”

“I appreciate the effort. It means a lot to know you care enough about our friendship to drive all the way here.” I stop a minute to gather my thoughts. “I knew we were going to be friends the first time I met you. I could tell you were smart by the questions you asked in class and you seemed to shy away from drama. When I found out your mother had passed from cancer, I knew I found a kindred soul. Even when I didn’t know what I was feeling, you helped me through it. That’s what friends are for, Shane, being there for one another. We were that for each other for a long time. I would like our friendship to continue but that’s up to you. I’m sorry, I know this isn’t what you want to hear but my heart belongs to someone else. I can’t give you what you want. Can we be friends again? Possibly, but that’s all it can be.”

“Is it because of Fenton?”

“Partly. I just told you he’s my future but you had a hand in our falling out, please don’t forget that.”

“You’d be willing to give up our history for someone you only met a few weeks ago?”

“I thought you were changing? If you were, you’d accept what I’m telling you and take the friendship I am offering.”

“I have to keep faith you’ll change your mind. I plan to prove to you I’ve changed so you have no other option but to stay with me. You won’t even remember Fenton in a few weeks.” He smiles contently believing every word he just said. It kind of makes me feel guilty for not giving him a chance. I hope he is telling me the truth about staying clean, not just for me but for his own sake. He’s come too far in his life only to mess it up by becoming a junkie.

“It’s your turn, I just bought Reading Railroad,” he laughs.

“You asshole, you know I buy all of them!”

“Yes, but what fun is this game without a little friendly competition?”

“Haha! Look at that, sucker! Indiana Avenue, the last red I need to add to my pile. And guess what? I have enough money to add hotels. Booya!”

Begrudgingly, he takes my hard earned Monopoly money and hands me my hotel.

“Skipping right to hotels, huh?” he asks.

“Architect…” I remind him.