The Watcher (4 page)

*****

Lily

I was sober enough by now to head out for some fresh air. I needed to get home…to what I wasn’t sure of. I kissed Emma on the cheek, made sure she was good by herself, and made my way outside. I walked quickly to my car, feeling eyes on me yet again. I scanned the lot, but there were so many cars that I’d never be able to find him. I opened my door, only to feel it being pushed closed. My nostrils were assaulted with whiskey and stale cigarettes and a masculine voice said, “Hey baby, what’s the rush?” I froze in fear and slowly turned around. I was greeted by the beady eyes and drunken sneer of a very large stranger. I mumbled that he must have mistaken me for someone else. He laughed, making my heart pound, and he said, “Nope, you’re the fat slut from the dance floor.” I cringed at the word fat, knowing I should be used to it by now.

I tried to sidestep my way out but he quickly put both of his beefy arms onto my Beetle, effectively trapping me. I began to panic and couldn’t think straight. All I could smell was his putrid breath, and all I could see were those beady eyes burning with hatred and lust. I took a deep breath, willing myself to think. I could scream, but he might hit me or pull a weapon. I could hit my car’s panic button, but no one pays attention to car alarms anymore. I could try to kick him in the groin, but I feared I might miss and piss him off. I was out of options and in an all-out panic when I caught a glint of silver at his throat. A deep voice almost whispered, “Back away from the lady and I won’t slit your throat from ear to ear.” His eyes grew wide in fear as he took a step backwards. I instantly recognized that whisper. I held my breath, waiting for this scene to play out.

My attacker tried to turn around, but green eyes held the knife a little closer. I could see a drop of blood trickle down my attacker’s thick throat and I felt a small thrill at being rescued. Green eyes started to slowly walk backwards, pulling my attacker with him. Once they were about 10 feet away from me, he pushed the heavy man forward and I watched him stumble away very quickly without looking back.

Once he was gone out of our sight, green eyes flicked the knife back and put it in his pocket. He raised his head and stared openly at me. His breathing was heavy, like he had just gone for a run. I watched his chest rise and fall and wondered what was under that baggy sweatshirt. His hood had come down and I could see his hair was black, slightly wavy, and overgrown. He shook his head and a curl fell into his eyes. I was still frozen in my spot, also breathing heavily. I had no idea what to say or do and I didn’t want to break the spell his stare had once again cast over me.

He approached me slowly, as one would a wild animal that had been backed into a corner. I just stared into those eyes, numb to the coolness of the night, and deaf to the activity of the bar near us. He lifted his arm and ran a finger down my cheek, wiping a tear away in the process. I hadn’t even known I was crying. He said quietly, “It’s ok. He’s gone now. You’re ok.” I let out the breath I was holding and sobbed in another one.  I kept staring into his eyes as I quietly nodded. He lifted his other hand and wiped away another tear. “Do you need to leave right away?” he asked. I shook my head no, still unable to speak. I wasn’t sure if it was the shock of almost being attacked, or the spell his eyes had cast over me.

“Walk with me for a while,” he said. It was more of a command than a question. I nodded again and took a step forward. He took my hand, gently prying the keys from me. He locked my Beetle and put the keys into my jacket pocket, but never let go of my hand. I knew he had to have felt my wedding ring, but I didn’t say anything.

We began to walk down the sidewalk and into the nearby neighborhood. It was late, so many of the streetlamps were off. The street was dimly lit by some of the porch lights. He began to quietly hum
Hang
by MB20. His voice was melodic and calming. I could feel the calluses on his palm and the strength of his fingers as he lightly held my hand. He hadn’t put the hood back up, giving me a chance to study his profile. He had high cheekbones, a large almost Romanesque nose that had a slight bump in the middle, a strong chin covered in a goatee of thick, dark facial hair. His moustache was neatly trimmed and connected to his goatee around his full lips.  He was tall, over six feet, and towered over my 5’4”. He must have felt my eyes on him, because I saw the side of his mouth rise up into that same slight smirk he had given me at the bar. Busted.

I opened my mouth to say something, but had no idea what I should be saying. I stuttered a few times and finally mumbled, “thank you”. He stopped walking, turned to look at me, and my heart leapt into my throat. He ran his finger down my cheekbone once more, causing my breath to hitch. He was still humming
Hang
, and I couldn’t help but think it was on purpose. Some of the lyrics popped into my head and I thought, ‘
How could he know how much that song spoke to me?
’ It was like those green eyes pierced my tough exterior and looked right into the cloudy depths of my soul. He sang the final lyrics, softly so that only I could hear, and my heart almost stopped
.

He let that last note fade into the night and I continued to stare at him. My mouth was slightly open and my breathing was labored. His face was as beautiful as his voice. I was light-headed and began to wonder if I was actually dreaming up this entire night. No one this beautiful would ever even look at me let alone stare so openly and sweetly sing to me.

He took my other hand in his free one and stooped down to look at me closely. “Better now?” he asked quietly. I nodded slowly, still unable to form words. He smiled and my breath caught. “Stunning,” slipped out of my mouth before I could stop it. My face burned bright red and I was thankful for the darkness.

Stunning?” he repeated questioningly. I shook my head, trying to clear it. I might as well finish my thought, as the foolishness had already spilled from me in a moment of insanity.

*****

Gabriel

Dammit, I lost sight of her. She was in a hurry all of a sudden. That jackass at home probably had her worried that she was out too late. One of these days I was going to sucker punch him right in his big fucking mouth.

I hurried outside to make sure she got to her car ok when I saw that disgusting pig from the dance floor hovering over my Lily. I couldn’t see her, but I felt her fear as clearly as if it were my own. Less than a second later, I held my pocket knife at his throat and made it clear who was in charge here. Never taking my eyes off Lily’s, I backed a safe distance away from her with lard ass and shoved him off towards the road.

Once he was out of sight, I saw Lily’s breath catch and the tears that threatened to fall. I needed to get her away from this spot for a few minutes, and let her calm down before driving home. Approaching her slowly, I never broke eye contact. I took deep breaths, trying to calm my own rage, and hoped she’d do the same. Her eyes were so wide and a tear escaped down her cheek. Before I knew what I was doing, I had reached out and wiped it away.

“It’s ok, he’s gone now. You’re safe.” She took a deep, sobbing breath and I wiped away another tear. “Do you need to leave right away?” She shook her head no, apparently still in shock. “Walk with me for a while,” I said. It wasn’t a request, and somehow she knew it. I wasn’t big on requests anyway. I wanted what I wanted, when I wanted it. I had a way about me that made people agree, so that worked in my favor. I took her keys and tucked them away in her pocket, took her small hand in mine, and led her away from the parking lot.

As we walked, I began to hum my favorite Matchbox Twenty song,
Hang
. It was meant to calm her nerves, but it began to help mine too. I didn’t want to scare her with my anger so I tried to relax my shoulders and look less intimidating. I wasn’t a small man, and after what she had just been through, I didn’t want her running away from me in fear. Later, however, I would find that asshole and make him pay. For now, I just wanted a few more minutes with her.

I continued to hum as she stared openly at my profile. My hood had come down and I hadn’t bothered to put it back up. I wanted to know if she liked what she saw. I could feel her eyes travel down my face, taking in all the sharp angles and felt her breath catch. I couldn’t help but smirk a little. Yeah, she liked what she saw. I could tell she was struggling to find something to say and I heard a small “thank you” come out. I stopped walking and turned to face her. She was so beautiful and I wanted to let her know so I sang the last few lines of the song instead of humming. I knew she’d always wanted a man to sing to her, so this would definitely make its mark. I took a chance and ran my finger down her cheek once more, singing directly to her.

Those beautiful eyes of hers widened in something other than fear and I knew I’d made an impression. She was warring with wanting more and thinking she didn’t deserve it. That fucking Ryan had stolen her confidence and I wanted to rip his heart out for it. I wanted so much to tell her all the beautiful things she deserved to hear, but I knew that would take time. Instead I took her hand in mine and stooped down to look her in the eye.

“Better now?” I asked. She nodded slowly and I smiled at her encouragingly.

“Stunning,” she said.

“Stunning?” I inquired as an incredibly sexy blush crept up her cheeks.

*****

Lily

“You,” I said, “you’re stunning.” His slight smirk returned and he said thank you. He let go of one of my hands and turned us around and started walking us back to my car. We hadn’t gone very far and we reached the parking lot quickly, too quickly.  I didn’t want this night to end. He pulled out a business card from his hoodie and tucked it into my jacket pocket.

“Text me when you get home so I know you arrived safely.” Again, I nodded, looking up into those emerald eyes, afraid of speaking (should anything else pop out unexpectedly). He brought my hand to his lips and lightly kissed it, pulled my keys from my pocket and unlocked my door. He placed the keys in my hand and opened the door for me, all the while still holding my hand until I was seated. I pulled on my seatbelt and started the engine. He slowly closed my door and I heard him whisper “Goodnight Lily”. He knew my name.
He
knew
my
name. I stared up at him and he mouthed “text me” and began to walk away. I turned on my lights and pulled out of my spot. I saw him watching me, yet again, as I left the parking lot and I finally smiled.
‘What the hell just happened?’
I asked myself shaking my head.

I turned on my Pandora Radio hoping for a song that would fit my mood.
Zombie
by The Cranberries was on. Perfect. I had been a zombie for years now. Roaming aimlessly through my life, taking what little nourishment came my way, feeding off the scraps that were tossed to me by my husband, my boss, my family. Tonight was the first night in way too long that I had actually felt alive. I could still feel the slight brush of his lips on my hand and the caress of his callused fingers on my face. His voice echoed over and over in my head, “Goodnight Lily,” so soft, yet deep and almost scratchy. I wondered what he did for a living and remembered he had tucked a business card into my pocket. It suddenly struck me that I had no idea what his name was. I couldn’t wait to get home and study every last detail of that card.

I pulled into my space, ran up to the second floor, and quietly let myself in. Ryan had fallen asleep on the couch still watching the TV at a loud volume. I sighed and turned it down slightly. I knew if I turned it off, he’d wake up and come to bed. I needed to be alone. I was so hoping he’d actually be out tonight, like I had asked. I swear he stayed here tonight just to spite me, or maybe Katie was busy, ha. I wanted the house to myself. This whole night was a blur and I needed to go through the details in my mind and figure out what exactly had happened.  Anything could have happened with that drunken ogre, but it was like this green-eyed beauty of a man was my very own personal guardian angel. He’d swooped right in and made the man go away. Then he’d been able to calm and soothe me with just a short walk and a few words.

I changed into my ratty yoga pants and shelf tank and turned off the light. I had grabbed the business card and made myself comfy amidst the pillows, blankets, and kitties. I pulled out the card and put it in the light from my phone. It was blank, save for a single phone number. There was no name, no business, nothing. I wondered if this was a joke. I thought back to the way he had gently brushed away my tears and how he had known I wasn’t ready to go home yet. He was so calming and so caring. This couldn’t be a joke, right?

I took a deep breath and texted him, “made it home ok
.”
Should I say something else? I had no idea if this was even him. I pressed send, held my breath, and just waited. It seemed it was an iPhone, as the typing symbol popped up. Good sign!

“
Took you long enough
” popped up on my screen. YES! It was him. Whew. I smiled and wondered if he had missed me. I started typing my reply.

“Thank you again for everything. You saved my life tonight. I shudder to think what might have happened if you weren’t nearby”

“You’re welcome.”
It would seem he wasn’t much of a talker. I had no idea what to say next, so I just waited.

He typed “Did you fall asleep?”

“LOL no, just don’t want to say anything else that will make my face turn bright red.”

“Lily?”

“Yes?”

“I can’t see you ;)”

“Oh, well, ha ha.”

I was so nervous and had no idea why. This guy was a complete stranger. I was an overweight receptionist with a sorry excuse for a husband drooling on the couch, who spent her days typing memos and editing other people’s work. There was nothing appealing about me whatsoever. This would most likely be the last I’d ever hear from this guy.

“I don’t know your name,” I finally typed.

“You will.”

“Um, ok?”

“Oh and Lily?”

“Yeah?”

“I find you to be stunning as well. Sweet Dreams.”

*****

Gabriel

After walking her back to her car and slipping my business card into her pocket, I followed her home. Without her knowing, of course, I didn’t want her to think of me as some sort of creepy stalker. I just wanted to make sure she got home safely, or so I kept telling myself. In reality, I just wasn’t ready to call it a night. Revealing myself to her today had been so much better than I had dreamed of. I’ve loved her from the shadows for so long, I had no idea how incredible it would be to be near her and have her actually see me.

I sat in the backseat of her car, watching so many emotions go through her. She smiled and frowned and looked pensive. So much had happened for her today and I knew she was emotionally exhausted. I saw her rub the pocket that held my card and the grin that broke out on her face took my breath away. This gave me hope that she was thinking of me too. Yeah, I sound like a teenaged girl, I know. As lame as it sounds though, it felt amazing. I’d fallen for girls before, but they’d never lasted. They liked my fat bank account, or my pretty face, but they couldn’t keep up with my particular “appetite.”

And once, only once, had I let someone know the truth about what I was, and that ended in disaster. Lily was different though. She kept so much bottled up inside, but I was able to see her fantasies and her desires. Through all that self-consciousness and lack of confidence, I knew she was the one that would accept me for who and what I was. Just thinking about her succumbing to some of my “appetite” made me hard as hell. That luscious body was perfect for the things I wanted to do to it.

After she made sure Ryan was asleep and got ready for bed, I sat down in her reading chair and waited. She pulled out the business card and I watched her face fall. No, no, no! She thought it was a joke. I had only put my number on it, wanting to keep the mystery that had built today. I gave her a mental nudge to try texting me. Thank fuck it worked. She pulled out her phone and shot me a quick text.

A simple
Made it home ok
appeared on my screen. She was so shy, and I loved every second of it. I pushed it a little with my text, hoping to make her smile.

Took you long enough
I typed back. I wanted her to know I missed her already. Even though I was right next to her, it wasn’t the same as her knowing I was there. I’d only gotten a small dose of her seeing me, but I was already an addict. Her grin lit up the entire room. She texted me back, thanking me for saving her life and I sent her a simple
You’re welcome
. I was hoping she’d flirt back, give me some of that sass I knew was in her.

She just sat there staring at the screen until it went dark, so I asked her if she’d fallen asleep. She giggled and admitted she didn’t want to embarrass herself any more tonight. How fucking adorable. I reassured her that I couldn’t see her. Yeah, I’m a shameless liar too. She giggled nervously once more and told me she didn’t know my name. I watched that horrible doubt come back over her face and fisted my hands at my sides as I stood up. Ryan was so close I could hear him snore and that made it harder to not go into the living room and strangle the shit out of him for hurting her.

I texted her back
You will.
I fully intended to see her in the very near future and introduce myself properly.

Oh, and Lily?

Yeah?

I find you to be stunning as well
I typed and watched her face light up once more. I wanted to find more ways to bring that look back. I watched her snuggle under her covers and hug her pillow. At the risk of sounding like that teenaged girl again, I secretly hoped she was picturing snuggling with me.

*****

Gabriel

As much as I wanted to crawl into bed with her and comfort her through the night, I forced myself to go home. I knew she’d hit up Starbucks the next day, so I’d get up early and head over. Now that I’d gotten a taste of what it felt like to have her smile at me, I wanted more. Thinking about the way she smelled, the way she felt pressed up against me on the dance floor, the intense stare she had while studying me, it was clouding my mind to the point where I couldn’t focus on anything else. I needed a cold shower or I swear my dick would have exploded.

Walking into my apartment, I readjusted myself in my jeans and headed to grab a beer. I turned on the TV as a distraction. Her beautiful hazel eyes popped into my head and I couldn’t help but think of the way she moved on the dance floor. Her body had curves in all the right places and the way she moved to the music was almost as if she were making love to it. When she had removed that leather jacket, she had taken her time. I knew she could feel my eyes on her. It was like she had given me my own little strip tease. Then I saw the lace bra through her shirt and almost came right there. She was so fucking sexy and she had absolutely no idea.

Thinking about that lace bra, I realized no cold shower was going to help. Stripping out of my clothes, I headed towards the shower. As I waited for the water to heat up, I closed my eyes and wrapped my hand around my dick.  Slowly, I stroked myself, imagining it was her small hand jerking me. Her hands were so soft and I bet they’d feel like heaven. What the fuck was this woman doing to me? I rarely jerked off, as I liked to practice self-control in almost all areas of my life. But just the thought of that bra had gotten me so hard it was painful.

I stepped into the spray and let the water run down my body. I worked out on a regular basis, so my arms and back were pretty defined, but I had a love of fine  and greasy foods, so my stomach wasn’t as toned as I’d have liked. It was solid, not flabby, don’t get me wrong, but I wasn’t winning any body building contests anytime soon. I put some conditioner in my hand and resumed my stroking. Leaning my head against the shower wall, I closed my eyes once more and pictured Lily’s soft hands gliding up and down my dick. What would her pretty little mouth feel like? Would she be able to fit me in her mouth? I was large enough that I had to wear a magnum condom, so I had encountered that problem with women before. Just thinking about her mouth made me cum hard. I continued to stroke, working out every last tremor of pleasure that I could.

After washing myself thoroughly and drying off, I headed to bed. I couldn’t wait to see her in the morning, make her smile, and make her blush. Maybe I’d invite her to come to the club on Friday to hear me sing. I had chosen a few songs just for her. I knew she was a married woman, but at this point, I didn’t fucking care. She was miserable. Maybe if I showed her I could make her happy, she’d leave the son of a bitch. I’d felt her wedding rings last night...and she knew it. I saw the guilt flit across her face when I held her hand. Guilt I hoped I could erase.

She deserved so much more. Lily had a beautiful heart, I had learned. She helped everyone who was in need around her. She always stopped what she was doing to help an animal who was lost or injured. She volunteered with cats that needed love and attention while they waited to be adopted on a regular basis. She always made sure Ryan had clean clothes, a sack lunch, and a protein shake. Even to this day, she’d make sure he was taken care of and had everything he needed. It was just second nature to her. As selfish as it sounded, I wanted to make her mine. I knew I would take much better care of her than Ryan ever had. I’d watched their entire marriage for the last two years and not once had that man truly grasped the treasure he had in her.

I had made it my mission to show her just what she was worth. I knew I had to take my time and work my way under her skin. She was fiercely loyal to those she cared about and would never intentionally hurt anyone. I only hoped that by taking my time it would give her the time to make the decision to leave him on her own. However, with Ryan behaving the way he had been, I feared he was going to make that choice for her. I’d bet my entire worth on it that he was fucking someone else. Sooner or later the truth would come out. Damn it all I wanted to be the one to help Lily pick up the pieces, starting at Starbucks in the morning. This time I would make her talk to me, and I’d begin the journey of working my way under her skin until she could no longer stay away from me