The Champions (25 page)

Derek pulled her close, pressing her body full length
against his. The added height from her four-inch heels brought them almost to
eye level.

She allowed the kiss she knew was coming, let him show her
with his mouth what his body craved. When he pulled back to suck in air, she
nibbled his chin, nipping his neck with her teeth. The little bit of pain gave
her a chance to extricate herself from his embrace.

She turned on her heel and headed to the makeshift bar in
the back corner, leaving him to follow her or not. His choice.

She knew he'd follow. 

A couple of teasing, tormenting hours later, and Jade could
see Derek losing his patience. If she'd done her job right, she had kept him in
a constant state of arousal, heavily sprinkled with a little denial, for the
last few hours.

Her frustrated, tortured artist had just about reached his
limit. Figuring it was time to offer him reprieve, Jade grabbed his hand and
pulled him toward the exit.

As they tumbled out the side door, the pounding bass seemed
to follow them, pouring into the alley like a tidal wave of sound. The heavy
steel door slowly closed behind them, the sudden silence almost deafening in
its intensity.

Her eardrums ringing within her head, Jade turned to look at
Derek, grinning stupidly as his face screwed up in a scowl.

"Tell me why we do this, again?" he asked, his
mock displeasure more than evident in his tone.

She laughed, the sound echoing off the brick buildings
around her. "Me, because I love it. You... 'cuz you're hoping to get
laid."

His eyes squinted shut a little more before a wry grin
settled across his lips, easing the fierce look he previously wore. "Oh.
Yeah."

A little shiver ran through her. Derek was nothing if not
intense.

Tugging his hand once again, she pulled him out of the alley
and onto the street, heading toward home.

Even at four in the morning, the city wasn't silent. The
last of the late night crowd, reveling in their debauched behaviors, were
heading home, looking a little worse for wear. At the same time, the early
morning workers were just starting to grace the streets, either driving in to
work or walking to the subway. There weren't many people, but enough to break
up the silence; enough that you were never truly alone.

Jade glanced around her, taking note of her surroundings in
an ingrained attempt at self-preservation. Downtown Detroit in the middle of
the night was not what one might call a safe neighborhood, and it was best to
be on guard.

She looked at all the buildings, fading from run down
industrial to run down apartments, a never-ending sea of concrete. It should be
depressing, creepy even, especially in the pervasive darkness that was predawn.
But she loved every crack in every building; signs of the life these walls had
seen.

Her eyes rolled over a tall blonde man, leaning casually
against one of those very walls, a raven-haired woman leaning into him,
obviously striving for his attention. He ignored her advances, his eyes
following Jade, instead.

A niggling sense of foreboding rolled through her, the
feeling finally making it to the front of her mind, giving her the will to look
away. Shaking off the little shiver of nerves, she turned again to smile at the
man next to her.

Derek squeezed her hand, giving a little tug until his lips
met hers. After a brief brush, she felt him whisper against her mouth,
"Hurry up. I want to get you home."

Jade wasn't entirely sure what little imp made her do it,
then again, she never was.  But turning quickly, she raised her shirt, flashing
the blonde that had been watching her.

She had no idea whether he noticed or not, didn't really
care one way or another, because Derek noticed. She heard his growl just before
she took off running down the street.

His laugh echoed hers, bouncing off the concrete as she
raced toward home with Derek hot on her heels.

If she were lucky, he'd catch her.

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First and foremost I am a father and a husband. Beyond that
I belong to the fraternal Brotherhood of the United States Marine Corps. I have
earned a living as an industrial electrician, welder, mechanic, carpenter, CNC
machinist, and dozens of other jobs that gave me a wide scope of blue collar
life. I have lived in more places than most people, though I grew up primarily
in Michigan. I graduated high school in Mason Michigan, and went to college in
Lansing Michigan. After joining the USMC I spent time living in Pensacola and
Jacksonville Florida, and then moved on to spend four more years in North
Carolina. After serving in Operation Iraqi Freedom, Operation Enduring Freedom,
and the military’s humanitarian effort in Liberia I received an honorable
discharge and returned to live in Jackson Michigan near my family who still
reside there. I now live in southern Louisiana with my wife and children.

I have been writing stories since I began writing and still
have examples of short stories I wrote beginning in first grade. In my
mid-teens, I began to write in earnest, dreaming of one day seeing my work on a
bookstore shelf. It is and remains an unfulfilled dream, as I never attempted
in my earlier years to publish any of my work besides a few stray poems or
short stories. However, at present I felt that I had to make some effort to
publish my books. As a father I tell my children that any one of them can live
their dreams if they put in the time and effort required. To which they of
course reply by asking if I have lived all my dreams. So it is through their
urging that I prove to them that they, like I, can do anything we set our minds
to.

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