Lex (Unconventional Hearts) (12 page)

Warm air shot out of his nose rapidly,
skating across my pale skin; the closer he got to reaching climax.
His grunts and moans soon filled the air, bellowing out of his
throat, echoing in the steel barn. Just before he came, he stood up
and grabbed a fistful of my hair.

“Watch, my beautiful bitch.” He forced my
head down to watch as he shot streams of his salty semen all over
my clotting wounds. The excruciating pain finally became too much
as he smeared his salty come into my cuts, that felt like salt
water, and my knees instantly buckled from the intensity. As my
eyes rolled back into my head, and I drew blood from biting my
bottom lip to keep myself from screaming. Brian grabbed me into his
arms right before my shoulders dislocated. Unlatching me from the
rafters, he carried me like a rag doll into the house. Brought me
into our only bathroom, bathed me with warm water in our small tub,
and even scrubbed my hair with strawberry scented shampoo.
Muttering over and over how much he loved me and how much I meant
to him.

I believed him. I believed Brian loved me. He
was my first love. The first person I had ever had sex with. I had
no concept of male love. I never have to this day. My father was my
abuser and so was Brian. The only two men who have ever meant
anything to me have hurt me and broken me in ways most people will
never experience.

Okay, enough of this crappy dwelling in my
past, I’ve got some work to do.

Chapter Nine

Thursday

Is today over with, yet? I hope it’s soon. I
don’t think I can take much more. Thursday’s are by far the worst
days of the week.

Last night I worked late, again, only to come
home and hear Bob and Roni having sex with her windows open. They
were extremely loud and honestly, I felt worse for our neighbors
than I did for myself. Apparently, she created enough ruckus to
make someone in our neighborhood call the cops. And at eleven
o-clock last night, my favorite police officer, Elias Lincoln,
greeted me with a knock at the door. He is the kindest and sexiest
cop on this planet.

Opening my door in my blue silk pajama top
and shorts, I flipped the porch light on and smiled.

“Good evening, officer.” I greeted him.

“Lex, I know this isn’t you creating that
noise. But it is your property so I am required to speak to the
owner.” He spoke in that deep husky voice of his. That always makes
me wonder why he isn’t married. His voice is one of those voices
that feels like he’s making love to you, no matter what words come
out of his mouth. I’ve never heard anything more erotic in my
entire life. Plus, the fact he stands six foot six, and his biceps
are thicker than a tree trunk, doesn’t hurt.

“And that’d be me.” I bit my lip. I knew I
wasn’t in trouble. But…when a hot police officer, who happens to be
your own personal hero, shows up at your doorstep you can’t help
but feel a slight bit giddy.

Nodding he pulled open the screen door,
inching closer to me and my heart climbed up into my throat. “Lex,
I brought you this.” Reaching into his navy blue police jacket, he
fished out a small white rectangular box and handed it to me.

Carefully, I opened it to find a beautiful
silver bookmark, that was intricately scrolled and had my name
engraved on the top.

“I know we don’t get to catch up much. I was
meaning to give that to ya, over Christmas. But, I’ve been busy and
it’s been sittin’ in my glove compartment in the cruiser for
months. I know it’s a bit late, but I thought you should have
it.”

Blushing, I wrapped my arms the best I could
around his neck to hug him and he hugged me right back, picking me
up off the ground.

“Thank you. It’s so beautiful.” I gushed,
examining it like it was a fine diamond. Once he placed me back
onto my feet.

“Don’t mention it. Our history with you
know…has me thinkin’ about ya a lot. I worry about you. Hope you’re
doin’ good, your mom says you are. I check in with her about once a
month just to be sure. Don’t want you gettin’ caught up with the
wrong kind of man again.” He said and I knew precisely what he was
referring to.

Officer Lincoln was the man who saved me from
Brian. My mom and Roni had filed three police reports and each one
of those were investigated. None of them turned anything out of the
ordinary up. So the investigations were quickly dropped. Until my
mom filed a fourth report and Officer Lincoln was the one to
investigate. Being a Dom himself, Officer Lincoln realized a lot of
strange things in the household that the other men didn’t. Brian’s
excuse for the house’s condition was the fact we experimented with
strange sexual scenarios and they bought it, hook, line and sinker.
Or so I was told.

Office Lincoln didn’t, and he was also the
only cop to go into the barn and that’s where Brian performed all
of his most brutal acts. Including and certainly not limited
to—stitching me up after he sliced me a little too deep. It was
also the place he had built and stored the makeshift hospital bed.
That was fashioned out of scrap wood and small tractor wheels,
which he used to roll me out of the barn when I bled too much and
fell unconscious. Once my heart even stopped and Brian had to beat
on my chest to revive me. I was black and blue for a week. After
that, he invested in saline bags and a defibrillator, so the second
and third time I passed out and nearly died, he was able to revive
me much easier. Not that I wanted to live. Eight months of near
torture was enough to leave me begging God to grant me divine mercy
and allow me to die, of course, it didn’t work, I’m still here.

Officer Lincoln upon inspection had found the
makeshift gurney and dried remnants of my blood, and that’s all it
took. He called the squad in, they did an investigation and three
months of fighting with the court system, Brian finally got
sentenced to fifteen years in prison. Not a day goes by that I
don’t think about him or what he’s done to me. Or the fact that six
years of his sentence has already been served, leaving him with
nine more years to get angrier and angrier. I know he’ll kill me
once he gets out. He promised me that, in the courtroom the day of
his sentencing, right in front of the judge.

Any who...after Officer Lincoln delivered my
gift and we chatted a few more minutes, he asked, “Do you want me
to address Roni and Bob? Or do you want to take care of it?”

I didn’t want to deal with them. So I left
him to it and took my beautiful gift back inside, and went
upstairs. Where I slept like complete hell. I couldn’t stop tossing
and turning and thinking about the stupid Suit Master. The man I am
sure is a Dom. I know they’re not all bad. Officer Lincoln is one.
But, I would never get involved in anything like that ever again. I
haven’t even had sex since I was with Brian, let alone anything
else.

Which brings us to this morning, where I woke
up, did my routine, yoga, shower, and all that jazz. Go down stairs
to have my best friend come crawling in my back door in grimy pj
pants and Bob trailing right behind her, wearing holy jeans and no
shirt, who ended up eating all the biscotti that I had saved for
Friday’s morning tea with Roni. Leaving me having to run to
Barbie’s today to pick up some biscotti, not tomorrow, like usual.
Don’t get me wrong, I like Bob. I’m trying not to be a cranky
bitch. But I slept terribly last night, and I got into work this
morning looking less like myself. Daniel even noticed the bags
under my eyes as he was servicing me. Which I thought might help.
It didn’t. I’m still in an unpleasant mood.

And that brings us to now. I’m sitting in my
office, my Dairy Dream lunch is half eaten on my desk and I’m
staring frustratingly at my computer screen. That is flashing six
emails from the Suit Master. I’ve been sitting here staring at them
for the past ten minutes, debating to open them or not to open
them. That is the question of the day, a pathetic one at that.

Knock, Knock.

“Boss?” Daniel beckons through the closed
door.

“Yes?” Momentarily I stop my incessant
monitor stare down.

“I have a delivery. Can I come in?”

Why is my secretary asking permission to come
into my office? I can’t be that much of an evil bitch today… Can
I?

“Yes, yes, Daniel, you don’t need
permission.” I speak calmly and refined. I don’t want him to think
I’m angry or pissed at him. I’m cranky, just not at him. Can’t I
have one day of my damn life, where I’m allowed to be bitchy and
peeved off at the world? I mean, nobody’s perfect for cryin’ out
loud.

Opening my door, he slowly carries in the
biggest God forsaken rose bouquet I’ve ever beheld. I can’t even
see him behind the arrangement. No doubt made by my mother. She’d
be the only one in the county to have roses in that vast array of
colors.

“Three more steps and you’re to my desk.” I
guide him and he follows my instructions. As his thighs butt up
against my desk, he carefully lowers the massive vase. Setting it
securely on my desktop and backing away.

Fake wiping sweat from his brow and playfully
‘whewing’ a few times, he says, “Your mother’s delivery boy just
dropped those off. And no, they’re not from Donald, I checked the
card already.”

Still trying to wrap my head around this
massive bouquet, I can’t imagine who would fork out this amount of
money for an arrangement this magnificent. Roses aren’t cheap, and
these are top quality. There has to be at least six dozen roses; a
mixture of lavenders, light pinks, medium pinks, whites, and peach
roses. With a single red rose tucked beside the plastic note
holder.

Tugging the card from the floral pick, I
remove it from the envelope.

Read the email’s Lex. I’m not kidding when I
say I will win you.

All my affection,

Your Secret Admirer

This has gone from bad to worse! He wasn’t
kidding when he said he knew more about me. He even knows where I
work! Now we are seriously overstepping normalcy into creeper,
Hannibal Lector territory. I can’t lie and say it’s not the
slightest bit flattering, not the Hannibal part. But, I’m no idiot.
This has psycho written all over it, in big bold blood stained
letters.

“It’s from the Suit Master, isn’t it?” Daniel
inquires, sitting on the arm of my guest chair.

Shooting him a puzzled expression, I ask.
“How did you know?”

“Roni, she informs me on the things you don’t
and vice versa.”

Great, now both of them are double-teaming
me. I really can’t wait for today to be over.

“Are you busy?” The worst voice in the world,
questions, standing in my open doorframe.

Why didn’t I make sure Daniel closed the
door?

“She’s not. I was just leaving.” Daniel
singsongs and hurries out of room, pushing Gage into my office and
shutting us in.

Real slick, Daniel! Think if I get
distracted, I won’t forget about the fact you and my best friend
Veronica Phoenix are conspiring against me.

“Can I help you, Mr. Masterson?” I make my
tone harsh, so he won’t have to wonder if I want him here or not.
Today, I don’t want him anywhere near me.

Dropping into one of my leather armchairs,
relaxing, he kicks up his foot and rests it on his knee.

“Who those from?” he asks, arrogantly
pointing to the flowers.

“A man.” I reflexively snap. It’s none of his
damn business who they’re from.

“Didn’t think you had a ‘man’.” He, air
quotes, flashing one of those stupid pretty smiles. How can he be
such a jerk, yet, so delicious? It’s really distracting. And today
he’s clad in a pinstriped suit and matte black, square-toed dress
shoes. Even his cufflinks are sexy. They’re silver and black with
an M monogramed on them.

Ignoring is comment; I ask him again, “What
can I help you with, Mr. Masterson?”

“I have some business I’d like to discuss,
unless you’d like to call your
boy-friend
, to thank him for
such a lavish arrangement first.” He draws out boyfriend like it’s
a dirty word and we’re suddenly back in elementary, where cooties
still exist.

“He’s not my boyfriend, I have you know. And
I won’t be calling him.” Lashing out at Gage happens to be the
highlight of my day thus far. Maybe I should have him come here
more often. I’m enjoying this. It’s helping my terrible mood
lighten up a bit.

“Hmmm,” tapping his chin with the pad of his
index finger, his eyebrows bunch and his forehead creases, making
him appear to be deep in thought.

“A man buys you nice roses, you don’t want to
call him, and he’s not your boyfriend. They’re not from Donald are
they?”

What is his deal? Why is he pressing the
matter? Has his high-class ass purchased roses for a woman before
and not gotten a thank you? Because the Suit Master will not be
getting a thank you from me.

“No, Mr. Masterson. If you must know, so we
can finally conduct our business. I met a man online that I liked.
Then I didn’t anymore. And he’s sending me flowers for whatever
stupid reason to try to convince me he isn’t going to stop trying
to date me. However, I’m not interested.” Speaking boldly with
dignified words, I then turn my gaze to him and watch to see his
reaction.

Covering his kissable lips with his hand, he
chuckles behind his fingers. The faint age lines around his eyes
crinkle as he smiles. “I see, a man online, you say?”

“Yes?”

“I never thought of you as an
online
dating kind of woman. Figured you’d date someone locally, and
preferably rich.”

“Are you trying to insult me?” I ask,
nonchalantly, even though my anger meter has spiked a few
decimals.

The nerve of this man! Why does he infuriate
me so much?

“No, quite the contrary, Ms. Keagan. I
figured a woman as attractive, bright and successful, such as
yourself, wouldn’t be seeking love through cyberspace. Is he at
least local?”