Resisting Perfection (The Perfection Series Book 2) (13 page)

“I’ll be there!”

Chapter Nine

Fenton

“Did you make the call?”

“Yes, do you want to meet somewhere for the information?”

“I can’t at the moment.” The shot sitting in front of me is making my mouth water. Apparently, the six or seven I had before this didn’t quench my thirst. “Look, just hang onto it for now. Can I meet you in the morning? I have some business to handle tonight?”

“Are you alright, man? You sound different.”

“Yeah, I’m good, thanks man. I’ll call you in the morning.”

“You wanna go back to my house, baby?” My eyes reach the ceiling at the screeching sound of her voice. The waitress drops off my next round of shots when I feel her hand on me. Her long fingers move over my thigh and make their way to my zipper.

“I’ve heard you’re a lot of fun, Fenton. I can’t wait to see if those rumors are true,” she whispers in my ear while her fingers slide in my jeans. A growl escapes as she wraps her hands around me. I pour the shot down my throat as she keeps on with her beautifully skilled hands.

“That’s right, baby. There can be more of this, just take me back to my house,” she slurs. The Long Island Iced Teas must be getting to her. I have to push blonde hair out of my face to order a few more shots and am reminded that this girl is not Piper. It’s not her hands I want touching me. It’s not her I want begging me to take her home.

“Stop,” I whisper. When she continues, I physically remove her hand from me. She sits up with disgust on her face.

“What the fuck? Don’t you want me?” she whines.

“No,” I say without hesitation.

“You fucking dick. You made me put my hands on you! You told me to do it.”

“Darlin’, if I wanted you, you would be doing more than putting it in your hands.” She lets out a sound of disgust before she stands and walks away.

“You’re going to get yourself in trouble one of these days with these girls, bro.”

“Doesn’t matter anymore. I had the one I want but she won’t want me after she finds out about Cam.”

“What’s going on with Cam?” Jay questions.

Jay is a longtime friend of Cam and me. He and I got out of the life together and have gone our separate ways. Our only similarities are we both opted to open a bar. Cam still considers him a friend, so we keep it amicable.

“I fucked up, man. I really fucked up this time.”

“What did you do to her this time, Fent?” The anger in his voice catches me off guard. In fact, his implication kind of pisses me off.

“What is it to you man? Why are you so pissed?”

“I’m tired of watching you walk all over her. She loves you and you treat her like shit.”

The glass breaks on the wall before I realize what I’m doing. A hush falls over the bar and all the attention is on me. Jay walks out from behind the bar and comes nose to nose with me. His fists are balled at his side and his anger is radiating.

“Hit me,” I plead. “It’s been a few hours since I went rounds with my bag, so I welcome the challenge.”

“You’re not worth it. Maybe you used to be and back then I thought you were what was best for her. Not now. I don’t know how you make it through daily functions in the drug induced haze you live in but it makes me sick. I’ve worked my ass to build what I have since we left Geno but it doesn’t matter to her. I’ll never know why she chose you but she did and no amount of convincing will change her mind. I’ve told her about the other woman and she continues to believe you’ll come back to her. Even when I asked her why she would want you after all of the others and she can’t give me an answer, she still chooses you. So I ask you again, Fent, what happened this time?”

I could easily tell him what’s going on but it’s not really my place. She would kill me if I blurt this shit to everyone in town before she was ready. So I take the route that I’m comfortable with, the route that was made famous by Fenton motherfucking James.

“I told her to suck your dick for a while because I have a new woman. She’s pissed because yours doesn’t taste as good.”

“You son of a bitch!” he says through gritted teeth. I wait for him to make a move. After the last few days, I welcome the distraction a fight would offer as the bag can only offer me so much. This guy, whom I use to consider one of my best friends, whom knows as many secrets about me as I him and whom I would have taken a bullet for, I am now baiting to fight. Even when he is only looking out for our mutual friend who we are both equally indebted to, I still can’t manage to make myself stop. Maybe I am the son of a bitch he thinks I am. Maybe I do deserve to lose Piper. But this baby doesn’t deserve to be brought into my world; a world where at the slightest bit of stress, I turn to the bottle.

“You got anything else to say to me?” I ask, not really caring to hear the answer.

“I know she is going to stick by you no matter what bullshit you put her through but know this: the next time she comes crying to me, I will not hesitate to tell her what kind of activities you and Decker were into on your free time.”

“That’s funny, considering you would’ve been right in the middle of it if you would’ve been invited. I don’t think you have the balls to tell her so I think I’ll take my chances.” I give him the two finger salute and walk out the door.

I have to fumble in my pocket a minute to find my phone to call a cab.

“Since when does Fenton James call a cab?”

My head whips back when Decker’s voice booms behind me.

“What’s up, man?”

“Let’s take a ride.” He doesn’t wait for my answer and I follow behind as we make our way to a Lexus.

“You don’t strike me as a luxury man,” I chuckle.

“Everything in my life is raw and rugged. Sometimes I like to pretend I have some class.”

A big goofy grin spreads on his face and I realize how much I miss being around him. For someone whose life is in danger every minute of every day because of his career choice, he still manages to have a carefree and fun attitude.

“So what are you doing here?”

“Didn’t you know there is a killer on the loose?”

“Depending on who you ask, the killer is in your company.”

“Ditto,” he nods, adding, “Why would Geno be the first person you suspect?”

“Why wouldn’t I suspect him? I didn’t leave on such good terms and the last time I spoke with Gibson, he informed me he was going under. He borrowed money from someone to dig himself out but couldn’t even pay that back. Geno is the only person I know only who helps people when they’re down, knowing they won’t be able to pay it back. So they are essentially selling their soul to him. It screamed Geno.” He nods but is quiet, taking in what I just told him. “You know Geno as well if not better than I do, Decker. Did he make this happen?”

“If he did I didn’t have anything to do with it. Of course, if it has anything to do with you, he wouldn’t tell me.”

“Decker, you are married to the business, what would it matter if it had anything to do with me or not?” He’s uncharacteristically quiet, moving in and out of traffic, constantly checking his rearview. “I’ve been out of the game a while but I remember what it looks like when you think we are being tailed. What’s going on, Decker?”

“Where’s your girl, Fent?”

My heart sinks as soon as he finishes the question and for the first time in my life, I question if I should answer Decker.

“Why?”

“Fenton…tsk…tsk…tsk. You question whether you should tell me where your girl is but you get in the car with me without hesitation. Either you really have changed and put another human being before yourself or the drugs and alcohol have finally caught up with you.”

Confusion takes over. I don’t know if he is just fucking with me or if I just made the biggest mistake of my life. Sweat begins beading on the back of my neck as I try to think of what I should do. Fuck, I wish I hadn’t drunk so much. Slowly, I try to reach for the Derringer I keep in my boot.

“You might want to think about what you’re doing.” His voice is steely smooth. I’ve heard that voice before but it’s never directed toward me. I put my hands up to show I’m no threat and slowly bring them back to my lap. I have to play it smart as I don’t know what to expect from him.

“What’s going on Decker?” I ask again, expecting the same response as before or lack thereof.

“Care to join me on a journey, Fent?”

“Depends where it leads.” He laughs a deep maniacal, bone chilling laugh.

“But we’re going to have so much fun and I know how much you love to have fun.”

“How long have you been following me?” Again, no answer but he does check his watch which means he’s on a schedule. Shit! Not good. Looks like we are heading south of the city, which is strange considering Geno’s place is west. I try to remember if anyone we worked with or any job we did took place this way but I can’t. Either we didn’t or I’ve blocked it out. I’ve found when it comes to this business I’ve blocked a majority of it out.

“Fenton, I never wanted this to happen but you know money talks.”

“Whose money talks, Decker?”

“Its funny how things work, you know? I’ve always been proud of the values I stand behind but there is always that moment of weakness, always that moment when you tell yourself the high is worth it. My hunger for the game is never quenched. There was a time when you helped me strive for that quench and it’s a shame it has to end this way. Why did you leave, Fent? We made one hell of a team.”

“You know I was in a bad place when I met Geno. The pain of losing my mother was real and you know Geno played that to his advantage. He gave me an offer I couldn’t refuse. You know what they say about hindsight, though. I can’t imagine what my life would be like if I hadn’t joined. The larger than life persona I inherited from you coupled with my own badass attitude got me nowhere but locked up and Geno loved every minute of it.”

“You want to know my opinion?” he asks.

“Not really but I’m sure you don’t care.”

“Correct. I believe if you hadn’t agreed to that deal with Geno, we wouldn’t be having this conversation.”

“Right, because we wouldn’t know each other.”

“You were in a bad place, Fent. I’ve never seen someone so broken and I’ve been through a lot of shit. I think Geno giving you something to focus your energy on instead of getting yourself in trouble was good for you.”

“He had me killing people, Decker. I’m not sure that is a good way to focus anything.” He stares over at me while my incredulous laugh fills the car. I can’t believe he just made that observation.

“Fenton, do you think he paired you with me for the hell of it? He knew how fragile you were at that time. I told him to let me have you and I would keep you alive and well. I taught you everything I knew and taught you to stay out of trouble.”

“A lot of good that did. Look where I ended up.”

“That was your own stupidity. I told you not to get involved with her that it would only cause trouble. She broke your heart and you went bat-shit and kidnapped that woman and her son. You’re lucky the cops arrived when they did or you may still be in prison for murder instead of only kidnapping. You let Cami and the drugs take over your soul. You broke the only two rules I taught you never to break: never get too involved with a girl while you’re living the life and never allow yourself to become addicted. The two biggest weaknesses and you stumbled on both of them. If you’d have just listened to me, you would have been fine.”

“My head wasn’t right, Decker. It would’ve ended badly at some point. It was only a matter of time.”

“I’ve been in this business for twenty-five years and have never been caught. Trust me when I say you would have been fine. Now, look what’s happened. You’ve caused more trouble and I can’t save you.”

“Where are we going?” I’ve no idea where he is taking me. I’ve been all over this state but none of this terrain looks familiar. All I know is we are on Interstate sixty-five. Trees and rocks line the roads and there aren’t a lot of houses along the way.

“We have some business to take care of. Just remember one thing: Trust me this time.”

Piper

“I have to stop,” I barely spit out between heavy breathing. Why I ever thought I could pick this running thing right back up like its riding a bike, I have no idea. My chest is burning and I feel like I am going to faint.

“When was the last time you went for a run?” Dad asks me, laughing.

“Probably the last time I ran with you. No wait, I think I ran a few miles when I first started college. After that, I just didn’t have time,” I admit.

“You have to make time, Pipe. No one is going to think of your health but you…and me, of course.”

“I plan to get myself back in the routine this weekend.”

“Good girl. Now, let’s finish this mile so we can eat some breakfast. Are you ok to keep going?”

“Do I have a choice?”

“Nope,” he says and takes off.

I take a deep breath and follow. Living in the city, you forget how beautiful the country is. Although, I love being close to everything, I would love to be able to take a lap around my property and lose my breath. Maybe I can talk Fenton into running with me when this storm blows over. I’m sure I’ll have to make it fun, add some rules like every quarter mile you lose an article of clothing. Wouldn’t that be interesting? Chuckling, I fill my lungs with fresh country air, relishing the sight of the sun that is beginning to rise. I can’t wait to lie out later and let the sun warm my body.

“You keeping up, baby girl?” my father yells while running in front of me. I’m so out of breath, I’m not sure if I can speak but I can’t let him know I’m struggling.

“I’m good! Keep going, I’ll meet you at the house.”

“That’s what I thought,” he laughs.

We’re coming up to the last quarter of the land and the part where Phoebe and I played the most when we were younger. We spent every summer here. Our grandmother always told our mother that we were such a hand full but I know she loved when we were here. It gave them something to look forward to. Being two little city girls, we didn’t know what to do with all of the land. We played so hard every day our grandmother had a hard time getting us to come in for dinner in the evenings. She had to send our grandfather out to look for us as we were usually always deep in the woods somewhere.

I round the corner and take a left, following the path that is barely visible. This leads to an oval section of trees that was Phoebe and my favorite place. She would chase me in here, her going one way and me the other, screaming not to get lost but I think I knew these woods better than her, even at such a young age.

The trees are a lot smaller than I remember as I have to duck so I don’t bump my head. I can almost hear our laughter as we hide from our grandmother. She would never enter; she would only yell for us a few times and then send our grandfather after us. He would pretend to be upset that he had to come get us but always ended up playing with us for a few minutes before our grandmother would begin yelling for all three of us. Then, he would grab us both and carry us to the house.

“Did you girls get into the honey suckles again?”
she asked every day. Grandpa would wink at us, letting us know it was our secret as he always had to take a couple for himself.

“No grandma, we didn’t.”
We tried to convince her but we all knew she knew better. She would only shake her head and smile. My mother was a lot like her. She was never overbearing and had a way of making us do what she wanted without us knowing what she was doing. Thinking back on it now, it really was stellar parenting and our parents and grandparents had it down to a science. I wipe a tear away and keep running.

I finally make it to the middle of the section of woods and am under the familiar man-made tree house. The first time we ventured into this spot we found this set of branches that had been molded over time over each other to form a round canopy with a convenient opening in the front. It turned out to be the perfect playhouse for two little girls. This was the first place we would run when our parents brought us and they usually had to drag us out of here to leave.

I sit crossed legged in the middle of my childhood outside playroom and wish life could be that simple again. We started our day when the sun rose and ended it when the stars would appear. Everything that happened in between was anyone’s guess and it changed day to day. The only thing we did on a regular basis was have our tea party. Grandma allowed us to use her clothes to dress up but I never did. I was happy in my jeans and t-shirt. We ended up getting all muddy anyway. Dirt, mud, tears and ratty hair were everyday life for us in the summer. If we didn’t have something we needed we used our imagination. If we couldn’t decide on what to do next, we compromised. Phoebe has been my best friend my whole life. Even when we had disagreements, we figured it out and went on about our day. If only decisions could be made based solely on winning rock, paper, scissors or eeny, meenie, miney, moe.

Speaking of which, I meant to text Fenton this morning. I know how much he worries when I don’t check in with him; although, I’m surprised I haven’t heard from him. Normally twelve hours is about the limit he goes without speaking to me and freaking about whether I’m ok.

Piper: Good morning! I hope the sunrise over the pond is as beautiful as the sunrise I’m watching. Have a good day.

I hide the phone back in my bra so I don’t lose it on the rest of the run. Standing, I take one last look around and take off back through the brush, weaving in and around branches. I spy orange beginning to show over the trees which means the end of my run is near. This is good because I may have overdone it. I should have eased myself into a run instead of going all in on the first run in probably three years.

As I near the clearing, I take a few cleansing breaths and mentally prep myself for the last leg of the run. The music begins again and I take off. I make it out of the playhouse and while trying to find a new song, I run right into a strong wall that smells of spice and dryer sheets. My smaller body bounces off his and my eyes snap up to see who is on the property.

“What are you doing here?” I ask, confused.

“I didn’t like the way we left things. I came to visit you and Phoebe told me where you were, so I thought I’d surprise you.”

“Well you succeeded. Come on run with me, my adrenaline is already pumping, I can’t stop now.”

“Pipe, I can’t run. I’ll just meet you back at the house.”

“Ok.”

Confusion spreads as I try to figure out why Shane decided to drive two hours to see me. I’m sure Phoebe told him I was only going to be gone the weekend, so whatever needed to be said could have waited…or he could have called. Nothing he does surprises me anymore. When I think I know what he is going to do next he does something completely different. I don’t know what it is with me and indecisive men but they are giving me a migraine.

Speaking of migraine, I’m not sure what I am going to tell my father. He knows Shane is the guy who laid the bruise on my neck. When I tell him he is here he will go ape shit. Hell, I don’t even really want him here and I could kill Phoebe for telling him where I am. I guess I will have to tell him I’m fine with him being here. Otherwise, he will kick him out.

Dread and excitement tingles as I see the finish line in sight. My father is standing there waiting for me, laughing and checking his watch. His smile eases my nerves a little as I know I can tell him anything. He may be upset at first but eventually he comes around.

“I thought I was going to have to come looking for you,” he jokes.

“Well I took a detour to the tree house. I wanted to see if anything had changed.”

“I think you needed a break,” he lifts a brow in question. The smile that spreads on my face answers his questions since words fail me. “Who the hell is that?”

“My friend, Shane. You didn’t see him when he came in?”

“I did not. Is this the friend that you’re afraid of? Why is he here?”

“He won’t cause any trouble. I’m sure he is only here to try and impress you and apologize to me.”

“That better be all, Piper. I won’t allow him to hurt you.”

“I’ll never hurt your daughter again, sir,” Shane replies once he finally reaches us.

“You better not,” my father says and the tension begins growing. I need to defuse this situation.

“Shane, which direction did you come from?” I ask, changing the subject.

“Well, I kind of got lost trying to find the place, so I parked over on the other side of the property.” He points to the south, adding, “My car is parked over there, I will move it later.”

“So you literally just got here?”

“Yes, just a little bit ago.”

“Oh, ok. Come on guys, I will make us breakfast.” With my adrenaline still pumping, I take off back toward the house, leaving the guys behind. I don’t know how good of an idea that was but I will find out shortly.

Crossing the gravel drive, I run up the three steps that lead to the deck. The built-in fire pit and lawn furniture is new but I will check that out later as my stomach is screaming at me for food.

Excitement returns at the thought of getting to cook in this fantastic kitchen. It’s exciting to have room to move around. My kitchen is so small that Phoebe and I can’t cook at the same time, so we take turns each night. Which is fine, we can’t cook at the same time anyway, we do things so differently that we usually just end up getting snippy with one another.

“What are you making us, Pipe?” Shane asks, while rubbing his belly. The conversation must not have been too bad if Shane is still here.

“Her specialty is pancakes,” my father answers.

“Pipe, how have we been friends for four years and you have never made me pancakes?”

“You’ve never been at my house in the morning,” I say and heat immediately fills my cheeks as I realize the implication of that statement.

“I don’t want to hear this. I’m going to take a quick shower, be back in ten.” He kisses me on the forehead before leaving the room.

“Grab the milk, butter and eggs out of the fridge,” I ask, while I grab the dry ingredients.

“I’m excited for homemade pancakes.” His face lights up like a young child and I realize I miss my best friend. Before the drugs, it was nothing for us to spend all day together and never be tired or annoyed with each other. We would go to fairs or concerts and spend most of our time laughing or people watching. I felt safe with him. Most guys would try to make a pass or flirt with a girl they are with all the time but he didn’t. He was genuine. I could ask him anything and we could talk about anything.

“Here’s the milk but I don’t see the eggs,” he questions, catching me staring at him. The corners of his mouth pull up and his eyes soften. “Do you like what you see?” he winks and just like that, he crushes my heart. I realize we will never be the friends we were. He has mixed feelings in with our friendship and I just can’t reciprocate.

“Did you look in the drawer?”

“What?” he asks.

“The eggs. Did you look for them in the drawer?”

“Oh, no I didn’t. Most people don’t keep them there,” he laughs.

“We always have. Mine are in my drawer at home.”

His eyes never leave mine while he pulls the eggs from the drawer. He sits them on the counter next to me as he boxes me to the counter with his arms. My heart begins pounding and I’m not sure if it is from excitement or fear.

“Do you remember when we could hang out all day and never be tired of each other?” I ask.

“Of course. But I’m still not tired of you, Piper. Do you know that?” The sadness in his smile brings tears to my eyes. I never wanted this for us. I saw us growing old as friends, double dating and our children playing together.

“I know but you have to understand how difficult this is for me. I want my friend back but you want a relationship that just can’t happen.”

“Is this about Fenton?” He scans the room, adding, “I don’t see him here begging for your forgiveness.”

“He doesn’t really have a need to ask for forgiveness.”

“Piper, I know our friendship will never be the same but I want to make things right between us. I traveled here to show you I’ve changed and to show you that even if you’re just my friend, I want you in my life.”

“You can handle only being friends?” He’s already proven he can’t, so it should be interesting to hear what he has to say. “Here, mix the eggs, milk and butter in this bowl,” I add, going for distraction. It doesn’t work, of course, but it was worth a shot.

“I never thought about us being more than friends. You were my girl but in a platonic way. When you started seeing Fenton, it made me realize that deep down I did want you all to myself. I wasn’t sure if I wanted to be just friends or more but I knew I didn’t want you with someone else. I’m aware how selfish this sounds but I had to give you a glimpse of my thoughts.”

I mix the batter as quickly as the thoughts are moving through my head. After a few seconds my hand begins cramping. I stop to rest my hand and begin to warm the griddle. I pour the batter onto the hot surface until it’s the size I want and my mouth has already begun watering. All I wanted to do was have a nice relaxing weekend not having to worry about any of this. Why did he have to follow me here? Why couldn’t he respect my wishes? Furthermore, why did Phoebe tell him where I was when I told her not to? She will be hearing about this.