Rock Chick 02 Rescue (37 page)

The negative power force enveloping us ratcheted up a notch.

“Who you cal in’ a bee-atch?” Al y asked, hand going to hip.

Okay, so we’d reached ground zero in a serious Holy Shit Situation.

The woman moved into Al y’s space.

“I’m cal ing you a bee-atch, bee-atch.”

I was thinking that wasn’t the right answer.

“Why don’t I get you a drink?” I put in, trying to defuse the Holy Shit Situation.

“Don’t want a drink,” she answered, not looking at me,

“Ain’t no one disrespectin’
me
. You hear what I’m sayin’?” Her ringlets were bouncing around while she was shaking her head and I didn’t take this as a good sign.

“I’m not the one who charged over here, getting into people’s faces.
That’s
disrespect.
Y o u
hear what
I’m
sayin’?” Al y flashed back, hair bobbing around her head and somehow the Holy Shit Situation escalated.

“Ladies,” I tried to cut in just as the woman’s fist came forward in a jab.

I ducked, she missed me and hit Daisy right in the eye.

I lifted up and stared.

Daisy staggered back a step on her rhinestone encrusted, ice blue, platform go-ahead.

Then she steadied herself.

“Uh-oh,” Indy, Al y and I said in unison.

Then Daisy pounced.

It was fair to say at that juncture that mayhem ensued.

Al y jumped on the pile of arms and legs on the floor, which consisted of a rol ing Daisy and the black lady. The black lady’s friend came up and shoved Indy and they got in a tussle. Other people either watched or thought it might be fun to join in and started shoving and punching each other. I stood in the middle of it al , opened my purse, pul ed out my stun gun and switched it on. It started crackling and hissing which I figured meant it was ready to rol .

I wasn’t wrong.

I leaned over and touched it to black lady number one.

She let out a squeak and went slack. Then I touched it to black lady number two, with the same result, except she was standing and she hit the ground like a dead weight.

I looked at the stun gun, then looked at Indy.

“Rock ‘n’ rol !” Indy shouted, putting her arms up, forefinger and pinkie extended in the famous rock ‘n’ rol double devil’s horns.

I switched off the gun, shoved it in my bag and then I helped up Daisy and Al y. I grabbed Indy’s arm, turned tail, and ran, dragging Indy along with me.

I chanced a glance backward at the growing brawl to see Al y wave at Darius.

He was grinning.

We got in the Mustang and Al y burned rubber.

We were a couple of miles away when Indy said, “I think I tore Tod’s dress, he’s gonna have a shit fit.”

“That ain’t nothin’, Sugar, I think I might get a black eye, and worse, I broke a nail.” Daisy said.

There was a beat of silence.

“That was righteous,” Al y said quietly.

“You got
that
right, sister.” Indy replied.

* * * * *

We dropped Daisy first, then Al y took me to Eddie’s.

We idled at the curb, me in the front seat, al of us looking at Eddie’s house. The lights were on.

looking at Eddie’s house. The lights were on.

“Damn, shit, fuck,” I whispered.

It was definitely a multi-curse-word moment.

The outside light went on, the front door opened, then the security door opened. Eddie stood inside the opened door wearing jeans and a plaid flannel shirt, feet bare, shirt unbuttoned, chest and abs partial y exposed, hair a sexy mess, face unreadable.

“Holy crap,” Indy breathed from the backseat.

“Fuck, shit, damn,” I whispered.

I was wrong,
this
was a multi-curse-word moment.

“I don’t know whether to feel sorry for you or stun gun you and take your place,” Al y said.

“I think he’s going to cuff me to bed the next time,” I said.

“Lee tried that with me, it doesn’t work,” Indy offered.

Um… eek!

“I think you best mosey on up there, pa’dner. He doesn’t look like he’s gonna wait much longer and I’m not sure you want to know what he’l do when he’s done waiting.” I got out of the front seat and Indy got out of the back and our hair was forced to get out with us.

I hugged Indy.

“Thanks,” I said into her ear.

“It was a blast,” she said into mine.

I leaned over, my dress rode up, I pul ed it down just before disaster struck and waved at Al y. She blew me a kiss.

Then I walked up to Eddie.

He stood aside and let me enter.

“Hey,” I said as I walked by, surprising myself by sounding cool instead of freaked out.

His eyes did a ful body scan. Then, slowly, he shook his head.

Okay, I was done with being cool.

I made a beeline for the bathroom, leaving him to lock the door.

I washed my face and tore a brush through my hair. With effort it went from Freaky Diva to Charlie’s Angels.

The house was dark when I opened the bathroom door, a dim light coming from the bedroom.

Eddie was in bed, on his side, covers up to his waist, chest bare, head in his hand, eyes on me, face stil unreadable.

Eek!

I turned off the light, slid off my shoes, tore off the dress and pul ed on the camisole that was stil lying on my bag but I left the bottoms for another day.

I crawled into bed and settled, my back to him.

Eddie didn’t move.

“Thanks for letting me in,” I said to the wal , attempting to gauge his mood.

No response.

“Good night,” I tried.

He moved, settling in, obviously on his back, not touching me and not speaking either.

Hmm.

There were a few of problems with this. First; I was wide-awake and coasting on a serious wave of adrenalin, adrenalin that needed to be worked out somehow (and I knew how I’d prefer it to be worked out). Second; I was too freaking shy to do anything about it, definitely I wasn’t able to make the first move. Last; I was pretty certain Eddie was ticked off so even if I
wasn’t
too shy, he clearly wasn’t in the mood.

Instead, I fidgeted, I moved, I turned and I tried to count sheep.

I was rearranging my pil ows for the third time when Eddie’s arm came out and hauled me across the bed, tucking me into his side.

Final y.

“Jazzed?” he asked.

“Um… yeah.”

“Stun-gunning angry black women in bars on Colfax’l do that to you.”

Wonderful.

Darius told on me.

“Darius,” I said.

Eddie didn’t answer.

“I tried to be a mediator, I swear. I even offered to buy her a drink. But apparently Indy stun-gunned her a few months ago. Then she cal ed Al y a bee-atch, which Al y didn’t like. Then she punched Daisy in the eye. Then Daisy jumped her and Al y jumped them and they started rol ing around on the floor.
Then
some other woman shoved Indy and—”

Eddie interrupted me. “You can stop talkin’ now.” I closed my mouth and laid there a second, pressed up against his warm, hard body.

Then (I swear, I couldn’t help it, it was the adrenalin, and maybe a little of my newfound coolness) I ran my hand down his chest, across his abs, then back over his chest and my fingernail might have somewhat-purposeful y snagged his nipple.

He grabbed my wrist and held my hand where it was.

“You tired?” I whispered.

“It’s after one in the morning,” he replied, but didn’t answer my question.

I thought about this and came up with a solution.

“I’l do al the work,” I said quietly.

He didn’t respond and he didn’t move.

Damn.

Final y, he said, “Please tel me you didn’t have the chance to bend over in that dress.”

I did a mental replay of the night.

I hadn’t.

Except for when I bent over to use the stun gun of course.

I didn’t share that with Eddie.

“I didn’t even sit down, unless I was in the Mustang.” He didn’t say anything.

I squirmed next to him.

“Um…” I dragged it out, “about me doing al the work?” He pul ed me over his body, his hands slid down my bottom, the backs of my thighs and hooked at my knees, pul ing them up so I was straddling him.

My mouth found his in the dark.

“Can I take that as a yes?” I asked.

He didn’t answer but he pul ed off my camisole.

I was guessing that was a yes.

I went with my guess and I was right.

Chapter Nineteen
Lottie

The alarm went off, Eddie touched a button and rol ed out of bed.

I slid the covers over my head. Maybe, if I hid, he wouldn’t remember I was there.

He yanked the covers off me, grabbed my hand and pul ed me out of bed.

“Did you
not
hear what I said about the snooze button?” I asked as he marched me across the room.

“It’s a good thing you’re so damn pretty,
Chiquita
, because mostly, you’re a pain in the ass.”

* * * * *

I didn’t have to make the coffee. Eddie’d programmed it the night before and when I wandered into the kitchen, the pot was ful to the brim; fourteen whole cups of hot, fresh java.

Heaven.

I had two cups while getting ready and I made Eddie one.

I poured us both travel mugs, we loaded ourselves in the truck and Eddie took me to Fortnum’s. He kissed me, deep but brief, while we sat in the truck in front of the store. He idled at the curb, watching while I walked in. I gave him a wave when I unlocked the door and went inside. He lifted his chin, slid on his shades and took off.

Then I looked behind the espresso counter. Duke and Jane, no Tex.

My heart skittered, then stopped.

“Where’s Tex?” I asked.

The first customer came in behind me.

“Not here,” Duke said.

“What do you mean, not here?” I asked.

Duke looked around. “I mean, not… here.”

“He’s always here,” I said.

“Wel he’s not now,” Duke replied.

“Fuck!” I shouted and the customer turned to stare at me.

“Sorry,” I muttered, set my travel mug on the book counter and hauled out my cel .

I cal ed Mom’s cel and got her voicemail.

I left a message, “Cal me the minute you get this.” Then I hung up, scrol ed down my phonebook and cal ed Tex.

He didn’t have an answering machine so it rang about twenty times before I hung up.

Then I cal ed him again.

On the seventh ring, he answered.

“What?” his boom was muted.

“Tex? Where are you?” I asked.

“Hung over,” he answered.

“Mom’s not answering her cel , where is she? Is she okay?”

“She’s fine.”

Then he disconnected.

I stared at the phone.

“Tex just hung up on me,” I told Duke and Jane.

They just looked at me.

“He says he’s hung over,” I said to them as the second customer walked in.

“Maybe he is,” Jane offered.

I scrol ed down to Eddie’s number and pushed the green button.

“Yeah?” he answered.

“Hey, it’s me,” I said.

“Yeah?”

“Jet,” I told him, making sure that he knew who he was talking to.

Silence for a beat, then he said, “
Chiquita
, I know who it is.”

I could hear his smile in his voice which made my bel y curl even though I was in borderline freak out mode.

I ignored the bel y curl.

“We have a crisis,” I said.

Silence for another beat.

“Didn’t I drop you off about five minutes ago?”

“Yes.”

“How do we have a crisis in five minutes?”

“Tex isn’t at work. He says he’s hung over,” I told him.

“So maybe he’s hung over,” Eddie replied.

“He can’t be hung over and protect Mom! He’s fal ing down on the job. Mom has to move in with us.” More silence.

Then, “Your mother isn’t movin’ in with us.” There was no smile in his voice on that comment.

“Then we have to move to my place.”

“Last time I stayed the night at your place, your Mom knocked on the door when my hands were in your pants.

We’re not movin’ to your place and your Mom isn’t movin’ to mine.”

“Eddie!”

“Jet, my plan has two goals. One is to keep you and your Mom safe. Two is for us to have some privacy and time to get to know each other. Your Mom moves in, my second goal is in the toilet.”

“We can get to know each other when Mom’s around.”

“Not the way I want us to get to know each other.” My bel y curled again and I felt spasms in three different places. I took a breath and shook it off.

“I bet you’d hit the snooze button if Mom was with us,” I said.

“Yeah, but then we wouldn’t have time for a long shower.” Dear Lord.

I had to admit, I liked long showers, at least, I liked long showers with Eddie.

I didn’t tel Eddie that.

Instead, I said, “I’m pretty certain I don’t like you.” Then he said, “You’re so ful of shit.”

The smile was back in his voice.

I sighed and flipped my phone shut. What else could I do?

* * * * *

Indy strol ed in mid-morning. “How’d it go with Eddie?” she asked when she dumped her bag in the locked drawer behind the book counter.

“Darius told on me,” I said.

She nodded, “He told on me too.”

“How did Lee take it?” I asked.

“Lee’s used to me doing crazy shit. What I want to know is, how’d Eddie take it?”

“He didn’t like it, but he got over it.”

For some reason, this made me happy and I grinned at her.

She grinned back.

* * * * *

Half an hour later, Vance walked in with another one of Lee’s boys, a guy named Mace. Mace didn’t come around very often. According to Indy, he was more of a night time person. Mace had to be six foot three, had the prerequisite Nightingale Investigation Team kil er bod, black hair, jade eyes and a jaw so square, it could be used in math class.