Slam Dunk: Black & White Collection (4 page)

She nodded. “Agreed. Lisa’s one of my best friends and tonight all I could think about was ripping every hair out of her head whenever she got near you.”

“Ellie—” He wanted to ask her to reconsider her vow, but something in her face stopped him. She’d been hurt. Badly. It was clear those wounds hadn’t completely healed and with his jealousy and desire, he’d torn a few open again.

“This can’t happen again.” Her words cut him like a knife. Lisa had warned him, told him the timing was wrong. She’d been right.

Ellie straightened her spine, returning her clothing to rights. As he observed, she wrapped herself in that hard-earned pride. He imagined this was the face she’d worn everyday last year as she dragged herself to work. She was amazing and strong. She was also ripping his heart out.

“Please.” She whispered the word, but he could hear the agony infused in that single syllable. She turned, unlocked the door and walked back to their table. He followed her, struggling to figure out how to proceed from here. She’d accept his friendship, but nothing more. Taking a deep breath, he made his own vow. She’d receive his friendship.

For now.

But only for now.

Chapter Three

First Quarter

Ellie sat in the passenger seat and laughed as Trey told her about a project a student had presented in his class that day. The student had decided to rap about the dangers of smoking and Trey was recapping some of the funnier lines.

“Oh my God,” she said, laughing. “You gotta stop. You’re making my stomach hurt. How were you able to sit in class with a straight face and grade that?”

Trey shrugged. “I don’t remember saying I had a straight face. The whole class was cracking up.”

“I hope you gave him an A. Sounds like it was a brilliant project.”

“Damn right I gave him an A. Best thing I’ve seen in years of teaching. That kid could give Jay-Z a run for his money. Of course…” He paused for effect.

“Of course what?”

“This is the same kid I overheard calling you Hottie Hunter in the locker room a couple weeks ago.”

Her laughter died a bit and he wondered if the nickname bothered her more than she let on. “In that case, fail his ass.”

Jamie and Trey had confessed their nickname for her shortly after the beginning of the school year. They’d told her it was meant as a compliment, but his gut told him she worried about it. After spending the previous school year being gossiped about, he didn’t blame her for her sensitivity. Since then, he’d taken care to squelch the name among his friends.

He’d even tried to deflect the attention away from her, convincing her it was only fair she give them nicknames as payback. Jamie Fisher was now Fish the Dish, but she’d taken to calling him Just Okay Trey to annoy him.

“You know, I’m not totally convinced those boys from my class didn’t pick up that nickname because they overheard it from you and Jamie.”

He shook his head. “I swear to you, we didn’t say a word about the nickname in school.” Then he reached over and ruffled her hair playfully. “You’re gonna have to face facts, Hunter. You are very hot.”

She snorted and rolled her eyes, pulling her jacket more tightly around her. It was only mid-October, but a recent cold front passing through made it seem more like December.

It had become a tradition for him and Ellie to hit a small diner every Friday after a home football game for hot chocolate. After the incident in the bathroom at Bristols, he had remained true to his promise to offer her friendship without pressuring her for more, but it sure as hell hadn’t been easy.

“Thanks for driving me home.” Ordinarily Ellie drove to the games herself, but she’d taken her car to be inspected that afternoon so Jamie and Grace had driven her to the game. When Trey learned she was car-less, he’d offered to take her home.

“No problem. You’re gonna have to give me directions, though.” He looked across the front seat of his car at her. “You know, I just realized I’ve never been to your place.”

She shrugged. “Yeah, well. Don’t get excited. It’s not exactly a nice neighborhood.”

“Yeah. So Lisa told me. Not sure I like the idea of you living in the ’hood,” Trey said.

She shook her head. “It’s not really that bad. That’s just Lisa worrying. I shared an apartment with her before I moved in with Joel. Unfortunately, she got a new roommate, so when things went belly up between me and Joel, I was left scrambling to quickly find a place I could afford. This rental house was available immediately so I snatched it up. If I hadn’t been so anxious to get the hell out of the apartment with Joel, I might have looked a bit harder. The house itself is nice, but well, like I said, the neighborhood sucks.”

As she gave him directions, he decided
suck
was an understatement. “Jesus, Ellie. You can’t be serious. Shawn gets 9-1-1 calls from there all the time. Have you considered moving?”

She nodded. “Only about every other day, but I’m tied to a lease now. Add to that the fact I just switched jobs, moving would be a total pain in the ass. I only need to hang in there a few more months until the lease runs out. I’m going to start seriously looking for a new place after basketball season this year.”

He stared at her, wishing he could convince her to look now.

She raised her hand before he could continue the argument. “I lost my job, Trey. I’m not about to sign a second lease until my life is more settled. I can’t afford to do that on just my salary anyway.”

It was a hard argument to counter, but when he turned onto her street, he knew he wasn’t going to be able to rest easy until she was out of this neighborhood.

“I’m the third one on the right.”

“Holy fuck,” he muttered. “Shawn’s told me there are four crack houses on this street alone.”

“Really?” She feigned surprise and then chuckled. “Wanna know which ones they are?”

“This isn’t a joke, Ellie. You’re a young, single woman living in the middle of the fucking ’hood.”

“Again with the ’hood.” Her laughter grew and he narrowed his eyes at her cavalier response to his serious concern. “Believe me, there’s no ’hood in this Podunk town and I’ve never had any trouble with my neighbors. I keep my distance and they keep theirs. Promise.”

They pulled into her driveway and Trey turned off the car. When he started to get out, she stopped him. “You don’t have to walk me to the door.”

He looked around the street, gritting his teeth when he realized she came home this late every Friday night after their hot chocolate dates. If he’d known where she lived, he’d have been walking her to her front door every night.

Then he considered all the late-night practices and basketball games they would have once the season started. He was going to have to institute a texting rule, insisting that she text him the second she got inside her house and locked the door. Crap. Even that thought didn’t relieve his worries.

“I’m walking you to the door.”

She shrugged as if to say
suit yourself
and they walked in silence up her front steps. Ellie was looking down, digging in her purse for her house key, when Trey noticed the door was slightly ajar. Glancing to the side, he saw a large, cloth bag on the porch that seemed out of place.

Ellie had just pulled her keys out when the front door swung open and a man tried to dart by them. It was obvious the man had expected Ellie to be alone and no threat to his escape. Ellie’s cry of surprise assured Trey this was no friend.

The stranger took one look at Trey and ran back into the house, attempting to slam the door. Trey followed, shoving the door open hard and chasing the man into the living room. He tackled the stranger from behind and a minor fight ensued as the man tried to escape. Trey could hear Ellie talking behind him. Obviously she’d called the police and he listened as she gave directions to her house.

“Trey,” she said, walking up beside where he sat astride the stranger, holding him facedown against the floor. His legs had trapped the man’s arms at his side, making escape impossible.

“It’s okay, Ellie. I’ve got him. I’m not going to let him go.”

She walked over to turn on a light in the living room and as he watched she bent down to look at the man’s face. “Who the hell are you?” she asked.

The guy glared at her and Trey could tell the guy wasn’t completely in his right mind. In fact, he looked strung out. “Just wanted some money. Lemme go and I won’t fuck you up, bitch.”

Ellie gasped as Trey shoved the man’s head against the floor.

“Looks like you’re the one who’s fucked.” Trey’s heart was racing, adrenaline pulsing through his veins. He knew exactly how dangerous a man could be while under the influence. God knew what chemical this man had flowing through his blood system.

Sirens sounded in the distance and the man began to struggle anew, kicking his legs with renewed force. Trey used all his strength to keep the man under his control, but it was becoming more difficult. Suddenly, Ellie’s foot appeared in front of him and she applied just enough pressure to hold the man’s face to the floor. Unable to move his head, the fight left the man and he lay still beneath them.

Heavy footsteps sounded on the porch and soon the living room was filled with police officers. They cuffed the stranger and took statements from Trey and Ellie. A thorough investigation of the house proved the man had pried open a window in the basement. He’d made a mess of the upstairs—emptying drawers and closets looking for anything of value to sell for drug money. It appeared he’d only just started his destruction downstairs when they’d arrived home. The bag on the porch contained Ellie’s laptop, some jewelry and the small television from her bedroom.

Shawn showed up when he’d heard Ellie’s name blasted over the police scanner. As Ellie checked the house with another officer to confirm that nothing else was missing, Shawn pulled Trey aside.

“The other cops seem to think you helped us nab a man suspected of robbing several houses in town. Description of the suspect definitely fits. Lucky thing you were here, Trey. Guy is fucked up on some serious shit. Put up a hell of a fight when they tried to put him in the police cruiser. They found a switchblade in his pocket.”

Trey felt the breath leave his body when he realized exactly what could have happened if Ellie had returned home alone. The guy’s threatening comment as well as the weapon confirmed exactly how much force he might have used in order to get money from her. The anger Trey had beaten down once the man had been taken into custody reappeared. He wanted to punch someone. Hard.

“The robbery MO only partially fits. Guy we’ve been looking for usually stakes out a house, familiarizes himself with the occupant’s schedule, comings and goings. He finds an obscure way into the house, one someone wouldn’t notice right away. He’s in and out with as much as he can carry on his back before the homeowner returns. This hit seems a bit closer to home for him, though. His last few hits have been in more upscale neighborhoods. I’m wondering if he was desperate for money and knew Ellie was a single woman living alone. Might have made him braver.”

“Jesus.” Trey dropped down onto the couch behind him and Shawn knelt in front of him.

“Fuck, man. I’m sorry.” Shawn stared at him for a long, quiet moment before speaking again. “I have a bad habit of thinking out loud. The guy was obviously just here for money. Chances are good he would have grabbed Ellie’s purse and run off. You said yourself he looked like he was planning to escape when he saw you blocking his path.”

Trey knew Shawn’s words for a lie, meant to comfort him. He wasn’t so sure the robber would have left easily if Ellie had been alone.

Shawn grinned crookedly. “What’s up with you, anyway? You got a thing for the white chick?”

Trey rolled his eyes and started to answer, but Ellie walked into the living room. He rose quickly, walking over to take her hand. “Everything else where it’s supposed to be?”

She looked around absentmindedly. Trey was concerned by her pale complexion. Was she going into shock? Should he take her to the hospital? She’d seemed so calm and clear-headed during the actual attack that he’d failed to consider how deeply frightened she must be.

“You hanging in there, Ellie?” Shawn asked, coming up behind him.

“Yeah,” she answered, though her voice sounded strained, weak.

Trey hated the sound. Ellie was tough, self-confident. No asshole druggie was going to rob her of that confidence, that inner-strength. “Grab some stuff, sweetheart. You’re going to spend the night at my place.”

She looked for a moment like she wanted to protest, but Trey narrowed his eyes. He’d toss her over his shoulder and drag her to his house if he needed to. There was no way in hell she was staying here alone tonight.

“Ellie.” His demeanor must’ve proven resistance was futile.

She nodded and turned toward her bedroom. Glancing over her shoulder, she gave him a determined look. “Only for tonight, Trey.”

He breathed a sigh of relief when she walked away. She might be beaten, but she wasn’t down.

Shawn placed a comforting hand on his shoulder. “Your friend chose a shitty place to live.”

“I know,” Trey said. “I intend to see that she finds somewhere safer. And soon.”

“That’d be a good call. Gotta admit I’m looking forward to watching you chase your own tail trying to impress a woman for once. Landing the ladies has always been too easy for you. Looks to me like this one’s gonna be a little tougher to convince.”

“Very funny,” Trey mumbled, wishing there wasn’t so much truth in Shawn’s words.

There was an uncomfortable, unfamiliar voice inside his head demanding he storm upstairs, pack up every possession she had, and drag her to his place forever, so he could keep her safe, protected, happy.

He shut the voice down. Ellie was hell-bent on a platonic friendship and there was no point in torturing himself, hoping for something he couldn’t have.

Shawn said his goodbyes as Ellie walked into the living room with a small overnight bag.

“A couple of the cops boarded up the window in the basement for you. They said the place should be plenty secure once we lock it behind us. Shawn said he’d make sure a patrol car drives by every hour tonight just to be sure.”