Strip Tease (23 page)

Janelle swallowed hard. Her sister sounded
so...grown up. “Are you scared?”

“Out of my mind.” Ginger laughed, sounding a
little crazed. “But I gotta own up to what I did. I really was
running the girls,” she admitted.

“You’re kidding.” Janelle was surprised…but
then again, she wasn’t.

Ginger nodded. “I’m not kidding. I did it. I
did it to make Billy happy, for the money, for the drugs. Trust me.
I’m not proud of any of this.”

“Are you high right now?” Janelle asked
quietly.

“No!” Ginger shook her head. “I’m not
feeling so good, though. Nate said they would put me in rehab
immediately, it would help reduce the time I’d have to serve.”

“Are you going to do it?” Hope lit within
Janelle’s chest. Maybe this would be the thing to help Ginger clean
up for good.

“Yeah. I want to.” A ghost of a smile curved
Ginger’s lips. “I need to get on with my life. Make something of
myself. Ending up in jail won’t help, but maybe once I get out, I
can finally straighten up.”

“You can do it.” Janelle enveloped her in a
hug. “I know you can.”

“Thanks for believing in me,” Ginger
whispered and Janelle squeezed her harder before finally releasing
her.

“Go take a shower,” Janelle urged and Ginger
headed toward the bathroom.

Janelle went back into the kitchen and put a
pot of water on to boil. She wanted to make some tea to soothe
their frayed nerves and help them sleep.

The phone rang in the middle of her tea
preparations and Janelle froze. The caller couldn’t be anyone else.
Both excitement and dread bubbled in her stomach.

After wishing him to call, she didn’t know
if she was ready.

“Janelle, are you okay?” Nate asked the
moment she answered.

“I’m fine.” She didn’t mean to sound short,
but she couldn’t help it. She didn’t know how to act around him
anymore.

“Did Ginger make it to your place all
right?”

“She did. Thank you for paying for the taxi
and sending her to me.” She paused. “Thank you for bailing her out,
too.”

“No problem. They set it low. It was the
least I could do.” He cleared his throat. “I had a car tail her. I
wanted to show I trusted her but to be honest, I didn’t completely.
Don’t tell her though.”

“I won’t. I understand why you did it.”

“Did she tell you what happened?”

“Kind of. I didn’t push. We’ll talk more
later.” Janelle clutched the phone tighter, watching the steam rise
around the tea kettle as the water heated up.

His voice lowered. “I didn’t tell her about
us, Janelle. I wanted to leave that up to you.”

“Thank you.” Had he been hiding it on
purpose, or was he being sincere? She didn’t know what to
believe.

“I’m sorry I didn’t call sooner. It’s
been—crazy here.” He sounded tired.

“That’s okay. I understand.” She did. Sort
of.

“I know your sister is with you tonight.” He
paused and she heard him sigh. “Can I come over tomorrow, after you
get off work?”

She hesitated. “I don’t know if it’s a good
idea, Nate. Ginger’s going to stay with me for the next few days
now that she’s out on bail. And I’m not sure if she’d be
comfortable here with you.”

Another ragged sigh. “Yeah. No, I get it.
How about you come over to my place then?”

“I—I don’t think so. Not this week. I can’t
leave her alone.” She couldn’t trust Ginger alone. She might leave
again.

And she needed this distance from Nate.
Needed to get her head on straight, figure out what she was going
to do next.

“Of course, you’re right. I understand.” He
paused and she swallowed past the sob that had risen to her throat.
This was it, their time together was over. He was going to end it.
“Will you call me in the next couple of days?”

His request surprised her. “Um, okay.”
Should she?

This so-called relationship was a lost
cause. Now that Nate had everything he wanted, he didn’t need her
anymore.

And it hurt. A lot.

“Janelle.” His voice was a harsh whisper and
she closed her eyes, fighting off the tears. “I miss you.”

“I miss you, too. I’ll talk to you later.”
She hung up with the press of a button, tossing the phone onto the
countertop as if it burned her.

Warm tears coursed down her cheeks and
silent sobs wracked her body. Covering her face with her hands, she
cried. Cried for her sister, cried for herself and she cried for
Nate.

More than anything, she cried for Nate.

* * * *

“She won’t fucking see me.” Nate sipped from
his third beer, already feeling the buzz. He wasn’t a big drinker
and he hadn’t gone to a bar in forever.

When Greg made the suggestion, it was as if
his partner read Nate’s mind. It was exactly what he needed to
drown his pansy ass sorrows.

A week had gone by since he’d seen Janelle.
How he hated every minute that had ticked by without her close. His
heart ached for her, as well as his body. He didn’t understand how
she could turn him away so easily, forget that he even existed.

Ginger was living with her and he got that,
really he did. At least, he was trying to understand. Janelle was
helping Ginger and that couldn’t be easy. She’d gone to rehab
within a few days of getting bailed out of jail, as per the judge’s
instructions. Once Ginger finished, she’d report to the courts.
Hopefully, her jail sentence would be short.

So now Janelle was alone. No Ginger to take
care of, no figuring out the court system and making arrangements.
Her life was back to normal.

And still she didn’t call. No texts. No
email, for the love of God—not a damn thing.

He refused to go to her. He wasn’t an idiot,
he knew when he’d been rebuffed and this time around, he’d been
kicked straight in the nuts.

Falling in love sucked.

“Who won’t see you?” Greg finally asked,
turning his attention to Nate. He’d been too busy making eyes at
some hot chick across the bar.

Nate wanted to growl at his inane question.
“Janelle, you dumbass. I think she dumped me.”

“You think? Wait, you don’t know?” Greg
peered at him with his all-knowing gaze and Nate looked away,
uncomfortable.

“No. I don’t know,” he muttered, taking
another drink of beer.

“Well, she hasn’t dumped you yet. Trust me
you’ll know when you’re getting dumped. Maybe she needs space. This
has been a pretty shitty week, you know,” Greg pointed out.

“She’s putting distance between us on
purpose. That’s how she is. She doesn’t allow anyone to get too
close. She’s too afraid to get hurt.”

“Hmm, sounds familiar.”

Greg earned an elbow in the ribs for that
remark.

“Yeah well, every time I put my heart on the
line, it gets stomped on. See why I’m the way I am?” Nate shook his
head, staring morosely at his almost empty beer.

“What, a miserable jackass? Yeah, I see
that, but you need to do something. You need to take action, man.
Go to this chick’s house and tell her you’re done playing games.
Tell her how you feel. Let her know you care for her and you want
to be there for her. She’ll melt. They always melt for that shit.”
Greg smiled, looking pleased with his speech.

“With my luck, she’ll slam the door in my
face and tell me to get lost.” God, he was wallowing in his own
misery and actually enjoying it. It felt damn good to whine.

Tomorrow he’d regret it. Tonight, he
relished it.

“Dude, you are so negative, it’s
unbelievable. Go talk to her right now. You’re a little drunk so
let the words flow. Let her know what she means to you,” Greg
encouraged.

Nate shook his head. “I’d make a complete
ass of myself if I went over there.”

“And then again, she might listen to you,
you never know. Come on, I’ll drive you. You’re in no state to get
your ass there.”

“I can’t do it, bro. She’ll think I’m an
idiot. Hell I
am
an idiot.” Nate thrust his thumb at his
chest. “Class A idiot looking right at you.”

“You’re repeating yourself.” Greg stood,
waving his hand toward the exit. “Come on, let’s go. We need to go
change your life for the better.”

“Hell, I can’t believe I’m letting you talk
me into this,” Nate muttered as he polished off his beer and then
stood, staggering on his feet.

“I don’t think you’ll regret it,” Greg said
over his shoulder as they wound themselves through the crowded bar.
“I think this is exactly what you need to do.”

Nate tried to convince himself the entire
car ride to Janelle’s. Considering his slightly inebriated state,
it probably wasn’t smart. His head spun, his stomach turned with
nerves and he wanted to tell Greg to forget it and take him
home.

Knowing Greg wouldn’t listen, he remained
silent. What would he say to her? Blurt out he was in love with her
or take a more subtle approach? What did she want to hear?

All he wanted was to make her happy. He
wanted her in his life, he needed her, felt lost without her.

Completely and totally lost.

“This is a mistake,” Nate said as Greg
turned into Janelle’s apartment complex. “I’m drunk and she’s going
to think I’m an asshole.”

“You’re not a mean drunk, so don’t worry
about that. If you were acting like a damn fool, I wouldn’t let you
out of the car.” Greg pulled into a parking spot and slipped the
car into park.

“I’m not acting like a damn fool?
Seriously?” Nate ran a hand through his hair, messing it up, but he
didn’t give a shit. She’d have to take him as he was.

He groaned aloud and pressed the back of his
head against the seat. Even in his thoughts, he sounded like a
dumbass.

“What time is it?” he asked, closing his
eyes.

“Just past eleven-thirty.”

Nate’s eyes snapped open and he studied her
apartment building in the near distance. All was dark, not a single
light on. “She’s asleep.”

“Perfect. You’ll wake her up and she’ll be
disoriented and half asleep. Probably more than willing to hear
what you have to say.” Greg nudged at Nate’s shoulder. “Head on
over there, tiger.”

“I’m going to curse your ass tomorrow, you
know.” Nate shook his head. He didn’t open the door.

“Nah, you’ll be thanking me, my friend. Now
go to her. Confess your love.” Greg grinned.

“What if she slams the door in my face? Or
doesn’t answer it at all? Are you going to wait for me? I don’t
want to be stuck here all night.”

“Fine, fine, I’ll wait five minutes and then
I’m gone. I think you’ll know how things are going within five
minutes, right? And if it takes longer than five, you can always
call me.”

“I dunno.” Nate’s hand went to the door
handle and he realized his fingers trembled. Shit, he was
nervous.

“You’ll know. Now get out.”

Nate practically stumbled out of the car,
his head spinning when he stood straight. He probably looked a
mess. Hell, he probably looked insane.

Walking up the stairs that led to her front
door, he stepped lightly, didn’t want to alarm her with the
rattling staircase. Breathing deep, he gulped fresh air, trying to
clear his head.

It didn’t help.

He knocked lightly once, then again, afraid
she hadn’t heard. After too many long seconds ticked by, a light
flickered on and he heard her twist of the lock being undone.

The door swung open and there she stood
blinking at him, clad in pink and white plaid pajama pants and a
thin white tank top. So thin, he could see the faint shadows of her
nipples beneath the fabric.

Arousal hit him, swift and hard, and he
pressed his hand against the doorframe to support himself.

“Nate,” she finally said, her soft voice
doing strange things to his insides. “What are you doing here?”

“I, uh, I need to talk to you. Can I come
in?” He leaned in close, caught a whiff of her delectable scent and
it made him weak. No woman had ever smelled so good before.

“Okay.” She sounded hesitant and regret was
a dull pain in the pit of his stomach.

Following her inside, he watched as she
flicked on a lamp in the living room, making him wince at the
bright light. She turned to him, rested her hands on her slim hips
as she shook her head.

“You’ve been drinking.” It wasn’t a
question.

He shrugged. “A little bit.”

“So you think it’s a good idea to show up
now and ask me to talk?” Janelle crossed her arms in front of her
chest, waiting for his answer.

“No. I didn’t think it was at all,” he
answered truthfully.

“Then why are you here?”

“Greg thought I should talk to you.”

“Greg? Oh, your partner.” She shook her head
again, clearly not understanding. “Why would Greg think it’s a good
idea you come here after drinking all night long?”

“I didn’t drink
all
night long. I
only had a couple of beers.” Maybe three. He’d lost count.

“Whatever. You should go, Nate. I don’t
think you’re up for much logical conversation tonight.” She started
for the door but he stopped her, grabbing her by the arm. Her gaze
dropped to his fingers wrapped around her, before she lifted her
lids, her eyes meeting his.

“Don’t make me leave, Janelle.” He sounded
all choked up and he cleared his throat. “I’ve missed you.”

Her gaze flickered and he slowly released
his hold on her. She put plenty of distance between them, as if she
needed the space.

“You don’t believe me.” He shook his head,
feeling like a damn fool. “I’m no good at this, I never have been.
After A.J. died, I didn’t want to be in any type of relationship,
what with the chance I’d lose someone I loved. So I—stayed
alone.”

“What does this have to do with me?” She
watched him, her expression wary.

“I’m trying to explain why the hell I am the
way I am.” He shook his head. “And I’m messing it up, as
always.”

“No.” She slowly shook her head. “No, you’re
not.”