The Enclave of Jyme (G Street Chronicles Presents) (23 page)

Life is like a battlefield and I’d lived in the trenches far too long. I took everything the world gave me head on. A wise woman told me once that what didn’t kill only makes you strong. I knew I couldn’t keep doing the same old thing if I wanted change. I was going with my gut from here on out, and my gut was telling me, she was the other half of my rib.

“Tell me what to do to prove to you that I’m serious. And once I get you, I will never let you go,” I whispered softly to my sleeping Cricket. I will never forget these precious moments with her.

Cricket’s alarm went off on her phone and she threw it across the room absentmindedly. I kissed her face a couple of times and then I traced her features softly. She woke and looked over at the nightstand sleepily and confused.

“You grabbed it and chucked it on the floor about fifteen minutes ago,” I told her. She giggled the sweetest sound I’d ever heard. She shook her head and laughed at herself. She looked at her now all twisted up sweatshirt. She had one arm in and the other out.

“You sleep like a wild animal,” I laughed.

“I know. I’m not sure why I do that.”

“I like it. You’re so free when you sleep.”

She slid her arm in her shirt, got up and picked up her cell phone. She went to her closet and pulled out some clothes. She had a white button down, black pants and short red trench coat. My phone buzzed and I answered it. I pulled on my sweats and Cricket handed me a toothbrush and a small bottle of mouthwash.

“What the fuck happened, man?” Loon asked.

“I’ll have to give that to you.”

“Oh shit, are you still there?”

“Yes.”

“Aw, fuck man!” Loon sounded excited.

“Yeah.”

“It’s all good?”

I knew what he was really asking me. Loon wanted to know if Cricket was alright. He didn’t say it, but I knew what he meant.

“I’m about to come over there,” I told him when I turned the water on in the sink.

“Alright, man.”

Chapter 13

I heard a yelping, similar to what a small purse dog would sound like. I cut the water off and went to the front room. I saw my knife on the floor and a few drops of blood next to it. I rushed to the kitchen where Cricket had her hand under the sink water. I stood there beside her. I grabbed the dishtowel and handed it to her.

“NO!” she yelled.

“Can you hand me some paper towels?” she asked me. I went to the table and pulled off almost all the paper towels on the roll. She wrapped her hand up and looked through all the cabinets. She looked under the sink and found a medicine kit. She cleaned the wound and I helped her bandage it up. She went back under the sink and found a spray bottle of something. She got more paper towels off the roll on the table. She went back into the front room cleaned the blood off the floor. I pulled the spray bottle and paper towels from her hands.

She went into her bedroom and called for someone to bring her car around to the front. I went into the bedroom and she wasn’t in there. I walked over to the bathroom and we ran into each other. I placed both of my hands on each side of her face. We looked at each other dead on, and the room was silent. My cell phone rang from the front room. She shifted and pushed out a hard breath and pulled away from me.

She put her coat on and picked up her purse from the counter. I put my shoes and coat on and zipped up my jacket. She unlocked the door and held it open for me. I walked to the door and just held on to it. She let it go and started walking down the hall. I let the door close and I heard the latch click behind me. I walked behind her to the elevator. She had her jacket wrapped around her tight and her curves looked luscious. She walked hard in her heels and I knew I would never forget how she sounds walking in her heels. Our elevator ride was silent. The elevator pinged and I held the elevator door for her.

“Thank you,” she told the guy at the front desk.

“No problem.”

She walked over to car and didn’t turn back to give me a second glance. I got into my truck and drove off from her building. Cricket turned right at the light and I turned left. We were going in two separate directions this morning and it made me think we would continue the paths we were going down. I didn’t want that. I wanted to be with her. I wanted to get to know her. I wanted to know all of her likes and dislikes. I wanted to wake up next to her every morning.

I parked on the street in front of Loon’s apartment building. I took off my jacket and put on my tank. I knocked at Loon’s door and he opened it right up.

“Hey, man,” he said.

“Hey,” I walked in and he was making breakfast. He had two plates sitting on his counter and a glass of milk for me and a glass of orange juice for him. I sat down on one stool and pulled my phone out of my pocket to check for any text messages or missed calls. The phone was blank. Loon placed four strips of bacon on both of our plates. He had some kind of special white omelet on his plate and placed a bright yellow one full of all kinds of shit on mine. We dug in and after a few bites, I started in.

I told Loon the story from last night to present. He listened to everything I had to say without interrupting me.

“First, you should have sent me a picture of that fucker pissing his pants. Second, damn.”

“I know.”

“I mean…you can’t catch a break can you?”

“Right?”

We sat there in silence finishing our breakfast. Loon was pondering something. He was a true thinker. He’d been like that since we were kids. He never was the one to make a quick decision about anything. “You have to talk to her about it. You need to know where her head is. I mean…you don’t know why she reacted the way she did. She could have an abusive boyfriend that threatened her with a knife all the time. You don’t know, and you need to know if you guys are going to go any further.”

I knew what Loon was saying, and he was right. I didn’t know anything about this woman. I was infatuated with her outside and had barely gotten to know the inside. But there was just something about Cricket. When I looked into those chestnut eyes, I could see me and her in them. There was something, and I just couldn’t put my finger on it. Loon and I hashed out a plan for me, and then I went home to my condo, picking up breakfast for Kanoke on the way.

When I got home, he was just now getting up. “Hey, man,” he yawned.

“Breakfast,” I pointed at the greasy bag from the diner on the corner.

“Yes! How was your run?”

I looked over at the time and pulled out my phone. There was no sense in me having to tell this story again; might as well tell Kanoke and Sheen at the same damn time. We were friends/cousins…hell, we were brothers. We share everything but chicks. Wait scratch that. Kanoke and Sheen have shared a girl before. But we’re tight. If one knew, we all knew. I called Sheen while Kanoke dug into his food.

“Somebody better be dead,” Sheen bitched through the receiver.

“Wake up, bitch. I spent the night with Cricket last night.”

After all the name calling and hissing like a cat, they both finally shut up to let me talk. I told them the exact same story Loon had heard less than thirty minutes ago.

“What the fuck? Bullshit! Damn!” was all I heard through the whole story. I told them about the plan Loon and I had made and they agreed it was solid. I went to shower and then I sat down in my chair. I called Cricket, but she didn’t answer. I left a message after her sexy seductive voice told me to.

“We need to talk about this morning; I don’t want us to pretend like it never happened. I don’t want to do this over the phone. Can we meet for a quick lunch?” I hung up and waited like a sixteen-year-old girl for her to call. About a minute later, my phone buzzed. I had a text message from Cricket.

I have a gap from one to three today. I will be in the Pike Place area.

I responded to her text instantly.

I will meet you at Maximilian in the Market at 1:15.

I hung out with Kanoke for the rest of the morning and got ready to meet with Cricket. I put on a green Henley, a pair of khakis, and brown suede loafers with a matching brown suede jacket. I wore my hair up in a ponytail. I sprayed some cologne on and headed out.

I made it to the restaurant right at one o’clock. Cricket walked in, looking amazing as ever. I stood and pulled her chair out for her. I sat down, and she didn’t look at me. The waiter came over as soon as we were settled in our seats.

We both had water with lemon and the house soup. She ordered a salad and I ordered the salmon. We sat there and I knew that was my cue. I had asked her to this lunch, so I had better get started.

“I don’t want you to be afraid of me. I’m not that guy,” I whispered to her. She looked at me and took in a breath.

“Look, I’m from the South, and you having a knife or a switchblade isn’t an issue. The problem I have with you is that you didn’t tell me. You left it in your stupid pocket. I could have lost my fucking hand,” she snapped. She was so cute when she was pissed. Her anger reminded me of the very first day we met, and I couldn’t do anything but smile at her. She rolled her eyes at me and I pulled her bandaged hand into mine.

“I’m sorry,” I smiled at her.

After a few heartbeats, she caved. “I accept your apology.”

I rubbed her hand and she yanked it back from me. And then she giggled my favorite giggle and gave it back to me.

After we finished our lunch, she was about to leave. I looked down at my Pathfinder leather watch. She still had an hour and fifteen minutes. She was always trying to leave early.

“You said you had a two hour gap; we still have plenty of time,” I interrupted her before she could even get the goodbye out.

“I do, but since I’m staying in Seattle this week, I desperately need to buy a few things to hold me over.”

“From where?” I asked.

“Over on Northeast Northgate Way.”

“Okay, I’m heading that way. Follow me there,” I lied. I just wanted to spend a little more time with her.

“You’re going to Northgate Way?” she asked.

“I’m going to Northeast Northgate Way,” I corrected her.

“You are such a bad liar.”

“And something’s telling me you are way too good at it,” I admitted.

She gave me that fake ass wide smile. I hated that smile. “But you will never know the truth.”

“I’ll learn you soon enough,” I warned her.

She followed me over to Northeast Northgate Way. We went into a boutique that catered to thicker sized women. The women in the boutique waited on Cricket hand and foot. I sat down most of the time and watched her work. She was in her very own element. I noticed she almost picked up everything that had a shine or sparkle to it in the store. She must like sparkly things. After the women gave her the total, I handed the sales lady my credit card. Cricket looked up at me, but I wouldn’t even look at her.

“I’ve got money to spend here,” she snapped.

“So do I,” I told her. The sales associate handed me my card back after she swiped it. I signed the pad in front of the register. The sales lady handed me the receipt and I looked down at the bottom of the receipt. “Look, you saved $386 dollars,” I teased.

She rolled her eyes and grabbed four of the bags while I got the other six. She swished hard back to her car and I could only imagine how those tits were bouncing. She slammed her bags down inside the trunk of her car. She tapped her foot impatiently while she waited for me to put my bags in her trunk. She held the trunk door open for me. I placed one bag in at a time as slow as I could. She was getting pissed and I was enjoying every bit of it. When I put the last bag in, she was about to slam the trunk, but I caught it and yanked it from her. I didn’t raise my head. I just stared inside of the truck. My mind was pondering and I had an idea. She followed my gaze and then she cut her eyes up at me.

I wrapped my arms around her and unhooked her trench. I put both of my hands under her shirt.

“Close your coat back up,” I whispered in her ear. She did it and I pulled both of her big juicy cups down underneath her breast. I started rubbing and squeezing her nipples. I dug my face in her hair until I reached her ear.

“Is anybody watching us?” I whispered in her ear.

She looked around nervously and her breath quickened. “No,” she moaned. Her nipples were rising like dough in my hands. “No,” she hiccupped out the second time.

“Look at each and every car facing us,” I demanded. She looked at each and every car parked twice.

“Did you check every car?” I asked her.

“Yes,” she whined. Her nipples were getting so hard and her breathing was rough.

“Tell me what color each and every car is,” I whispered to her.

“Red,” she said a little too loudly.

“Shhhhh,” I told her.

“Blue, green, white, gray, oh God…yellow,” she moaned out.

“Shhhhhhh.”

“Oh God, what about the people behind us?”

“They don’t matter; they can’t see you,” I assured her. I licked her ear and moved in even closer to her.

“Do you feel that on your back?” I asked her. The beast was at full salute and he wanted some attention.