Up All Night Long: From Lust to Love (Romance Anthology) (29 page)

Chapter 2

I lifted my eyes to the pretty waitress who paused beside me and my friends at the bar, her hair half blond and half red. She could be the joker’s girl, but I didn't press my luck by telling her. Number one rule of getting fucked up was to make the hot piece serving your beer happy... even if you had to lie.

"Can I get you boys another round?" She winked at me and I nodded, as if I might be interested. I wasn't. Girls could sit on it and rotate. I'd fuck a bitch every once in a while, but I'd had my heart torn out so many times when I was younger that I had a flap on my chest to save me the cost of stitches.

"Yeah. This one's on me." My brother walked up and pulled a seat up beside me. I reached over and patted his back, smiling.

"Tough day at the office?"

"Naw, Cindy is on her period and just won't relent." Jake rolled his eyes and ran his fingers through his blond hair. The roots were starting to show his true colors and even though I shouldn't, I just couldn't help myself.

"Yeah well, maybe if you'd just be your fucking self." I tugged at a small pinch of hairs as he popped my arm away.

"Fuck off. Blonds have an easier time in life. I'm just trying to get mine." He smirked and turned to the other guys, clapping hands and greeting everyone.

It was a tradition to meet at Billy's in Ocean Beach on Sunday afternoons and spend a few hours getting shit faced together. Most people did it on Friday's, which meant that Sunday evenings at the bar were open wide and the beer was free flowing. No crowded rooms or bitches dry humping my leg. It was bliss.

"How's the hospital gig going?" Jake turned to me before picking up the cup of peanuts on the table in front of us.

I reached out and jerked them from him. "Don't eat those. Pinkie washed them off for anyone who was interested."

Jake glanced at our buddy Pinkie as he wagged his eyebrows and pretended to swish something in his big-ass mouth. I laughed as Jake gagged. He was called Pinkie for a reason, the fucker had twenty tats and every damn one of them was pink.

"Answer my question." My brother pulled out his phone and turned it on silent before looking up at me and tilting his head.

"It's a job, dude. I'm glad to have it, but it’s hard work for little pay."

One of the guys in the group started bitching about his girl and I stood up, stretching and turning to look back at Jake. "Let's go out on the patio. The sun's about to set and I want to see it."

"Pussy." Jake stood and took our beers from the waitress as he handed me mine and walked out on the deck. A few girls sat to our left, the gaggle of them seeming to take notice of us, but my attention was on the big guy next to me.

"I'm going to start putting in applications for something a little less hectic and more dangerous I guess. My job’s a constant rat race because of the crazy fuckers that get brought in on meth or cocaine or some other fucked-up drug. Those guys are constant and the hospital has to treat them, but it's me who has to hold them down half the time while they're vomiting, shitting themselves and twitching half to death."

Jake shook his head, the look of disgust on his face a mirror to my feelings. "That's not good. I think I might have something if you're interested."

"Yeah? Why didn't you say something earlier?" I pushed at him as he chuckled.

"It's not exactly your kinda job and honestly, I don't think you'll take it. It's security detail." He took a long drink of his beer as I growled.

"I'm down, depending on the money and who I'm detailing." I followed suit and emptied half the bottle before taking a breath.

A blond moved in between us, her friends watching with anticipation from the large table just a few feet from us.

"Hi. I'm Sandy."

"Hi, Sandy. I'm talking with my brother right now. How about when we're done, I come talk to you and your friends and see who's up for a little late night wrestling?" I nodded at her, putting on my best ‘come fuck me’ smile.

Her eyes widened and she giggled, the beer having done half the work for me. "Oh, yeah sure. That sounds... hot."

"Good. Now run along and tell your friends you have plans to bend over for the big guy with all the tats later." I popped her butt and she giggled again, running toward her table as they erupted in laughter.

"Why did you have to give the poor girl hope?" Jake turned and looked out at the water. "I swear you're going to get payback from your disrespect of women when you have a daughter."

"Firstly, I'm not having kids, and secondly, she wanted what I gave her. A bit of juicy gossip and nothing else."

"You're going to take her home and fuck her, no doubt." Jake lifted the beer to his lips and turned toward the women as they continued to get louder.

"Sure. Why not? I'm an ass-grown man and a release might do me good. I've been a bit tense lately."

"Masturbate." Jake turned back to me. "You're not good with fucking and leaving. You'll fall in love and the floozy will break your heart."

"You make me feel like the tender flower that I am."

Jake laughed loudly and lifted his beer toward mine. "The job's protection detail for Senator Moore's college-aged daughter. She's home for the summer and he's concerned with her being here in San Diego. He's looking for someone that he can trust to stay with the girl twenty-four seven."

"With no days off? No."

"You'd get Sundays off. He actually asked about you."

"Me?" I jerked back as surprise rushed through me. "Why in the world would he ask about me? Has he not reviewed my rap sheet?"

"Yeah, he actually has, but you saving his ass at the event a few weeks back gave you his nice shiny seal of approval. His only concern was whether you would try and hit on the girl."

I snorted and tapped my beer bottle against the railing in front of us as the sun began to set. The sky burst into crimson and dark yellows, stealing my breath for a minute and causing me to forget where I was.

"Did you hear me?" Jake popped me in the arm with his empty bottle.

"About hitting on the girl?"

"Yeah. I told him not to worry."

"Good. There's nothing to
worry
about. I'm not interested in bleeding for anyone for a long time." I shrugged. "I'm sure she's as fake as the rest of these chicks that snuggle up to me every time I leave the house."

"It's the big bad-ass sign you have tattooed to your forehead."

I brushed my hand along my face and forced my brow to contract.

"Me? Naw... I'm as sweet as a kitten. Speaking of pussy’s..." I finished my beer and leaned over, pointing to the busty blond who had approached us moments ago. "Sandy... come here baby. Let's get our night started."

"Oh fuck. You're not really gonna..." Jake stood up and turned to me.

"I am. How much is the gig?"

"It's for the entirety of the summer and it's around ten grand a month."

My jaw dropped. "Are you fucking kidding me?"

That was three times what I was making at the hospital. I could work all summer and take the fall off completely. That would really give me time to find the right job.

"Yeah. You want an interview?" Jake moved back as Sandy slipped in between us and snuggled up to the front of me.

"Yeah. I want in." I glanced down at the girl, winking as she giggled at the hidden meaning behind my words.

My brother lifted his hand and gave me a look.

I shook it and glanced down at the girl. "Where you wanna do this, baby?"

"How about at your place?" She slid her hands up my chest, purring like a cat.

"Naw... how about the women's bathroom as you walk into the bar? It's a single room with a lock." I leaned down and brushed my nose along her cheek, breathing in.

She smelled good and a quick fuck wouldn't hurt anyone.

"Yeah," she whispered and turned, capturing my lips with hers.

I meant as much to her as she meant to me. Absolutely nothing.

Chapter 3

The beach house in La Jolla was a bit much, but my father always did go off the deep-end in gift giving. I unpacked slowly, taking my time and ignoring the constant buzz of my phone. It was the group of girls I went to high school with, most of them friends with me simply because it gave them status and something to brag about.

A soft sigh left me as I finished putting everything up. The big house was still basically empty after I unpacked. I should have invited some of the girls from UCLA to come down with me. There were two or three bedrooms, but each had multiple beds in them.

I checked the refrigerator to see that my father had paid someone to come pack it with all of my favorites. My childhood rushed past me, sickening me as it always did. All those years of growing up with nothing more than nannies and butlers to raise me. With enough snacks and presents dropped sporadically around the house I was supposed to be okay with not having a father.

"He couldn't handle anything after mom died," I spoke quietly, the sound of my own voice comforting. It was the only consistent voice in my life.

Picking up the phone, I dialed his number and swallowed the sadness that always seemed to sit at the edge of my world.

"Pumpkin. You here?"

"I am. Where are we meeting?" I picked the sticker off of a t-shirt that sat on the counter, a big card that said 'welcome home' on it.
Another gift.

"I'm sitting in the driveway of the beach house. Come on out and we'll go to that steak house you like that hangs over into the sea."

"Sounds good. Be right out." I hung up and walked to the bathroom, dragging a brush through my long blond hair. I was a hot mess thanks to riding all the way from L.A. with the windows down. My father would comment on my appearance if I didn't spruce it up a little. Some days he seemed more willing to marry me off than simply have a real conversation that didn't revolve around my school or his career.

I put on a little bit of mascara and some lip gloss and growled, "Steak house."

I hated red meat, but he wouldn’t know that. He didn’t know anything about me.

Dinner would be comfortable and I'd placate him with a few stories from the past semester and then come back home and gorge on cupcakes and scary movies. I grabbed my purse and walked out of the front door of the house. The back opened right up onto the beach, which was the best part of the place.

The limo that sat in front of the house was a bit of a surprise. My father had several cars, but his silver Lexus was his guilty pleasure of choice. The stretch limo was a bit much, but I was sure he had an excuse for the extravagance. He always did.

The driver got out and smiled at me, holding the door. "Miss Moore. How are you this evening?"

"Good. Thank you." I lifted my nose a little, acting as was expected.

"Pumpkin. Don't you look beautiful?" My father reached up and pulled me into a tight hug as the driver shut the door behind me.

"Thanks, Dad." I moved to the seat beside him and worked on getting my seatbelt on before turning to pin him with a stare. "What's with the car? I thought we were trying to keep attention off of us?"

"Yeah, but I thought it would be fun. It's been a while since we've been on a father-daughter date, so I thought, why the hell not?" He smiled and I forced a tight smile myself.

Why not was because it would drag attention our way no matter where we were. Not only that, but there were starving kids in the orphanage down the block, but let's ride in class.

"Well, cool." I smiled and turned to ask him about his campaign trail, but his phone buzzed and he pulled it out and sighed.

"I need to get this. Excuse me for a minute." He answered it before I could mutter a word.

"Sure," I mumbled under my breath and pulled out my own phone, sinking down in the seat next to him and flipping through the various text messages I had.

One was from Jeremy
. "Hey pretty girl. Just seeing if you were going to be in town this weekend. I got concert tickets to T-swift and figured you might want to go. Let me know and I'll even buy you a hot dog."

I rolled my eyes and laughed softly, unable to help myself. Where I might really enjoy seeing Taylor in concert, I knew without a doubt that Jeremy wouldn't. He was in his early thirties and still trying to act like he wasn't. It was too much.

"What's funny?" My father turned toward me. I hadn't realized he was off the call.

"Oh, just Jeremy asking me to a concert. I swear he thinks he's my age."

"Chloe. You know I don't like you talking to him. Something is off about the guy." My father patted my leg. "Text him back and tell him no."

I ruffled at the fact that my dad was telling me what to do and I was in my early twenties. I wanted to defy him just for the sake of doing it, but it wasn't worth the emotional energy. I would push back and he would remind me of my mother's death and the hardship he had as a single father trying to make not only my life better, but the world better for everyone.

"Yep. I'll tell him, Dad. Nothing to worry about." I slipped the phone back in my purse. "Now... tell me about the campaign. Are you blazing a trail of goodness and truth across the United States?"

He laughed as his face lit up. "We need reform. I've been saying that for years. It's time for another reformation. Do you know the story of Martin Luther?"

"No. Tell it to me." I smiled and leaned back, pretending to listen as I went to my happy place. I had heard the story of Martin Luther a million times, but my father sold the same stale stories to so many people that he long ago forgot the faces of those of us that had heard them. I didn't have the heart to join in, copying his words right alongside him. It would be childish, and though I would enjoy it in the moment... later I would hate myself even more.

How can I be surrounded by people and yet feel so alone?

"Pumpkin. Are you listening to me?" He poked at my side and I jumped.

"Oh sorry. I actually studied Martin Luther in one of my history classes last year. I was lost in the story and imagining myself there." I brushed my hands down my white summer dress and turned my attention back to him. "What is your plan to keep yourself safer after the attack a few weeks back?"

"I always have Pauly beside me, but we've added a few extra guys to the payroll. There's one of them in particular that I wanted to talk to you about." He tapped his leg, which was never a good sign.

"Dad. I'm not interested in dating right now. I have one more year of school and then med school after that."

He laughed. "No. I'm not setting you up silly. I'd rather you not focus on anything but school right now."

"Oh, good. Then what's up with this guy?"

"Well, I've been talking with my advisors and they’re concerned about some of the threat's I've been getting lately."

"Threats? Death threats?"

"Yes, but please don't worry. I have full protection around me. The only part of me that's exposed to threat really is... well, you." He brushed his fingers over his eyebrows. It was his tale-tell way of trying to look cool in the midst of extreme nervousness.

"Me? Wait... are you saying that you want me to have security detail too?"

"Yes, but just until we know if I'm in the primaries. If I'm not, which I highly doubt that I'll make it this time, we'll let him go."

"Hell no." I shook my head and crossed my arms over my chest. "There is no way I'm having some guy follow me out every time I go."

"He would be with you twenty-four seven Chloe, and this really isn't a request, baby. I'm hiring someone. I cannot have something happen to you. Not after we lost your mother. You know all I've done to make sure you were protected and safe. I can't let something happen now."

"It's not happening, Dad. You can say anything you want. I'm not going to have a shadow. It's creepy and I'm perfectly capable of defending myself. Keep your security guys with you and just let me live my life."

"It's not that easy."

"Fine. I'll just disappear." I knew the minute I said it that me leaving wasn’t at all a possibility. I had nothing without him. Somehow he had made sure of that.