Fuck, it was the cutest thing I had ever heard.
I couldn’t help but stare at her while I was folding the blankets. Her vibrant purple hair was fanned out around her face. She was so fucking beautiful even without her make-up. More so even. It was then I wished I had a notebook to capture her beauty on paper. Make it live through the pages of my art.
I resisted the urge to crawl in bed with her to hold her in my arms. As much as I tried not to touch her last night, I couldn’t fucking help myself. She was so warm, smooth, and smelled like everything I ever wanted.
I was definitely caught off guard when she offered me a place to stay. I wasn’t expecting that, and I don’t think she was either. I could sense her anxiety the entire drive to her apartment and even more as we made it towards her door.
Of course I wanted to have sex with her. I wasn’t a fucking saint. The only time I went home with a girl was to do just that, fuck her. Briggs was different. She was the first girl I wanted to get to know inside and out. For some reason that didn’t scare me. If anything, it made me happy and that was the feeling I was the most unfamiliar with.
I wasn’t expecting to pull her into my arms and kiss her.
It just happened.
I kissed her because I couldn’t not kiss her.
It was only one kiss and I already knew it wasn’t nearly enough. I had kissed hundreds of girls by that point and it was the first time I actually felt like I was kissing someone.
The connection was live and thriving all around us. The force, the pull, so fucking strong that there was no way to ever push away.
I headed to the motel room. The last thing I wanted was to get charged for another night in that piece of shit room. Mike was already gone by the time I went to go grab all my shit. He left a note on the table with an address and a phone number. I packed up all my belongings, which wasn’t much and got the hell out of there. I wasn’t sure if the next morning I would be at Briggs’ or Mike’s friends couch but one thing was for sure.
I was staying in New York.
It took me a minute to find a place to buy some breakfast for us, and I got lost trying to find my way back to her apartment. After walking around aimlessly for over an hour, I managed to find my way back. I had grabbed her key fob in case she was still sleeping when I returned since I left before the sun came up. It was already almost noon by the time I was at her door again.
I knocked instead of just walking in. I figured she was already awake maybe wondering where I went.
At least I hoped she was.
When she answered the door, I couldn’t tell if she was surprised to see me again or surprised that someone had knocked on her door.
With a big grin, I raised her coffee and a bag filled with every kind of doughnut known to fucking man out in front of me.
“I got us some breakfast.”
She smiled and it lit up her entire face. I caught her expression in the air and placed it on my heart, causing her to smile wider. She moved aside gesturing for me to come in. I was worried about what she would think when she saw I held all of my possessions over my shoulder, my entire world in a tattered duffle bag. The last thing I wanted was for her to think I was moving in.
I set my bag down by the sofa and made my way over to the kitchen island, where I placed her coffee and food. I was about to tell her why I had all my shit with me, but the suitcase on her bed distracted me.
Instead I turned around to face her and immediately blurted, “Where we going?”
She eyed me cautiously for several seconds, her gaze falling to my bag against the sofa.
“I can’t take you with me,” she replied like she didn’t want to say it. “I’m leaving, and I don’t know when I’ll be back. I go where I’m told. I don’t have any choice in the matter. And right now I’m being told to go to Colombia.”
I jerked back, shocked as shit. “You’re trafficking drugs?”
“I’m an exporter/importer, Austin. I’m the middle man.”
“The fuck,” I breathed out, instant anger taking over. “Jesus Christ. Do you have any idea how dangerous that is? Who the hell would put you in the line of fire like that?”
She reassuringly shook her head and it did nothing but piss me off further. Not at her but at the fucker that was making her do this.
“I’m fine. No ones going to fuck with me. Trust me.”
“Briggs…” I coaxed, trying to calm down. The anger was overtaking me.
She wasn’t to blame for this and I needed to remember that.
“There’s always someone with me when I meet a new client. But it doesn’t fucking matter, Austin, I’ve been taking care of myself for as long as I can remember.”