Total pages in book: 138
Estimated words: 129460 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 647(@200wpm)___ 518(@250wpm)___ 432(@300wpm)
Estimated words: 129460 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 647(@200wpm)___ 518(@250wpm)___ 432(@300wpm)
CHAPTER 18
JESS
A laugh rumbles up my chest. “Oh no, you don’t need to worry about that. I’m more than capable of sitting across from Warren and testifying. He doesn’t scare me.” I glare at the mirrored window I’m certain several of Warren’s coworkers are standing behind. “Cowards never do.”
“That’s great. I’m glad to hear that.” The blonde internal affairs officer who introduced herself as Theresa walks back to her side of the desk and takes a seat. Her eyes scan the documents in front of her for a half second before she tells me I’m free to go.
“Go, go. As in walk out of here?” When she nods, I leap up from my seat. “You don’t need to tell me twice.”
I’m halfway out the door when she reminds me I have several offers to drive me home.
“I’m good,” I assure her, the annoyance in my tone undeniable. A handful of the officers were gentlemen, but more than half of them were pigs. Even assuring them that Warren didn’t lay a hand on me didn’t see me skipping an in-depth photoshoot. My booty shorts were snapped more times than a pair of see-through panties during a Victoria’s Secret fashion exhibition.
I curse my stubbornness to hell when I break through the front doors of the precinct. The wind is chilly, and since I’m not wearing a bra, the nippiness is even more noticeable.
“Jess,” shouts a voice when I fold my arms across my chest to hide my erect nipples and continue down the sidewalk. It’s a decent walk to my building, but pounding the pavement may be the only way I can slacken my anger.
I’m mad, and although my anger should be taken out on Warren since he’s facing a minimum of seventeen years, he isn’t accessible right now.
He is, though.
The man I stupidly hoped would ride in and save me but left the task to his cousin instead.
Caleb’s backside is balanced on the front quarter panel of my car. He’s wearing the same whitewashed jeans and plain T-shirt combination he threw on after his performance tonight, but his smile is nowhere near as large.
“You stole my car?”
He tries to hide his balk. He miserably fails. “I borrowed your ride so I could pick you up.”
“Why?” I don’t give him the chance to reply. I snatch my keys out of his hand, race for the driver’s side door, then slide inside.
Caleb scarcely makes it into the passenger seat before I slam my foot on the gas pedal and whip down the street like a final speeding ticket won’t see me catching the metro.
“Jessie…” I don’t need to look at Caleb to know he’s squeezing his butt cheeks together. I narrowly miss the bumper guard of the car in front of me by a hair’s breadth. “Maybe you should slow down.”
His suggestion has me pushing the limits of my car to the absolute max. I floor the gas before weaving in and out of vehicles like we’re part of a NASCAR tournament.
I know why I’m angry. I’m annoyed I wanted him to rescue me, but since that would require me to confess concern that I can’t take care of myself, I can’t tell Caleb that.
I can’t say or do anything, so I don’t.
I drift into the parking lot at the back of our apartment building, toss off my seat belt with enough aggression for it to the hit the window next to Caleb’s white face, then hotfoot it inside.
Since I’m racing for the bottle of vodka in the freezer, I fail to notice the mess in the hallway has been cleaned and my trash has been taken out. I don’t even notice Octavia sleeping on my couch until a brown paper bag monopolizing the freezer space forces me to acknowledge the man shadowing my chaos the past twenty minutes.
“I’m not a charity case, Caleb.”
He holds up his hands in a non-defensive manner, but I don’t give him the chance to speak.
“First my father.” I thrust my hand at the meal kit delivery that must have cost him a fortune to organize. “Now you.” I switch my hand thrust to the takeout bag in the freezer. “I can take care of myself.”
“No one is saying you can’t, Jessie—”
“Then why did you buy me food?” I shout so loud I should wake Octavia, but she still appears to be out cold.
My focus returns to Caleb when he says, “Because… I… uh…”
The slow deliverance of his lie frustrates me to know end. “Because you?”
My attitude takes a step back when he says matter-of-factly. “Because I want to fuck you.” He licks his lips, drawing my focus to them. “Again. I want to fuck you again, and you said burgers were a part of the agreement.” He drifts his eyes from the pre-prepared meal kit to me before taking a step closer. “But don’t take it as anything more than that, Jess. The receipt shows when I purchased the burgers. It was almost forty-minutes before you gave it another shot at smacking some sense into Warren. Which proves I’m not here to rescue you. I’m here to get my dick wet.”