Just to be Left Alone (7 page)

She
pulled into the well-lit gas station and got out at the air pump. Felicia
fumbled in her pocket then I heard her mumble something. She got out as well
and stood at the back of the car. I just sat there, numb.

I
could hear Felicia talking to someone on the phone and then she handed it to
Raven. I could sense something was up. I was too stressed to worry over it. They
both got into the car and we drove off in silence.

We
pulled up at Raven’s and I got out looking at the parking entrance, hoping
nobody would pull in behind us. Raven walked me in and sat me down on the sofa
and said she’d get us some sodas. Felicia sat down beside me as I unstrapped my
heels and tucked my feet under me. Leaning my head back, I closed my eyes.
There was a knock at the door. I practically jumped out of my skin.

“It’s
the guys, Sammy. Calm down,” Felicia said as she answered the door.

Raven
leaned against the sofa, behind my head and said, “Honey, Felicia can’t tell a
lie, so the guys were on to her from the start. She had her cell phone on
loudspeaker in her pocket while we were in the car talking. Parker heard the
whole story. When we got to the gas station she got it back out. He said they
were coming over after they made sure we weren’t being followed. Conrad got
your address from us and had Blake check your place. No one was there, so Blake
headed home.”

Soon
after Conrad and Parker came in, Felicia apologized to me.

“It’s
okay Felicia. Raven told me what was going on.”

Parker
and Chastity sat across from me.

Chastity
said, “I’m ticked that you didn’t want to tell anyone what had happened until
you were gone. How were we supposed to grab him for threatening you if you didn’t
tell us? You let him do this to you and he just walked away again.”

All
I could do was whisper, “I didn’t want anything else to happen.”

I
felt a weight next to me and was immediately wrapped in big arms. I inhaled and
somehow knew it was Conrad. I thought about Jason knowing he was there. I
jerked. He tightened his arms around me and said, “Calm down, just relax. I’m
not going to hurt you.”

“I
can’t. He told me to stay away from you. You didn’t see him or hear how he said
it. He said it would be a bad thing if we got any more serious about one
another and for me to keep away from you. If he saw you come here after me
there’s no telling what he’ll do next.”

“Listen.
Jason can go fly a kite or go to the next looney bin, whichever suits him best.
If his intentions are to threaten, hurt, or frighten you again, I’ll do what I
have to do. We’re going to come up with a plan to keep you protected. I told
you that I have seen this kind of behavior before. I can’t stand by and let it
happen to you,” Conrad said.

I
nodded.

“First
of all, we need to get a restraining order against Jason,” Raven suggested.

“That’s
sure to piss him off and I don’t particularly care,” Chastity offered.

“We
need to be prepared for his anger. Go to the police tomorrow. Conrad can verify
what he’s seen. I’m sure we could get statements from the waiter tonight and
the one Jason yelled at,” Raven said.

Conrad
agreed.

Raven
went on, “We can keep in touch with each other over the next few days, while
the paperwork gets handled.”

“That
could take a week or so depending on when they file the papers and serve them. At
least, that’s what I’ve been told. We should give this situation two weeks to
make sure,” Felicia said.

“I’ll
go to the police station by my place,” I said before gulping down cold soda on
my tight throat.

“I’m
going to the station with you since I was there for two of the incidences.
They’ll want statements from me as well,” Conrad offered.

“I
don’t need a chaperone all the time, but going to the station with me isn’t a
bad idea.”

“I
guess that’s settled,” Chastity said as she leaned into Parker.

I
looked at the girls and thought that we’d all been through enough tonight. I
just wanted the whole episode to be over.

“Okay
guys, party’s over. It’s really late and we’ve had a real blast. So why don’t
we all get some sleep?”

“You’re
staying here tonight, right?” Raven asked.

“Yeah,
you can’t go home in case Jason comes by. There’s no trusting the jerk now,”
Felicia said.

“She’s
got a point, Samantha. You should either stay here tonight or have someone stay
with you at your place. You don’t need to be alone,” Parker said.

“I’ll
have to be alone sometime, somewhere. I refuse to be a prisoner because of him
and you have to understand that. I’ll be careful. I’ll stay here tonight since
I’m already here with my bag. Tomorrow, I will stop at the police station on
the way home. I will also check in on a regular basis to make you guys feel
better.”

I
had just put my foot down with them.

“Fine.
I’ll pick you up at ten o’clock for brunch then we’ll drive to the police
station before taking you home, okay?” Conrad asked.

I
looked at him and nodded, at least he’d let me sleep late. Conrad hugged me. I
looked into his eyes and tried to smile. I realized that he was swaying closer
to me. He kissed me softly on the lips—a mere touch that felt like more than
what it was. My breath caught. The look in his eyes changed, turning darker. I
would have gladly stayed in those eyes, away from trouble, for the rest of the
night. I stayed there until I heard Chastity and Parker leaving. I started to
get up.

“No
you don’t. Stay right there. That’s the most relaxed I’ve seen you all night,”
laughed Chastity. “I’ll call you tomorrow and see how things are going. Conrad,
please take care of my girl, okay?”

Chastity
smiled at him as she waved and walked out the door, with Parker in tow.

“I
guess he’s going with her,” Felicia said as she grabbed up dirty glasses.

“He’ll
go wherever she lets him,” replied Raven with a smile. “Isn’t that the way it
works with her? She just has that magic, sometimes I envy that.”

“I
don’t have it in me to be that way,” admitted Felicia.

“You
had enough courage to flirt with the DJ tonight, didn’t you?” Raven asked as
she gently elbowed Felicia.

“That’s
different. I got a phone number. She took a hottie home after only knowing him
a few hours! Did you see that kiss earlier? His knees actually buckled! When
will I ever be able to do that to a guy, I ask you? You guys have known me half
my life and I can barely go up to a guy without losing it. Just take some of
Chastity’s courage and put it in a spray bottle. I’ll apply it the next time I
have an eligible hot man in my reach and it’ll be a fantasy come true.”

“Next
time you’re with a guy and you think he’s not moving fast enough, just channel
Chastity,” I suggested.

“You
can talk. You have a hottie wrapped around you right now. No offense, Conrad.”

She
blushed as he started laughing.

“None
taken, Felicia. If I was a guy in your sites I would be proud if you pounced on
me, but seeing as I’m already hoping to be pounced on by your friend here,
sorry.”

“Well
Sam, I guess your dance card is full for a while. I hope there’s not a problem
with that?” Raven asked as she leaned over my shoulder against the sofa.

She
had a devilish smirk on her face. I looked at Conrad. That dark green was back
in his eyes while he still had the smile on his face. I held his gaze.

“No,
I don’t have a problem with that at all. As a matter of fact, I look forward to
it.”

He
moved his hands from my back, down my sides before gripping my waist.

“Name
the time and place.”

I
just licked my lips and nodded as I felt the warmth from his hands on my hips.
I’d have to channel Chastity myself on that night, but either way I’d make it
happen.

I
heard Raven clear her throat behind me and I looked her way.

“The
guest room is ready when ever you are and your bag is already in there. I’m
heading to bed and Felicia’s leaving. Just lock up when you go to bed and
Conrad, no rush for you to leave. Good night guys.”

Raven
waved over her shoulder as she walked a giggling Felicia to the door. I settled
once more into Conrad and took a deep breath as I closed my eyes. I heard him
sigh as I relaxed and I realized I’d never felt this at ease with a guy before.
It was amazing. And to think that Jason was right, it all came about because of
what he had done to me.

I
guess I laughed at the thought because Conrad asked me what was so funny. I
told him. He burst out laughing.

“I’ve
heard of crazy things bringing people together but Jason
is
a little extreme, don’t you think? And you’re right, he claimed
responsibility for us meeting and for it being under bad circumstances, so he
has to be crazy to think he can force you into a relationship with him again.”

“I
guess you’re right, this whole mess is insane and maybe so is Jason.”

“Even
though it was bad, I’m glad I met you. Now we just have to get this mess
cleared up before we can move forward,” he said as he ran a finger down my
nose.

“I
understand and I am glad I met you too. You’re proof that good things can come
out of bad situations.”

“Now,
it’s really late and we have a busy day ahead of us. If I stay here much longer,
I will either fall asleep or do something really naughty. So, walk me to the
door.”

He
took me by the hand and led the way. At the door, he put his arms around me and
I looked into his eyes.

“I
meant what I said. I’m not making a single move on you until you’re ready.
You’ve had enough problems lately and I don’t want you to be confused where I’m
concerned. Neither of us wants a rebound relationship”

“Well
then, you better kiss me before I start getting confused,” I said bashfully.

There,
I had made the first move and was suddenly proud of myself.

“Yes,
ma’am,” he said happily as he lowered his head toward mine.

His
lips touched mine and I could’ve lost it. He hadn’t even deepened the kiss and
I was a goner. His lips were soft moving lightly against mine. I placed my
hands on his chest and stood on my tiptoes to get closer. He was nipping at my
lips and I had never had that done to me before. I realized I was clutching at
the front of his shirt to balance myself. He laughed deep in his chest and I
opened my eyes as he broke the stirring kiss.

“Did
I do something wrong?” I asked.

“Oh
no, you were doing everything right. I was stopping before we got ahead of
ourselves. We have all the time in the world. You go get some rest and I’ll see
you in the morning.”

He
kissed my forehead and walked out the door. I bolted both locks and slid the
chain into place. Then I heard him walk away before Raven walked up behind me.

“Why
aren’t you asleep?” I asked her with a grin on my face.

“I
came to get a glass of water and almost walked into something. I hung back in
the hall for a minute to give you some privacy. Looks like you had yourself a
nice closing to your evening, hmmm?”

She
walked around me and entered the kitchen.

“As
a mater of fact, I’d have to rate that as an eleven on my one to ten scale of
first kisses. We didn’t even French kiss and I’m breathing heavy. How can this
have happened?”

“I
did notice. I could feel the warmth in the hallway. Imagine what it’ll be like
when he has his way with you. Just take time to think of that, savor it when
you’re not doing anything dangerous, okay?”

She
got her water and patted me on the arm. I started blushing from the intense
mental pictures of us in bed.

 
“Well, I guess I’ll get some sleep. Thanks for
everything.”

I
hugged her before heading to the spare bedroom. Maybe tomorrow wouldn’t be a
disaster.

Chapter Five

At
ten-thirty in the morning, Conrad was knocking on the door and I was suddenly
nervous. I answered the door with a brave face. He kissed me quickly before
coming in to retrieve my bag. Raven was in the kitchen sipping her yogurt
smoothie when he picked up my bag from the couch.

“Good
morning, Raven.”

“I’m
about to get ready for my flight. I’ll call you guys later to check in. I wrote
down my cell phone number for you. Don’t be afraid to call me if you need
something.”

“I’m
in good hands. Call when you can and focus on your job, not me.”

I
put my arms around her shoulders for a tight squeeze. We said our goodbyes and
headed out so she could get ready in peace. Conrad walked me down to a white,
four door truck and I stopped for a second.

“Where’s
your motorcycle?” I asked him in confusion.

“Oh,
I have this too. I wasn’t sure if you approved of motorcycles. If you like
them, then I can arrange a ride on another day.”

He
opened the door for me.

“No,
I’m fine with this. I just wasn’t thinking about transportation. You can get me
on your bike another day.”
 

“Yeah,
we’ll see how you are on it when you’re a little more relaxed. Right now you
would probably squeeze me in half before we got you breakfast. Who knows, you
may not want to ride in this anymore once you’ve had a spin.”

He
pulled the truck out of the parking deck and headed to a hotel where his friend
claimed they served a wonderful brunch.

The
hotel’s atmosphere was soothing and the brunch was served buffet style from
Italian vending carts under skylights. We both stocked up on a little of
everything and even fed things to each other. It was so comfortable that I
actually forgot my troubles for the time being.

When
our bellies were full and the coffee carafe empty, we knew it was time to drive
the short distance to the police station.