The Thief Redeemer (15 page)

I grab her hand and rest it in my lap on the way to the
restaurant. Claire and I dominate the conversation, but this is normal. Marcus
usually doesn’t have much to say. When we arrive it’s exactly how I said it
would be. There aren’t many people here, and it’s still a hole-in-the-wall. I
open my door and jog around to open Claire’s. I hold her hand as we walk
inside, Marcus trailing behind. We find a booth in the back, and the waitress
comes to take our order. I swear, I think she’s high.

“Marcus, did you grow up here in Atlanta?” Claire asks
innocently, probably trying to draw Marcus into our conversation.

“Yeah. I’ve been in foster care the majority of my life in
and around Atlanta. I did manage to stay in the same high school all four years
and then afterwards, Brandon and I hit the streets.”

“Where’s that necklace from? The one you’re always messing
with?”

He glances down at the pendant and starts the process of
moving it back and forth across the chain. “It was a gift from my mother. She
gave this to me when I was in middle school, about a year before she died. It
was hers.” He feels the four prongs of the cross with his fingers. “It’s all I
have from her. It goes with me wherever I go.”

Claire smiles and reaches across the table to take his hand.
“It’s beautiful, Marcus.” He gives her a shy smile in return, and I wonder what
it is about this girl that makes everyone spill their guts. Our food arrives
and Claire agrees that this is the best burger she’s ever eaten. She eats
almost as much as Marcus and I, and our laughter fills the small booth. Even
Marcus joins in on our conversation and drops a few jokes.

The restaurant has an open window, which overlooks the
kitchen area. We see the workers making the burgers inside, and I recognize the
owners immediately. They don’t know who I am, but I know them from years and
years of eating here.

“Which ones are the owners?” Claire asks as she notices my
eyes looking over at the kitchen.

“Those people,” I say, pointing to the man and woman I have
seen here numerous times.

She stares at them for a second longer. “You think they’ll
recognize us?”

I shake my head no because they haven’t even given us a
second look. It’s safe to say we’re good at the Burger Bar.

Once done, we walk to the car and climb inside. Claire holds
her stomach saying she might explode, and I continue laughing. Marcus laughs,
too, saying he’s never seen someone so small eat such a large burger. We take
the interstate home, and I relax in how simple life is with Claire. I need her
during this time. Even though I went about getting her the wrong way, I need
her. And I didn’t even know I was missing her until she was here.

We’re almost home when Claire glances at me. “Brandon, you
were right.”

I grin because lately I haven’t been right about much.

“And what could I possibly have been right about?” I ask. My
head is resting on the back of the seat and I look over to smile at this
gorgeous angel. She might not be mine forever, but for the time being, she’s my
world.

“I think the owners of the Burger Bar were high.”

I give another deep laugh and hear Marcus’ laugh joining
mine from the back seat. I take Claire’s hand and kiss the top.

When we arrive back home, Claire and I head straight to my
bedroom. I start kissing her and undressing her slowly as I memorize her body.
I might not have her with me much longer and I need to savor everything. I take
her body throughout the night and when we’ve both had our fill, I hold her in
my arms and try to keep my thoughts in the here and now.

THE WEIRD THING: I like Stan. And I
never like any new employees. I actually don’t like anybody up here except
Marcus and Simon. I tolerate Carlos, but Stan, I like. He seems genuine and
he’s a fast learner. Maybe this won’t be bad after all.

“All right, Stan. You’re hired. You’ll start on that vehicle
over there with Carlos. Let him teach you the ropes. We pay out at the end of
the night. Cash.”

“Thanks, man,” Stan says as he walks over to Carlos. I watch
him and then freeze when his eyes stop on Claire. He blatantly checks her out
and my blood boils. He doesn’t know she’s mine. Maybe I should inform him of
that before he gets my fist in his face.

“Stan.” I signal him back over.

When he’s in front of me, I lay down the law. “That girl,
the blonde,” I start and he nods like he knows who I’m referencing. “She’s
unavailable. Don’t let me catch your eyes on her again.”

He becomes slightly frightened. “Yeah, got it. I just
thought I had seen her on the news or something.”

“No. You didn’t see anything,” I say, my tone harsh. He nods
and walks back to Carlos. This time his eyes only look at the car. Like him, or
not, I need to establish my dominance from the first night.

THE NOON SUN SHINES through my room
as we lay cocooned together in my bed. Claire’s body is intertwined with my
own, and I love the feel of skin on skin. Our breathing is heavy after our
latest exertion, and I hug her closer to me, smelling the scent in her hair.

“Brandon?”

“Yeah.”

“What are we doing?”

Her question hangs in the air because I know exactly what
she’s asking. And really, what are we doing?

“Enjoying each other.”

“You know what I mean. What happens when you take me back?”

I pause, not able to answer. What do I tell her? That she’s
mine and she’s staying that way? I’m sure she would love that answer. I want to
make her happy and give her the world, but I don’t know how.

“I don’t know, baby. Let’s just enjoy each other while we
can.” It’s the only explanation I can give right now. Our situation is beyond
difficult and I don’t see an easy answer for our future. Either she stays with
me forever, or she goes back and I never see her again. Those are the only two
options and they both leave one of us a prisoner. She’s a prisoner if she stays
and I’m a prisoner if she goes.

“Because, I’m thinking…” she pauses before lifting up her
face to look me in the eyes. “I’m thinking I might want to stay here with you.”

“What?” I sit myself up in bed, my back on the wall. She
sits up too and wraps the sheet around her body. Tears start falling from her
eyes.

“I don’t know what to say, Brandon.” She swallows and wipes
the tears from her eyes. “I want to return to my parents so badly, but I don’t
want to lose you, either. I know our options are limited, but I don’t think I
can leave you. You need me, and I want you.”

I take my fingers and wipe her tears, then pull her to my
chest. “We’ll figure something out, baby. We’ll figure something out.” It’s the
best I can say, because I really don’t have a solution. This is the best I can
do. “And by the way, I
do
need you and I want you, too.”

WE DECIDED TO take the night off.
There’s a small party at my apartment. Carlos and Simon are there along with a
few other warehouse workers. Claire and I walk up to the apartment from
spending the afternoon at the pond. Most of them are on the porch. I can smell
the pot from a mile away, and I hope there aren’t any cops nearby.

I lead us out to the porch and everyone greets us warmly
since they’re all high. There are a few of the neighborhood girls there, too,
including Maggie. She’s all over one of the warehouse guys. Apparently she had
no trouble moving on. She gives me a cold look and then snuggles up to her
newest flavor

Tommy passes me his joint. Normally, I would be all over
this to forget my problems, but tonight it’s different. I glance at Claire and
see she’s not interested at all in this scene, so I shake my head no and signal
for Claire to follow me to the kitchen. We slip inside. I feel Claire’s tension
rolling off her in waves.

“It’s okay, Claire. They’re just doing a little pot. I’ll
protect you,” I tell her as I swing my arm around her and kiss her forehead.
“Have you ever done pot?” I have to ask because my guess is no.

“No.” She shakes her head bashfully, and I smile at her
innocence.

“Claire, what’s the worst thing you’ve ever done?” I drop
one of my award winning smiles at her, not because I’m trying to win her over,
but because she’s so damn cute. The worst thing this girl’s ever done is fall
in love with a criminal.

She hides her head bashfully into my shoulder and when I
lift her chin with my finger, she’s biting her lower lip. Her body is pressed
up against mine and I’ve all but forgotten the party on my balcony. “Well…once
in high school, I cheated on a test,” she says.

I bring my hand to my heart, playfully mocking her. “That’s
terrible, Claire. I’m so ashamed!” The smile on my face shows her I’m kidding,
and I grab her closer to kiss her forehead.

“I guess I’m not the typical girl. I actually studied in
high school, college and law school and I’ve never been around drugs. I’ve
drank alcohol and even been drunk, but I can count on one hand the number of
times.” She gives me another sheepish smile, and I add her innocence to the
list of things about her I love.

“Don’t be ashamed of that, Claire,” I say, taking her hands
into mine and intertwining our fingers. “You’re right. You’re not the typical
girl and that is what I find most attractive about you.” I lean in and kiss her
nose as the door to the balcony swings open. Our little bubble is busted and
the atmosphere drops as Maggie walks in.

“So, is she the new flavor of the week?” Shit. Maggie knows
exactly how ruin everything and exactly which buttons of mine to push. Tonight
she’s wearing a short pink mini-skirt and a top that leaves no room for the
imagination. Her long black hair is pulled into a high ponytail on top of her
head, and I can smell her perfume as she walks into the kitchen.

“Shut up, Maggie,” I say, and I can feel Claire pull me
tighter. Maggie’s making Claire uncomfortable, and therefore, pissing me off.

“Is this why you’re not giving it up anymore?” She tilts her
head towards Claire, and I see the hatred flashing from her eyes. I never knew
this girl was so possessive. I thought we had a friends-with-benefits type of
relationship.

“Yeah, she is. What’s it to you?”

“Did you tell her all about what we had? Did you tell her
how amazing the sex was between us?” I feel my hands balling up. I’ve never hit
a woman in my life, but tonight might be the night.

“Shut up, Maggie.” My voice is low and serious. She’s not
going to stand there and speak about this in front of Claire.

“You’ll cheat on her with me. You always do. You know where
to find me when you’re tired of this one.” She walks back into the den, the
sound of her high heels echoing off the walls, and leaves the apartment.
Silence fills what use to be laughter, and I feel Claire slipping through my
fingers.

“Claire. Stop,” I yell to her as she pulls away. She walks
straight to my room and closes the door behind her. I take my fist and gently
knock on my own door. I turn the handle and push it open, glad to see that she
didn’t use the lock. She’s sitting on the bed, crying silent tears, and I walk
over to her. I kneel on the floor, and positioning myself between her knees. I
wrap my hands around her waist and look into her blue eyes. I notice that when
she cries, her eyes become the color of a deep blue ocean.