Safe With Him (18 page)

“I can’t believe this fuckin’ shit.” She heard Draco say, but she guessed he was talking to Storm and not her, because he was nowhere near as loud. She got her answer when she heard Storm respond.

“I told you she’s a pain in the ass when you piss her off, and your empty threats to lock her up are gonna’ piss her way the fuck off.”

“Who the fuck said it was an empty threat? She stole a police file. I can lock her up for that shit,” Draco hissed.

“You’re not lockin’ up my sister.”

“I’ll do whatever it takes to keep her fuckin’ safe.”

“Not by lockin’ her up, you won’t.”

“I will keep her fuckin’ safe!”

“You won’t lock her up!”

Bree sat on the bathroom floor, listening to Storm and Draco arguing back and forth between the two of them until she just couldn’t take it anymore. “Enough!” she yelled, then lowered her voice. “First off, Storm, I wouldn’t be a pain in the ass if you would tell me what the hell is going on with
my life
. And Draco, I didn’t steal anything. And if you ever make a threat, promise, or carry through, locking me up for even two seconds, I promise you, you will never in this lifetime…or the next…ever see me naked again.”

“Fuck, Ree, I do not need to be hearin’ that kind of shit.” Storm huffed.

Ignoring Storm, she continued. “Now, I can’t understand the majority of what the hell these reports say, so I’m going to need somebody to explain them to me. And how, what, and why I'm mixed up with this person or persons. Think y’all two macho men can do that for a girl?”

“Fuckin’ hell,” Draco groaned.

“Yeah, Ree. Think we can maybe eat first? Then we’ll explain this shit to you,” Storm answered impatiently.

“Works for me.” She stood up and opened the bathroom door to two pissed off looking men. Okay, Storm looked a little ticked off, whereas Draco looked very pissed. She held out the file in front of her, but Storm was the one who took it from her.

“Now let’s eat,” Storm declared as he walked back down the hall toward the kitchen.

Draco on the other hand moved to block her from stepping out of the bathroom, leaning down to bring him face to face with her. “Don’t ever fuckin’ use sex as a threat with me again,” he growled low.

“Don’t ever threaten to handcuff me or lock me up again,” she stated back.

“I don’t threaten.”

“I don’t either.”

“Bree,” he growled.

“Dra.” She mimicked his growl.

“Fuckin’ hell,” he groaned as he turned and walked back down the hall.

Draco walked down the hall, stopped and turned to look back at Bree as she walked up the hall toward him and his breath caught. She looked exactly like she did that first day. If he was not mistaken, she was wearing the same gray sweatpants, same T-shirt, and her hair was up in a messy knot on top of her head. He knew she had changed at work and she had sat beside him in the car on the way back home, but he hadn’t noticed until right at this moment what she had on. “So damn gorgeous,” he mumbled low. She looked up, her eyes narrowed at him. He knew she hadn’t heard what he had mumbled, only knew he had said something, so he couldn’t help himself…he smiled at her, just to watch confusion cloud her face. He didn’t say anything else as she walked past him and into the kitchen.

Sitting at the table with Bree and Storm while they ate, Draco kept glancing at Bree. He still couldn’t quite wrap his head around this woman. She was a contradiction to everything he’d ever known a woman to be. She worked at a bar as a bartender, yet she didn’t drink. When dressed in her, what she called, her work clothes she looked like the definition of sex, yet she had been a virgin. She came from a broken fucked up home, yet she was anything but broken. In fact, she was the most caring, nonjudgmental person he had ever met. She was courageous, the way she handled herself with Warwick when he was in her apartment. She had talked to that son of a bitch like she was talking to the guy next door, without a care in the world.
Yeah, Storm has filled me in on that whole conversation he had with his sister
. Then just days later being attacked by that same son of a bitch, who left marks on her, he had not forgotten about that shit either, but her, what did she do? Just went on about her life, like it was fine and fuckin’ dandy even though it was not. And he was going to make damn sure that mother fucker paid for every single bruise Bree had.
His Breezie
. His fearless Bree. She was too tiny to be so damn headstrong, but would he want her any other way? Fuck no! She was unbelievably prefect, just the way she was.

Draco glanced at Storm. Storm was a big man. Hell, he was almost as tall as Draco and had to weigh at least two hundred and twenty pounds. He had to laugh to himself at the fact that this little tiny woman who he knew didn’t weigh a hundred pounds soaking wet, had Storm wrapped around her little finger. Looking back at Bree, he thought,
well hell
, as it dawned on him that she ‘bout had him wrapped around that cute little finger as well. Not so tight that he wouldn’t do whatever he had to do to keep her safe, even if that meant locking her up. But he hoped like hell it never came to that, because he wasn’t completely sure if she would ever forgive him. Now the question was how? He didn’t have that many more days off he could take, but just the thought of her going anywhere unprotected was enough to make him want to hunt down Warwick and Serafino and take them both out, no matter the consequences to himself. It was time he and his partner pulled all the files on Hugo Serafino and the men who worked for him.

“Plan, execute, annihilate.”

“What?” Bree asked when she heard Draco mumble something under his breath. Then she heard Storm’s cell phone and watched as Storm moved out of the kitchen and toward the hall with a distracted, “Gotta get this,” as he disappeared down the hall.

She looked back at Draco. “Wanna tell me what’s going on?” she asked calmly. For now.

“No.”

Annnd…so much for calm
. “Draco, seriously. I want to know. I’m so tired of the two of y’all keeping me in the dark with only,” she deepened her voice, “
gotta keep her safe
.” In her normal voice she continued trying to make him understand. “Then not telling me anything about the why I need to be kept safe.”

“Bree.”

“Stop that! Bree is not an answer. Are you going to tell me or not?”

“Not.”

“What?”

“I’ll tell you what you need to know, when you need to know it. And right now the only thing you need to know is…” He leaned across the table toward her. “I. Am. Gonna. Keep. You. Safe.”

“What is with you? Do you practice being a jerk? Is that a requirement for being a cop? You have to pass jerk 101 before you get your badge?” Oh yeah, calm had most definitely left the building and they were now starting to enter pissed-off-ville.

“Bree.” Was all Draco said. Again.

“Whatever,
Dra
. You know what? I’m done. I’m outta’ here. Tell Storm I went home and when
he
is willing to tell me what the hell is going on
he
can come and talk to me. Until then, I don’t want to see either of you,” she stated as she got up from the table and moved to the door.

She had the door half open when Draco’s hand shot out by her head and slammed the door shut. He grabbed her and spun her around with her back to the door and bent down to be face to face with her. “You’re not fuckin’ leavin’ by your damn self.” He was back to growling at her.

“I’m not your prisoner and I’m not your kid. Hell, I’m not even your girlfriend. Why do you care what the hell I do?” Her voice kept getting louder and louder until she ended with a shout.

“I care!” he shouted back.

“Why?” she yelled in response.

“Hell, Bree.” He straightened himself, took a step back and ran his hands through his hair. “I don’t know. Cuz you’re you. Cuz you don’t lie, you don’t put on airs, you don’t try and pretend to be somethin’ you’re not, you’re just…you.” He stepped back to her, leaned in, lips almost touching hers. “And I like that about you.” His lips touched hers.

“Ree!” She heard Storm growl. Moving from around Draco, she walked back over to the bar where Storm was standing, glaring at Draco, until she was standing right in front of him.

“Are you going to explain that file and everything else to me now?” she asked when he looked down at her.

“I am. Told you I would, but…” He grabbed her hand, tugged her into the living room and down on the sofa beside him.

“But what Storm?”

“But somethin’s come up, and I gotta see to that real quick. I’m sorry, Ree. I know I told you I’d tell you after we ate, but swear I didn’t know…this shit would come up. I promise you tomorrow evening. You don’t have to work, right?”

“No, just the class.”

“Then tomorrow, me and you. Promise. Okay?”

“Is this…something that’s come up…is it important to you?”

“Yes, very.”

“Okay. Then tomorrow.”

“Thanks, Ree,” Storm said with a sigh, then threw his arms around her and hugged her tight. “I gotta’ go, you gonna stay with Draco, right?”

“No,” she answered simply.

“No? What?” Storm asked, but he cut his eyes to Draco. “Why the fuck not?”

“Are you asking me or Draco?” She waited until Storm looked back at her. “If you are asking Draco, then he will just give you some cop,” she deepened her voice to mimic Draco’s words, “
I’ll tell you what you need to know when I think you need to know it,
BS. Because he’s a freakin’
cop.
But he spells it G-O-D. If you’re asking me, then I’ll tell you it’s because your
friend
is a bonafied jerk with a badge.”

“Ree—”

“No, Storm. I’m not staying with someone who thinks women are beneath him.”

“What the fuck?” Draco growled from across the room. “Bree, you fuckin’ know I don’t think women are beneath me.”

“Oh, I’m sorry. Not women. Just stupid little lying strippers. Like me,” she shot back.

“Stripper? Ree? What the hell?” Storm asked, confused.

She looked back at Storm. “He didn’t tell you? He thought I was a stripper and—”

“You thought my sister was a fuckin’ stripper?” Storm barked. “Is that why you were all up in my face wantin’ to know shit about her? Thought you could tag you another stripper, add to your collection?”

“Another? Collection?” Bree gasped, and when she looked back at Draco he was standing right in front of her. “But you knew I wasn’t before we…before we…we…”

“I know you’re not a stripper, and I apologized for that.” He leaned toward her. “You gonna throw that shit in my face every time we disagree?”

“Collection?” she asked, begging it not to be true. He did think she was a stripper. Was that why he was with her? “
All those women
,
not boyfriend material
,” Storm’s words were getting louder and louder in her head. “I’m so stupid.” She sighed to herself as she got up to walk out the door to go home.

“Bree.”

“Ree.”

“Go do what you gotta do, this is on me. I’ll make it right.” She heard Draco but just walked right out Storm’s door and across the hall to hers. Then she realized she didn’t have her keys. They were still in her bag that was still in her car that was…she didn’t even know where her own car was. “I’m so stupid,” she repeated.

When she walked back through Storm’s door she was met by Storm and Draco standing just inside the doorway, and ignored them both. “Forgot my key,” she told them while she walked into the kitchen to retrieve her spare key.

“Make this shit right.” She heard Storm say, then she heard the door close.

“Bree,” Draco called, but she ignored him, opened the cabinet, pulled out the oatmeal container, reached inside and…nothing. “Bree, I still have your spare key.”

She slammed down the container and turned back to him. “Still? Why did you even have my key in the first place?”

“Storm.”

“Fine. Give me my spare key and my car keys,” she demanded as she held out her hand to him, palm up.

Draco reached out, grabbed her hand and tugged her to him. When her body hit his, he wrapped his arms around her waist, picked her up and carried her to the sofa. He turned so when he sat and pulled her down she landed in his lap, with his arms wrapped around her middle.

“Bree, give me five minutes, just five minutes. Please,” Draco asked before she even had a chance to protest.

“Five minutes for what? To piss me off even more?”

“Five minutes to maybe make you not so pissed off at me.”

She took a breath, blew it out. “Go ahead.”

Draco sat back against the sofa, pulled her to him, laid his cheek on the top of her head, and just for a moment held her to him and breathed her in. “I’m sorry, baby,” he whispered into her hair. He held her just a little bit tighter. “I don’t think you’re beneath me, nor do I think you’re stupid. On the contrary, I know you’re extremely intelligent, and so fuckin’ strong willed. I’m not used to that in a woman. The only two women I’ve ever really been close to were my mom and then Ellie. My mom, well, you pretty much know about her and yeah, I guess it did take a lot for her to get me and Marco out, but at the same time she relied on me. And then later Marco, so much. Much more than what a mom should, but I think she tried to do the best she could with what she had.” He gave her another quick squeeze and kissed the top of her head.

“Then there’s Ellie and she’s ‘bout the sweetest person you could ever meet, but if it wasn’t for Marco she’d get taken advantage of more often than not.” He kissed the top of her head, then positioned her to face him.

“Then there’s you,” he whispered softly as he ran the backs of his fingers across her cheek. “So courageous, fearless, and fuck, baby, so damn strong willed, that you terrify me. I look at you and see this gorgeous, petite woman, and all I want to do is wrap you up and keep you from harm.” He kissed her lips lightly, then tucked her head under his chin. “I need you to feel safe with me. To know, I would never let anythin’ happen to you.”

Draco let her go as she sat back up. Watched her eyes roam over his face before she spoke. “It’s not that I don’t feel safe with you, because I do. It’s just, I don’t understand why you want to keep me in the dark?” He lost her eyes when she looked away from him. “It makes me feel like you think I’m too stupid or too weak to know what’s going on with me…myself.”

Draco took a breath, blew it out, and tucked her head back under his chin. “Okay, you’re right. I should’ve told you. But I don’t know a lot right now. Hell, baby, I haven’t even looked at that file yet. The only things I have to go by are what I’ve heard here and there. I didn’t wanna say anything to you because I didn’t wanna scare you.” She sat back up quickly, narrowed eyes glaring at him. He raised his hand to stop her before she said anything. “That was my mistake with you,” he told her, watched her eyes lose that ‘glare,’ then kissed her quick. “Let’s look at the file and see what we got. Okay?”

“No more trying to hide the truth about this from me?”

“No more.”

She smiled that cute side smile at him, then moved off his lap. She stood in front of him, holding out her hand in a gesture to help him up. He lifted one eyebrow at her. “Seriously?” But he put his hand in hers and let her
help
him up.

“How about this,” she started after he stood up and they were walking back into the kitchen. “You read over the file and tell me what’s all in there, while I clean up. It’s not going to do me any good to try and read that thing again. Deal?”

“Deal,” he agreed. He also didn’t miss the fact that she was trusting him to tell her what was in that file.

Bree cleared off the table first so Draco could sit and go through the file while she cleaned up the rest of the kitchen. Then she moved to the bar and sealed the containers. “Since Storm didn’t get a chance to finish eating, is it okay with you if I leave this stuff here for him?” she asked Draco, who already had his head buried in the file.

He raised his head. “Huh? Oh yeah, baby, that’s fine.” He looked back to the file, only to quickly look back up at her. “You didn’t eat that much either. You still hungry?”

“No, not right now. I might get something later.”

“You get hungry, you let me know. I’ll fix you somethin’ else,” he told her, but she just narrowed her eyes at him. “Seen what you live off of at your place. Like I said, you get hungry, I’ll fix you somethin’.”

Bree shrugged her shoulders because he did have a point. “Okay,” she agreed and watched that cocky grin spread across his face. “File. Read. Now,” she said with an answering smile.

“Yes, ma’am.” He chuckled, then turned his attention back to the file.

Bree had put all the food away and had already started on the dishes when Draco walked over to stand beside her. He turned, leaned his back against the counter, file still in his hand, and just looked over at her. “Baby, Storm was right about this Marcus Warwick guy bein’ dangerous. But he’s also a fuckin’ whack job. He’s got a shit ton of assaults, some minor, some not so minor, and some,” he shook his head, “totally whacked. Get this shit, he was charged with beatin’ the shit out of a car, with the owner still inside. He somehow managed to jam the doors so this guy couldn’t get out. Took a fuckin’ sledge hammer to it so bad that when police finally got there, as apparently there were some miss communications to the police as to the whereabouts, they had to cut the guy out of his own damned car. Warwick only pulled three weeks due to misfiled paperwork. The majority of the assault charges were either dropped, the victim wouldn’t press charges, or did press charges then either changed their minds or disappeared.”

“Well, doesn’t he just sound like a whole bowl full of delight?” Bree commented as she continued to wash the dishes.

“No, he fuckin’ does not, and I don’t want you anywhere near him.”

“I didn’t want to be anywhere near him when I was near him before. You think I do now?”

“That’s not all.”

“There’s more?” she asked, a little shocked. “How is he still walking around free and not already locked up?”

“Good damn question,” he agreed. “He was charged with rape three separate times, by three different women. One changed her story, said it wasn’t rape she was just pissed at the time. The second one, no one knows what happened to her. She just completely disappeared. The third one stuck until it went to trial, then evidence went missin’ and alibis started poppin’ up. So the whole fuckin’ case was dismissed.” He paused and when she turned to look at him, he was looking at her. “It’s all like that, evidence missin’, victims disappear, or change their testimonies. Shit like that over and over, through his whole fuckin’ file. Not one damn thing stuck other than the three weeks he pulled for the car shit and even that was thrown out cuz of misplaced paperwork.” He laid the file down on the counter, then stepped up behind her and wrapped his arms around her stomach, pulling her back to his front. “Don’t be nowhere near him,” he whispered to her, like a prayer.