Stricken Unveiled (Stricken Rock #2) (15 page)

Seriously if I get fired because of some
other manager who has more experience with me what’s the big deal?
I’ll survive and I can get a job in a position that I’ve been
trained to do.

“Oh no….no… Short stack you’re not fired.” He
reassures me.

“Okay?” Shit, now I am confused.

“Oh Jesus Christ. This is like waiting to be
voted off survivor. Johnathan fucked her too. Except she’s one of
those woman he loved. Or thought he loved. They dated for like six
or eight months. But they’re still close friends.” D says finally
getting to the point. I almost want to thank him. But I don’t.

“As in how close?” I look to Johnathan and
his face droops. Son of a bitch! He still fucks her and there’s
still more going on. I can see it in his eyes.

“Are you in love with her?” I ask calmly.
Even though I am close to yelling at him again. This is
bullshit!

“No baby, no. I love you. Only you.”

“And… out with my big man. I need to know.” I
spout.

“Do we have to talk about this here?” he
waves to the group of people.

“They already know it all Johnathan. Why does
it matter?”

He slumps into the couch, like he’s trying to
hide. I’m not having fun with this either. First he pisses me off
when we meet, then he says he loves me, then I screw him, I wake up
the next morning alone, then the bullshit with him doing this with
lots of other women comes up, so Stacy cuts him off at the knees so
I don’t get hurt, I find out I’m pregnant, then I come back to find
out he has some crazy nightmares, is on drugs again and has slept
with a woman who thinks she’s pregnant with his baby now. Which I’m
not sure if it’s true or not. I don’t know what to believe. Now
let’s see what else to add to this fucking gigantic pile of
bullshit by the name of Johnathan Striker.

“We stopped dating a month before her mom
died, she wanted me to marry her and I told her I couldn’t do the
commitment thing….”

“And…” I push, tapping my foot on the ground,
my hand on my hip.

“And I talked to her like I did you in rehab.
And I know she still loves me.” He adds solemnly. His face looks
like death warmed over.

“And she doesn’t know about you.” Deacon
finishes.

“What!? Why?” I ask sternly. But I don’t yell
even though the feisty bitch inside of me is itching to get
out.

“When we made love and I knew I wanted to be
with you. You never wanted to be with me. You always turn me away.
So I only hoped you’d eventually love me like I love you. I’m
fucked up in the head. It’s not an excuse, it’s the truth. But I
knew if Ashley came back to work I wouldn’t be alone anymore. Plus
she’s always been cool if I do other girls. She joined in a few
times. So if I couldn’t have you I was going to settle for her.” He
shrugs.

“You were going to marry her if I turned you
down?” I raise a brow, my voice jumping a couple octaves.

“Yes… No… Maybe? Fuck I dunno. It’s been hard
enough not being with you. I just wanted the comfort. So I talked
to her when I was in rehab.”

“You talked to the woman you thought you
might marry while you were in rehab? And it sure as shit wasn’t
work conversations because she’s not working for you right now. So
what the fuck was it about? Were you planning a life together when
she got back? Is that why she’s coming back? To be with you? Then I
come in and tell you I’m pregnant and agree to be yours and fuck up
your whole little happy la de fucking da happily ever after plan?
All because you don’t want to be alone?”

“Yep, that’s about it.” Deacon chimes in. A
smug smile planted on his face. He’s eating this up. I have a
feeling he’s known about this long enough. Maybe it’s been eating
at him too. “Man, Johnathan you’re a dumbass. She loves you, is
sexy as hell, can obviously fuck all night long, is carrying your
twins and she’s fucking smart as hell. How do I get a girl like
that? You gotta sister, Emily? I could use a woman like you and I
mean
use
in both a good and naughty sense.” He laughs and
wiggles his brows, tonguing the lip of his beer bottle like he’s
licking a clit.

Johnathan growls. “Don’t fucking talk to my
woman like that D.”

“She isn’t your woman Johnathan. You were
going to marry Ashley, dumb fuck. All because you weren’t man
enough to handle a woman with as much of a mouth and sassiness as
Em. She isn’t going to give up the goods so easily stupid. You
gotta fight for her. Duh!” D says.

I can’t believe this shit! This is screwed up
even for my life.

“If you want her and you’ve planned your life
out Johnathan. I’m not going to stick around and play the yo-yo
game. I’m also not going to sit idly by as you use someone because
you’re lonely and screwed up in the head. Is what why you want me
because I’m having your kids? Is that why this has all of a sudden
changed your plans with her? Did you tell her you loved her when
you talked to her in rehab? I need to know this shit.” I scold. I
am raving mad. I can feel my temperature blazing through my
skin.

“Can we talk about this in the backroom?” he
asks quietly. His face is gloomy as hell and his body is slumped
fully into the couch. But bitch face is in the opposite corner and
hasn’t moved since I reamed her ass. At least somebody is smart
enough to know not to fuck with me.

“Why? Why does it matter? You’ve obviously
already planned out your life with another woman who you met before
me. If you didn’t care for her you wouldn’t have done it.
Loneliness is not an excuse to marry someone I don’t care what
you’ve been through. Deacons a fucking asshole most of the time but
at least he’s honest with me and he’s down with being a dick, he
gets it. I don’t see him marrying some woman because he gets
lonely. He does what any hot-blooded male does. He has sex a lot.
Which you’ve done with every single female that’s under thirty five
that’s worked for you, including me, Ashley and Jasmine. Did you
ever think instead of trying to find someone to fill that void
inside of you that you should work on yourself? Sober Johnathan,
alone, no sex, no drugs, no women, nothing? I’ve spent years alone
with Stacy as my best friend. I’ve only recently been engaging in
sex acts I’d never thought I’d do and I love them. But I could stop
and be fine and move on and be alone. I realize I had a simple
childhood. So I can’t know what you’ve been through even if you
told me. Which you haven’t. It’s pretty obvious everyone is afraid
to tell me anything about you. Including you. I loved you from the
first time I slept with you. Maybe even before. And it wasn’t the
anaconda that drew me in. It was you. Did I like feeling that way?
Hell no. I don’t do weakness or dependency well. I dealt with
Cassandra. Okay maybe not as well as I should have but I can’t help
it. The baby in her belly could be a sibling of my kids. I can’t
take that lightly.”

“I told you that her baby…”

I cut him off. “Hush… Please… I’m not
finished… So anyway. I was kind of excited to have you get out of
rehab to see what could come of this.” I wave my hand between us.
“I’ve put you before Claire because I love you and not her that
way. Even though I do care for her, a lot. And I didn’t put you
first because I have your babies growing inside of me. It’s because
of who I thought you were. Who I thought I might get to spent my
life with.”

A tear rolls down my cheek. “It’s true you
can’t help who you love. I can’t help how I feel about you. It’s a
curse and a blessing. But I can tell you right now. The Cassandra
thing hurt, the drugs hurt, the dick sucking hurt, the thought you
tried to love other women and say and do the same things with me,
hurt. But the fact that you out of everything decided that you were
going to plan your life with someone else. We all have a past.
That’s normal. I don’t care that you’ve slept with four hundred
chicks. That’s over. What I don’t like is it rubbed in my face.” I
stare at Jasmine and she winces. “But I can deal. I can’t change
it. But instead of spending time in rehab cleaning yourself up,
readying yourself for a better life possibly alone but clean and
healthy. You spend your time weaving a plan with Ashley. A girl
I’ve never known anything about and a woman you just stopped dating
four months ago. Or however long. I can’t compete with that and I
won’t do it. After tonight’s show. After we get through here and in
Bakersfield this weekend. I quit. I can’t work with her and it’s
obvious you want her in your life. I don’t play second fiddle. If
you had a bromance with someone I could deal but marriage and
promises and I love you’s, no way. You are not telling her about me
or me about her. There is no way on god’s green earth I will ever
be okay with this. Ever. I can forgive a lot. But this is
not
one of those times.” I say calmly. I speak the whole
long conversation cool and collected.

I’m not angry anymore. Okay well I am but I
can’t blame him. She came before me. I was an accident, a fluke in
his life. One that he obviously doesn’t want because if he did he
would have put in actual work instead of spending six weeks
planning to shack up with another woman.

He’s staring at me. His eyes are pooling with
tears. I stare right back. I have nothing further to say.

“You can’t leave me.” He whispers rubbing a
tear from his eyes.

“I’m not yours to begin with. You made that
choice when you decided Ashley was your future wife.” I say softly.
I’m not trying to dig at him. I’m just being honest.

“But we need you. I need you.” He chokes.

“No you don’t, she’s back and will handle
everything including what’s between your legs. Stacy will give her
Claire’s number and they can get things sorted out with San Diego.
But if she likes women you tell her or I will, that if she touches
Claire too. I will slice her fucking throat open and watch her
bleed to death.” I say darkly acid melding with my words.

Okay I know that’s a bit dramatic. But it’s
bad enough the man I love is going to be sharing a bed and sleeping
with this woman the rest of his life. She can’t have Claire too.
And knowing her she might have already had Stacy. If she’s blonde
it’s a sure thing. But I have no idea what she looks like. And I’d
love to keep it that way.

The pilot announces out descent into San
Fran. Johnathan hasn’t spoken to me. It’s not like there’s much to
say.

I take my seat next to Keith and Stacy gets
up and comes over tucking himself down beside me. He slings his
toned arm around my shoulder and I cuddle my head against him.
Johnathan’s face is blank and pale and he’s just staring at me.

I’m kind of proud of myself for not breaking
down. And I know as soon as I get off this plane and get to the
hotel I am going to call Claire and tell her all about it. Then
maybe I’ll cry for the next eight days straight and eat olives and
salt and vinegar chips in bed watching Dwayne ‘The Rock’ Johnson
movies and Friends reruns. That sounds like the best plan ever.

We are now at the hotel. I got lucky enough
to be alone. Stacy and James bunked up so I could do my own thing.
Bless their sweet hearts. James even though he hasn’t spoken to me
since we came out of the plane a few hours ago, he’s been by my
side. Sad thing is after Bakersfield he’ll no longer be my
bodyguard. That’s the only thing I am going to miss about this job.
I want to move back to Indiana but I’m not going to leave Claire or
Stacy. If she still wants to keep me around a while. So I’ll stay
and find a job and get a place of my own. I can’t live with Stacy
anymore. Not knowing that he’s working with Johnathan and that
Johnathan is going to be with Ashley like he’s planned for the past
six weeks.

My life is in a serious state of suck.

I’m lying in bed naked. I just took a long
bath in my one bed suite and what sucks the most is Johnathan’s
room is right next to mine. When Stacy booked the rooms they are
all one right after the other. I grab my phone off the nightstand
and call the woman I’ve needed to talk to for the past few
hours.

It rings five times and goes to voice
mail.

I leave message- ‘Hey Claire, it’s me Emily.
Just wanted to chat. Had a bunch of shit happen to me since I’ve
been gone. You’d think I’d catch a break. But guess not. Hope you
have a wonderful evening. I’m going to catch a quick bite and turn
in early. Kisses.’

I text James and Stacy-
Goin 2 eat in
restaurant down stairs then cash early, nite.

I get dressed in anti-rock clothes of yoga
pants and T and go down and have dinner at the hotel’s restaurant.
It’s tasty and I was starving. The rest of the night I stay in,
cuddle myself in bed, and watch Nick-at-night. Crashing about ten.
I’m exhausted anyhow and Claire never did call me back.

‘Baby it’s yours, all yours if you want it
tonight. I’ll give you the red light special all through the
night.’

My phone sings. Waking me.

I reach over and put it to my ear. I know
that ring tone I set it for only one person.

“Hello.”

“Hey babe. I got your message late last night
thought I’d call you this morning.” She sounds chipper.

“Yeah, sorry I shouldn’t have called
yesterday. I don’t need to worry you with my problems. Not that
you’ll be worried.” I say stretching, sitting up in bed, my back
resting against the padded headboard.

I glance at the clock. Holy cow it’s noon. I
slept fourteen hours. I guess I was exhausted. And for once I’m not
horny. Yet. Talking to her is like a direct feed line to my pussy
juices. It’s that voice and then add the rest of her and it’s
trembling on my knees begging for sex. That’s kind of lust I have
for her.

“I want to know Emily. So why don’t you tell
me?” She’s serious in a delicate way.

I give her the entire rundown including the
Jasmine stuff, Ashley, me quitting, the lying, all of it including
the fact that she will most likely be working with Ashley soon.