A Real Bad Boy(38)

He always gave me that same creepy look, like he wanted to eat me or some shit. Thank god he never approached me.

He was asking me to play with him down in the arts district. He was an  expert at finding a spot, playing it, avoiding the beat cops. I'd gone  down a couple of times with him and the group. In fact, that was how he  found me. I was staying in Chicago with some friends from high school,  playing music on a street corner, when he came upon me.

I got to know him and eventually I moved into the damn co-op. My friends  were all in college, they'd been too busy to hang, and I knew couch  surfing could only last for so long.

"What pieces do you want to do?" I asked. I could use a cut of the  money. Might be enough to get me a bus ticket to the next city over.  Moose said he had friends in Indianapolis.

Why in the hell are you thinking about bailing? He'll find you. They'll  always find you. I waved the thought away as I listened to Moose ramble  off a bunch of pieces he thought the tourists would love. College kids  were coming in this time of year, setting up their housing and getting  started with classes, so they would make good targets. Not to mention  all the people who visited the windy city.

It was so different from Baltimore. Sometimes, I missed the smell of the  Bay, the humidity of the ocean that hung over us, and the feel of a  city that had so much grit it was coming out of my ears. But Chicago was  beautiful, and it had its fair share of grit.

It was a good second home.

"Let's do a rehearsal of the music and then get in there."

I'd written a few original songs for the compilation tape he was doing.  It was meant to be my audition album. The kind of thing I could use in  order to get gig after gig. At first, when he offered me the chance, I  thought he was full of shit. But I had to hand it to Moose, he really  seemed like the kind of guy who could get shit done. He had his own  little studio, a group of people who were as dedicated to music as we  were, and he hadn't lied to me about giving me practice time and studio  time.

I ran through the first song one time with him and then hopped into the  studio. It was a little room he'd prepped himself with material to  soundproof it.

As soon as I stepped into that room, I felt like myself. I opened my  case and got my violin out, my fingers touching the soft, silky wood of  it. I knew as soon as I started playing I would lose myself. Lose all  the drama of last night and all the memories of him touching my body.

I could just be in the moment. I didn't have to think. Didn't have to figure anything out.

This was why I was here. Why I stayed in Chicago.

"All right, start whenever you are ready." Moose sat back and watched me through the glass.

As soon as I started, I felt the pull of the strings, the vibrations of the music right into my jaw, and I was lost.

Completely and entirely lost to my music. The feel of my fingers on the  strings, the lack of frets there making it so much smoother than guitars  or mandolins. It was my personal heaven.

Until I looked up and saw Janson storming towards me.





Chapter Four



Janson



"No, you can't come-" I pushed my way past a tiny little fuckwad and into the studio.

"What the hell?" Kathryn was less than happy to see me.

"You know, that's a fucking question I'd love to ask you," I said as I  grabbed her by the arm and pulled her towards me. I wanted to get her  out of the damn place, but I wanted to touch her even more.

"Get off her, dude." I turned to see that little asswipe coming at me. Well, this would be fun and easy.

I clotheslined his ass and watched him fall to the ground. "Shut the fuck up. Moose, I presume?" I asked as he looked up at me.

"The fuck?" Moose asked as he moaned on the ground. At least two other  people were coming towards us, but they started to back away.                       
       
           



       

"Janson, you can't just come in here." Kathryn had stopped struggling. "Boys, I have this, go on."

The men who were crowding around us turned around and backed out. I had to give her that, she was handling it well.

"You know damn well I can do whatever the fuck I want. Did you think  that I was just going to walk away and let you stay? You know why I'm  here, it has everything to do with orders. I told you I could do this  the hard way, and if that's what you want, that's what I'm willing to  do." I was fucking furious with her. I wanted her in my bed, naked and  writhing, not running from me back to these stupid punks.

"I'm not going."

"You realize if you don't, I'll have to tie your ass up, right? Or  worse, Greyson will call someone else to do the job. You won't like  that."

"Will you let me grab my violin?" she asked.

I eyed her skeptically. "Depends, will you take off running the moment I let you go?" Kathryn shook her head.

"Fine, go on, get it."

She turned and walked over Moose, who was still on the ground, grabbed  her case and instrument, stowing it and turning it towards me. "I'm  sorry, Moose." She said as she stepped over him again.

He was still clutching his face.

She swallowed. "I don't have much of a choice do I?" she asked.

"None of us do," I answered as I looked her over. It was so regrettable  that we didn't have more time, but Greyson wanted her back home as soon  as possible.

Kat looked white as a sheet and I knew then that she was avoiding something. Or someone.

"Let's go, we have a long drive ahead of us." As angry as I was, I couldn't help but admire the way she looked in those clothes.

"We're driving?" She'd stopped resisting and started walking.

"Did you think I was going to take you through an airport?" I asked. She  was smarter than that. "Get your ass in the car." I omitted the word I  wanted to put in front of ass-sexy-and waited for her to slide in, then  followed. It would be a comfortable ride, at the very least. One  overnight stay and a private limo that would ensure there was enough  space between us.

I still wanted her, though. My cock ached just thinking about her  writhing under me. But I had to clear my head and figure out how I could  make everything work. I had to.



***



I breathed a sigh of relief as we approached Glenburnie then passed  through it. We had a place all set up for her, one of the private safe  houses only Greyson knew about. The kind meant to keep him safe if there  was an attempt on his life from any family member. Even his own father.

No one would look for Kat there.

"Where are we?" she asked as she looked out the window. She was tired.  Last night was hard, for both of us. We'd shared a hotel room but I made  sure to stay away from her. I'd positioned myself in the chair across  the room.

Neither of us talked about the night before.

"Home. That's all you need to know," I said as the driver pulled up to  the little set of row homes in Cherryhill. It was one of the most  dangerous neighborhoods in Ann Arundel County, but to us, it was  perfectly safe.

Everyone knew who we were and what we were. They wouldn't dare approach us.

"As long as you stay inside the house, you'll be fine." I got out first  and held the door open. She got up and started walking, but not before  she made it clear how she was feeling.

She glared at me. Fuck, just to have her eyes on me was enough to make  me hard. I liked it when she was passionate. Even if that meant she was  pissed as hell.

I watched her walk away from me towards the door of the row house, her  ass swaying back and forth as she stomped towards the door.

She always was stubborn and hotheaded.

"This is where I'll be staying?" she asked. She almost looked disgusted.

"Better than that place you were at in Chicago. A fucking co-op? If your  brother finds out the kind of places you were, he'll be so pissed."

"That's not the only thing he'll be pissed about," she said as her eyes flashed. She was trying to trip me up and I knew it.

I opened the door and did a quick survey of the small townhome. No one else was there. Good.

I wasn't going to have it. "I didn't hear you complaining the other  night when you were begging me for more," I said as I grabbed her and  pulled her into me. She wasn't going to manipulate me, that wasn't my  game.

She was so close to me, her breath short and ragged, coming out in  spurts as she looked up at me. I knew exactly what I was doing. I bent  my head down and kissed her, the pent up irritation with her coming out  in the way my lips melded with hers. I wasn't gentle, fuck, I barely  knew how to be. So I took it all out on her, forcing her into me as we  both kissed and bit and scraped our teeth against each other's lips. I  slid my hands up under her shirt and grabbed her breasts, running my  thumbs along her nipples. I could tell by the way she sucked in her  breath that it was exactly what she wanted.