“Hey.” Kendra’s gruff and slightly pain-filled greeting had me jumping from my chair as a blush flared in my cheeks as if she could read what had just been playing in my mind. I folded the note and stuffed it into the envelope, which I shoved in the pocket of my tattered robe. “Oh, those look divine. I hope there’s a bear claw left.” She licked her lips as she doctored her coffee and joined me at the table.
“Two, actually. I knew they were your favorites, so I left them for you.” I smiled into my coffee mug, trying to calm my racing heart.
“You didn’t have to go out and get these.” She took a huge bite and hummed her appreciation around it.
“I didn’t. Brian left them for us this morning.” The blush I almost had under control flared again. Damnit, if I couldn’t get my emotions under control, I would be screwed when we talked.
“Oh, really? Not Jason?” She licked her fingers clean of the sticky maple glaze, and her bloodshot eyes met mine. “Okay, chic, spill. What the hell is going on with those two?”
I looked everywhere except at her as I tried to decide how to answer. The tick-tock of the cuckoo clock on the wall echoed around us. I noticed the wallpaper border was beginning to peel at the edges, and the ceiling was yellowing with age. There was a spot on the far wall where something had hung for years, the wall brighter in that spot than everywhere else.
Kendra snapped her fingers in front of my face. “Earth to Genevieve. Are you going to answer me or ignore the whole situation and hope it goes away?”
“Would that work? Cause I choose the latter if so.” I smiled, and she laughed.
“Sorry, chica, it doesn’t work that way. Now spill. I promise it helps to talk it through with a friend.” She brought the coffee pot back to the table with her and refreshed both of our mugs. She tore the second bear claw apart and popped a small bite into her mouth. “Now, start talking from the beginning, and let’s figure this thing out.”
It may have been years since we talked, but the words began to fall from my mouth, building speed like a bike headed downhill without brakes. I didn’t leave out a thing, and by the time I finished, we had moved from the kitchen table and coffee to the living room couch with cold sodas and chips and salsa. Kendra stayed silent, but I saw the wheels turning in her head.
“Okay, so Brian and Jason are old friends.” She ticked one finger on her hand.
“Yes, sort of.”
“They both are part of the BDSM lifestyle.” Kendra ticked her second finger.
“Yes.”
“But not for the same reasons.” Kendra ticked a third finger.
“Yes.”
“Jason thinks you belong to him, but Brian wants you to choose him, and Brian’s brother even called you with warnings about Jason.” She ticked a fourth finger.
“Yes.”
“Brian has brought you your favorite foods, helped you choose clothing, cleaned your house, helped you host the wake, and sheltered you from prying eyes when you broke down. Jason has bossed you around, used your gran’s wake as a way to hobnob with the community, and went berserk on you in public.” She ticked off her thumb.
“Yes. Putting it that way, it doesn’t really seem like a hard choice.” I tucked my feet underneath me and leaned forward, scooping salsa onto my chip.
“Not if BDSM is something you are curious about or even want to dive into.” She swished her soda around in her glass, the ice clinking. Her head tilted as she watched me. “It makes sense.” She took a drink and didn’t elaborate.
“What makes sense?” I was curious about what she saw when she looked at me.
“You are such a strong woman, always taking charge, and handling things. I remember in high school how tired you would get, always being the one person people turned to. You always had a smile on your face and were willing to help or take control of anything thrown at you.” She set her drink down and steepled her fingers beneath her chin. “Wanting someone else to take that out of your hands, the relief of knowing your partner will make the choices for you, and knowing they would never do anything to hurt you. That’s powerful and something not to be ashamed of.”
“You’re taking this very calmly.”
“I’ve been curious about the lifestyle and have done some research myself. Because of that, I don’t judge, never have. Whatever you choose for your life path, as long as it makes you happy, doesn’t hurt yourself or others, and is truly your choice, I say go for it and screw anyone who looks at you differently because of it.” She crossed her arms and nodded with her statement. “Now, in my eyes, your choice is easy. Getting Jason to accept that choice is your biggest challenge.”
“Yeah.” I sighed, understanding it was a battle that wouldn’t end pretty. A series of loud, harsh knocks interrupted us. “Who the hell could that be?” Fear ratcheted up my heartbeat and released adrenaline into my veins. I stood and shuffled over to the door on silent feet, stepping around the squeaky floorboards automatically. I held my breath, squinted one eye shut, and peeked through the peephole at three large men dressed in black suits that looked tailor-made for their frames standing on my porch. All three had matching sunglasses and mean expressions on their face. The adrenaline shot increased to a flood as fear became the only recognizable emotion coursing through me.
“Who is it?” Kendra whispered. I waved at her to be quiet. If we pretended we weren’t here, maybe they would go away. My mind whirled. My phone was still in my purse in the kitchen, and I didn’t even know if the battery was still charged. My Bersa .380 was tucked away in the nightstand drawer, and Gran’s shotgun was in the garage. All three items that might have helped or saved us were nowhere near us. I motioned to Kendra with my hand to get low and move behind the couch, or at least, I hope she understood what I meant.
She got the idea and slowly slid out of the recliner she was in, making sure to not let it rock forward, and crawled around behind the couch.
The large goon in front knocked on the door again, making me jump and grasp at my chest. “Miss Brown, I know you’re in there.” His accent indicated he was from the northeast somewhere—Jersey, Boston, New York…I couldn’t distinguish which. “We mean you no harm. We are looking for Sheriff Jason. You and he are friends, so I was hoping you could help us out.” His words were meant to be calm and coaxing, but their faces said otherwise. If I opened this door, even with the security chain on, they wouldn’t think twice about busting it open and coming on in. I couldn’t let that happen. I slunk away from the door, my feet again finding the perfect path along silent floorboards. I squatted down with Kendra and tried to figure out how to get to my purse without becoming a target.
“Miss Brown, we see you behind that couch, and trust me, we will be in this door before you can do whatever you are planning. Let us in, and no one gets hurt. Make us force our way in, and I can’t promise the same. We only want Jason.”
Kendra squeezed my hand, tremors of fear radiating through our connection.
“You have until the count of three, Miss Brown. One…Two…”
10
Genni