Page 36 of Faded Rhythm

Julian

I’m roused by something tickling my face. I swat at it, hearing a giggle.

I open my eyes to darkness and a woman on top of me. I can’t tell what time it is, but the hour feels strange.

When I feel her soft lips on my neck, I forget about the time. Fuck the time. I’d rather have the moment.

I ease my hands beneath the covers and caress her naked skin. She moans in my ear when I grip her ass and squeeze. I return the favor when she sinks onto my dick.

I’m surprised by how wild she is. How hard she’s going. But it feels good. No complaints. Instead, I join the party.

We’re scratching and biting, licking and sucking. I fuck around and cum quick. Too quick.

“Sorry,” I say with a smile on my face. “Couldn’t hold it.”

She laughs. “You have to make that up to me.”

“Fine. Come sit on my face.”

I see the wheels turning, which makes me laugh. “I don’t give a fuck,” I assure her. “It’s my nut. Climb on up here, girl.”

She happily rides my face. I think smearing my jizz all over my face turns her on. She ain’t up there but a minute when she’s cumming and biting the top of my headboard to keep from screaming.

After I get cleaned up, I rejoin her, tangling my limbs with hers.

“I think…maybe…” she trails off. “I don’t know how to say what I’m thinking.”

“I think I know,” I say. “And I feel the same way.”

“Okay. Good.” She smiles. “What about Brett?”

I take a deep breath. “There are options. We could lure him out. Make him think you’re vulnerable and exposed.”

“So I’d be the bait?”

“Exactly. We call it baiting the line. Using false positioning. Dropping bread crumbs to make the enemy commit to a move.”

“You make murder sound like a chess game.”

“That’s exactly what it is.”

She sighs. “I just want him gone. Out of our lives.”

“Then we build a situation he can’t resist. We’ll put yo where he expects you to be. I’ll stay low so he thinks you’re alone. Then, I’ll pop out and take him down.”

“Okay…”

“Or, we engineer a misstep. Let him think he cornered you, but rig the location with controlled surveillance. Blocked exits. It’s classic HVT strategy.”

Sable blinks. “HVT?”

“High value target.”

She studies my face. “You’re enjoying this. You really like killing.”

I didn’t mean to show her this side of me.

“Does that bother you?”

She shrugs. “I don’t know. I want him gone, but I think, maybe, I’m not cut out for it. For being part of it.”

I hide my smile. I never wanted her to be part of it at all, but I knew she wouldn’t hang back if I asked her to.

“I feel bad for…sending you out there to do my dirty work.”

I peck her softly on the lips. “Folks have been sending me out since I was eighteen. It’s all I know. But you…” I trail off to kiss her again. “Your heart is still soft. You’ve been through some shit, felt a lot of loss, but you never let it make you cruel. I like that about you.”

I brush a strand of hair from her face. “I’ve seen the absolute worst people do to each other. Up close. Repeatedly. But when I saw you, that very first time, I saw something different. You have no idea how bright your spirit is, Sable.”

Her eyes glisten in the moonlight. “Even knowing what you know about me?”

“ Especially knowing what I know. You’re human, baby girl. And you love hard.”

“I really do. Maybe too hard.”

“Is that a thing?”

She blows out a sigh. “When do you think you’ll get it done?”

“A couple of days.”

She gazes into my eyes, searching for something. “You promise?”

“Yeah,” I say quietly. “I promise to keep you safe. From him, and from anything or anybody that hurts you.”

She nestles against me, head on my chest. I wrap my arms around her, listening to the rise and fall of her breathing.

I think about all the terrible things I’ve seen. And done. It amazes me that having this woman in my arms neutralizes all the horror for me. Holding her makes me feel like maybe, just maybe, I haven’t been damaged beyond repair.

But even if I had, it feels like she’d stay with me anyway. Because that’s the kind of person she is. Or maybe because that’s what love is.

I don’t know, but I do know one thing for sure: I’ll do anything to make her happy. I’ll do anything to make her feel safe again.