Page 69 of The Fallen Man

“OK,” said Katie nodding.

“OK,” he said. “Go take five. Get some ice. I’ll have Steve cover for you.”

“Thanks Ella,” said Caitlin. “Thanks Aiden.”

Aiden shrugged, still looking distressed. “Don’t worry about it. Maybe you should—”

“She’s fine,” growled Vince.“Wewill take care of her.”

Aiden backed off a step and glanced at Caitlin. She smiled and shrugged. “OK,” said Aiden and held out his hand for Ella. Caitlin watched them walk away.

“They were being nice, Vince,” she said, frowning at him. “They tipped really well too.”

“Did they?” he asked with a worried frown.

“Yeah, they’re really nice people.”

“OK,” he said, but his expression didn’t change. “Just take a break, and we’ll put you in a cab tonight to go home.”

Jackson

The Ukrainian

Jackson wasn’t sure what had happened at work, but Katie had come home angry and now she was staring out the window instead of getting naked.

“What’s up?” he called from the bed.

“Oh… Nothing.” She was still wearing her shirt, and her pants were in her hand. He liked the way the soft glow of the bedside lamp caressed the curve of her ass. “There’s an asshole across the street talking to Rufus.”

Rufus was the local drug dealer who worked the park. As far as Jackson could tell, Katie was on a first name basis with literally everyone on the block. Rufus asked if Katie wanted a rock every time she went into to the park and Katie would politely decline with ano thank you, Rufusas if that was a normal thing to be asked.

“I imagine there’s more than one. Assholes tend to come attached to legs.”

Katie snorted. “Yeah, but this particular asshole I had a run in with earlier.”

“You need me to go out and explain things to him?” he offered, although he didn’t really want to. He was already in bed and didn’t want to involve himself in Katie’s neighborhood business.

“No,” she said shaking her head. “It’s my problem. I’ll deal with it.”

He almost laughed. It was such a Katie answer. “Can you deal with it later, though?” he asked. “Because I’m naked and it’s warmer under the covers.”

She laughed at him. “Yeah,” she said, turning back toward the bed and stripping off her shirt. She threw it at his face and helaughed. By the time he had cleared it away she had slid out of her underwear and jumped on the bed. He grabbed her and pulled her under the covers with him. They tussled under the comforter, wrestling to see who got to be on top. Finally, she let him win and he pinned her down and kissed her until she stopped giggling.

He moved her hair to kiss her neck and froze. “What’s this?”

“What’s what?” she asked, looking up at him.

“The fucking fingerprints on your neck.”

She stared at him and then felt her neck, she winced as she found the bruises and pressed them.

“Who did that?” he demanded.

“That guy,” she said with a sigh, getting up to look in the mirror on the back of the door.

“What fucking guy?”

“That guy outside. He showed up at work again.”