[ Pobierz całość w formacie PDF ]
like water, something necessary to survival. It was
passionate yet comfortable, his skin rubbing against mine,
the scrape of his stubble against my chin, the way he sighed
my name like it was the most beautiful thing in the world.
The weight of him was solid and familiar, and it felt like
home.
Usually I topped, but I let him this time, content to let
him take the lead, to fuck me. I wanted to feel him, see if my
muscle memory of him was still the same. I don t know why
it felt so good to have him inside me, to breathe in his breath
The Little Death | Andrea Speed
47
as he kissed me, to dig my fingers into his skin until he
groaned, but it was almost better than the drugs. I couldn t
even feel the bruises anymore; pleasure overwhelmed any
lingering pain.
In retrospect, I hated my neediness, which surprised
me. I just wanted him like I wanted a good slug of whiskey,
and he seemed to have the same effect on me. I won t lie
the sex was incredible, and afterward he kissed the sweat off
my face and whispered, I ve missed you so much, Jake. I
stroked his sweaty hair and almost told him I missed him
too. I did, but I didn t want to admit it.
We slept tangled together until the pain returned and
woke me up. It was difficult to slip out of his embrace
without waking him, but I managed. I decided to go back to
my place to shower, but before I left, I couldn t help but lean
over and kiss Kyle on the forehead. I studied his sleeping
face for a moment, just in case I never saw it again.
I ll admit it, my heart hurt as I left. I didn t know if I
would ever stop loving him, which made me feel like a
complete pussy. I really needed a drink.
I also needed to think, so after a quick stop home for a
shower and a slug, I went to Sully s for some advice.
It was technically before opening hours, but Lau always
made an exception for me. But because it was still morning,
he wouldn t give me a whiskey; he would give me a
screwdriver, though (orange juice made it full of vitamins, or
at least more like a breakfast food).
After telling him about the bartender at Heat, he went
behind the bar and made a call to someone he called
White, asking him about the blond at the club. He listened
for a couple moments, then wrote something down on a
The Little Death | Andrea Speed
48
notepad. As soon as he hung up, he slid the piece of paper
across to me. His name s Tyler Cross. His address is there.
I looked down at it. According to this, Tyler lived on
Fountain Street, which wasn t the best neighborhood, but
made sense for a bartender who couldn t have made much
money. How the hell did you manage this?
Lau shrugged one massive shoulder, and it looked like a
boulder rolling downhill. All us bartenders know each other.
Or at least they know me.
Damn. I shoulda come to you in the first place.
You shoulda. Would ve saved you some time. Lau
studied me closely for a minute, the moon of his face
blocking out the sun of the Budweiser sign, and finally said,
I really need to get you an ice pack. And maybe some base.
You an ivory, or more like a summer beige?
I ain t wearing makeup. And this isn t the first time I ve
been beaten up, and, knowin my luck, probably not the
last.
Lau frowned at me, like I was being the difficult one.
You should leave em to the cops, you know.
Yeah, cause they re so wildly competent. Well, Kyle
was, but I wasn t sure about the rest of em. Echo City
wasn t known for its crack crime fighters.
They weren t my priority, though. I decided to start with
Tyler and see where he took me. At least it would get my
mind off Kyle.
The Little Death | Andrea Speed
49
7
TYLER looked a bit like a sex doll come to life, something he
emphasized by answering his door shirtless and wet, wearing
nothing but a blue towel wrapped around his narrow waist.
His abs were so ripped you could ve grated cheese on them.
Believe me, I was tempted, but I hadn t brought my lucky
wheel of Gouda with me.
He didn t look happy to see me at all. You re the guy
from the bar.
Name s Jake, I said, flashing him my detective badge.
No, there s no such thing as a detective badge unless you re
a cop, and that was what this was. A badge that belonged to
[ Pobierz całość w formacie PDF ]