Fatal Attraction (Dark Desires 4)

I wrestled against his grip, but he was too strong, and the fact that he was drunk only made this worse. There would be no reasoning with him, no self-control of any kind. Right now I was dealing with the raw crap that was my ex-husband.

“I can give you that, you know?” He licked my cheek, and I squirmed against him. “I can make you scream again, just like old times.”

“You never made me scream, you fuck!”

He slapped me again, this time so hard I felt I would black out completely. The only thing that kept me conscious was the sound of ripping fabric as cold air hit my naked breasts, and hands tugging at my shorts, trying to pull them off.

The old me, the meek little girl afraid of her shadow, would have just gritted my teeth and let him have his way. But not now, not this me. I was never going to be abused by this cocksucker ever again without a fucking fight!

I kicked out, fast and hard, not caring where I was kicking or what I would hit. Earl’s scream of pain was enough to let me know that I had definitely hit the right spot, though.

He tumbled off me, both his hands grabbing his crotch, and rolled away, calling me a dumb bitch all the while. I pushed away from him, wishing that somehow the couch would just swallow me whole and keep me safe until the police arrived. The siren blaring in the distance seemed to still be too far away.

I looked down at my shirt, torn down the middle, and the shorts that were now almost around my knees. He was going to rape me!

A burst of anger shot through me. I pulled my shorts up as I pushed off the couch. “You fucking asshole!” I screamed and kicked him hard in the ribs. “You fucking son of a bitch!”

I don’t know how long I kicked him, but it couldn’t have been more than a few seconds, because before I was fully satisfied, arms wrapped around me and pulled me away. I kicked and fought against my captor, screaming at the top of my lungs to be let go. I wanted to kill Earl. I wanted to kick at that smug face until nothing was left but a bleeding mask with the shape of my foot in it.

“Calm down, Ashlyn, we got this!” the deputy grunted in my ear, struggling to keep me away from Earl, who was curled into a ball on the floor with blood coming from his nose.

I didn’t calm down. Not by a long shot. The minute I was put down on my feet, I made for Earl again, screaming with renewed rage. Hands pulled me back and held me tight, and I watched in frustration as a second deputy knelt down and checked on the groaning mess that was my ex-husband.

“It’s over, Ashlyn, we’re here,” the deputy whispered as he fought to keep me under control. “We’re here. He isn’t going to hurt you.”

When the second officer brought Earl’s arms around his back and cuffed him, I finally calmed down and broke into tears.

Chapter 9: Chance

“She’s still not here.”

I snapped my head around just as Chuck handed me a mug of coffee and a plate of pie. “Thanks,” I said. “Who’s not here?”

Chuck smiled knowingly and shook his head at me.

It couldn’t have been more obvious, come to think of it. I had woken up early, knowing Ashlyn usually made her rounds at around ten, and had been waiting in the office patiently for her arrival.

I’d had a blast the other day, and was actually hoping to invite her to breakfast, maybe convince her to show me a little bit more of the country side. The truth was, I couldn’t care less about Ludwig, and sightseeing was probably going to take me twenty minutes, tops. I could probably be through the entire town and back at the motel before she was even done replacing the flowers. It was the company that I craved. I wanted to be with Ashlyn in every conceivable way.

I looked at my watch, the cheap Timex my mom had given me for high school graduation, then back out at the road leading up to the motel, slowly sipping on my coffee. It felt strange to be anticipating someone’s arrival this much. The last person I had looked forward to meeting was the CEO of a small company we had purchased a few years back, and the only reason then was because she was hot as hell. We eventually came to an agreement, and she came screaming my name.

But this was different. I wasn’t even thinking of Ashlyn that way, which struck me as odd. All I wanted to do was have a cup of coffee and talk, which sounded pretty lame in my head, but didn’t change my attitude towards it. If Alice could see me now. She would probably ask me where I had left my balls.

“Isn’t she usually on time?” I asked Chuck, no longer trying to hide my anxiety.

Chuck laughed. “She doesn’t really keep any specific time,” he said. “She should be here by now, but I wouldn’t be surpri

sed if she decided to skip a day. Sometimes you just wake up and don’t really feel like doing anything.”

That didn’t sound like Ashlyn, though. Yesterday she had been full of life, ready to take on anyone and everything. It didn’t seem like her. Granted, I didn’t really know much about her, and who was to say that she hadn’t decided to kick back and relax for a day. Still, it felt odd.

“If it’ll make you feel any better, I could give her a call,” Chuck offered.

“That’s okay,” I said, although I did like the idea.

“No, you’re right,” Chuck said, picking up his phone and sliding his finger across the screen. “Martha would have called her by now. No hurt in checking up.”

I stood up, downed the rest of my coffee and stepped outside to light a cigarette, but stopped myself before putting fire to the tip. The only other tenant in the motel had made an appearance today, sitting by the pool, hurriedly scribbling something in a pad on his lap. I toyed with the idea of going for a swim to kill the time, or at least build an appetite before I passed by the diner again.