Takedown Teague (Caged 1)

Tria snickered.

“You’re still going out of your way,” she said, looking up at me again. “And in the middle of the night, no less. I appreciate it.”

I just shrugged again, not yet willing to admit to myself, let alone her, that this little walk of ours was quickly becoming the highlight of my nights. I was kind of disappointed she didn’t have to work the next day.

“Why did you pick this area to live in?” I asked.

“Fin’s offered me the job,” she said. “School isn’t too far away to use their transportation service, and I needed the work. I didn’t have much experience when I filled out job applications, and no one else even called me back for an interview. Everyone seems to be looking for a job, and there don’t seem to be enough to go around.”

“Can’t argue with that,” I said. “I keep hearing that the economy sucks, and whatever politician you are talking to, it’s the other one’s fault. I assume you are going to fix that after you graduate, right?”

“I’ll be happy if I can at least makes some sense out of it all,” she responded.

We made it to the apartment entrance, and I glanced up to see Krazy Katie lying on her back on the fire escape. She had her legs straight up in the air and was doing a bicycle peddling exercise or something.

At least she had her clothes on.

“You’ll never get anywhere on that bike!” I called up to her but didn’t get a response. I laughed quietly as I jerked the door open and let Tria go in first.

“Who is that?” she asked.

“Krazy Katie,” I replied. “She’s the resident psycho. Every apartment building needs one.”

“What is she doing?”

“Who knows?” I laughed. “She’s a nut. Harmless enough, but still a nut.”

Tria slid her key into

the lock and opened her apartment door. She turned back to me then, and I became increasingly aware of how close we were standing, even though we weren’t actually touching. That made me realize I had only actually touched her twice—once when I yanked her back against me and away from a thug and then later that night when I showed her how to hold her keys.

Her eyes were on mine, but I couldn’t understand her expression. It seemed to be a combination of apprehension and wonder, but that didn’t make any sense. Mostly I noticed the shimmer of the lip shit she had put on earlier, which was emphasized as her tongue darted out over her lips.

My hands began to feel a little clammy, and I didn’t know where to put them. I considered leaning against the frame of the door, but it didn’t feel right, so I ended up shoving the tips of my fingers back into my pockets again.

I swallowed, trying not to focus on either her mouth or the area where the pale skin above her breasts was exposed. I pulled more oxygen into my lungs and realized I experience a similar feeling right before a fight starts—anticipation, excitement, and something else deeper and unnamable.

“Thanks for walking me home,” Tria said softly. Her eyes didn’t leave mine, and I wondered if her cheek felt as soft as it looked.

“You’re welcome,” I replied simply.

“Good night,” she said. Her face flushed, and she used her tongue once more to stroke her lips.

“Night.”

She turned slowly and moved across the line of the apartment door, and whatever had been going on in my head abruptly stopped when her eyes moved from mine.

I didn’t sleep well that night. In my head, I blamed the cold and figured I would have to turn the heat on by the end of the week.

I was never one to face my emotions, but I knew I was already in deep.

Chapter 5—Question the Motive

“Just let her in, and don’t fuck around.”

“Hey—it’s not my fault!” Gary tossed his hands in the air. “I didn’t know who she was, and she pulled out an ID that said she was underage! Shit, dude…”

“You’d seen her before, asshole,” I growled. “You knew who she was.”