“What a douche,” Lucky growled.
“I’m not going to argue with you there, but the small amount I did get to keep I put away into savings. The parties became a nightly thing and ended up involving more people if you know what I’m saying. Slade liked to share what was his when he was feeling charitable. As it turned out, I was his.”
Baby sucked in a deep breath, holding it before exhaling slowly. “I’m disgusted when I think about the things I’ve done. It was easier to make sure I wasn’t able to remember. And Slade was all too happy to oblige. Sometimes I lost days, couldn’t remember a damn thing. I woke up next to strangers and immediately rolled over to do another line of coke. If I tried to say no or make up some excuse why I couldn’t party, Slade would knock me around, making sure to mark up my face, that way I couldn’t work at the club either. He cut me off at the knees. If something didn’t go his way, I was his punching bag. If he wanted to flex his power, he used me to do it. Simple as that.”
“I guess Mickey saw nothing but a paycheck.”
“Yeah, and an endless supply of whatever the girls needed, especially Jewella. I’m sure Mickey’s pimped her out as well, and now Lolli is Slade’s new favorite. It’s wearing her down. I can see it in her eyes.”
“By looking at Slade tonight, the relationship didn’t end well. How’d you get out?”
“I’m not sure I’m exactly out. I think that’s part of what you saw tonight. This has been a pattern. When I couldn’t take the scene anymore, I told Slade I was done. I was ready to take an ass beating, but he took it to the extreme. I couldn’t walk for two days. I drank my meals through a straw, not that I had much of an appetite.”
Lucky balled his fists, pumping them open and close until his veins looked like were ready to pop.
Baby picked up his arm and folded it across her chest, wrapping herself around his forearm, longing for the comfort and safety of having him close. “I didn’t care about me. I prayed he wouldn’t hurt the few people close to me. Phillipe ran in his circle. I was worried about Ma’Linn and, of course, Momma. He made life rough for a while, but I finally moved on. Mickey was pissed. He lost a lot of money. Slade took some of his anger out on the club.”
“Your mom?”
The tears streamed down her face, landing on Lucky’s arm. She imagined the ink smearing like a wet newspaper. “They quit paying for her room. She was going to be thrown out onto the streets, or worse, forced into a state funded institution.” She choked back the sob blocking her airway. “I couldn’t go through that again. I emptied out my savings account and paid for a year at Pecan Grove. Now I’m living off tips and trying to find a way to freeze time. When the end of the year comes, I don’t know what we’re going to do. Ma’Linn pays for her apartment on social security. It’s a big clusterfuck.”
Lucky’s chin rested on top of her head as his embrace tightened around her. “You don’t make life boring, that’s for sure.”
“Boring sounds pretty damn good right about now. Like I said, this fucked up cycle with Slade is a pattern and nobody knows it better than him. He knows how to get to me. Every few months I start to get weak. Every time I think I’m able to stay strong, he picks away at me, wearing me down. That’s what you saw tonight. He’s been working on me for a while now, and its right about this time I’d be giving in. I go on a binge and indulge in everything. I don’t know what happens. Slade starts leaving coke around. I usually toss it, but it gets harder and harder. I try to say no, but end up jumping in with both feet. I know it’s stupid.”
“It’s not stupid. It’s an addiction.”
“That doesn’t make it ok. If I’m able to kick it for a few months, why the hell can’t I say no and move on? Slade will leave me alone for a while and then, like a puppet on a string, he takes me down off of the shelf, ready to play.” Baby squeezed her eyes shut before the tears spilled.
“I can’t watch you go through this. I want to take care of you.”
Baby’s insides trembled. Sobs welled in her throat and tears pooled in the corners of her captivating green eyes. No one had ever wanted to take care of her other than Ma’Linn. Her lip quivered. “Why would you do that?”
“To be honest, I have no idea. I hated seeing you like that tonight. It tore me up. I wanted to punch the son of a bitch in his huge troll face.”
Baby shot upright and moved to the end of the bed, out of his reach. “I don’t need your pity. I’ll get through it one way or another. I always do.”
“Hey, don’t get all defensive on me. I don’t pity you.” He dragged her back to him, enveloping her in his arms. His bare chest was warm under her cheek. “I can’t explain it. It feels right, like I’m supposed to take care of you. Like I’ve been waiting my whole life for you I don’t know exactly what it is that I feel, but it’s definitely not pity. I want to be near you, hold you, and make you smile.”
Her lips curved at the sincerity of his words. She stroked his chest, trailing her finger along the lines of his tattoos. She smelled herself on his skin, and it made her body react, the pulsing between her legs distracting her.
“Yeah, like that. I want to make you blush. Be there to keep you safe, hold you when you need to cry. I don’t know what the hell’s going on, but I haven’t felt like this since Carrie. Hell, not then either. And it was the last damn thing I expected when I came back to town.”
“I don’t know what is happening either. I don’t know if I’ve ever felt like this. I’ve never had a normal relationship.”
Lucky chuckled. “Baby, I’m far from normal.”
“Then we’re the perfect match.” She snuggled in closer.
“Yep.”
The last thing Baby Jade remembered before falling asleep was the soothing touch of Lucky’s fingertips on her back.
Chapter Fourteen
Lucky
Lucky examined Baby’s face. Her eyes were closed with no harsh lines or creasing. It was the first time that he had seen her look at peace. Baby gave a satisfied sigh and unconsciously burrowed herself into his chest. Her breath on his flesh made the blood rush through his veins. His heart beat fast as her body twitched with her skin on his.
This was insane. How could he already be developing feelings for this girl? And why did it have to be the one chick with the most fucked up problems?
The lost lamb look on Baby’s face tonight at the club made him want to throw her on the back of his bike and take off. However, he couldn’t leave, not yet. And there’s nothing saying she would want to ride off with him into the sunset after the board meeting.
His mother had been calling him for days now, but he still refused to answer the phone. He wasn’t here for a fake family reunion.
He and Baby had come from two different worlds although they grew up only a few blocks apart. His life was filled with vacations, nannies, and servants. Hers was filled with drugs, abuse, and abandonment. He resented the life he’d once had. There were people in the world suffering while his parents threw money at their problems.