Page 61 of Bend
He shakes his head, as if he speaks another language. As if he’s lost. When he speaks, his voice is surprisingly soft. “It’s my home.”
“Only if I decide to give it to you. So far, I haven’t thought of a single reason why I should.”
“What if I told you the money is gone unless you do?”
I snort. “Are you a magician?”
His eyes harden.“The money is gone, Red. It’s been gone since this morning. I had it removed.”
“W-what do you mean?” My voice is squeaky.
“Your check for car you bought won’t bounce. I removed it after that.”
I start to tremble, shoulders first, then chest. “Are you fucking kidding me? Is this a fucking joke?” I fumble for my phone and he steps closer. “Go ahead and check,” he says. “You’ll see.”
I can barely get to the bank’s web site, my hands are shaking so badly. When I see the balance, I nearly vomit: $245.13.
“I don’t understand. Why did you do this?”
“I needed to get you here.”
“I would have probably come if you’d asked like a normal person!”
He shakes his head. “I needed a guarantee.”
I grind my jaw together as hard as I can and put my head in my hands. I haven’t felt this screwed—this utterly and totally fucked—since mom was diagnosed.
I feel his hand touch my shoulder, and I slap him off. “I can’t believe this shit. I can’t believe—”
He holds up a check, and I go quiet.
My name is in the “to” space. The dollar amount is $60,000.
Suddenly, my lungs work again. It takes me a moment to find my voice, and when I do, it’s raspy and weak. “How can I trust you? If you can deposit and remove money from my account one time…” I shake my head. “How did you even do that?”
“It wasn’t easy. It’s not something just anyone can do. I doubt I could do it again, for what that’s worth.”
It’s worth nothing. “I’ll never trust you.”
I take a step back, and his hand closes around my arm as his black eyes find mine. “I’m sorry I did things this way. I really am. I’d like nothing more than to hand this check to you—and I will. As soon as you sign the island over to me. Come with me, Red. Just for a night. Give me a chance to talk you into this. You can see where your grandmother lived.”
I look at the blue and white sailboat beside us. It’s got two benches in the middle, two motors on the back, and a steering wheel podium near the front. I shake my head. I’m not getting on that boat with him. “God, this is so my luck. Some asshole poses as my grandmother, and now you want to steal her island from me. You’re like…the big bad wolf.”
He blanches for just a second before he turns his face into something more neutral. “Get into the boat, Red. I promise you’ll be glad you did.”
*
WOLFE
Surprises.
Fucking hell, I’m rocked by her surprises. For starters: the little redhead makes my dick hard. The righteous outrage. I’m glad I pissed her off. How fucking sexy is that mouth when she’s using it to slap me around?
As she stands there with her hands on her hips, glaring at me like she’s she knows how big and bad I am, I’m shifting to try and hide my erection.
I can’t keep my eyes from returning to her breasts. They stretch her long-sleeved gray t-shirt. I run my gaze down to her curvy hips and wonder what she’d do if I grabbed her ass right now.
I can’t believe my reaction to her. The way my dick salutes her. The way my balls draw up like she’s tickling them with her tongue.
