None of the characters are mine. JE created then and deserves all the compliments.
Jenn (perfectmanhattan) thank you for being willing to go though another story as my Beta. I'm not sure I could do this without you.
Chapter 4 – Sorting trough Mud
The next few days were excruciating and wonderful at the same time. The guys were super attentive and touchy. I could hardly be in a room with one of them without being pulled into a hug or having an arm slung around me. I never remembered them being so affectionate before and wondered what brought this on.
On the flip side, I think all their attention during the day was beginning to affect my dreams. At first I thought my evening visions were memories of the night I ended up having sex with one of the Merry Men but was too drunk to remember the details – like who it was. But the more I thought about the generic man of my dreams it might be a culmination of all the guys rolled into one faceless stranger. Maybe all of their affection was sending my hormones and imagination into overdrive.
Lula and I were going shopping today. I needed something to take my mind off the Jenkins mess and Lula was always up for a trip to the mall so we agreed to meet at Macy's in the shoe department at 1:00 to take the place by storm, or at least by credit card.
"Hey White Girl!" She called out, waving to me from across the store making her ample bosom shake in its red spandex bondage.
I made my way through the staring crowd where she was slipping her feet into a pair of leopard print stilettos. "Girl, I think these are me, and they match the animal print dress I just found in the women's department."
I could never wear the clothes Lula did, but I had to admire her sense of style. It suited her personality perfectly.
We spent the next two hours trying on shoes and clothes and I walked out of there with a few new items to add to my collection, hoping I would have occasion to wear them at some point. One of them was a very fancy dress, most certainly not distraction wear, but when I pulled it on I felt so elegant and refined that I had to purchase it. Maybe it would motivate me to start dating again.
We were having an afternoon snack at the food court when Lula asked me what was wrong, "Girl you ain't yourself? Tell Lula what's on your mind."
Ah, here was a dilemma. If Lula was convinced something was wrong she could be a bit like a dog with a bone. There was no convincing her otherwise. But, at the same time I didn't really want to admit my shame to her. I was about to attempt to blame it on Jenkins when she interrupted my thoughts.
"And don't you tell me this is about the mob boy, cause you've had stalkers before and they ain't gotten to you like this. You're all quiet and weird like you're lost in your head somewhere." Never let it be said that Lula lacked skills of perception. I imagine all the years she spent on the streets perfected her people reading skills.
"Do you remember last Friday when the guys took me dancing after the distraction?" I asked, hoping I wouldn't have to start at the very beginning.
"Yea, you said you got drunk off your ass and didn't remember a thing." She summed it up for me shaking her head as though the idea of me that wasted was somehow funny.
"That's right. Well it seems that one of the guys had a little too much to drink too, and when he took me home we….well, we…" I simply couldn't say it.
"White girl, you been holding out on me. You and one of Ranger's men did it? Who was it?" She was getting excited now because she actually sat down her chicken to listen to my story. There was very little that Lula considered important enough to stop eating for.
"That's the problem," I told her turning a shade of red bright enough to match her fire engine top. "I don't know who it was."
"You had sex with one of those fine men and you don't know which one." She clarified perfectly.
I nodded and sat my head on the table top too embarrassed to look up.
"He ain't said nothing to you about it?" She sounded surprised.
"Nothing helpful. I got an arrangement of flowers at the office apologizing for taking advantage of me and hoping I would forgive him, but he signed it X instead of with his name." I explained, defending someone I didn't know.
"What about the next morning. Don't you remember rolling over and seeing who it was?" She asked, trying to help me remember.
"No, he was gone when I woke up, but he left a note saying he had to leave for a morning meeting at RangeMan and apologized for not being able to stay with me until I was awake. The note was sloppy and I couldn't make out who wrote it, plus he signed it with an X again so there was no name to go off of."
"Well maybe Mr. Mystery don't want you to know who it was. Maybe he's not that good in the sack and he's afraid you'll ruin his image by telling everybody." She offered as a possibility for his silence.
"Maybe, but somehow I don't think that's right. When I woke up I had hickeys in all the good spots which makes me think he was pretty thorough." I admitted.
"And you don't remember a thing?" She asked with a tone of disbelief.
I shook my head no before adding, "I do keep having these dreams though where I'm with a guy but I can't see his face. He never says enough for me to identify his voice but I know it's someone from RangeMan."
"Oh, Girl you need somebody to hypnotize you!" Lula suggested, picking up her chicken again to eat with gusto.
"What?" There was no way I was going to let someone make me cluck like a chicken.
"I met this guy named Dwayne last week. He's a bartender at that new club Treasures but said he was in school during the day to learn how to hypnotize people. I bet he could help you remember." She explained as though being hypnotized was something people had done everyday.
"I don't know. I think I might be just as well off in the dark. I mean if he wanted me for anything other than a one night stand he would have said something to me by now." I reminded her.
"Maybe he's shy and he's tried but you ain't picking up on the clues." Lula suggested.
"Les thinks whoever it was doesn't realize how drunk I really was and he thinks I can remember our night together because he can." I told her. "If he's right, the guy probably thinks I'm the one that only wanted a one night stand because I haven't mentioned it again."
"Ain't nobody been acting different at the office?" She offered.
"Yea, that's the problem," I confessed. "They've all been acting differently. It's getting confusing because it seems like there are at least four of five possibilities. I don't know how to narrow it down anymore than that."
"You could ask them." She suggested.
I gave her a look that told her how crazy I thought her suggestion was that I walk around the office asking the guys if we'd had sex.
"You don't have to put it all out there, you could say something easy like, 'I think Friday night I might've left my pocketbook in your truck.'" She said as though that would easily clear up the mystery.
"But that wouldn't help. What if they just say no?" I tried explaining the downside of her suggestion.
"If he spent the night in your bed then he'll at least say you two should take a look together so he'll have a chance to have a minute alone with you." She defended her idea.
"I'll think about it. If I can't come up with anything else I may have to use your suggestion." I told her as we began to throw our trash away from our snack.
We walked out together but had to go in opposite directions in the parking lot so I promised to let her know if I figured out the mystery and she promised to keep trying to think of good ways to help me figure it out.
I was about ten feet away from my car when my spidey sense told me I was being watched. I had my keys in hand so I walked faster, hoping to get in my car before something bad happened. When I got to the door I noticed it was unlocked and there was a rose on the dash. I knew the flower hadn't been there when I left the car so someone had forced their way in to leave it. I looked through the windshield but didn't see any notes attached to it.
I debated getting in and driving away throwing the flower out the window, but then I thought better of it. For all I knew it was just a ploy to get me in the car and then it would explode. I really didn't want to call Tank and have him overreact and assign a guard to me full time but I thought I should call someone. After thinking about it for a minute I dialed my current favorite Merry Man and waited for him to answer.
"Hey Beautiful, What's happening?" His bright voice greeted me.
"I'm at the mall," I began before he jumped in.
"Well if you need an opinion on some lingerie, then you have called the right man." He volunteered.
"That tidbit I'll have to tuck away for future reference," I said shaking my head at how his mind really did operate on just one track. "Actually I'm standing at my car in the parking lot and something seems wrong."
I didn't get to finish my sentence before I heard the engine of Lester's car screaming in the background and he told me, "Hang tight, don't touch anything and I'll be there in ten."
"Don't you want to know where I am?" I asked thinking it was a big parking lot he might need a clue.
"Please," He said before disconnecting proving once again the Merry Men were not your average males.
Sure enough in nine and a half minutes Lester and Bobby were standing next to me at the far end of the parking lot outside Macy's shaking their head.
"You know you might be safer, if you parked closer to the building," Bobby foolishly suggested.
"Not all of us have RangeMan parking karma," I bit out at him, immediately sorry for my snippy tone.
Lester explained for me, "Stephanie thinks we all have special favor in the eyes of the parking gods because we always get good spaces and she seems to be next to a dumpster or at the back of the lot."
Within a couple of minutes there was a RangeMan van pulling up and a few more guys came over to take a look at my latest mess.
Lester pulled me in his arms for a hug and said softly, "You did the right thing by calling me Beautiful. This may just be another threat, or it could be something more. Either way, I'm glad you called."
I nodded and then jumped when I heard Tank clear his throat behind us. "Little Girl, you aren't going to like this, but I think it's time to revisit the whole partner issue."
I began to whine until he held up a strange looking box with wires coming out of it. "What is that?" I asked instead.
"This is a smoke bomb set to go off thirty seconds after you sat in the driver's seat. It wouldn't have killed you, but it probably would have scared the crap out of you and could have caused an accident where you would've gotten hurt."
My eyes got bigger as he continued. "This is someone's way of saying they are watching you and if they want to, they could hurt you without you even being aware of it."
"I think he's right about a bodyguard, Beautiful. At least until we see what's going to happen on Monday," Les suggested.
"But it's Sunday night, the trial is tomorrow. Do I really need someone on me tonight?" I wondered.
"How about you let Cal give you a ride home and make sure you're secure. If you promise not to go anywhere this evening we won't post a man in the lot overnight. Junior will be in your parking lot at 0700." Tank stated.
"I'm not going to be awake at 7:00, why not have him come at 9:00 instead?" I countered.
"Because our morning shift begins at 0700 and I want someone there as soon as I can get you to agree. Just because you'll be sleeping or in the shower doesn't mean that you aren't vulnerable. In fact, it makes you more susceptible." He explained in his tone that told me this discussion was now over.
I didn't see Junior so I couldn't make a joke about him having to get up early because of me. Les must have read my mind because he said, "Trust me, the guys will be bugging him in the hope that he'll agree to switch assignments with them. Everybody wants Bombshell duty because it's a guaranteed good time."
I elbowed him in the ribs and replied, "Then I suggest you get a new definition of a good time if watching me is the highlight of anyone's day."
"I'll pass your message along," He said rubbing his side as though I'd really hurt him. "You okay?" He asked a little more seriously.
"Yea, fine, just another day in my life," I sarcastically replied with a sigh.
"Do you want me to rearrange my evening so that I can keep you company tonight?" He offered.
"No way, I know you've got a date with the chick from the deli next to the courthouse." I teased, wrinkling my nose as though I didn't want to hear any details about it.
"That's right Beautiful. There are some women who can't say no to the Santos charm," He replied wiggling his eyebrows suggestively.
Cal came up behind me and blurted out, "Thankfully those with a higher IQ than wallpaper paste are still immune."
I smiled at my ride home for the evening and he held his arm out in a gallant gesture. "You're chariot awakes, m' lady."
I wrapped my hand around his strong forearm and followed him over to his truck. When he sat down behind the wheel I asked, "But what about my car?"
"Hector and Ram are taking it back to Haywood to dust it for prints and run some other tests on it. This has gone on long enough and we'll need to start building a case against Jenkins for harassment. If he is released tomorrow, we need to be ready to file for a restraining order at the same time." Cal explained.
It looked like not only did I have around the clock babysitters now, but I also had no transportation. If Jenkins was released tomorrow he better watch out for me, because I was quickly getting mad enough to teach him a lesson of my own.
I was quiet for most of the ride causing Cal to ask, "Have I upset you? I know I've been joking around a little extra lately, and I hope I haven't gotten on your bad side."
"No, Cal, of course not!" I quickly responded. "I'm just angry about this whole Jenkins mess. I can't believe I've got another crazy fascinated with me. I mean, it's not my fault, but they seem to come to me like moths to a flame."
I could have sworn Cal was looking at my knees when he said, "I can understand the attraction."
"Huh?" I asked with my full eloquence.
"Nothing," He covered his last comment by holding out his hand for the keys to my apartment. "Come on, let's get you settled in."
After declaring me clear to enter, he shut the door and then volunteer to call the control room to let them know we were the ones who entered the apartment. I looked in my kitchen for any dinner possibilities, but found none so I pulled out a beer instead.
When Cal hung up he asked if he could use my restroom before heading out. I told him to make himself at home but he paused making me think he needed directions. My apartment wasn't that big and anyone who had been down my hall knew where it was which made me remember that Cal had never been to my home. I pointed out the direction of the facilities and thought to myself perhaps I could check Cal off my list of possible suspects from last Friday. Ten days since my memory gap and I finally had one person that I felt okay ruling out. Maybe if I couldn't figure out who it was, I could succeed at figuring out who it wasn't.
Cal left pretty soon after that and I picked up a scrap piece of paper to make a list of all the Merry Men I could think of. I went ahead and marked off Tank because the note I got the morning after said he wouldn't forgive the writer for missing the morning meeting. Tank wouldn't need to forgive himself ergo, it wasn't Tank. Hal I removed because he went back to Haywood with my wire and I don't think he returned, plus I think I scared him after that stun gun incident and I couldn't see him opening up to me.
Next I marked Les and Bobby off because I knew they had gone home with other women. Hector was a given because he wouldn't have gone home with any woman. Finally I knocked Cal off the list because he didn't seem at all familiar with my apartment.
There were some that I thought were married or seeing somebody seriously so that left me with a relatively small group. The guy that brought me home had to be either: Junior, Zip, Woody or Vince. How hard could it be to narrow the field down a little more?
Junior was to pick me up and bring me back to Haywood for work tomorrow. Maybe I could get him to talk to me in the truck and see if he'd drop any hints. I came up with a few discussion points and got ready for bed. Who knows, the Sandman might decide to throw me a hint and give me the identity while I was sleeping. Who knew I was an optimist?
My dreams were interesting, filled with sensual images of me and a tan skinned man. I remember gripping him by his hair a few times and loving the feel of how soft it was. As clues go, it wasn't all that helpful. I couldn't tell if the hair was long or not, just that there was enough for me to grip.
My list of suspects all had similarly styled hair and would all fit the grip requirement so other than waking up in need a long satisfying shower, I hadn't produced much while I was sleeping.
Still, I had the ride to Haywood alone with Junior so there was the chance to drop a few hints and see if he gave anything away. I called the control room before leaving to let them know I was heading out. I had put a post it note on the door so I wouldn't forget and have a team of guys swarm the place, busting down the door while I was gone. I mean, if they are going to get armed and then slip into their tough army personas, kicking in my door and storming in, I damn sure wanted to be there to see it. That would give me fuel for dreams for the next few days at a minimum.
I spotted Junior sitting in his SUV as soon as I got off the stairs. He got out of his truck and ran over to me with a disapproving look on his face. "You should have called to let me know you were ready. I would have come up and walked you down. It's easier to protect you if I know when you're moving."
Geesh, I had no idea how seriously they took this body guarding business. "Sorry, I figured you were mainly here just to give me a ride to the office. I mean most of the bad guys surrounding Jenkins should be at the courthouse to see if he testifies or not. I shouldn't be in much danger right now." I explained.
He opened my door and raised an eyebrow. Multi-tasking show off. When Junior began to drive away I tried to make my voice as casual as possible and asked, "So do you guys go out together much like last weekend?" That was a good opening line. It sounded like I was interested in the group element, not nosing around for anything specific.
"Sort of," He began very off handed. "Most of us go out on Friday night if we aren't working, but we go in smaller groups. Having all of us in one bar isn't typical."
"What made you do it as a pack?" I smiled at my word choice and pictured them as wolves hunting.
"Lester said he wanted to show you a good time and he thought you'd be more likely to stay if you knew there was a big group of us instead of just a couple guys." He explained before adding, "Of course if you had gone home after like you normally do, a lot of us would have gone to other places, but no one could resist the chance to dance with you, especially not in the dress you had on."
I was pretty sure I blushed at his comment. There was a brief period of companionable silence while I tried to work up my courage to ask something else. "So how did you feel Saturday morning?" I blurted out when he turned into the garage indicating my time to push for details was quickly coming to a close.
He laughed at my question which I thought was an interesting first response. "I had a bit of a headache but I imagine it was nothing compared to how you must have felt. I think we failed to monitor just how much you had to drink. How were you?"
I didn't want the question turned back on me, but decided to be honest, "I suffered for the better part of the day and spent the rest of the time trying to piece together exactly what happened. There's a big chunk of time I don't have any memory of."
"Luckily, you know you were with us, so you don't have to worry about it, right?" Junior asked. That was an interesting concluding comment. I guess that means I could mark him off the list since he didn't seem to be responding to any of my questions in a way to say we spent any time together apart from the group.
Just as we split up to go to our cubicles he added, "Of course, if you would like a repeat of what happened between us when you are aware enough to remember, I'd be glad to oblige." Then he walked away leaving me there with my jaw handing open. Did that mean the dancing and flirting or did he mean he took me home and took advantage of just how drunk I was?
As far as I was concerned all men were uncommunicative jerks. These guys were obviously intelligent, but were choosing to be obtuse in their comments to keep me on edge and in the dark. Lula's idea about hypnotism was looking better by the minute.