Chapter 10 – Where Do We Go From Here?

A giggle left Mandi's lips, she wobbled slightly whilst trying to cling onto Stu's arm. She'd definitely gotten into the football spirit and had a few too many beers. She would certainly be blaming Stu for her behaviour, she didn't even like beer. He had brought her back to his place, not trusting her to be on her own. He had just helped her out of his car; now regretting not stopping her drinking sooner.

"Stu." He looked down at her as her big glossy eyes stared back at him; she bit her lip then hiccupped. Her eyes widened and her hand covered her mouth in shock. Stu couldn't help but chuckle at her surprised expression.

"Let's get you inside, and then you can sleep." Stu wrapped his arm around her shoulder, keeping her upright and guiding her towards the house.

"I like you Stu." She patted him on the chest with more effort than necessary, her words slurred, "You're a good guy. Not to mention you're hot."

He pushed the door open, guiding her inside and flicking the lights on after turning off the alarm. She tripped slightly, catching her foot on the small mat in front of the door. A yelp left her lips, the ground becoming increasingly closer but in slow motion. Stu saw her falling, his arm quickly wrapped around her waist pulling her back to her feet.

"Mandi, you're going to hurt yourself." She giggled again before resting her head against his shoulder.

"You saved me. My hero." She pushed her finger against his bottom lip, an attempt to seduce him. She didn't count for the fact that her hair was stuck to her eyelashes and lips, undoing any form of seduction she had planned; "I'm tired." She pouted, closing her eyes.

Stu picked her up after locking the door. He carried her upstairs to his bedroom, setting her down on the edge on the bed. She sat quietly for a change, watching him move around the bedroom. He walked over to her, crouching down to take the sandals off her feet. He looked up, without a second to think she pressed her lips against his. He kissed her back for a moment before pulling back.

"Sleep." He stood up, pulling her up with him. He lifted her shirt up over her head, folding the material up and placing it on the dresser at the far side of the room. He turned around and watched as Mandi decided to crawl back onto the bed, attempting to grasp the edge of the covers.

"Mandi, you might want to take off your jeans."

"But you said sleep." She collapsed on top of the duvet, her face pressed into the pillows. He moved around the bed, making her stand up again. He buttoned her jeans and pushed them down her legs; making her sit down so he could pull them off with no hassle. She tried to kick the jeans free from her feet, inadvertently kicking Stu in the shin. A groan left his lips; "I'm sorry. Let me kiss it better." She attempted to crawl off the bed to reach Stu's legs.

"I don't think so, love." He pulled her up making her sit back down on the bed again, "Don't move."

Mandi sat wide eyed, trying not to move a muscle as Stu left her side. Another hiccup left her mouth. He came back to her with a black t-shirt in his hand, "Put this on." She unfolded he shirt and held it before her.

A bright yellow and black N stared her in the face, she glanced up at him; "N for naughty Stu." She bit her lip and giggled again. He shook his head and smirked, taking the shirt out of her grip. He pulled it over her head and with a bit of effort he managed to get her arms through the sleeves. She sat up on her knees, pulling the shirt off her body. It hung off her frame like a dress; "Naughty Stu is big Stu."

Stu pulled the duvet back and patted the bed; she followed his hand with her big blue eyes. He didn't expect this would be how things would turn out; he definitely had other things planned for them. He smiled as she crawled across the bed and under the covers. He pulled the duvet further up the bed to cover her body. A gentle kiss was placed on her forehead before he stepped back and watched her for a moment. He wasn't one for taking care of drunken women, but with Mandi he didn't seem to mind. He pushed those thoughts aside and began stripping off his clothes eventually climbing into bed next to Mandi; she had no problems getting to sleep.

The buzzing filling the room made Mandi groan, she pushed her pounding head further into the pillows groaning slightly as the incessant noise wouldn't give up. She cracked one eye open, instantly shutting it as the bright light burned. He heard a door open and heavy footsteps fill the room. The alarm buzzing was quickly shut off. She felt the hair covering her face being brushed away, the caress of a big hand across her cheek made a faint smile creep onto her face.

"Mands, are you going to get up?" She shook her head, immediately regretting the small movement. He chuckled, a sound that was usually pleasant. It echoed through her head, she wondered just how close he was, "There's some aspirin and water. I'll be downstairs if you need me."

Mandi mumbled a thank you in response. She couldn't remember much of the evening to be frank; Stu carrying her upstairs seemed to be the only thing that stuck in her mind. She sat up and brushed the hair away from her face. She dread to think what she looked like. She glanced to her left, squinting slightly and just able to make out the drink on the side table. She grabbed the tablets and washed them down with the ice cold liquid. She was thankful she didn't feel sick, just a pounding head for the moment. Pulling the heavy duvet away from her, her sight settled on the alarm clock that had previously been buzzing. It read 7.17am. Stu must have set it knowing she would have to be up for work. She quickly found her clothes in a neat pile. Straight away she knew they didn't have sex, Stu was a rip 'em off without a care in the world kinda guy.

She padded downstairs, not having any luck finding Stu insdie. Movement in the garden caught her eye, she smiled as she saw Stu doing push ups on that pavement around the pool. A thin sheen of sweat coated his skin, glistening under the Florida sun. She moved to stand by the open french doors in the kitchen, she couldn't tear her eyes away from his perfect form. He looked up; her heart skipped a beat as he did. She had been caught. He smirked, doing five more push ups before jumping to his feet.

His big strides brought him over to her in seconds; "How are you feeling?"

"I've been better." She smiled briefly, "I'm sorry about last night. I don't usually drink that much."

"Forget about it. I take it you don't remember much?"

"No, should I? What did I do?" She suddenly feared the worst, what exactly could she have done.

"I think I'll keep that to myself. Do you want dropping off at home?"

"If that's no trouble. As much as I want to take the day off I can't afford to." He studied her features for a moment before nodding slowly.

"Come on then." She smiled shyly, he was in no rush to change her mind or keep her there. She followed him out to the car, suddenly feeling embarrassed. The ride to her house was quiet; she inquired what he would be doing during the day. Gym and stuff was all he answered.

"I'll give you a call sometime, maybe when I'm next in town."

"Okay, sure. That sounds great." He kissed her cheek before she got out, eventually speeding off into the distance. She knew she wouldn't hear from him ever again. She had scared him off for good. She cursed her stupidity and her need to keep drinking beer. Sighing, she quickly made her way back to her house; a shower was in serious need.

She was all ready for work, her headache slowly fading. She knew there was something she needed to do before she made it to work, she didn't have another choice in her mind. She pulled the card out of her handbag, studying it carefully. She hopped into her car, popping the address into her sat nav. She didn't really know her way around uptown Tampa that well.

After 25 minutes she approached a tall building. The outside gave nothing away. Mirrored glass covered the top two the floors; old brick and ivy covered the other floors. Something seemed a little odd. She parked her car on the street opposite, glancing around before she crossed the quiet road. The area was mainly industrial, with a few shops here and there. She moved to the back of the building, her heels scraping against the gravel driveway. Trying to find an entrance to this place was going to be harder than she once thought.

She breathed a sigh of relief as she spotted a door with a speaker box next to it. She pushed the buzzer, waiting for a reply.

"Who's there?" The connection wasn't too brilliant, grainy and fuzzy.

"I'm here to see-" she glanced down at the card, "Tony Pierz."

"Come in." She heard the door click open, unaware of the camera that was pointing down at her. She took a deep breath, pushing open the heavy wooden door. The entered a stairwell; it smelt damp and musty. Mandi quickly made her way up the stairs, the next set of stairs were blocked, leaving only one place to go. A set of double doors were in front of her. They opened suddenly, startling her; though her racing heart slowed as she saw the man behind the door. It was the same man that had given her the card.

"Luke Smith." He held his hand out for her to shake; she carefully shook it, apprehension now settling in her stomach. She wanted to turn back.

"Mandi." He smiled and nodded his head towards the door.

"Come with me." He walked back through the doors, looking back every now and then to see if she was keeping up, "You're boyfriend let you out then?"

"He's not my boyfriend, and I certainly don't need permission to come out."

He raised an eyebrow at her before smirking; "Tony isn't here today, but I can definitely sort you out."

"I haven't made my mind up yet."

"I think you have, why else would you have come." She sighed not knowing how to reply. He walked her down a corridor to a room, he opened the door and allowed her in. The room was filled with a desk and two chairs; the small window looked out onto the industrial estate opposite, "Take a seat." He sat behind the desk as he pointed to the seat closest to her. She sat down, placing her handbag on her lap. Her hands fiddled with the strap. She knew he could tell she was nervous, it was probably like a shark smelling blood; prone to attack the weak and vulnerable. He took a small piece of paper from the notepad in front of him; she flinched as he took out a pen from the inside of his suit jacket. A note was scribbled down quickly with the gold pen; it looked fancy. She knew they made a good profit out of this. The interest rate would be sky high. But all she needed was a little bit of cash to see her through so she could make a big sale. He handed her the note; waiting for her reaction.

"Because you're pretty, I've lowered the interest." He leant back on the desk chair, waiting for her to speak.

"How long do I have to pay this back?"

"Fourteen days."

"And when do I get the money?"

"As soon as you want sweet cheeks."

"Okay."

"You want the money?" She nodded. She had it set in her mind that she didn't have a choice. She had been reeled in; far too easily for her liking; but desperate times called for desperate measures.

A/N – Thank you LA Williams, DefinitelyProbablyMaybe, nefertina-shanf, wades wife, VenomousAngel13, poisenousprincess, Tiffyxox, xFindTheEnigmaWithinx and celticfighter for the awesome reviews :). Glad you liked the different side of Stu and all the sexual innuendos :P! Lou x