THEN
It was 10 pm when Katie got home from her lunch shift that had unexpectedly turned into a double. She was dead on her feet, but the wad of tips in her pocket felt great. She closed the front door behind her and slipped out of her shoes with a groan. Barefoot she wiggles her toes, stretching them out and padded into the kitchen. She was starving.
"Damn." The light from the fridge lit up the otherwise dark room. It was practically empty.
The pantry wasn't much better. She grabbed a half full bag of chips and some salsa, it would do. She took the food into her bedroom, and peeled her work clothes off. She always smelled like coffee and grease after her shift. All she wanted to do was crawl into bed, eat, watch a movie and fall into a dead sleep.
Wearing only panties and a tank top she jumped into bed and moaned. Purchasing this bed had been one of the best decisions of her life. She made a nest of pillows, cued up a comedy on her laptop and settled in for the night.
The movie was only ten minutes in when her phone vibrated beside her. She picked it up to check the caller ID and her eyes grew wide.
Zach.
What the actual fuck?
She pressed ignore, sending him to voicemail. The phone immediately rang again.
"Are you kidding me?" She angrily pressed ignore again. "Asshole," she muttered and turned her attention back to the movie.
BANG. BANG. BANG.
Katie's heart flew into her throat and started beating like a drum. She quickly paused the movie and froze, listening carefully.
BANG. BANG.
The sound made her jump and she started to tremble.
Quietly, she slid out of bed and reached for a pair of sweatpants laying on her floor. She slipped into them and threw a hoodie over her tank. The lights were already off in the house, just the glow of the laptop gave her light as she inched forward to peek out her bedroom door.
"Katie!! Open the damn door!"
It was Zach.
Shit.
She took a deep breath, and willed her body to stop shaking.
"Katie, please! I just want to talk." He banged on the door again.
She instantly regretted the day she let him come along to put the deposit down on this apartment. He would have no idea where she was if she hadn't been such a fool then.
She tiptoed quietly out to the living room and quickly checked the locks on the door, sighing in relief that she had remembered to bolt it when she got home.
She felt trapped. He knew she was home, he had to have seen her car in the parking lot. If she ignored him, he would just persist until she caved and talked to him. She had no other option- she had to talk to him.
She took in a deep shaky breath, gathering her wits. Trying not to let her voice tremble, she yelled. "Go away, Zach!"
The pounding stopped and Zach's voice immediately flipped a switch and got soft. "Katie? Are you in there?"
She pinched the bridge of her nose, and didn't answer.
"Baby, please. I miss you. I just want to talk."
She exhaled deeply, gaining composure and then yelled at the door again. "Go away!"
"Baby. Baby. Baby." He slurred his words. "Baby, please. Open the door."
"I am not opening it."
He groaned, punched the door and another switch flipped. "Don't be a bitch. C'mon."
His words caused hot anger to rise to her face. "What the fuck do you want?"
"I want you. God, I miss you. I can't stop thinking about you." Then he laughed. "Or that tight pussy."
Katie's stomach rolled. What the fuck was she going to do? Pretty soon her neighbors were going to call the cops, she needed to get rid of him.
She backtracked into the bedroom. With trembling hands, she searched on the bed for her phone and instinctively dialed Daryl's number.
Calling him was a gamble. They hadn't talked since the bonfire. That was three days ago.
"Please, Daryl. Pick up."
The phone rang 4 times, and her heart started to sink. He wasn't going to answer. Finally, she heard his gruff voice.
"What?"
Relief flooded her.
"Daryl." Her voice squeaked.
He could immediately tell she was crying. "What?"
"It's Zach. He's here."
There was silence on Daryl's end of the line. He heard her sniffling and then, in the background, that bastard calling out her name.
"Call the cops," he ground out. "He's violating your PFA."
Katie drew in a ragged breath. "It won't do any good. I told you. His parents just make charges disappear with money."
Zach banged and yelled again. "Katie. Let me in."
"He's drunk off his ass." She whispered.
Despite not wanting to care, the fear in her voice cut Daryl deep. "He know you're home?"
"Yes." She squeaked out. "What do I do?"
"Don't open the damn door."
"I'm not!" She promised.
"I'm coming over. Katie?"
"What?"
He couldn't say it enough. "Don't open the fucking door."
Daryl rode like hell to Katie's place. The thought of what that shithead might do to her made his blood boil. As soon as he pulled into her lot, he could see the dumbass sitting in front of Katie's apartment. His back was to the door, his head in his hands.
Good girl. She hadn't opened the door.
Daryl pulled the bike next to a yellow BMW. He remembered it from the night he'd met Katie at the bar. He killed the bike engine and pocketed the keys. Inside his pocket, his fingers touched the cool metal of his switchblade. Without thinking about it, he flipped open the knife and ran it down the side of the pussy's car.
"Ain't that a bitch." He muttered looking at the scratch mucking up the otherwise perfect looking sports car.
From his back pocket, his phone vibrated. It was a text from Katie.
He stopped pounding on my door.
I'm here. I see him. He texted back.
As he stomped towards Zach, he could feel his fingers curling into a ball and itching to punch his pretty little face.
"Hey!" Daryl called out. "Shithead!"
Zach scrambled to his feet and swayed unsteadily. His face flickered with recognition and he sneered at Daryl.
Daryl hadn't really thought through a plan. He was operating on rage. He charged at Zach, grabbing his shirt and pinning him up against the wall. "You wanna tell me what the fuck yer doing here?"
Zach wrestled against him. Daryl had him by at least 40lbs and didn't budge.
"Get off me man! I just came to see my girl!"
"Last I checked she ain't yer girl." Daryl answered through gritted teeth.
Zach laughed maniacally. "What? You think she's yours? Katie would shack up with trash. Once trash always trash."
Daryl pushed him harder into the wall, causing his head to smack against the brick "You feel like keepin' all yer teeth tonight? Best shut the hell up."
Zach twisted out of Daryl's grasp. Surprising Daryl, Zach moved quickly bringing his right fist up and connecting soundly with Daryl's jaw. Daryl growled, grabbed Zach's collar and threw him to the ground.
"Fuck you!" Zach yelled.
"Told ya to shut the hell up! Guess yer dumb ass needs to learn the hard way."
Zach cried out when Daryl's boot connected soundly with his side.
"Best get the fuck out of here 'fore I stomp yer face!"
Zach rolled onto his hands and knees and Daryl was getting ready to kick him back to the ground when Katie stepped out.
"Daryl, stop!" She pleaded from her doorway.
"Oh my God, Katie!" Zach cried out. "Call your dog off."
Daryl snarled and gave him another boot to the side. Zach clutched his ribs, and rolled to the grass with a moan. Daryl lifted his foot again, aiming for the prick's head this time when he felt Katie's hand on his arm, pulling him back.
"Stop." She hissed and pointed down the road. "Before you get yourself in trouble."
In the distance, Daryl could see blue lights. One of the neighbors must have heard the ruckus and called the cops. Police set Daryl on edge, he didn't like to get mixed up with them. Merle did enough of that for the two of them.
Instinctively and protectively, he pushed her behind him. "Pigs are comin'." He said to the kid on the ground. "Ya better run."
Zach's lip lifted in a sneer. "You beat me up asshole. I'm pressing charges."
"You're violating my protection order." Katie told him. "And harassing me. You're the one who's going to be in trouble."
Zach tried to sit up, and groaned, clutching his side. "You broke my ribs."
"Gonna break your nose too if ya don't leave in five seconds."
The flashing lights were getting brighter and Daryl was getting more agitated the closer they got. Katie's hand on his bicep was the only thing keeping him from beating the kid to a bloody pulp.
Zach managed to crawl to his feet. He clutched his side and stumbled towards the parking lot.
"He can't drive like that. He's going to kill someone." Katie said, worriedly.
Daryl sighed and grabbed Zach by the back of his shirt. He never wanted to see the prick again, but Katie was right.
"Hey!" Zach protested.
"Shut up." Daryl unceremoniously threw him towards the apartment wall. "Sit down and don't move." He crossed his arms and stood over Zach who was moaning in pain.
Zach took a ride in the back of a cop car that night, and Daryl was given a warning based on his and Katie's slightly downplayed statement. The cops took their word over Zach's based purely on the fact that they were both sober and Zach blew a .12%. They both knew Daryl got lucky.
When the dust had settled, Daryl and Katie walked back into her apartment. She looked up at him with teary, wide brown eyes. "Your lip is bleeding." She sniffled.
He touched the side of his mouth with this thumb, feeling a small cut. It didn't really hurt, he'd had worse, but she insisted on cleaning him up.
In the bathroom, he studied her as she cleaned his lip. Her eyes were puffy and rimmed red, her thick brown ponytail disheveled, and her face pale and tear streaked.
Her appearance and their argument from a few days ago didn't seem to change how he felt about her. He still thought she was sexy as hell.
"Ya gonna be okay?" He asked as she dabbed at his face.
She shrugged. "I guess."
"How'd ya get mixed up with that dickhead, anyway?"
She ran the washcloth under cold water and wrung it out before answering. "Zach is so much like my dad. It's sick. I think I gravitated to him because of that. Classic case of daddy issues."
Daryl grunted.
Katie threw the cloth into a nearby pile of dirty laundry. "It doesn't look too bad." She decided about his lip. "Does it hurt?"
"Nah."
Katie looked down, fiddling with her hands, unsure of what to do with them now that they weren't cleaning Dary's cut.
"Daryl," she said softly, almost nervously. "I'm so sorry. About the other day. I just …. I assumed..." She stuttered painfully over her words.
"Ya think I'm gay." Daryl supplied.
She nodded, thankful for his assist. "Your brother told me."
"Fucking Merle." Daryl rolled his eyes. "I ain't."
Her lips formed a soft O shape. "I'm sorry."
Daryl nodded, gazing at the floor. "I'm sorry too. That I spouted off."
"We cool?" She asked.
"Yup."
Unexpectedly, she threw her arms around his midsection and nestled into his chest. "You're like my guardian angel," she mumbled against him. "Always getting me out of trouble."
Hesitantly, his arms came around her to return the hug. It was uncomfortable for him, but Katie seemed really comfortable with the way she fit just under his chin. "Ya just need to stop getting in trouble."
She laughed into his chest. "I'll try."
When she laughed, her breasts grazed against him. Daryl's eyes shot up to the ceiling and he willed his heart to stop beating so fast. She had to feel it thudding through his chest. Without warning, her laughter turned to sobs. Daryl froze at the sudden change in emotions, and then awkwardly patted her back. The girl was exhausted and the night had been hell. The best thing was to get her into that big ass bed, and let her sleep it off.
"C'mon," Daryl shifted. She let him guide her out of the bathroom, and into the bedroom. He set her down on the bed and watched as she wiped her tears. Her big eyes settled on his face.
"Please, don't leave." She pleaded with him. "Can you stay here tonight?"
He shook his head, knowing that staying was trouble. "You're gonna be okay. He's locked up."
"Please, Daryl." Her lower lip trembled.
He pulled down the covers and pointed to her pillow, indicating that he wanted her to lay down. "C'mon now."
He never agreed to stay, but found himself kicking his boots off and stiffly laying down next to her on top of the sheets. Katie's hand crept across the spanse of the bed and landed on his arm.
"Thank you," she whispered.
"Mmhmm. Get some sleep."
He planned to wait until she fell asleep and then slip out. But as her breathing deepened he felt himself relaxing. He felt her hand twitch on his arm and he knew she had fallen asleep. It didn't take long until he was fast asleep beside her.
The sun was just rising when Katie's still tired eyes cracked open. It took her a few seconds to assimilate to what was happening. She was comfortable. Oh so, comfortable. Comfortable and sleepy enough to doze right back to sleep. Until she realized that somehow in the middle of the night, she and Daryl had managed to twist into a spoon position with their legs entangled. His arm held her tightly under her breasts.
All of a sudden she wasn't so sleepy anymore. Dear god. She felt a tightening low in her stomach when he shifted. His cock was hard, and pressing into her ass. Biting her bottom lip, she held back a moan. She was starting to feel warm and tingle all over.
Now that she knew Daryl wasn't gay. Well, this was new territory.
Katie lay still, trying to keep her breathing steady and not wake him. From this position, it would be so easy to part her legs, and let him slide in from the side. The yearning low in her stomach got stronger, and she felt herself getting damp.
Fuck. Stop being such a horndog. Get ahold of yourself.
Daryl moved, and groaned a little. He shifted and then she felt him jerk away from her. "Shit." He mumbled.
To save him from embarrassment, she pretended to be asleep as he slowly crept out of bed. She listened as he gathered up his boots, took a piss without flushing and quietly closed the front door behind him. She didn't even care that he wanted to slip away without saying goodbye. That was just Daryl.
She could hear his bike start up and listened as the roar of the engine faded. Then she rolled into the warm spot he'd left in the bed and swore softly.
What the fuck was that all about?
The cat is out of the bag! Katie now knows that Daryl is not gay. Are things about to get a lot more interesting?
Leave a review and let me know if you want more! -CJ