Chapter 17
Ashley woke up, comfortable in her own bed. She sat up and a shiver went down her spine. She had grown quite used to waking up in Dominic's strong arms.
She jumped out of the bed when the phone rang. "Dom, I just got out of bed Damn!" She said.
"Dom? This isn't Dom. I'm much more of a man." The voice said.
"The aint a man out there, but anyway. Hello?" She said, irritability hung heavily on her words.
The man on the other end laughed. " How are you?"
"I'm fine…. Who is this?" She asked, annoyed.
"That's not the point. The point is, I'm watching you. Every move you make. Every time you speak, every time you breath…I'm watching you."
Her breath caught in her throat. "Stop lying. Who is this?" She asked again, picking up the caller ID box. It read; Private Caller.
"Private call baby doll. I'm not stupid. I wouldn't call you from my house." He said. "Soon." He mumbled.
"Soon? What the hell? I hate playing games with Dicks, so do not fuck with me motherfucker." Ashley said into the phone.
"Hum.." He said. "Fuck with you? I haven't even thought about that. Thanks for the idea. See you later." He hung up.
"Fucking psycho asshole." She said, slamming down the phone. An uneasy feeling came over here. What if somebody was watching her? She moved quickly over to the window and looked out, but she shut them quickly when thoughts ran through her head.
She took a deep breath. "He does not know who he's fucking with." She mumbled. She slid open her nightstand drawer and saw the bright gleam of her 'shiv. She laughed. "He just does not know."
She got up and went to the shower. Today she would take her lazy ass to the gym, work thoughts out of her mind, then work on her car. Yes, she loved Dom, but no more of this lovey-dovey, stuck up the ass bullshit. Race Wars was a time to redeem herself, get her reputation back as the Bitch, the badass- Ashley. Not the Cheerleader, the hood ornament- Dom's girl. She let the hot water cleanse her mind, body, and soul. She refused to let this marriage change her. To let it change her mind, to make her settled for less. She looked at the ring on her finger.
"Damn that's a big ass rock. No turning back on that." She said to herself as she wiped the water from her face.
When Ashley got in her Acura 3.2 TL, she turned up the radio and pulled off. She needed to clear her brain and get it straight for what was to come. She would just do her thing today. 'Cut Friends' By Camouflage blared from her system. For some strange reason, this song made her feel better about things.
"Hey baby!" She barely heard a voice over her music.
She turned down the radio and looked over to the car next to her. They were defiantly racers. She pulled her glasses down to the tip of her nose to get a better look and she left them there. Her lips were poised in her tight, natural pout. She didn't say a word. She let them do all the talking.
"So what up with that ass?" They asked.
She laughed. Not with them at them. She looked at the street sign in the left of her eyesight.
"You're on the wrong street. This aint Hollywood Blvd. You gets no ass here. You two look like you race…" Ashley said, almost leaning completely out the driver's side window.
"You know it babe."
"Yeah me too, so lets do it?" She said, her catty side coming out.
Both men laughed. "You? You're a fucking girl."
Ashley sat back, gripping the steering wheel- pissed. "So let me get this straight. That's dick for 'I'm afraid' right?" She asked, looking back at them.
Her cynical words bite them right in the ass. "You asked for it you sarcastic bitch!" He growled.
"Oh," Ashley said satirically. " I like that attitude."
The second the light turned green, they were off. Dust, exhaust, and rocks all polluted the air around the scene. Ashley beat the guys by inches only.
"Damn you lost by regular old Sports car. No work. No Nitrous. Nothing."
"You only won by a few inches!" They called out.
She laughed. "Like a great man once said; "It doesn't matter if you win by an inch or a mile. Winning's Winning." No how you like that, Bitch." She said. Pulling off leaving them with their tails tucked between their legs and their mouths hanging open. Exactly how she loved it.
~*~*
Letty dusted off her greasy hands on her overalls. Her eyes wandered to Dominic like they did frequently these days. She couldn't stop thinking about him and their inevitable destiny together. Ashley was just a bump in the road that they had to get over and soon they would be together again. She brushed a piece of her black hair from her face as Dom pasted by her.
"That's looks good." He complimented the work she'd done on the car.
"Thank you." She said. She was desperate to talk to him. "Uh…Dom…"
He turned around and faced her. Her eyes traveled over the man in front of her standing in his jump suit that was hanging half off showing off his wifebeater.
"Yea?" He asked.
She stuffed her hands down deep into her pockets like she found she did when she was nervous. "Can we talk-alone?"
She could tell he was hesitant. "Uh…sure." He said, going back to his office in the back with her following him.
When they were both back in his office, standing there, both uncomfortable. It defiantly wasn't the same vibe going on.
"Do you need something?" Dom asked, breaking the silence.
Letty looked up into his deep brown eyes. "Where did we go wrong?" She asked.
Dom dropped his head. "I'm not having this conversation."
"Why not?"
"Because Letty!"
"Look, Dominic. I love you! More than anybody I've EVER been with. We are meant to be together!" Letty said, assuredly.
Dom got up quickly and stormed over to her. "See this!" He said loudly, shoving his engagement ring in her face. "I'm getting married, Letty. Do you understand that?"
Letty shook her head. "That ring means nothing to me. I still love you and soon, on down the line. You'll see, that it means nothing at all to you." She looked him straight in the eye when she said that. Making sure every last one of her words sunk in. "We've been together for so long. You weren't with me for nothing."
With those last words, she pranced back off to the main garage. She wasn't gonna loose her cool, fight Ashley, or Dom. She was just going to let things happen, and let fate take its course.
Ashley woke up, comfortable in her own bed. She sat up and a shiver went down her spine. She had grown quite used to waking up in Dominic's strong arms.
She jumped out of the bed when the phone rang. "Dom, I just got out of bed Damn!" She said.
"Dom? This isn't Dom. I'm much more of a man." The voice said.
"The aint a man out there, but anyway. Hello?" She said, irritability hung heavily on her words.
The man on the other end laughed. " How are you?"
"I'm fine…. Who is this?" She asked, annoyed.
"That's not the point. The point is, I'm watching you. Every move you make. Every time you speak, every time you breath…I'm watching you."
Her breath caught in her throat. "Stop lying. Who is this?" She asked again, picking up the caller ID box. It read; Private Caller.
"Private call baby doll. I'm not stupid. I wouldn't call you from my house." He said. "Soon." He mumbled.
"Soon? What the hell? I hate playing games with Dicks, so do not fuck with me motherfucker." Ashley said into the phone.
"Hum.." He said. "Fuck with you? I haven't even thought about that. Thanks for the idea. See you later." He hung up.
"Fucking psycho asshole." She said, slamming down the phone. An uneasy feeling came over here. What if somebody was watching her? She moved quickly over to the window and looked out, but she shut them quickly when thoughts ran through her head.
She took a deep breath. "He does not know who he's fucking with." She mumbled. She slid open her nightstand drawer and saw the bright gleam of her 'shiv. She laughed. "He just does not know."
She got up and went to the shower. Today she would take her lazy ass to the gym, work thoughts out of her mind, then work on her car. Yes, she loved Dom, but no more of this lovey-dovey, stuck up the ass bullshit. Race Wars was a time to redeem herself, get her reputation back as the Bitch, the badass- Ashley. Not the Cheerleader, the hood ornament- Dom's girl. She let the hot water cleanse her mind, body, and soul. She refused to let this marriage change her. To let it change her mind, to make her settled for less. She looked at the ring on her finger.
"Damn that's a big ass rock. No turning back on that." She said to herself as she wiped the water from her face.
When Ashley got in her Acura 3.2 TL, she turned up the radio and pulled off. She needed to clear her brain and get it straight for what was to come. She would just do her thing today. 'Cut Friends' By Camouflage blared from her system. For some strange reason, this song made her feel better about things.
"Hey baby!" She barely heard a voice over her music.
She turned down the radio and looked over to the car next to her. They were defiantly racers. She pulled her glasses down to the tip of her nose to get a better look and she left them there. Her lips were poised in her tight, natural pout. She didn't say a word. She let them do all the talking.
"So what up with that ass?" They asked.
She laughed. Not with them at them. She looked at the street sign in the left of her eyesight.
"You're on the wrong street. This aint Hollywood Blvd. You gets no ass here. You two look like you race…" Ashley said, almost leaning completely out the driver's side window.
"You know it babe."
"Yeah me too, so lets do it?" She said, her catty side coming out.
Both men laughed. "You? You're a fucking girl."
Ashley sat back, gripping the steering wheel- pissed. "So let me get this straight. That's dick for 'I'm afraid' right?" She asked, looking back at them.
Her cynical words bite them right in the ass. "You asked for it you sarcastic bitch!" He growled.
"Oh," Ashley said satirically. " I like that attitude."
The second the light turned green, they were off. Dust, exhaust, and rocks all polluted the air around the scene. Ashley beat the guys by inches only.
"Damn you lost by regular old Sports car. No work. No Nitrous. Nothing."
"You only won by a few inches!" They called out.
She laughed. "Like a great man once said; "It doesn't matter if you win by an inch or a mile. Winning's Winning." No how you like that, Bitch." She said. Pulling off leaving them with their tails tucked between their legs and their mouths hanging open. Exactly how she loved it.
~*~*
Letty dusted off her greasy hands on her overalls. Her eyes wandered to Dominic like they did frequently these days. She couldn't stop thinking about him and their inevitable destiny together. Ashley was just a bump in the road that they had to get over and soon they would be together again. She brushed a piece of her black hair from her face as Dom pasted by her.
"That's looks good." He complimented the work she'd done on the car.
"Thank you." She said. She was desperate to talk to him. "Uh…Dom…"
He turned around and faced her. Her eyes traveled over the man in front of her standing in his jump suit that was hanging half off showing off his wifebeater.
"Yea?" He asked.
She stuffed her hands down deep into her pockets like she found she did when she was nervous. "Can we talk-alone?"
She could tell he was hesitant. "Uh…sure." He said, going back to his office in the back with her following him.
When they were both back in his office, standing there, both uncomfortable. It defiantly wasn't the same vibe going on.
"Do you need something?" Dom asked, breaking the silence.
Letty looked up into his deep brown eyes. "Where did we go wrong?" She asked.
Dom dropped his head. "I'm not having this conversation."
"Why not?"
"Because Letty!"
"Look, Dominic. I love you! More than anybody I've EVER been with. We are meant to be together!" Letty said, assuredly.
Dom got up quickly and stormed over to her. "See this!" He said loudly, shoving his engagement ring in her face. "I'm getting married, Letty. Do you understand that?"
Letty shook her head. "That ring means nothing to me. I still love you and soon, on down the line. You'll see, that it means nothing at all to you." She looked him straight in the eye when she said that. Making sure every last one of her words sunk in. "We've been together for so long. You weren't with me for nothing."
With those last words, she pranced back off to the main garage. She wasn't gonna loose her cool, fight Ashley, or Dom. She was just going to let things happen, and let fate take its course.