Hi Ya'll! Thank you for the love so far on this story. I'm still planning on posting on Sundays however, yesterday was my birthday and I was living it up and the day got away from me even though I had this uploaded and ready to go. Hope you enjoy this chapter!


Tris bites her lip as she looks at the front door of her father's house. Christina had let her borrow her car while she was on shift. After her and Caleb's talk the night before she figured she should at least try and make an effort while she was in town.

After a few minutes, she gathers her courage and makes her way to the front door.

"Beatrice, How long are you in town? We're glad you could stop by, Come on in" Jeanine smiled. Tris could still tell it was forced. There was no love lost between Tris and her stepmother.

When she was 14, Tris only made it two weeks staying with her father and Jeanine for the summer. She would never forget Jeanine telling her and Caleb they needed to speak English when she was in the room as if there was something they were plotting against her. When Tris called Andrew, Jeanine snatched the phone from her and banished her to her room.

As soon as Natalie found out, Tris and Caleb were on the first flight back to Atlanta. What had hurt the most was Andrew siding with Jeanine saying their house had rules that needed to be followed.

After that summer, Natalie never made Tris or Caleb go to their father's house if they didn't want to. Caleb stayed the summer of his junior year of high school after winning a scholarship to an academic camp at Northwestern which ultimately led to him considering going there for college.

Caleb could be civil when he needed to be, but his sister was fiery and had a hard time holding her tongue. Most of Tris and Andrew's interactions ended with neither one of them willing to budge from their position.

Tris awkwardly looks around, she hadn't been to their home in probably 3 years when she and Natalie came to Chicago for Christmas to visit Caleb. She and Caleb had made an awkward visit that ended with Tris pissed off by the end of it and storming out to call an Uber to take her back to Caleb's apartment. The last time she had seen her father in person was at Edith's funeral, two years ago.

"Have a seat, Andrew is upstairs working on his lecture for tomorrow, he'll be down in a minute. Can I interest you in some lunch? We were just about to sit down"

"Uh, yeah sure" Tris sighs as she follows Jeanine into the kitchen.

"Tris!" Matthew yells as he comes barreling down the stairs and launches himself into his sister's arms.

"Matthew" Jeanine scolds sharply at her son's behavior, she hated that her stepdaughter had just walked through the door and her son was already running around, like a wild child.

"Hey Matty, wow, you're almost as tall as me now" She grins as she hugs him back. He had a lighter skin tone than Tris and Caleb, but the same curly hair texture they did.

She squats down so she can be eye level with him and hands him the gift bag that she had picked up a few hours earlier.

"I thought I would bring you a belated birthday present"

"Awesome! Thanks, Tris" Matthew grins as he pulls out the tissue paper to find a set of marvel action figures. Normally Andrew and Jeanine only allowed Matthew educational presents but Tris and Caleb would sneak him toys now and again.

"Lunch is on the table you two" Jeanine calls.

Tris puts a finger up to her lips to signal Matthew to keep the gift a secret. He grins in response and Tris holds up her pinky finger. Matthew hooks his pinky with hers as they shake on it. He was a good kid, and this was a reminder for her that he needed Tris and Caleb in his life.

"Well, how long are you in Chicago for Beatrice?" Andrew asks as he comes down to the dining room to join everyone at the table.

"Just a week." She hesitates but decides to test the water to see how her father would react. "Caleb and I were talking this week and I'm considering moving to Chicago"

"Please, Please Tris, do it," Matthew begs as Tris shoots him a grin while she picks at the food on her plate, she always hated Jeanine's bland cooking. She didn't know what she expected Andrew to say to that news or what made her even care what his reaction would be.

"Well that would be a welcomed change for you, the opportunity to find a decent job here, finally go to college for a useful degree" Andrew comments while taking a sip of his water.

"What do you mean do something decent? I have a job and a degree, I'm a firefighter and a damned good one at that," Tris spits out and her blood starts to boil.

Andrew rolls his eyes, he just couldn't understand why his daughter just couldn't choose a more respectable profession for a woman. She was smart enough that she could choose a career in STEM research.

"You are almost 30 Beatrice, it's time to do something different from those daredevil stunts you do now…"

"Do you have any clue what firefighters actually do? I save people's lives," Tris snaps.

"You could have come here and enrolled at Northwestern like your brother even though he threw his education away, You can still choose any degree you want with Jeanie's connections" Andrew fires back.

Andrew guest lectured and did speaking engagements on top of his research at BioTech, he'd even written three books and he wanted Tris and Caleb to follow in his footsteps. When he became faculty at Northwestern Tris and Caleb both had the opportunity to go to college at Northwestern for free. Caleb took him up on the offer and went on to get a degree in criminal justice.

Tris never wanted anything Andrew had to offer even though as much as she despised her father, deep down she just wanted him to be proud of her, and accept her for who she was.

"Here we go," Tris sighs, putting her fork down and leaning back into her chair. Matthew and Jeanine had learned not to interfere when Tris and Andrew went head up with each other.

Andrew had been furious when Caleb dropped out of law school during his first year for the police academy. He wanted them to do what he wanted them to do, not what they dreamed of and not what was best for them. He never let up about Tris going to Northwestern whenever they spoke. Poor Matthew already had his future written out for him at Northwestern with a pre-med major.

They go back and forth for a while and after a tense end of the conversation, Tris decides it's time to say goodbye. She needed some air.

Matthew wraps his arms around her waist tightly as she grabs her jacket and purse and opens the door.

"Please come to Chicago" He begs. "I can see you more like Caleb and I think being a firefighter is cool, if you move here, you can show me the firetruck"

Tris gives a soft smile as she returns his hug. " Thanks, Matty I'm thinking about it, I promise"

Tris gets into the car and rests her head on the steering wheel. She didn't want to be in Atlanta alone. Still, Tris realizes then and there if and when she decided to make the move to Chicago it couldn't be about reconnecting with anyone or satisfying a need or expectation that anyone else had. It was going to be about her, not Caleb, not Mattew, not Christina, and sure as hell, not her father.


After heading back to Christina's and grabbing an Al's Beef sandwich because she was starving after that crappy non-seasoned meal cooked by her stepmother, she decides to take a nap.

When she wakes up, it's dark outside. She stretches and rolls over and looks at the clock. It was only 9:30, she and Caleb were planning on going to do dinner again but he'd called a few hours ago having to bail because of a body that turned up linked to a case he was working on. With Christina getting called in on shift, she was all alone and after that tense visit with her father, she needed to let off some steam.

She googles Onyx, one of the clubs Christina mentioned, and decides she can have some fun on her own. She takes a quick shower and pulls out a short tight-fitting black dress. She goes for a smokey eye that makes her eyes pop. She had straightened her hair a few days before so she ran over it with her flat iron. She did a final once over of herself in the mirror, pleased with her look for the night, and runs down to the uber waiting for her.


Tobias takes a sip of his beer and takes a look around the bar, a blonde on the other end smiles at him. Normally that would be all he needed to have a good night but he was feeling restless - like he wanted something different.

"What's up with you, that chick is eyeing you at the end of the bar, I'm surprised you're not all over that" Zeke comments as he pops the top of a beer for a customer two seats over from Tobias.

It was a slow night for a Thursday, some of their regulars. The crowd would pick up on Friday and Saturday.

"I know, I keep thinking about what you said, maybe I need something different, instead of the same old same old…I don't know…"

"Is the infamous Tobias Eaton saying he is ready to settle down?" Zeke gasps while holding his chest.

"No, not at all but you know if you eat chicken every day, every once and awhile you have a taste for something different…maybe a steak"

"Well in that case my friend, let's get out of here, I've got the perfect spot for you" Zeke signals Tori at the other end of the bar that he was about to leave.


Thirty minutes later Zeke and Tobias make their way into Onyx on the southside of Chicago. This was Zeke's territory, and Tobias felt like a fish out of water.

"Wow," Tobias says, pulling at the collar of his button-down shirt and keenly aware he was the only white person in the building.

He and Zeke clicked immediately when they met at the Firefighter Academy even though they came from very different worlds. Tobias had been raised on the Northside, in a sheltered environment, with no families of color in his neighborhood. Zeke lived in a neighborhood on the Southside. His mother Hana worked hard to keep him and his younger brother out of trouble after their father was killed in the line of duty.

Despite their different upbringings, they had both been open to learning things. Tobias shared about his Irish Catholic roots, and Zeke talked about his family's traditions passed along from Mississippi and then to Chicago. Now, Zeke's family invited him over for holidays, and Tobias saw things in a different light than the narrow-minded view of his parents. He still had much to learn but it was easy with Zeke.

"Relax, you need a little culture in your life, besides, you said you wanted different" He chuckles as he claps Tobias on the back.

Tobias grins as two women walk by them flashing smiles. One with wavy hair and russet-toned skin and legs for days, the other with long braids and a short dress that drew his eyes to her thighs.

"Hey cutie," one of them says, and her friend giggles and whispers to her as they continue on their way towards the VIP area.

"See, what I tell you," Zeke says as he gives Tobias a nudge with his shoulder before they head to the bar.

Tobias sees a woman walk in and to say he was in a daze was an understatement. She had a great body, definitely curvier than he was used to, and could admit he'd never gone for someone with her honey-colored skin tone. But she had a glow, confidence that commanded attention.

Zeke grins as he sees Tobias follow the woman with his eyes.

"That's big game hunting bro, she may be a little out of your league, Can't say I wouldn't mind taking that for a test drive" Zeke observes as he rubs his hands together.

"I thought this night was about me." Tobias challenges with a grin.

"Well she's not your normal type, that's for sure. That sister right there probably might put it on you…Damn, she's fine as hell"

"Well then I can't go wrong, can I?" Tobias grins, if this night was about trying something new, he was going all in and already felt himself moving toward her.

"Have fun" Zeke shouts over his shoulder as he sees one of the girls that spoke earlier and asks her to dance.


"Basil Hayden, neat" Tris tells the bartender, placing her large clutch purse on the bar in front of her.

She sees two men looking her way as they walk in. Both of them were handsome, one a brother fair-skinned, with big brown eyes, the other had a Mediterranean look like he could be Italian but he definitely wasn't a brother and was the taller of the two. There was something about the taller one though. She didn't care about people dating outside their race, it just hadn't been her thing. But when they lock eyes, she feels butterflies in her stomach, and it intrigued her, and tonight, she was up for something new, something different.

"Can I get a Heineken?" the man asks the bartender as he moves next to her and leans on the bar with his arms. "What are you drinking? I might feel like I need you to teach me a thing or two"

Tris grins, most men were shocked when she didn't order a girly drink. It intimidated some that she knew her whiskey and bourbon well. This guy she could tell wasn't intimidated and it was sexy as hell.

"What do you know about bourbon?" She asks, deciding to play along.

He was definitely sexy, now that he was this close to her. His thick eyebrows and short-cropped chocolate brown hair framed his face perfectly. His full bottom lip looked so kissable as he darted his tongue out and pulled his bottom lip between his teeth. It looked as if he hadn't shaved in a few days and the light scruff looked as if he was growing his beard back. She found herself thinking about what it would be like to feel the stubble of his beard against her thighs.

"Not much really, Is Jack Daniels bourbon?" He admits, taking in her beauty up close.

He grins when she throws her head back in a laugh at his lack of bourbon knowledge. Her make-up wasn't too heavy, her lips were full and Tobias found himself wondering what they would feel like against his own as she eyed him over her glass after taking a sip.

"It's actually considered whiskey, This one I'm drinking is a little sweet but also very very smooth, much better finish than whiskey," Tris tells him in a sultry tone, never taking her eyes off him.

"Want a taste?"

Tobias doesn't look away and takes the glass from her hand, never breaking eye contact. Not missing the innuendo in her voice, he takes a sip of her drink, letting it go down slow.

"Hmmm, I see you know your bourbon, that was very good" he whispers in her ear, leaning in close as he sets her lowball glass back on the bar close to her. "Can I buy you another one?"

"Sure" she grins, picking her glass back up to take another drink.

"My name's Tobias"

"Nice to meet you, I'm Tris" She doesn't miss how his eyes flick up and down her body.

The bartender brings his beer and he takes a swig.

"How did you end up here all alone?"

"My girl had to work, I wanted to get out of the house, have a little fun"

"Hmmm, what do you like to do for fun?" He asks in a playful tone, leaning closer to her.

She licks her lips and gives him a smile, this guy, there was something about him.

"Come dance with me" She demands more than asks suddenly. She grabs his hand and he follows, loving how she took control of the situation.

The Caribbean vibes of Hold You by Gyptian pulse through the speakers. Tris holds her clutch in one hand as she grinds her ass against Tobias to the beat of the song. She feels his hand move to her hip. The liquor coursing through her, had her worked up but she was enjoying the vibe going on between them and continued to tease him, moving her hips in a slow clockwise motion.

Tobias was having a hard time keeping his cool as she moved against his crotch. He already understood what Zeke meant when he said, sometimes you needed something to hold on to. This woman had curves for days and he wanted nothing more than to explore all of them.

They keep it up for a few more songs, get another drink, and then dance some more before Tobias decides to move things along.

"How about we get out of here?" Tobias whispers in her ear.

Tris turns to him with a saucy grin on her face as she rubs her hand up his shirt, feeling his muscles.

"I thought you'd never ask," she whispers.

The husky sound of her voice almost made Tobias groan out loud but he grinned when he saw the fire in her eyes as her tongue darted out over her bottom lip.

Tobias throws a nod to Zeke who was dancing a few feet away as he guides Tris out. Zeke shoots him a grin and a head nod, glad that his boy was successful in his mission for the evening.

"I'm parked over here" He points to his gray mustang and hits the alarm from his key fob.

"Muscle car, nice" she teases as he opens the passenger door for her.

The rev of the engine makes her clench her thighs together when he cranks up the car.

Tris is surprised when they make it to their destination in about 20 minutes. Tris changes the radio station, finding a smooth R & B station. The sexual tension was thick between the two of them. When they get in the elevator he steps close in front of her, running a finger down her arm that made her shiver, still not kissing her.

After he lets them in, he locks the door and is thankful Shauna got called in on shift due to no one being available in the floater pool so he could have the entire place to himself.

Tris takes note of the industrial architecture of the apartment, assuming that this was probably an old warehouse because of the high ceilings, and completely open space with huge windows across one side that had an amazing view of the city.

Tris drops her purse on the kitchen bar and pulls him to her by the front of his shirt and aggressively kisses him. Tobias buries his hands in her hair as he devours her mouth. He was used to taking control and women gave in to him. This woman knew what she wanted.

They stumble further into the apartment and he picks her up to carry her the rest of the way to his bedroom. Once he sets her down, she quickly rids herself of her shoes and dress leaving her in only her black lace bra and panties while he sits down on the oversized armchair in the corner of his room.

Tobias grins when he sees the tattoo running up her side from her hip to her armpit. The flame tattoo running up the side of her body from the top of her upper thigh all the way to her ribcage stopping near her breasts was an intricate design.

"See something you like?" She teases as he grabs her hand to pull her closer to him. He runs his hands over the areas of her body where her tattoo was.

"Definitely because this seems to be fate tonight" Tobias grins from ear to ear as he shrugs out of his shirt.

She laughs as she takes in his torso and sees a similar tattoo of fire flames running up his side.

"That's so fucking hot" Tris breathes and pushes him back on the chair, straddling him.

Tobias takes his fill of her when she settles on top of him, enjoying running his hands over her ass and thighs. Her curves were amazing, he couldn't wait to bend her over.

He unhooks her bra, throws it across the room, and turns his attention to her breasts, pushing them together while he fondled her chocolate nipples. He enjoyed every sound he pulled from her, as she moved her hips against him seeking friction.

"You got a condom?" She breathes out pulling back for a second.

"Yeah, pocket" Tobias responds as never takes his focus off her breasts going right back to flicking his tongue across one nipple and then suckling gently.

Tris giggles as she tries to wiggle a hand into his pocket but he pulls her back to move to suckle her other breast. As much as she was enjoying it, she needed more.

"You seem good with your tongue, why don't you show me just how good"

Tobias grins, as he loosens his grip. Sure he was usually in control in the bedroom, the women he brought home liked it, but this, both of them vying for dominance made him want her even more. Tris moves to stand up, quickly wiggling out of her panties and tossing them across the room, and then scooting back on the king-sized bed.

"Demanding aren't you" Tobias teases admiring her boldness as he stands up and removes his jeans, pulling out the two condoms he had in his pocket and tossing them on his nightstand.

"I know what I want" She challenges leaning back on her elbows.

Tobias situates himself between her legs, loving how responsive she was to his touch as she shivers when gives her a teasing lick.

Tris grinds her hips to his face, clutching his hair, gasping at the sensations of his stubbles on the flesh of her thighs as his tongue traced a pattern that had her trembling and shaking with an orgasm quicker than she expected.

After she regained herself, Tobias quickly gets rid of his boxer briefs and rolls the condom on, and pulls Tris by her thighs closer to him so he could slide into her.

"Hmmm, that's a nice surprise" Tris gasps as he fills her.

"I'm full of surprises" Tobias retorts with a hard thrust that causes Tris to cry out.

Tobias grins before moving down to kiss her fully.

She knew what he wanted, he wanted her to beg, ask him to make her come, but she wasn't going to give into that. She would take what she wanted.

"Is this what you wanted?" He grunts as he gives her a strong thrust that made her toes curl.

"Fuck, Yes, like that" She counters back, pulling him back to her for a fiery kiss before he slams into her again causing her to cry out.

Tobias gets lost in her, everything was so vibrant, the smoothness of her skin, the smell of her flowery perfume, the sexy moans that escaped her lips, the way she pulled on his earlobe with her teeth as he moved inside her. He's so wrapped up in her, gets caught off guard when she pushes him off her so he falls on his back.

He chuckles as she grins and repositions herself to be on top.

"Te sientes muy bien, Papi (You feel so good)" she gasps as she places her hands on his chest and begins to ride him.

"Fuck" Tobias groans as he watches her throw her head back and bite her lip not understanding the words she was crying out. He grips her hips and surges up into her and soon Tris is bucking against him smiling as he continues to thrust through her orgasm.

Tobias takes control again, flipping them over and then pulling out to flip her on her stomach. Tris raises up on her knees as he grabs her hips and drives in her from behind. Tris cries out at the intense pressure but moves against him as he pushes down on her back and she deepens the arch of her back and grips the sheets. It doesn't take much longer for him to climax and he rolls off to the side as she collapses, both of them breathing heavily.

"Holy Shit" Tris laughs as she rolls onto her back. She's still smiling when she turns her head to see him reaching for a tissue to dispose of the condom.

He flops back on the mattress and reaches out for her. She obliges, snuggling up to him.

"You are incredible" he praises and he gives her ass a slap which causes her to giggle again.

She grins and pushes herself up to kiss him. She holds herself up and hovers just above his face.

"We are just getting started, Baby" She promises as Tobias groans and wraps his arms around her again. Tobias is glad he doesn't have shift tomorrow because there wasn't going to be sleep anytime soon for the both of them.


See ya'll Sunday! Please leave a review if don't mind!