Chapter 5

James went home that night alone. Sandie must be with him, again. He thought as he walked into an empty apartment. His heart sank. He hoped that she would give him a chance, especially after that kiss. He really didn't understand what Greg had that he didn't. James was always good to her, Greg stuffed her full of drugs and alcohol. He controlled her, just like Lisa did. Why was she with him?

Sandie and Greg lay in bed together that night. Greg held her tight, he knew that he had won, Sandie was his. He promised her everything, drugs, money, whatever she wanted, he would give it to her. Everything that James could not. He laughed inside, thinking that the only thing that James could give her was love, who would want that? He knew that Sandie wanted the party life, not the settle down kind.

Over the next couple weeks, Greg kept Sandie high and buzzed. He brought her home drugs from work or stopped by the corner kids and got the strong stuff. He got her the good alcohol and had sex with her every night. He kept her satisfied so that she wouldn't leave him for James.

Sandie couldn't think for herself anymore and she hadn't seen James since that day in Lisa's office. Greg wouldn't even let her go back to the apartment to get her things, he just bought all new stuff for her. She walked around the apartment feeling like a zombie, she was always high and every night, they would have insane sex. She wondered if Greg even loved her or just did it to get back at James.

One morning while Greg was at work, Sandie sat alone in the apartment. She was strung out, sitting on the couch, staring at a blank tv. A knock at the door startled her. She tried to get up to answer it but was so dizzy that she fell right back onto the couch. Another knock and this time Sandie was able to get up to answer it.

James stood on the other side, Sandie waved him in. One look at her and James knew she needed help. She looked thin and pale.

"When was the last time you ate?" he asked her.

Sandie shrugged, she couldn't remember. She didn't even know what day it was or what time it was. James's heart broke for her, he hated Greg and what he did to her. Sandie felt dizzy again and this time she collapsed onto the floor. James grabbed her.

"We need to get you to the hospital," he told her. And he lifted her up, carrying her to his car.

Sandie lay in the hospital bed, IVs strapped to her arm. She felt sick and her head was pounding. She never felt like this before. She wondered what Greg had given her because it was nothing like she's ever had before. She looked around and saw James sitting in a nearby chair.

"Hey," he said, walking over to her. He brushed her hair away from her face. "How are you feeling?"

"Like I've died and crawled out from the ground," she told him.

James had to put his foot down, no more partying, no more Greg! It was time he told her how he felt about her.

"Sandie, listen, there's something I've been meaning to tell you."

But before he could say anything more, Greg walked in.

"Get out!" James told him.

"She's my girl," Greg scoffed, "I'm taking her home."

"You can't do that," James defied him, "She's sick, she needs help. What the hell did you do to her?"

"I've been taking care of her, giving her what she wants," Greg said.

"This isn't taking care of her, you're killing her!"

"Take it outside! Both of you!" Lisa overheard the shouting while on rounds. She grabbed them both by the arms and dragged them out of the room.

"You two should be ashamed of yourselves, especially you!" She said pointing to Greg. "I brought my sister here to get her help and you've made things worse! Back to work, both of you!"

The two men glared at each other and pouting, went their separate ways. Lisa walked into her sister's room. She knew something like this would happen eventually, perhaps bringing her here was a bad idea.

"You're going to be okay," Lisa told Sandie. "I won't let anything more happen to you."

A week later, James pulled up to the hospital. He was there to take Sandie home, back to his place. She had spent some time in the rehab facility trying to get clean, she wasn't quite there yet but the doctors approved her for release. He walked up to her room where he found her gathering her things. James had brought some clean clothes for her earlier in the week. She smiled when she saw him. Without a word, he walked in, wrapped her in his arms and just held her. Sandie felt comforted, she held him back, resting her head on his shoulder. He kissed the top of her head then held her at arm's length.

"You're looking better already," he told her with a smile.

"I feel better," she replied.

Back at the apartment, the two of them sat on the couch. James told her about his week at work and she sat quietly listening. It was the first time she actually felt good, she enjoyed listening to him and just watching him. She was grateful for him.

Without warning, Sandie reached over and kissed him! James was taken aback but he didn't move, he just kissed her back. He didn't want that moment to end, his heart raced and his body tingled. He was afraid to do anything more for fear of spooking her off, so he just continued to kiss her as long as she kissed him.

"Thank you," she said, after she kissed him. "You saved my life."

"You're welcome," he told her. "You know I would do anything for you. I love you."

And as soon as he said it, he immediately regretted it. He was afraid that she wouldn't feel the same. Sandie didn't say anything right away, she needed time to process. She stood up and walked to the kitchen. James watched her as she grabbed a bottle of water from the refrigerator.

"Are you okay?" He finally asked her.

Sandie walked back to the living room and sat down next to him. She took another drink and sat the bottle down. Without saying anything, she kissed him again and he kissed her back. He was so afraid to go any further with her but she wasn't. She stood up, leading him to the bedroom where she removed her shirt revealing the black lace bra she was wearing. Damn! James thought as he removed his own shirt. He grabbed her and pulled her close, her breasts pushed against his chest. The smell of her made him weak, he couldn't wait any longer. He pushed her onto the bed, kissing her neck and making his way down her body. His nervous fingers, clumsily removing her bra and undoing her jeans. He stroked her breasts and she moaned. He wanted to be gentle with her, unlike Greg. James wanted to show her what true love was really like.

He removed Sandie's jeans then his. He kissed her again, running his hand down the length of her body to her legs, her skin was so soft. Sandie ran her fingernails down his back and he moaned. He didn't think he was going to last much longer, he was already hard. He removed her panties then his. The feel of his hardness pressed against Sandie's body and she let out a sigh, then carefully he entered her. She moaned with pleasure as did he. He took his time with her, kissing her neck and her lips. Sandie enjoyed every moment of their love making, unlike Greg, James was gentle and he thought about her needs not just his. They continued that way for a while making it last as long as they could before they both finally came. Then they lay in bed together, James holding her close.

Greg sat in his office, his team had left hours ago but he refused to go home. He didn't want to go to an empty apartment, he was angry at his best friend for stealing his girl and he refused to accept the fact that he didn't treat her very well.

"I gave her everything," he said out loud.

"I don't think you did," Lisa told him.

He looked up and saw his boss standing in the doorway.

"What are you still doing here?" Greg asked her.

"I could ask the same about you," she retorted. "I know the two of you liked to party but there's a fine line between having fun and what you did. You could've killed her."

"And what do you care?" Greg asked, "You never like her in the first place. You want her to be just like you."

"I do care about her, if I didn't, I never would've bailed her out of prison or taken her in to help her out."

"For the record, you didn't take her in. You pawned her off on someone else."

"Go home," Lisa told him and walked away.

Instead of going home, Greg headed to James's apartment, he needed to see Sandie. He knocked on the door and was surprised when Sandie answered it.

"What are you doing here?" she asked him.

"I need to talk to you," he told her.

Sandie wasn't sure having him there was a good idea, she was alone while James had run out to grab some food. She hadn't heard from Greg since that day at the hospital, except for a few voicemails. She stood between him and the doorway, refusing to let him in.

"Oh come on baby, don't be like that," he told her. He then pushed past her into the apartment.

Sandie closed the door and followed him in.

"What do you want, Greg?" she asked him, arms crossed.

"I want you back," he told her. He stood close to her and she had to take a step back.

"You tried to kill me," Sandie told him.

"Not on purpose," he replied. "I would never hurt you."

Sandie knew he was lying, he just didn't want James to have her. Greg pushed her up against the wall and held her there. His body was so close to hers, she could smell his aftershave and her body trembled. No, I'm not gonna do this again, she told herself. Greg reached up and stroked her cheek, she closed her eyes.

"Don't you remember the fun times we've had," he said.

She opened her eyes just as he kissed her, pinning her up against the wall. She wanted to push him away but had forgotten how strong he was and how he made her weak. She kissed him back then just as quickly, broke it off.

"Greg, I can't."

"You can't or won't," he asked her.

Just then, the door opened and James returned with the food. He saw Greg and became furious.

"What are you doing here?" He asked.

"He was just leaving," Sandie said.

"Not without you," Greg told her.

"Get out!" James demanded.

Greg looked at Sandie then James. He was pissed that a woman could come between two best friends but she did and Greg was willing to do anything to win her back.

James woke early the next morning. He rolled over in bed and smiled when he saw Sandie lying there still asleep. He thought maybe it was just a dream that she was his. She was so beautiful lying there, he couldn't help but inch closer to her and kiss her shoulder. He wanted to stay home in bed with her all day but knew he couldn't, he still had a job to do.

Reluctantly, he got out of bed, showered and dressed. He quietly closed the bedroom door behind him and headed to the kitchen. He was still smiling when he got to work, that was until he ran into Greg.

"So you think she's going to stay with you, even after you lied to her and tricked her?" Greg asked him.

"As a matter of fact, yes," James replied back. "What makes you think she's going to go back to you after you tried to kill her?"

"I didn't try to kill her, I just gave her what she wanted."

"I highly doubt she wanted to be so stoned out of her mind that she couldn't think for herself."

Greg was annoyed, "And what do you have that she could possibly want?"

"I give her my heart," James told him, "something you could never do."

Greg laughed, turned on his heel and headed towards his office. If it's love that she wants, I'll show her. He thought.

Sandie had just finished dressing when there was a knock at the door. Now who could that be? She thought. She walked over to it, peered out the peephole, then opened it. A man with a large bouquet of roses stood on the other side.

"Delivery for Sandie," he said.

Sandie took the flowers, thanked the man and closed the door. She sat them down on the coffee table and read the note.

All my love, G

What is he up to? Sandie thought. She didn't want to throw them out since they were so beautiful and probably expensive. She did however take the card and hid it in her room. Although it didn't matter, James would surely know who they were from. The two friends were like a couple of toddlers fighting over a toy. She had developed feelings for James, especially after the last couple of nights together but she missed being with Greg. Maybe she could take him back if he promised to chill with the drugs but she didn't want to hurt James either. She was confused now, she needed someone to talk to.

Sandie grabbed her purse and jacket and headed out. She headed over to the hospital in hopes of talking to her sister. She knew they didn't get along but she hoped that Lisa could give her some advice. She knocked on the door and heard her sister say, "Come in."

Sandie walked into Lisa's office, closing the door behind her. She walked over and sat down in the nearest chair.

"Hi," Sandie said.

"What can I do for you?" Lisa asked.

Sandie couldn't tell if she was being sarcastic or sincere.

"I was wondering if I could pick your brain for a minute. I need some advice."

"If it's about James and Greg, the one thing I could tell you is, stay away from Greg. He's bad news."

Sandie tilted her head to the side and glanced at her sister.

"What?" Lisa asked. "You can't possibly tell me that you still have feelings for Greg. He tried to kill you."

"Not on purpose," Sandie said.

"Oh come on!" Lisa was exasperated. "After everything, the drugs, the drinking. If it wasn't for James, you'd be dead right now."

"The drinking and drugs were all on me, not Greg."

"Sandie," Lisa started, "You wanted my advice, well here it is, stick with James, he's good for you. Greg, not so much. If you want to stay clean and out of prison, then you're better off with James."

Sandie left her sister's office even more confused than when she went in there. Was she just telling me to stay away from Greg because she wants him? Or is she really concerned for me? She headed upstairs to James's office and knocked on the door. She heard him say "come in". She opened the door, walked in and closed the door behind her. James saw her and smiled. She was wearing jeans and a denim jacket. Her hair piled high on her head. She walked over and sat down in the chair across from his desk.

"What's up?" He asked.

"I just came to talk to Lisa," she answered. "But I didn't want to go home yet. You wanna make out?"

James didn't know whether she was joking or serious but he was up for anything, especially with her. She stood, walked over to where he sat and straddled him. He wrapped his arms around her and kissed her. She kissed him back. Things started to heat up when they were suddenly interrupted by Greg walking in.

"Oh my god!" James said, "Don't you ever knock!"

Sandie stood and took a step back, Greg watched her as she bit her lower lip. Ugh, he thought, I want to be doing that.

"What do you want?" James asked.

"Nothing," he said, still not leaving and still keeping his eyes on Sandie.

"Then get out," James demanded.

"Why? So you can screw my girlfriend?" Greg responded.

"She's not your girlfriend," James told him.

But what James didn't know was that Sandie and Greg never did break up, not officially anyway.

Sandie didn't want to cause a fight so she grabbed her purse and left the office. Greg followed after her and left James speechless. He could only hope that she would not go back to him.

"Sandie, wait," Greg called after her. Sandie stopped and turned to face him.

Greg took a step towards her, she backed up, backing into a wall. Greg had her pinned, he was so close it was making her tremble. His lips were close to hers and she could feel his breath against her skin mixed with the smell of bourbon.

"Please, give me another chance," Greg told her. "I promise I won't do anything you don't want to."

He was making it really hard to say no. Sandie was already starting to melt just being near him. She took a deep breath in and slowly let it out. Greg had his arm up against the wall blocking her from leaving.

James stood in the doorway of his office, he could see Greg and Sandie just down the hall, he couldn't hear what they were saying but he could feel himself getting jealous. Sandie was his now and he didn't want to lose her and he became worried.

"Greg, I don't know," Sandie told him.

Greg took another step closer, his body was now pushed up against hers and she was pinned between his body and the wall. His lips brushed hers and a fire started burning in her loins. Shit! She thought. It was too late, Greg kissed her and she couldn't help but kiss him back. James needed to break it up quickly! He walked down the hall as fast as he could and grabbed Greg by the arm, breaking up the kiss. He then pushed Greg away.

"James, what are you doing?" Sandie asked.

"Keeping him away from you," James replied. He then turned and took Sandie by the arm, leading her into his office. He closed the door behind him, locking it so Greg couldn't barge in again.

"I'm sorry," he told her, "I can't let you go back to him. I love you and I don't want to see you get hurt again."

"It's not your decision to make," Sandie told him, frowning. "Don't be like my sister and tell me what to do."

She then turned, unlocked the door and left his office.