Chapter Twenty-Two
Leah was sitting in the Impala looking through Dean's tape collection as she waited for his return. He'd run back to the apartment to get the extra house key from Amy because a sudden change in plans would have them out most of the day. She wasn't exactly sure what they'd do, but considering all the stress she and Dean had reaped upon their siblings lately, she figured the least they could do was give the young couple a few hours of peace.
As she sifted through the cassettes in search of her favorites, she felt a strange tingle run along her spine. It was a subtle yet persistent twinge; the sort of sixth sense vibe one got when they felt they were being watched. She looked out the window, figuring someone was walking through the parking garage and might have noticed her in the car, but there wasn't anyone in sight.
Returning her attention to the tapes, Leah tried to shake off the feeling but it was too strong. Setting the box aside, she got out of the car and glanced around, mostly for piece of mind. The garage's dim lighting offered plenty of shadows in the early morning hour, but little else. Chalking it up to an overactive imagination, Leah was ready to get back in the car when, from the corner of her eye, she caught movement near one of the large cement poles in the middle of the parking area.
It was probably only a bird or some trash that the wind had kicked up. After all, why would someone be hiding behind the beam? Still, she stared at the area in question a little longer and sure enough, there was another flutter of motion. Since it happened too fast to tell what it was, and curiosity had taken control, Leah figured it was time to investigate. Instinct said to bring a weapon and one very important lesson she'd learned from hunting was to always listen to her instincts. Reaching into the car, Leah grabbed the small knife that Dean kept under the front seat, tucked it in her jacket pocket and started toward the pole.
Several steps shy of reaching her mark, Leah felt the hairs on her arms bristle and again she felt as though someone was watching her. Beginning to feel more than a little creeped out, she pulled the weapon from her pocket and was immediately comforted by the weight of it in her hand. Taking a slow steadying breath to try and ease some of the tension, Leah quietly edged up to the pole. She was prepared to step around and confront whatever awaited, when a loud clatter rang out behind her. Startled, she wheeled around in time to see a large tabby cat hop down from an overflowing dumpster and root about the pile of trash it had knocked to the ground.
Releasing her breath in a gush of air, Leah rolled her eyes at the absurdity of it. It was like something from one of those bad horror flicks Dean loved to watch. All that was needed was some suspenseful music and a masked psycho lurking behind the beam. Clearly she was making far too much out of nothing. The movement she'd seen had probably been the cat as it made its way to the dumpster.
Tucking the knife away, she was headed back to the car when she heard her name. Dean was hurrying toward her, a concerned look on his face.
"What's wrong?" he asked. "What are you doing over here?"
"Nothing. I just, uhm," She sent an uncertain look over her shoulder. "I saw the pole and I thought...forget it." Why tell him? He'd only think she was losing it. She certainly did.
"The pole? And thought what?" Dean's lips twitched with humor as he eyed the subject of their discussion. "I know what I think of…pole dancing. You could still strip down to that sexy underwear you got on and dance around."
Leah laughed and pushed Dean toward the car. "Shut up."
"What? I'm picturing you wearing nothing but a pair of panties, some spiky high heels and.." He traced small circles in the air over his nipples. "Those things. What are those? Pasties. Yeah." He scratched at his chin, a lecherous smile settling over his lips as he imagined her dressed that way. "Oh yeah, you'd be one hell of a hot pole dancer!"
Leah shook her head as they got into the car. Dean talked, walked and breathed sex! Of course, she had to admit it was always lingering in her mind as well when it came to the gorgeous man beside her. "Damn straight I'd be good at it!" she teased. "But if I pole dance, it's not gonna be in the middle of the garage. It'll be a private show just for you, darling."
Dean grabbed her arm and pulled her across the seat so she was sitting close to him. "I'm holding you to that."
As Leah settled in beside him, Dean started up the car and steered it toward the exit. "So, you think your sister would get mad if I installed a pole in her spare bedroom?" he asked.
The sound of Leah's easy laughter filled the car. With her close at hand, Dean was distracted and his thoughts turned to those of a more carnal nature, overriding his earlier concern for why she'd been wandering around the garage. If he'd stayed focused, he might have noticed the darkly clad form that emerged from a shadowy corner the moment the Impala had pulled away.
Dean glanced at his watch, making a mental note of the time as he scoped out the area. He'd had the uneasy feeling he and Leah were being followed and he was growing agitated by the fact that he couldn't spot the culprit. He knew who it was and the friggin guy should be easy enough to find, so how come he couldn't see him? Leaning back in his seat, Dean absently spun the silver ring on his right hand and thought about what he was going to do to the hunter when he did catch him. A slow torture would be preferable, but he'd be satisfied with a few solid right fists to the arrogant bastard's face.
Leah returned, interrupting his morose, but pleasurable thoughts. She set a cup of coffee in front of him and dropped down onto the opposite chair. They'd chosen an outside table at the small coffee shop, both enjoying the crisp cool October air after being inside crowded, stuffy stores all morning.
Other than the feeling of being tailed, Dean was thoroughly enjoying this. They were shopping, for Christ's sake, shopping, yet he was loving every second of it. Just seeing Leah mill around, getting excited over what he would have considered the dumbest little things, hadn't bored him at all. She was in her element, finding stuff for him, Amy and Sam and it reminded him of how thoughtful and giving she was.
He watched her as she sipped her coffee. The bright late-morning sun fell across her, bringing out the red and gold highlights in her hair. The colors, and the way the light breeze was stirring up wisps of it, causing them to dance around her sweet face made him think of the fall leaves. He noted the slight blush of color on her cheeks from the chilly air. The fullness of her soft pink lips. The innocence, despite life's cruelties, that was still evident in her big dark eyes. He couldn't believe this amazing woman was his. He didn't know how or why, but she was his and she loved him. And God, how he loved her.
Leah caught him staring and winked. "Penny for your thoughts, handsome."
If she only knew. Shrugging, Dean took a sip of his coffee before answering. "I was just wondering how much longer you're gonna make me suffer by dragging me around to these asinine stores."
Laughing, Leah laid her hand on his arm. "Poor baby. I'm sorry. You've had enough, huh? Okay, no more shopping. What do you want to do?" she asked, letting him take the lead.
His eyebrows lifted as he took her hand in his and lightly traced patterns over her palm. "I'm thinking that pole dance would be nice right about now."
"But where are we going to find a pole?" Chewing on her lower lip, Leah actually contemplated breaking into a strip club so she could give him his wish.
As if reading her mind, Dean said, "We could break into a club. "
Resting her arms on the table, Leah leaned forward and brushed her lips over his. "I like the way you think, Winchester."
Dean started to answer, but as Leah sat down he saw Blake strolling toward them, casual as could be. Clenching his teeth, he wondered why the asshole was finally showing his face. No matter, he wasn't going to let the jerk ruin their day. What he needed to do was get Leah sidetracked somehow, not allow her to see Blake, then he could deal with the guy on his own. And in his own way.
Standing up, Dean pulled Leah to her feet. "Let's go." Holding onto her hand, he started pulling her behind him, walking at a brisk pace.
Leah allowed herself to be dragged along for a moment, then tugged hard on his hand, trying to get him to slow down. "Dean! Hey! What's the rush?"
He glanced around, green eyes skimming past her to see if Blake was following. He was. "It's pushing afternoon. If we're gonna break into a club, we gotta find one fast cause they'll be opening soon."
"I thought you were kidding." Leah said to his back. She found the idea thrilling, but at the same time she didn't want Dean doing anything that could risk his getting caught by the police.
Dean came to sudden stop, catching her by surprise, and Leah slammed into his back, biting her tongue in the process. "Ow!" Jerking her hand loose, she mumbled, "Wha uh ew oing?"
"What?" Before she could attempt to repeat it, Dean pushed her into a store. "Never mind. Here. You remember you wanted to get that thing for Amy. It was in here."
"What thing?" Leah asked, her tongue still smarting. She had no idea why Dean was acting so strange, but she was definitely going to find out.
He pointed toward the back of the store. "Back there. That thing. That kitchen thing you said she wanted."
"It's called a blender." Knowing full well he was up to something, Leah decided not to play games and just put him on the spot. Hands on hips, eyes lowered menacingly, she demanded the truth. "You rushed out of the coffee shop, flew down the street and pretty much shoved me in this store. What's going on, Dean?"
Anxious to find Blake, Dean spit out the first thing that came to mind. "You got me." He laughed as he raked a hand through his hair. "I want to get you something. Something I saw earlier. It's no big deal. You go shop and I'll go shop and we'll meet up right here in, I don't know, half an hour. Okay?" He gave her a quick kiss and a gentle push.
"You want to get me a gift?" she asked, trying to hide her surprise by the sweet, yet completely out of character, gesture.
"Yes, Leah, a gift." His tone was huffy, as if she'd offended him. "Half an hour." he repeated. She shot him an odd look, but mumbled an okay before hesitantly making her way to the kitchen appliances.
Dean immediately left the store, heading in the direction he and Leah had come from. Slipping on his sunglasses to cut down the glare from the sun, Dean scanned the faces of the throng of people moving toward him, finally locating the tall dark haired hunter just as he was crossing a side street. Stepping in front of him, Dean grabbed Blake by the arm and yanked him in-between the buildings.
"What the hell?" Blake yelled as he was forced into the alleyway.
With one hand still gripping Blake's arm, Dean pushed his sunglasses up on top of his head and stared at his adversary. "So what part of 'she's with me' don't you get, dipshit?"
The hunter shook his head. "Are you insane, Winchester?"
Dean shrugged. "Some people seem to think so. And yet, I'm not the one running around town playing psycho stalker".
Blake glanced down at Dean's hand on his arm. "First of all, let go of me!" Rather than waiting to be released, he jerked his arm free and stepped back, putting a little distance between them. "Second, what is your damn problem?"
"What the hell is MY problem? You're the friggin nut job who's been following us all morning!" Dean snapped.
Jabbing a finger in Dean's direction, Blake said, "You are even more screwed up then I thought, Winchester. Why the hell would I follow you around? To see Leah? If I want to see Leah, I'll see her."
"Not if you want to keep breathing." he warned.
Blake's eyes narrowed. "You really think you're some sort of bad ass, don't you? Nice show you put on, but I don't buy it so don't try to threaten me, asshole."
Dean grabbed the front of the hunter's coat and slammed him up against the building. "Personally, I think you look like a monkey's ass," He patted Blake's cheek none to gently. "but if you like your face the way it is, you better stop following us. And for the record, I don't make threats. I give guarantees."
Blake brought his arm up sharply, knocking Dean's grip loose. He swung out with his right fist, but Dean was expecting it, ducking his head to the side to avoid contact. Dean came back with a right of his own, catching Blake on the chin, and it felt too good to stop. Two more quick, successive blows to the man's face, one to his stomach and a hard right knee to the family jewels dropped Blake to the ground, groaning in pain.
Sighing, Dean squatted beside him. "Why do you want make this hard on yourself, Kendall? I asked you very nicely the other day to stay away from Leah and that's all you had to do." He snatched a handful of Blake's hair in his fist and snapped his head upright. Staring into pain-filled eyes, Dean smiled. "Truth is, I'm really a great guy. So I'll tell you what. You stop following us and stay the hell away from my woman and I won't go all 'bad ass' on you again."
He let go of Blake's hair and stood up. "You enjoy the rest of your day."
Dean stepped out onto the main street, slid his sunglasses back on, and flexed his right hand. Though the 'fight', if it could be deemed one, had given him some satisfaction, it wasn't nearly enough. No matter. He was certain it wasn't the last he was going to see of Blake Kendall anyway. Pushing thoughts of the black haired devil aside, Dean focused on a much more pressing issue. Coming up with a gift for Leah, who was more than likely one very curious, not to mention doubtful, woman.
TBC