Caught In The Middle

3 -A bet is made

Reese wandered over to Cory’s truck after his classes had finished for the day to find him already there and waiting for the new girl to appear.

Reese collected his bike helmet from the back of Cory’s pickup and came up to lean on the driver’s door to talk through the window.

“So how did you go today, Curry?” He called his rival by his old nickname.

Cory rolled his eyes. “Apart from a glimpse across the cafeteria for like twenty seconds I didn’t manage to see her again, what about you?”

Reese smirked lopsided and cocky. “I found out her name is Quinn and get this, she’s supposedly something to do with Zortex…”

“Zortex? f**k, that’s a serious family, my dad is all up in contracts with the Ferrante’s…all sorts of dodgy waste management, garbage collection, construction, real estate…they’re a serious no go zone.”

“But only a son, right?” Reese asked.

“I’ll do some research.” Cory grinned and did a little head flick in the buildings direction.

Reese turned to see Quinn walking back to her car. A lollipop once again in her mouth. “I wonder what’s with the lollipops?” Reese murmured under his breath.

Quinn seemed to feel their eyes on her and looked up as she approached her car. She recognized the blond inside the truck, but the mean-as looking biker dude holding the skull motorbike helmet made her take pause and blink.

He gave her the most understated grin, yet it was so sexy, tempting and strangely hypnotizing with those pale hazel eyes peering at her from under that dark fringe of black hair she felt like the devil had noticed her, something about him reminded her of Antonio, it made her shiver.

“Quinn, isn’t it?” Reese called out. He relished the fact she had taken pause to look at him properly, it was obvious she liked what she saw.

“Ah, yeah…” Quinn answered as she opened her car door and threw her bag in across to the passenger seat. “I’m not even going to ask how you know that, I’m just going to leave.”

She got in her car and slammed the door shut.

Reese’s hand gripped around the jaw part of his helmet as he sucked on his teeth feeling a little annoyed. “Well, f**k you, princess.”

Cory laughed. “Ha! You were so confident when she looked at you like that…”

Reese scoffed. “She’s not normal, that’s for sure.”

“She’s got amazing green eyes…”

“She’s got amazing tits.” Reese said as he watched Quinn back her car out and drive off to join the rest of the vehicles trying to get out onto the road through the security barrier gates.

He slipped his helmet on and walked to his custom Ducati, starting it up and deliberately cruising up next to Quinn’s Mustang.

She had the window down, enjoying the breeze while she sat in the queue and looked sideways at him as he rolled up. He lifted his visor and their eyes met. He was struck by her beautiful green eyes, they were quite pale like jade and as they caught the sun he could almost see flecks of gold in them.

“Hey!” He said. “There’s a party Saturday…I want to take you.”

She scowled at him. “No.” She said and raised her window on him.

Reese wasn’t going to make it look like her rejection bothered him so he flipped his visor down and accelerated forward, clicking down a gear and passing all the cars in the line to exit the car park quickly and was gone with a roar of his engine.

He was annoyed.

She was rude.

Maybe she was a Ferrante after all…

Later that same evening Cory turned up with beers and a guy from the football team to Reese’s condo. He had a pretty sweet place not too far from campus and it was in a small complex of eight units that all faced into a pool area. The fact that he was practically a mobster meant he ruled the complex and even the manager groveled at his feet, so his friends came and went at all hours and they partied loud and obnoxiously most weekends.

“Hey, it’s Rice!” The footballer said as he came through the security gate to see Reese lounging by the pool, smoking and drinking. A couple of his own mates were there and a huge one stood up to confront the guy.

“Hey! Not just anyone gets to call this guy, Rice, dickhead! Watch your manners or you might just accidentally drown in the pool.”

“Easy, Tank…” Reese drawled. “He’s a friend of Curry.”

“Yeah…this is Will.” Cory added. “He’s here for some green.”

Tank nodded in acknowledgement. “Ah, okay, you’ve come over from Columbia?”

“Ah-huh…we’ve just finished training.” Cory sat down on a pool lounger next to Reese as Reese sat up and grabbed a small zipped bag that was beside him. He tossed it over to Tank, who caught it by reflex.

“Take this inside and sort him out will you, I need to talk to Curry.”

“Sure thing, boss.” Tank inclined his head to Will and they stepped inside. There were two other ominous looking guys by the pool, wearing singlets and showing tattoos. Reese inclined his head at them with a piercing look and they both stood up and walked inside.

Cory watched them go and gave Reese a curious glance. “This seems serious?”

“Nah, not really…I just don’t want them to know about your father, it makes their types nervous.”

Cory laughed. “Yeah, I get it, sorry I should have messaged you first.” He looked Reese over, his eyes narrowing at the tattoos on Reese’s shoulders and upper arms. “Did you get more work done?”

Reese looked at one arm and grinned. “Yeah…looks good, eh? I said I was going to get it all to join into one…just need to finish the back now and then do some breast plates…” He sat up and pulled his singlet up to reveal the large tiger tattoo taking up his whole back.

“You look like a real gangster…” Cory huffed.

Reese shrugged. “Nothing that can be seen when wearing a shirt…”

“Hmm…I guess…still it makes you look like an old Japanese gangster or something…”

“I’ve always liked the yakuza style of tatts so…” He shrugged again, taking a sip of his beer straight from the can. “Want one?” He held the can up and indicated to a cooler next to him.

Cory reached out and grabbed a beer from the cooler, opening it with a satisfying sound and drank deeply.

“So did you get to ask your dad about Zortex?” Reese asked.

“I haven’t really seen him, he wasn’t home when I got there and I had to go to training so…”

“Hmm.” Reese frowned and looked away.

“Was it urgent?” Cory studied his body language.

“Guess not…I just think it’s weird how that girl said she was from Zortex…maybe she’s not a Ferrante, she might be the daughter of someone else in the group.”

“So what if she is?”

Reese looked at Cory with a strange expression. “You do know the Ferrante’s are mafia?”

Cory gave him a startled look. “Oh, is that your concern?”

Reese snorted. “Not concern exactly, just have to tread lightly, is all.”

Cory laughed. “Maybe we should forget about her…”

“You backing out of our competition?”

“I thought that’s what you were trying to do?” Cory chuckled.

“Not at all, in fact let’s sweeten the deal. The guy who gets to f**k her first gets ten grand from the loser.”

Cory sat back. “You think I have that sort of money, asshole? You gangster f**k…just because you’re rolling in it…” Cory looked down purposely at the Audemars Piguet watch on Reese’s wrist.

Reese laughed, cockily shaking the watch on his wrist before running a hand through his hair lifting it from his eyes. “Oh, come on…I know you get a good allowance from Papa Police Commissioner and you don’t spend it.”

Cory grimaced. “I’m saving for my own place, ya jerk.”

Reese looked at him seriously. “Okay, let’s make it five then?”

Cory sighed, flicking his finger over the tab on his beer can. “Yeah, okay…”

“Unless you know you’re going to lose?” Reese teased with a smirk.

“f**k off…I saw her wind her window up on you!” Cory laughed and Reese chuckled darkly.

“Yeah, she’s rude…a real stand-offish b***h, I don’t know though if its caution or arrogance…”

“Hmm, yeah, she’s arrogant…look what she did to me.”

“Perhaps she needs a little lesson in just who we are.” Reese thrummed, his eyes taking on a bright sparkle.

Cory grinned. “Yeah, you’re going to be aggressive? Alright, bring it on.”

“Let’s see if either of us can get her to Luke’s party…” Reese added.

Cory nodded. “Okay, you’re on.”