Love Me, Not My Body

CHAPTER 15

Scott didn’t come home that night. I slept alone in the apartment. I hid Preston’s suit jacket in the back of my closet. I wanted to sleep in it, wrapped in his scent, but I didn’t want to risk Scott coming home and asking questions about it.

Preston came into Kiki’s while I was working the next day. I didn’t wait on his table and tried my best to avoid him. I did sneak some looks at him, and he caught me once. I quickly turned away and acted busy.

Scott didn’t come home until Wednesday. He was there when I came home from work. He was sitting on the futon when I walked in.

I slowly closed the door behind me as I looked at him. “Hi.”

He quickly stood up and walked over to me. I watched in stunned horror as he dropped to his knees in front of me. He grabbed my hands, kissing them as he broke down in tears.

“I’m so sorry Kendra,” he wept as he laid his head in my hands. “I’m so sorry I hurt you again. I’m a f**k up and I know that. I don’t know why you stay here with me. I’m a piece of s**t and you are a f*****g angel and I’m sorry. I’m so sorry.”

It took me a moment to find my words as shock rendered me silent. “Scott, it’s okay. You’re not a horrible person.”

“Yes I am!” he cried out brokenly. “I’m exactly like f*****g Paul. I’m a piece of s**t like him that deserves to f*****g die, baby. You probably would have been better off with that d**k than me.”

“Scott no!” I argued adamantly. “You are nothing like Paul. You never have been and you never will be. You saved me, remember? You’re the reason we are here to…”

“And I f****d it up!” he cried out as he looked up at me. His eyes were bloodshot, but it was from tears, not from drugs. His dark hair was unruly and curly, giving him a younger appearance. “You’re going to leave me for the f*****g fireman and…”

“I’m not leaving you for anyone,” I interrupted him.

“I went to rehab, Kendra. I swear to you I did. That’s where I’ve been!” His words were broken and between his sobs. “I went but I could only stay a few days because that’s all the money I had. I know I need help, baby. I’m trying. I swear to you I’m trying. I just wanted to build a better life for us and I got caught up in all this s**t from Dominic but I’m going to make it better. Just don’t leave me, baby. Please don’t leave me.”

“Scott,” I whispered out brokenheartedly as I dropped to my knees beside him. I cradled his face in my hands as tears streamed from his eyes. “I’m not leaving you, Scott. Quit saying that. Nobody is perfect, okay? We just have to work through this together.”

He sniffled as he took a deep breath and blew it out. “Together?”

I smiled slightly at him. “Yes. Together. Just like we’ve gotten through everything else together. You nearly died to save me, Scott. I’m not leaving you now when you’re the one needing help. I’m here for you. I’ll always be here for you.”

He wrapped his arms around me, pulling me into his chest as he kissed the top of my head. “I don’t deserve you, Kendra. Not even for a minute.”

I wrapped my arms around his waist, but as I laid my head against his chest, I flinched from the pain of my healing gash. It was a flicker of a reminder of what he had done. I pressed it aside, certain he could change and be the man I loved once again. He was hidden in here beneath the drug use. I just had to help Scott set him free again.

---

The next two weeks passed in happy blissfulness. Scott was kind and loving. I came home from work to flowers or candy every day. He made my favorite foods for dinner and left me love notes to find around the apartment. He was sober, and we were happy.

I worked at Kiki’s and Blue Hades, while Scott picked up a second job at a grocery store. We saved up every penny we could, planning to leave the city and start new somewhere else. We had had enough of this town and the trouble it had brought us.

Preston came into Kiki’s while I worked a lunch shift. He sat with Aaron while Jessica giddily waited on their table. She flirted relentlessly with him, but he didn’t seem to respond to it. I curiously watched it play out from afar. He was definitely a sight to take in. He wore his black skinny jeans and a V-neck black shirt. He had a black, button-up shirt over it with the sleeves rolled up. Various necklaces hung around his neck, matching the rings adorning his fingers. A pink headscarf wrapped around in his hair like a headband, with a short tail running down his back with his hair. He looked like a sexy rock star and yet he made it look effortless.

I was typing an order into the computer to print up a receipt when I felt someone approach me. I lifted my eyes and my heart stopped as I stared into Preston’s gorgeous green eyes.

“Hello Kendra,” he spoke softly as his eyes drifted over me. I felt woefully underdressed standing next to him in my jean shorts and restaurant t-shirt. My hair was up in a messy ponytail, and I had forgone make-up today.

“What can I do for you, Preston?” I replied as I lowered my eyes back to the computer. It was near impossible to complete what I was doing now as my hands began to shake with his presence.

“I have a fight this Friday,” he said in his delicious British accent. “I was hoping you could attend.”

“Won’t your girlfriend be there again to give you your congratulatory kiss when you win?” I asked, keeping my eyes focused on the screen in front of me. I was afraid if I raised my eyes again, my knees would go weak and I’d fall into whatever it was he wanted me to do.

“You came the first time,” he remarked in surprise.

My face quickly snapped up as my cheeks burned hot with the realization of what I had just said. He looked at me with a goofy grin on his face that was somehow adorable and stunningly handsome at the same time. It made my heart lurch as I quickly lowered my eyes again and tried to continue my work.

“It’s not a big deal,” I blew out, trying desperately to downplay it.

“Isn’t it?” he asked to my annoyance.

I finished what I was doing and looked up at him. “No, it isn’t. You saved my life. I came to repay you. End of story.”

“So how do I see you again?” he quickly asked. “Do I need to come down to Blue Hades to…?”

“Don’t come there,” I quickly interrupted him. The thought of him showing up there and Scott seeing worried me.

“Why not?”

I shifted on my feet. “I don’t want you there.”

“Then how do I see you, Kendra?”

I glanced around nervously and caught Jessica watching us. Would she mention to Scott she saw us talking if he came in? She was the biggest gossiper I had ever met in my life. “I’ll come to your stupid boxing match, okay?” I turned back to him and a huge smile broke-out which seemed to take over his entire face. “It’s going to cost you, though.”

He chuckled lightly. “How much?”

I put a hand on my hip as I eyed him. “Six hundred.”

He quirked an eyebrow. “Raising prices?”

I shrugged. “Inflation. Plus, I don’t like it there.”

He laughed as he nodded his head and looked down before raising his face back to me. “Fine, but for that price I want you before and after my match.” He put his hand out as he spoke. “Deal?”

I put my hand into his to shake. “Deal,” I replied as my breath caught. His warm touch sent my heart into a tizzy as butterflies were set loose in my stomach.

“I’ll see you Friday,” he said, still shaking my hand.

I nodded and stupidly just repeated his words. “I’ll see you Friday.”

He smiled, his eyes dancing over me as he finally let go of my hand and I watched him leave. What in the world had I just agreed to?

I spent the rest of the week dwelling upon what I had agreed to. I sat in my apartment with guilt weighing heavily on my shoulders. I loved Scott. I wanted to be with Scott. He was doing so much better. Why was I willing to risk screwing that up for Preston? He should just be a client, yet somehow he was something more to me, and that scared me.

I told Scott I was going to Tricia's on Friday for a girl’s night. He accepted the lie and it broke my heart the trust he had in me. I gave him a kiss as he left for work before going and changing into a black mini-skirt and a lace camisole. I grabbed Preston’s suit jacket and slipped into it. This encounter would be my opportunity to return it. I left my hair down but put loose waves into it and applied my make-up. I slipped into black heels and hurried out the door to catch the bus.

My legs bounced nervously the entire ride to the fight. Once off the bus, I had a few minutes to walk. As I approached the building, I noticed a man standing outside. My eyes narrowed and, sure enough, it was Preston. He was bouncing around with headphones in his ears. I smiled as I watched him. He had on boxing shorts and a t-shirt and blue, zip up hooded jacket. The hood was up over his hair tied up in a bun. He spun around and spotted me, a smile taking over his face. He pulled the headphones out of his ears as he walked toward me.

“I like your jacket.”

I grinned mischievously. “I thought you might have missed it.”

His eyes ran up and down my body and I felt heat rise to my cheeks at his inspection. “I missed what’s in it more.”

I looked up at him, his words sinking in. “Shouldn’t you be in getting ready or something?”

“You said you didn’t like it here,” he responded as though it was obvious. When I looked at him in confusion, he elaborated. “I was going to walk you in.”

“Oh,” I breathed out softly. “Thank you.”

He nodded but stepped toward me. He gently opened the suit jacket as he spoke. “Are you wearing anything under that?”

I laughed. “Of course I am!” Honestly, the thought had crossed my mind, but seeing as how we were going to be in a public place, I thought better of it.

He grinned as he closed the jacket back up and took my hand. “I can wish.”

He led me into the building and into a backroom where Aaron waited for him. He taped his hands, talking to him about strategy and reminding him about what to do. I stood in the corner, watching from afar in fascination. When someone came to our room to announce it was time for Preston to come out for the fight, my stomach began to knot. When I had been here before, I had hardly known Preston. But now he had come to mean something to me, whether I wanted to admit it or not. I didn’t want him hurt.

He smirked at me as he bounced around the room in excitement. Aaron helped Preston into his blue robe before heading toward the door. I followed on their heels as we made our way through the crowd to the ring.

Aaron lifted the rope to let Preston into the ring as he turned back to me.

“Stand right here,” he pointed to the floor along the corner of the ring. He ducked into the ring as Preston jumped around the ring, waiting for his competitor to join him.

I watched nervously, hoping it would be a small guy. Unfortunately, the man who showed up was anything but small. He was just as tall as Preston and looked to be quite a bit heavier. He had short, black hair and an angry scowl on his face.

I wanted to stop the stupid fight before it even began. The men each took their robes off as they were introduced. Preston again got a loud cheer from the crowd, but his competitor, Howard, got a large response too. They met in the middle of the ring as rules were read before retreating to their corners.

My heart began to pound, adrenaline pumping through my veins as Preston glanced down at me. He gave me a smile and a nod before banging his gloves together as the bell rang. He advanced forward and I found myself holding my breath. He dodged a couple punches, then got a few of his own in. I breathed a sigh of relief as the fight progressed along without much action. Preston dominated the fight, landing hits and jabs while he was able to dodge most of Howard’s. He may be larger than Preston, but the weight also made him much slower.

Preston came back to the corner, cocky and happy. He gave me another smirk before heading in for another round. He landed a couple more hits before Howard swung and made contact. Preston stumbled to the side, obviously shaken by the forceful hit.

My stomach dropped as I watched in horror as Howard backed Preston into a corner and began pounding into his abdomen. Preston shoved him backwards to try to free himself from the corner, but Howard swung hard and fast at his head. Preston was caught off guard by the hit and stumbled to the side, catching himself on the ropes.

“Preston!” I screamed as I grabbed the edge of the ring.

Aaron stood in front of me on the edge of the ring, screaming instructions at Preston as he took two more hits to the head before finally swinging his own. Howard fell away as Preston now was on the attack.

My fingers clutched the edge of the ring like it was lifeline. Preston swung twice more before Howard fell to the ground. Preston threw his hands up excitedly as he bounced around the ring. The referee quickly began counting, and declared Howard out when he didn’t get off the ground.

Preston smiled broadly as the referee grabbed his hand, lifting it into the air to declare him the winner as the crowd went wild.

Aaron lifted a rope on the ring as he turned toward me. “That’s your cue,” he hollered at me.

I looked at him in confusion and he nodded his head toward Preston. I carefully climbed into the ring, holding my skirt down as I did so. I took a hesitant step forward when Preston turned toward me.

My heart leapt with joy knowing the stupid fight was over and he was okay. He threw his arms out and open and I rushed toward him. He wrapped his gloved hands around me and crushed his lips to mine. I heard the crowd go wild in my ears but all I felt in that moment was my body’s insane and illogical response to Preston’s lips on mine.

---

“You were worried,” Aaron laughed when we were back in the dressing room. “She was all ‘Preston!’”.

I rolled my eyes at his impersonation of me. “I was not.”

“Yes you were!” Aaron laughed as he patted me on the back. “It’s alright rookie. You’ll get used to it. I’ll see you Monday, Preston?”

“Yeah,” Preston responded as he slipped his shirt on. He had changed out of his boxing shorts and into jeans.

Aaron left the room as I wrapped my arms, and Preston’s jacket, around myself. “Why do you do it?”

Preston pulled the hair tie out and threw his head down, shaking his hair out before flipping it back up and down around his face. “Do what?”

“Fight.”

He ran his hand through his hair several times, styling it just perfect. “The adrenaline rush.”

My eyes narrowed on him. “You’re a thrill-seeker?”

He shrugged. “We all enjoy some excitement.”

“But you seem to like more than your fair share.”

He chuckled lightly as he grinned at me. “Why is that?”

I stared straight-faced at him. “You took me sky diving.”

He laughed loudly. “And you loved it.”

“Maybe,” I drew out slowly as he walked over to me. He slid his hands onto my waist as he leaned down and kissed my neck. I bent my neck to the side to give him better access as my hands slid along the waistband of his pants.

“Come back to my place,” he breathed into my ear, sending goosebumps down my body.

I nodded as he raised his face to mine, his green eyes drinking me in. “Okay.”

Preston drove us back to his condo. He opened the door for me and I walked in, admiring once again the beauty of the place. He came up behind me, wrapping his arms around me and kissing my neck.

I smiled, my body electric with his touches. I turned around to face him and he immediately slid my jacket off. His hands came up to my face, cupping my cheeks as his mouth pressed onto mine. His lips attacked mine, his tongue quickly prodding at my lips. I grabbed his shirt, pulling it over his head and tossing it aside. He quickly did the same to my camisole and made quick work of my bra.

He bent down, picking me up as I straddled him. He carried me over to the couch and gently placed me down upon it. He laid down atop me as we made out. He pulled away, moving down my body to pull my skirt and thong off. He lowered his mouth to my most sensitive area and I gasped. My hands went into his hair as he tasted me. Never had a man done this while paying me for s*x. It wasn't about me, it was about him.

Preston's fingers slid into me and I moaned, feeling myself on the edge of climaxing. He pumped his fingers in and out and I lost control and fell over the edge. A moment later, he wandered up my body, kissing every single inch.

I wrapped my arms around him, kissing his neck and jawline as he reached into his pant pocket before taking them off. He slid a condom on before entering me. My fingers clung to his back as he filled every inch of me. He began moving, his thrusts fast and hard as he sought his release. I whispered dirty words to him, encouraging him to f**k me faster and harder. He quickly complied with dirty words of his own spoken in his sexy British accent. He cupped my breast, f*****g me harder and harder.

He suddenly hit his release, letting out a loud groan before collapsing beside me on the couch. He laid beside me, gently kissing my shoulder and arm. I turned toward him and smiled.

"You are amazing," he whispered, his green eyes holding steady on me.

My heart skipped a beat at his words. "You aren't so bad yourself," I whispered back.

He laughed lightly as he kissed my shoulder once more before staring up at the ceiling. I laid beside him for several minutes before slowly sitting up.

"I should go," I stated as I climbed over him and grabbed my clothes. I began slipping them on as Preston turned to watch me a moment before doing the same.

Once dressed, he walked away and went up the stairs. He came back down and handed me an envelope with cash inside.

I took the envelope from him as shame poured down upon me. I took a step toward the door, leaving his folded suit jacket on the edge of the couch.

I heard him grab car keys before hurrying toward me. He silently laid the suit jacket over my shoulders. I turned toward him as he walked beside me as though he hadn't done a thing. I smiled lightly as I slid my hands through the sleeves of his suit jacket.

I would never forget Preston. My heart would never allow me to.

---

We pulled up to my apartment and he opened my car door for me.

"Thank you," I said as he closed the door. I went to step away, but he grabbed my hand. I turned back toward him.

"Can I see you tomorrow?"

I stood silent a moment. I wanted nothing more than to spend the day with him, but I was playing a dangerous game with my heart.

He seemed to sense my hesitance and quickly spoke. "I'll pay you a thousand again for the day."

My jaw nearly dropped. I had already saved every single penny of the past thousand he had given me. Another thousand would make a decent down payment on a used car. The idea excited me and I found myself nodding my head. "Okay."

He smiled but it quickly faded as he glanced at the apartment behind me. "I'll see you tomorrow, Kendra."

"I'll see you tomorrow, Preston," I replied as I turned away and walked to my apartment. I stopped to watch him leave before letting myself in. I strolled in and stopped in my tracks as I saw Scott laying on the futon.

He raised his face to me, and anger quickly took over his features. "Where have you been?" he asked, a slight slur to his voice.

My heart dropped as I took in the sight of him sprawled out on the futon. His hair was a mess and his eyes were bloodshot. He was using drugs again. I shook my head in disbelief. "You told me you were done with the drugs, Scott."

He rolled his eyes dramatically as he laid his head back down. "Don't give me drama about this."

I quickly walked away into the bedroom. I closed the door quietly behind me as I rushed to the closet to hide my money in the shoebox. The last thing I wanted was him to find it and steal it from me to buy more drugs.

He came in just as I was closing the closet on both my money and Preston's suit jacket. I hoped he hadn't noticed it.

"What are you doing?" he questioned as he walked into the room.

"I was going to change and go to bed," I lied.

He narrowed his red eyes on me. "Where the f**k were you?"

I opened my mouth to tell him my lie once again about being with Tricia but he spoke before I could.

"Don't give me that s**t about being with Tricia. I called her."

The blood drained down to my toes as I inched backwards, putting as much space between us as I could. "Why did you call to check up on me?"

"Because you're mine," he drew out as he sauntered toward me. "You'll always be mine, Kendra."

"Okay," I breathed out as my heart began pounding nervously. "I'm yours, Scott. Now can we just go to bed? Please? I'm tired."

"Where the f**k were you?" he shouted loudly as he advanced within inches of me.

I lost my breath as I slowly shook my head, unable to think up a lie and unwilling to bring Preston into my mess. I never should have snuck out. Scott had been in a good place and look what I had done. This was my fault. I had driven him back to the drugs with my lies.

"You f*****g b***h!" he roared as he grabbed my hair. He yanked it roughly to the side, throwing me to the ground. "You f*****g w***e!" he screamed in rage as he swung his shoed foot into my side.