“Do you want me to lick your pussy, baby?” I ask softly, letting my breath skate over her.
Her hips jerk towards me and if her arms were free, I’m sure she’d be digging them into my scalp right about now, yanking my face right where she wants it.
I put my middle finger in my mouth and get it wet with my tongue before bringing it to her clit to circle it slowly. My fingertip touches her like a whisper, just barely grazing the swollen, stiff bud. Her body shakes with need and the clacking and creaking sound of her pushing against the restraints on the bed tell me she’s had enough of the teasing.
“Let me hear your voice. Tell me to lick your pussy,” I whisper in the shadows, adding some pressure to my finger.
I glance up her body and I can just make out the shape of her in the darkness. Her head is thrown back and her chest is heaving. Resting my cheek against the inside of her thigh, I slide my finger down through the lips of her pussy, gathering her wetness before trailing my finger back up to circle her clit with her own liquid heat.
“Fuck, fuck, fuck!” she shouts.
I smile against her thigh, continuing to torture her with my finger.
“All you have to do is say the words, Fireball,” I tell her softly, swiping against her clit with the tip of my finger like I’m flipping the page of a book on a Kindle.
“Jesus, fuck! Lick my pussy, fucking lick it already!” she shouts in irritation, jerking her hips against my finger, trying to get me to move faster.
I’d laugh at her frustration if I weren’t dying to put my mouth on her.
Using my elbows to give me leverage, I dive my head forward and wrap my lips around her clit, sucking it into my mouth.
Phina shouts in relief as I flatten my tongue and lick the hell out of her pussy, quickly pushing two of my fingers inside of her. She’s so wet and ready that my fingers easily slide inside. I pump them in and out of her slowly and flick the tip of my tongue over her clit in a maddening pace.
The gurney rocks and squeaks as she thrusts her hips up to meet my mouth and the motion pushes my fingers even deeper.
I pull my mouth away long enough to speak while I continue the motions of my fingers in and out of her. This fucking woman needs to be praised.
“I could eat your pussy every day and never get tired. Fuck, you taste like sugar.”
She whimpers as I go back to work, fucking into her with my fingers. I feel her clit pulsing against my lips and tongue and I push my fingers into her all the way to the knuckles. Bringing my other hand up, I flatten my palm on her lower abdomen and gently push down, curling my fingers forward at the same time to brush against her swollen g-spot.
Phina screams in pleasure, as I slowly brush my tongue back and forth over her clit. As much as I don’t want to stop, there’s just one more thing I need to hear from her, one thing I need her to promise me.
“From now on, I’m the only man who gets to watch you come. No more third wheel in the bedroom and no other hands on your body but mine. This pussy,” I whisper, flicking my tongue over her clit, “is MINE.”
She whimpers in protest when I pull my mouth away.
“Say it,” I growl, my mouth hovering right above her as I push my middle finger against her g-spot.
“JESUS, IT’S YOURS! FUCK! ONLY YOURS!” she screams as I smile to myself before burying my face back in her pussy.
“DRAKE! Fuck, Drake!”
He hips buck against me erratically as she comes while I lick and suck the juices from her pussy and continue to lightly rub her g-spot.
I chuckle against her pussy as her lower body slumps back down to the gurney and listen to her whimper every few seconds while she tries to catch her breath.
Pulling my fingers out of her, I make my way back up her body and rest my hands on either side of her head to stare down at the shadow of her face.
The faint light from outside allows me to see when she opens her eyes to look up at me.
“You win. You can have control during sex ANYTIME,” she mumbles in a sleepy voice.
I laugh, leaning down to press my lips to hers before backing away.
“And you, Fireball, also win. You can call me Drake anytime. Especially when you’re coming and giving me complete ownership of your pussy.”
The rushing panic that filled me when DJ first strapped me to the gurney disappeared as soon as he turned off the lights to the ambulance. I know I’m behaving like a fool, I know I need to just come clean with him, but I can’t. I want to keep up this illusion for as long as I can. I need to pretend like everything is fine or I’ll go insane.
I tried not to let the fear come out in my voice when I demanded that he turn off the lights. I forced myself to make it sound like I was just a controlling bitch and to keep the quiver in my throat from sneaking out.
I concentrated on how hot it was to be strapped down, unable to move my arms or slide my fingers through DJ’s hair. I closed my eyes and pushed everything out of my mind except for the feel of his mouth on me, bringing me to orgasm. Jesus, that man is talented. I’ve never come that fast in my life, not even with my own hand.
DJ unhooks the straps over my chest and arms and I shake out the soreness in them before wrapping them around his neck and pulling him down on top of me.
“Your fingers and tongue should come with a warning,” I tell him, running my hands through his hair and placing soft kisses on his lips and chin.
“You could always get me a t-shirt that says Champion Muff Diver,” he says with a laugh.
I squeeze chunks of his hair in my hands until he laughs and shouts in mercy.
“You are impossible,” I laugh right along with him.
DJ leans forward to kiss me, but I quickly turn my head to the side, breathing deeply.
“Do you smell that?”
He holds himself still, sniffing the air. “Is that smoke?”
I hear confusion in his voice as he pushes himself off me to look out the front windshield. I crane my neck back and we both see the source of the smell at the same time.
“WHAT THE FUCK?” he shouts, jumping off of the gurney to race up between the two front seats.
I scramble off the bed and look beyond him, my eyes widening in shock and fear.
Orange flames flicker through the front windshield of the ambulance, growing higher and higher with each second that passes.
“DJ! PHINA!”
We hear muffled shouts coming from outside and I move out of DJ’s way as he charges to the back of the ambulance and throws the door open. He immediately backs away when he sees more flames behind the truck, billowing towards the opening.
“GET AWAY FROM THE DOOR! IT’S ALL AROUND THE TRUCK!” Jackson shouts frantically from the other side of the wall of flames.
Climbing between the front seats, I look out the driver’s side window and sure enough, there is a circle of fire about six feet high surrounding us. I watch as the front doors of the fire house burst open and ten men come running outside, dragging a hose between them.
Making my way towards DJ, he wraps his arms around me and holds me close while we watch through the flickering flames as their blurry shapes shout orders and begin trying to contain the fire.
I can feel the heat from the fire coming in through the door and sweat drips down my neck and back. How long does it take for a fire like this to get to the gas tank and blow this entire thing with us inside?
“It’s going to be fine. They’re going to put out the fire and get us the fuck out of this thing,” DJ promises, rubbing his hands up and down my arms.
No sooner than those words leave his mouth, something that sounds like a shotgun going off thunders through the vehicle, making me jump and scream. The ambulance suddenly jerks to one side, causing DJ and I to lose our footing and topple sideways, slamming into the wall.
Men outside are shouting even louder now and I don’t realize I’m still screaming until DJ gathers me close, holding his hand against the back of my head and pressing my fac
e into his shoulder.
“Shhh, it’s okay, baby, it’s okay. It was just one of the tires blowing,” he tells me in a soothing voice.
The smell of burning rubber, gas and fire surrounds us and I squeeze my eyes closed and hold onto DJ for dear life, listening to the sound of the water from the hose spray against the outside of the vehicle. Hitting the steel body of the ambulance, I can almost make myself believe it’s just a soft, soothing rain that’s coming down outside instead of the only thing standing between us and death.
DJ and I stay wrapped in each other’s arms for the five longest minutes of my life before Jackson sticks his head into the back of the vehicle.
“Fire’s out. You guys okay?”
Pulling myself away from DJ, I nod my head as DJ storms out the doors, grabs a fistful of Jackson’s shirt, twists him around and slams him against the back of the wet ambulance.
“WHAT IN THE FUCK HAPPENED? YOU’RE SUPPOSED TO BE MAKING SURE NOTHING HAPPENS TO HER, YOU INCOMPETENT FUCK!” DJ shouts into Jackson’s face.
I jump down from the back of the ambulance and grab onto DJ’s shoulders, using all of my strength to pull him off of Jackson.
“DJ! Let go!” I order. “Let him go!”
DJ gives him one last rough shove before releasing his shirt and holding his hands in the air.
“I’m fine! No one got hurt, calm down.”
DJ whirls on me and stares at my face like I’ve grown two heads. “Are you fucking kidding me? He had one job to do. ONE!”
Jackson takes a step towards us and lifts his hand to rest it on DJ’s shoulder. I give him a warning look and pray he’s not that stupid. If he touches DJ right now, he’s going to get his ass beat.
He quickly drops his hand.
“I swear to God, I haven’t taken my eyes off of this fucking truck ever since I saw you two come out here. It’s been quiet and dark all night long. Not one person has come or gone from this entire block since you guys got here two hours ago,” Jackson explains.
DJ keeps his eyes glued to mine and I can tell by all the deep breaths he’s taking that he’s trying to calm himself down. I grab onto both of his hands and squeeze them tight.
“The fire marshal will have to come out here and give an official ruling, but it’s pretty obvious by the circular shape the fire took around the truck that an accelerant was used,” one of the guys from the fire station informs us.
“We could smell gas from inside,” DJ finally speaks.
“He must have come from the opposite side of the ambulance, out of my line of sight, and used some sort of sprayer from underneath the vehicle to get it everywhere. I swear to you, I didn’t see anything until the flames exploded all around it,” Jackson tells us. “I flew out of my car, yelled inside to the station and then ran over here and started screaming at you guys inside.”
DJ takes another deep breath and then hangs his head. I can tell he’s feeling guilty and it kills me. This wasn’t his fault. It has nothing to do with him. He just had the unfortunate luck of being with me.
“I’m sorry, I’m so sorry,” I whisper, fighting back tears.
His head jerks up and he lets go of my hands, bringing them up to cup my face.
“Don’t you dare. Don’t you dare blame yourself for what happened! This is NOT your fault, Phina. Do you hear me?”
I nod, even though I don’t believe him. If I were alone, if I was as far away from DJ as possible, he never would have gotten caught up in this mess.
DJ hugs me to him, exchanging a few more tense words with Jackson and then thanking the guys from the firehouse. With one arm still around me, he pulls his cell out of his front pocket and calls Dax.
“Alright, I think that’s everything we need,” Dax tells us as he finishes clacking away at his computer, taking our statement. “You sure you guys don’t want to go to the hospital? Get checked out for smoke inhalation?”
DJ turns to look at me and I shake my head. I just want to go home. I want to curl up in bed and stop thinking about how I’m fucking up DJ’s life by being with him.
The door to Dax’s office opens and a tall brunette walks in with a cup of coffee in her hands. He smiles at her, giving her the full-on Dax double dimples and I shake my head, knowing this poor woman doesn’t stand a chance.
“Harley, these are my friends, DJ and Phina,” he introduces, giving her a wink as she pauses next to us.
“Nice to meet you. I apologize in advance for my behavior,” she tells us.
Before I can ask her what the hell she’s talking about, she walks right behind Dax’s desk and dumps the cup of hot coffee right in his lap.
“MOTHERFUCKER!” Dax shouts, jumping up from the chair while he glares at her.
“Your coffee, sir,” she tells him in a sickeningly sweet voice.
She immediately turns on her heels and I give her a huge smile as she walks by.
“Oh, I really, really like you,” I tell her with a laugh.
She nods in my direction before exiting his office, slamming the door behind her so hard the walls rattle.
DJ lets out a low whistle from the chair next to me while Dax tries to hold the soaked crotch of his pants away from his junk.
“What did I tell you about banging the women you work with? She didn’t shoot off your balls, but she sure did a nice job with the third degree burns,” I laugh.
Dax continues muttering and cursing about pig-headed women while DJ and I get up from our chairs and leave him to deal with his burning balls.
“Who would have thought filling out a police report could be so much fun?” DJ asks with a smile as we head out of the building and across the parking lot to his truck.
I hear my cell phone ringing in my purse so I stop and dig for it. When I pull it out, I see that it’s from an unknown number. DJ looks at the screen questioningly and I just shrug my shoulders, hitting the answer button and bringing the phone up to my ear.
I hear nothing but silence for a few seconds and I start to pull the phone away when I hear someone clear his throat.
“You sure are a hard woman to get ahold of.”
My stomach plummets all the way to my feet and vomit makes it’s way up into my throat. It’s the voice from my childhood, the same one I hear in my nightmares every night calling me a whore and telling me I’m not good enough.
“Baby, are you there?” he asks.
“Don’t you dare call me baby,” I whisper angrily into the phone.
DJ wraps his hand around my arm, but I barely feel it. He asks me who’s on the phone, but I can’t speak.
“I got out, but I’m sure you already know that,” he laughs.
My hands shake and I can barely hold onto the phone anymore. Why can’t I just hang up the fucking phone? Why can’t I just tell him to go to hell and leave me alone?
“I had a lot of thinking to do while I was behind bars, baby. A lot of years to become an old man and think about all the things I’ve done. I’m supposed to make amends to the people I’ve wronged, so I figure I should start with you.”
His voice through the line is like nails on a chalkboard and my arms pebble with goose bumps.
“Did you get any of my notes?”
I whimper and squeeze my eyes closed.
“Give me the fucking phone,” DJ curses right next to me.
I turn away from him and wrap my arm around my waist, trying to hold myself together. It feels like my insides are going to spill out of my stomach and splatter all over the ground at my feet. I don’t want DJ to see me like this. I don’t want him to know how weak just the sound of this man’s voice makes me.
“I’m comin’ clean now, baby, it’s time. Your momma, she didn’t run away. She talked about it all the time, but she never had the guts to do it until that last day. I came home from work and found all her shit packed. She told me she was done and she was leavin’ both of us. I just couldn’t have that, baby. I couldn’t have her leavin’ me with a kid to take care of all by myself. I took care
of it, though. I wouldn’t let her leave unless I was the one makin’ it happen.”
A sob works its way up my throat, but I force it back. I don’t want to hear the next words out of his mouth. I don’t want to know that he’s even more of a monster than I ever thought.
“I killed her, baby. I’m sorry, but I killed your momma. She was a whore and a worthless mother, but I’m still sorry about it. I just didn’t want you to turn out like her. You didn’t turn out like her, did you baby? You didn’t turn into a liar and a whore and a cheat, did you? People burn in hell for something like that.”
The phone falls from my hand and clatters to the ground. DJ snatches it up and screams into it, but I know he’s not there any more. He said what he needed to say, he messed with my mind and my heart and there was no reason for him to stay on the line for another second. Somehow, he killed my mother and made me believe she left because she didn’t love me, that she went away to start a new family because I wasn’t good enough. He tried to burn me tonight to send me to hell where he thinks I belong.
I finally turn around and look up into DJ’s angry face and I realize he’s probably right. I do belong in hell. I deserve to burn for dragging DJ into my life and putting him on my father’s radar. How could I ever think that I was deserving of a good future, when the sins of my past would never let me go?
Phina hasn’t said more than two words to me the last few days. It scares me more than thinking about everything that could have gone wrong the other night if we hadn’t been parked right out front of a fire station. What if Brad hadn’t been with us all night and I just pulled over on the side of the road? We would have been trapped. Not only could the gas tank have exploded, the back of the ambulance is filled with compressed air oxygen tanks. If it had gotten any hotter inside of that thing, we would have been blown to bits. Once again, I was fucking helpless with Phina. I couldn’t do anything but stand inside that fucking tin box on wheels and wait for someone else to save us. This shit has GOT to stop.