blush (Westbrook Series) (8 page)

Missy stared at the unknown note on her desk.  It
had her name on the front cut out of letters from a magazine. 
Kind of
conventional
.  She hadn't opened it yet.  She was waiting on Brandon to
come to her office. 

Chloe looked at her with worry, "How do you
think he managed to get that in here?"

"Most of the team was at lunch.  It probably
wasn't near as tough as you would think."

Brandon called Mark to let him know what was going
on and then went to Missy's office.  His blood pressure was boiling.  He walked
over to her desk and read the note.  "This piece of shit better hope I
never find him!"  Brandon's lips were pressed tightly together and his
fists were in a ball.  He didn't even notice he was crumpling the note. 

"What does it say?"  Chloe asked.

Missy went over to Brandon and lightly rubbed his
arm.  She took the note from his hand and read, "Tell your boyfriend I'm
not playing.  Get me my money or I will bash your head in again.  This time I
will do it myself. He has twenty-four hours."  Missy started to cry.  This
was all too overwhelming. 

Mark came in wearing street clothes.  He didn't want
anyone who might be watching to suspect he was a cop.  He studied the note, put
it into an evidence bag, and then went to Brandon's office to start the phone
tap. 

"Next time he calls, get a drop off location. 
Maybe we can catch him in the act."

Brandon paced with worry, "Do you really think
this guy is going to fall for that?  I mean that is the way they do it in every
action movie you watch." 

"It might get a plan out of him.  He has to
have an arrangement for getting the money."

"Alright.  I will see what I can do." 

The next day Missy and Brandon tried to work.  Neither
of them were able to accomplish anything, so they congregated in Brandon's
office waiting for the call.  By ten both Chloe and Mark had joined them. 

"What do we do if he gives a drop
location?"  Missy asked, a bit out of curiosity and trying to pass the
time. 

"Have you arranged the money Brandon?"

"Yes, it's right here."  He pointed to a
briefcase in the corner of the room.

"I thought we agreed no money!"

"Missy it is just in case he looks inside of
the case.  We don't want him to get irate and hurt anyone.  It is mainly ones
wrapped in hundreds."

Missy still seemed agitated so Mark went on, "I
don't plan on letting him get away with any of it anyway."

That seemed to do the trick.  She convinced herself
it was just part of the plan.  Mark really appeared to care about his job.  She
could tell he knew what he was doing and knew she shouldn't question him.

At exactly noon, the phone in Brandon's office
rang.  They all exchanged a glance and Brandon picked up the phone. 
"Brandon Westbrook."  This was the way he always answered his phone.

"Do you have my money?"  The voice was
gruff and the man on the other end was obviously trying to disguise himself.

Brandon quickly put it on speaker so that the others
could hear the conversation.  "I do.  Where would you like for me to meet
you with it?"

"No; not you.  I want Little Miss to bring it
to Ninth Avenue, in front of her old building.  Tell her not to pull any bullshit
or I will kill her mother."

"What time?"  Brandon was doing everything
he could not to lose his mind on this son of a bitch. 

"Two o'clock."  The phone went dead.

Brandon looked up at Missy and she was as white as a
ghost.  When Mark saw the concern on Brandon's face, he turned his gaze toward
Missy also.  "Missy did you recognize the voice?"  Mark asked
realizing she probably had.

"Yes.  It...It was him, my father."

"Are you sure?"  Chloe questioned coming
to Missy's side for support.

Mark's phone went off so he stepped out to take the
call.  "Let me see if this is new information."

"Yes.  He always called me Little Miss.  I
thought it was a cute nickname he had for me until he got hammered one night
and told me it really meant little mistake.  He said I had ruined his
life."

Brandon fisted his hair.  "I am going
to.."

"No Brandon.  We have to stay cool." 
Missy turned to Mark as he walked back into the room.  "He said he would
kill my mother.  I thought she was out of state in a rehab." 

"Missy that call was...your mom disappeared
from the rehab this morning.  They have searched the entire property."

Missy started to sob.  When she composed herself
somewhat, she whimpered, "I guess we better not make any mistakes
then."

Missy stood in front of the building she once lived
in waiting for her father to appear.  She wondered if she would even recognize
him.  When she saw a white van slowly coming her way, she spotted him in the
driver's seat.   At that moment, all of the horrible shit he put her through
came rushing back.

 
Action.

He pulled up and told her to get in. 
Oh no!  They
hadn't planned for this.
 

"I want to see mom first."  She knew by
stalling, the police would have time to respond to the change of plans.  They
were monitoring the exchange through the microphone under her shirt. 

"Don't fuck with me.  Get in the damn
car."

"I will.  I promise, but I need to make sure
you haven't already killed her."  She was unemotional.  She had to be.

Her father pressed a button and the back slider door
slowly started opening.  Her mother was in the back with her hands tied behind
her back, her feet bound, and silver tape on her mouth.  Missy could tell she
had been crying because she had black makeup running down her face.  Missy
grimaced at the sight then slowly climbed into the back with her mother. 

"Why are you doing this?"

"Shut the fuck up!"

Missy sat in the back trying to soothe her mother
who had resumed weeping again. 
Please let them come and save us.  I can't
take this much longer. 
She knew the cops were nearby, but she had already
spent as much time as she could stand with her delusional father when she was
younger.  He had that same familiar angry smirk on his face.  His hair was
completely gray now and he had wrinkles around his mouth from the years of
smoking.

"Is this all for meth?"

"I said shut up!  You don't know anything about
me you little bitch."

"So tell me.  I heard you were
remarried."  Missy thought by talking he might cool down and become more
rational.  So far it wasn't working.

"Yes, to Sue.  She is a wonderful woman.  She
just has a small problem, she tries to stop.  This money will help though.  I
always thought you were just a disappointment, but you hooking up with that
rich guy really was brilliant."

Missy could tell he was not completely lucid.  He
was slurring, which scared her even more since he was driving.  He was calming
down though.  "I'm glad the money will help her.  What kind of problem
does she have?"

He  visibly became gloomy, "She owes a serious
drug dealer in Detroit, but you saved us Little Miss.  Now shut up before I
come do to you what I did to your mother.  You're fucking up my
concentration."

Missy looked back at her mother.  She was still
whimpering quietly.  They had been driving quite a while, and Missy was
beginning to worry that Mark had lost sight of them.  She had no clue what her
dad planned to do with them.  "You have your money.  Why do you still need
us?"

"This is just a first payment.  That bastard is
going to pay to get you back.  You owe me way more than this for all of the
shit you caused in my life.  You and your bitch mother."  He was much more
focused now.  Missy knew he had a plan.  He was going to hold them hostage
until he bled Brandon dry.  She worried what her father would do when he
realized the money in the briefcase wouldn't even buy him a ticket back to
Chicago. 

Missy quickly looked up when the tires started
screeching.  There was a set of spikes set out and the street was blocked off. 
Her father tried to stop, but the van hit the spikes and began spinning
instead.  Missy closed her eyes and braced herself and her mother for the hit. 
The van stopped, running over a curb and barely missing a building. 

"Get up here."  He pulled Missy from the
back seat by the hair and got out of the van with the money in one hand and a
gun pointed toward Missy in the other.  He was struggling to hold on to
everything.  Missy quickly broke free and began to run.  The gun fell to the
ground as she made her escape. 
Dumb ass!  He was too drunk to even hold
someone hostage correctly.
  He gave an unsuccessful attempt at trying to
escape.  Missy saw the police officer that was ducking behind his police
vehicle get out and tackle her father as he was stumbling away.  Her father
didn't put up much of a fight due to his incapacitated state. 

Missy went to the van and began untying her mother
who had pretty much blacked out by this point. 

"Oh Missy.  Thank God you are okay!"  The
woman quickly embraced Missy.

Missy helped her weak mother out of the van and
walked her over to where she saw Mark and Brandon.  He ran to her side and
hugged her like he might never let go.  

"Brandon, this is my mother, Gloria." 
Brandon reached over and hugged them both.

"Baby, I am so glad you are okay.  I was so
worried when he made you get into the vehicle."

Gloria smiled at her daughter, "She was
amazing, so relaxed.  Her ability to throw him off was what saved our
lives."

"That's my girl."  Brandon placed a kiss
on her head.

"I am just so glad this is over.  Mom, why
don't we let the EMT check you out and make sure you're not hurt, then we will get
you to the house and let you clean up."

"Okay, but after that I have to get back to the
rehabilitation facility.  I have been working so hard to get better for you. 
Seeing you, and how you turned out so strong, only motivates me to want to be
the same.  I am going to continue to get help and stay sober.  I owe you a lot
of time and attention.  Me being healthy is the only way I can give that to
you."

Missy held her hand and squeezed it tight.

That night in bed, Missy reflected on the events of
the day.  She thought about how far she had come.  Her life had always been
filled with loss and disappointment.  Her mother was trying to get better and
they were going to reconnect.  Missy thought maybe her mother had never
succeeded in kicking her addiction because no one had faith in her.  She
promised herself to support her mother.  Missy also recalled how far her love
life had come.  She was living in a penthouse, in bed snuggled up to a
wonderful man.  Brandon loved her so much.  She could see it in his expression
every time he looked at her.  He had been there for her through some rough
times, never wavering.  She reached over and rubbed her hand through the hair
on Brandon's chest.  She leaned up and sprinkled kisses on his cheek and neck. 
His eyes flew open and he arched one eyebrow at her suggestively. 

"Thank you for being so compassionate with me
and everything I have gone through." 

Brandon pulled her in tighter and touched his lips
to hers.  "We are a team now Missy; you are my life.  I definitely
wouldn't mind a little appreciation prize though."

She giggled and climbed on top of him, straddling
his body.  "So you think you deserve a reward huh?"  Missy reached
her head down and kissed his neck, licking and nibbling strategically.   She
had come to know the places that drove him mad.  "Is something like this
the reward you had in mind?"

"Mmmm, exactly."  He laid back with his
eyes closed.

"What about this?"  She made her way down
his chest and down the front of his torso, biting his hips softly.  All Brandon
could do was let out a groan of approval.  "Speechless?"

He nodded his head with a murmur of pleasure. 
"Well, then I guess we are even.  You can't even beg for more, so I assume
you feel rewarded enough?"  Missy rose to remove herself from him.  His
hand quickly came up and held her in place.

"Oh no woman, you're not going anywhere yet." 

She chuckled, and before he could respond, her mouth
was around his erection sucking and licking. 

"Oh baby, you are so damn amazing." 
Brandon ran his fingers through her hair pulling softly.  The stimulation only
caused her to bob her head quicker.  She grazed her teeth softly up the
substantial length of his shaft and then again back down.  She tickled right
underneath his balls and she could feel his body shutter at the touch to the
sensitive area.  "Missy I am about to come."  The words only
motivated her to take him in deeper.  She wanted him to come, to taste him was
pure ecstasy.   He moaned releasing himself in her mouth.  She held her head
still and sucked hard making sure she swallowed every last drop.

"Was that a big enough reward for you?"

"Fuck yeah," he said in a breathy mumble. 
"That was incredible.  Now it's your turn."

He pulled her up and lifted her on top of his still
hard penis.  He guided her hips thrusting deep into her.  Missy moaned with
enjoyment.  He grabbed both of her breast and began pinching her nipples just
hard enough to send shock waves straight down her body.  He could feel her
beginning to tighten around him.  She began moving faster, causing her orgasm to
become even stronger.  She screeched out with delight as she came.  Her body
began to vibrate all over.  Brandon couldn't control himself any longer.  He
shot his nectar far into her warm, pulsing body.  She could feel the throbbing
of his erection and began coming again.  "You feel so good.  I love you
Brandon Westbrook."

"I love you too Missy.  Don't ever scare me the
way you did today.  If anything were to ever happen to you, I don't know how I
would go on."

She assumed he had been worried, but at this moment
she could see the fear on his face.  His eyes were glassy and moist.  Missy
laid there with her head on his chest and listened to his heart beat.  They had
been through so much. 

He could tell she was thinking about the day and
wanted to keep her mind from going there.  "Come on.  Let's go take a
bath."  He lifted himself from the bed and carried Missy to the bathroom. 
The room was like something out of a home decor magazine.  She loved relaxing there. 
It was covered in a pale Italian marble, and the tile floor was all a very dark
stone.  The bath tub overflowed into the shower like a waterfall.  The tub was
monstrously sized and jetted.

He placed her on a chaise lounge he had sitting in
the large open area of the room and went to turn on the water.  He reached
behind him and opened a container of bubble bath that filled the space with the
aroma of wild honeysuckle.  Once in the tub, she rested in between his legs and
closed her eyes as he poured water over her chest.  Missy never felt more at
peace than when they were together. 

"My mom and Dayna want to have dinner tomorrow
night.  Is that okay with you?  I really want you to spend some time with my
sister.  I think the two of you will hit it off."

"Mmm hmm," Missy could only hum her
endorsement.

He smiled and continued talking, "They want to
take you shopping first---you know, really put some fear into you about messing
with their baby boy and all."

Missy smiled widely, "You wish."

"Yeah.  My mom just really loves you and wants
you to spend the day with them.  I like to think that they adore me so much,
they will be grilling you the entire time."

"You are such a big baby."  Missy splashed
water onto his face.  Brandon immediately went into defense mode and splashed
back.  They wrestled in the water like kids, splashing and laughing.  He
enjoyed that she could be so sexy and serious, yet she loved to play and laugh
too. 

The next afternoon Brenda and Dayna picked Missy up
at the penthouse for a girls day.  They had planned the day around spa
treatments and shopping.

"Missy, you have been through so much.  I love
you darling.  Dayna and I wanted to show you by helping you relax for a
day."  Brenda spoke as she powdered her nose.  Missy and Dayna exchanged
glances and laughed. 

"So things still hot and heavy with
Enrique?"  Missy didn't want to talk about everything that had gone on the
last few days.  She knew just mentioning Enrique's name would change the
subject.

"Oh!  He is so wonderful."  Brenda's eyes
lit up like a teenager in love.

"He really is nice mom.  I am so glad you met
him."  It was evident that Dayna and her mother were very close.  Brandon
had told Missy that his mother and sister were pretty much best friends.  Being
with them reminded her of Nicole.  Her big sister was always her best friend
too. 

After hours of shopping, and a major dent in her
credit card, Missy had four bags of new clothes and shoes.  Dayna was a fashion
designer so she knew exactly what would look good on Missy.  When she walked
into the restaurant, Brandon was waiting for them.  He laughed when he saw her
hands full of shopping bags.  "They got to you woman."

"I know.  I just couldn't say no when they insisted
I couldn't live without it.  I guess I'm a pushover."

"Well, if anyone deserves some pampering, it's
my baby.  What about the grilling?  Did you guys go easy on her?"

Dayna looked at him curiously, "What are you
talking about?" 

"You know---the whole you better take care of
Brandon or we are going to kick your ass, sort of thing."

The women laughed mockingly.  "Oh darling!  You
are ever the comedian.  We know Missy would never hurt you."  Brenda
reached her arm around Missy and gave her a squeeze.

"You, big brother, we aren't too sure about.  You
better take care of this one; she is the best you will ever get.  In fact, I
still don't understand why she is slumming it with you,"  Dayna teased.

Brandon ignored her and went on deciding what he was
going to eat.  Missy rubbed his leg softly under the table.  "It is me who
is lucky," she stated frankly.