Come Home Bad Boy (15 page)

“My mom I don't even remember, all I was ever told was she moved out west and wanted nothing to do with us. My father... well, let's just say he's a waste of life.” His eyes moved from me to his arms, hands interlocking while he rubbed his thumbs together.

“Everyone has issues with their past, with their families,” I said. “I understand that, my family is far from perfect. Why do you think I became a therapist?” I wanted to create a common ground for him, have him see that he wasn't alone.

He shrugged his shoulders while looking around the room. “Am I supposed to just pour my past out for you onto this table? Do you expect me to fill your notebook with stories of abuse so you can rationalize my behavior? Put the blame on them? I don't work that way. I gave you an answer. It might not be what you want, but it's all you're fucking getting.”

I was unprepared for that, no one had ever been so candid towards me. I didn't know how to respond, but I made myself speak. “That's not what I expect at all. Your past doesn't free you from responsibility. You chose to kill that man. I'm just wondering what led you there, and if you've changed since it happened. I'm not just here to shoot the shit with you.” I added the last part in a crisp, no-nonsense tone. I wasn't going to let him think he could get away with speaking to me however he wanted.

I waited for his rebuttal. My eyes tried to burn into his thoughts.

The smile he turned on was faded. “Ask me something else then, what's the hold up? The clock is ticking, Charlie.” The anger seemed to settle and his confidence returned.

I tapped my chin with my pen, I wasn't sure what to ask. Our eyes locked, searching each other for insight.

“You're thinking too hard,” he said. “Don't think, just ask.”

I decided to just go for it. I knew he would most likely give me the run around, but it was worth a try. “Why did you kill that man?”

“That was just a matter of being in the wrong place at the wrong time. Which, oddly enough, I feel like right now I'm in the
right
place.” His teeth flashed as he grinned, then winked.

My heart that was already charged with feelings, beat faster than it ever had before. The smile he had was mesmerizing. I had to look away, I didn't want him to see the subtle cockiness forming. With no place else to look I glanced down at my notes, hoping my haze would fade.

“Ah, you agree with me,” he said as he laughed.

How could I respond? He was right, I
wanted
to be here across from him. I wanted to feel his presence in front of me again. I'd thought about this meeting with him since our last.

Every piece of me wanted to climb over the table and grab his broad shoulders, feel the strength of his arms around my waist. I envisioned him pressing his lips against mine as our tongues entwined.

“Times up,” he said. At that very moment the buzzer sounded and I heard the resonant sound of the door.

No, not yet. I'm not done here,
I thought to myself as the guard entered to remove Owen. I wanted more time, I needed more time.

I watched him stand, his eyes remaining on mine. He held his smile as the guard unlocked him from the table, ready to bring him back to his single cell existence.

So badly, I longed for that tattooed beast to just break free, to jump across the room and grab me in his arms. His teeth and lips nibbling over my neck, his scent filling my head until I was lost.

I itched for all that and more.

But, in the end, all I had was that final image of his orange back as he vanished.

Owen

I
could feel the cold of the small, round, metal table through my clothes . A space of mere inches separated my knees from the top.

For the first time ever the plate in front of me looked unappealing. I prodded the small portion of peas, gazing at them without a blink. The sounds of men conversing around me were muffled by my thoughts.

Her skin.

The soft smooth feel and tranquil color of cream had stayed with me.

That brief moment of contact made me want her more than I had ever wanted anything. I hadn't been able to clear the image of her from my mind.

The way she looked at me, her eyes filled with curiosity... the desire she had to figure me out, pick my brain.

It was fucking sexy.

I absolutely need to have her.
She got my blood pumping. I liked a woman with backbone. She'd refused to back down when my anger took over, that gave me a rush. No running, no hiding. Charlie had guts.

Maybe it was my attitude, but every other doctor in the past had given up on me.

Charlie hadn't. She'd stayed.

When I had sat across from her, all I could think of was how much I wanted to be inside of her. She was flooding every thought I had. I enjoyed this distraction, it's refreshing to think of something different.

I used to spend my nights dreaming about the outside world, but now they were full of visions of her. I saw her face in my mind like a photo in my grasp, a picture I couldn't take my eyes from.

Whatever it takes, she'll be mine.

I'd never in my life felt such a drive to have one single thing. As a kid, I'd followed everyone else. I never went for what I really wanted.

I had spent an entire lifetime trying to please others with what I thought
they
wanted.

When I got here, things changed.

To have no one but yourself is a lonely and yet fulfilling feeling. This place gave me the ability to find myself, a chance to truly think about what I wanted for once.

And now, what I wanted was Charlie. Her entire body had overrun my brain, to the point where no other thoughts flowed. I pictured my hands running through her hair and softly down her neck.

Her collar bone... It makes my cock so fucking hard.

That part of a woman's body is the sexiest, it's always made me tremble inside. I can't help but want to nibble on it.

I could see it the other day. The shiny, red silk blouse she wore had slipped to the side, exposing her bare skin. I wanted to make her body shiver, feel her flesh sweat from the arousal I'd cause.

Was all of this just because I hadn't been around a woman for so long?

It had to be. Why else would I lust for a stranger so quickly?

The muffles around me grew louder. I lifted my head to watch my surroundings for a moment. One of the guards to my left yelled at the cluster of guys in the back corner. I couldn't make out exactly what was going on, I just assumed it was a fight.

There was a lot of that around here, one testosterone driven man against the next.

The yelling intensified until one of the guards intervened. It took the guard threatening to spray them with mace before the crowd dispersed.

Once the multitude of voices faded to a normal volume, the men scattered around the cafeteria; back into their self-imposed separation.

I looked down at my food, prodding it. I wasn't interested in the commotion, I'd never egged on a fight or involved myself in any disputes.

Normally, this whole meal would be gone in a blink. I was eager to go back to my cell to get away from these animals. But my appetite today was invisible, the grumbles I would normally hear in my gut didn't exist lately.

Charlie filled me, she replaced my need to eat—to drink. I had to have her or I'd starve.

Somehow, I'll claim her for myself.

Otherwise, it was likely I'd go insane... if I didn't starve first.

“Hey, Owen, you see that man?” The voice rose from behind my right shoulder. I didn't answer at first. I'd heard him, but I had been so far in my own head I had to climb back out.

“Owen? You alright, man?” The speaker was a tall, slender man with a nose half the size of his own face. He called himself Vince, and embezzlement was his crime of choice.

His hair was kept short and tight against his head and he had a high-class walk. He always held his arms around his waist, like he was carrying a stack of books.

That's a habit you get as an accountant or banker. It didn't matter what the actual job was, so long as it involved wearing a suit and a lot of money.

After spending so much time here I had a general idea of what any new comer had done previously in their life before. It was all in how they carried themselves. They wore their status in their stride and appearance.

“What?” I asked as I tried to pull myself to the present and focus on the figure next me.

“Did you see that? Fucking Ricardo,” Vince said, the last part under his breath.

“Nah, I didn't and I don't really care to.” It wasn't my problem, if it didn't involve me I didn't give a shit. I wasn't here to make friends, my only worry was escaping.

“That guy is such a fucking asshole. He really thinks he's in charge of everyone here. Trying to push the new guy around, I don't get it.” He began to examine the 'steak' that rested on his tray. “I bet this is rat. There's no way this is an actual piece of meat. I get that we're in here for punishment, but come on. I wouldn't even feed this to a stray dog.” He poked his food as if he expected it to jump off his plate and runaway.

“Yeah, well, it's better than nothing,” I said.

“Really? Because the way you're staring at it makes me doubt you.” Vince let out a deep, raspy laugh, closing his eyes and shoving the unknown piece of meat into his mouth.

I sat quietly, still focused on Charlie as Vince rambled on and on about what he used to eat. The filets, the caviar, all the expensive cuisines that most people couldn't ever afford.

My head nodded as if I was listening, but inside, her face loomed. I couldn't wait to see her again, it was unbearable. I felt obsessed with these mental images, I wanted to see her now.

When we'd been together last, I'd thought about running my hand up her thigh and over her curves. The chance had been there, she'd come so close to me when her pen had fallen.

I wanted to know what it felt like to have her lips touch mine.
Would they be as soft as velvet?

“Hey, you there?” Vince asked, his words cutting into my daydream.

“What?” I snapped.

“I
said
I heard Ricardo has been causing a lot of problems with that guy Chris, supposedly he's planning something, not sure what yet, but I guess he doesn't like him. I was told he thinks Chris needs to learn a lesson, he doesn't like his mouth.” He chewed, his jaw open to expose his teeth grinding down.

I found it ironic that someone with so much class and refinery ate like such a pig.

“I don't really care what Ricardo does, so long as he doesn't bother me,” I said.

Ricardo was here for double homicide, he'd gotten two life sentences. He'd already been here for more than twenty years. When this is all you have, you feel the need to own it.

He'd once tried to 'show me my place.' It didn't work in his favor. The guy ended up at the infirmary, while I endured a few days in solitary.

I hated that fucking place.

After I came out of confinement, Ricardo never glanced crookedly in my direction again. The guy in charge had been knocked off his high horse; my status here was set.

From that point on, no one messed with me. People who had previously snuffed my existence gave me praise. Those who were weak attempted to gain my friendship.

For the first time ever, I was not the man in the shadows.

I had been recognized.

“You say that now,” Vince scoffed. “But when something goes down you'll probably care. I get it, just don't cry to me later that you missed out on something good, I know how sensitive you are,” Vince said as he let out a chuckle.

I laughed slightly at this; he was good for that, always busting my balls. “I'm pretty sure you're the one who's sensitive. If I remember right, didn't you cry when we watched Bambi?”

“No! I had something in my eye, I told you.” He shook his head while looking down at his plate.

“Oh yeah, that's right, the eye issue. I forgot that,” I said with a laugh.

“And even if I did, there are some sad moments in that movie! Maybe I'm just a man in tune with my softer side.” He motioned his hand towards his heart.

“I'm sure that's it,” I said with over the top sympathy. Vince gave me a dirty look.

The bell sounded to end our dinner and the guards did their ritual line up to escort us all back to our cells. Vince stood behind me as we walked back. I could hear him breathing from his nose, it sounded like a mouse squealing between two pillows. 

His cell was to the left of mine, so I knew that noise well. It used to bother me but after so many years, I was used to it.

The bars clanked shut and the guard released my cuffs. I rubbed my wrists to ease the soreness. The assholes always put those things on too tight.

I wondered if I would still feel their presence once I was free. Didn't they have a name for that, phantom sensations or something? Like when you lost a limb, but could still 'feel' it attached to you?

As I sat on my bed, her face appeared in my mind. Charlie seemed to satisfy my need for relief, an escape from my own demons. She was magnetized, drawing me in the more time we spent together.

She's amazingly tough,
I thought to myself. It took a lot to handle a guy like me, I knew that for sure. I hadn't been easy on her, but in spite of that, she kept returning to our meetings.

Her ability to handle me in the way she did... well, it turned me on.

My cock started to stiffen. I loved that she was fierce. It made me ache to break her down, to watch her give in. Challenges are the best damn thing.

She's determined, and she doesn't back down.
When I'd told her I wouldn't talk about my brother, she still asked. Even after I lost my cool, she still questioned me.

Thinking about the heat that crossed her cheeks when I flirted with her about Mardis Gras caused my dick to rise in my pants. I grabbed the tip gently and squeezed. I was horny, I hadn't had a real woman in years.

I laid back and couldn't help but start to stroke my swelling shaft. I wanted to touch her body, I imagined her tits pressed against my chest, wondered if they were as firm as they looked.