Three, Two, One (321)

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  ONE GIRL

  Battered, barefoot, and huddled under a bookstore awning in the pouring rain, Blue only knows one thing. After fifteen months of captivity, finally… she is free.

  TWO FRIENDS

  Self-made millionaires JD and Ark are not out to save anyone when they stumble upon a wet and shivering girl one early Sunday morning. But when you sell sex for a living and salvation rings your bell… you answer the call.

  THREE SOULMATES

  After years of searching, love lifts the veil of darkness, and three people—with three very big secrets—find themselves bound together in a relationship that defies the odds.

  Or does it?

  Love. Lust. Sex.

  This trinity might be perfection… but not everything should come in threes.

  For JD,

  Because he puts up with me three nights a week and I’m a total bitch to him. He really should fire my ass from his gym.

  Denver Federal Center

  Lakewood, Colorado

  Present Day

  “We can’t help you if you don’t help us help you.”

  I just stare at the guy. That’s his angle? Help us help you?

  “Ark—” He hesitates and gives me a sidelong look, like it’s just now occurring to him that Ark might not be my real name. I let out a small snort and a smile breaks. He does not appreciate the smile or the snort, because he rubs a hand down his face and huffs some air into it.

  “Ark,” the other suit says, taking over. I guess this is when they do the good-cop-bad-cop thing. “Come on, man, we know, OK?”

  Now that intrigues me. “What do you think you know?”

  “We know people are dead,” Bad Cop interjects, warranting a feigned exasperated sigh and an upheld hand from Good Cop.

  “People die every day,” I add, just so Good Cop doesn’t have a chance to play his card. It ticks him off too, because he has to take a deep breath.

  “Ark,” he tries again. “We need to know what’s happening. People might still be in danger. More bodies might turn up. Bodies who might not be just bodies if we can intervene in time.”

  “Nothing’s happening,” I say, stressing the word. “It’s over.”

  Bad Cop slaps down a stack of eight-by-ten photos and they skid across the stainless steel table with a whoosh. “This,” he says, tapping one of the photos, “is more than nothing. This is a dead woman. And this—” He points to another photo, one I’m not sure I can look at and not be affected by. So before he can say anything I clear my throat like I’m gonna talk. It shuts him up just long enough to let Good Cop change the subject back to me.

  “Ark, come on. We know there’s more to this than you’re saying. It’s clear that you were working with this guy. We’ve found hundreds of contracts in your office.” He taps another photo and sucks some air through his teeth while he lets me think about that. “Just start from the beginning. If you explain, I’m sure we can make things easy for you.”

  I give off another snort. “Make things easy, huh?” That’s what they always say before they fuck you. I know. I’ve been fucked lots of times.

  “Just tell us how you met her.” I look over at Bad Cop, who is surprisingly calm now. His façade is slipping. Or maybe he just knows I can’t be had that way. I’ve been on the streets too long. I’ve seen too much. I’ve done too much to be lured into talking with a fake promise. “Just start with this one,” he says, pointing to the dead woman in the photo, “and we can get to the other stuff later.”

  I stare at him.

  He stares back at me. “You’re gonna have to tell someone.”

  “Eventually,” Good Cop adds. “I mean, come on, Ark. There’s bodies. You don’t walk away from this, understand? You don’t just get to walk away. We can’t cut that kind of deal and you know it. So just start at the beginning and we’ll take it one step at a time. We’ll put all the pieces together and write the report and then we’ll talk about your options.”

  I already know my options. I glance down at the photos again, then flick them with a fingertip, making them slide across the smooth metal table.

  Blue peeks out from underneath the ones on top. Her face in this picture is just the way I saw it that first day. Innocent, but stoic. Scared, yet strong. She was cold and wet. Her long hair was hanging down the front of that drenched summer dress that was too skimpy for summer, let alone late in the fall.

  “You can pick it up,” Bad Cop says. “Go ahead.”

  I can’t stop myself, so I reach for it, but the chain on my cuffs is too short and it jerks taut. Bad Cop slides her photo across the table so it’s directly below me.

  “Start with her. The girl you’re calling Blue. When did she turn up? Where did she come from?”

  I can see it all so clear in my head. It started out like any other day. JD and I were up early to do business…

  My fingertips can’t help themselves. They reach for her photo and I hold it up. The silence in the room drags on for what seems like minutes, but it can’t be more than a few seconds. Time just… stops. That’s how it was from the first moment I met her.

  “Ark,” Good Cop finally says, breaking the stillness. “You have to start somewhere. We’re not gonna judge you, OK? We’re just here to get the story. You gotta trust us. OK?” When I look up at him he gives me a sympathetic shrug that comes off too real for me to chalk it up to FBI interrogation techniques. “You gotta tell someone, man. It might as well be us.”

  “It’s a long story.”

  “We’ve got all day.”

  “It’s”—I look at the picture for a moment, and then look up at Good Cop, AKA Special Agent Matheson—“complicated.”

  “I got a degree in logic, man. I can follow. And Jerry’s heard and seen it all, OK? He doesn’t judge.” Matheson jacks a thumb over his shoulder at Bad Cop, AKA Jerry. “Hell, he’s been involved in some fucked-up shit too. So just… take a deep breath, man. Just take a deep breath and start with the girl you’re calling Blue.”

  I do take a deep breath. Not because he told me to, but because I really need one. And then, because I know there’s no way I’m getting out of here without telling them something, I begin on the exhale…

  “I saw her first, OK?” I look up at Matheson and he nods. “I saw her first and that’s all you need to know.”

  It was last October. It was raining—pouring like a waterfall rushing down a mountain in the spring time. And the 16th Street Mall was empty because it was six-thirteen AM on Sunday.

  My hands were in my pockets, my shoulders were hunched like that would keep the rain off me. Church bells were ringing. A weird time for the bells, I remember thinking. But it’s burned into my memory of her. The church bells ringing. Every time I heard them I saw her in my head. Just like she looked that first day.

  She was soaked, huddled under an awning over a bookstore, crying. She was shivering and her teeth were chattering uncontrollably. Her eyes—a striking, almost surreal aquamarine—tracked me as I walked by. Last night’s makeup was streaked down her cheeks, black and gray stains that
mimicked the sky above.

  I stopped walking. Like mid-stride. And stared at her. She had on a short dress and no jacket. She looked like she’d been dumped there after a one-night stand gone wrong.

  “You OK?” I asked her.

  And then her eyes darted behind me and I knew that this was not going to turn out well.

  Now I look up at Matheson, maybe because he reminds me of someone I don’t want to think about right now. Or maybe because I already know the whole thing is over, so the secrets don’t matter anymore. But either way, I start talking.

  “I saw her first…”

  Late October

  6:13 AM

  16th Street Mall, Denver, CO

  My teeth are chattering so bad, I can’t seem to take a deep breath. And I really need a deep breath. I draw one in, but it’s not enough to stop the dizziness left over from last night’s party and the sobs come pouring out like the rain that floods over the top of the bookstore awning. The alcove is only two feet deep, and with the wind, any shelter is minimal.

  A cry escapes before I can rein it in. I look down at my bare feet and wonder if it’s possible to die of fright.

  Because I’m so scared right now.

  Voices. Men, at least two of them. They are loud, a little ways off, and they are running. Their boots thud as they come closer.

  I slink down to the ground and wrap my arms around my knees, trying to shrink into nothingness. Trying to be invisible. I duck my face down so my hair falls forward. The men come closer and I know—I just know—they are coming for me.

  I scramble to my feet, because fuck this. I’ll be damned if they’re gonna take me back. I’ll fight back this time. I will.

  The boots stop, like they know I’m here, and they start talking in hushed whispers. I imagine they are planning how to capture me, but it won’t be hard. I’m half naked in this summer dress that’s soaked through so that it’s clinging to my skin. My limbs are shaking. I doubt I have the strength to face one man, let alone two.

  The boots start again. Coming closer and closer.

  A man comes into view from the right and takes two steps. Two steps where I’m hopeful that he will not look to his left and see me standing here.

  But I used up all my luck last night when I escaped. Because his head turns in my direction and he stops. Mid-stride. And he just looks at me for a long moment. I bite my lip and hold in another sob, but it escapes as a whimper.

  His eyes narrow into slits. He’s wearing a black bomber jacket with the hood pulled up over his head and he’s got a large duffel bag slung over his shoulder. He looks scary as fuck until those eyes rest on mine. I let out the breath I was holding. Those eyes tell me everything. They are dark, but they are deep. And they are not the cruel eyes of the men I am running from. “You OK?” he asks.

  Before I can answer the second pair of boots is running towards us and another guy appears behind him. My eyes shoot to the face of the newcomer and again I’m surprised at what I find there.

  “Who’s this?” he asks in a playful tone. “My, my,” he adds, pushing the first guy out of the way. His eyes are light blue. Mesmerizing. Like the sky of a summer day. His blond hair is cropped short and he’s got some blond stubble to match. He’s soaked too, but he’s not dressed for it either. He’s wearing a tan flannel checked with red that looks so old-school, it might actually be from the Nineties. It’s hanging open, not even buttoned up, and underneath is a faded red t-shirt with the Rolling Stones tongue on it. “You look cold, darling. And wet.” He winks at me as he takes a step to close the few feet of distance between us.

  I shrink away from Grunge and look back at Deep Dark, desperate for some way to get past this moment. His eyes latch onto mine and never let go as he speaks. “You need some help?”

  I shake my head at him.

  But then Grunge is right up next to me, pulling my cold body into his. “You’re freezing,” he says, rubbing my bare arms. He wraps his hands around my waist and laughs into my neck like we’ve been friends our whole lives. “Me too. Wanna keep each other warm?”

  I struggle against him and Deep Dark puts a hand on Grunge’s shoulder. “Stop, JD. You’re scaring her.”

  JD puts his hands up in the air, a ‘my bad’ gesture, and steps away so Deep Dark can move in closer.

  He scans my body, seeing pretty much all of it since the dress is wet and plastered up against me. My nipples are perked up from the cold and pressing so hard against the thin fabric of my dress that every shift of my body rubs across them, sending a chill through my body. “Do you need help or not?” Deep Dark asks again. “Because we’re losing money here.”

  “Hey,” JD interrupts. “Calm down, man. We’ve got time. That last bitch bailed.”

  “Yeah,” Deep Dark says. “Which means we need another bitch fast.”

  “Well, lookie here,” JD says, gesturing to me. “She’s got potential.” He looks me up and down now, the same way Deep Dark just did. But he smiles. “She’s perfect, actually. Hey, darling, you need to make some money today? Get yourself out of this, ah… situation you find yourself in?”

  “Money?” I manage to squeak out.

  He moves up close to me again and his hands find the same place on my waist they had a few moments ago. “We’d like to take some pictures of you, darling. Right here,” he says, motioning to the alcove we’re all squished up into.

  I shake my head no, but he ignores me and turns to Deep Dark. “Go over there, Ark,” he whispers and points to an empty bus stop across the pedestrian street where only the mall busses run. “Your camera will be dry in there, right? And you got a long lens?”

  Ark nods his head, but he’s looking at me, not JD. “This what you want?”

  “What kind of pictures?”

  Ark opens his mouth to speak, but JD beats him to it. “No nudies, darling. Just like you are is fine. OK?” He reaches up and swipes a strand of wet hair away from my eyes.

  “What do I have to do?”

  JD smiles. “Depends on how much you wanna make.”

  “How much do I get for standing here and doing nothing?”

  JD leans in and kisses me. I’m so shocked I don’t even pull away. His lips brush against mine, lingering for a moment. His hot breath caresses my cold face. Then his hand is behind my neck as he slips in some tongue—twisting us together in a way that sends a chill of heat through my entire body. When he pulls away I almost reach for him.

  “Stand here looking lost and cold… I’ll pay you a hundred dollars. Let me kiss you like this, and you get two hundred. Get on your knees and suck my cock, and that’s five hundred. So it’s your call, darling. You tell me how much you need.”

  I lean back and stare up at him. His head is bent so he’s looking down on me. His smile is easy and those eyes are still mesmerizing. They’re like the water on a tropical beach.

  “Where did you get those eyes, darling?”

  I huff out a small laugh and my body relaxes a little. “I was just thinking the same thing about yours.”

  He traces my lips with his finger, so softly I have to swallow to stop myself from sucking on it. “So you wanna make a deal?”

  “Let me see the money.” When I stop talking he takes an opportunity to slip his finger into my mouth. Ark is already inside the bus stop, camera ready.

  JD pulls out a wad of cash and starts counting. “We’re gonna kiss, I know that much,” he says with a laugh. “So here’s two hundred right now.”

  He holds the money out and waits for me to take it. As soon as I do he thumbs up Ark and the camera shutter starts clicking. And then…

  I am kissed like I’ve never been kissed before in my life. His lips are magic. His hands brush against the back of my neck in a way that makes me tremble, and the cold ceases to exist. He presses his knee between my legs and lifts it slightly, rubbing it against the wet v of fabric that defines my pussy. His kiss continues. We’re twisted together again. He’s probing into me, deeper, on so many levels
. His knee, his tongue, his hand as it grasps my nape.

  I’m losing myself in him. I’ve never had a man affect me this way before in my life. I’ve never swooned over a kiss. I’ve never felt weightless from a hard body pressed against mine. I’ve never wanted something to go on forever quite like this moment I’m having with a complete stranger.

  My knees begin to buckle and I find myself sliding down the hard-edged brick wall until I’m sitting down, looking up at his beautiful face as he unbuckles his belt. “Five hundred more, darling. You want it?” He finishes with the buckle and unzips his pants, pulling out his fully erect cock. The head is round and thick, and the length is long. “Just put it in your mouth and let Ark get some shots—”

  A shrill whistle cuts off his words and he immediately stashes his dick away and pulls me to my feet. “We’ve got company.” He opens his flannel and pulls me into an embrace. He’s as wet as I am, so we become bonded together by our clinging clothes.

  A few seconds later a mall security vehicle passes by.

  Ark appears. “He’s on to us. We gotta go.”

  JD hugs me tight. “You wanna come back to our place and finish this off, darling?”

  I look down at the two hundred dollars still clutched in my fist, then notice my bare feet.

  JD notices my predicament at the same time and turns his back to me. “Hop on, baby. I’ll carry you.” He shoots me a wink over his shoulder and I can’t help myself.

  I laugh. After everything that happened last night, I can still laugh. And this stranger did that for me. He did that for me and he’s offering to do something else for me. He’s giving me a way out if I want it.

  Seven hundred dollars can buy a thrift-store outfit and a bus ticket. I could stop all this. I could leave Denver and forget.

  I look over at Ark and he shrugs. “You wanna suck his dick for five bills, that’s your choice. But you can take that two hundred and leave. And if I were you, I’d take that option. Because he’s not as charming as he looks. Neither of us are what we appear to be right now.”