Kristen Ashley - Law Man

“Before you show me the Spring Deluxe?” he asked, the warmth back in his eyes and it hit me that he was teasing me.

That knife twisted even as it sunk in deeper.

“This isn’t funny,” I whispered.

His eyes roamed my face as the warmth left his. It grew thoughtful then he took a step toward me.

I stepped back.

He stopped and looked at my feet. Then he looked back at me and took another step toward me.

I stepped back.

He kept coming and I had to stop when the backs of my legs hit a mattress. That was when he got in close.

Damn.

I tipped my head way back to look at him. “Mitch –”

“Actually, that whole thing was funny,” he replied to my earlier comment.

“No, actually, it wasn’t,” I retorted. “Now, you don’t want to be around me and this is your chance to escape so,” I tipped my head to the front door, “go.”

It was like I didn’t even speak. “Except your friend saying I got called away from pizza. That wasn’t funny.” His head dipped closer. “You lie to your friends, Mara?”

I stared into his eyes and realized he wasn’t amused or teasing anymore. I didn’t know what he was but I knew he wasn’t amused or teasing. Not even close.

“I don’t often share my personal life,” I told him. “Now –”

“That’s because you don’t have one,” he told me.

I clamped my mouth shut and fought the tears that suddenly stung my nose because him saying that and knowing it really hurt.

Then I tried, “Listen, it’s only Roberta and me on the floor so I really need to get back to work.”

His head lifted. His eyes scanned the cavernous space that was empty except for him and me, a bunch of furniture and mattresses. Then they came back to me. “Now you’re lying to me.”

Damn. Why was I such a dork?

“Mitch –”

“And not very well either.”

“Um…”

“What are you afraid of, Mara?”

I bit my lip and then answered, “Uh…”

“What scares you so fuckin’ much?” he asked.

Totally a police detective and therefore totally figuring me out. I hated that.

I looked at his shoulder.

“And what did you mean, people like you?” he pushed.

Oh boy.

I looked back into his eyes. “Um…”

“What kind of people are you?”

I took a quick step to the side and then another step back and blurted, “Would you like to see the Spring Deluxe?”

He turned to face me again. “No, I’d like to know why you think I don’t want to be around you.”

I ignored him and stated, “It’s an exceptional mattress.”

He closed the distance between us. When I started to move back, his arm shot out and curled around my waist, halting my progress even before it began. His other arm came around me, caging me in.

In Mitch’s arms again. This time at work. Great.

“Have I ever given you the impression I don’t want to be around you?” he kept at me.

Yes. He had. There was the time he told me I had my head up my ass and all the other times he said it. And the times he told me I was clueless. And not ten minutes ago when he was in the break room with me which was also a time when he shared he thought I was clueless and had my head up my ass.

I didn’t remind him of this. Instead I said, “It’s our highest end model but it’s worth the price. Trust me. You try it, you’ll want to buy it and there’s a possibility that Mr. Pierson will let me give you my employee discount.”

“You’re not gonna answer any of my questions, are you?”

“Lumbar support is very important and the Spring Deluxe provides excellent support while affording ultimate comfort,” I stated instead of answering. And I knew this to be true because I’d experienced it but also because I was quoting verbatim from their brochure.

He stared down at me and I pushed carefully against his arms hoping he’d get the hint, drop his arms and let me step back.

He didn’t.

Instead he said quietly, “Billy’s lookin’ at me like I told him there’s no Santa Claus.”

I closed my eyes.

“You did that,” Mitch told me and I opened my eyes.

“Billy knows there’s no Santa Claus. Bill already told him so he wouldn’t have to buy him presents at Christmas,” I shared more information that cemented the fact that my cousin Bill was indeed an assclown. Not that Bill needed it. His assclownedness was carved in marble.

Mitch shook his head and muttered, “Priceless.”

I pressed my lips together.

Mitch leaned in closer. “I broke through with him. He doesn’t trust anyone except you and I broke through. Then you broke that. You did that, Mara.”

“I’m sure you’ll break through again this weekend, Mitch,” I said softly.

“I’m not considerin’ Billy doesn’t give much of a shit who treats him right. What he does give a shit about is who treats his sister right and who treats you right and he thinks I walked away on Monday and left you to fend for yourself. And he might only be nine years old but he still knows exactly the load you took on takin’ on him and his sister. So now he thinks I’m a dick. And you did that.”

He was right. I did do that. Crap.

“I’ll explain things to him,” I assured.

“Right, bet you’ll be good at that since Billy’s more clued into what’s goin’ on than you are.”

My body stiffened and I whispered, “Can we not go there again?”

Mitch grew silent and he did this to study me again. Then he returned to his earlier theme and asked softly, “What kind of people are you, Mara?”

Mitch was using a soft voice. Mitch’s voice sounded nice soft. If Mitch talked to me soft for long, the jig would be up as in, I’d throw my arms around him and declare my undying love for him. Therefore I decided it was time to give him an answer.

“Not your kind, Mitch.”

His brows drew together and he asked, “What’s my kind?”

“Not my kind.”

“There it is,” he whispered.

“There what is?” I whispered back.

“I was wrong. When you’re in your head, it isn’t a decent place to be. It’s a twisted, fucked up place to be but you’re so shit-scared to leave it, it’s the only place you’re willin’ to be.”

I put gentle pressure on my hands at his biceps before saying, “I know you’re smart and I know you’re a detective but I also know you don’t know everything. I especially know that you think you’ve figured me out but you don’t know everything about me.”

“Then prove me wrong,” he returned instantly.

“You don’t know it but you don’t want me to do that,” I advised.

“Why? Because you’re not my kind?”

I nodded.

“Then you’re wrong and I’m right. I do know everything about you. Because out here in the real world, there aren’t ‘kinds’ and only someone twisted and fucked up or just plain stupid thinks there are. Since I don’t think you’re the last one that only means you’re the first two. But you waste your life thinking that way then you’re all three.”

With that infinitely successful verbal strike, he quickly let me go. I teetered as I turned and watched him walk out of the store. I did this with my nose stinging again but this time I wasn’t able to hold back the wetness that hit my eyes and my vision went blurry.

“You didn’t even get close to the Spring Deluxe!” I heard Mr. Pierson call after the door closed on Mitch.

I sucked in a shaky breath. Then to hide my tears, I called back without looking, “Mitch is set with his mattresses, Mr. Pierson!”

“Shame,” I heard Mr. Pierson mutter as a tear slid down my cheek.

It was. A crying shame.

I pulled into the complex listening to Nick Drake’s “Pink Moon” which was on my Premier Chill Out playlist, the first one I’d made.

I needed to chill out.

It was Saturday, nine forty-five at night and I was driving from work to home, a home where Mitch was. I was exhausted beyond any exhaustion I’d ever felt in my life. My exhaustion crept deeper just knowing I’d be facing Mitch and everything else I would be facing in the coming days and weeks and I didn’t even know what that would be. I just knew it would be exhausting.

On my day off Wednesday, I’d taken the kids to school and then went home and dragged all of my stuff out of the second bedroom. I found places for some of it in my room, my storage unit and the living room. Then the delivery guys delivered and set up the beds and two dressers I bought from Pierson’s. They also took away my futon because I gave Jay, one of the delivery guys, a screaming deal on it. During this, I did laundry. After it, I went to the grocery store.

Kids were little but I found they made more than their fair share of laundry and they also went through more than their fair share of food.

I dragged the food home, tidied the house and after this, I found the day was already gone and I was nearly late leaving to get the kids. I ran back out to my car, picked up the kids and took them to the mall so they could pick their bedclothes for their new beds. Then we went to get them some shoes. Billy’s tennis shoes were falling apart and Billie’s shoes were scruffy and didn’t match the cute outfits Mitch bought her which, every girl knew, wouldn’t do.

While we were getting Billie shoes, we found more shoes Billie had to have (this was Billie’s idea but I had to admit I agreed, they were adorable little girl shoes and she had to have them). Then I decided that both Billie and Billy needed more than a few decent outfits and they definitely needed new pajamas and underwear so we got more clothes. Then I decided to quit spending money or we’d be eating canned soup until my next payday. So we went home and we had dinner. I made up their beds and put their clothes in their new dressers. Then I helped them with their homework which luckily, considering their ages, wasn’t too taxing. Finally they went to bed and I cleaned up after dinner.