Chapter Six

 

It couldn’t have been a more perfect fall day if Emma had designed it herself. The sun gave off a warm amber glow, bathing the small wooded area around the lake in golden light. A cool, crisp breeze blew over the surface of the water, ruffling the multicolored leaves on the trees. It was a little brisk but the sweatshirt she wore kept her plenty warm.

As predicted, she hadn’t fallen asleep right away last night. When she finally did get out of bed this morning all the events of the past few days bombarded her until she couldn’t sit still. She needed fresh air so she grabbed a pen and a notebook and took off in search of the perfect spot to spark her creative juices. She happened upon this serene lake and had spent the entire morning lost in her imagination. If her encounters with Ben were going to play through her mind on repeat, then she might as well put the memories to good use. And she had been. Already her characters seemed more three-dimensional and the prose had a more authentic quality that had been lacking before.

In fact, the world she created absorbed her so much that she didn’t notice the person standing next to the bench she had claimed upon arrival at the lake. Not until said person cleared her throat in an obvious play for her attention.

Startled, she glanced up to see an attractive brunette standing over her with a tentative smile.

“I’m Gina, “she said. “Sorry if I scared you.”

Politeness engrained into the fabric of Emma’s being, automatically she smiled and held out her hand. “Nice to meet you, I’m Emma.”

Smile shifting from tentative to open now that she was sure of her welcome, Gina shook her hand. “Yeah, I know. News travels fast in a small town. Do you mind if I sit with you for a few minutes? There’s something I’d like to talk to you about.”

Wondering what this complete stranger could possibly have to say to her, she nodded and gestured for her to take a seat next to her on the bench.

“You’re in town visiting Chloe?”

Emma could feel her eyebrows quirking up toward her hairline, she couldn’t help it. She got that this was a small town but having some random woman approach her who knew her business was unsettling. Perhaps she had just spent too much time in the city, where everybody ignored everybody else, but at least the illusion of privacy would have been appreciated.

“Yes, that’s right. Chloe’s a friend from college.” Why she felt the need to give this woman more details alluded her, but there it was.

Running a hand through her hair, Gina sighed. “Look, I know you don’t know me from anyone and typically I’m not this intrusive. But you’re not from here and I wanted to give you a fair warning. Chloe’s too close to be able to see the situation clearly.”

Emma started to piece together where this was headed and her muscles began to tighten with unwelcome tension. This really wasn’t anyone’s business and having some stranger take it upon herself to “warn” Emma off had her hackles rising. But just to be clear, she wanted Gina to spell it out. “I’m sorry, what are you talking about?”

The look that question apparently warranted was full of incredulity and Gina gave a slow response as though speaking to someone of lower intelligence. “I’m talking about Ben.” A thoughtful pause and then, “How much do you know about him?”

Admittedly, not much, but the invasiveness of this conversation had Emma longing to be able to tell her that she knew his entire life story and was just fine and dandy with it. Before she could get out any sort of answer, Gina spoke again.

“You’re probably like most women and got snared by how hot he is.” She gave a rueful smirk. “Hell, all the brothers are. Most of the women in this town would kill to be with one of them. But Ben is different. He doesn’t just look like the devil himself, Emma, he’s genuinely dangerous. You’d be doing yourself a huge favor if you steered clear of him.”

If that wasn’t a vague and cryptic comment, Emma didn’t know what was. Granted, her involvement with Ben had probably ended the previous evening, but she didn’t appreciate this woman’s unsolicited advice. Besides, she didn’t spook easily and wouldn’t write Ben off based on hearsay.

“He’s dangerous how, exactly?” If doubt and suspicion dripped from her tone? Yeah, there was nothing she could do about that.

Gina shook her head. “The particulars aren’t important. Let’s just say he has some bad associations with some very formidable people.” Her eyes took on a faraway cast as she wrapped her arms around her middle. “And he doesn’t treat women so good.”

Okay, now she had to call bullshit. Obviously, the man had commitment issues. The way he kept to himself and then disappeared from any sort of social situation suggested he had intimacy issues that far outreached just the romantic aspect of his personal life. And he sure as hell wasn’t Prince Charming. But to say that he abused women, in any capacity be it emotionally or physically? No, she didn’t buy it.

Ben had been straight with her from the get-go. She had known exactly what their arrangement was when they started and he had never tried to deceive her into believing it could develop into anything more. If he had meant to hurt her, he would have by now. As it was, his attention had been far from painful.

A self-deprecating laugh from Gina plucked her out of her thoughts and back into the here and now. “I can see the shock written all over your face but I speak from personal experience. Trust me when I say that he’s not worthy of you.”

Right. Emma’s money was on the probability that Gina’s situation with Ben resembled the scenario that Adam had warned Emma about last night. Unfortunately, sit was a story she’d heard before.

A gorgeous bad boy, typically aloof and withdrawn, shows some sexual interest in a woman. Said woman develops feelings for said bad boy because that’s what women do. They feel their way through just about every situation. Then the woman mistakenly believes that her love will change the bad boy and ends up getting burned in the end. Because men don’t change unless they damn well feel like it. Not because some needy woman badgers them into it. Especially not a man like Ben. She had seen it a thousand times if she had seen it once.

Emma was also willing to bet that Ben had let Gina know the score from the start. So now Emma had to wonder, what did Gina hope to gain by warning her off? Was it a case of “if I can’t have him no one can”? Or did she genuinely think that Ben was a dog and meant to save Emma some heartache?

Either way, the choice belonged to Emma and she wasn’t about to take relationship advice from a scorned lover.

“Well, I appreciate your taking the time to warn me. I’m sure it comes from a good place,” she said giving Gina a level look. When the other woman had trouble meeting her eyes, Emma knew the warning had come from scenario number one rather than any altruistic desire to save her pain. “But I’m sure I can handle myself around Ben. And don’t worry, I’ll be gone before he can do any irreparable damage.”

Closing her notebook, she shoved it and her pen into her bag and stood. “It was nice to meet you, Gina. I’m sure I’ll see you around.”

With a drawn smile, Gina rumbled some insincere pleasantries and the two woman went their separate ways.

Thank God she had been finishing up the scene she had been working on just as Gina approached her. That unexpected conversation put her off and the mood to write evaporated. Despite herself, Gina’s interference bothered her.

It would be hard enough to get Ben out of her head as it was. The random pieces of information on him, real or fabricated, compounded the enigma that she knew him to be. Now more than ever, she wanted to separate fact from fiction when it came to him.

Gina had made it seem as though his life were made up of some extremely shady dealings and all his nearest and dearest were thugs and mobsters. That version of the truth wasn’t very likely but for all she knew, his intense privacy and penchant for secrecy covered up the fact that he was actually a serial killer who only murdered out-of-towners.

And that was the problem right there. She just didn’t know. Ignorance in this situation was far from bliss but – unless some sort of miracle took place in which Ben opened up to her – she would have to accept it.

Just as she reached her car, her cellphone blew up. Chloe’s name glowed up at her as she checked the caller ID. Thinking she could use the distraction from her thoughts, she answered.

“Hey girl, whatcha doin’ tonight?” Chloe asked, in a much more chipper mood than Emma.

“Um, let me see. Writing, writing and, oh yeah, got some more writing to do.”

“I thought you came to visit to break yourself out of your normal patterns. Don’t you have to go out and experience life in order to write about it?”

Emma chuckled as she opened her car door and slid inside. “I’m sensing a sales pitch coming on. What would you like to do this evening, Chloe?”

The wide grin on Chloe’s face was audible through the phone line. “I’m so glad you asked, sweetie. Tonight, you’re about to have your first encounter with the illicit world of underground boxing.”