Throwaway by Heather Huffman Read Free Book Online

Gabe. It was garish
enough for Spence to not think twice about it, stylish enough she
wouldn’t feel the need to take extra clothes with her. She found a
few other treasures before calling it a day. On her way home, she
stopped in at the Cherokee Market for a soda.
    “Hello sunshine,” her favorite Irishman
greeted her, kindness and laughter dancing in his warm blue
eyes.
    “Hey Danny,” she smiled and hugged him.
“How’s the wife and kids?”
    “Beautiful as always. You coming to see me
tonight?”
    “It’s Wednesday, isn’t it?”
    “I didn’t know—I heard Spence was fit to be
tied today.”
    “I haven’t seen him,” Jessie frowned in
confusion. “What’s up?”
    “Word is he is sporting a fresh bruise on his
cheek… a lot like yours, actually. Some guy just walked up to him,
clocked him, and walked off.”
    “Really?” Jessie’s breath caught in her
throat.
    “Scared the life outta him, from what I
hear,” a smile seemed to be tugging the corner of his mouth.
    “Well, unless I’m in trouble and don’t know
it, I’ll be there tonight. Tell your family I said hey,” she kissed
him on the cheek and wandered back to her flat.
    Despite living on the same street for
fourteen years, she never got tired of soaking up all of its
character. How could you not love a place with murals on the sides
of buildings and mosaic tile trash cans?
    But today, she walked home without seeing her
surroundings. What had possessed Gabe to do something so stupid? If
Dan had noticed that Spence’s bruise matched her own, wouldn’t
everyone else—Spence included?
    Fear that he had made things worse for her
mingled with a small amount of satisfaction.
    “Spence is looking for you,” a Hispanic woman
with riotous curls called from the other side of the street as she
passed by. It didn’t matter how long she knew Marie, every time
Jessie saw her, the thought flitted through her mind that the girl
had obviously watched Pretty Woman once too often as a child.
    “Thanks,” Jessie waved and smiled, pretending
her stomach wasn’t in knots. If Marie sensed fear on Jessie’s part,
the story would be all over the neighborhood by the end of the day.
The more she could convince people this had absolutely nothing to
do with her, the better.
    To that end, she plastered a benign look on
her face and strolled into her apartment as if she hadn’t a care in
the world.
    “Wow, Spence… what happened to your face?”
Maybe it was a little over the top, but Jessie couldn’t help it.
When she saw the large black mark marring his pretty skin,
satisfaction quickly took top billing over fear.
    “Who did this to me?” his voice was low and
silky.
    “How should I know?” she tossed her bags on
the nearby couch, refusing to look at the obviously terrified
Harmony, who sat curled up in their oversized chair.
    “Because my cheek now bears an uncanny
resemblance to yours.”
    “Wow, you’re right. But I didn’t have
anything to do with this, Spence. How could I?”
    “What’s going on here?”
    “I told you—I don’t know. Everyone knows I’m
your girl. Maybe someone decided to get chivalrous… but I’m telling
you, I don’t know who did this or why.”
    Before she knew what was happening, he
crossed the distance between them—striking her on the other cheek
with a force that caused her to stumble backward.
    “Jessie,” Harmony shrieked, leaping to her
assistance.
    “Stay out of this!” Spence shouted.
    “Don’t hurt her,” Harmony pleaded.
    “Hey, no worries,” Jessie clasped Harmony’s
hands in her own, trying to calm the frantic teenager.
    “Let’s see if your boyfriend has a response
to that one.”
    “I’m telling you, there is no guy, Spence.
It’s just a coincidence.”
    “I guess we’ll see now, won’t we?” With that
pronouncement, he strode out of the little apartment.
    “Sorry about this,” Jessie whispered
miserably, blinking back tears that threatened to spill.
    “You don’t need to