Heartbreak 'n Heels

Chapter 26

The insurance company came to view the damage to the studio and paid out. Erica used the money to pay for the cleaning that had to happen and bought new mirrors. Now the poles were being installed and things were looking up.

"Babe, calm down! You're gonna blast off with all the jittering," Deacan said with a laugh.

"I can't help it. We're almost there. I open next week. Do you know how exciting that is?" she asked as she dipped her roller in the paint. They were painting the private rooms. This room was ocean blue.

"I know, but you're getting more paint on the tarps than the wall."

Erica stuck her tongue out at his exaggeration. Granted, her excitement had her bouncing around so she may have gotten more paint on herself than she expected, but her wall was coming along nicely. Deacan moved quickly and touched his tongue to hers.

"DEACAN!! That's gross, you weirdo!" Erica pushed him away and laughed.

He guffawed and shook his head. "Girl, my tongue has literally been in your mouth...among other places. That's the least "gross" thing I've ever done to you."

"Yeah, yeah, yeah. You're still a weirdo," Erica retorted. She turned back to her wall and went back to work. They worked in silence except for the music coming out of the Bluetooth speaker. Erica was half singing, half humming along to a song Deacan didn't recognize. It was a woman telling a man that he missed his chance to be with her. He smiled to himself as he thought about how he'd almost missed out on being with Erica when he'd left her office after the accident. He had God to thank for bringing her back into his life. He guessed Clark was good for something too.

The song changed and Deacan spied Erica trying to contain herself and not start dancing. No Hands was playing, her favorite ratchet song, and he knew she wouldn't be able to hold out for long. Just yesterday, she had been twerking in the kitchen to the song while she mopped the floor. If it was on in the car, she was dancing in the seat, even if she was driving. Now the song was at the chorus and her hips were going. Deacan abandoned his painting and slid up behind her.

He placed his hands firmly on her hips and moved with her. She pressed back harder into him and rubbed up on his hardening dick. Being with Erica was better than any strip club or nightclub he could go to. His own private dancer and she knew exactly how to work her body. She dropped her paint roller, bent over, and worked her hips so well that he was ready to strip her and take her on the paint splattered tarp. Deacan slid his hands under her shirt and pinched her nipples, making her whimper.

Erica knew if she kept dancing on him, soon they'd be naked and that's what she was hoping for. She wasn't going to make the move though; she wanted Deacan to do it. It was fun to get him all worked up and she knew he loved when she danced. He pulled her shirt over her head and turned her to face him. Before he could kiss her, her phone rang and they both groaned.

"Don't answer it," he said as he kissed her neck while his hand found its way between her thighs.

"I have to," she replied between moans, "delivery, remember?" Erica stepped away from him and greeted whoever was on the phone. Deacan took the opportunity to go to the restroom. He hoped that Erica would be ready to finish what they'd started when he came back.

Erica had her shirt on when he came back so he knew there would be no naughty stuff. "Who was it?" he asked.

"Officer Bendle. He's on his way to update me and show me some footage he was able to get from some businesses around here," she replied.

About 15 minutes later, Officer Bendle tapped on the glass. He spoke as Erica let him in the door, "Good afternoon, Ms. Benz, Mr. James. Glad I was able to catch you here since I was nearby. I wanted to give you an update."

"Great. We can talk in my office." She led him to her office and pointed at a chair for him to sit in. Deacan followed behind him and took the other chair.

When Erica had taken her seat behind the desk, the officer informed them of what he'd learned. Officer Bendle let them know he hadn't been able to get in contact with Jonathan. The officers had called, gone by his apartment, and gone to his job. They'd spoken to Jennifer and she'd told them that Jonathan had gone on an extended vacation. When he'd told her why he wanted to speak to Jonathan, Jennifer let him know about being Deacan's ex.

"Why didn't either of you reveal this information to us when we originally spoke?" Officer Bendle asked.

"It didn't cross my mind. I don't concern myself with her," Erica replied. Officer Bendle gave her a look dripping with skepticism.

"Seriously?" he shot back at her. "Your place is trashed and she doesn't come to mind at all?"

Erica sat up in her chair, staring the officer in the eye, and said, "Seriously. That woman, and I use the term loosely, is a non-factor in my world. Once she fu- screwed my boyfriend, she stopped existing as far as I'm concerned."

"But she used to date you, Mr. James? And from the way she made sure to let me know, I don't think she's over you."

Deacan scoffed, "Over me or not, I don't want anything to do with her and I've told her that. Besides, she doesn't even know Erica has this studio."

Officer Bendle nodded and wrote some notes on a pad. He pulled out his phone and pulled up a video. "Ms. Benz, take a look at this and tell me if you know the person in the video." He passed the phone to Erica and waited for her reply.

On the screen, Erica watched a white man in a baseball cap and shades break into her studio. He had a bag on his back. She assumed it held the spray paint and whatever he used to break the mirrors.

"Could that be Mr. King?" Officer Bendle asked.

"It's possible. I can't say for sure. I can't see his face." She passed the phone back to the officer and he handed it to Deacan, asking him to see if he knew the culprit. Deacan let him know that he didn't recognize the guy.

"Well, as I said, we haven't been able to get in contact with Mr. King. No one knows where he went on vacation or when he'll be back. We'll keep trying."

Erica thought it strange for Jonathan to be on an extended vacation. Not that he couldn't afford it. His parents had left him some money and he had their life insurance. He also had investments so he wasn't hurting for the means to do anything. Jonathan just hadn't been into traveling, especially after his parents died. That had been something they'd done together and travel had lost its luster after that. Maybe therapy had helped him and he was finally healing.

She told Officer Bendle this and that if he reached out to her or if she saw him, she would let him know. She and Deacan walked him to the door. Officer Bendle looked at his phone when it chimed and he turned to them.

"I have some other videos for you to look at." He pulled up a video that showed a different angle of the man and though she still couldn't tell if it was Jonathan, she could see the car he opened the passenger door to. A black car with tinted windows and no license plates.

AUTHOR'S NOTE: Hey, hey Party People! Jonathan has disappeared. Has he finally given up on Erica and moved on? What do y'all think? As we can see, Jennifer is still pining away after Deacan. Poor child, she's a glutton for punishment 'cause he don't want her.