Guilty

Zane

I stare at the steering wheel trying to calm myself down. Honestly, this damn girl is about to be the death of me.

Me and Juliette are always hot and cold. Fine and then fighting. I thought we were getting somewhere with talking about our families and our motivations for being lawyers. I know she had to have somewhat of a liking for me to trust me enough to tell me about Maddison.

And next thing I know we're screaming at each other in the damn rain. She is bossy and judgemental and rude that was a fact. And Maybe I am arrogant but I wasn't selfish.

I'd given up my childhood to try and protect James from my father's temper. I worked my ass off in school so I could make sure I would get a good job fast enough to get James out of the house with my father. Every time he fucked up as a kid I took the blame and took the abuse. I didn't tell anyone about Father Pavil or the way he'd hurt me so I didn't have to worry my mom.

I'd done...bad things for my friends.

I was not fucking selfish.

I sighed, rubbing my eyes. But of course, Juliette didn't know any of that, I'd gone to great lengths to make sure she never knew about any of that. So she wouldn't have to see those sides with me. I didn't want to scare her, didn't want her to know I came with baggage.

So I was either some pathetic guy with a fucked up past and present or I was a selfish arrogant prick in her eyes. Those were my options. I couldn't win with her.

I raise my eyes and stop breathing when I see Juliette. Her white t-shirt is soaked through, I can see her bra and the soft point of her nipples through her shirt. Her hair was soaked and beginning to go back to its natural wave.

She looked beautiful.

"Juliette," I murmur. She looked up, staring at me.

I hand her a spare jacket and she holds it confused, "Put that on so I can keep my eyes on the road and not kill the both of us. Your shirt is see-through."

She looks down at her shirt and pauses. I watch her through the mirror and try not to lower my eyes to stare at her. Not much of a point, the sight of her like this will forever be imprinted into my mind.

Her breath rises and falls as she draws in shaky breaths. I find I'm unable to breathe, "Juliette put the-"

The rest of my sentence dies in my throat when she reaches over, turns my head and kisses me. I understand why people believe in a higher power.

"I don't like you," She whispers against my mouth. "But God help me Zane Ivory you're beautiful," She says, kissing me again.

I move to tug her and she climbs into my lap. Her back is pressed against the steering wheel and she kisses me harder. There's no time to think or breathe. Moments like these are always fleeting with her, so I try to enjoy every second of it.

She pulls back and pauses, "You don't taste like cigarette smoke anymore."

Compared to the last time I had you in my lap at with your lips pressed against mine?

"I don't smoke anymore," I tell her, swallowing. My eyes focus on her bruised lips.

"Why not?" She asks, tilting her head to the right.

"You don't like it when I do," I tell her, it's the truth. Smoking gives me a release and gives me something to do but it's not worth it if she hates it.

Juliette gives me a strange look and then jumps when my phone starts ringing. I know who's calling me. It's not a call I can ignore. She hastily climbs off my lap and moves into the passenger seat, looking ahead.

"One of these days, you're going to let me touch you, Juliette. I'm not a patient man."

"I told you my legs wouldn't spread for you because of pretty words," She says, still looking ahead.

*****************************************

I walk into the bar on cloud nine, me and Juliette didn't say much to each other on the drive back. There wasn't much to say.

"Big game tonight!" Chloe calls out from behind the bar. She pours some drinks and yells, "And don't get yourself killed or kill anyone else."

"I know what I'm doing," I tell her heading towards the phone booth located at the back of the bar.

She says, "Careful Zane, if that's the case all those accidents happened on purpose."

I give her a dark look and walk inside the phone booth, dialling 666 on the line. It rings once before someone picks up.

"Particeps vel vigil?"

"Particeps," I say, glancing around.

The wall slides to the side to reveal the winding staircase leading downstairs. I run down and drag my hand over the stone walls as I walk downstairs.

Chloe's bar was built on top of a set of underground cave systems, similar to the catacombs. A hundred years ago it served as an illegal speakeasy for people to gamble their money away. Forty years ago it was turned into an illegal boxing ring for people to gamble their money away.

I first got involved when I was nineteen, I found out about the club through a few rumours and during a game I observed one of the coaches walked over and offered me the chance to be a fighter. I did a couple of trial fights and then was permanently brought in.

I didn't think I'd be any good but beating the shit out of someone is easy when you have a decade of suppressed rage. Earns me a pretty fucking penny too.

"Zane, welcome back son. We thought you'd be out for another couple of weeks," My coach says, walking over and pulling me into a hug. Cole Mathew was in his late forties but probably in better shape than all of us fighters. His father founded this whole thing and he took over once his old man stepped down.

I already had a dad but if I could pick someone I'd have picked Cole. He was more than a coach he was my mentor, my father figure and a pain in my ass.

"Yeah, that burn healed up a lot better and a lot quicker than either of us thought, so I'm back."

Thank you, Trouble.

"I'm sorry that ever happened to you, son. It was a big game but I had no idea that Rick's boys would respond to their failure by attacking you outside the ring. The man who did it, Lenny, has been dealt with," Cole says, walking with me.

"And when you say dealt with?" I ask him. Cole doesn't say anything just smiles and I smirk a little bit.

Jackson, Cole's son, walks over to us. He wasn't a fighter, Cole wanted him to be but despite his tall frame and muscles he never could get the techniques just right. After his fifth loss, Cole pulled him out and had him work as personal security.

"Zane your game starts in thirty so warm up and change," He tells me and I nod.

"I see that burn healed up pretty quickly," He remarks and I laugh. Cole rolls his eyes at the both of us and I lift my shirt to show the faded scar.

"What can I say? My girl's a modern-day Florence Nightingale," I say, laughing.

"She's not your girl you pathetic little fuck, leave that poor woman alone why don't you?" Cole calls out as he walks off. I roll my eyes.

Yeah, maybe I talked about Juliette a lot but still.

"Juliette is a distraction that's what she is, you don't need that or her," Jackson says, his eyes darkening. I shake him off, he's been in a shitty mood ever since his girlfriend broke up with him about two months ago.

Love is just so damn fickle.

Not for me though, no my crush was just on my lap dry humping me an hour ago. But sucks for everyone else.