Page 6 of Forbidden Love Still Blooms

“That's not a great example of customer service,” Dezmond laughs.

“I said we're closed. Leave before I call the cops.”

“You don't want to do that,” Jake warns.

My eyes snap to my phone that's still playing music. The beautiful, tortured voice in the speakers becomes everyone's focus. Jake moves first, his spindly legs crossing the room faster than I can. Desperate, I throw the broom at him, smashing him across the cheek. “Fuck!” he roars.

He recoils, I snatch my phone, the music stopping when I press the button to start dialing. A hand catches my forearm, digging in. Dezmond holds me firm. “Don't,” he growls. “You really do not want to make that call, Lori.”

“Then get your ass out of here,” I say, glaring into his glacial blue eyes.

“We will. In a minute.”

“No, do it now or I'm dialing 911.”

The bodybuilder looking guy with a shaved head and a black and yellow shirt starts to laugh. His textured cheeks catch the light like craters on the moon. “You got a lot of nerve for a bitch all alone by herself.”

Ignoring him I try to pull away from Dez. He holds me tighter, his smile making my stomach lurch. Dezmond keeps his attention on my face as he speaks to his group. “Take everything in the register.”

On cue Jake, who until now had been rubbing his jaw, goes behind the counter. I'm only a few feet away, I watch in disbelief and rising anger as he opens the register and starts fishing out the money.

“Stop it!” I shout. “You can't do that!” Jake ignores me, and the other men move closer to help him gather the cash. Dezmond digs his nails into my flesh, demanding I look at him instead of them. “You're insane if you think I won't report this! You're going to get arrested, all of you are.”

“No. We're not.” He says it with such confidence I startle. His gang stuffs every last dollar into a small backpack the big bald guy is holding. Dezmond, seeming satisfied, tells them, “Go out front. Wait for me, I'll be there in a minute.”

They listen to him without any disagreement. I, meanwhile, have no intention of that. I raise my phone towards me, typing with just my thumb. I have a nine and a one complete before Dezmond sees the screen. He doesn't grab the phone, he just whispers, “Don't be stupid. You call for help, and you're going to prison for more years than me.”

“What do you mean?” I ask, my thumb hovering over the last number. One press and I can call for help. The door clicks closed behind his crew, leaving me alone with Dez.

“Here's the deal,” he whispers, “you're not going to tell anyone I robbed your store. You're going to shut up, keep it to yourself.”

“Why the hell would I do that?”

“Because doing what I say, whatever it might be, is the smartest thing you can do for yourself, Lorikeet Jones. Otherwise, your life is over.”

He expects me to cower. I grin, unable to quell the laughter that leaves me in little rumbles. Dezmond's cocky smile transforms into confused irritation. “What will you do if I don't listen? Kill me? You're a petty thief at best, Dez.A bully.You aren't capable of murder.”

His fingers dig in—I wince through my taunting grin. “You could be right. Not everyone can be like you, Lori.”

Frost slips down my spine. “I don't know what you mean.”

“Yes, you do,” he says. I'm done smiling. He's the king of that, now. “Listen closely. I know where your father is.”

I want to throw up. I want to whip the phone into his face and break his nose. I want to jump out of my own flesh and wake from this nightmare. With sweat building under my arms, I keep my voice steady. “That's great news. My mom and I have been trying to figure out where he ran off to for a long time.”

“That's a nice story, and what you'd like everyone to believe.”

I speak with a dry mouth. “It's the truth.”

“No no no,” he chuckles, getting really close. There's a sour stench on his breath—cheap beer. “Iknowwhere he is. And you do, too, because you put him there.”

The phone in my hand lowers to the counter. I set it there gently. It's no use to me now. Dezmond looks at it briefly, his smile spreading ear to ear.

“You're wrong,” I whisper. If I was cold before, I'm a tundra now. I can't move and I don't even feel the pain of his grip that is turning my skin purple.

He's won. We both know it, even before he lands the final blow.

“You killed him, Lori. And I know where you hid the body.”

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