Page 133 of Foreplay on Words

I started to back out of the doorway, my breathing already ragged and my clothes feeling too tight. Seeing Simone was about to send me into a full-blown panic attack.

Right as I let go of the door, Chase turned fully toward me with a look of shock on her face, probably pretty similar to mine.

“Fuck, fuck, fuck.”

I stumbled a little as I hurried down a hallway, through the lobby, and out the front entrance.

My pulse was racing, and I felt my neck tightening—seeing floaters in my line of sight. I could hear the rasp in my breathing start, a tingling sensation creeping along my jaw. Pacing back and forth outside the door, struggling to pull in full breaths, my worst nightmare came walking toward me.

“I wondered where you ran off to.” Her voice was sugary sweet, totally at odds with the blood crusted in one nostril and the start of some severe bruises underneath her eyes. She looked like she’d been in a fight. Her dress was a little wrinkled, and droplets of blood were visible on one of her straps.

“Go away.”

“Oh, come on, baby, don’t be like that,” she cooed as she stepped closer.

“Don’t-d-don’t call me that,” I stuttered as she stepped closer to me once more.

“Still have that nervous stutter around me, I see.” She pressed herself along my side, and I started gasping for air. She really couldn’t take a hint.

“Cause looking in the face of e-evil...freaks me out.”

“You used to not be able to keep your hands off me,” she said suggestively as she ran her hand down my front and stopped at my belt. “We could go upstairs, and you can teach me your new tricks.”

I pushed her away and looked back toward the hotel. Sam was coming around the corner, headed straight for us. My mind raced through my options as I tried to distance myself from Simone.

I knew I needed to talk to Chase but also to calm myself down. There was no way I could do that with Simone harassing me.

“L-le-leave me th-the f-uck a-alone,” I growled and gesticulated wildly as she tried to come near me again.

My whole face tingled, and now I was finding it increasingly difficult to breathe as I tried to wave her off. Sam came through the door at the same time a cab pulled up on the curb, and I made a split-second decision.

Stumbling across the sidewalk, I made a break for the cab and wrenched the door open, jumping inside and slamming the door.

“G-go...please...” I panted as the driver hesitated and looked at me like I was crazy through the rearview mirror. My voice was pinched, and I was wheezing as I put my head down and tried to take deep breaths.

He pulled away from the curb, and I could see the little meter start on the computer screen in the back.

“You gonna tell me where we’re goin’ or do I gotta guess?” he sniped. He had a very pronounced South Boston accent and looked like he didn’t put up with anybody’s shit.

“Uh...” I was still having trouble drawing a full breath, and I couldn’t get my eyes to focus.

“Come on, man,” he groaned. “If you’re on something, I don’t need to get mixed up in that shit. No junkie is gonna OD in my car, nice suit or not.”

I tried to calm my breathing enough to talk, but my throat was dry, and I felt a little lightheaded. “I-I-I’m...”

“What the hell you on? You can’t even fuckin talk.”

“No-noth-nothing...” I gasped.

“Yeah, right, and I’m a priest. Come on. I don’t need this bullshit. I’m dropping you off atta urgent care center.”

I shook my head back and forth, but he’d already turned into a parking lot, the red lights of the “EMERGENCY” sign blurring in my vision. He parked at the curb and got out, crossing over to my door and opening it, pulling me out by the arm, and guiding me to a bench beside the clinic entrance.

“I’m not even gonna charge ya. Get some fuckin help before you kill ya self.”

My throat was tight as I leaned forward and put my head in my hands, desperately trying to slow my breathing. Several people passed through the doors to my side as I sat there trying to calm down.

A figure approached in my peripheral vision, and I glanced up at a concerned-looking woman wearing scrubs.

---