Page 8 of Sweet Redemption
Chapter Three
Charlie
“So Mark. Where’re you from?” Lila cooed out the question. God, she was going to make me sick the way she made her voice so syrupy. And she was driving so darn slow I could have walked faster to Arlene’s.
Also, I hated the way she called him Mark. Markus was a better fit for the gorgeous man sitting in the passenger side. Wavy dark brown hair and intense green eyes that reminded me of moss after a morning rain.
“Chicago.” Straight, no nonsense answer. His voice pulled me out of my musing.
The way Markus sat there with so much confidence, he wasn’t the usual man Lila attracted. But I knew Lila well, and she didn’t care as long as they had a pulse she’d jumped their bones. The real question was, was he attracted to her.Merde!The way she kept jutting her boobs out, I swore they were driving the truck.
“Ooh. I’ve always wanted to go to Chicago—Now why do they call it the Shy Town? I can’t imagine people there are shy.” Ugh. The sugary lift in her tone had me clenching my teeth to keep from gagging out my morning coffee.
Markus looked over at Lila and shook his head. “You mean Chi-town, C, H, I. Not S, H, Y. Some people always had that misconception of the spelling. Anyway, I think it was an abbreviation for Chicago. But, I really can’t say why.” Got to say, I liked Markus more. I guess he wasn’t into what Lila had to offer. But all men were sort of good in the beginning. Just like Devon.
I had wasted two years, four months and nine days on that sorry no-good-cheating-loser who I happened to catch kissing Lila in his car. That was the real reason why I hated Lila. Yet, it wasn’t worth fighting over a guy who simply didn’t want me. So I let it go…with her.
Nana was wrong about a lot of things, especially the attributes of men. And Devon was proof that men could be nice and be a total cheating jerk at the same time.
“So interesting,” Lila giggled. She glanced at him and winked.
“Really? Lila. You know if you went to the library, you would have known that answer,” I chided the slutty tramp.
“Really Miss Smarty-pants? I’m sure there’s nothing inside that rickety old building with any information about Chicago.”
Markus chuckled, which sent a wave of warmth through my belly. But I needed to ignore it. Swearing off men meant swearing off all men. No penis was worth a broken heart, unless it was battery operated.
Lila sent me a snide smirk before she jerked the steering wheel to the right, and slid into a parking spot at the end of the lot. “We’re here. And Mark, with today’s special, you get a sweet piece of pie—of course, if you want it.” She winked again, turning off the truck before getting out.
“Du musst mich verarschen verdammt sein,”I hissed in a barely audible whisper. I was thoroughly disgusted at how Lila was throwing herself at Markus.
“What?” Markus turned and asked me in surprise. My eyes went wide at his question, and couldn’t help but smile. He wasn’t immersed in languages, so he wouldn’t have understood my German. And I was no way going to explain what I just said.
“What did you just say?” he asked. His sweet looking mouth turned up in a half smirk.
“Nothing,” I chirped.
Markus shook his head, slid out and extended his hand to me.
I didn’t hesitate and took Markus’s hand and stepped down onto the snow-covered pavement. My Nana would probably say,“Now that’s a man’s man. He’s what you need to look for in your life, Charlie.He’d treat you right, and with respect. He’s a keeper.”Geez, if I listened to everything my Nana decreed as importance in a man, I would still be a virgin. Besides, helping someone out of the truck wasn’t some life saving endeavor.
“Thanks,” I uttered with hesitancy, and then pulled my hand away.
“Charlie?” There was trepidation in his voice.
“Yes?” My body stiffened in response, but was afraid to look into his beautiful piercing green eyes.
With his finger, he tipped my face up to him. “I’m not interested in Lila’s pie,” Markus offered with a small knowing grin.
“What—” I pulled away from his touch. “How—the audacity to think I give twomerdesabout what you do. I don’t even know you. There’s Arlene’s. Have at it.” I turned and stalked off toward a large brick building that had seen better days. My haven from the world.
“Where are you going?” Markus called. “I thought you were hungry.”
I spun around and hollered back, “I’ve lost my appetite. Hope you enjoy your stay.” Then I gave a single wave goodbye in hopes that I would never see Markus again.
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Markus
