Author: Priscilla West

“Try it,” he insisted.

“I think I’ll just . . . look.”

He shrugged, as if to say suit yourself. “If you’re looking for discreet, this is it.” He stuck the knife back into its sheath and slipped it into the hip pocket of his cargo pants. “Can’t even see it.”

“Don’t you think this is all a little overkill?” I asked to both men. They both looked at me, surprised.

“You can never be too prepared, honey,” Darryl said.

Vincent nodded.

Ugh. Men.

I exhaled heavily, which seemed to make Vincent come to his senses.

“It’s a beautiful knife,” Vincent said, his charming business persona taking over. “But I think we’re more interested in something like this.” He pointed to a row of silver necklaces spread across the top shelf of the case, a different pendant attached to each chain. The quaint pieces of jewelry looked out of place next to the weapons that surrounded them.

“Ah, these are very popular,” Darryl said as he set the knife down next to the rocket launcher, much to my relief.

“A necklace?” I asked, turning to Vincent.

“Not quite.”

“Which one are you interested in?” Darryl asked.

Vincent looked at me contemplatively, as if considering which pendant would suit me best, before turning back to the case. “That one.”

Darryl pulled one of the necklaces from the bunch and held it up, a small heart-shaped locket spinning from the chain. He showed me the bottom of the heart which contained a small hole.

“You can insert a mace cartridge into the back,” Vincent said, taking the necklace from Darryl and laying the heart flat on his palm. He flipped it open to reveal a small canister, its nozzle situated into the hole.

“You just squeeze the heart in the center to shoot the mace.” He draped the necklace around my neck and fastened it.

I looked down at it, afraid to even touch it for fear of setting it off inside. “I don’t know, Vincent. What if someone knocks into me and it goes off?”

“There’s a safety switch,” Darryl cut in. “See the small button on the side? You have to slide it down to be able to use it. If you’re in trouble you won’t have to reach into your purse, these necklaces are one of our best sellers because they’re so convenient.”

“Kristen, if someone attacks you, you’ll be able to defend yourself without inflicting any real damage to them. All I want is to be able to protect you, and this is the only way I know how. I can’t always be there.” He reached out and touched the pendant, his fingers brushing against my exposed clavicle. The gesture was tender and so were his words. If it would make Vincent feel better knowing that I could defend myself then I didn’t see the harm in wearing the necklace. In fact, the idea of having something so accessible already felt like a small comfort to me.

“All right, I’ll take it,” I said.

“We’ll get one for Riley too,” Vincent said.

“Riley already has her own.”

“But is it a necklace? It’ll be more convenient than whatever she’s carrying around in her purse.”

It was a good suggestion. Although Marty had been cordial with Riley the first time he stopped by, I knew his mood could escalate, and quickly. I didn’t want her to be collateral damage.

I nodded in agreement.

“I also think you should have something else, just in case the mace isn’t enough,” he added.

“I’ve got just the thing,” Darryl said, reaching below the display case. I imagined him pulling out a flamethrower or a chainsaw so I was almost taken aback by the simplicity of the small rectangular device he set in front of us. “It’s a taser. If the mace doesn’t subdue him, this will. Guaranteed.”

I picked it up and pressed its button, jumping as a bright blue electric current ignited at the taser’s end.

“This seems dangerous.”

“It will hurt someone, no doubt. But not permanently,” Darryl assured me.

“It’ll be a last resort item,” Vincent said. “Just keep it in your purse.”

I could think of a million ways something could go wrong with the necklace—I could forget to wear it one day, it could break, or get ripped from my neck. Having a backup plan couldn’t hurt.

“Better safe than sorry,” I conceded.

Vincent smiled and pushed the taser and necklace toward Darryl. “And a few extra mace cartridges,” he said. “So she can practice.”

I turned to Vincent as Darryl rang us up. “Well, if Marty does show up he’ll be sorry,” I tried to laugh off my unease.

“He can’t hurt you now, Kristen. I won’t let it happen.” He reached out and brushed the hair from my face, and I found myself wishing he didn’t have to leave town—the mace and the taser were helpful, but neither of them could make me feel as safe as Vincent did.

Vincent paid for the items, by his insistence of course, but at least this time they were cheaper than a day of surfing. As we left the store and approached his car he put his arm around my shoulder and pulled me into him. “You know, I think that rocket launcher suited you.”

“I could barely hold it!”

He leaned me against the driver’s side door; his hands settled into the groove of my waist. “You’ve handled more powerful things.”

“Powerful, yes,” I teased, rising up onto the tips of my toes to bring my mouth close to his. “But not as big.”

His hold on my waist tightened as he gripped at the fabric of my shirt, balling it up in his fists as if he wanted to tear it from me.

“I’ve never heard you complain.” He planted a hard kiss onto my lips and I almost dropped my shopping bag, the sensation of his skin against mine sending a wave of desire through me. Worried that other shoppers might catch us in our heated embrace, I broke away from the kiss.

“Too bad it’s not big enough to reach from Brazil to New York City,” I said.

“What’s your schedule like tomorrow?” he asked as we got into the car.

“I’ll be pretty tied up all day. I have a meeting with Carl and then I need to review some things on your account. Why?”

“Just because I’ll be in South America doesn’t mean I don’t want to see you, what about video chat tomorrow night? How’s seven?”

I leaned close to him, breathing in the sharp scent of his cologne. “It’s a date.”

Chapter Two

Vincent swung by a Duane Reade so I could grab Riley a few more cold remedies and then dropped me off at my apartment. I hated to say goodbye so suddenly but I knew he needed to get to the airport to catch his flight.

I climbed the flight of stairs in my apartment building to my floor and saw two guys carrying boxes into the apartment across from me. One was tall and leanly muscular with a striped shirt stretching against his torso that seemed two sizes too small for his build. The other was short and stout with broad shoulders and bulging biceps. The odd duo reminded me of Mario and Luigi.

A cd fell out of the box the short guy was carrying and I stooped to pick it up.

“Here, you dropped this.” As I held out the cd, I looked at the cover. There was some weird picture of a sphinx—head of a man, body of a lion—except the head was female and the body was a motorcycle. The title read “Born This Way by Lady Gaga”.

He set the box he was carrying on the floor inside, smiled, and took the cd from me. “Thank you so much. Can’t imagine going for long without these catchy tunes.” His smile widened and he offered his large hand. “Bernie.”

I shook it. “Kristen.”

He gestured to his tall friend who was unpacking kitchen items. “And that’s Kurt.”

“Hello.” I waved. “Welcome to the building.”

Kurt smiled and waved back. “Are you in the unit just across from us?”

“Yep, the one with the blue ‘home sweet home’ doormat in front.”

“Great to meet the neighbors!” He grinned.

After exchanging pleasantries, Kurt and Bernie returned to their business, but not before inviting Riley and I over for dinner sometime after they’d finished settling in. They seemed like a nice couple.

I opened my front door to find Riley curled up in a blanket on the couch, a steaming mug cupped in her hands. At least she was sitting up, a noticeable improvement from the last few days.

“Vick’s vapor rub, moisturized tissues, and cough drops—strawberry flavored, of course.” I set the bag of items on the dining room table along with my bag of protective gear and flopped onto the couch beside her.

“You’re the best,” Riley said, her voice still nasally. “But I still wouldn’t sit too close, I don’t want to get you sick. Vincent would probably never forgive me if a cold kept you from seeing him.”

“Actually, he’s leaving for Brazil tonight for a launch party.” I tried to keep my voice even, not wanting to betray the jealousy that was lingering faintly in the back of my mind.

“So that means I can cough in your general direction?” she joked.

“No,” I rolled my eyes. “But it does mean I’m staying in. And I need your help with something if you’re feeling up to it.”

“Okay. What’s going on?”

I wrung my hands nervously, knowing that if I told Riley about the mace and taser I’d have to tell her about Marty, too. But she deserved to hear the truth, especially if there was a chance that she’d have to deal with him again. “I remember you had mace when we were in Cape Town and Vincent just bought me some. I was wondering if you could show me how to use it?”

“Mace?” she asked as she set her mug down and turned to me. “Is this about your ex?”

“Yes. I haven’t heard from him since the day he stopped by, but I just wanted to be prepared.”

“Prepared for what, Kristen? You still haven’t told me what happened with him.”