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//-->Chapter One"You want a cup of java? Worst coffee inthe world, swear to God. Only seventy-five cents for a half-ounce brewedyesterday morning. Best any bastardmachine can vend.""Damn, if you're not a prince amongmen. Jerk.""Only the best for you. Drink up beforeit gets cold. Colder."Chastity stared down at the micro-cupher best friend Gio had shoved into herhand.“Christ,” she said in disgust. Not onlycold, it had lumps of powdered creamerfloating on top and an oily skin. “Is thiscoffee or engine grease?"Gio gave a shrug. He leaned back against the bus station wall, adjusting hisworn-out Yankees ball cap. “Probably both.""If I drink this crap, will it put hair on my chest or kill me?""Bitch." Gio swatted at her. “Cut the dramatics and play nice. This is ourtouching goodbye scene, in case you forgot.""How could I?” Chastity asked dryly. She glanced around. “So this is me,running away from home. Not too much like the movies.""In real life, it never is.""That's the God's honest truth.” Chastity glanced around herself. “Feels like I'min a movie. A bad one. Set the scene: the Bronx, an empty bus station. Time:midnight. Extras: two—no, three winos. Maybe homeless, maybe not. Extratouch of local color with the one wearing a Smart Shopper plastic bag on herhead, but you need a shopping cart or two full of crap to really make thebackground pop."2"Don't forget the crack-heads begging for loose change.""Right. Those are important. Need them for a real New York flavor.” Chastitytook a sip of her coffee. “Oh, shit, this is awful!""You better learn to watch your mouth, C. Way you got this plan laid out, you'regonna have to start talking like a Manhattan call girl, not a hooker straight out ofthe Queens.""Sex. Everything with you is sex. Sex-related.""I'm a guy. What else do you expect?"Chastity rolled her eyes. “Mother of God. Why do I put up with you again?"Gio grinned. His teeth sparkled against the pale mocha of his skin, surroundedby the goatee she'd been nagging him to shave for months.“You love me and you know it.” He threw an arm around Chastity and draggedher against his chest. “Come away with me. We'll make a run for the Jerseyborder and stop in Reno to get married by a fat, fake Elvis. I'll even buy somecondoms ribbed for your pleasure and not wear them inside out.""Would you shower?""Hey, now you're pushing it.” Gio relaxed his grip on Chastity with an easygoingjostle. “I don't put on the Ritz for anyone who just asks, you know.""And you wonder why you can't get a date.""Aw, hell. The girls all think I'm too pretty for their skinny asses.”Gio dodged Chastity's slap.“I'm in no hurry. I'll find someone, probably right around the corner. Heck, afterall, I'm not the one who's going anywhere. That'd be you.""Yeah,” Chastity said. She took another swallow of what was, yes, definitely theworld's worst coffee and shuddered. “I'm on my way.""Straight to the top."23"No more punks who want to make me their baby's momma or their latest streetpiece.""Say goodbye to spray-paint art.""So long, Times Square.""Farewell to fucking Broadway.""And to hell with the rest of this shit-hole town, too.” Chastity toyed with herpaper cup. “Hello, Texas.""Texas.” Gio shook his head.He laid a hand, rough from hard work at the age of twenty-one, on Chastity'sstrong thigh. “You've got the best legs,” he said, distracted for a second. “Wherewas I? Oh, yeah. Go on and hit me if you want, but I got to ask: you sure youknow what you're doing? I mean, you're pointed at a whole new world. Texasmight as well be another planet from what I hear. How do you think you'regonna fit in? How do you plan to make it on your own?""Are you saying you don't think I can do this?""Jesus, no. Anyone who says that to Chastity Vincent better watch out for theirballs. I just want to be sure you'll be all right.""I'll be great.” Chastity lifted her chin. “Have you ever known me to fail when Iput my mind to something?"Gio considered the question. “Nope.""There you go, then.""Are you sure you won't stay here? Just think about it. You could move in withme above my dad's garage and start popping out a litter of street rats.""I'd rather burn in Hell, thanks."Gio whistled.“Ouch, girl. Ouch.” All the same, he offered her his special grin, the one he knewmelted women's hearts and dampened their panties at twenty paces. If he usedthat look on a girl, nine times out of ten he'd have an X-rated story to tell the next34day. None of them would go out with Gio on an actual date, but by God, they'dfuck him.Chastity eyed her best friend. He did look pretty fine, even worn out from a hardday's work and backlit by too-bright fluorescents. Not like she'd be stupidenough to fall for his tricks, of course. Chastity held up a hand.“Oh, no. Don't you even go there. Don't try the look on me, mister. I had myshots.""Yeah.” Gio's hand squeezed her leg. Anyone else, she'd have punched.From Gio ... well, they had history. She'd let his move slide. They both knew thescore. “We did give things a shot. Once upon a time, eh?"His eyes glittered with sudden humor. “I still say you didn't give me a chance toprove myself. See, the way I figure, it doesn't matter how wrong we got the sexpart the one time we tried. You need special treatment. I know that, now. I coulddo better for you. Help you enjoy it, instead of..."His thumb stroked circles on her hand. “We could give things another shot, youknow,” he said, voice warm and tempting as tequila. “You and me. See where ittakes us."Chastity started to giggle. “You'd actually give up your wicked ways?""For you?” Gio gave her a half-smile. “Yeah. I would. But I'm not a dummy, evenif I didn't make it through high school. I already know if I asked, really asked, onthe level, you'd say no. I'm not who you want. Not what you need.""Please. You had your chance, and you blew it.” Chastity sighed. “Hell, we bothdid.""Only ‘cause you ran so far so fast the morning after it took me months to catchup and get you talking to me again."Chastity shrugged. She picked at the rim of her cup. “I just ... you ... I freaked,okay? You and me, naked. Being together like that felt wrong. A dirty kind ofwrong.""God, you're good for a man's ego. Me, I think we could've been good. Hey, can Idemand a right to a retrial?"45"You want to relive our one night by the docks in your pimp-mobile?""It's not a pimp-mobile. It's a pussy bus."Chastity slapped at Gio, laughing. “Jerk! See, this is exactly why it wouldn'twork for us. All you know is how to think with your little head.""Magnum-sized, thank you.""You wish.""I get the job done.” Gio reached out to twine his fingers through Chastity's. “Wedidn't even get all the way to gold when we tried, sweet girl. I would have madeit good for you.""Gio...""I never will forget that night. God, but you looked fine by moonlight. All shinydark hair and that body of yours.” Gio whistled. “Chastity, you were made tomake men sit up and take notice.""I'm too tall and my tits are too big.""There's no such things as too much in the cups. So you're not a heroin chick, allbones and baggy eyes. Chastity, you've got the body of an Aztec queen. AnAmazon. A warrior woman.""Gio, don't. Okay? Don't.""She doesn't like poetry either. God help you, girlfriend.” Gio shook his head. Heoffered her another grin, softer, more like her friend, less like a man on theprowl. “You'll never catch a man.""I don't need one.""Bull!""See? Again with the sex, sex, sex. Life is so not all about sex, Gio. The life I'mheaded for is not going to be about finding someone to fall in love with. It'sabout freedom. Always has been. Always will be. I don't need someone to tie medown. Don't want anyone, either."5 [ Pobierz całość w formacie PDF ]

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