ME AND MY DADDI

EPIODE 1

When his limo came around a corner, Darian caught sight of something that stopped his heart. A young woman stood surrounded by three guys. Right away, he could tell the girl was drunk, confused, and terrified.

“Hicks, stop the car!” Darian yelled and jumped out before it came to a full stop. He spun the first man around and shoved his knee into his groin, effectively taking care of him. His right hook flattened the next guy. The last guy yelled and ran, leaving his injured friends behind to wither on the sidewalk.

Darian pointed to the men on the ground. “Watch them while I get her taken care of.”

Hicks had come around the car with a tire iron as backup. He nodded and slammed the metal against his palm in a threatening manner.

Darian made it to the girl as her legs gave out. “I’ve got you.”

She stared up at the stranger as she seemed to try to understand what just happened. “Who are you?”

“My name is Darian, baby. You’re safe with me. Just relax.”

“I didn’t mean it,” she whimpered and laid her head on his chest. “I don’t want to cause problems.”

Darian kept his arms around her and pulled her tighter against him. “You didn’t do anything wrong, love.”

She nodded. “I did. I always do.”

He nuzzled the side of her head and looked up as two girls came racing around the corner.

“Jesus, Larkin, you almost gave us a heart attack,” one of the women said.

The other one caught sight of the men on the ground and pressed a hand to her mouth. “Oh, my God. What happened?”

“Three men were accosting your friend here.”

“Oh, God, Larkin.” The tall one gasped.

Darian narrowed his eyes. “Where were you guys?”

Both women turned red at the accusing expression on his face. The shorter one cleared her throat. “We were in the bar around the corner. We turned around for a second, and she was gone. The minute we saw that, we raced through the bar and then out here when we couldn’t find her.”

“So, you’re her friends?” Darian asked and raised a single eyebrow.

The tall one crossed her arms over her chest. “Yeah, I mean, we haven’t known each other long, but we met when she started working with us.”

“What are your names?”

“I’m Monica,” the tall one said. “This is Laura, and you’re holding Larkin.”

“I’ll need your phone numbers, and I’ll give you my information and have her call you in the morning.”

“Wait! What?” Laura burst out. “You can’t take her. We’ll take care of her.”

Darian shook his head. “From the way you look, you both have had a few drinks. Correct?”

Both women nodded.

“She is highly intoxicated and should be watched all night. Are you going to be able to stay awake and take care of her?”

Both women glanced at each other. “She’s only had a few beers. We didn’t know she’d react to alcohol like this.”

“Now that you see it does, how would you handle the situation?” he asked Monica.

“We’ll call someone to come over,” Monica said.

Darian looked over his shoulder. “Hicks, will you get a business card for them and write my number on it?”

Hicks nodded and took a look at the men on the ground, as though making sure they couldn’t cause trouble. “Yes, sir.” Within a minute, the driver handed Monica the card.

“That has all my information…”

Laura shook her head and started to take a step toward them but stopped at the look in his eyes. “Listen, we can’t let you take our friend. We don’t know if you’re a good guy.”

Darian sighed. He commended them for fighting for her, but he just wanted to get her home. “What would ease your minds?”

Monica looked at Laura then back at him. “For starters, someone to confirm who you are.”

“Hicks, will you go into the bar they were in and have the manager come out?”

“Sure thing.” His driver disappeared around the corner.

Darian took more of her weight when her legs wouldn’t stop shaking and he had a hard time holding herself up.

“Are you sure she’s only had a few beers? Is there a chance someone slid something into her glass?”

Laura shook her head. “No chance. We don’t trust anyone but each other, so we pay close attention to the people around us.”

“It could have been the bartender,” he suggested.

Monica shook her head. “We only order bottles of beer, and we have our own bottle opener. A friend of ours was drugged a few years ago, so we’re cautious.”

Darian nodded. “Why do you think she’s like this now?”

“She never drinks. We told her she didn’t have to drink to come with us,” Monica explained. “But she said she wanted off the porch for once.”

“What the hell does that mean?” he asked in frustration.

“It’s a saying. If you can’t play with the big dogs, stay on the porch with the puppies,” Laura explained.

Darian closed his eyes. He started to ask something else, but Hicks had brought back another guy.

“Boss, this is Danner. He’s the manager.” Hicks turned to Danner. “Do you know who this is?”

Darian knew the answer when the man’s eyes widened and his mouth fell open.

“Mr. Marsh.”

“Is he a good guy?” Laura asked Danner.

Danner nodded. “Oh, yeah. I’m surprised you haven’t heard of him before. He owns a lot of businesses in town.”

“Like what?” Monica asked, seeming curious.

“He owns the whole Stapleton Building, for starters.”

“I’m not the only one that owns it,” Darian said. “I have some friends who are involved with several of my ventures.”

“I’m dizzy,” Larkin murmured against Darian’s chest.

“Do you have everything you need? Because she’s going to pass out here pretty soon,” Darian said.

Monica and Laura nodded.

“Where will she be?” Laura asked.

“My condo in town. The address is on the card. I don’t think it would be a good idea to have her in the car for as long as it would take to get to the house.”

“If you want us to come get her, call,” Monica said.

Darian bent his knees and lifted Larkin into his arms. “I doubt I’ll be calling, but I’ll have her call in the morning, so you don’t worry.”

Hicks opened the back door of the limo. “What do you want done with those two?” Hicks indicated the men on the ground.

Darian turned to look down at the pathetic men he’d laid out. “Nothing,” he said before he ducked into the car. He arranged Larkin in his lap, so her head was on his chest and her legs were stretched out over the padded seat. He was vaguely aware of the three sets of eyes watching him from the sidewalk. “Get us to the building. I can guarantee she’s going to be sick.”

“Poor girl,” Hicks whispered as he pulled into the street.

“We’ll take care of her.” Darian smoothed her hair from her face. She was a beautiful woman. He loved how she curled herself around him and lay against him so trustingly. He knew she was drunk, but the way she had looked at him made his stomach tighten with desire.

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