Tempting

“What do you mean, you’re leaving?” It was the third time he was asking such a question, and every time she offered him the same reply, his face turned into an expression she couldn’t quite grasp.

“I have to leave, Coma. I don’t live here, I have a family and a job.” Of course that answer never pleased him; in his own mind, she had to understand that this entire gang was her life now. He no longer had a family, due to his job and misfortune in the past, and he tried as hard as he could to supress the memories and the meaning of having one at all.

The male paced around his poorly lit office, if you could even call it that. Andy, or the Prophet, sat in a chair by the entrance of said office, eyeing the two as they argued and never pronouncing a word. By now, Katherine had understood that he wasn’t a big fan of the girl’s presence, and that got them to exchange just a few words when necessary.

“You know what I think about that. We need you here, Katherine, not elsewhere doing Lord knows what. We have a deal and you can’t simply break it. Find a job here, it won’t be hard. We can even help you.” He wasn’t about to give up, Katherine realized, and the time was going by. Soon enough, her friends would be asking where she was and calling, and she needed to head home.

Katherine sighed heavily, clearly tired of having this conversation that seemed to be leading nowhere. She took a few steps forward, her heart pounding in her chest as she had a sudden strike of courage. The female was now standing right in front of Christian Coma, her bright eyes on his.

“Look, I know we have a deal. But I do have to leave; it would bring a lot of suspicion if I simply decided to stay. My parents would never allow it, and I do still have a life. Just help me out here, Coma.” Katherine’s tone was leading by then, and her eyes were filled with so much hope that Christian felt as if he were being stabbed repeatedly.

He wasn’t pleased to realize that she was having a bigger effect on him that he wished she had. However, watching those big eyes pleading him to let her go, he sighed and tried to come up with some sort of plan that would avoid him being judged by his mates.

“We have some leads on guys back in your home town. It’s not ideal, but I can’t stand to have this argument over and over again, so we can find a way to make this work. You will, at any time I call, follow the leads we give you and do what we tell you to do. No questions asked, and no backing down, Katherine.” Coma kept his firm posture and emotionless voice. “You know what will happen if you don’t do as agreed.”

The redhead held the sigh of relief she was meaning to release, only nodding as he finished talking. It wasn’t her ideal deal, but it was better than nothing. All she needed to do was keep it cool and find a way to not skip work to do what he wanted.
In a weird way, Katherine knew she was going to miss him. Of course, they had spent a lot more time than she wanted together, at first. The few days she spent in Los Angeles had been separated between hanging with her friends and not act in a suspicious way, and then do whatever Coma asked her to.

Somehow, Outlaw, or Ashley as you wish, and herself had become quite close due to him being the one to meet her whenever she was successful with a task Coma gave her. She still felt uneasy whenever she was around all of them, but knew that at least Ashley liked her a little bit. So far, no one had seemed to notice, and she wished for it to remain that way.

“Okay, I can do that. I’ll probably be coming here soon, to study for a few more years, so this is only temporary.” She had no idea why she was telling him such a thing, but as soon as it escaped her lips she knew she couldn’t take it back.

Coma, on the other hand, seemed pleased enough with this information. Andy merely scowled at them both, getting up and eyeing them carefully before making his way out of the office. The other male already knew that he was going to get a reprimand from his friend, and wasn’t exactly eager for it.

His hand travelled to the girl’s cheek, cupping it as a sly smile made his way to his thin yet very kissable lips. “I do like that. You are mine now, Katherine, it is only fair that you spend most of your time, if not all of it, by my side.” The intimidating Coma was back, and Katherine’s skin suddenly turned hot as hell with his sudden touch.

The male’s thumb ran across her lower lip, now tainted with a dark red colour, and for a moment the redhead thought he was going to kiss her. However, he did no such thing. Eyeing her with such intensity that it seemed he would be digging a hole in her soul soon enough, Coma brushed his lips against the skin right next to her ear, before releasing her quickly and turning back to his seat as if nothing had happened at all.

“You can go now, Katherine. You sure seem eager enough to do such a thing, and I don’t waste time with easily scared girls.” He told her, brushing her off with a hand wave.

Nodding, still dizzy from the sudden intimacy shared between the two, Katherine turned around and started to walk towards the exit, when his voice caught her attention once again.

“Oh, I almost forgot.” Coma said with a certain irony dripping on his tone. “I will visit you from time to time. I won’t warn you, so it will make things a bit more exciting.” Chuckling, he finished with that, going back to his papers.

Shuddering, Katherine left the place, hoping that she wouldn’t have to return so soon to that entire mess.

**

As expected, Andy returned to Coma’s office as soon as the redhead left, a judging look on his eyes. Christian didn’t need to look up to know who was in front of him, or why he was there.

“Please, Prophet, spare me the lecture that you seem to think you need to give me. I am the leader here, even though you seem to be it because of the name you carry.” The male told the other with a tired tone, not in the mood to deal with whatever it was he wanted to tell him.

Andy, however, didn’t go for it and sat down in front of him, resting both arms on each side of the chair and eyeing the male in front of him; he didn’t know who he was anymore, and that was what bothered him.

“You know very well that you’re starting to, somehow and Lord knows why, falling for this chick. None of us need the distraction Coma, which is why we only have one-night stands. Yet, you seem to be trying to fuck that up all the time!” His tone was condescending, and his eyes pierced through the other’s skull.

Sighing heavily, Coma left what he was doing and looked up, returning the cold look he was getting from the other.

“We need to get something straight here, Andrew.” He said bitterly. “I know what I am doing, and I am not starting to fall for anyone. She’s good for our job, and we all know it. You should realize it as well.”

Scoffing, Andy reached forward, his arms resting on the poorly built desk and diminishing the space between the two best friends. “I think you’re forgetting what happened when you decided to fall for that girl… What was her name? Olive? Olivia? Yes! Olivia.”

He didn’t stop there, continuing his trail of thought. “You seem to forget how she pretended to like you back, and then leave you with a bullet on your chest and everything we owned, all because you thought with that fucking heart, instead of thinking with your head! We can’t take another fall like that one, Coma!”

Christian’s entire demeanour changed, his eyes turning darker now, and he got up suddenly, ready to jump on Andy’s body and punch the life out of him. However, taking a large breath, he stopped himself.

“Get the fuck out of here, before I do something I shall regret in a few years, Andrew.” Andy seemed pleased with what he was saying, merely getting up and starting to walk out, a smirk on his lips. “And don’t ever say her name again!” The other warned before he left.