Soul of Freeman. 3rd Book of the Freeman Series.

Chapter 4

Chris panned between the man at the door and Allie. He put his burrito down beside him and stood up, cleaning his greasy hands on his jeans."Hi, Chris Serrano," he spoke with a mouthful then swallowed.

Allie stood up as well, but she didn't know what to say.

"Who are you?" Asked Dean.

"Um." Chris's eyeballs moved side to side. "Unlike what you might think, 'Chris Serrano' is not the greeting of my people, is actually my name."

The bald strongman chuckled and raised his eyebrows at Allie. The girl gave him a shy smile and held her bouncing stomach.

"I don't care about your name," said Dean. "I want to know what you're doing in my wife's apartment."

Those words made Allie snap back to herself.

"Chris, this is Dean Freeman and I'm not his wife. We are divorced."

"I don't think you needed to divulge our personal matters." Dean took a step inside the apartment and tilted his head at Allie's yellow-purple eye. "What happened to you?"

"That's none of your business. I'm not your wife."

"Chris," Dean turned to the bodybuilder, "you'll have to excuse us. I need to talk to Allie about the children we have that we created and raised together."

"Yes, the ones you are not letting me have any contact with." The ex-wife's lips turned to a dot and her nostrils widened.

Chris frowned, crossed his arms and flexed his pectoral muscles. He had a small smirk on his face.

"Mnn, the thing is, Mr. Freeman, we were about to have dinner, so all this tension is not good for the stomach. You should come back later."

Dean nodded and unbutton his jacket. He glanced at the two burritos on the couch and dropped his arms.

"Of course," he tapped his forehead with the bottom of his palm and pointed at the cushion. "It's dinner time. I understand. That smells good though."

He approached the couch, picked up both tortilla wraps, and threw them out the small window on the wall behind the couch.

"What the f**k, Dean?" Allie stomped her foot on the floor with closed fists. She had never been so angry about food in her life. Having been hungry for so many days, she hated him more for throwing out her precious burrito than for the fact that he cheated on her.

"If there ain't no food, it ain't dinner time," Dean grinned from ear to ear.

"You owe me twelve bucks, asshole." Chris positioned one leg slightly behind the other.

The ex-husband dug into his pants for his wallet, unfolded it and pulled out a crisp bill.

"Here's fifty. Go get yourself more steroids." He threw the paper strip against the bodybuilder's chest.

Chris looked down at his chest then at the money on the floor. He lengthened his neck, placed his hand on Dean's shoulder, and punched him on the stomach.

Dean bent over in pain but he pushed through it, so he got hold of Chris's neck and crushed the strongman's nose against his knee.

"No!" Allie screamed and stood between them. Chris managed to swing his fist over her head and jab Dean on his cheekbone.

Dean propelled back, but quickly recovered.

"Dumbfuck, you could've hit her."

Allie tried to stop her ex-husband's body as he continued.

"Swear 'o God, you touch her, you ain't seeing the light o' day."

"Stop it, Dean." Allie turned to Chris. "Thank you again. Please, leave."

"Are you gonna be okay?" Chris picked up the fifty dollars bill and set it down on Allie's coffee table.

Allie nodded rapidly and Chris complied with her wish.

***

Allie turned Dean's jaw side to side. She tapped the area around his reddened cheekbone and dropped her hands on her laps.

 "You'll be okay." She sat on the cushion beside him.

 "That man's dangerous. Did you see how quick he was to anger?" Said Dean.

 "He was quick to anger?" Allie stared at him with the corners of her eyes.

 "You witnessed the whole thing."

 "Yeah, aha, I did, and you were a total asshole." She hugged her shoulders, then rested her elbows on her knees. "You've changed so much. I guess Dean did die all those years ago and our marriage was me forcing things to happen."

 Dean turned his head toward her, followed by his torso and legs.

 "I'm still here."

 The girl frowned at his words. After all he had done to her, she couldn't believe he had said that.

 "Tell me this. Please, answer sincerely. What is it about me that makes people think they can lie to me the way you just did? At first I thought it was the money, but look at us here." She opened her arms. "This couch, I found it in a dumpster. All of my appliances are broken and I haven't had solid food since yesterday. Yet, you are still lying to me. I have nothing, Dean, so can I, at least, have the truth?"

 "That is the truth. I'm still here." He pecked her on the lips.

 Her neck pulled back immediately. Her shoulders were up, apprehensively.

 "I don't wanna play this game. If Meryl can't please you, then go find a whore."

 Her ex-husband kept a neutral expression. He moved his face closer to her, then pushed her and held her down on the couch.

 "Let me go or I'll scream," she juddered herself under him.

 "Are you? I can see your rock hard n*****s through your shirt."

 "It's cold in here. And you better let me go."

 "I'm not even applying full force."

 "I said, let me go!" She easily unlocked her arm and slapped him.

 His face motioned to the side then his lips sucked on her neck. Allie panted in euphoria and her arms gave up around him. She tried to forget about his lies for a moment, then pushed him off of her.

 "You're enjoying this, aren't you? My inability to say 'no' to you."

"How wet are you? Show me," Dean smirked.

Without a question, she traced her hand down her belly and under her leggings. She pushed down her panties, motioned her fingers around her arousal, and lifted them up to his chest.

He rubbed some of a clear, sticky liquid off one of her fingertips while he sucked on the rest. Then, he pulled off his tie and began to jerk her between her thighs with one hand.

The fast paced movements made Allie squeal. She thrust her hips, raising them higher toward him. His touch was the only thing that made her forget about the past. Some needed alcohol; some needed drugs; she needed him.

"Come, Sweetheart. Come on my hand."

"f**k me, Dean. I'll always be yours."

"No. I'm here for your pleasure. I'm here for you."

"Liar, liar, liar," she threw her head back. Her chest opened.

"There it is. Don't hold it back." His fingers moved faster as he kissed the corner of her lips.

She closed her eyes, enhancing the feeling of his skin and the fragrance of his hair. She missed him and he knew that. Her eyes burst into tears. Her hand clutched his shirt.

"Don't hate me, Sweetheart."

The girl took a deep breath and began convulsing under his fingers. She moaned louder without care and her abdomen compressed and released her pain.

***

"All right, clean up and let's go." Dean wiped Allie's juices off his fingers with a napkin.

 "What?" Allie pulled her leggings over her butt. "Where are we going?"

 She found his cold reaction strange. The way he fastened his tie made him look as if he had just finished a job.

 "You said you were hungry, right? I'm buying you food."

 "Oh, I appreciate it, but since you're doing something nice for me, why don't you buy me a stove and a fridge?" She felt ashamed for the first part of a sentence, but she had no choice.

 "Just sell your car and buy new appliances with the money."

 "Uh, I...I can't do that."

 "Okay." He dusted his jacket and didn't say anything else.

 Allie was expecting him to ask her 'why not' or ask her again about how she damaged her eye. He moved toward the door and waved his hand rapidly in frustration. She wished to tell him that she didn't want to eat anymore and wanted to kick him out of the apartment, but the hunger was greater than her desire to argue with him.

 Dean Freeman had no heart anymore.