-1-

"Good job Cathy! You really knocked him dead this time." Coach yells across the room as I straddle the man below me shifting my weight as he tries to press me away from him.

"Thanks Coach, I try my hardest!" I shift my body upwards and remove myself from Giles, my sparring partner, and stand before him. My hands go up to my head and I push my brunette hair back into the ponytail snapping it in place with the band around my wrist.

"Gosh dang it Cathy, do you know the point of sparring is not kill me?!" His hand finds mine as I reach down to him, and I pull him up to standing.

"Ego hurt? Sounds like a personal problem to me gills." My voice sounds like I am speaking to a small child and his eyes turn into slits of brown.

"It is damaged because of you Cathy. Now all of my friends think that I can be beat by a girl that's half my size." His voice is barely above a whisper looking over the other sparring teams like that didn't just witness his brutal ass kicking he received.

"It is not my fault that you can't take a punch. You're the one that avoids the gym and thinks his body will magically become an eight pack of rock-hard steel." My voice is mocking, and he just groans in annoyance laying his hand against the male shower's door.

"Okay, first that was honestly offensive Mrs. I have a six pack and I am a woman. You are like a different version superwoman! No one can beat you!" His voice is hurt, and his left hand goes to his heart.

"Boo hooo cry like a baby, now I need a shower so we can meet at my car afterwards. 'Kay?" My hand holds leans against my door, and I watch Giles smirk looking me over.

"Mind if I join you, Cathy? Save water and all that?"

I slap my forehead and walk into the shower room, before I close the door I turn and yell back,

"In your dreams Giles!"

"Your right! It is in my dreams!"

Pervert.

~*~

"Fine! We will stop at the diner. I thought I was only giving you a ride to and from training Giles." My car hums under my hand as I turn into the Underworld Diner. It is the place for everyone to eat and it has food to die for. Ha-ha. No pun intended.

"Yes. I love you! By the way, you're paying." Giles says and I put my car in park.

My eyes roll to the back of my head, and I look at him, "I always pay Giles. Do you ever leave the house with your wallet?"

"I only forget it when I am with you." My eyes turn to him, and I shake my head as my feet hit the parking lot, "Ya know you need to get a boyfriend. Or something! Your panties are knotted, and you need a man to undo them for you." Giles voice is serious as we enter the diner and I let out a sigh knowing full well that if I gave him the chance to get into my pants, he would take it in a heartbeat.

Every man that I try to date always has a flaw that I just can't deal with. I know except other people's' flaws and all blah blah blah, but the last guy I dated called me while I was in the bathroom to make sure I was okay, which only seems nice, however he was right outside the door.

My eyes scan the diner as we look for a place to sit and I spot a place in the back corner. The table happened to be next to a group of good-looking men, and both Giles and I perk up at the thought of getting to sit next to them, even if we only get to stare.

The man that stood out most sat in the center of his friends. His hair is a dark brown and falls nicely on his head in a way that didn't require much styling. I just want to run my hand through it as he rails me into next week. The man's eyes take on a grey color that seem to look into everyone's soul.

The man seems to sniff the air and his head flies in my direction, his eyes meeting mine. The grey orbs melt into a honey gold color with him quickly standing up from his friends with an inaudible comment before he starts walking over to us.

"Oh, shit Cathy! That hunk a hot is walking towards us, you to be specific. Stop looking like a deceased fish and talk to him when he comes over!" Giles shoves my shoulder lightly towards him with wiggling eyebrows.

"Then leave! You mess up my mojo!" I throw my shoulders back as Giles cough calls me a bitch letting the 'hunk a hot' approach me. Giles slides into the table was had originally planned and turns behind him to introduce himself to the others. Such a player.

"I won't lie when I say that you are one of the most exquisite women I have seen in my time. My name is Thad, may I have the pleasure of knowing your name?" His accent is hard to place, something of a mix with an older style of speech with more modern tones, it's easily something that I could get off to.

"Cathy," I reply and hold out my hand. He reaches out and shakes my hand as sparks shoot through me and I pull my hand away quickly. He raises his eyebrows and I look down at my hand, "Sorry, I guess I rubbed the carpet in my car to many times before getting out. Didn't mean to shock you there."

"That is fine, darling. I tend to prefer a shocking first meeting. Keeps thing's interesting. What brings you to the diner today and how I haven't seen you here before?" His voice sends shivers through me, and I look at the ground, my cheeks turn a bright red.

"Uh… well. Giles, my guy friend, and I just got done working out and we needed a place to eat. We come here pretty often though, so I am surprised we haven't met sooner." Weak. My voice is so weak. My heart hammers against my chest as I look over this man, my body wanting to just be alone and ravish him.

Why did I make it so important to say guy friend?

"Well would it be too much to ask if you guys ate with us, and of course let me pay…" Free food? Hot guy? Count me the hell in.

"I mean I guess, what is the harm in that?" The harm is the dent I am about to put in his checkbook with my double cheeseburger order, but he has already offered so shame on him.

"Well then, come on." Thad holds out his hand. I place my hand in his, he drags me to the big table a light hum moving over our skins as Giles shifts himself over to squeeze in with the other gentlemen that Thad was with earlier.

Thad and I slip into one side together as the other three boys scrunch up onto their side. The men at the table don't seem bothered by it and gladly scoot as much as they can to fit him in.

A young waitress quickly greets us grabbing drink orders and asking if we need anything, Thad just looks over the crew and shakes his head and the woman dashes off pulling her apron tighter over her waist.

The guy sitting next to Giles across the table speaks up, "My name is Vic, short for Victor. I work with Thadium to help him run his business."

The next man next to Vic speaks, a beautiful darker toned man with warm chocolate eyes, "My name is Kyler. People call me Ky."

"So, your names are Vic, Ky, and Thad, those are very… different. Is Thad short for anything?"

"Thadium. We come from a heritage of weird names. Our families have worked together for, well it feels like forever." A light chuckle moves through the trio like an unsaid inside joke.

Before I can open my mouth, the waiter comes back dropping our drinks off and holding her book up.

Everyone looks at me, "I will have the double mushroom swiss burger, add bacon please, with a side of ranch and double fries."

The look that the men give me is shell shocking.

"What boys? Never met a girl that can eat?" I scrunch my nose and Giles laughs turning to the waitress to order.

"I will have a single cheeseburger with a salad, and maybe toss on a phone number?"

"How about a hamburger with no side and a reality check?" She retorts clicking her tongue at him.

"Sounds great thanks." He sinks into the chair.

Each of the guys ordered, but when Thad orders I look at him, "I will have the same as Cathy."

Thad gathers each of the menus for the waiter while we converse about different things.

"So, you both have a wife at home?" They both look younger, younger than I would expect to be married, but the shit eating grins that take over their face tell me that they wouldn't change it for the world.

"Very much so, my wife is such an amazing woman. I would love to tell you more about her sometime!" Ky remarks looking over that Vic that agrees.

I look to Thad who takes in a breath, the boy watching him intently with Giles seem to be ready to attack from his seat, "I am not married, but as of recently I hope that changes."

~*~

My car is warm as I lean against it after eating and then arguing with Thad who is going to pay even though he had originally offered. Pride ya know?

Now he stood next to me, a smug grin on his face, while I hold my keys attempting to pry his hand off of the keyhole. My car is not one of those nice ones that you can just hit a button, it's old and you have to manually do it and he figured that out rather fucking quickly.

"Just let me get in my car." My voice is completely calm as I look at Thad who just takes another breath in and gives me small smile.

"Then go on a date with me. I promise that I won't bite. Yet." The temptation to allow myself to submit to him and his request is overwhelming, but I hold my ground tugging at his hand attempting to remove him.

"Where do you work out?" My voice is strained as I continue to pull his arm, my muscles flexing as I try to move his stable hand and to think my grip strength was strong.

"Go on a date with me."

"Remove your hand."

"Go on a date with me."

"Remove the hand before I bite it off." I click my teeth at him, and he laughs.

"Go on one date with me."

"Remove the damn hand!"

"One date!"

"Fine you caused this." I duck my head down to bite his hand which he pulls away last second.

I shoot back up and shove the key into the lock as he grabs my waist, turns me around, and puts me back against the car. Oh, this is fucking hot.

"And you caused this. Go on one date with me or at least let me have your number. I know I am being demanding, but I promise, I will make it worth your time." His voice is a scratchy whisper rubbing all the right places in my sex lacking brain.

"Fine you can have my number. Now I am going to get into my car."

Before he moves, he tugs his phone out of his back pocket holding it out to me and I type in my digits quickly. He sends me a quick text to confirm and then pulls himself away from me letting me get into my old car, Giles soon joining me after he was done in the diner.

"Anything crazy happen while I washed my hands?" He looks at me, my face flush with adrenaline.

"Uh… nope. Let's get you home."

~*~

If life and karma has faces, I would put a single bullet through both of them as they fucked me over.

My car sits next to me on the side of the road that I should be driving down. While I knew that this car needed some work, the fact the rusty bitch decides now is the time to fail is infuriating, especially when it was after I dropped off Giles who should be suffering with me.

I slide my phone out of my pocket to scroll through the contacts knowing damn well that while I know how to change my oil that whatever is causing this car to steam, and screech is not something that I have the capacity to fix.

Thadium or Giles?

I feel like I need a sunflower and pig tails as I stare at their names. 'Does he love me, does he not?'

While Giles loves me and wants to help, his lack of funds leaves him stranded most days at home with no way to purchases gas, while Thad on the other hand seems to have his life together and could afford to spare some change to drive this way, or at least drive me home.

I push the call button.

"Hello?" The male voice runs through my speakers the lack of ring scaring me into slamming my head into the car with a thunk.

"Ouch! Erm- Hey! Sorry to bother you, but my car broke down on the side of the road and I had no one else to call that might actually help. Do you think you know any-"?

"Where are you?" His concern is sweet but cutting me off is not. Shrugging it off I list off my coordinates and I hear a rip him call out to someone that he would be returning soon.

"Be there in five minutes." The call ends and I let out a sigh of relief.

Feeling the need to release a little energy I start to jog around the car while falling into push-ups. Too much anxiety is getting to me.

"You know that is over ninety degrees outside, right?"

I look at the clock on my phone trying not to seem too surprised. Huh. Right on time.

"Um… Yeah I was feeling a little anxious… about my car. So, I started to work off the energy… in ninety-degree weather." The amount of pitiful I am as I melt under his worried gaze. If he told me to bend over right now, I know for a fact my dumb ass would turn around and ask how far.

"Well, I am happy to help your anxiety about the… car." Thad says while walking up to my hunk of shit. I join him at his right side as he pops open the front and looks down at all the components. Okay, so I have never been good with cars and looking over all the parts that just blend together make me anxious making me force myself to step away.

"Are you a gearhead?" I ask him as he walks back to his car and comes back with a bag of tools.

"I wear many hats and car repair is one of them, lots of things that go wrong in the business in which I am involved that take an innovative mind to put back together. I can assure you that this is simple fix and won't take more than five minutes of your time." Swoon.

He shuffles around grabbing tools as he needs them, sending me cute smiles in between and after another five minutes pass he steps back reaching out to grab the keys from my hand jumping into the driver's seat.

The purr of my working car sounds heavenly.

Thad high-fives himself in the driver's seat and reach out for a fist bump. Definitely a good step to showing me he is worth it.

~*~

Punch.

Nothing ever happens to me like what happened at the diner and the car fixing yesterday.

Kick.

What is the guy's problem, does he see me? I am not even that pretty.

Punch.

Am I overthinking again?

What is up with him and his friends, I have lived in Deadfall since I was born, I know everyone here, except him and those two lovesick dudes. Now that I have had time to be away from him, logic starts to fall into place and some things aren't adding up.

"You can't keep hurting that punching bag, against you it has no chance." Giles pipes up from the bench in the corner of the fighting rink sitting like a defeated child that just had his toy taken.

"Well, I have to release stress and frustration out somehow and this punching bag is doing the trick, unless you want to step into the ring asshole." Punch.

"Have you checked your phone at all?" He grunts behind me, and I hear the light shifting of my duffle bag as he rummages through it.

"Have you any privacy mongrel!" My hand reaches out as I jump across the training area, and I snatch the bag from his prying fingers.

"Check your phone."

"What is up with guys bossing me around lately? I mean seriously..." I reach into my bag and pull out my phone.

I have a text.

Thadium: If you will have me, I would love to take you out tonight.

Giles breaths down my neck to look over the message from Thad, his scream deafening me as he shoots back jumping like a mad man, "My bitch of a bestie is going to get laid!"

Cathy: Sure. How about eight? I will text you the address later. :)

His response is instantaneous.

Thadium: Eight would be perfect. Counting down the minutes my darling.

~*~

Later that night I stand awkwardly in front of my mirror trying to figure out if I am hot enough to wear this, or if my bloated-ness is too noticeable and I need to go a different route.

A silver sequin dress that has a low-cut front and a simple string back hangs lightly from my shoulders stops just above the knee. A small slit runs up the side and allows the dress to be bunched up slightly at the waist giving me more of an hourglass figure but also hides the crazy amount of water I drank earlier that my body is freaking out trying to do something with it.

Finally giving up on my self-esteem. I toss my hair into a low bun, hair accents behind each ear and do a simple face with darker lids trying to bring out the darker undertones of my lips.

Knock

Looks like he is here, just on time too. Grabbing the strap heels I had planned I toss them on and click over to the front door tugging it open while I grab the cross over purse I save for special occasions.

Thad stands in front of me, his eyes beginning to swirl with a noticeable gold as he takes me in, "You have no idea how blessed I am to be your angelic presence, love."

"Are those for me?" I thumb at the bouquet of white roses he holds in his arms, and he smiles handing them to me. If my heart could smile it would be grinning ear to ear, but the warmth between my thighs will have to be enough indication of how much I like the flowers and how much I liked his tux.

After a short drive-in silence, we pull into one of the nicest places in town, Fire, and Ice. While this restaurant has raving reviews, the reservations are booked out for months in advance telling me that the amount of pull with the society of high rich assholes must me more than I expected.

"Let me get your door for you."

The brunette exits the car walking around to pull open my door for me a wave of sparks spreading over my skin as he tugs me into him leading us towards the entrance.

"Reservation for Thadium." The man looks down at his book and nods his head. He grabs two menus and takes us to a table next to the window. After we are sat and have the time to order our drinks, I figure that the best time to drill anyone with questions is before the wine hits the table.

"So, mysterious Thad, what brings you to Deadfall?"

"My business required me to travel back to Deadfall for a short season. I find myself returning every once and while to keep up to date on business affairs and such." His response seems choreographed, planned, almost articulated but the delivery was perfect. Convincing.

"Well did you do what you needed to do, see who you needed to see?" I use the menu as a buffer running my eyes over it to try to find something that I might like, nothing jumping out from the black and white wording.

"Yes, I found what I needed to find and continue to see who I needed to see. Do you plan to quiz me all night?" His voice is calm and protective, and he looks over me seeming to scan my face for something.

"Then why are you here?"

"While I might have found what I need, the legality of taking it is causing me problems. It seems I need something a little more secure to have it without restrictions."

"Is it a document?"

"It is more than a document. Much more."

"Oh? Is this something with drugs? Or the mafia? That would explain the tattoos-"

"A person."

"A who?"

"A person. Someone that means more to me than most and is very important to my company. Honestly, the future of the company. In this day and age, the simple 'hey that's mine' no longer works. So, I am attempting to get them in another way."

"Did 'hey that's mine' ever work? I mean are you talking about legally kidnapping someone because you believe they will future your company?"

"Yes. That is exactly what I am talking about, but the government is being difficult. I should have it figured out in two days' time, my ties with the government are more important than their weird laws."

The dinner is finished quietly his eyes roaming over me and watching me as I focus on staying calm throughout the dinner.

While I might have admitted to myself, I would enjoy a night or two tangled in the sheets, a major turn off is abduction.

~*~

"Crap Giles you need to get over here now." I say into the phone after Thad dropped me at my house. I hadn't even taken off my shoes as I continue to pace around the living room of my apartment.

"What is wrong Cathy? You know that I hate using the gas in my car." His voice is tired, and I knew that I had woken him up.

"I will buy you a full tank of gas, just please get over here."

"If it's that serious… I can be there in five." Giles ends the call. The phone drops out of my hand onto the floor as I plop my butt onto the couch.

Everything seems wrong about this situation. Who would want to legally kidnap a person? Any person? And what does the fucking government have to do with it? What kind of business is this fucker running?

A knock sounds through my apartment and I open the door to hopefully find Giles, but instead I found Thad.

"Erm- Hey!" Try to be cool. Try to be cool.

"Hey! You left your wallet in my car, so I decided to bring it back before you get too settled."

"Oh, thank you. I definitely will need that," I let out a small laugh, "Will that be all?"

"Are you alright?"

"Uh… yes just attempting to get ready for bed." Please leave.

"I had an amazing time; I hope you are able to get some sleep."

I hear a man clearing his throat and speak up, "Of course I will."

Giles stands behind Thad and I motion him in, as Thad stands there looking between us, Giles being the idiot he is waving Thad inside.

"Why not come inside? We were just going to watch some movies!"

Thad walks in, his big figure taking up as much space as possible while Giles goes and drops on the couch flipping through the movie holder.

"You have a beautiful apartment; your parents must be proud of you."

My parents… I wish they were with me. I wish that they could be proud. Before he could see the tears, I walked into the kitchen to get myself a glass of water and wipe the tears.

It took me a minute to calm down, but I did what I always do and sucked it up, "Yeah they are really proud of me."

"That is really good. Mind if I get a glass of water while you're in there Cathy?" I could hear his feet coming into the kitchen to check on me and I knew if he walked in here that he would see that I was almost in tears.

"Of course, I will. Why not take a seat on the couch will I get that for you?"

The glasses are easy to stare at as they fill up and give me good focus as I walk back into the living room to the men going through the movies together.

"Hey Cathy! You said you wanted to see the movie Guardians of the Galaxy, so I am going to get it set up, okay?" Giles smile at me and I nod in response setting the waters down.

"You're right! You know where the DVD player is. I am going to go talk to Thadium on the porch. Be just a minute. Do you mind Thad?" The handsome stranger nods at me standing up to walk toward the door letting the cool air surround us. I go to step back into the apartment to grab a coat, but Thad instead takes off his jacket tossing it over my shoulders his shared his shaking the ice off my bones.

"What is going on with you and Giles?"

"What do you mean what is going on with him and I, Thadium? And how is that any of your business?"

"You know what I am talking about, Cathy. That man in there is in love with you and you just invite him over after our night out?"

"Calm down there. You have no right to be asking questions about my life decisions. We are not together. You or him. For your information he is my best friend. Not that you need to know that, but anyway. Nothing is going on with him and I. And please, Thad, If you continue to talk to me like that, I will show you what a free face remodeling looks like."

"So fiery and beautiful."

"You do not get to just jump around here. You are being a dick and keep things that there is more between us-" His hands come around my hips pushing me into the wall, his face level with mine as he looks over me a deep gold swirling in his eyes.

"Thadium…" I whisper and he moans against me kissing down my chin.

"You better watch yourself Cathy, or I might have to show you exactly what's between us."