Chapter 10

Things are really quiet around here and Justin has been acting really weird lately. Ever since that day at the shop, he's just been paranoid or something. I went out the lunch with Olivia the other day and he called me like ten times to make sure that everything was okay. I'm starting to think that something else happened at the shop because he has seriously been bugging these past few weeks. But, on a different note, I think I'm starting to get over my Tony fear. I haven't seen or heard from him since that day at my office and I'm really starting to think that he's given up. Well, at least part of me likes to think that. The other part of me is saying that he's just waiting for me, that he's waiting for the perfect time to rip everything away from me and send me back into that hell he called love. The thought of him still makes me shutter, so I guess I'm not as over him as I thought. Since I'm not working, Justin has been keeping me busy over at the shop. I help him and Trace out as much as I can and it's kinda fun hanging with them all day. Trace is a trip though, and I swear, he'll have sex with anything.

Justin and I are getting really serious. We've been together for almost eight months now and things just keep getting better, you know, minus the whole Tony thing. I've been staying over at his place for what, a month? Maybe even two. I've been thinking a lot about just moving in with him and selling my place. I mean, what's the point in paying a mortgage on a place that I'm not even staying in anymore. Maybe I'll bring it at dinner or something; hopefully he feels the same way about it.

Right now, we are down town with Trace and Elisha, picking out some furniture for Elisha's new place. She's a cute girl but I still have no idea why in the hell she's attracted to Trace. Don't get me wrong, I love the boy but damn, he's just a mess. We walk into yet another furniture store and I let out a sigh while running my fingers over some random couch, "You okay?" Justin asks while wrapping his arms around my waist and pulling me into his chest.

"Yeah, I'm just kinda tired, that's all."

"Oh, I kept you up kinda late didn't I?" He chuckles into my ear as the memories of our endless love making the night before ran through my head.

"Ha, don't flatter yourself."

He gasps in mock distress and releases me from his grasp, "That was low." He says walking away from me and heading toward Trace.

I throw my head back and laugh at his childish attitude, "You are such a baby Timberlake."

He keeps walking, so I push off from the couch and follow him back to the back of the store. I wrap my arms around his waist and rest my head on his back, "You know you're my sugar daddy."

He spins around and plants a warm kiss on the corner of my mouth, "That's more like it mami."

"Would you two quite having sex please? We are ready to go." Trace yells.

I let out a sigh and can fell the blood rushing to my cheeks, "Why are you friends with him?" I ask in a hushed tone.

"You know, I ask myself that very question."

Justin wraps his arm around my shoulder and escorts our bodies out of the store and back out into the Los Angeles heat. We walk past a little animal shop and Elisha squeals when she sees Golden retriever puppies in the window, "Trace!"

"No Elisha."

"But baby look at them!" She goes up to the window and waves at the little puppies.

"Aww, look at 'em." I say walking up beside her and giggling as the excited puppies bark and jump around their little pen.

"Ladies, let's go." I hear Justin say behind me.

"But Justin..." I turn around and poke out my bottom lip.

He let's out a sigh, "Five minutes and then we are leaving."

Elisha squeals again and grabs Trace's hand and practically drags him into the store. I smile at Justin and walk in behind Trace and head straight over to the puppies in the window. The lady let's me hold one of the little boy puppies and I turn back to Justin as the dog licks my face.

"Ashlynn, I am not buying you that puppy."

"But he likes me."

"No honey. Come on, we have a lot to talk about before we invest in a dog."

"Like what?" I ask and laugh as the dog starts to nibble on my finger.

"Well, we don't even live together yet. Where would the dog stay?" He asks crossing his arms over his chest.

"Well Mr. Timberlake, If it's okay with you, I could move in with you and we could raise our puppy together." Well, that takes care of the whole waiting to ask him at dinner thing.

He's quiet for a moment but then smiles, "You want to move in with me?"

"Yes."

"Excuse me? Yeah, how much is the puppy?" Justin asks the owner of the store.

I laugh in response and scratch my new puppy behind the ear. Thirty minutes later, Elisha and I walk out with two Golden retriever puppies in hand and Justin and Trace walk out with defeated looks on their faces, "You just had to buy Ashlynn the damn dog, didn't you?"

"Hey man, she pulled out the big guns dude. What did you want me to do?"

"Say no. You're the damn man in the relationship. Shit."

"Oh just shut up Trace. You'll get used to him." Elisha said.

"Well, what the hell are we gonna do with the damn dogs for the rest of the day? We're not done shopping." Trace says.

"We can still shop with the puppies. I'll hold them while ya'll look for stuff." I say while adjusting the leash in my hand.

"Yeah, yeah. All I have to say about this is, I better be getting some pussy when we get home tonight girl." Trace says.

"I second that." I hear my boyfriend say.

Elisha and I just laugh and continue to strut down the street with our two new favorite boys jogging in front of us.

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Later that night, I plop into Justin's king sized bed and hoist the puppy up with me. I roll around with him a little and lift him above my head and spout endless terms of endearment to him.

"Damn, if only I could get that kind of attention." Justin says as he shuts off the light in the bathroom and sits next to me.

I bring the puppy back down and hug him to my breasts, "Morph into a thirteen pound adorably puppy and we'll talk."

He laughs and leans back against the headboard, "Were you serious about what you said?"

"What? You morphing into a puppy?"

"No, stupid. About you moving in with me."

I set the puppy down by my feet and look into Justin's tired eyes, "Yes I meant it. You don't want me to move in with you or something?"

"No it's not that. I just thought you were saying it to get the dog."

What the hell? Why is he saying this, "Justin, where is this coming from?" I ask while narrowing my eyes at him.

"Don't get upset. I was saying-"

"No, you were just saying that I used you to get the dog."

"Ashlynn, that's not what I'm saying okay? I know you wouldn't do that, it's just that I haven't lived with a woman before. I guess I'm just kinda nervous or scared or something. I've been thinking about asking you to move in with me for a while, I just couldn't get up enough courage to ask you."

Damn, now I feel like an asshole, "Oh. I haven't lived with anyone else either so you're not alone in this. If you think this is going to fast, just let me know."

"I want you to move in with me."

I smile, "Good."

He smiles back at me and picks up our puppy. He lays him on his hard stomach and pets him softly, "What are we going to name him?"

"Hmm, I haven't even thought of that. I don't know."

It's silent between us for a minute as Justin's large hand brushes over the now sleeping puppy, "How about Pimp jr."

I laugh, "What? Are you crazy?"

"I think that's a cool name."

"Oh my god. And I'm about to move in with you?"

"Ha, I'm not good at naming things."

"Neither am I. Let's just sleep on it and maybe we can come up with something tomorrow."

He kisses me on my cheek and carefully navigates himself under the covers. He places the puppy between us and pets him one last time, "Good idea baby."

I kiss the puppy on his wet nose and climb under my share of the covers. Justin wraps me in his arms, careful not to suffocate the puppy and the three of us fall into a peaceful sleep.

______________________________

A few more days pass by and Justin and I finally come up with a name. We decided on Marty because the dog has a strange habit of barking and whining whenever Martin Lawrence is on the TV. There is still no sign from Tony, which is a damn good thing. I don't even let Marty outside very much because I'm afraid that Tony might be waiting somewhere in the bushes. Anyway, Justin, Olivia and I have started packing up my stuff and moving it over to my new residence. I don't think I've ever been so happy before. I don't think Olivia has either; in fact, she's enjoying it even more than I am.

"What the hell are you giggling for over there?" I ask while putting some of my plates into the large plastic bins to be carried over.

"I'm just happy for you, that's all. This relationship has great potential; you guys could end up getting married and having tons of little babies."

That's sounds really nice. I mean, I have not been thinking about getting married or having kids...much, "We'll cross that bridge when we get to it."

"Don't front like you haven't thought of getting married to that fine piece of Timberass."

"Did you just say I'm a fine piece of ass? I'm flattered." He said before leaning down to place a kiss on my lips, "Are you done with this one?" He points to the bin.

"Yes sir."

He picks it up and looks over at Olivia, "I know you want me Liv, but you'll have to learn to control yourself. My heart belongs to another."

She throws a dish towel at him as he chuckles on his way out the door. Needless to say, we've got most of my kitchen and my entire bedroom moved over to Justin's. We've still got a lot to do but it'll all be there tomorrow. After Olivia leaves, Justin and I decide to go out to dinner and a movie so I'm currently applying my makeup as he pulls on his black slacks and buttons up his white button down shirt. We lock Marty up in the laundry room and head out to The Azalea Restaurant and Bar, a new hotspot for people who enjoy live jazz and R&B artists. After our amazing meal, we head over to the AMC to catch the 10:00 clock show for the sneak preview of the Honeymooners, with Cedric the Entertainer and Mike Epps. That was some funny shit, I suggest that ya'll go out and see it when you have time.

We pull into the driveway a little past twelve and I climb out of the Mustang with my shoes in hand. Justin walks around the car and places his hand around my neck, where I grab his hand with my free one, "Did you have a nice night?" he asks softly, he's tired, I can tell.

"Yes I did and I would like to thank you for spending so much money on me tonight. That meal was pretty expensive."

He laughs it off, "Anything for my lady."

He unlocks the front door and I throw my shoes off to the side and go to check on Marty. When I'm in the kitchen, I flip on the light and scream when my eyes land on the island in the middle of the kitchen. There's blood everywhere, on the walls, on the floor and dripping down the cabinets and cupboards.

"What are you screaming about?" Justin walks up behind my and gasps when he sees the scene in front of us.

Something is lying in the middle of the island but I can't tell what it is. I take a slow step towards it and let out a ragged breathe. I take another step and let out a sob when I recognize the twisted and mutilated body of fur. It's a dead puppy.

"Marty!" I scream and cover my mouth with my hands as tears cascade down my face.

He's found us. He's the only sick fuck that would do something like this. There's a note lying in the blood on the island and Justin goes over to pick it up, "You might end up like this poor puppy white boy. Tootles, Tony." He reads aloud and crumples it up.

I erupt into even more tears and back out of the kitchen. Just then, I hear a small bark come from the laundry room and I race to open the door. Marty runs out and rubs up against my leg. I hoist him up to my bosom and kiss his little head, "Oh thank god, momma's here baby. Momma's here."

"Is he okay?" Justin asks.

I look over Marty, "Yeah. We have to get out of here, Tony could still be around." I choke out.

Without a word, Justin grabs me by the hand and ushers us back out to his car. His tires screech as he backs out of the driveway and he almost burns a hole in the concrete as we leave the development. I'm still crying hysterically as I hold Marty to my chest and I kiss him to try and calm myself. A little while after, we pull up at the Park Hyatt Hotel in downtown LA. We walk into the lobby and Justin gets a room, slipping the receptionist and extra fifty to let Marty come up with us.

"Is your girlfriend okay? Does she need some medical assistance?" the lady asks.

"No, no. She'll be fine. It's been a hard day for her."

The lady hands him our keys and we make our way up to our room in silence besides my constant sniffling and sobbing. Once in the room, I fall on the side of the bed kiss Marty for what seems to be the millionth time that night. Justin paces from one side of the room to another, while angrily pulling off his clothes. He throws his shoes harshly into the wall and I jump from the loud thump they make. The dog yelps in return and I hug him to me.

"That fuckin' prick. He is one sick mother fucker, you know that?" He's talking to himself more than me, "Who in the fuck can kill an innocent animal like that? If I ever get my fucking hands on him, I swear to god I'll kill him. I'll kill him with my bare hands if I have to."

He's in his boxers now, but he's still pacing furiously back and forth. I watch as he clenches his fists as his sides and his veins and muscles bulge all over his body. His usually calm, blue eyes are now cloudy and dark with rage. I haven't seen him this angry before, I'm sort of scared. Without warning, he slams his fist into the door and I scream from the violent outburst. Marty jumps from my hands and runs underneath the bed, peeking out from under the bottom of the sheet that almost touches the floor. Justin keeps slamming his fist into the door until I see smeared blood on it.

"Who the fuck does he think he is!" He screams while punching the door.

The warm tears begin to fall down my face again and I lift myself off of the bed and walk over to Justin. I rest my hands on his knotted back and then run them over his biceps and then rest them on his forearms. He stops hitting the door and I rest my head on his back and squeeze my eyes shut as I hear his ragged breathing slowly calm. I wrap my arms around his waist and cry softly into his back. It's never going to end. Tony isn't going to stop until he kills me like he did that poor animal. Justin turns around and collects me in his arms, holding me tightly and lifting me off of the ground. He sits me on the bed, and begins to remove my tiny black dress. Once he's finished, he gets down on his hands and knees and tries to coax out Marty and after a few minutes, the dog jumps into his arms and Justin places him on the bed next to me. I grab his hand, and look down at the damage he caused. The skin is broken in many different places and it's bleeding pretty badly. I walk into the bathroom, wet a hand towel and walk back over to him and wrap it around his hand.

"Does your wrist hurt?"

"A little."

"You'll have to put ice on it tomorrow. We might even have to go to the hospital to check and see if you broke something."

"I didn't break anything. I'll be fine."

"Okay." I reply.

I turn away from him get into the bed and curl Marty in my arms. I put my back to Justin and stare out of the window; I know sleep isn't going to come. Justin shuts off all of the lights and the only thing lighting up the room is the moon. I feel the bed move and I hear him sigh but he doesn't snake his arms around me like he usually does. A few minutes pass and then Justin spoons me and runs his hands through my hair, "Are you mad at me?"

"No."

"I didn't mean to scare you."

He's shaking, "It's okay."

"It's just-"

"Let's not talk about it. Just... just hold me and try and get some sleep."

He sighs again and kisses the back of my neck. Neither one of us falls asleep though, nor does Marty. He keeps squirming and crying, almost like he knows what going on. Justin reaches over my shoulder and lays his hand gently on the puppy, calming Marty almost instantly. I place my small hand over Justin's and rub it gently because I can still feel him shaking behind me. He lays another kiss on my neck and lets out another loud sigh. Tonight started out nice, just a few hours earlier, we were happier than the Leave it to Beaver family. My mind keeps bringing up the images of that poor dead puppy, still lying in Justin's kitchen. That puppy met a horrible death, I can't even think about it without feeling bile rise in my throat. I can literally feel Tony closing in on me and Justin. He's only two steps behind us now. I don't know if I can handle knowing that, I don't know if Justin can handle that.

I start to sob again and Justin squeezes me tighter, "Baby, it's going to be okay."

I push Marty off of the bed, and throw the covers off of me. I turn on the lamp and whirl around to Justin, who is now sitting up, "It is not going to be okay! Did you see what he did to that poor animal Justin? And he knows where we live so don't fucking tell me that it's going to okay because it's not."

"Ashlynn, just calm down."

"Don't tell me to calm down!" I scream while harshly wiping away my tears, "What don't you understand? Tony is not going to stop until he gets me and kills you! What don't you get about that?!"

"He is not going to get you Ashlynn and he is damn sure not going to kill me."

I back myself into the wall and slide down to the floor, "It's never going to end Justin. He isn't going to stop." I dissolve into tears again and bury my head in my hands.

Justin sits in front of me and tries of hug me but I push his hands away from me, "Ashlynn, it's going to be okay."

"I don't need a knight in shinning armor Justin! I don't need you to be a hero, okay?!" I stand back up on my feet and walk back over to the bed, "Just tell me that you're scared."

"I'm scared. I did see what he did to that dog and it scares the shit out of me okay? But I’m not going to let him get his filthy hands on you. I would lay my life on the line for you."

"What are we going to do now? We can't go home and we can't stay with anyone because he'll track us down. Why is this happening?" I begin to cry harder and rock myself back and forth, "I can feel him Justin. I can feel him just standing back and watching me."

It's silent for a while before Justin speaks up, "We can stay at Maggie's lake house. It's about four hours from here and if we leave tomorrow, Tony might loose our scent."

I laugh, "He's not going to loose our scent. He'll find me, just like he did after all of these years. He's going to find me and he's going to kill me this time."

Justin walks back over to me and takes my hand in his, "I'm not going to let that happen, why don't you believe me when I say that? I'm not going to let him hurt you or Marty." He says trying to lighten the moment.

It works momentarily because a small smile does form on my lips as I look down at Marty. I look back into to Justin's teary eyes and touch his cheeks softly, "I wish I could believe you but you don't know Tony like I know him. I don't want you to get hurt."

"Shh, let’s just... let’s just get some sleep and we'll head out to the lake house tomorrow. I'll call Trace in the morning and get him to call the police and clean up the kitchen."

I nod and lay back down. I motion towards the puppy and Justin lifts him up and lays his back in my arms. Justin shuts off the light and climbs in bed for the second time tonight and he lays his arm over my waist. I really do wish I could believe him when he tells me that he won't let Tony hurt me but I can't. No one can stop Tony, not even Justin. Maybe Justin's right, maybe if we just go up to the lake house for a while, Tony will just give up and leave us be. Yeah, right. That'll happen. It's only a matter of time now before he gets his hands on us. It's only a matter of time now.

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