Crazy Beautiful Love
Crazy Beautiful Love
(The
Martelli
Brothers)
J. S. Cooper
This
book is a work of fiction. Any resemblance to actual persons, living or dead,
or actual events is entirely coincidental. Names, characters, businesses,
organizations, places, events, and incidents are the product of the author’s
imagination or are used fictitiously.
Copyright © 2013 by J. S. Cooper
Copyediting
by :
Carolyn
Pinard
-
carolynpinardconsults.wordpress.com/
For Grandma Flo, I
hope heaven is as you pictured it. I miss you.
Chapter 1
Logan
I like to clear my
mind at night, so I usually go for a long walk down by the pier. It’s not my
favorite spot, but it’s easy to blend into the crowds of people there. I’m
unassuming in a crowd; no one looks at me too hard or too suspiciously. At the
pier, I’m just another guy. No one’s whispering that I look like one of the
Martelli
brothers. No one’s pointing and saying, “I think
that’s Logan
Martelli
,” in awe-struck tones as if I
were Al Capone or some mafia boss.
It’s
laughable how
many people know me or know of me. I almost feel famous but not in the good
way. That’s the problem with living in a small town like River Valley. Everyone
thinks they know you, but really they know nothing at all.
I stared out at
the water and studied the moonlit ripples as they ebbed and flowed. There was a
certain magic in the water that entranced me. Maybe it was because the water
didn’t lie. What you saw reflected in her murky, silvery depths was what you
got. Like tonight, the moon glowed in all its ominous glory, and there was
nothing hidden. The same thing couldn’t be said of human beings. There were
always so many secrets hidden inside that weren’t reflected in the seemingly
happy and perfect surfaces. I looked around at the couples holding hands and
saw Roger Martin walking with his girlfriend Bella Casey. She was giggling up
at him, and he was grinning at her lovingly. Anyone watching them would think
that they were deeply in love, only I knew better. Roger was a barely-able-to-keep-it-together
drunk, and Bella was in love with my brother, Jared. She called him and stalked
him so much that she was lucky that he was a
Martelli
.
Martellis
didn’t go to the police and file
restraining orders; even if we did, the police would laugh in our faces.
I turned to look
at the water again when I saw a glimpse of someone darting by me. And when I
say dart, I mean running like lightning. I watched as the figure looked back
quickly, and I was startled by the intense blue eyes that connected with mine
for the briefest second. It wasn’t the stare that shook me, but the fact that
it was a girl. She winked at me and continued running, and I stood there and
watched as two policemen rushed past me and ran after her. I wasn’t the only
one who noticed the chase that was happening; people everywhere were stopping
and gaping, whispering ferociously. Everyone wanted to know what was going on,
and I had to admit I was curious as well. Why were the police chasing a girl?
She wasn’t anyone I knew, and I knew most of the bad folks in town.
I saw Old Man
Roberts hobbling up to a couple a few feet away from me, his face red and
animated. “He tried to steal a cop car,” he gasped out. “He got in the car and
drove off, but he wasn’t smart enough to—”
“Who, who?” The
male of the couple was loud and excited. “Who was it?”
“Well, I don’t
know. But I bet it was Logan
Martelli
.” Old Man Roberts’s
voice was loud. I clenched my fist; of course I would get the blame. If it
wasn’t me, it would be one of my brothers, Vincent or Jared. I wanted to laugh
at the irony. I would love to steal a cop car for all their harassment against
my family, but I’d never been brave enough. Not like this girl, whoever she
was.
Poor girl
. I shook my head, as I
walked back up the pier. There was no way she wouldn’t get caught. There was no
way she could outrun two guys. Especially on a night like tonight when the
pathways were so packed with people. What a poor choice of locale. Didn’t she
know you needed to pick a place where you wouldn’t be seen, and where you could
have a clean getaway when you stole a car? I laughed to myself as I cut across
the pathway and headed to the parking lot. Though I should thank her; she’d
made it easier for me tonight.
I spotted the
black Toyota Corolla and walked over to it slowly and casually, running my
hands through my dark blond hair. I couldn’t stop myself from grinning.
Tonight’s take was going to be easy. I pulled out my lock pick and glanced
around casually to make sure no one was coming. I tried the different keys,
almost laughing as the third one opened the door. I loved Toyotas. Always so
easy to break into. I got into the car quickly and closed the door. I reached
over to the glove compartment and opened it to see if my luck was going to
continue. It was. I felt the spare key in my fingers and pulled it out quickly
and started the car. I reversed and pulled out of the parking lot, laughing
once again at my good luck. Thanks to good
ol
’ blue
eyes, this was the easiest car I had ever stolen. Nobody would be expecting it,
not when they thought I was being chased down by the police at that very
moment.
I turned on the
radio as I pulled onto the main road and listened to the smooth sounds of Kenny
G on the saxophone playing through the tinny speakers. I sighed as the speakers
strained when I turned the sound up. That was the problem with these cheap cars;
they just didn’t stand up to the more expensive cars.
I never stole
expensive cars with better stereo systems; it wasn’t worth it. Expensive cars
were too hard to pass on. People became more paranoid about buying a Mercedes
or BMW without papers. I didn’t mind, I still did well with the Toyotas and
Hondas. I cruised down Main Street and thought about the girl who had tried to
steal the cop car. I could still picture the look in her eyes, in the quick
glance we had exchanged. She had looked excited and scared, and I could sense
the exhilaration and adrenaline coursing through her body. It was the same
exhilaration I used to feel when I started stealing cars with my dad ten years
ago. The fear of getting caught mingled with the excitement of doing something
bad was better than any drug. At least, it used to be.
I was distracted
from driving as I saw something or someone running down the street. I pulled
over to the side of the street and slowed down to see who or what was running.
I knew I was being dumb. I couldn’t afford to get caught in this car. I needed
to keep going, but something in me had to know. A part of me thought it might
be the girl again, but I knew there was no way it could be the girl from the
pier. There was no way she could have run all this way this quickly. I heard
the sirens before I saw the lights and I cursed as I saw the cop cars speeding down
the street. I pulled over quickly, turned off the engine and the lights, and
crouched down in my seat, hoping they were looking for the girl and didn’t know
about the stolen Toyota yet. I laughed at the irony as I crouched down. They
probably thought they were chasing me anyway. Stupid cops!
Knock, knock,
knock
.
The sound sent my heart racing. What the fuck? I looked over to the passenger
side and saw the girl.
“Open the door,” she
hissed at me loudly. I stared at her in shock. What was she doing? Was she
crazy? She didn’t even know me. I pressed the unlock button and she jumped into
the car. “Shit, took you long enough to open the door.”
“What are you
doing?” I couldn’t take my eyes off of her. It was definitely the same girl. I
would recognize her vivid blue-purple eyes anywhere. She was actually more
beautiful than I remembered. She had long black hair and her skin was flushed
red. She was wearing tight black jeans and a tight black tank top. Her chest
was heaving and I could tell she was out of breath.
“I’m trying to
escape the cops, duh.”
“Oh?” I looked at
her curiously.
“You were
following me?” She turned to me with slanted eyes. “I saw you slow down, pull
over, and turn off your lights.”
“I don’t even know
you. I wasn’t following you.” I shook my head in disgust. “And why would you
get in a car with someone who was following you? Are you dumb?”
“I tried to steal
a cop car.” She sighed and leaned back in the seat in shock. “I can’t believe I
did that.”
“Why did you do
it?”
“I don’t know.”
She started laughing hysterically. “I am going to be in deep shit if my parents
find out.”
I stared at her,
not sure what to say. I swallowed hard as I stared at the naked length of her
neck and chest. I turned away, upset with myself for being turned on by this
crazy, beautiful girl.
“What’s your
name?” I asked her finally, not sure how much longer I could stay in this weird
situation.
“Maddie.” She
opened her eyes and looked at me. “You?”
“Logan,” I bit
out, waiting for the inevitable recognition. The widening eyes that would turn
her half-smile into a frown, and the worry that would cross her mind when she
realized who she was with.
“Logan?” She
smiled. “You don’t look like a Logan.”
“I don’t?” The
words tripped out of my mouth in surprise.
“You look like a Brandon
or something.” She laughed and then rubbed her eyes. “Don’t mind me, I’m
rambling now.”
“Why do I look
like a Brandon?” I felt like laughing. This was turning into one of the
weirdest nights I had ever had. And Maddie seemed to be living up to her name;
she was quite mad to be sitting here in a car with me, a guy she didn’t know.
“ ’Cause you’re
hot.” She giggled and leaned towards me. “I’m not coming on to you or anything.
I’m sure plenty of girls come on to you and say that. But I’m not one of those
girls. But you’re hot. Like James Dean.”
“James Dean?”
“He was an actor—”
“I know who he is,
or was.” I frowned. “I just don’t think I look like James Dean.”
“You’ve got that
air about you.” She nodded. “Definitely a James Dean look: dark blond hair,
shimmering, hooded green eyes, slight stubble, and you look like trouble.”
“I look like
trouble?” I raised an eyebrow at this strange but honest girl.
“I know, right? It’s
ironic.” She laughed. “Here I am, running from the cops, and you’re here
sitting in your car, and I’m saying you’re trouble.”
“Ironic is a
fitting word.” I nodded and tried not to smile. “Do you need a ride?”
“Yeah.” She sat up,
and I think the seriousness of the moment finally hit her, because her body
froze and she looked at me carefully with an extremely worried expression.
“Shit. Shit. Shit,” she cussed under her breath, and she stared at me with wide
eyes.
“No longer feeling
like you made a good decision tonight?” I asked her softly. I knew that she was
experiencing the crash. The adrenaline and excitement was fading now and she
was starting to feel panicky and worried.
“I don’t know what
I was thinking.” She bit her bottom lip. “I was just walking, and I saw the cop
car, and something just came over me.” She shook her head. “I’m going to be in
deep trouble.”
“Do they know it
was you?”
“I don’t know.”
“Why did you do
it?” I looked at her curiously. She didn’t look like the sort of girl who would
steal a car.
“For fun?” She
made a face. “You probably think I’m a horrible person, right? I wouldn’t blame
you if you decided to call the cops on me.”
“I’m not going to
call the cops.” I laughed.
“You have a baby?”
She surveyed the car and I looked at her in shock.
“No, no baby.” I
shuddered.
“So why do you
have a baby seat in the back?” She frowned and I turned to look in the
backseat.
“Oh.” I tapped my
fingers against the steering wheel. “About the car.”
“Yeah?” She leaned
towards me. Her eyes looked even
more purple
up close.
I could smell her minty breath on my lips, and I had a sudden urge to kiss her.
We stared at each other for a few seconds, and I studied her eyelashes. They
highlighted her eyes and I wanted to feel them against my cheek, to see if they
were as soft as they looked.
I leaned back away
from her and gripped the steering wheel. “I don’t own this car.”
“You borrowed it
from a friend?” She cocked her head at me, and I shook my head. “You rented it?
“No.”
“Then what?” She
looked puzzled and I watched as realization hit her. “You weren’t following me,
were you?” She sat back and looked dazed. “Shit, you pulled over because of the
cops? You— you stole this car?” Her voice was amazed and loud. I didn’t look at
her because I didn’t want to see the reproach in her eyes. I knew what people
like her were like. It was okay for them to commit crimes because it was just
for fun. But when it came to people like me, it was a big deal. It was a bad
thing. A really bad thing.
“That is fucking
crazy.” She started laughing and I turned to look at her in shock. Was she
insane?
“Did you escape
from a mental institute?” I asked her seriously, worried that I had perhaps
picked up a real crazy person.
“A mental
institute?” Her eyes glittered as she stared at me. “Maybe.” She laughed even
harder and gasped out, “Maybe I should be in one, indeed.”
“Why aren’t you
jumping out of the car? I’m a bad guy.” I looked at her, unsmiling. This wasn’t
a joke. Maddie made me uncomfortable, and I didn’t like feeling uncomfortable.
“I thought you
were going to give me a ride home?” She buckled her seatbelt.
“Are you crazy? I
just told you I stole this car, and you want to stay in here with me?”
“Why wouldn’t I? I
just told you I tried to steal a cop car.”
“But that’s
different.” I started the engine and sighed. “You did it for fun.”
“This is your
career?” She sounded surprised.
“Yes,” I bit out
and pulled away from the curb. “This is my career.”
“Well, no wonder
you’re better than me at stealing cars.”
“Where do you
live?” I studied the road ahead of me. I didn’t understand this girl. Why
didn’t she have more common sense?
“Are you attracted
to me, Logan?” She pressed her fingers against my arm, and I turned to look at
her quickly. She was giving me a sultry look, and I almost did a double take.
What was going on here?