Written by: Jen Smithers
Date: January 15, 1999
Just as Trent is about to express his feelings to Jen,
an old flame walks back into her life, his intent to woo
her once again before killing that love...for all time...
Disclaimer: I do not own the characters in this story,
nor do I own any rights to the television shows "Sons of
Thunder" or "Walker Texas Ranger." They were created by
Chuck and Aaron Norris and belong to them, CBS, TopKick
Productions, and Norris Productions.
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~Prologue~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
The sun was shining brightly down on Thunder Karate. The
wind was warm for April, and the birds sang sweetly in the breeze.
It was a beautiful day in Dallas.
The lone blemish was the non-descript black car parked a few
hundred yards from the front entrance of Thunder Karate.
Two men sat inside the car. The driver was a gray-haired man
in his mid-forties. He was dressed in a dark grey suit, and his
eyes were hidden behind sunglasses. The man in the passenger seat
had shoulderlength black hair and wore dark clothing. He was in
his late twenties, and his dark eyes swept the street, searching
for his target.
"You said you knew her schedule," the driver said impatiently.
"She’ll be here," his passenger answered calmly. As if on
cue, he spotted her blue Mustang turning down the street. "And
here she comes."
The men watched as a young woman in her mid
-twenties climbed out of the car, hefted a duffel
bag, and walked into Thunder Karate.
"What a shame," the driver noted sincerely.
The younger man nodded in agreement. After
all this time, watching, waiting... His heart
pounded in anticipation. If only for today, she’d
be his... again...
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~Chapter One~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
Jen blocked the kick and countered with a punch. Trent grabbed
her arm, and the next thing she knew, she was flat on her back,
pinned to the mat.
"Well, I guess that move needs some work," she noted wryly, her
breathing ragged from the sudden move. Trent, mere inches inches
above her, didn’t answer. The way he was looking at her made her
breathing ragged for a very different reason.
"Trent?" she questioned breathlessly, a moment before his lips
touched hers.
The kiss was warm and sweet, and abruptly interrupted by someone
clearing his throat. Jen and Trent separated, and Trent helped Jen
to her feet.
"Am I interrupting?" Carlos asked, grinning like a madman.
Jen, embarrassed, flushed brightly.
Trent, only a little less red, answered, "As usual."
"I came to see if you guys wanted to go to lunch," Carlos offered.
"Your treat, of course."
Trent grinned knowingly. "Sorry, man, I have a class in twenty
minutes."
Carlos groaned and looked imploringly at Jen, who couldn’t help
but laugh at his expresion.
"Sorry, Carlos," Jen told him. "I paid my rent yesterday. I’m
broke." Now that the subject had changed, her coloring started
returning to normal.
Carlos groaned. "It looks like I’m having leftovers for lunch."
"Look at it this way, Carlos," Trent said. "This way you don’t
owe us a lunch."
Carlos’ outlook changed at Trent’s words.
"That’s right," he grinned. "I don’t owe you for lunch!"
Trent’s eyes widened in surprise. "I didn’t mean you don’t owe
me for the last--"
"Gotta go!" Carlos said hurriedly, heading for the door before
Trent could stop him. He turned back around and mothioned. "You
two...carry on." He was out the door a momentlater.
Jen shook her head in amusement.
"Amazing!" Trent groaned. "He weaseled out of another one!"
Trent turned towards Jen, and his expression softened.
"I’m sorry."
"For what?" Jen asked, leaning back against the wall. She
brushed a strand of hair behind her ear. "For kissing me, or for
stopping?"
"For not having done it soon--"
Again, Trent was interrupted.
"Jenna?"
The voice startled both Jen and Trent, as neither had heard
anyone else enter Thunder Karate. But the voice startled Jen more,
for she recognized it without even looking. Only one person had ever
called her Jenna.
"Billy?" she asked in disbelief, studying the face of the
handsome black-haired young man standing before her. He looked a
couple of years older than she remembered, and a little slimmer, but
his eyes were the same warm grey they’d always been, and he still
made her heart race madly. "What are you doing here?"
"I was in the neighborhood, and I heard you were here," Billy
answered, as smoothly as ever.
Jen, still stunned by Billy’s sudden appearance,
jumped when Trent cleared his throat. He wasn’t
liking the way Jen had paled when she’d seen Billy.
Remembering her manners and recovering her voice,
Jen introduced the men. "Billy, this is my partner,
Trent Malloy. Trent, meet Billy Bowen. He’s an
old...friend." The two men shook hands, but neither
smiled.
Billy turned back to Jen, the smile returning to his face.
"Can I buy you a cup of cocoa?"
Trent noted the unusual request with dislike. This guy knew of
Jen’s aversion to coffee, and Trent had only just learned about it.
He didn’t like the intimacy the offer implied, the intimacy
Billy’s eyes implied.
Jen hesitated a moment before agreeing. "I’ll meet you at C.D.’s
Bar and Grill in thirty minutes."
"I know where that is," Billy said. "I passed it on the way
here. I’ll go and have your cocoa waiting." He smiled at her again,
then turned and left Thunder Karate.
Jen watched Billy leave, then she turned. Trent was watching her
with a concerned expression.
"What’s wrong?" she asked, still a little flustered over Billy’s
surprise visit. Why was he here? She didn’t know, but she’d find out
soon enough!
"Are you all right?" Trent asked, noting that Jen’s color was
starting to return to normal. "You look like you’ve seen a ghost."
Although Trent had nailed her emotions, she laughed it off.
"Don’t be silly, Trent," she told him. "I was just surprised to
see Billy, that’s all." Trent’s expression didn’t change. "I’ll be
fine, Trent!"
Trent would have answered back except a pair of his students
walked into Thunder Karate for class.
Jen used the moment to grab her bag.
"I’ll catch you later, Trent," Jen said, heading for the door.
Trent opened his mouth to call her back, then stopped. She was
going to do what she wanted to do, no matter what he told her.
Probably the exact opposite of anything he told her. He just hoped
she’d be careful.
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