- Partners In Crime

- Prologue

I have yet to meet a girl who doesn't, at one time, want someone tall, dark, and dangerous. Just like, I have yet to meet a girl who doesn't, at one point, me included, love, want, or feel awed by a horse. Then there's those of us who never get over the love, want or awe induced by the equine species. I am quite proud to say I am one of the girls that has yet to lose my love of horses. Just like some girls never get over wanting someone tall, dark, and dangerous. And the more I'm around him, the more I think I'm one of those too.

The first time I met him he startled me and ended up with a bloody nose because of it. No, I am not horribly disfigured or something terrible like that. I punched him. Hard. I learned later that no one ever dared to upset him. Which was stupid because we were the closest of friends ever since I showed him just how effective a powerful right jab can be. My older brother, his best friend and partner in crime, as I teased at the time, was speechless when Ashton Mitchell O'Malley announced that I was 'okay for a girl'. After getting to know him, I realized that didn't happen often. As in never.

I was fourteen, nearly fifteen when I met him. He was nineteen. For the next three years we kept in touch through my brother. Every holiday or break from college he was at my home. He attended my senior prom as my date when I couldn't find anyone that I'd go with. So I was a picky little snot. I think it was because none of the boys at my school could compare to the man I called my best friend. That and the fact that all the girls that looked down their noses at me were insanely jealous that I was accompanied by a man among boys.

In many ways I think I fell in love with him the minute I whirled around to find him standing only half a foot from me, after which, I bloodied his nose. There was nothing in this world that would make me admit it either. Not even to myself. I refused to lower myself to the level of some of those ninnies that threw themselves at his feet. It went against my strong willed, mischievous, sometimes cantankerous, and stubborn nature. I loved the way his jaw would involuntarily twitch when I would get under his skin. And I made sure that I did so regularly. No one else had the balls to. He would beat the daylights out of any male that made him mad enough, and he viewed most women as beings that weren't even worth looking at. So that left me. He would never dream of hurting me, because he knew I would make good on my threat to kill him, seeing as I knew where he slept and all. I did everything in my power to infuriate him. Heck, I even called him Mitch, just to infuriate him and to remind him that he wasn't in charge of everything, to show him that he didn't always get what he wanted. Yet, even during our heated arguments and petty fights his dark amber eyes with the almost black rings around the pupil never lost the warm flecks of green that always assured me I hadn't pushed too far.

Then, one day, him and my brother disappeared. I got a phone call from my brother. He told me to not worry about him, that he was safe and that Mitch was with him. I didn't hear from them again until I was nineteen. An invitation to a formal party in honor of the most powerful man in the world announcing the terms for his only son to become heir to the empire showed up in my mail box with a note at the bottom begging me to come. The note was signed 'Mitch'. It infuriated me that all I needed to see was an invitation with his hasty scrawl at the bottom to mingle with the type of people I detested. But I also knew he wouldn't be asking me to come unless it was important. Mitch never did anything without a reason. Needless to say, I began preparing the same day. I bought a midnight blue dress with delicate silver bead work that fell to my ankles. It was elegant and covered everything essential while still allowing me to stand apart from the rest. Call me old fashioned, but no one needed to see any more of my body than they would if I was wearing a tank top and jeans.

That night my opinion changed. Though I'd always viewed Mitch as tall, dark, and handsome, I never had any reason to tack the 'dangerous' on there until the night he suddenly reappeared in my life. I was nineteen. He was twenty-three. I saw a side to him I didn't know existed. A side that both frightened and thrilled me. Even after seeing the part of him that should have repulsed me, the thought never even crossed my mind to love him less.

a/n

I found this story on my hard drive and I don't know if I ever posted it before. I have a terrible memory. Let me know if I did or didn't. Either way, it's pretty near to finished, so I'm going to post it and see what reaction I get, since my other two haven't exactly been a huge success...

Anyway. Review and tell me what you think. It doesn't have to be some long explination or anything, just a 'yeah, I read it, watcha gonna do about it' type thing.

(Yes, I know I'm strange)

LET ME KNOW!

Underestimated