Absolution: A Salvation Society Novel

by Leaona Luxx

  “I’m so sorry.” My heart clinches, as a gnawing pain holds it in its grip.

  She dries her cheek on the shoulder of her shirt. “The pain is harder some days.”

  “What days?”

  Her eyes float to mine, gazing into them. “On the ones I wish they could see and be a part of, days like today when someone makes a difference in our lives.”

  “Or to witness the times you impact someone else’s, much like you have mine.”

  Scarlet moves closer to us, her lids heavy. “Y’all are so warm, I can feel your heat from here.”

  “I felt yours the second you walked into the room.” She settles in next to me, leaving enough room for me to fit Emmie in between her and the back of the couch perfectly. I stare at them for far too long, feeding my need to be close to them. Finally, I decide to go for it and slip in next to Scarlet’s back, putting my arm around them both.

  Her body relaxes as she murmurs. “This feeling, I don’t want it to end.”

  “I’ll hold on to you for as long as you’ll let me.” I’m fading fast as I bask in the scent of Scarlet’s hair and Emmie’s cheeks not far from mine.

  I want to stay here. I need to feel this a little longer. Her fingers sweep over the stubble on my jaw, prickling the roughness. The insignificant gesture warms me, filling the pain of loss I hadn’t realize I have.

  “I miss you.” Her mouth forms every letter, perfectly colored cherry. I reach for her, but she dodges me. I immediately feel her loss. My arm extends out as far from my body as it can; still, she’s not close enough.

  “Creed?” I smile as I hear her voice in the distance. It’s sweet and soft, sounding much like a love song. It works like a balm for my plagued existence.

  “Creed.” Warmth fills my chest as I lay, listening to her say my name. It rolls from her perfectly supple mouth, stirring my desire for her. Yes, I’m milking every minute of this.

  “Creed!” Her tone startles me, and my eyes snap open, finding Scarlet standing over me with a panicked expression. “I’m up!”

  “Yes, now you are.” She giggles, but her frown tells a different issue. “If only I could sleep one night as sound as you do.”

  Yeah, it is odd, considering I have nightmares when I sleep. I scrub my hand over my face, forcing myself awake. “It’s not something I often do.”

  “I have a small problem.” She chews her lip with her brows pulled low.

  I sit up, coming face to face with a gorgeous mane of crimson. “Well, good morning, beauty.”

  “Michelle is running late, small emergency with her kids, she won’t be long.” She squeezes her eyes shut, contorting her face. “Could you possibly… stay with Emmie until she gets here? No longer than an hour.”

  “Absolutely.” Stunned, my head bobs of its own accord because there’s no way in hell I should be doing this. “We’ve got this.”

  I stand, reaching for Emmie as Scarlet leans in, pressing her lips to her daughter’s head. When she turns to me, her lips land on mine. “Oh! I meant to kiss your… cheek. I’m so sorry. Kill me now!”

  “It’s fine, don’t fret over it.”

  Her brows hit her hairline. “Fret? Have you lost your mind? Should I call someone?”

  “Ha! You’re so funny, we’re laughing.” I can feel my face flaming.

  “Okay. I’m gonna go.” She steps back, pausing. “Alright, leaving now.”

  “Don’t you have to actually walk out of the door to leave?”

  I scowl. “Yes, but I’ve never done this before with anyone other than Michelle.”

  “May it be our first of many.”

  “I think sleeping over and kissing you would be our firsts.” She flushes. “What am I thinking?”

  I move closer to her. “We’re gonna be fine, go to work. You can call if you need to.”

  “I’m going.” She whirls around, marching toward her SUV with purpose. She opens the door, hesitating.

  “Don’t look back, wave as you pull away!” Emmie and I wait by the entrance for her to drive off.

  Scarlet does as I ask, waving as she rolls down the street. I encourage Emmie to wave. “Tell momma bye-bye, we’ll have a cry and a panic attack after she’s gone.”

  I bounce Emmie on my side, closing the door behind us. I scan the room for a clock, I need to be able to watch the time until I’m rescued. I find one in the family room—one hour.

  “Holy shit!”

  “Shit.” My eyes widen when Emmie giggles.

  “Great! She’s going to kill me.” I ease over to the couch where we spent the night together, hoping she’s comfortable there. We slide into the cushions, and I turn the television on.

  “All we need is…” I flip the channels searching for a kiddie show until I finally land on one. “There!”

  Chapter Seventeen

  Creed

  Emmie is the sweetest little girl. She snuggles with me, and then we wrestle, or maybe it just feels like we’re playing. I glance at the time, knowing twenty minutes have passed by now.

  “Ten? It’s only been ten minutes! I think the clock stopped.” I leap from the couch, running over to check the batteries. “Nope, they’re working.”

  I spin around to find Emmie scurrying off in the other direction. “Hey! If I can’t run away, neither can you!”

  I hurry down the hall after her. By the time I get there, I have to search every room. “No way, dude. If I can’t hide, you’re not allowed to!”

  “Boo!” She jumps up from behind the rocking chair in her room. I pretend to be startled, tickling her. She’s dancing, laughing so hard it’s contagious.

  “Oh! You scared me.”

  Emmie raises her arms high above her head, curling her fingers. “Up.”

  “Yeah, you want me to pick you up.”

  She giggles as I do, wiggling and squirming. “Mm mm, bbbb, ddd.”

  “I couldn’t agree more. Shall we return to the family room?”

  Emmie tilts her head, brows low. “Biddy bolll mmm.”

  “I mean, if we’re going to be sharing our feelings like this, I think you should know your mom is gorgeous, and I’m very interested in dating her.”

  “Mm mm bbba daddda.” She smiles as if I’m in on whatever she’s talking about.

  “So, what are your views on the health care issues we’re facing as a nation?” I pose the question just as the doorbell rings. “Oh! Chelle’s here.”

  Emmie’s face pales as she lays her head on my shoulder. I rush to the door, thanking the God’s Michelle is here to save my ass before something goes very wrong.

  I swing it wide to find a distraught sitter. “Hey, you okay?”

  “No, both my boys have a stomach bug. It’s probably best if I don’t take Emmie today. Can you manage to get her to Scarlet?”

  “Uhm, yeah. Sure, we’re good. Go and take care of you, and I’ll let Scar know.”

  “You’re a lifesaver.” She pats my arm, giving it a squeeze. “Nice bicep!”

  I chuckle, panic struck as I am. “Sure thing, Chelle.”

  Michelle waves as her minivan drives away, the second woman today to leave me stranded. I side-eye Emmie, as she frowns at me. I lean away, staring at her.

  “Two strikes, girlfriend. It’s you and me now.” I kick the door shut as I turn with her, headed back to the family room.

  “So, what should we do next?”

  Emmie jerks in my arms, and the minute I look down at her, all hell breaks loose. She projectile vomits pea-green soup all over me. Not gonna lie, my face is the color of lime by the time I make it to the sink with her.

  “Damn!” I yell a little too loudly for Emmie, scaring her as she turns the faucet on connected to her stomach. “I think it’s possessed!”

  We lean over the sink until she’s stopped erupting. “No fuckin’ way you had that much food in you!”

  “Fuck.” Emmie mutters, as tears streak her face.

  “Great job, Hatch. You fuc-reakin’ idiot.” I grab a dish tow
el, wetting it to try to clean Emmie’s face off. I spray the sink, knowing I need to bleach it before Scarlet gets home, but right now, I need all hands on deck.

  Emmie and I rush to her room, I sit her on the bed and start stripping her. Once her clothes are off, I go in search of my phone. We find it in the family room, I pace with her in my arms as I make a call.

  “Boone Hatcher, please leave a message, and I’ll return it as soon as possible.”

  “Are you kidding me?” I scream at my phone. Emmie snubs, reminding me I need to comfort her. “I’m sorry, sweetheart.”

  I scroll through my phone, looking for Kathryn’s number. Once I dial it, I can’t find any words. So, I say the first thing that comes to mind when her voice mail picks up.

  “Mom, it’s Creed. I’m at Scarlet’s and Emmie’s sick. Like, she’s hosing the damn house down, and Scar isn’t here. I don’t know what to do, please call me.” I end the call and search my phone for someone else. I find another person and hit dial.

  “Hello, Lee’s phone.” It’s Liam, I hope this works.

  “Dude! Help me!”

  “Hatch? What’s up?” He stumbles over his words, making me even more nervous.

  “I’m at Scarlet’s and Emmie’s sick. She’s the freakin’ anti-Christ right now! There’s puke everywhere. Help me!” I bemoan, as I beg for his help.

  He drags in a deep breath and begins. “First, I need you to remain calm. If you can’t find a way to be, the baby will be scared to death by the time you’re done.”

  “And what in the hell do you think I am?”

  “Again, calm is the operative word here.” He chuckles. “You need to get her undressed and clean her up.”

  I nod, moving into action as he guides me. “I’ve done that, but her pull-up is still on.”

  “Run some warm water in the tub, and put her in it.” He’s so at ease, I wish I could be. “And Hatch, her pullup too.”

  “Wait… no one said anything about seeing a naked baby! Can’t I dunk her in with it on?” I grimace, cutting my eyes at Emmie.

  He sighs heavily. “No, little girls tend to have problems… down there, if you don’t clean them properly.”

  “I really didn’t need that visual, all you had to say was yes.”

  “Sorry, man. But you needed to know, you have to be careful with girls.”

  “I suppose the good news here is, I don’t need to find the duct tape. Emmie wears pull-ups instead of diapers.”

  “They break away too.” He laughs. “You might want to keep it handy.”

  I turn the water on, checking its temperature. “Alright, the water is nice. Not cold or hot.”

  “It’s time, just do it fast, and it’ll be over soon.”

  I close my eyes, pushing her training panties down and putting her in the tub. “Okay, she’s in.”

  “Now, I need you to take a deep breath because you have to bathe her.” He says reassuringly, hoping to not cause an alarm and not realizing that thing went to DEFCON One some time ago.

  “Don’t leave me, man.” My voice quivers.

  “I won’t, I’m here for you until the end.” There’s a sound on Liam’s end, and finally a click.

  “Liam? You said you wouldn’t leave!” I growl into the phone.

  “You’re on speaker.” Liam’s words echo.

  “Dumb ass, what in the hell are you doing with a little girl? Is this woman affected in the head like you or what?”

  “Mark, I’m not in the mood for your shit.” I close my eyes, trying to regain a shred of peace, but no, I can’t even have that in my most dire need of assistance. Instead, I’m going to be subjected to the biggest pains in my ass anyone can have.

  “She’s going to have the most colorful vocabulary by the time her mom gets home.” Jackson’s voice of reason breaks through the insanity. “Hatch, you need to get her cleaned up before she starts getting cold. Keep it simple, girls are sensitive to soap, so I suggest keeping it to wiping her down for now.”

  I slump over the side, running a cloth over her back. “So, I can just clean her where she has puke on her?”

  “Yes,” Jackson chuckles. “and if she can stand on her own, wrap her in a towel before picking her up, or she might be slippery.”

  “Oh, for Christ’s sake! You’ve got to be kidding me! She has…” Bile rises in my throat. “chunks in her hair. How in the hell did she have so much food in her tiny body? Like, it’s stockpiled or something!”

  “You’ve got this.” Liam’s reassurance is helpful, but I’m far from having this be okay. Besides, I can hear every one of them snickering in the background. Fuckers!

  I run the cloth over Emmie’s head, removing most of the lumps of food and debris. Once that’s done, she appears to be pretty clean. I follow Jackson’s instructions and only pick her up after wrapping her in a towel.

  “Alright, I have her, and we’re on our way to her room.”

  “Roger that!” Mark’s boisterous laugh rings through the receiver. “You’re almost there, sailor. The checkpoint is just ahead.”

  “I hate you,” I grumble. “I can’t wait to have Charlie in my arms again.”

  I crack the place up with my dig at the mammoth asshole. The room grows quiet, and I wait for more information. Nothing, it’s like the line went dead. This is when I lose my shit for the last time.

  “Are y’all there?”

  “He said ‘y’all.’” Quinn belts out, laughing like a jackass. “Ahhh, y’all need to find some clothes for her now.”

  “I hate you all. Loathe. Paybacks are a bitter end, and I plan to have my hands all over your wives.” I say smiling at Emmie, she’s still so pale. “She’s turning green. Please help before it explodes again.”

  Jackson clears his throat, trying to disguise a chuckle. “Find something easy to pull on and off, in case she’s still nauseous.”

  “You mean she could become a geyser of putrid vomit again?” I groan with the vivid memory. She spewed like a college chick on a girl’s night revenge drunk.

  “Possibly, so keep it simple,” Jackson repeats himself. “Two rules to always remember when children are around, stay calm, and keep it simple.”

  “One problem with that, Hatch can’t remember anything.” Mark grunts. “That hurt, Muff.”

  “Good! Give the kid a break, he’s trying here.” Jackson scolds him, like the father he is to me and all the rest.

  I bite my lip, slipping a little dress over Emmie’s head. I grab a pullup, sliding them up her legs. She helps me with a bit of shimmy, and we’re ready to roll again.

  “Got her dressed!” I announce, impressed with myself. “What’s next?”

  “She needs something to settle her belly.” Liam chimes in.

  I nod, picking Emmie up and head off toward the kitchen. “So, if I’m keeping it simple, I need to give her a cup of something cool and soothing.”

  “By George, he might just have this,” Quinn says with a deep, mocking voice. “SEAL Team, out!”

  I search the refrigerator, finding some juice. After opening a few doors, I see a cup with a spout on it. “I found some chilled white grape juice and a cup with hearts on it.”

  “She should be able to tolerate it, and that’s a sippy cup.” Jackson is once again, chill as fuck. I don’t think he’s ever lost his cool, at least not around me. I can’t believe these men go to battle and fight like hell but can tell me about sippy cups and girl parts.

  We slowly walk into the family room, Emmie clings to my chest as I carry her cup. I hope this is the end of that entire shit show. As I start to sit, Emmie whines. So, I stand in the middle of the room, rocking from side to side with her in my arms.

  “Are you two, alright?” Liam’s words no more than a whisper.

  I stretch my neck, moving Emmie’s hair away from my mouth. “She doesn’t want to sit, so I’m standing here, swaying.”

  “Our job here is done,” Mark quips.

  “Hatch, you have our numbers if you need
us. By us, I mean Liam and me. Don’t call these other two, their wives do all the work for them.” Jackson says with a tone of smugness in his words.

  “Will do.” I nod, afraid to do more and disturb Emmie. “Thank you, gentlemen.”

  I end the call, dropping the phone onto the couch. I’m hoping we can sit soon, but right now; Emmie comes first. Even though I had to resort to calling the guys, I did it. I handled Emmie, and I can’t wait to tell Scarlet.

  Emmie and I settle back into the floor, where we’re safe from accidents. I place some precautionary trash cans around, and we take it easy for the rest of the afternoon.

  Emmie falls asleep on me, and I’m scared straight. I don’t want to move and set off the geyser again. So, I get as comfortable as possible until my relief shows up.

  Then, my phone rings. I struggle to pull it free and answer it with a whisper.

  “Hey.”

  “Creed? Are you two okay?” Kathryn rattles through her words.

  “You can calm down, she’s still alive.” I chuckle. “She had a stomach bug, but she’s sleeping now.”

  “Alright, I was on my way to Charleston and turned around.”

  “I’m so sorry, I should’ve called to let you know we’re alive and stink.” She laughs with me.

  “Well, I rescheduled my appointment. So, I’ll be home soon if you need any more help.” I can’t believe she’d go through so much trouble for me. Emmie murmurs in her sleep, and my heart skips a beat. Yeah, I can understand it now.

  “Thank you, I appreciate it. How’s my girl?” I’m sure Doc is in good hands with them, but I miss her. She’ll be with me from now on, I just wanted some time with these two.

  “Crawford said they’re having a blast.”

  “Good, thanks again. I’ll be by tomorrow to see y’all.”

  “We’ll see you then, sweetheart.” She ends the call, and it’s then I realize I’m smiling.

  Chapter Eighteen

  Scarlet

  The house is dark when I pull up, my stomach pits immediately. Michelle assured me Creed was perfectly fine with staying with Emmie today. I only wish I had known sooner than right now.