by E. L. Todd
“I’ll put your bags in your room,” my dad offered. “Then we’ll get down to dinner.”
I was nervous to meet Cavos. What did a college girl like me have to say to someone like him? He probably dreaded coming to this meeting, had only done it because my father bought him out, and I had the assumption he was a pretentious jerk. But since he was a fashion genius, I guess I couldn’t be too harsh on him.
I’d never seen him in my life, but I recognized him the moment he walked inside the coffee shop.
Wearing a silver jacket with sparkles, gold chains around his neck, and black pants that were tighter than my own, he turned every head in the room. He held himself like he was being photographed at every second, but he gazed around the room like he owned it and everyone inside it. When he spotted me, his eyes narrowed. After examining me, he approached my table and sat down.
“Cavos.” That was all he said. He didn’t shake my hand or offer a polite hug.
I cleared my throat. “Trinity.”
He nodded but didn’t say any pleasantries.
This was going to be more difficult than I thought. “How did you recognize me?”
“Your father showed me a photo album in his wallet.” He adjusted the white scarf around his throat. “It would weigh a lot less if he took all those pictures out.”
My dad only had a few credit cards and cash. The rest was filled with pictures of me, my mom, and Conrad. I wasn’t sure why. It wasn’t like he showed pictures of us to everyone he saw on the street. “He’s just…sentimental.”
“He’s a brute with a heart…an unlikely find.”
Were all his comments vague like that?
“Thank you for meeting with me today. You’re such an inspiration—”
“I know.”
“And I love your work—”
“Yeah, I know.” He crossed his legs and looked out the window like he was bored.
Wow…this guy was a dick.
I decided to push through it. “I had a few questions for you if you don’t mind me asking.”
He looked at his diamond watch. “Out with it. I only have an hour.”
I flipped through my sketchbook. “How did you get started in the business?”
“You could find that answer on Google, silly girl. Don’t waste my time and yours asking things you could easily research. Perhaps you should do your homework next time.” He didn’t look at me once.
The sassy side of me was starting to emerge. But I held it back, knowing pissing off one of the biggest celebrities in the fashion world wasn’t exactly smart. “How did you start your fashion line? What steps did you take?”
“Now that’s a better question.” He held up his finger in the air. “I’m going to tell you something that you probably already know. Hard work and skill mean absolutely nothing. The only thing that matters is who you know. You probably understand that better than anybody.”
What did that mean?
“For instance, we wouldn’t be speaking if your father weren’t one of the wealthiest men in the world. So, if you want to build your fashion line, you need to get to know people and network. Take internships even if they are unpaid. Knowing people is more important than anything else you could offer. And then the path will be laid out before you.”
He was harsh and rude but at least he was honest. I scribbled a few notes down before I moved on to my next question. Clearly agitated the entire time, he answered every question, but he had no interest in my career or what I had to offer. To him, I was just a young girl with a rich father, like so many New Yorkers.
By the end of the meeting, he was in a rush to get out. “Good luck with your career but don’t expect to succeed.”
Uh, thanks? “It was nice meeting you.”
“Bon voyage.” He glided out.
Wait, he’s not even French. I watched him walk out and cut in front of people as he made his way to his limo. When he looked at people on the street, his face was contorted in a look of disgust. It was clear he thought everyone else was inferior to him, that he walked on air while the rest of us walked on dirt.
I promised myself then and there I would be nothing like him. That if I ever did become a fashion idol, someone’s guru, I would always be down-to-earth, polite, and sweet to everyone who showed me the same respect. But I knew that decision had already been made by watching my father. He treated his employees like family, giving the dignity of competitive salaries with benefits and more time off than any other company in the country. He was my role model. I may admire Cavos for his genius in fashion, but my father would always be the man I looked up to.
My dad met me in the entryway as soon as I walked inside. “How’d it go, Trin?”
I shrugged. “Alright, I guess. Cavos is a little…”
“Annoying?” My dad smirked. “I guess I should have warned you beforehand.”
“He was just so rude and arrogant. And he treated everyone like they were less than him. I respect his talent but not him as a person. He just rubbed me the wrong way.”
He crossed his arms over his chest. “The more famous you become and the money you have tends to make you an arrogant asshole.”
“But you aren’t like that,” I said immediately.
He shrugged. “Your grandpa raised us right. Not many people have an incredible role model like that.”
“I do…”
His eyes shone in adoration.
“I don’t know what I’m doing with my life but I’m going to do something. And I want to be generous and compassionate like you and Uncle Sean. I want to show humility and be humble. If I ever turn into a jerk like him, slap some sense into me.”
“I know I’ll never have to.” He pulled me into a hug then kissed me on the forehead. “I’m proud of you. You’ve become such a strong and independent woman, and it was so easy for me. I didn’t even have to do anything.”
“I think I was just raised in the right environment, with good role models.”
“I think you get most of those things from your mother. She’s the strongest person I know.”
I nodded. “She is pretty cool.”
“But I’m cooler,” he teased. “I know martial arts and boxing. She just does yoga and CrossFit.”
“I’d like to see you do yoga,” I argued. “You wouldn’t survive.”
“I’m definitely not flexible.” He flexed his arm. “Too much muscle.”
I rolled my eyes. “So full of yourself.”
He chuckled. “I guess all the compliments your mom gives me go straight to my head.”
“That’s still no excuse.”
He smiled while he stared at me but then it faded. “Stay another night and go home tomorrow.” Leaving was just as hard on my father as it was on me. I knew he missed having me in the house, listening to my feet hit the stairs when I came down to breakfast every morning.
“I have class tomorrow.”
“But it’s raining outside.”
“Cars are made to drive in the rain,” I said with a laugh.
He tried to find any excuse. “I got the Sopranos on DVD. We can have a marathon.”
“Maybe another time, Dad. Like next weekend.”
He sighed in sadness. “Alright.” He retrieved my bags then put them in the truck. My mom came to the doorway and sighed in sadness.
“Why do you guys have to get so depressed every time I leave?” I demanded. “I’m just two hours away.”
“Two hours is too far,” my mom said. “I sincerely hope you move to New York or Connecticut when you finish school.”
“I’ll be in New York.” There was no doubt about it.
“Thank god,” my mom said. She pulled me into her arms and hugged me. “I love you, honey.”
“I love you too, Mom.”
“Please give Conrad a kiss for me.”
“Gross. I’ll punch him for you.”
She laughed then pulled away.
My father came back inside, wet from the rain. When he l
ooked at me, the sadness became apparent. He tried to hide it, but he was horrible at it. “Drive safe, honey.”
“I will, Dad.”
He hugged me then rested his massive hand on the back of my head. “I love you.”
“I love you too.”
“Please text me when you get home.” My dad never asked me that. He was always good at keeping his distance and giving me my space. Worry was evident in his voice.
“I promise.”
“Thank you.” Sincerity shone in his eyes.
I covered my hair as I ran to the car. Once I was inside, I turned on the windshield wipers to full blast then glanced at my parents one more time before I hit the road.
Slade had been on my mind for the past two days. If he wasn’t at the forefront of my mind, he lingered in the back. I replayed the last time we were together, remembering the way he looked at me when he made love to me for the first time. The emotion was so apparent and strong that my heart couldn’t handle it.
What did it mean?
Actually, I knew what it meant. When we started fooling around months ago, it was only for convenience. He gave me good sex without the complications of a relationship. He was a jerk I couldn’t stand. But now everything was different. He was the most gentle and loving man I’d ever known. He treated me the way I wanted to be treated, kissing me with passion as well as adoration. I could tell him anything, all my darkest secrets. He was my best friend and the person I turned to for everything. At some point down the road, the unthinkable had happened.
I’d fallen in love with Slade.
How did it happen? I don’t know. When? I couldn’t tell you. It just did. And now it was powerful and all-consuming. The revelation was constantly in my thoughts, but after we made love, it was undeniable.
Slade said he couldn’t give me a relationship, that he couldn’t give me what I wanted. He said he would never change for me and I was stupid to ever think he could.
But he had.
Could we have a forever? Could he be my husband? Could this mean something? I wanted to know but I was too scared to ask. I’d been patient with him, and that patience had been rewarded. Over time, he came closer to me, pushing himself more than he ever thought he could.
What if he pushed himself a little more?
Did he love me? Did he feel what I felt?
Because I was truly, madly…
“Shit!” I gripped the steering wheel and swerved out of the way. A massive semitruck made a sharp turn and the brakes kicked in. It was skidding across the wet pavement, headed right toward me.
I hit the gas and tried to get out of the way, but the wheels wouldn’t take. The car wouldn’t move.
Like a mountain colliding with a concrete dam, it slammed into me hard, breaking every window and shattering glass everywhere. I felt myself spinning, my car flying out of control. My safety belt kept me in place, but my face and hands were getting hit against the metal of the car. I suddenly felt an excruciating pain like I’d never known. It came from my leg. When I tried to move it, it lay still.
The car finally stopped, and the smell of smoke and rain came into my nose. My eyes grew heavy, and the pain was too much. Unsure of what was happening or if I would survive, the black descended and I couldn’t see.
The last thing I remembered was my faint heartbeat, thudding weaker and weaker in my ears.
“Fractured femur, head trauma, and broken ribs.” A paramedic spoke to the EMTs. “I need a neck brace and spinal protection.”
“She’s lost a lot of blood…”
“Weak pulse. We need meds,” a woman said.
I tried to talk but I couldn’t. I couldn’t even open my eyes.
“On the count of three. One…two…three.”
I felt myself slide onto a flat table.
“Get the IV going,” someone called out.
I tried to wake up, but I couldn’t. I fell back into darkness.
“There’s internal bleeding and the fracture of her femur requires immediate attention. We need to take her to surgery.”
“Is she going to be okay?” My dad’s voice was full of concern.
Dad?
“I can’t say,” a man said. “But I’m hopeful. She’s lost a lot of blood. We gave her a transfusion, but she has a hernia. It needs to be repaired now or she’ll lose more blood due to internal bleeding.”
“Okay,” my dad said. “Take her.”
Dad? I wanted to touch him. I was so scared. Dad…
A large hand gripped mine. “Trin, you’re going to be okay. I’m here.”
It was like he knew I could hear him.
“I love you, honey. I’ll be here when you get back.” He released my hand.
Slade…was he there?
Before I could think about it further, I was gone.
66
Slade
I called Trinity again, but there was no answer.
She was supposed to be home half an hour ago. Where was she?
I called again, but it went to voice mail.
I was getting worried. The storm was raging outside. What if something had happened? Why wasn’t she answering?
I told myself to remain calm. She was probably driving which was why she wasn’t answering. And that was a good thing.
But the anxiety was killing me. I sat on her couch, feeling sick with every passing second.
My phone rang but I was disappointed it wasn’t Trinity. It was Cayson. Since I was in a sour mood, I didn’t answer it.
But he called again. Annoyed, I let it go to voice mail.
And then he called again.
“What?” I snapped. “What’s so fucking important?”
His voice was deadly serious. “Slade, listen to me and don’t hang up. Something has happened, and I need you to remain calm while I tell you.”
My lungs suddenly stopped working. “What? What’s wrong?”
“It’s Trinity…”
I stood up and paced the room. “What? What about her? Tell me!”
“On her way home, she got into an accident. A semi hit her and pushed her off the road…”
I fell to my knees, unable to process what he was saying.
“She’s in critical condition and she’s in surgery. That’s all I know.”
I couldn’t breathe. My entire body was shutting down. “What hospital?” That was all I managed to get out.
“Memorial in Connecticut. You shouldn’t be driving right now so I’m coming to get you.”
“Is she going to be okay?” I felt the tears fall from my eyes at the snap of a finger.
“I…I don’t know, Slade.”
“I have to go.”
“Don’t drive! Let me drive—”
I hung up then ran outside and jumped into my car. I started the engine then hauled ass to Connecticut. While driving, I looked up the address in my phone then entered it into the GPS. I almost hit a car and had to swerve out of the way.
I got control of the steering wheel then stayed focused on the road. I knew I had a long drive, and I tried not to give in to the panic.
What if I lost her?
I remembered every mean thing I’d said to her then felt like shit. I’d never apologized to her once. Months had passed and I never told her how I really felt. Now she might die, and I would never get the chance to tell her.
I hate myself.
I should have gone to Connecticut with her. If I had just acted like a man and was up front with her dad about our relationship, I could have come along. Maybe the accident would have happened anyway but at least she wouldn’t suffer alone….
Die alone…
I clenched the steering wheel while the tears fell freely down my cheeks. I sobbed like I hadn’t since I was five years old. When she left yesterday, everything had been perfect. A moment had happened between us, undeniable and strong. It was the first time I’d made love to someone, let myself open up to another person.
And that might have been the last time.<
br />
“Trinity Preston,” I blurted once I reached the counter. “I’m her brother. Where is she? Is she here? Do you know what her status is?”
The nurse remained calm. “Just give me a minute, sir.” She typed on her computer.
I clenched the counter so tightly my knuckles were turning white. “Come on!”
She ignored my rudeness then turned back to me. “She’s registered in ICU.”
I took off.
“Wait!”
I halted then came back to her. “Family members only.”
“I am family,” I snapped. I headed to the elevators and tried to navigate my way to her floor. When I finally reached the right department and got her room number, I dashed into the room, feeling numb and weak.
Uncle Mike held Aunt Cassandra while she cried into his chest. Aunt Scarlet and Uncle Sean were just as upset. Scarlet kept wiping her tears away while Sean comforted her. My dad spotted me, his eyes red, and then quickly came to me.
“Let’s talk outside.” He grabbed my arm and yanked me into the hallway.
“What’s going on? Is she going to be okay?” I breathed hard and tried to stop myself from crying.
My dad studied my face and kept his voice calm. “She’s in surgery now. She lost a lot of blood and has internal injuries…”
“Why is this happening?” I gripped my skull and sobbed.
“She broke her left leg and they had to operate on that as well. She’s been in there for a few hours now. She’ll be back soon.” My dad’s eyes watered while he watched me writhe in pain.
