Her Keeper

by Rianna Campbell

  “Right. And you,” she continued, pointing a finger at their father. “How long has this been going on?”

  “Since last October. When you were… injured, your mother and I spoke for quite a while. She didn’t know anything about what had been going on, of course, so I explained it to her. And then after that, we kept in touch, mostly about how you were doing, at first. Parent stuff. But then… we decided to meet for drinks. Drinks became dinner and-”

  “Okay, I think we can guess the rest,” Alexandra cut him off.

  “We wanted to be sure before we said anything to you. We didn’t want to get your hopes up if things weren’t going to work out.”

  “So, you’re serious about retiring?”

  “Yes. Your mother was always very supportive of my career. You know what it’s like when you’ve just started practicing. You have a lot to prove and the hours are long. Once you girls were older and we were facing an empty nest, she expected that I would slow down. Not retire, but work shorter hours. But I… I didn’t know how.” Their father shrugged, crossing his arms over his chest. “I just assumed she’d still be there when I was ready. I was wrong.”

  “And you’re sure you’re ready this time?” Alexandra asked, mirroring his posture, arms folded over her chest. “Because if you’re not-”

  “I am. No one knows better than I do how lucky I am to have another shot with your mother. I promise you, I won’t mess it up this time.”

  Alexandra let out a ragged breath and nodded.

  “Okay.”

  “Does that mean I have your blessing?” he asked, cocking his head to the side.

  “Yes, I suppose it does.”

  “And yours?” He held out a hand to Amanda and she took it, sitting down next to him.

  “Whatever you guys want. As long as you’re both happy, I’m happy.”

  “I can’t speak for your mother,” he replied with a smirk. “But I’m very happy.”

  “Gross, Dad,” Amanda muttered, shaking her head. Their father laughed and she had to admit that it was the happiest she’d seen him since the divorce.

  She'd never understood how two people who seemed to love each other so much had ever divorced in the first place.

  Sadly, it made more sense to her now. Being in love was wonderful, but it wasn’t always enough. It took work and faith to keep two people together.

  And sitting there, in the lobby of the police station, she wondered if she and Parker still had a chance to make things work.

  They would just have to find a way. She’d have faith enough for the both of them if that’s what it took, but she wasn’t giving up on him just yet.

  CHAPTER TWENTY-SEVEN

  Parker stepped out through the double doors and took a deep breath. It wasn’t fresh air by a long shot, but at least he wasn’t cuffed anymore and he was finally on his way to freedom. As prepared as he’d been to rot in prison, the moment he’d seen Amanda again and that spark of hope had lit him up from the inside, he’d been pacing like a caged animal.

  He needed to see her, to talk to her. To find out where things stood. If he’d messed everything up, he needed to know if he could fix it.

  He was directed to the desk where he was handed a large manilla envelope with his personal effects and a set of forms was shoved in front of his face. He signed them all without bothering to read them, slipped his wallet and shoelaces into his pocket, and walked out carrying his belt.

  The door swung open and he stopped dead in his tracks. She was here, waiting for him. That had to be a good sign, right? He barely registered Alexandra and Mr. Hughes until Alexandra stepped into his path.

  “You are the absolute worst client I have ever had,” Alexandra said sternly, glaring at him. Then he noticed the tears in her eyes just before she wrapped her arms around him in a tight hug. “But I’m so glad you’re okay.”

  “Thanks,” he muttered, embarrassed.

  “Don’t think we’re not going to talk about this later,” she warned him, sniffling. “But someone else called dibs on tearing you a new one.”

  Parker swallowed hard and tried to give her a smile. She squeezed his arm before turning back to her father.

  “Come on, old man. We have a motion to file and you have some more questions to answer.”

  “Oh, joy,” Mr. Hughes deadpanned, offering Parker a smile and a nod as he stood and followed Alexandra out of the building.

  And there he was, alone with Amanda, his heart in his throat and his fate in her hands.

  He noticed the small bandage on her forehead and frowned.

  “Your head... does it hurt?”

  “It's fine.” She stood there, arms folded, glaring at him. He shuffled his feet a little, rubbing the back of his neck.

  “Can we go somewhere and talk?” He asked, holding his breath and hoping she would say yes.

  She nodded and turned without a word, walking through the double doors and down the steps, trusting that he would follow.

  “Connor left you a car,” Amanda said tightly, pointing to where a company Range Rover was parked at a metered space in front of the station. She held out the keys, dropping them into his waiting palm.

  “Do you want me to take you home?”

  “I think you’d better get home and change before people get the wrong idea,” she replied, indicating his bloodstained clothes.

  “Right. Good call.”

  He opened her door and she climbed into the passenger seat while he got in and got them moving. Neither said a word and the silence that stretched between them had his panic increasing by the minute.

  They climbed the three flights up to his door and he unlocked it and pushed it open for her. Once he’d locked it behind them, he turned and found her standing in the middle of his living room, fists planted on her hips and ready to give him hell.

  He braced himself for the onslaught and was glad that he did.

  “You… are by far, the most stubborn, infuriating, pig-headed… asshole that I have ever met,” she said, sputtering slightly in her anger.

  Parker kept quiet, knowing she was probably just getting started, and that he deserved every word of it.

  “What in the ever-loving fuck made you think that it would somehow be a good idea to make Jackson whisk me away, essentially obstructing justice and- and complicating something that should have been cleared up in a matter of hours?”

  “I was trying to protect you,” he said simply.

  “From what? Having to make a statement? You thought it was better for you to go to jail to protect me from being inconvenienced for a few hours?”

  “I mean… when you put it like that…” Parker rubbed the back of his neck feeling like a total idiot. “I guess it didn’t make much sense.”

  “Oh, you think?”

  “I know it was stupid. I know what I did was… probably clinically insane. But all I could think was that you were going to be… tainted by all this. That you’d finally seen me for what I was and that just being associated with me was going to hurt you and your family. I’m nothing, so what did it matter what happened to me?”

  “What… what did it matter?” she asked. “That’s the whole point, Parker. It does matter. You matter! You matter to me, to Connor, to Jackson, to Jackson’s mom. You matter to a lot of people!”

  Parker’s breath hitched and his throat felt tight. His vision blurred and he blinked furiously trying to clear it.

  “I know that your parents were terrible, and that’s the understatement of the year. But just because they didn’t love you the way you deserved to be loved, doesn’t mean that you don't matter.”

  “I haven’t done anything to deserve it,” Parker replied, his voice breaking.

  “You don’t have to do anything, you idiot! That’s what I’m trying to tell you. You don’t have to earn it. I love you for who you are. You don't have to prove you deserve it.”

  Amanda stood there, face red, breathing heavily, and apparently oblivious to what she’d just said.
Parker’s heart didn’t just leap into his throat, it jumped clear out and was doing a jig on the floor at his feet. His breath caught as he stared at her in shock.

  “What did you just say?” he asked softly. If he was still on that lumpy cot in that crappy jail cell and this was a dream, he didn’t want to wake himself up.

  “I said, you don’t have to earn… love.” She hesitated, her voice wavering as what she’d said finally hit her.

  “After that.”

  “I said… I love you.” She sniffled and wiped at her eyes. “Idiot.”

  He was so surprised that a bark of laughter escaped. He took one step, then two and before he could think twice, he’d wrapped his arms around her, cradling her head against his chest as she cried.

  He hated himself for causing her pain, but if she gave him the chance, he’d spend a lifetime giving her as much joy as he could.

  “Don’t laugh! I’ve never been so angry or scared in my l-life.”

  “I’m sorry. I’m so fucking sorry,” he said. He repeated it over and over again until her breathing had evened out and her tears had stopped. She pulled back, looking up at him with red-rimmed eyes and he’d never found her more beautiful.

  ✽✽✽

  The shock and fear and worry of the past eighteen hours had finally caught up to her and she’d done the one thing she said she was absolutely not going to do. She broke down. The dam had burst and there was no stopping it once it started.

  When it was over, and she was feeling more or less herself, she began to wonder what happened next. She’d made her confession, unintentional as it was, and though he seemed pleased, he hadn’t said anything of the kind in return.

  She told herself that it was okay if he didn’t feel the same way. They hadn’t been together very long and he had a skewed perception of things, especially after last night. She wouldn’t push him to say anything until he was sure. But she couldn’t deny that it stung a bit.

  “When I got there last night and saw what was happening, I was terrified,” Parker said quietly, still holding her tightly. “If anything had happened to you… if he’d hurt you, I wouldn’t have been able to forgive myself.” He paused, taking a shaky breath.

  She looked up at him and he tucked a wayward strand of hair behind her ear and wiped away a stray tear with his thumb.

  “Amanda, I love you,” he whispered. Amanda’s heart skipped a beat and she forgot how to breathe.

  “What did you say?”

  The corner of his mouth twitched up into a half-smile and he placed a soft kiss on her lips.

  “I love you,” he repeated. “So damn much. He had a gun pointed straight at my heart last night. I couldn’t let anything happen to you. Then afterward… I was afraid. I was afraid that you finally saw me the way I saw myself. That you’d be afraid of me. God knows I’m afraid of myself sometimes.”

  “Never,” she said, firmly, shaking her head. “I have never been and never could be afraid of you.”

  “I don’t want to be like him,” Parker admitted. She knew he didn’t mean Colin, and she squeezed him tight.

  “You aren’t. And you never will be.”

  “I hope you’re right because I can’t let you go.”

  “I wouldn’t let you if you tried,” Amanda replied, raising an eyebrow. “You’re mine now. There’s nothing you can do about it.”

  “Are you saying I’m stuck with you?” Parker asked, running his nose down her cheek, taking in a deep breath.

  “Yup. Deal with it.”

  “You’re a brat, you know that?” he asked, kissing the side of her neck.

  “I know. But you love it.”

  “I do,” he replied, nipping softly at her earlobe. “I love you.”

  Amanda gasped and pulled back to look him in the eye. A smirk spread across her face.

  “Prove it.”

  Over the next couple of weeks, they talked a lot. As Paker had once told her, communication was key. He told her about the phone call about his father’s death and how he’d reacted. It helped her understand just why he’d been stupid enough to do what he did that night when he’d rescued her from Colin. His emotions had already been in a tangle. Add fear and anger and adrenaline to the mix and it was a cocktail for disaster.

  Fortunately, or unfortunately depending on how you looked at it, Colin survived and the doctors assured him he would make a full recovery. And as soon as he did, he’d be standing trial for attempted kidnapping. Amanda was not looking forward to dealing with that, mostly because she wasn’t looking forward to Parker having to deal with it.

  But whatever happened, they’d work through it together, with help if necessary. Parker was still reluctant to see a shrink, but he was coming around to the idea that there were things he wasn’t equipped to process on his own. Amanda would always be there to help him, but she could only do so much.

  He and Jackson had made a point to get together periodically and talk things through, which Amanda thought was a very good place to start. Not to mention it gave her an excuse to get the girls together, even if Alexandra couldn’t always be there.

  Alexandra was still processing the fact that their parents were getting back together. Amanda understood where she was coming from. There was a “been there, done that, got the t-shirt” vibe that was hard to shake. It was difficult, even as adults, not to be afraid of history repeating itself.

  Their parents were obviously adults who had their own lives to live, but as a family, what happened between them would certainly affect her and Alexandra, for better or worse.

  Things weren’t perfect anywhere, but there was hope that with time and effort, everything would work out in the end. And that was all Amanda, or anyone could really ask for.

  EPILOGUE

  “What a beautiful day,” Alexandra said.

  Meanwhile, Amanda was adjusting her dress for the umpteenth time in the last hour. The waiting was the worst part. Here they were, hair and makeup all done, dressed to kill and ready to walk down the aisle, and they were just… waiting.

  It was supposed to be the bride’s day, shouldn’t she get to decide when things started? She shouldn’t have to sit here waiting for someone else to tell her it was time to go.

  “What’s taking so long?” Amanda complained. She wanted to get the whole church part over with so that she could spend the rest of the day with the man she loved. She was anxious for the dancing and the cake and the romance, not so much the standing in church for half an hour.

  “Calm down,” her mother said with a chuckle. “Things happen when they happen.” She looked at Amanda over her shoulder as she checked her hair in the mirror.

  “I just don’t see why the bride is in here waiting,” Amanda pointed out. “Shouldn’t it be the other way around? Shouldn’t everyone else be waiting for the bride?”

  “You’ve always been so impatient,” her mother laughed. “But some things are worth the wait.”

  Amanda smiled to herself. That was certainly true. Parker had made her wait for months, but he’d been worth it. She’d never been happier in her life and she was looking forward to a lifetime with him.

  “Ladies, it’s time,” the wedding planner said, poking her head into the room.

  “Finally,” Amanda sighed.

  “Oh calm down, would you?” Alexandra said, rolling her eyes.

  “I just want to get this part over with,” Amanda said, picking up her bouquet and lining up behind the bridesmaids. “You know, get to the good stuff.”

  “One might say that marrying the man you love is the good stuff,” Alexandra chuckled.

  “Yeah, but for the rest of us it’s just half an hour of standing around in uncomfortable shoes in front of like two hundred people we barely know and trying not to sneeze or fix your wedgie.”

  “Alright, girls, it’s time. Shall we?” her mother asked, fitting herself between them and taking an arm of each.

  They followed the bridesmaids from the room and out into the hallway before
the church doors. They stood off to the side as the doors were opened and the wedding march began to play.

  “I want you both to know how much I love you,” their mother said, tears shining in her eyes.

  “We love you too, mom,” Alexandra replied, a few tears of her own threatening to fall.

  “Yeah, yeah. Chop, chop. The groom’s waiting,” Amanda reminded them.

  And then, on cue, the three of them began walking slowly down the aisle. There, at the other end, their father waited, wearing a spanking new tux and looking happier than he’d ever been before.

  At the end of the aisle, when the minister asked who gave this woman in holy matrimony, Amanda and Alexandra answered in unison that they did. They then stepped to the side beside the bridesmaids and watched as their parents got married for the second time.

  “Is it just me or is this really weird,” Amanda whispered to her sister.

  “It’s definitely weird, but it’s also kind of sweet.”

  “Yeah.” Amanda agreed with a smile. “Let’s hope they don’t fuck it up this time.”

  Alexandra snorted softly and gave Amanda a look that told her to behave.

  Fat chance…

  Speaking of misbehaving, she looked out into the crowd and found Paker. He was sitting with Connor, Angel, Janie, and Jackson a few rows back. Parker gave her a wide smile and a wink that made her heart flip in her chest.

  He always looked so damn good in a suit. She couldn’t wait to take him home and crank up the brat dial to eleven. As if reading her thoughts he raised an eyebrow and gave her a small shake of his head.

  Finally, after a small eternity, the vows were exchanged, the wedding party had filed out and the photos had been taken. After a brief introduction at the reception, Amanda was able to find her table where Parker was waiting for her.

  “You look beautiful,” he murmured, kissing the side of her neck.

  “And you look edible,” she replied, reaching over and placing a hand on his lap.

  “Don’t. Start,” he scolded, nipping her earlobe. “We’re at your parents' wedding for Christ’s sake. I’m still new and I want them to like me.”