“I will. I promise,” I said, my voice cracking.
“Thank you,” he said, and closed his eyes. I started to think the worst but I saw that he was still breathing and relief washed through me for one small moment.
I gripped Everleigh tighter in my arms and kissed her hair. She still smelled like warm vanilla…the smell was soothing to me. She looked up at me and wiped the tears from my eyes with her free hand. I kissed her fingertips and tasted my tears on them. I had barely blinked when I felt her lips on my cheek. She darted her tongue across my stubble and I asked, “What are you doing?”
“Now I’m kissing your tears away,” she whispered. I gritted my jaw tight and pressed my forehead to hers.
I felt Max squeeze my hand and my head shot up. He weakly nudged my hand over to Everleigh’s and urged me to take her hand. Once I did, I felt his cold hand cover ours and he whispered through ragged breaths, “Take care of each other. At the end of it all, love is the most important thing. I love you, Evie girl, and I’m so proud of you.”
She started to shake and I held on as hard as I could. “I love you too, Daddy. So much,” she cried.
His eyes flicked to mine and he barely said, “Take care of my girl, son. Don’t let me down.” He took a few more ragged breaths, and then suddenly, he was still. Max was gone.
I blinked back more tears and quickly tore my eyes away from him and over to Everleigh, who was sobbing hysterically and shaking his hand as if to wake him. “Daddy? Daddy, wake up! Please, don’t go, I’m not ready to say goodbye! Daddy, please come back!” she cried, shaking violently. I slid my hand out from under his cold one and wrapped both my arms around her to try and calm her. I ran my hands along her hair as she cried and cried, begging him not to go. It took all the strength in me not to break down right along with her. I wish I had better prepared myself for this because in that moment I felt like that scared twenty year old kid that lost his dad all over again.
I held Everleigh in my arms for what felt like an eternity as she grieved over the loss of the first man she ever loved. I knew there were no words I could say to comfort her so I just held her and let her cry. I don’t know how long we stayed like that because before I knew it, Max’s bedroom door opened and Trish came in, her eyes bloodshot and red. She gave me a pleading look and I nodded. I needed to get Everleigh out of here so they could get him ready to move to the funeral home. I leaned in and whispered in her ear, “Everleigh, we need to step out so Trish can take care of him.”
She shook her head. “No, I’m not leaving him!”
“They’re just going to get him ready, sweetie,” I said, rubbing her back.
She looked up at me with sad eyes and I nearly broke down looking into them. “I can’t let go yet.”
I wiped a tear from her cheek just as a fresh one fell. “He already has, Everleigh. Now you need to,” I said, trying to soothe her as much as possible.
I looked into her brown eyes, pleading with her silently. She looked from me to Max and started crying hard again. Suddenly, she stood up and leaned over his still body. Bending down to his face, she kissed his cheek one last time and said, “I’ll love you forever, Daddy,” and she stood up and stepped away from his bed.
She began to reluctantly move to the door and as I followed her out, I looked back at him one last time and said, “I won’t let you down, Max.”
Chapter 2
Everleigh
The next four days went by in a blur. The day after Daddy passed away, we were at the funeral home and I did the best I could to make his funeral arrangements. Ryder had been at my side the entire time, involving himself in every last detail of the service. I should have been offended that a virtual stranger had shown up and taken over my dad’s funeral, but I wasn’t. Planning a funeral is a hard thing to do, but to try and do it all alone was unbearable. When he saw how overwhelmed I was, Ryder stepped in and helped with every single detail, right down to the music and what Daddy would be buried in.
He’d pretty much moved in temporarily at home too, keeping a constant eye on me and attending to my every need. He made sure I ate and showered (he jokingly offered to give me one himself to try and make me smile). He also slept in my bed, holding me close, which was actually very comforting. He tried to sleep on the couch the night that Daddy died, but I felt scared and alone so when I begged him to come in and sleep in my room, he didn’t hesitate.
It was now Thursday…the day of the funeral. Sadly enough, it was also New Year’s Eve. Everyone should have been getting ready to celebrate and countdown to the New Year but instead we were all gathering to say goodbye to my father. After I had dressed in my best black dress and pinned my hair up, Ryder had made me choke down a small amount of breakfast before taking me to the funeral home. As we left my house, just as expected, there were cameras everywhere again. Even though they were annoying and I really wish they would go away, they surprisingly kept their distance and took long range shots of us so they weren’t too close. I guess sometimes the press can have respect for the dead.
We made it to the funeral home and Ryder and I were quickly ushered inside a back entrance by John. Once we were inside, he took my coat and hung it on a hanger. As he shrugged out of his jacket, I noticed for the first time that he was wearing a suit. It was a sharp black Armani suit and looked like it had been tailored to mold perfectly to his tall muscular frame. He looked absolutely gorgeous. I looked at him and for the first time in four days, I smiled. His eyes caught mine. “What is it?”
“You look good in a suit, rock star,” I said, and he grinned at me.
“You don’t look so bad yourself, gorgeous.”
I smiled again. “Listen, before we go in there I just want to say thank you.”
“For what?” he asked.
“For everything. For helping arrange Daddy’s funeral when I was incoherent, for taking care of me, for staying with me every night so I could sleep…just everything. I’m very grateful for you, Ryder Matthews.”
He smiled a sad smile at me. “Thank you for letting me do all of those things. I am glad you let me help out.”
I moved in close and hugged him tightly around his torso. “I’m glad you wanted to.” We stayed like that for a few moments before the back door opened again and Beau and Danni rushed inside out of the cold air. “Hey Danni,” I said, stepping away from Ryder and hugging her.
“Hey Ev, how are you holding up?” she asked.
I shrugged. “As well as can be expected, I guess.” As she took off her coat, I stepped over to Beau. “Thank you for coming, Beau. I know you didn’t know my dad, but-”
“No, I didn’t unfortunately. However, I do know you and I am so sorry to see you go through this. I know how much this hurts you…we’ve all been through it before. If there is anything you need, anything at all, you can ask us, okay?” he said.
Tears pricked at my eyes. What did I do to deserve such a wonderful group of friends as these guys? I leaned in and gave him a hug. “Thank you Beau. So much,” I said, sniffing. I pulled away and wiped his suit where my makeup had left a stain. “Oh, I’m sorry.”
He smiled and waved his hand. “Don’t worry about it.”
Ryder took my hand and squeezed. “Are you ready to see him one last time?”
I took a deep breath and nodded. “I’m ready,” I lied. I wasn’t ready to say goodbye to my dad at all, but I really didn’t have a choice. He was already gone. Ryder’s hand never left mine as we walked down the hall toward the main room.
When we reached the doors, a man I think I remembered from planning the service gave his condolences and handed me a program before we walked into the chapel. When we did, I gasped in shock.
The chapel was filled to the nines with flowers…there had to be over a thousand flowers here of every variety. There were beautiful framed pictures of Daddy in different stages of his life set up on portrait stands all over the room. I looked to the right and I saw Daddy’s old Army uniform hanging on a bust next to hi
s casket and it looked like it had been cleaned and pressed with the utmost care. When my eyes settled on his casket, I began to cry hard.
I wasn’t only crying tears over seeing my wonderful, loving father lying there, but over the casket itself. It was breathtaking. It was a lush mahogany casket that was trimmed in what looked like solid gold, and it had a soft satin ivory colored interior. One thing I did know for sure through all of this was that Daddy’s life insurance didn’t cover any of what I was looking at. I couldn’t stop the tears from falling as I looked up at Ryder. “Did…did you do all of this?”
Ryder shrugged his shoulders. “It’s no big deal.”
“It’s a v-v-very big deal,” I choked out, barely able to speak.
He looked at me sheepishly. “I hope you aren’t upset but I just wanted the man you loved and worshipped growing up to have a proper send off. Are you mad?”
I shook my head and fell into his chest. “No, I’m not mad. This is so beautiful, Ryder. I can’t believe you did all of this for him. You are amazing,” I cried, and he wrapped his arms around me tightly.
We took our seats up front as more and more people started to file into the chapel. The service was beautiful and everything was perfect down to the last detail. Ryder even got the music right, choosing my dad’s all time favorite song, “Fire and Rain” by James Taylor, to be played as we left the chapel and headed to the gravesite. Ryder held onto me tightly as my dad was lowered into the ground, rubbing my arms quickly to not only keep me warm but to keep me from losing it as I watched my dad slip away from me.
An hour later, we were back at my house and it was quickly packed so tight with people wanting to pay their respects that it was hard to move. I had ducked into the living room and had taken a seat on the couch closest to the window and just watched the snow falling outside in beautiful fluffy flakes. I hadn’t really spoken to many people and it was nice to just have a quiet minute to myself. I didn’t realize anyone had sat down until I felt the couch dip down beside me. “Hey gorgeous, I made you some tea,” Ryder said, placing a hot glass of tea on a dish on the coffee table.
I turned to him and smiled. “Thank you,” I said.
“What are you doing all alone over here?” he asked me, wrapping his arm around me and pulling me into his chest.
“I’m just sitting here watching the snow fall. It’s beautiful, isn’t it?” I asked, my eyes misting.
“It’s very beautiful,” he said, kissing my forehead. “Can I make you something to eat?”
I shook my head. “No, I’m not really hungry just yet. Thank you though.”
“Let me know,” he said, and I nodded. At that moment, I looked up and saw Kris walking through the living room holding hands with a very beautiful brunette. “Hi Kris,” I said, standing up and giving him a hug.
“Hey Everleigh. How are you doing, sweetheart?”
“I’m doing okay, I guess. Thank you for being here.”
“I wouldn’t have missed it,” he said. “Everleigh, I’d like to introduce you to my fiancée, Jessica Monroe. Jessie, this Everleigh Stone.”
I shook hands with Jessie and was stunned when she leaned in and kissed my cheek. “It’s so nice to finally meet you, Everleigh. I just wish it could have been under better circumstances.”
I nodded. “Thank you, Jessie. I appreciate you being here.”
“Oh, it’s no trouble. Any friend of Ryder’s is a friend of mine, especially one as sweet as you. I’ve been hoping he’d find someone to make him happy for a while,” she said, winking at him.
“Have you all known each other long?” I asked her.
She nodded. “We all grew up together in Cincinnati. I’ve known these chuckleheads since I was in kindergarten.”
I smiled at her. “That’s nice that you all stayed friends for so long. It’s been that way for Danni and me too. She’s been my best friend since preschool.”
“Beau’s new girl…yes I met her too and she’s a doll. Looks like my guys got lucky meeting the two of you,” she said, smiling an almost motherly smile. I could tell that she loved these guys with her whole heart and if she approved of me and Danni that already meant the world to me. “Now we just need to get Jude to settle down.”
We all looked at each other for the briefest of moments and she snorted out a laugh. “Good luck with that, Jessie,” Ryder said, and he leaned in and kissed her cheek. “Seriously, thanks for coming.”
“No problem,” she said, smiling at him.
“Listen, we are going head back to the hotel, but we just wanted to pay our respects and say goodbye before we left,” Kris said to me.
I wrapped my arms around him and gave him a hug. “Thank you again for coming, Kris. You too Jessie,” I said, moving from Kris to hug her as well.
“You’re welcome, Everleigh. Listen, once you’re feeling up to it, can we have lunch sometime? You, me, and Danni?”
“Really?” I asked, smiling slightly.
“Of course. It will be so nice to have some girl talk after being around all these guys for years,” she said, smiling.
“That sounds really nice, actually.”
“Great! Get my number from Ryder and just text me when you feel better, okay?” she asked, giving me one last hug.
“I will, I promise,” I replied. “Take care, you two.”
Ryder gave my shoulders a quick shake. “I’m going to walk them out. Will you be okay until I get back?” he asked me.
I smiled softly at him. “I will be fine. Go with your friends,” I said.
He put his hands on my face and kissed the tip of my nose softly. “I’ll be right back, gorgeous,” he said.
“No rush, rock star,” I said, and I watched him follow Kris and Jessie out of the living room through the crowd of people.
I was just about to sit back down on the couch and take a drink of my tea when I felt a hand graze my neck and twirl a piece of my hair that had fallen down. “Hey baby girl,” said a voice that sent chills down my spine.
I flinched away and turned to face the man that had destroyed my confidence. “What the hell are you doing here, Scott?”
“Just paying my respects,” he said, a wicked grin on his face. I felt sick to my stomach by the sight of him. He was dressed in a black suit and had his dirty blonde hair slicked back. I guess he was cute in the traditional sense but now that I knew what a bastard he actually was it made my skin crawl to look at him.
“My dad hated you and he’d have a fucking fit if he knew you were here. Get out,” I said.
“Well, Daddy’s dead now so what he doesn’t know won’t hurt him, now will it?”
I gasped sharply and slapped him across the face. “Get out of my house now, Scott!” I screamed, hot angry tears pouring from my eyes.
“Temper, temper, Everleigh. I see that piece of scum rock singer is rubbing off on you in a bad way. Tell me, how’s he been enjoying my sloppy seconds?” he sneered.
Before I could say anything else, Scott was jerked away from me with full force. “What the hell did you just say to her?” Jude growled. Beau was standing behind him and John was on the right.
Scott smiled at him. “Ah, the famous bass player. Your boy must be slumming it to fuck a girl like that one. Trust me, she’s not that great. Strung my ass along for months before she gave it up and even then it was fucking terrible. She must be a little better at it now since she’s with a sex fiend like Ryder Matthews. Maybe I overlooked something the first time,” he said, flashing a cocky smile. “You want to go find a closet and let me see if I was wrong?”
Jude’s eyes flared with rage and he charged at Scott, pressing him against the wall with his muscular forearm at Scott’s throat. “Get the fuck out of this house now before you leave here in a body bag, you got it dick?”
Beau pulled at Jude’s arm and he reluctantly let Scott go. He still had a smug look on his face and was trying to take a step toward me when Beau blocked his path. “Walk away, asshole. This time it’s just a shove
against the wall. Next time things are going to get bloody,” Beau said, giving him a hard shove.
Jude narrowed his eyes at Scott. “If you so much as talk to my little sister again, I can assure you no one will ever find your body. Get the fuck out now,” he said. Even though the situation was tense and I wanted nothing more than for Scott to leave, my heart warmed a little to hear Jude call me his ‘little sister’.
John grabbed Scott’s shirt tightly and said, “Outside, now.”
“I’m going to make sure this asshole leaves,” Beau said, giving me a slight nod. As they led Scott out the living room, he turned his face to me one last time and smiled an arrogant smile and flicked his tongue at me. I felt my skin start to crawl and bile start to rise in my throat.
As soon as Scott was gone, Jude came to me and wrapped his arm protectively around my shoulders. “You okay, Everleigh?” he asked.
I felt tears stinging at my eyes again and I shrugged my shoulders. “Thanks for that Jude. I can’t believe he had the nerve to show his face here.”
“So, I take it that was an ex boyfriend of yours?” he asked, a playful smile on his face. “No offense, kid, but that guy is a total douche.”
I scoffed. “I know. I don’t know what I ever saw in him. I am just glad that Ryder wasn’t here for that. That’s the last thing he needs.”
Jude chuckled and raised his eyebrows. “The last thing he needs? Everleigh, you are the one that just lost your dad. You shouldn’t have had to deal with that prick. I promise we’ll make sure he stays away from you from now on, okay?”
I nodded and wrapped my arms around Jude’s stocky form. “Thank you so much,” I said, and he hugged me back. “So, did you really just call me your little sister?”
“Of course I did.”
“Why?” I asked him.
He smiled and kissed the top of my head. “Because you’re family now,” he said, matter-of-factly. More tears fall down my cheeks as I hugged onto my protector for a few moments.
Rogue (Bad Blooded Rebel Series) Page 2
