Shocked, she jerked her head in his direction. “I’m sorry. I don’t remember asking you.” It wasn’t like her to be rude, but she was still annoyed enough not to care.
“I know him better than anyone. His demons run deep. You’re gonna get hurt.”
“Why do you not like me?” She laced her hands tightly together.
At a stoplight, he turned his amazing eyes on her. “I do like you. Otherwise I wouldn’t give a shit. You’re a good girl. I know it. He knows it. You know it. There’s no place for his hell in your life.”
Her heart thundered in her chest with a mix of fear and anger. “He told me some. And you don’t know me well enough to make that judgment.”
Surprise lit his usually bored façade. “Interesting. You think you can handle it?”
She worried her lip, and her stomach churned. “Honestly, I don’t know.”
He pulled up to her car and parked. “I’d figure it out before you get in any deeper.”
She looked up at him. “Do you think he would hurt me physically?”
“No.” Zak shook his head. “Some scars are worse than physical wounds.”
He was hiding again, and whatever little emotion she’d seen was gone. She was positive he’d been in the foster system with Ethan. She reached out a hand and laid it on his forearm. He tried to mask it with a bland expression, but his every muscle tensed.
“I’m sorry for whatever it was you went through. I’m glad you have a friend like Ethan, and I hope you might consider me a friend as well.”
She hastily got out of the truck and into her car before he could respond. She didn’t want to know it all. And it scared her that Zak just might be more damaged than Ethan. The thought was sobering.
After meeting with the life insurance guy, she sat in her running car and read Gran’s letter one more time. Gran had taken care of her. Knew just how constricting her mom and John had gotten. Funny thing, Shelby had never said anything to her about it. She hadn’t told anyone. Now, she had enough money to fix the house, change her course major. Get her life on a track she laid herself. Skye was the first one to make her crack her eyes open a little. But standing up to her parents and staying here to sort through Gran’s stuff really opened them.
There was more to life than sitting and watching it pass you by while doing nothing but trying to please everyone. In the end, she would never really please them anyway.
Ethan may be rough and angry, but he wasn’t afraid of life. He lived it, good or bad. She wanted to be more like him. Even if she was still peeved.
She headed to the mall where she threw herself into making Gran’s house her home. She didn’t want to wipe away everything that was Gran’s, but Shelby knew her well enough to know that she wouldn’t want her to dwell on the past. Gran wanted her to move on. So that’s what she did, and loaded up her car with linens, pillows, curtains, and rugs that screamed Shelby.
Her next step would be telling her mom she was staying in Tennessee.
She took a deep breath as she drove down Briley Parkway towards home. She would worry about that later. Right now, she was tired from being up all night with Ethan then shopping for hours. As much as she wanted to hash it out with Ethan, maybe she should do it when she wasn’t so foggy headed.
She turned into her drive and stopped. Why were all these people here? Several trucks were parked alongside the circle driveway, and a sleek black Lexus was parked right up to the door.
Ice froze her veins, and she gripped the wheel.
Shelby, remember, this is your house. Your terms.
Right.
She got out of the car and walked up to John and Andrew facing off with Mick.
“It’s about time you got back,” John said and pointed to Mick. “This nobody thought to run us off.”
Shelby didn’t have time to wonder why Mick was even here, or that the entire DirtSlap crew was here. All she could focus on was Andrew, who was headed toward her. At one time, she’d thought him handsome. Now, his smile was just as fake as the warmth in his eyes.
“Shelby.” Andrew reached out to pull her into a hug, and she backed up out of reach.
“What are you doing here?” Her gaze flicked from Andrew to John while her stomach knotted into a sick mess.
John, as always, wore a suit that shouted money and authority. He slid his hands sedately into his pockets. It contradicted the steel in his eyes. “Your mother wants you home.”
“Why didn’t she come?” It was a stupid question. Her mother was probably busy with whatever. No way did she have time for her.
“Andrew and I had business here. Your mother is busy planning your wedding.”
Shelby choked and turned in time to see Ethan step through the screen door onto the porch behind her, followed by Lila and Cassie. He said nothing, but the tension in his shoulders did. He heard.
“So much do to. At least that’s what Camellia said. She said she needed you there to finalize the plans,” Andrew added.
“I ended it. I mailed the ring back to you. I told you it was over.” Andrews’s words had her gaping and stumbling over her own. They never listened to her. “Mother knows I ended it. And even if I hadn’t, shouldn’t I be the one planning it?”
Andrew waved a hand in dismissal. “I know you didn’t mean it. Just overwrought nerves from your grandmother dying. But we’ve let you have time, now it’s time to come home.”
His hand circled her wrist and panic descended. She jerked out of his grip. “Don’t touch me.”
Her heart jumped in her throat. That sickening smile turned cold, and it was all she could do to not run back into the house. She gripped the old porch post for support.
“Shelby, you’re being ridiculous. Wasting your time here on this dump of a house. Your place is at home, planning your wedding and going to school. So get in the car.” John stepped closer, and his commanding voice deepened. “Now.”
It took all her gumption, but with Gran’s words echoing in her mind, she said, “No. I’m staying here. This is my home. I should have never left this place. This is where I belong.”
John’s and Andrew’s amused laughter was nothing short of degrading.
“You heard her, boys. She’s staying. That means you’re leaving.” Mick’s long goatee, leather vest, and bare tattooed arms should have been intimidating enough, but he flashed them a false smile, exposing his one gold tooth.
“You want to stay with this riff-raff? These are the type of people you surround yourself with the moment you get a smidgen of freedom? What does that say about your decision making skills?” John’s condescending words were like a smack to the face.
“These people are my friends.” Her words were not as forceful as she wanted them to be. But no way was she standing by while he talked bad about them. “They’re helping me.”
She wanted to add, unlike you, but she couldn’t seem to get that out. She glanced at her friends and asked, “But why are you all here?”
Zak, who leaned against the side of the house, spoke up. “Rain coming.”
Thrand stood beside Zak, with his arms folded. His black cap rode low and shaded his face, but he looked as put out as Mick did. Ryan leaned casually against the porch railing looking completely bored, as usual, except for the way he kept twirling his hammer. No telling what was said before she even got here.
Cassie snorted. “What Mr. Talkative means is, they are trying to get your roof finished before the rain hits and soaks everything inside. The boys are speeding up the process. Or they were, until these yahoos showed up.”
Shelby glanced at Ethan who hadn’t taken his eyes off Andrew. It brought another wave of sick nausea. The engagement had been nothing but a farce from the get-go. But somewhere along the line, she should have mentioned it to him.
“As you can see, you’re interrupting,” Ethan said and gripped the railing of the porch so tight the muscles in his arms bulged.
“I’ve had enough of this.” Andrew’s blue eyes iced over as he moved to grab her
again, but before she could even back up, Ethan had hopped over the rail and stood directly between them.
“Don’t touch her.”
Even though she stood on a step, she had to peer around the top of Ethan’s head to see Andrew sneer. She grabbed the back of Ethan’s shirt, hoping and praying he didn’t hit her ex. Not because he didn’t deserve it, but because of the lawsuit they could bring down on his head. It would be impossible to win.
“Leave. This is my home, my property. If you don’t, I’m calling the cops.” She fumbled in her pocket and pulled out her phone. Her heart was racing, but the thought of what they would do to Ethan outweighed her outright fear of standing up for herself.
“How dare you? I will cut you off so fast—”
“I don’t want your money, John. I never did.” She clenched her hand tighter in Ethan’s shirt and scooted a little closer to him. His being here somehow gave her strength she didn’t think she had.
Andrew’s eyes narrowed. “Him? You’re with this freak?”
Shelby plastered her body to Ethan’s back, hoping to keep him in check.
“Leave. Now.” She pushed the button on her phone.
“Who the hell do you think you are? She’s my fiancée,” Andrew spat as he pointed at Ethan.
*
“Ex, it sounds like. And I’m your worst fucking nightmare.” Ethan dropped his crossed arms and moved toward the little shit who scared Shelby so bad she shook like a rag doll. He had a good suspicion this guy was who called her cold. As far as he was concerned, that was reason enough to clock the bastard.
“No.” Shelby wrapped her arm around his waist, stopping him. “They’re not worth it.”
He heard her voice on the phone behind him, but wasn’t really listening to her words. The urge to smear pressed shirt with his own bloody nose was almost irresistible.
“She’s calling the cops, asshats. Best be on your way,” Lila said from somewhere behind him.
“Get in the car, Andrew.” Seemed like John held the strings, because Andrew didn’t even argue. Ethan bared his teeth and was rewarded by a trickle of fear on the man’s face.
With a slam of two car doors, they were gone.
Shelby’s arm dropped from around his waist, and big tears filled her eyes. She shoved her phone in her pocket and rushed into her house without a word. He was still trying to wrap his head around the fact she’d been engaged, recently, judging from the entire conversation.
Cassie and Lila followed Shelby inside. The girls would take care of her. He knew this. That didn’t stop him from wanting to go in and see for himself that she was okay.
“We need to get the roof finished before it hits,” Mick said, breaking through the fog that clouded Ethan’s head.
The wind had picked up and was cooler than it had been. They were so close to being done. With all of them working, it should only take a couple of hours. He nodded and climbed back on the roof with Zak and Ryan, while Thrand and Mick carried up more packs of shingles. He concentrated on the noise and the vibration of the nail gun in his hand while he nailed down strip after strip of shingles. He didn’t know how long he’d been at it when Cassie poked her head up over the ladder.
“Ethan, Shelby needs you.” Her words were calm, but her green eyes blazed.
He didn’t even pause, just handed the nail gun to Thrand and rushed down the ladder after Cassie. He dropped his tool belt at her door before pushing inside. Cassie pointed to Shelby’s room.
Lila was crouched in front of her, but Shelby had her head buried in a pillow, her legs curled up. The crisp white classy shorts and button down shirt were rumpled and wrinkled. Her fancy white sandals lay discarded on the floor.
“What’s wrong?”
She looked up, and her mascara was a black runny mess down her face, her eyes filled with fear. “Nothing. I’m fine. Go ahead and finish. I’ll be fine.”
She wiped at her face, but it only made it worse and no way could she hide the trembling of her body. He wanted to hit something. The wall. The door. A fucking tree. Really didn’t matter what, but he didn’t have a clue what to do or why the girls even thought she needed him.
Lila got up and nodded her head towards her spot. The redhead’s usual lightheartedness was gone. What the hell was going on? He kneeled down in front of Shelby and touched her arm. She flinched at first then clutched his wrist.
“What is it, Brown Eyes? Those guys are gone.” He tried to soften his voice, but his anger came through in his words.
She was biting her finger, and when she looked up at him, tears slid down her face. It did something to his gut. And even though he wanted to shake the answers out of her, of somebody…anybody, he checked himself.
“Nothing. Nothing.” She shook her head and barely met his gaze, but her hand tightened on his wrist.
“I can’t help you, if you don’t tell me.”
She waved a hand. “It’s stupid. Andrew just got to me, is all. I’m fine. Really. Overreacted.”
None of this was adding up, because the more she talked, the harder she shook. He looked up at Cassie, who stood in the doorway bouncing the heel of her boot on the floor and Lila, who had her arms crossed. It was all he could do not to demand answers.
“Shelby, tell him what you told us,” Cassie finally said. “He’s the only one that can help you through it.”
She jerked her panicked gaze to Cassie then at him. He thought she was going to tell him, but she looked back down at her pillow while silence hung heavy in the room.
“Andrew raped her,” Lila said matter of factly, then rushed out of the room with Cassie and shut the bedroom door.
A red haze descended. “That sorry ass—I’m gonna kill him.”
He stood to do just that, but Shelby cried his name. It stopped him dead in his tracks. If he thought her curled up in a ball was bad, her bawling and rocking now had him scooping her up as he settled against the bed frame, her in his lap. She clung to him, buried her face in his neck, and the whole sordid tale spilled out between her broken sobs.
He wrapped his arms around her and stroked her hair. He didn’t say anything while every word she spoke dripped like acid on his heart. That bastard forced himself on her, and no one gave a shit. Not even her mother. They just stood to the side while that sicko did nothing but hurt her. He gritted his teeth. He couldn’t help but compare his mother to hers. His never wanted him and hers just wanted to use her as some sort of pawn. Like money made it all seem okay. He wasn’t sure which was worse.
“The engagement. I didn’t want it.” Her words stammered into the crook of his shoulder. “I thought that was how it had to be. Until Skye. Until I came back here. Until you.”
She looked up at him, and he wiped at the black under her eyes. He didn’t trust himself to speak. She curled her hands into his shirt.
“Please, don’t go after him,” she begged him. “They have so much money. Power. They would lock you up forever.”
He tightened his hold and brushed a kiss over her head. “No worries, doll.”
Except this girl shook like a leaf, her tears seeped into his shirt, and it rattled him so deep he could barely contain his rage. There wasn’t enough pain he could inflict that would make him feel better, and it wouldn’t erase the torment in her eyes. But that bastard would pay. Somehow.
And it all came back full circle. Her anger at him this morning. She didn’t fit in that box, and he sure as hell had no right to assume she did. Just because she was classy and had money didn’t mean a thing.
He’d labeled her the way people always did him.
It was his turn to drop his head to her shoulder. He threaded his hands in her hair and breathed heavily against her ear. “I’m sorry, baby.”
Chapter 12
He was so sorry. She clung to him like he would disappear. He didn’t want to think about why she wanted him. Why she wanted him to comfort her. Why the girls knew she wanted him when it was obvious she hadn’t asked for him.
; Even with the noise above their heads reminding him the roof still needed to be done before the rain hit, he knew he wouldn’t be going anywhere. So he toed off his work boots, stretched his legs out, and settled her more comfortably against him. She hadn’t said anything else, but her crying had stopped, and her head became heavy with her even breathing.
But she still had a vise grip on his shirt.
He must have dozed off, because it was quiet outside when he heard the click of the bedroom door. Shelby never moved when Mick stepped inside. Ethan assumed he knew the gist of the story, judging by the frown that marred his uncle’s face.
“Roof is done.” Mick shoved his hands in his pockets, and his jaw worked. “She okay?”
He didn’t know for sure. He did know, as long as he was with her, she was. “For now.”
“I don’t think it’s a good idea that she be here alone. The gang thought the same thing.”
Ethan nodded. “I’ll stay.”
“The girls said she could stay with one of them,” Mick offered.
“I said, I’ll stay.” He looked up at his uncle. Didn’t he hear him the first time? Zak probably said something. Or hell, maybe they all thought the same thing. He was not right for this girl.
Her head turned, her hair brushing along his chin, and she blinked her sleepy eyes at him, then at Mick. But instead of pulling away from him, she just buried her face in his chest.
“Shelby, is it okay if Ethan stays here with you?” Mick asked.
Her answer was to curl tighter against him.
Ethan then wondered if maybe she would rather be with the girls. After what his dumbass said, and Andrew, the girls might be exactly what she needed. He tugged at her hair lightly so she would look at him. “You don’t need to be alone. You can go with one of the girls, or I can stay here with you. Just whatever you want.”
She licked her lips and brushed her hair out of her face. “I’ll be fine—”
“This isn’t negotiable. You have to choose. For your safety.” Ethan pushed a strand of her hair behind her ear. Her eyes were still wild, too wide, and the fear had crept back in when he mentioned safety.
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