“Rhett, I told you I’m sorry.”
“Leave, Riley. Before I put you in your own hospital bed.” Rhett’s fists clenched at his sides, and Riley’s body went rigid, his own temper starting to flare.
“Rhett. What the hell is going on?” I asked.
“You should have never been there, Ava. If it wasn’t for him, you wouldn’t have been.”
“Rhett, this isn’t Riley’s fault.”
“Don’t bother, Ava,” Riley interrupted, “Let him be angry with me. It won’t be the first time he refuses to take any of the blame.” Rhett stepped forward, ready to hit Riley.
“Stop it!” I yelled, slinging my upper body up, halting him. Riley shook his head, glaring at Rhett before grabbing Joce’s hand to leave. Joce looked back at me with a sad face. I hated that her surprise visit had been ruined.
“I’ll call you later,” she said as they left the room, leaving Rhett and me by ourselves. I watched Rhett as he paced the room, trying to calm himself. He looked exhausted, like he hadn’t slept in days. How long had I been out?
“Come here.” I patted the side of my bed as I shifted over to make room for him.
He stopped his movement, turning towards me. His hardened face softened as he looked into my eyes. He walked towards me, crawling onto my tiny hospital bed beside me. I rolled on my side, so we laid facing each other. He wrapped a muscular arm around me, pulling me closer.
“How do you feel?”
“Like shit,” I said honestly.
“Ava,” his typical warning was weak.
“What? I don’t get a pass?” I teased him, trying to lighten the mood. He gave me a small smile and then kissed me, sweetly. I brought my hand to his face, dragging the backs of my fingers along the rough stubble on his jaw.
“It’s not Riley’s fault. Don’t take this out on your friend.”
He let out a heavy sigh, rolling to his back, shifting us, so I could lay my head on his chest. He kept one arm around me, while the other supported his head. “If anything would’ve happened to you…if someone had touched you, taken you.”
“Nothing happened, because of Riley. He got to me before anything did.”
“You would’ve never been in that position if he hadn’t asked....if I hadn’t asked…damn it! I know it’s just as much my fault. I allowed you to be at risk. I put you at risk.”
“Rhett. Stop it. Please. It’s not your fault and it’s not Riley’s. I’m not going to live in a bubble. It doesn’t matter the why I ended up at the bar. It could have been as simple as me just wanting a girl’s night out.” He didn’t respond immediately.
“Jim will be here in the morning. You won’t be going anywhere without one of us with you.” There was no point in arguing. His worse fear had just come true. We would compromise later. Instead, I changed the subject.
“When is the last time you slept?”
“Thursday night.”
“What day is it?”
“Saturday night.” I lifted my head to stare at his worn face.
“You need to sleep.”
“I know, babe. I will, now that you’re okay and in my arms.” I dropped my head back to his chest, closing my eyes. I listened to his beating heart and let his breathing soothe me.
“I love you, Rhett Blackwood.”
“I love you too, Ava Conner.” He kissed the top of my head, before we both fell asleep.
Sunday, Rhett barely let me out of his sight. He even ignored work for the day, spending every minute with me. The only privacy he gave me was to call my mom. He had called her on the way to the hospital and assured her he would fly her out, if it was serious. She was in hysterics when she first answered the phone. But I was able to calm her. Knowing Rhett was with me, helped her rest easier.
I knew he still felt guilty about asking me to go for drinks with Joce. It didn’t seem to matter how many times I tried to convince him it wasn’t his fault. He did finally give Riley a call Sunday night to apologize.
At least, that was something. I wouldn’t be able to accept their friendship ending over something that wasn’t in either of their controls.
Monday morning came quick. Jim was waiting for me outside my apartment to take me to work. As ridiculous as it seemed, I didn’t argue with Rhett. I would go along with his crazy protectiveness for now, but at some point, we were going to have to set boundaries.
I begged and pleaded for Jim to drop me a few blocks away from my office. He didn’t give into my charm, but he did finally agree to park a few yards away, where nobody-Tom - could see me getting out of the fancy town car from inside my office.
I never had an opportunity to tell Tom on Friday about mine and Rhett’s relationship. Okay…. it wasn’t so much that there was never an opportunity as much as I just didn’t want to. I couldn’t help it. Every time I ran the conversation through my head, I imagined it either ending very awkward or me being fired or both.
I had already decided, if by chance Drew or Tom saw me getting out of the town car with Jim, I would claim my car was in the shop, and he was an Uber driver. Jim looked nothing like an Uber driver nor did the fancy town car, but I hoped they wouldn’t notice that.
I opened the door to my office and Joce’s head popped up immediately, locking her eyes with mine. She gave me a forced smile as a greeting, remaining unusually quiet. I walked to my desk nervously. We hadn’t talked, since she had left the hospital with Riley.
“Hey,” I said softly once I made it to my desk.
“Hey.” She glanced at me momentarily before refocusing on her work. Things had never been awkward between us, and I hadn’t been prepared for this. Something was weighing on her.
“Do you want to go grab a coffee?” I asked, not being able to stand not knowing what the deal was. We needed to talk and we couldn’t do it here.
“Sure.” We both stood, not bothering to ask Drew. He had his headphones in his ears and a coffee cup already on his desk.
We made small talk as we crossed the street to the nearest Starbucks. After ordering our drinks, we stood off to the side waiting for the barista.
“So….” I started, trying to get her to speak what was on her mind.
“So…” she said in response, pausing momentarily. “Look, Ava, I’m just going to come out and say it.”
“Okay?”
“I think you should tell Rhett.”
“Tell Rhett what?” I asked confused.
“About Owen.”
“I don’t know what you mean.” I knew what she meant. I just hadn’t realized she knew.
“Ava, Owen was at the bar that night. You guys talked. I saw you. And it didn’t look like a pleasant conversation from where I was sitting…or do you not remember?”
I definitely remembered, but I was definitely not telling Rhett. There was no way it was Owen. I couldn’t believe she would even think it was.
“Joce, it wasn’t Owen.”
“How do you know that?”
“I just do. He’s not the type of guy to do something like that.”
“He looked pretty upset when you guys were talking.”
“Of course he was. I had blown him off without even an explanation. He had every right to be.”
The barista called our names. We both grabbed our drink orders, but didn’t head straight back to the office. Instead, we found a small table to sit at.
“Joce, honestly, I just want to forget about the whole thing.”
“I don’t like it, Ava.” Fear spiked in me.
“Did you say something to Riley?”
“No, I wanted to talk to you about it first.”
“Please don’t say anything. If Rhett finds out, he will kill him without a thought.”
“That might not be a bad thing.”
“It would be a terrible thing! I don’t want to go around accusing an innocent man. Someone that I previously hurt Rhett with by dating.”
“Fine, Ava. I won’t say anything…but I think you should still consider it.
” I could see the concern in her eyes.
“Thank you.”
“Sure. Just don’t make me regret it,” she raised her disapproving eyebrow at me, signaling my weak smile lacked reassurance.
Once we were back at the office, things felt back to normal. I focused on my work, drawing up the house plans of Rhett’s Malibu home. Tom wanted a set of drawings to review by the end of the week. I had already completed the floor plan and was working on the exterior elevations when my phone vibrated on my desk. I glanced over at the text that popped up on my locked screen.
R: I’ll pick you up for lunch. x
Crap. As tempting as that sounded, it would be disastrous. I wouldn’t be able to hide the fact I haven’t told Tom about us. I need to keep Rhett away from Tom, until I could figure out a way to tell him.
A: I need to work through lunch. x
R: I’ll bring food to you.
A: You will just distract me. I’ll get nothing done.
R: Are you avoiding me, beautiful?
A: Never. Just trying to get your house done. x
R: It can wait. I’m in no hurry to move out of my current arrangement. x
Shit. How was I going to argue with that? The man was impossibly determined.
A: Fine. I’ll meet you somewhere.
R: Are you hiding me?
A: Nope. Just want to make sure Jim is earning the big salary I’m sure you are paying him ;) Text me time and place. x
When he didn’t immediately respond, I set my phone back down and went back to work. A few minutes later my phone vibrated again. I picked it back up, expecting it to be Rhett texting me where to meet. Instead, it was a text from Owen.
O: Sorry about being an ass the other night. I hope you are okay. A little freaked out seeing you be rushed off in an ambulance. If you never want to speak to me again, I get it. At least, let me know you are okay.
I reread his text twice. Relief washed over me. There was no way it was Owen, and I was thankful I hadn’t said anything. A small part of me had questioned whether I should tell Rhett after my conversation with Joce. But after getting his text, I was glad I hadn’t.
A: I’m okay. Thank you for apologizing. I would still like to explain why I didn’t call, if you are willing…coffee sometime?
O: Sounds good. Just let me know time and place.
Before I could reply back to Owen the front door to our office opened. My head popped up with Joce’s and Drew’s. Rhett strutted through the door like a cocky peacock. Damn him!
I jumped from my seat, hastily grabbing my purse and phone. I had to get him out of here fast. I glanced back towards Tom’s office. He hadn’t noticed we had a visitor, yet. Thank God. I moved quickly around my desk, telling Joce I was off to lunch. I grabbed Rhett’s arm, pulling him with me hurriedly. The man was like a boulder.
“Joce,” he greeted her with a smile as I yanked on his arm, ineffectively moving him towards the door. He was in no hurry to leave.
“Rhett, we should go,” I tried persuading him while looking towards Tom’s office. He was on the phone. For once, the Gods were on my side.
“Excuse us Joce, apparently my girl is in a hurry.” Shit. I glanced at Drew. He already had his head back down with his earbuds in, oblivious to my struggles.
Joce grinned at him mischievously, waving her fingers. “Enjoy your lunch you two.” With that Rhett finally turned, allowing me to pull him out the door. We barely made it past the storefront when he turned, pinning me to the wall.
“You’re still hiding me.”
“No, I’m not. I just have a lot of work to do. I need to make this a quick lunch.”
“Don’t lie to me, beautiful,” he smirked.
“Ugh…fine. I haven’t told Tom.” He cocked his head at me. “I will. Just give me a few days.”
“Okay. You have until Friday.” He released me from the wall, clasping my hand with his as we walked towards his car.
“Friday, huh? Why are you being so generous?” He laughed his guttural laugh.
“What makes you think I have alternative motives?”
“Don’t you always?” I raised my eyebrow at him. A boyish grin overtook his face. He was definitely up to something.
“Maybe…. I need you to take some time off. At least a week.”
“Rhett, no! I just got back to work after vacationing for two weeks.”
“Technically, that was work, not vacation.”
“No it-…okay, yes. But we both know it wasn’t much work. Why do you need me to take time off, anyways?” I asked as I slid inside his overpriced, fancy car.
“I have to go to New York for an extended period of time.” He kissed my cheek, shutting the door with his response.
New York? I am not taking time off work just so he can work. That is ridiculous. He joined me in the car, starting the engine before buckling his seat belt.
“I’m not going.” I looked at him pointedly.
“Of course you are. We won’t be leaving for a couple weeks. That’s plenty of time for you to put in your request.”
“No, Rhett. I’m not taking off another week of work, just so you can keep tabs on me while you work.”
“It won’t be all work,” he winked at me.
“Stop it. You’re trying to use sex against me, again.”
“Is it working?”
“No.” It was…but I wasn’t telling him that.
“What about using your friends?”
“What do you mean?” I looked at him curiously.
“Mike’s restaurant is having its soft opening. I need to be there. And I figured you would want to be there, also, to support him and Lizzie.” Okay. That worked.
“You’re the investor.”
“Yes. He has talent. It was an easy investment to make,” he pulled away from the curb onto the road.
“I’m glad it’s you.” My defiance was only temporarily suppressed. “But that’s just one night, why do we need to stay the whole week?”
“Will there ever come a day when you don’t argue, beautiful?” I couldn’t help but laugh at his question.
“Will there ever come a day you don’t try to trick me into doing what you want?”
He glanced over at me, and his roguish grin and glinting blues told me not likely. Same here. He moved his hand to my lap, intertwining his fingers with mine as he drove us the rest of the way to the restaurant. Both of us dropping the debate for now.
CHAPTER 14
“I can’t believe that’s why you refuse to eat a banana in public,” Joce managed through her fits of giggling.
“You’re so ridiculous, Drew,” I said through my own belly aching laughter. Joce and Drew were providing their usual comedic relief during our lunch.
“You’ve been warned, ladies….if you ever look a man in the eye while eating a banana, only one thought will be going through his mind,” he gestured, pumping his fist to his mouth while pressing his tongue to the inside of his cheek.
“It only took that one time for me. As soon as my eyes locked with his, I could see the filthy thoughts all over his face.” He shuddered. “And I prefer no man imagines me that way. He was big, too. All tatted up. I feared for my life.” His face was serious as me and Joce tried not to fall out of our chairs.
“Poor, Drew. Such a delicate flower,” Joce sing-songed, taunting him.
“Stop! You may have ruined bananas for me.” My laughter was uncontrollable.
“Not me. Next time Riley is in town, I’m getting a couple dozen of them,” Joce smiled wickedly.
“You’re the worst Joce.” I shook my head at her.
“Yeah we don’t need to hear about what you do behind closed doors.”
“Well, at least I’m getting some. It’s obvious the only thing you do behind closed doors is eat bananas,” she mocked Drew.
Our server approached, dropping our checks as our laughter subsided. “When will Riley be back?” I asked Joce.
“Not for another few weeks,” she pou
ted as we paid our checks.
“Did you ever talk to him?”
“No…I feel like it’s too early to talk about our future. I don’t want to scare him away.”
“You two are ruining my good mood,” Drew interjected. I slapped him on his shoulder for his lack of sensitivity.
“Shouldn’t you be giving me advice from a male perspective? What good is it having a guy friend?”
“Hey, I didn’t sign up for this shit when I took this job. When is Tom going to hire another guy? We need more testosterone.”
“You have Tom,” I pointed out.
“Tom doesn’t count. He’s just as emotional as the two of you lately.”
I rolled my eyes at him, even though it was true. Marie was getting closer to delivering the twins and Tom had some unusual mood swings. My guess was he wasn’t sleeping much and stressed about the twins arrival. I used that as my excuse not to tell him about Rhett and me all week.
“Speaking of Tom, we should probably get back to work,” I stood up from the table. Joce and Drew followed suit, making jabs at each other as we walked to the town car where Jim was waiting for us.
I finally told Drew about Rhett and me. It was unavoidable. There was no other way to explain the burly, old man who followed me around every time we went for coffee or lunch. I swore him to secrecy until I could tell Tom. It’s not like he had to keep quiet for long. It was already Friday, and my time was up if I didn’t want Rhett to be the one to tell Tom.
By five o’clock, Joce and Drew were packing up to leave for happy hour. I was working on finalizing the drawings of Rhett’s home before printing a set for Tom. I had decided to talk to him when I dropped the set off in his office.
I stood at the plotter, waiting on them to print, going over how I would start the conversation. No matter what I came up with, I still feared that the whole conversation would end with Tom canning me and calling me a lying whore….okay, maybe that was a little extreme and definitely worst case scenario. But it’s still how I imagined it.
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