by A. K. Evans
“Zane, how is she?” he asked when he picked up after one ring.
“Fuck, Wes. It was not pretty. She’s sleeping now, but she only fell asleep about two hours ago.”
“Charley’s going to want to see her today. Think she’ll be up for it?”
“I can’t see why not. I’ll talk to her when she wakes. If I don’t think it’s a good idea I’ll let you know, but you two should plan on coming. I think she needs people who care about her around today.”
“Ok. I’ll take Charley to my parents’ house this morning and we’ll come over around lunchtime.”
“That works. Thanks, Wes.”
“No problem.”
I disconnected the call and went back to Emme. I tried to catch some sleep, but I was still so angry over what I learned last night. And it bugged the shit out of me that I didn’t know all of it yet. I remembered when she announced to everyone at Lou’s what had happened to her over the course of God knows how many years she said that him beating the shit out of her wasn’t even the worst of it. I hated to think of what else that bastard could have done to her.
A couple hours later, Emme started stirring. I dozed off a handful of times, but mostly kept waking up thinking about her whole situation. I was on my side with my elbow on the pillow, my head resting in my hand, watching her as she woke. She had been curled into my body, but she moved away and rolled to her back. Her legs straightened as she stretched them out while simultaneously arching her back and stretching out her front side. As she did this, the blanket began sliding down her chest. After she collapsed into my arms last night in just her panties we never got around to putting a shirt on her. Seeing her like this now was pure torture.
I watched as her eyes fluttered open, a look of contentment over her face. That look didn’t last long as I witnessed her mentally recalling the events of last night. Suddenly, her eyes shot to the side and she realized I was still there with her.
“It really happened, didn’t it?” she asked.
I nodded to her.
Her eyes closed as a look of defeat filtered into her features. When she opened them she stared up at the ceiling, saying nothing. I left her to it for a while before I decided to break the silence.
“I can see your mind working,” I began. “You want to talk about it?”
She looked to me and said, “Charley.”
“Ok. What are you thinking?”
“I’m thinking last night was such a disaster and after dropping a bomb on everyone there I walked out on my best friend.”
“Emme, I’m sure she knows you were a bit out of sorts last night. Your reaction was completely understandable.”
“I’m such a hypocrite, Zane. I gave her shit for not telling me about Wes asking her to move in with him and she knows nothing about most of the time you and I have spent together.”
“So give her an apology if it’s bothering you and I’m sure she’ll understand.”
“I wouldn’t blame her if she didn’t forgive me.”
“Sweetheart, she’ll forgive you. Charley loves you. This isn’t going to change that in the slightest.”
Emme took in my words and nodded, “I hope you’re right.”
“I am.”
“I’m so mortified,” she confessed.
“About what?”
“My behavior at Lou’s last night. Everyone must think I’m a lunatic.”
I rolled over in the bed and grabbed my phone from the nightstand. “Come here, Em,” I said as I pulled up my text messages.
“What?” she asked.
“I want to show you something.”
She scooted her body over toward mine and I wrapped my arm around her shoulders. I pulled up the first text from Stone and showed it to her.
Hey, man. Just wanted to check in on Em. Hope she’s alright.
Then, I went to the next text from Luke.
How’s Emme? Still fucking pissed she went through that shit. Let her know I’m thinking about her.
Last, I showed her the text I received from Wes this morning.
“Nobody thinks you are a lunatic, sweetheart. They are angry about what happened to you and they care about you. I wasn’t kidding last night when I said that if I can’t get to you in five minutes or less and one of them can, they will. And they’ll do it, Em, because not only are they good fucking people, but also because they give a shit about you.”
She got quiet again for quite a while. It was tough, but I tried to give her the time she needed to process whatever was going through her mind. After some time had passed she sat up in the bed, pulled the blanket up to cover herself, and quietly shared, “I’m going to go take a shower.”
“Ok. Is there anything I can do for you while you’re doing that?”
She looked in my eyes with so much compassion and said, “You’ve already done too much, Zane. Thank you for taking care of me last night and for staying with me.”
“You don’t need to thank me, Emme, but you’re welcome.”
She gave me a small smile as she picked up the blanket I used to cover her last night, wrapped it around her body as she got up, and made her way to the bathroom. I heard the water turn on for the shower and after sitting there for a few minutes letting the image of Emme waking up this morning filter through my brain I got up and walked out to the kitchen.
It was about ten minutes later when Charley and Wes walked in. Charley wasted no time in questioning me on Emme’s whereabouts. I told her she was in the shower and let them both know that she had been rather quiet that morning. I also, once again, extended my condolences to Charley on her brother. With that, she made her way down the hall to check on Emme.
“You look like shit,” Wes said as soon as Charley left the kitchen.
“Thanks,” I began, shaking my head at him.
“It was that bad, wasn’t it?” he asked.
“Wes, I want ten fucking minutes in a room with that asshole. She only told me about the night Taj was killed and with what she told me he did to her that night…I don’t know how I kept my shit together. He beat her so bad she was in the hospital for weeks recovering from broken ribs, a punctured lung, two black eyes, a jaw that needed to be reset, and a busted lip. To top it off, she only has one kidney, Wes. One. Both suffered severe trauma, but one had to be removed because the damage to it was beyond repair.”
Wes’ jaw clenched at the news that I gave him. After thinking on it a minute he demanded, “You ever get that opportunity to get him in a room, I’m second in line with that piece of shit. What the fuck, man? How is she still standing?”
“I have no fucking clue. She’s a hell of a fighter, that’s for sure.”
Wes nodded at me then asked, “You guys eat anything?”
I shook my head and said, “No. I was thinking of ordering pizza. If I don’t she’ll put herself through the trouble of cooking. I know she enjoys it, but the girl needs a fucking break.”
“I’ll order it,” Wes began. “Any idea what she likes?”
“Mushrooms.”
Wes pulled out his phone and ordered one pie with mushrooms and another with peppers and onions. We grew up together, so Wes knew what I preferred on pizza and he didn’t think twice in ordering it. I wasn’t one to get sentimental, but at this particular time in my life, it was nice having friends around that gave a shit and did things that might not seem like a big deal, but spoke volumes about what they’d do for you in a crisis. I could only hope Emme would realize, especially after the texts I showed her this morning, that she had people who cared about her and would always be there for her. Had Levi and Cruz been there last night they, too, would have checked in on her in one way or another. And, it’s very likely they would have been even more pissed than everyone else was at what she endured at the hands of that monster.
While we waited for the pizza to be delivered and the girls to come out of Emme’s room, Wes brought me up to speed on Charley’s version of the events from last night. She was extremely concer
ned for Emme and was worried that Emme wouldn’t forgive her for keeping things from her. I told Wes a bit about my conversation with Emme this morning and how she was feeling guilty about the situation with Charley. Wes and I both concluded that they’d be fine, but since we were dealing with women we also knew that it could go either way. A few minutes later, there was a knock at the door. Wes went to answer the door and I took to getting out plates. As he brought the pizza in the girls emerged. Wes and I turned our attention to them and waited for one of them to give us an indication of where they stood.
“You ordered pizza?” Charley asked.
“Yeah, you girls want to eat?” Wes answered.
The girls smiled at each other, which was a huge relief to me, before Charley teased, “Well, you two can’t exactly eat all of this on your own.”
She hopped up on one of the barstools and Wes got her a slice. I was already getting Emme a mushroom slice. As I handed her the plate I whispered, “You doing ok, sweetheart?”
She gave me a small smile and nodded her head. I gave her a wink and sat down next to her at the island. We ate pizza and then we spent the rest of the day hanging with Charley and Wes at the girls’ condo. We avoided last night’s incident and everyone made a genuine effort to help make sure Emme had a carefree day. Overall, I would consider it a success.
Wes and Charley were finally ready to call it a night. When I agreed, I saw the expression on Emme’s face change. She went from being happy and relaxed to worried and distressed in about two seconds. Charley came over to check on Em once last time before she came to me, pulled me into a hug, and said, “Thanks for taking care of my girl last night and today.”
I quietly replied, “She’s not just your girl.” After she pulled away I gave her a wink and she and Wes walked down the hall to her bedroom.
As they walked away, Emme got up from the couch and stood in front of me. She said nothing. I ran the back of my fingers down her cheek before I cupped her cheek in my hand. She closed her eyes and leaned into my touch.
“Tell me what’s on your mind,” I said to her.
She shrugged her shoulders and said, “I don’t know. I guess I have a lot going through my head right now.”
“Understandable, Em. But, from the time we had pizza earlier until just before everyone decided to call it a night you seemed to be fairly relaxed and relatively happy. Now, you seem as though you are a bit anxious. Tell me why.”
“I guess I’m just trying to come to terms with some things Charley said to me earlier.”
“Which are?”
“For almost a year now I’ve been living my life basically as a hermit. I don’t want to form any new bonds or connections with anyone because I’m afraid for them and I’m afraid for myself. Of course, you’ve made me unsuccessful in this venture. Charley told me, though, that if I continue living my life this way, then Taj died for no reason. And, she’s right. I know it, but I’m scared. I don’t want him to have died for no reason, Zane, but my fear is crippling me. And now, when everyone gets up and is ready to call it a night I’m sitting here thinking how I really want to ask you to stay with me for just one more night, but that I’m petrified that I’m giving into something that I shouldn’t.”
“Would it help if I told you that I was planning on spending the night with you regardless of whether you asked me to or not?”
Her eyes rounded and she asked, “You were already planning on staying?”
“Would have liked it if you asked me to, but yeah, I was already planning on it.”
Relief washed over her features and I pulled her into a hug. She didn’t have to say anything because everything she wanted to tell me was conveyed in that hug. I gave her a minute before I told her I needed to run to my truck. I had a bag with some snowboarding gear and spare clothes in it. After grabbing my bag, I walked with Emme down to her bedroom. I took a quick shower and then, because we both hadn’t slept much last night, I joined her in bed, pulled her body next to mine, wrapped my arm around her waist, and held her while we slept.
Chapter 17
Emme
“I cannot believe all of this happened nearly one week ago and I’m just now hearing about it!”
Nikki was practically shouting in my ear as I brought her up to speed on everything that had happened on Saturday night.
To say that this past weekend was significant would be an understatement. I never, in a million years, would have dreamed that anyone would learn the truth about what happened to Taj and my role in the tragedy. An unfortunate turn of events while we were out this weekend resulted in not just one or two people finding out the real reason Charley and I left Ventura, but a whole group of people instead.
I still cringe to think about how it all happened. The only thing that brings me peace about the whole situation is thinking about Zane. I was a mess Saturday night and he was so calm, offering me the comfort and tenderness I needed. And ever since he learned about what happened to me and to Taj he has never once faltered in his concern for me. In fact, Zane’s level of protectiveness has skyrocketed. I was in no position Saturday night to push him away and when Sunday rolled around I realized that the peace he gave me was something I no longer wanted to push away. For once, my mind was beginning to catch up to what my heart had been yearning for, but I still had reservations about putting Zane in a position of vulnerability, especially when he didn’t know all the details.
Zane spent the night with me on Sunday night. I was relieved in the instant he told me he planned to stay with me. I knew I couldn’t hold him hostage forever, but I wanted just one more night of being able to sleep wrapped in his arms, the only place I’ve felt safe in nearly five years.
Throughout the rest of the week Zane got back to riding and I got back to work, but none of that stopped him from checking in on me several times throughout the day. He’d typically text me claiming he didn’t want to interrupt me if I was in the middle of a shoot, but occasionally he’d call. I preferred his phone calls and I’d use any excuse to be able to hear his voice.
It was now Friday and I had finally found not only the time, but the courage to call Nikki and Monroe and give them all the gory details. I had just gotten off the phone with Monroe and immediately called Nikki. She was currently not very happy to learn that I had held off on sharing this information with her.
“I know Nik, I’m sorry. It’s been a lot to deal with and I’m still processing it all.”
“So what’s been happening since Zane left Monday morning? Has he spent any more nights with you?” she asked.
“You realize the significance of everything I just told you, right? Why are you only concerned with what has happened with regards to Zane in this situation?”
“Emme, babe, he’s fucking hot. And you, my friend, need to get laid. Look, I realize that’s probably the most inappropriate thing I could say to you after everything you’ve been through, but let’s face it, you can’t go the rest of your life never having sex again! I’m just saying, if there is someone who can give you the goods I think he’s a really good choice.”
“He is,” I whispered.
“I’m sorry…what did you just say?” she asked, her tone accusatory.
Shit. I didn’t think she’d catch that.
“I may have had a bit of a good time with him one night a few days after Christmas.”
“WHAT?!?!”
“Relax, Nikki. I didn’t sleep with him, but he gave me a little bit of a preview of what I could expect which, not to brag, is a lot.”
Nikki let out a squeal and at that moment my phone alerted me to another call. I looked at the screen and saw it was Zane calling.
“Hey, not to interrupt your celebration over there, but Zane’s calling me now. Let me talk to him and I’ll call you back.”
“Call me immediately because this conversation is not over!” she answered.
I disconnected the call with her and answered for Zane.
“Hey,” I said.
&nb
sp; “Hi, Emme. What are you up to?” he asked.
“I was actually just on the phone with Nikki. I finally filled her and Monroe in on this past weekend.”
“How’d that go?” he asked.
“Monroe is her typical supportive self. She’s like a second mom to all of us, making sure we’re always doing alright. Nikki is another story entirely. All she cares about is if you’ve spent any more nights with me since Sunday night.”
He chuckled. “Well, is she angry or happy about the fact that I haven’t spent any more nights with you?”
“I didn’t get a chance to answer her on that yet, but she’d be disappointed to learn that you haven’t.”
“Thinking it wouldn’t be wise to upset her. Maybe I should spend the night with you tonight.”
“What?” I asked.
“You said earlier this week that you don’t have any shoots this weekend. Was thinking I’d like to take you out tonight on an official date.”
I stayed silent.
“Emme?”
“I’m here. Sorry, I’m just not sure what to say.”
“Say yes. Say you’ll go on a date with me. I’m not going anywhere, Em. You turn me down tonight, I’m going to ask you every day until you say yes.”
I took in a deep breath and said, “Ok.”
“Ok?” he asked.
“Yes. Ok. I’ll go on a date with you tonight.”
“I’ll pick you up at six,” he said quickly.
I pulled my phone from my ear and saw that it was nearly five o’clock. “That’s only an hour away,” I announced.
“And?”
“Zane. There’s no way I can get ready in an hour.”
“Why not?”
“You aren’t seriously asking this question.”
“Sweetheart, you could wear sweats and be the sexiest fucking woman in the room.”
Damn.
“An hour and a half? Please? It’s our first official date, Zane. If we’re going to do this I want to do it right and I want it to be special.”
He let out a sigh. “I’m so fucked.”
“What?”
