HERO (The Complete Series)

by Bella Love-Wins

  “You are,” I said beneath my breath.

  “One more time with feeling, Kate. Who’s your man?”

  “You are, Matt,” I said, with a faint smile.

  He wrapped his arms around my waist and kissed me on the cheek. “And don’t you forget it, Kate Rock.”

  * * *

  For the next three days, Matt and I got used to the slower pace of living out in the countryside. We talked, laughed, ran, made love, and got closer every day. The charity Christmas ball was approaching, so the place was busier. Caterers, decorators, music directors, event planners, and entertainment managers, all visited to meet with Matt and firm up their respective plans. Matt was excited about the event, but his excitement was overshadowed by his thoughts about safety. He managed to bolster the team, but in his eyes, there could never be enough security when the man or people who attacked me were still out on the loose.

  On the afternoon of the third day, we all loaded into the five-vehicle motorcade and left to go to Calverton. The gifts for the Holstein kids were wrapped and delivered to the house, and it was perfect timing, because Sara was coming into JFK Airport from LA. The plan was for two of the SUVs to get Sara and then meet us back in Calverton after our visit. I had insisted that Matt meet Sara at the airport, and some of his men could stay with me when I visited the kids, but he wouldn’t hear of it. I tried again as we head off that afternoon with Ross.

  “The decision is made, Kate,” he said firmly. His eyes turned dark and fierce as he looked at me. “You’re the one in danger, not her.” He softened his tone and took my hand in his when he saw how taken aback I was. He could be so stubborn. “Everything is set, and I’ll see her soon enough. I told you, I’m responsible for you now.”

  “Alright, Matt,” I said. “I don’t want to come between you and Sara.”

  “You’re not,” he answered. “She stays up at the house or the condo all the time. She comes and goes as she pleases. Especially in the summer. We’re close, but we’re not joined at the hip.” His face turned playful and comical as he leaned over to me and caressed my face, then whispered, “Now, you, on the other hand, you’re a different story.”

  “Okay,” I said. “Now stop trying to turn me on with that seductive voice. You know what it does to me. I’ll wrinkle my clothes if we have to have a repeat of the last rendezvous we had in here.”

  “There’s always the trip back home, Kate,” he teased. “Hold that thought. The day is young.”

  The drive out to Calverton was peaceful. It was clear that the holiday season was in full swing. We passed several eye-catching displays of nativity scenes and elaborate decorations that remained lit during the day. Matt set the satellite radio to a holiday-music-only station. He had noticed how much I perked up at the sound of Christmas music, on the radio Yolanda would leave on for us during breakfast. I smiled and leaned on his shoulder. The man was so attentive.

  We got into town in under an hour. Matt had not been kidding when he mentioned Calverton was a small town. It was a charming little hamlet, where the homes had a western feel, although the ground was lightly dusted with snow. We turned onto the street where the kids lived, and I breathed a sigh of relief. It was a quaint, yet well maintained neighborhood. I had hoped they would be well taken care of, having gone through such a tragic loss. The group of cars all parked along the sidewalk, and as the men set up their perimeter, Matt and I stepped out of the car. It was a lovely place. The air was clean and fresh, with a faint scent of pine needles.

  After the main team secured the area, the second team left to get Sara at the airport. Matt stacked up the boxes of gifts for the kids in one tall pile in his arms, and we walked up to the front door. A middle-aged woman answered.

  “Hello!” she shouted. “I’m Mary Adams, It’s great to meet you Miss Samuel. Hello sir. Come on in. Joel and Jessica are so excited to see you.”

  “Good afternoon, Ma’am,” Matt answered, motioning for me to go in first. The woman led us to the living room, where we waited for the kids. Joel came down first; then Jessica. He was hesitant, but once his sister entered the room, he rushed over and hugged me around my waist.

  “Hello Joel,” I said, looking down at his adorable face. “How are you doing?”

  “I’m fine. Almost all better. See?” He released me and showed me some red welts on both forearms. The doctor said the scars will all go away really soon.”

  “Well, I’m so very glad to hear that, Joel,” I answered, marveling at his resilience and happy disposition.

  “Thank you Miss Samuel,” he said, his wide eyes looking up at me as he held on again. “I was so scared of that fire and you saved me. Thank you so much.”

  “No need to thank me, Joel,” I replied. “It’s what anyone would do to help someone who needs it. I’m happy you’re doing fine. So are you getting ready for Christmas?”

  His sister spoke up. “Yes Miss Samuel, we’re going to have a different Christmas this year. But we’ll try to have fun.”

  “Well that’s why we’re here,” I said with some hesitation. I kneeled down to speak to Joel at eye level. “We brought you some presents we felt you might like this year. But you have to promise not to open it until Christmas morning, okay?”

  “Yes, Miss Samuel,” he answered excitedly. “We promise, right Jessica?”

  Matt inched over to their Christmas tree in the corner of the living room, and stooped down carefully to place the gifts under the tree. Jessica rushed over to help.

  “Miss Samuel,” the boy said more quietly. “I have a gift for you too.” He reached into his back pocket and pulled out a handmade ornament. “Look! I made this for you.”

  “Well, isn’t this lovely!” I said, captivated by his gesture. It was a handmade felt reindeer face with candy cane horns, a red pompom for a nose, and cute stick-on googly eyes. “Thank you Joel. It’s beautiful and just what I was looking for, to put on our Christmas tree.”

  “Would you like to stay for some hot cider?” Mary asked.

  “We’re actually a little rushed,” Matt spoke up as he placed the last gift under the tree. “But perhaps we can visit another day to see how the kids are doing?”

  “Definitely,” she replied. Mary pulled me aside while the kids were admiring the presents, trying to guess what was in each box. “Miss Samuel, I just want to personally tell you thanks for what you did for my sister’s kids. What happened was tragic for the family. We’re all still in shock and mourning the loss. But as far as I’m concerned, you saved both those kids in that room. They’ve always been inseparable, so I can’t imagine how things would have been if...” She trailed off for a moment, probably thinking about the worst, then regained her focus. “I just want to say thanks. Thank you and God bless you.”

  “Thank you, Mrs. Adams,” I replied. “I’m just happy they’re both okay, and so hopeful they’ll get past the tragedy one day.”

  “We’ll be heading out now, Ma’am,” Matt said as he walked up and stood beside me. “Thanks for having us.”

  “No, thank you both for coming,” she answered. “Kids, what do you say to our guests?”

  The kids answered in tandem, “Thank you very much! And have a very merry Christmas!”

  We said our goodbyes and headed back to the Hamptons in the smaller convoy.

  “That was a lovely visit,” I said to Matt on the drive home. “The kids are so adorable. I can’t believe they’ve adjusted so soon.”

  Matt nodded. He seemed somber, almost muted.

  “What’s wrong?”

  “I really feel for those kids,” he said softly. “It makes you put things in perspective, doesn’t it? My parents are gone, but I had 22 years with mom, and 24 with my dad. Those kids got what? Eight and twelve years? And I felt Sara and I had a major loss. I hope they catch the bastard that killed those kids’ parents, and make them pay.”

  “It’s so sad,” I answered. “One silver lining is they’ve got good family. Mrs. Adams looks like she really loves them
.”

  “You were amazing with them, you know?” he said, putting his arm around my waist. “My mom would kneel or stoop to talk to us in her calmest tone when we were young. There’s something admirable about an adult getting down to a kid’s eye level. I think it shows kids that they’re people too.”

  “My grandma always did that,” I said softly.

  “And what about you and your parents, Kate?” he asked.

  “What about me and them?” I questioned back, confused.

  “You’ve still got them,” he said quietly, but in a slightly frustrated tone. “They’re still here and you don’t talk to them.”

  “That is an entirely different topic, Matt.”

  “Is it really?” He queried. “Is it going to take losing one of them for you to give them the time of day?”

  “Matt,” I started, tensing up and ready to stand my ground. “I appreciate what you’re saying, but I’m not ready to take that step. Not now. And this time, the decision is made. End of discussion.”

  “I can try to respect your answer,” he said, sliding his arm over my shoulder and pulling me close. “But it’s not over. You let me know if you change your mind, alright?”

  I nodded, not able to speak the rest of the way home.

  Chapter 10

  The charity Christmas ball was about to start, and my hesitation, which had been building from days prior, was not about to subside. I had decided to wear a red, floor-length ball gown with a sweetheart neckline, adorned with shimmering red sequins. It had off-the-shoulder straps and the bodice was firm-fitted. From the waist down it was a full-length mermaid silhouette skirt that flowed to the ground, even in my red, high-heeled stilettos. It was one of the numerous items of clothing that Matt’s Holts girls had sent over. I looked in the full-length mirror at the corner of the room, trying to fix the up-do hairstyle that seemed to fit. I turned one way, then the other to see how my makeup, the dress and hairdo went together. Frustrated, I let out a deep sigh and sat on the armchair near the window.

  The dress and my hair were the least of my worries. For one, I still hadn’t met Sara. After she flew into JFK, she decided to stay at the condo. Matt explained that she wanted to do some shopping and catch up with some of her girlfriends who were also in town for the holidays. From everything Matt had said about her, I shouldn’t have anything to worry about, where Sara was concerned. Still, she was Matt’s sister. I wanted to make a good impression, and hoped we’d hit it off; and doing that at a party for the first time was not that easy.

  I was also concerned about Chad. The cheating son-of-a-bitch who happened to be Matt’s best friend. Just thinking about him made me angry, so I couldn’t imagine what seeing him would be like. I hadn’t seen him in many months, and I had wished to God back then that I’d never have to see him ever again. The thought of being in the same room with him was hard enough, let alone having to say a single word to him. I wished for a short, uneventful night and stood in front of the mirror for one last look.

  I started thinking about the last time I had worn a dress like this. It was at a cotillion ball my mother had planned a few months before I ran away. Why were all these memories flooding back? A few of them had begun as soon as we came out to the Hamptons, but most surfaced after our tiff on the way home from Calverton. I couldn’t get what Matt said off my mind. He was gracious enough not to raise the question of contacting my parents again, but that one time was enough for it to continue reverberating through my brain for days.

  “You look ravishing,” Matt said as he came into my room. He walked up to me and took one hand, spinning me around so he could get a 360-degree look. He stopped me, mid-spin and swooped his other hand onto my back. His eyes roamed from my face down my entire body and back up again. “Simply dazzling, Kate Samuel. I think you’ll be the Christmas belle of the ball tonight.”

  “Do I look good?” I asked, still unsure.

  “You’re gorgeous. Just remember. You’re my woman,” he added with a wry smile.

  “You look great, yourself,” I answered. He was wearing a black tux with a crisp white shirt, which hugged every inch of his body. “And that is the cutest red bowtie I’ve ever seen!”

  “Well, ’tis the season, right?” he answered. “Come on, let’s go downstairs. Sara’s here early, so you two can start to get to know each other.”

  “That’s great!” I said, relieved I’d get at least a bit of time with her, one-on-one.

  “Just don’t mention anything about her green hair,” he snickered.

  “What?”

  “She had what she calls a hair snafu at the stylist yesterday,” he said. “She’s crushed over it.”

  “Maybe I can help,” I perked up. “That happened to my mom years ago. Take me to her.”

  We went downstairs and the décor in the ballroom was magnificent. The tables at the edges of the ballroom were decorated in white tablecloths with red and green trim, and the walls all were lit up in purple up-lighting. The decorators, wait staff and servers, were all running around, placing last minute items on the tables before the first guests arrived. Sara was sitting in the sunroom with a beret on her head, using her smartphone.

  “Sara,” Matt called to her. “I’d like you to meet Kate Samuel. Kate, Sara.”

  “Hey Kate,” Sara answered. She stood up and embraced me warmly. “Nice to finally meet you. Matt won’t stop talking about you.”

  “Great to meet you too,” I said as we pulled out of the hug. “I’ve heard a lot about you too. So do you need help getting ready for the ball tonight?”

  “I think I want to just hide in my room,” she said, pulling off her hat and pointing at her head. “This doesn’t go with anything that I have to wear.”

  “Let me see it,” I made her turn around and saw the slight green tinge from over-processing. “Oh, yeah. This happened to my mom once. I think we can fix it.”

  “Really?” she asked, looking at me curiously. “How?”

  “Meet me in my room in five minutes. I’ll need to get out of this dress, first, but I’ll show you,” I answered, then turned toward Matt. “I hope Yolanda has some ketchup in there. We’ll be back.”

  I found the ketchup and went back to my room, slipping carefully out of my dress while I waited for Sara. She walked in, dressed in her robe, with her hair down.

  “Okay let’s use the sink in the bathroom,” I called to her. “So how did it happen?”

  “OMG, I went with my girlfriend to get our hair colored at Hair by Alexandra,” she started. “We’d go there all the time when I lived in the city. So I thought, no big deal, right? Wrong. She ruined it. I should call the place Hair by Ogre now. Smh.”

  “OK well this is gonna be gross, but I have the solution. Stick your head over the sink.”

  “Alright,” she answered, looking skeptical. “I don’t know how you can fix it when Alexandria couldn’t do a thing. What’s that smell?”

  “Ketchup,” I answered, pouring the entire bottle over her head.

  “That feels so fucking gross,” she yelled. “You’re lucky you’re Matt’s new girlfriend or I’d be squirting back ketchup all over you!”

  “Stay still,” I said, trying to hold back my laugh. “Let me get a shower cap.”

  I dug through the vanity drawers and found a cap in the bottom drawer.

  “Here, let me put this on your head so the ketchup can start working.”

  “Kate,” she burst out laughing. “Do you know how crazy that sounds?”

  Her laugh was contagious. We both laughed and couldn’t stop, until Matt walked in. “What’s going on, ladies?”

  “Just getting this finished,” I answered. “We’ll be down soon.”

  “Okay, you two,” he answered. He raised his eyebrows as he left the room, and had the broadest smile on his face. He seemed relieved. I know I was. Sara seemed sweet so far. Like her brother.

  * * *

  Matt was waiting at the bottom of the main stairwell as Sara and I came do
wn to the ball, dressed and decked. Our dresses were quite similar, except hers was black and strapless.

  “Look at my two ladies,” he said, looking up at us in admiration. As we got to the bottom, he kissed me on the cheek and put his arm around Sara. “Just gorgeous. Sara, The green’s gone!”

  “Yes,” she answered proudly. “Thanks to Kate, here. The disgusting ketchup was totally worth it.”

  “May I?” he asked, holding out both elbows so we would each take one. He led us into the ballroom, where a few people had already arrived and were feasting on hors d’oeuvres and wine.

  “This is… magnificent,” I whispered to them as we stopped at the marble entry to take in the impressively decorated ambiance. There was even a small strings orchestra set up at one end of the hall, entertaining the guests with live Christmas instrumentals.

  “Let’s introduce you to a few people while the night is young,” Matt said.

  “I’m gonna need some wine,” Sara said, and darted off to one of the servers. We didn’t see much of Sara the rest of the night. Some of her friends had arrived, and there were so many people at this event. It may have been the event of the season for the New York aristocracy to attend.

  The next couple of hours were a whirlwind of introductions and small talk with the who’s who of New York and Hamptons’ billionaire and celebrity social circles. I recognized many faces from our news and celebrity gossip coverage at the radio station. And they recognized me. I received several words of congratulations and well-wishes, concern about how my injury was coming along, and questions about where I would live.

  Matt was gracious, speaking up for me, moving us along when people were too inquisitive, and his broad charming smile did not leave his face. George and Richard were late, but made it out, immediately connecting with many of the guests, who they knew. Richard ran in their circles and so they both fit right in.