Moth to a Flame

by K. Webster

  “Hmmm. I guess that’s fair,” she murmured softly, still lazily running her finger over the outlines. The tone of her voice let me know that she knew that there was more of a story with my tattoo but I wasn’t going to tell her just yet. I really wanted to open up to her, but she needed to feel how it hurt to be shut out. It fucking hurts.

  Not long after, I heard the quiet sounds of her breathing indicating that she was asleep. I stroked her hair, attempting to comfort her even in her dreams. Eventually, slumber sneaked in its slippery tentacles and pulled me into its blackness as well.

  THE NEXT MORNING, I woke early, which was unbelievable considering the lack of sleep I’d had. Cale’s beautiful form was stretched out beside me. The early morning sun had crept in, lying across him like a jealous mistress, marking him for herself. His face had grown stubbly over the past few days, but it was sexy. Cale’s perfect mouth was slightly open as he breathed softly in a quiet cadence.

  I took this moment to study his tattoo some more. The angel’s face haunted me. There was so much detail in her teary eyes. I could see the pain on her face. It was incredibly intense to look at. I was a little caught off guard last night when he skated around the story of the tattoo. And even though I guarded my secrets fiercely, it had still stung when he’d held on to that one.

  Disappointment coursed through my veins.

  Why didn’t I just tell him last night?

  I just had to say the words ‘I was abducted and escaped.’ That simple. But it wasn’t that easy. When I tried to summon the courage to tell him, my words held fast on my stubborn tongue. We’d only known each other less than a week. I couldn’t even tell my own mother.

  How am I supposed to tell someone I only met recently?

  This crushed me that my secret was trying to interfere with this beautiful, perfect thing that was Cale and me. He was a prayer answered for me. But now, I was in fear of jeopardizing what we had because I couldn’t open my freaking mouth and spit it out. Huffing in annoyance with myself, I crawled out of bed and headed for the shower to get ready for work.

  After quietly getting ready, not wanting to wake Cale, I slipped out of the bathroom and headed towards the living room to retrieve my purse and keys. Pops would be able to sense the distress in my life once I got to work. I really needed to figure out how I was going to break to him all that had happened with Sam. It would have been nice to just avoid it altogether, but I was sure Deion had filled Anj in on the fire and its starter. And Anj had a really big mouth.

  As I started to walk out the door, hands snaked around my waist, causing me to shriek in surprise. “Jesus, Lia, it’s just me,” Cale exclaimed.

  Turning around to look at him, I noticed that he looked sexy as hell with his dark hair sticking up all over the place, standing there in just a low-slung pair of jeans. He was so damn easy on the eyes. I caught myself staring at that perfectly molded chest of his. Again.

  Finally raising my eyes to his, I met his hard blue ones and he had one eyebrow cocked mischievously.

  “Like what you see?” he asked with a grin.

  My cheeks involuntarily turned pink because I, in fact, did like what I saw. “Put on a shirt, ass,” I teased back at him.

  Pulling me in for a hug, he asked, “And where are you running off to this morning?”

  “I have to work, Cale. When creepy stalkers try to ruin your life, work doesn’t take a day off.”

  He kissed my forehead. “I’m taking you,” he declared, walking towards the bedroom. “Give me five minutes to get ready.”

  “No. I’m a big girl. I have my mace,” I called out to him, jingling my keys for effect since he was already in the other room.

  “Lia, I’m taking you. End of discussion.”

  “Cale, Sam said he’d see me Friday. I figure I can take a breather for the next few days and resume normal life.” I was beginning to become exasperated with his caveman insinuations.

  I heard a drawer slam shut before Cale stalked back into the room looking very pissed off, which had me involuntarily shrinking back.

  His face softened when he saw the reaction he’d caused, but his jaw was clenching, which meant he was still upset. “I’m taking you because I care about your safety. I don’t believe that asshole for a second. He’s a psychopath. There is no way in hell I’ll trust a word he ever says. For all we know, he could be waiting for you to drop your guard, and God only knows what he would do to you,” he growled. His anger at that notion was directed toward Sam and not me but I still shivered from the tone.

  “Okay,” I finally conceded with a sigh, knowing he was right. “But we’re getting donuts on the way.” I’d hoped my sassy comment would lighten the mood.

  “Got it, babe,” he chuckled with a wink before running off to brush his teeth.

  I smiled as I watched him hurry away with the excitement of a little boy—such a contrast to the protective, beastlike behavior only moments ago.

  AFTER DROPPING LIA off at work, I decided to swing by the office and check on the progress of my spec homes. Sitting at my desk, I thought about how the thing we had going between us could quickly go to shit if I let Sam ruin it for us. We were being robbed of a normal courtship because we were too busy putting out Sam’s fires—literally.

  While reading through emails from the subcontractors on the progress of my projects, I stumbled across one from my dad. Great, I thought as I opened it.

  Cale,

  Son, I know we didn’t end things well during our last conversation. I promise I am trying to let you make your own decisions, but we could really use you at the firm. I’ve even found a few potential buyers for your company that you could profit from considerably. If you join me, I promise I’ll stop trying to set you up with women and stay out of your personal life.

  I met someone. She’s actually my assistant at the firm. Her name’s Charlotte and we’ve been together for many months now. She’s absolutely gorgeous and quite the pistol. I was told that I was a “deadbeat dad” for pushing my one and only son away. You know I’m not good with feelings or apologizing for that matter but she has a point. I’m getting older and I really would like to be a part of your life.

  So consider my email the white flag of surrender. I wish I could say things to you in person but we both end up getting angry too easily and nothing gets talked out.

  If you come on to the firm as one of my top architects and finish your degree, there will be a partnership position with an extremely nice salary waiting for you.

  Sincerely,

  Dad

  Hmph. Definitely hadn’t been expecting that this morning. My dad was actually trying to be a human with feelings. This was all alien to me. I wasn’t really quite sure how to proceed. I was pretty sure I already liked Charlotte though. That was for damn sure. Not many people would call Dad out on his shit. It was commendable.

  Figuring it was unavoidable, I began typing my response.

  Dad,

  This all came out of left field for sure. While I appreciate your desire to rebuild our relationship, I am going to have to pass on the job opportunity. I’ve begun building a life here in Jonestown and the girl I’ve recently met is smart and a damn knockout.

  However, I would like to try and work on our relationship. Maybe we could grab a beer one day or something. Charlotte sounds like a keeper by the way. You can tell her I said so.

  Cale

  He seemed pretty sincere in the emails, so maybe I’d give him another shot. It took a lot for someone like my dad to admit a mistake, so it seemed real. Another email popped into my inbox from him.

  Cale,

  Well, we must be doing something right because Charlotte’s standing over my shoulder, jumping up and down like a damn cheerleader. She insists you come to dinner tonight at the house and to bring your lady friend. It’s probably short notice but we’re only 45 minutes away. I’d really like to see you and for you to meet Charlotte.

  Dad

  Wow. That was fast. I guessed
what they say is true—there’s no time like the present. I decided to text Lia and see what her thoughts were.

  Me: Hey, babe. Hope your morning is going well. So my dad and his girlfriend want us to come to dinner tonight. What do you think?

  A few minutes later, she responded.

  Lia: Your dad, whom you’ve been estranged from all these years? Do you want to go? I think it’s a great idea for you guys to see each other but is that what you want?

  Her text made me smile. That’s why Lia was a keeper. She was a really kindhearted person.

  Me: Yeah, I think this could be a start in the right direction towards fixing our problems. His girlfriend seems like someone who can keep him on the straight and narrow. I like her already.

  Lia: Then of course, Cale. I’m looking forward to it. :)

  I sent Dad off another email confirming that we’d be at dinner tonight at the house. This was turning out to be a really strange day.

  After making some calls to the window replacement company, I headed over to Lia’s to inspect the damage from the fire. She’d given me the keys, minus the mace, so that I could go and take a look today.

  After unlocking the insane amount of locks on her door, I let myself inside. There was still glass all over the carpet. The place had a burnt smell to it. I busied myself with sweeping up the glass, removing the curtains and burned blanket, and wiping down what I could. The damage wasn’t that extensive, mostly superficial. She’d have some burns in the carpet until she got around to replacing it. It was a good thing I knew a few people.

  Hearing the crunch of gravel in the driveway, I realized that the window replacement company must have arrived. After letting them in, I showed them what needed to be repaired and they quickly set to putting in the new window.

  While they were doing that, I decided to pick out something for Lia to wear tonight. I knew she’d only really packed clothes for work in her bag. Luckily, the sexy outfit she’d planned on wearing Saturday night was draped across the dresser. I grabbed it plus the impossibly high-heeled shoes as well. There was no way this outfit was going to waste.

  After the window was repaired, I locked up and headed out. There were a few more errands I needed to run before picking up Lia. I couldn’t believe I’d be seeing my dad again for the first time in many years. It was going to be awkward to say the least. At least Lia would be with me and we could just bail if things got weird.

  At five, I walked into Lia’s work wearing a dressy pair of jeans and a button-up shirt. Dad always liked people to dress for the occasion. The look on her face was priceless when she saw me coming towards her desk.

  “Lia, I think there’s a little drool on your face,” I teased with a wink.

  This brought her out of her blatant ogling and into the present. She stuck her tongue out, causing me to laugh.

  “Girl, you DO need a tissue to wipe that drool. And get one for me too,” sassed someone from the corner. The cute black girl sashayed over to me before sticking out her manicured hand. “I’m Anj, short for Anjel. Don’t ever think about calling me Anjel unless you want to see my horns.”

  I laughed at her and shook her hand. “It’s nice to finally meet you formally.”

  She grinned at me. “You better treat my girl right or there’ll be hell to pay. I don’t care how fine you are.”

  I winked at her. “Oh, I’ll treat her right.”

  “Mmmmhmmm. Damn right you will,” she agreed with a hand on her hip. She was on a roll.

  Lia finally interrupted our banter, asking what was in the bag I was carrying.

  “I brought you a change of clothes for dinner with my dad tonight,” I told her, handing her the bag.

  When she peeked inside, she blushed. If I had to guess by the look on her face, she might have been remembering our date.

  After she left to change her clothes, I heard Ben call for me from his office. When I stepped inside, he asked me to close the door. The serious look on his face had me worried.

  “So Lia tells me there is a man named Sam giving her all kinds of trouble?” he asked.

  I sobered up quickly, thinking of everything he’d put her through. “Yes, and I intend to catch that motherfu—bastard in the act,” I growled. “When I do, that will be the end of it and it won’t be pretty.”

  Ben nodded at my declaration. “Take care of my girl, Mr. Reeves. I’m holding you personally responsible. She’s the daughter I never was able to have. You can see how much she means to me, so please don’t let anything happen to her. As long as she’s here, I can protect her. You take care of the rest.” He pulled out a nine-millimeter handgun and set it on the desk in front of me.

  I stared at the gun for a moment before taking it and sticking it in the waistline of my jeans, pulling my shirt over it. “You have my word,” I promised, meeting his eyes with mine, which showed the conviction I felt.

  “Good,” he sighed in relief, effectively ending the conversation.

  CALE STEPPED OUT of Pops’s office with a grave look on his face, causing me to frown. When he saw me, though, his face lit up as he smiled.

  “Let’s get out of here, babe,” he growled as he looked me up and down. He walked over to me, putting both hands on either side of my face and bent over, planting a kiss on my lips.

  My heart ignited in a rapid succession of beats, and I grabbed his head and pulled him in for a longer kiss. He tasted like mint and Cale—the perfect flavor.

  When we broke apart, he looked into my eyes with a smoldering look of his own and whispered, “You look fucking hot and I would love nothing more than to rip those jeans off you and ram the shit out of you across your desk.”

  My cheeks burned, but not with embarrassment. I nearly convinced myself that it was an excellent idea if it weren’t for Pops sitting in the office in the other room.

  After we got in his truck and were heading down the road, he spoke up. “Lia, I am warning you that dinner at my dad’s may not be rainbows and butterflies.”

  I nodded and grabbed his hand, understanding that the relationship was a strained one to say the least. When he’d texted me of our plans tonight, I’d been nervous for him but also excited that he wanted to share this part of his life with me.

  We chatted easily about light things like my ‘obsession’ with shoes, as he called it, and crazy Anj. It was a fun drive to his dad’s house. I was all smiles until I realized we were heading into Austin. My pulse quickened at the thought of returning to the place I hadn’t been to since I’d run away three years ago. There was a reason I ordered my shoes online. Jonestown had crap for selection and Austin was out of the question. Shit. My palms started to sweat.

  Noticing a shift in the air, Cale glanced over at me. “Lia, what’s wrong?” His voice was filled with concern. Now was certainly not the time to tell him about that terrible night.

  “Uh, nothing.” My voice shook as I spun a small tale.

  He tensed at my lie but ignored it anyway.

  Come on. He lives near the freaking college I attended too? I thought as I realized that we were driving past some really familiar streets. My breaths were coming out short and frantically. I squeezed my eyes shut, trying to think of anything but that night because I felt like I was going to have a panic attack.

  “There’s the college where I played football for a whole semester.” He was pointing but I refused to look in that direction.

  “Are we almost there?” I practically whispered, not trusting my voice. The tears were on the horizon and I was doing everything in my power to keep them at bay.

  “Yeah. A few more miles,” he answered as we drove past the school.

  The farther away we got, the better I was feeling. Memories of that fateful night threatened to come flooding in but I forced them away. I finally allowed myself to look around when we pulled into a driveway. His father’s home was enormous and beautiful. I had no idea his father was so wealthy.

  “Listen, Lia, I know you just totally freaked. I also know that yo
u don’t want to tell me. I wish you would but I get it. When you’re ready, I’ll be here to hold you. We’ll take a different route home.” He sighed and got out of the truck.

  Tears stung my eyes. I badly wanted to tell him because it was driving a wedge between us. Blinking the moisture away, I climbed out as well.

  He came around to meet me and pulled me into a tight hug, kissing the top of my head. “I’ve got you, babe,” he sang in a deep voice, causing me to giggle and think about the Sonny and Cher song. He released me and grinned.

  “Come on, let’s go.” We joined hands and made our way to the door.

  Before we could knock, the door swung open and an older gentleman stepped outside. Cale and his father had a striking resemblance. I wondered if Cale looked anything like his mother at all.

  “Hello, son.”

  “Hi, Dad. This is Lia,” he introduced to me to his dad.

  I reached over and firmly shook his hand.

  “Steve,” Cale’s dad smiled. “It’s very nice to meet you.”

  I grinned back at him as he led us inside.

  “Char, they’re here,” he called into the kitchen.

  Moments later, a tall, leggy blonde not much older than I was came bouncing out of the kitchen. “I’m so glad to meet you guys,” she chirped. Instead of shaking our hands like Steve had, she hugged each of us. “I just pulled the lasagna out of the oven, and the bread will be out in five. Make yourselves at home please. Steve, make them a drink why don’t you.” She scurried back into the kitchen to finish up.

  Steve went over to the bar in the den area we were standing in and poured us each a glass of red wine. “Cale, thanks for coming. It means a lot to me and Charlotte.” Steve’s smile was genuine which made my heart thump happily for Cale.