by A J Manney
“Oh, Emma, Garrett’s covering the bill,” she said. “I’m so sorry. I just assumed you would know that. I should have said something.”
Emma looked at her, confused. “Why is Garrett covering the bill?”
“Because it’s his fault this happened to you. He forced you to run away. Men,” she said and shook her head.
Emma suddenly remembered. “Amy and Olivia. I have to tell them what happened,” she said anxiously. She’d let them down when they needed her the most.
“It’s okay,” Madison said in a calm voice. “Garrett got somebody to watch Olivia at Hope House. He explained to Amy what happened. She felt bad for you.” Kyle slipped back into the room at this point.
Emma blinked and stared at Madison in confusion. “He did?” she asked. Madison nodded. Emma looked around the room as if to summon the man. Madison seemed to understand who she was looking for.
“Garrett doesn’t have much of a bedside manner, so we kicked him out,” Madison said. Kyle made a comment Emma couldn’t hear, and Madison elbowed him in the stomach. It didn’t seem to faze him. He just grinned.
“Are you hungry?” Madison asked, changing the subject. “We can order you some room service while we’re waiting for the doctor.”
Emma looked at her. “I need to go to work,” she said stubbornly.
Madison looked at her compassionately. “Emma, I don’t think that’s a good idea. You hit your head pretty hard. It’s going to take a little time to heal. But,” she put her hand up before Emma could argue with her, “let’s wait to hear what the doctor says.”
Emma reluctantly agreed. She sat down on the side of the bed to wait. She didn’t have to wait long. The door opened and a doctor walked in with a clipboard in hand. “Emma,” he said. “How are you feeling?” he asked.
“Pretty good,” Emma said.
“Let's check you out, okay?” he said.
“We’ll wait outside your room, Emma,” Madison said. She and Kyle slipped into the hallway, leaving Emma alone in the room with the doctor.
Chapter 16
The doctor had just started when the door opened and two police officers walked in. Emma startled when she saw them. Her eyes flew to the doctor’s. He looked at her calmly. “Emma, the officers are here to take your statement since you were attacked. I will be back when they finish.” He stood and nodded to the officers and left the room.
Emma watched as the officers crossed the room towards her and felt her panic starting to rise. The door to the room opened again, and Kyle strode into the room confidently. He came and stood next to her. The officers turned to look at him. “We need to speak to the victim alone,” one officer said.
Kyle crossed his arms. “Not happening. She’s my sister, and I'm staying,” he said without an ounce of hesitancy. Emma glanced at the officers. They didn’t like it, but they didn’t fight it.
Emma wondered how they had bought that lie. She and Kyle didn’t look anything alike. She focused her attention back on the officers. “Miss, can you tell us what happened?”
Emma closed her eyes for just a brief moment, trying to collect her thoughts. She glanced at Kyle and noticed he was watching her carefully. Emma got the idea he was worried about what she was going to say. In that instant, Emma decided to just keep the other guys out of it. She wasn’t sure why, but she felt the need to protect them.
Taking a deep breath, she began her story. “I was heading back to where I live yesterday around two fifteen in the afternoon,” she started.
“Which is where?” an officer interrupted.
“Hope House,” Emma said quietly.
The officer jerked his head up. “You homeless?”
Emma felt her face burn in humiliation, but she managed a quick nod.
The officer taking notes turned to Kyle. “You homeless?” he asked. Emma panicked for a second. Their story was going to fall apart before it even started.
“I’m not. I live with my wife. We keep trying to get her to live with us, but she refuses,” he lied easily.
Emma held her breath, but the officers seemed to believe his story. They turned back to her. “Go on,” an officer said.
Emma started again. “I was heading to the house when two men stopped me, one in front and one behind me. The one behind me grabbed my hair, and...” she broke off for a moment as memories assailed her. She closed her eyes.
“It’s okay,” she heard one officer say. “You’re safe now.” Emma opened her eyes and nodded. “What happened next?”
“My adrenaline kicked in, and I knew I had to get away. I hit the guy behind me with my head and I kicked the guy in front of me in the, uh, private area,” she said. “Then I ran. I ran into a friend, and he helped me escape,” she said.
At this point, the officer who had been taking notes stopped and looked down at her, his brow furrowed. “You just happened to run into a friend?”
Emma nodded, knowing it was the truth. She had nothing to hide from this part of the story. “He had been looking for me.” Which isn’t a lie. “I assume he heard me screaming and that’s when he came. He put me in his car and I guess brought me here. I was passed out.”
The other officer looked at Emma. “And what of the guys that attacked you?” he asked.
Emma noticed that Kyle inched a little closer to her at that question. Emma didn’t dare look at him. “I’m not sure what happened to them,” she said. It was the truth; she technically didn’t know what had happened to them. “I woke up here a little while ago,” Emma finished.
The officers asked a few more questions, mostly about the things she had already told them. The one officer wrote a few more things down in his book, then closed it. “All right. That’s all the questions we have for now. Get some rest, Miss,” he said. Then they both left the room.
Emma felt herself relax. She looked up at Kyle. “Thanks for being here with me,” she said sincerely.
He nodded. “Thanks for protecting Levi and me,” he said with a quick smile.
Madison came into the room then. “How did it go?” she asked worriedly.
“Emma handled it all perfectly,” Kyle said.
Madison turned to Emma. “Are you okay?” she asked.
Emma nodded, but before she could say anything, the doctor was back. “Now, Emma, let’s try that again.” He spent the next five minutes asking her questions about how she felt. He looked her over, checked her head, and did a few other things. “All right, Emma. I believe you are free to go. Just take your time easing back into things,” he said. “I want you to check in with your primary doctor in three days. If you have any neck pain, tingling, numbness, or vomiting, come right back to the hospital.”
Emma nodded. The doctor stood up. “All right. You are good to go. I’ll have the nurse start the discharge process.”
“Thank you,” Emma said.
He nodded and disappeared out the door. Emma let out a sigh of relief. She was free to go. Madison came over to her. “That’s great. You can get out of here.”
Emma looked down at the hospital gown she was wearing and frowned. “Do you think I could get a shower?”
“I don’t see why not. Let me just check with the nurse,” Madison said.
“I’ll do it,” Kyle said and left the room.
Emma sat on the edge of the bed. She didn’t have to wait long. Kyle was back a moment later. “Nurse said it’s fine.”
Emma stood up and stood still for a moment, trying to get her bearings. “Do you need help?” Madison asked in concern. Emma shook her head no. “Okay. Everything you need is in the shower already. I brought some of my clothes to wear for now. I figured we were about the same size. I hope that’s okay,” she said, sounding unsure.
“That’s great. Thank you so much,” Emma said. Emma made her way to the bathroom. Emma found everything she needed in there, thanks to Madison.
After a shower, Emma was beginning to feel human again. Even though it was just leggings and a sweatshirt, it was nicer than
anything she had had at Hope House. She quickly braided her hair and stepped out of the bathroom.
A nurse came in to help get Emma discharged. A few minutes later, Kyle was wheeling her through the hospital in a wheelchair. “I still don’t know why I have to be in a wheelchair,” Emma mumbled.
“Hospital rules,” the nurse who overheard her responded.
Emma shivered when she was rolled outside. Kyle stopped the chair and helped her up. He led her to where Levi was waiting behind the wheel of a black Land Rover. He helped her into the backseat, and Madison slid in on the other side. Kyle hopped in front in the passenger seat. Levi turned to look back at her. “How are you doing, Emma?” he asked in concern.
“I’m fine,” she said. “Thank you, both of you, for saving me from those men. I really appreciate it,” she said sincerely. Both men nodded. Levi put the car in gear and pulled forward.
“You’re taking me to Sip and Drip, right?” she asked, leaning forward.
It was silent for a moment before Madison responded. “You can’t go back to work today, Emma.”
“Why not?” Emma asked.
Madison just stared at her like she’d lost her head. “Because you were just released from the hospital.”
“But I’m fine; the doctor said so,” she argued. “Look, I don’t want to cause any more problems. I know what happened yesterday was completely my fault. I just really need to get back to my job, please.”
Madison looked up to the front seat. Emma turned her head that way and saw Kyle put a hand through his hair. He looked at Levi; Levi looked back at him with a helpless shrug.
“Fine,” Kyle said. Then he mumbled. “Garrett’s going to kill us.”
Emma frowned at that. She didn’t want to say or do anything to change their minds, though; so she didn’t say anything. She sat back and watched the passing streets. Soon, they pulled up in front of Sip and Drip. “Thank you so much, all of you. I really appreciate it,” she said. The guys simply nodded and Madison smiled at her.
“We’ll see you soon, Emma,” Madison said.
Kyle opened her door for her, and she climbed out. She walked around to the front of the car and saw that Levi was holding the door to the shop. She walked past him and said thank you. She was surprised to see him follow her into the store, but she figured maybe he was ordering coffee or something. Helen came out from the back. “Emma, how are you?” she asked worriedly. She came out from behind the counter and hugged Emma. “You aren’t supposed to be here,” she reprimanded.
“The doctor gave me the all-clear,” Emma said with a smile.
“Are you sure?” Helen asked. “You can take a few days off,” she offered.
Emma shook her head. “I really want to be here and work.”
“All right, dear,” Helen finally said. “But you need to be honest with me and with yourself if you’re not feeling up to it.”
Emma agreed and went around the counter and into the back room to get an apron. Tying it around her, she felt a sense of peace at being back.
This is where she needed to be to feel normal again. Taking a deep breath of air that smelled like coffee, Emma smiled. She was ready to get back to work. When she came out, there were a few people in line. She got right to work taking orders and making drinks. After a lull, she went out into the shop to wipe down tables.
She was surprised to see Levi sitting there. He looked up from his phone when she approached him. “Levi, what are you doing here?” she asked.
“I’m here to keep an eye on things, make sure you stay safe,” he said.
Emma frowned. “I appreciate that, but you don’t need to do that. I’m fine. Yesterday was just a random thing. It won’t happen again.”
Levi nodded. “Thanks, Emma; but I’m staying. Boss’s orders.”
“Well, if I can’t convince you to leave, can I at least make you a drink?”
“I’ll come order something in a little bit,” he said with a smile.
“Okay,” Emma said and moved back to the counter. A few more customers came in, so Emma got back to it. She talked a few of them into getting the special for the week. A few teenage girls squealed when they tried it; Emma figured that was a good sign.
She was making someone’s drink when the door to the shop opened. “Welcome to Sip and Drip,” she called out over her shoulder. She finished the drink and walked back to the counter. She passed off the drink, then turned to the next customer with a smile. “What can I get—” the words dried up in her mouth when she looked into the angry eyes of her next customer. She swallowed hard and forced her voice to work. “Garrett, what can I get for you?” she asked.
“Why are you here?” he all but growled at her.
“I work here,” she responded.
He closed his eyes before opening them again. Emma gathered that he was trying to keep his cool. She didn’t know what he was so upset about. “You are supposed to be resting,” he said. “You’re recovering from a concussion.” The last word was practically snarled at her.
Emma widened her eyes at him. She crossed her arms. “Well, the doctor gave me the all-clear, so I came to work.”
“Well, the doctor’s an idiot. Anybody with a brain knows you shouldn’t be working after you just had a concussion,” he said in anger.
Emma leaned forward, gripping the counter for support. “You’re trying to tell me what I should or shouldn’t be doing again. I would think that yesterday’s events would have taught you that that’s not going to work.”
“Emma.” She heard the warning in his deep voice.
“Garrett,” she threw right back at him. She was done being bossed around by domineering men. She had grown up that way and had finally escaped it. She wasn’t going back to that.
Chapter 17
They were locked in a stand-off when Levi came and stood next to Garret. “Hey, Emma, I think I might get that coffee now. Boss, you want anything?” He looked at Garrett. Garrett didn’t say anything. He took a slight step back and crossed his arms. Emma looked away from the man in his expensive suit who looked way better than any man had the right to and tried to focus on getting Levi’s drink. After she passed it to him, she turned to Garrett.
“Are you leaving now?” she asked pointedly.
His dark eyes met hers. “I’m not leaving until you go home and rest,” he said.
“Well, then I guess you’re not leaving for a while because I’m staying,” Emma retorted.
“Then I guess I’m staying,” Garrett said.
“Well,” Emma drew out the word. “Technically you need to order something if you’re going to stay. That’s the rules,” she said and shrugged, hoping to get rid of him.
His eyes grew darker. “Black coffee,” he said and dropped a twenty down on the counter before turning and walking away.
Emma blew out a breath as he walked away. She felt exhausted from their interaction. Her hands were shaking as she got a cup for his coffee. She might portray that she wasn’t afraid of that man, but that was as far from the truth as possible. She peered over the counter and saw that Garrett had taken a seat with Levi. She debated just leaving his coffee on the counter but decided against it. He was still a customer. Before she could bring the coffee to him, the door opened once again. Emma looked up and was shocked to see Amy and Olivia. She walked around the corner and hugged each of them.
“We were so worried about you,” Amy said. “Are you okay?”
“I am,” Emma said with a genuine smile. “I had a concussion, but I’m okay now.”
“That’s so awful what you went through. Was it near the house?” Amy asked in a low, worried voice.
“Yes,” Emma said.
“I feel like it’s my fault,” Amy said.
“Oh, no,” Emma rushed to correct her. “It just happened. It’s not anybody’s fault.”
Amy still looked like she felt guilty. Emma wanted to move on from the conversation entirely. “How’s the new job?” she asked.
“It�
��s really good. I’m really hoping it works this time for me to be able to keep it. By the way, I need to thank your friend for sending a babysitter for Olivia. That was so kind of him. Do you have his number? I wanted to personally thank him.” She looked at Emma expectantly. Emma was silent for a moment.
“Uh, yeah. I can get that for you.” She felt Garrett’s gaze on her, but she didn’t dare look his way. Stink. I’m going to have to face him, she thought to herself. “Actually, he’s here right now if you want to, you know, talk to him,” Emma stumbled around.
“He is. Really? Where?” Amy asked. She looked around the shop. Emma saw exactly when her gaze fell on Garrett and Levi. Levi was faced the other way, but Garrett was facing their direction. Amy turned back to Emma wide-eyed. “That’s him?” she asked incredulously.
Emma nodded. Amy turned and looked again at him then whistled softly. “Now that is a man,” she said. “Are you,” she bobbed her head, “you know...”
Emma just stared at her, confused. “Am I what?”
“Sleeping with him?” she whisper-asked.
Emma choked on her own spit. “What? No!” she whispered right back.
“Why not?!” Amy asked. “I would! Can you imagine what that would be...”
Emma slapped her hand over Amy’s mouth. “No more.”
Amy nodded. “Okay. Sorry. I just got carried away. You don’t see a man like that very often, and one that’s nice? It’s unheard of.”
Emma shook her head and closed her eyes for a moment. “It’s a good thing your daughter can’t hear you,” Emma said quietly.
Amy grimaced. “Yeah. Again, I'm sorry.”
Emma knelt down in front of Olivia and signed a few words to her. Olivia smiled and signed back. Olivia gave her a big hug that almost knocked Emma over and signed that she was glad Emma was okay. Emma swallowed the emotion in her throat. She smiled at Olivia and stood up. “All right. Now if you think you can contain yourself, I’ll take you over and introduce you to him.”
Amy nodded. “I’ll be good. I promise.” Emma walked over to the counter and grabbed the coffee.
