“No matter what happens in our lives I will always find you. I’m here now and we’re together. I love you and nothing and no one is ever going to take you away from me again. If anything … trust me on that.”
Breathing in his scent, I sighed and collapsed into his arms. “I trust you.”
***
I was taken to the hospital and examined, thoroughly, even though I told them it wasn’t necessary. Given the situation, it all had to be recorded in the police report. The only thing I suffered from was dehydration, just like Abbey the nurse said, and of course I was starving. The sores on my back were fine, except there were some gravel pieces that were lodged in my skin. As soon as the examination was over and my skin scrubbed, I was wheeled into a hospital room where Brett was standing there waiting for me, looking distraught. The nurse hooked me up to an IV and smiled sadly. “Once we get your fluids up we’ll discharge you. But for now, I want you to rest and take it easy. I know you have a lot to recover from, not only physically, but emotionally as well.”
“Thank you,” I muttered. She nodded at Brett before leaving the room and shutting the door behind her.
Brett came over and sat beside me on the bed, taking my hand. Daniel’s blood had been all washed away, and I was thankful for that. It was a constant reminder of what I did.
“How did the exam go?” he asked, worry evident in his tone. His eyes were the most haunted I had ever seen them and I knew the reason why he wanted to know the answer.
Taking his hand, I pulled him down to lie beside me on the bed. I placed my hand on his cheek and looked straight into his soulful gray eyes. “It went fine, Brett. Nothing happened, okay?”
Clenching his teeth, he nodded quickly and looked away. “Are you sure about that? I saw what happened to Daniel. It didn’t look like nothing happened. Did he …” He was so angry he couldn’t even finish the sentence.
“No,” I said firmly, taking his face in both hands for him to look back at me. “I took care of it before it got that far. Which I’m sure you saw what I did.” I paused for a few seconds before asking the question that had been weighing on me since I ran away. “How is he by the way? I didn’t kill him, did I?”
Closing his eyes, he sighed and placed his forehead to mine. “Unfortunately, no. You have no clue how hard it’s been not to go to his room and kill the son of a bitch. I almost came close when I saw him in the motel struggling to stand up. If it wasn’t for Mason I probably would have.”
My eyes went wide. “What did you do?”
He shrugged and pursed his lips. “Well, let’s just say he has a broken nose, and a few cracked ribs to go along with his head injury. He didn’t look so good after I was hauled out of the room.”
Silently, I breathed a sigh of relief. I was angry with Daniel, but I didn’t wish him dead. “Where are Claire and Mason?”
“Claire said she was going to sit with Daniel for a while, and Mason said he would be here shortly. What we all want to know is how come Daniel went off the deep end and fled. When I got that call from you and heard you struggling on the other end I about lost it. Claire was the one who found your smashed up phone in one of the bedrooms,” he explained.
I took a deep breath and sat up, pulling Brett with me. “You do realize it was the bedroom beside the study right?”
Brett furrowed his brows, but then after a moment realization set in and his eyes grew wide. He groaned and hung his head. “You and Daniel heard all of that, didn’t you? That’s why he took off with you because he knew he was busted.”
I nodded. “Yeah, but you forgot to mention that it was your dad you were talking to. I heard that part as well. I didn’t know he was one of the state senators.”
He looked away. “Yes, he is. He had always been in the running for some kind of political office. He’s also a very manipulative man, and when he found out about Daniel’s plans to sell homes on the vineyard my father saw an opportunity to reel me in. He made an offer to Daniel he couldn’t refuse, and if he did refuse he was going to make sure he regretted it.”
“Did your father threaten him?” I asked, wide-eyed.
“He did. He lied to me when I told him about everything that night. He already knew that Daniel had been stealing money from his investors. His proposal was for Daniel to make sure I took the project and if I didn’t he was going to expose him.” Brett laughed and shook his head, except his laugh was one of torment. “Now do you see why I want nothing to do with the man? He’s a money hungry parasite who will do anything for power and fuck over anyone he can to get what he wants. His determination to get me to speak him almost cost me the one thing I care about most in this world. He can rot in hell.”
He got up from the bed and walked over to the window with his shoulders slumped. The clouds were gray just like his eyes, and the rain pouring down outside definitely reflected our somber moods.
“I’m sorry,” I muttered softly. “I know it had to be hard to see him again and to find out what he did. What happens to him now? Will he get in trouble for knowing about Daniel’s dealings and not reporting him?”
Brett scoffed, “Hell no. He gets to keep living life like nothing happened. He did agree to pay off Daniel’s debts in return for penance though.”
“What’s going to happen to Daniel?”
“I can answer that one,” Mason called out from the doorway. Claire followed him into the room with a huge bouquet of flowers.
She rushed over and set them on the table before wrapping her arms around my neck. “Oh my God, I’m so glad you’re safe. I had no clue Daniel was so messed up in the head that he would kidnap you. I think that threw us all for a loop.”
“How is he?” I whispered in her ear.
She sniffled and quietly replied, “He’s awake and he says he wants to see you.”
My heart dropped and I swallowed hard, barely able to breathe. Did I want to see him again after what he did? I shook my head and let the tears fall down my cheeks. “I don’t think I can see him,” I told her.
Pulling back, she wiped the tears from under her eyes and nodded. “I understand. He just wanted me to tell you.”
Mason sidled over to the bed and dropped something into my hand. It was warm from being in his grasp, and when I looked down, it was his mother’s watch that I’d lost in the woods. “I thought you might like this back,” he said with a smile. “You had us scared shitless when it traced to a set of woods. I was afraid we were going to find your body. It was the hardest hours of my life travelling up this way. Next time, don’t be stupid and try to escape when you knew we would be right behind you,” he teased.
Brett joined us by the bed with his arms crossed. “Hopefully, there won’t be a next time. You don’t have any more psycho ex-husbands out there do you?”
Snickering, I shook my head and held up my hands. “No more psycho exes. But what happens when Daniel gets out of jail. Surely, he’s not going to get life in prison for what he did, right?”
Mason sighed. “No, he’s not going to get life in prison which means he will get out one day, but it’s not going to be anytime soon. And when he does, he won’t be able to get within a hundred feet of you. If I was him I would rather stay in prison. He’s not going to have a life when he gets out and he knows it. He didn’t even fight back when Brett tried to basically kill him. But you did a pretty good number on him with the lamp.”
“I didn’t know what else to do,” I uttered sadly. I just wanted to forget the look in Daniel’s eyes when I bashed him in the head. It will always be a permanent mark on my heart.
The room grew quiet and they could tell I didn’t want to talk anymore about what happened. Wary, Claire and Mason both tried to smile and left the room while Brett took a chair and moved it beside the bed. Taking my hand, he kissed it and held it in between both of his.
“One day, the pain will be less,” he murmured gently, leaning over to brush the hair away from my face. “But I’ll be with you every day to make sure you get thr
ough it until it does. I can promise you that.”
Smiling, I captured his hand with mine and held it to my face. “Good, because I’m going to hold you to that promise. I hope you know what you got yourself in to. I can be a little hard to handle sometimes.”
He chuckled and stood up to kiss me, tracing his tongue lightly over my lips. “Oh, I’m always up for a challenge, firecracker. I look forward to it.”
Me too.
Chapter Thirty-Six
Before leaving the hospital, I did something I didn’t think I would do or wanted to do for that matter. I went to see Daniel. Claire told me what room he was in and offered to walk in there with me, but I wanted to see him alone. Brett pushed me in the wheelchair down the hall to the room designated for him and once outside the closed door, I licked my dry lips and hesitated. What reason would he have to want to see me after everything he did?
Brett helped me up by grasping my arm gently, and other than feeling weak I was fine. There was a guard by the door who was stout like an ox, all bulky in his uniform, with a shaved head and kind smile. He nodded at us as we approached and moved aside so I could have access to the door.
“Are you sure you want to do this?” Brett asked skeptically.
Heaving a resounding sigh, I nodded my head and faced the door. “Yes, I’m sure. I’ll always wonder what he wanted if I don’t.”
With my hand on the knob, I turned it slowly and opened the door, little by little. I walked in, taking quiet steps, until I could see the foot of Daniel’s bed. Carefully, I turned the corner and gasped when his face came into view. His head was wrapped in gauze, his eyes were swollen and black, and his nose was crooked from what I assumed was from a punch by Brett’s fist. Shockingly, he was actually breathing on his own.
I sat in the chair beside his bed and watched him. His eyes were closed and his breathing was even. For about fifteen minutes I sat there waiting on him to wake up, and when he didn’t, I quietly ambled over to the door, not getting very far. I froze immediately when I heard the sound of Daniel’s voice, all raspy and hoarse, calling out my name.
“Melissa,” he whispered.
Turning my head ever so slowly, I gazed at him from over my shoulder. His face was toward me, but with his eyes so swollen I didn’t know if he could really see me. He repeated my name again in his gruff and beaten voice, “Melissa.”
I blew out a shaky breath and answered, “I’m here, Daniel. Claire told me you had something to say so I’m here.” My eyes pooled with unshed tears, and in a way I knew I shouldn’t feel sad with the way he landed himself all broken in a hospital bed. It was his fault he made terrible choices in life, but …
I couldn’t forget how that same man was one I had married and was happy with, if only for a short while, I did love him and he loved me. Sometimes love just isn’t what it seems.
“I’m sorry,” he choked out. “Mel, I am so sorry.”
A tear escaped the corner of his blackened eye and his shoulders shook with each sob. I had never seen him break down before, and even though I wanted to hate him, I just couldn’t. He was a screwed up individual, and deep down I prayed that he’d get the help he needed to get his life back on track.
I let my own tears fall freely when I gazed over at him. They was the last tears I’d ever cry for him. “Good-bye, Daniel.”
He stared at me for the longest time, his cheeks moist with tears, before saying, “Good-bye, Melissa.”
***
One Month Later
It was a week before Christmas and there was so much to do. When my parents saw me on the news right after I’d been taken they came straight home from their travels and refused to leave. It went from talking to them once every couple of weeks to talking to them every day. It was kind of nice having them around. However, the night was just for me and Brett, but there was one stop I had to make before going to his condo, which had now become my home for the time being.
After selling everything I owned, I had a nice giant sum of money that was going to help me with my new adventure. An adventure I couldn’t wait to begin. So many things were going to change once the New Year came. Once everything settled down after the whole Daniel debacle I had chosen not to go back to work for the rest of the school year. There was so much going on that I knew I wouldn’t be able to focus on it. It hurt my heart to leave, but it was the right thing to do.
My last stop for the day was the one place I never wanted to see again. When I pulled into the driveway of my old house, the one I’d shared with Daniel, my realtor was waiting for me in her car. It was mid-December and very cold for this time of year which was odd. I parked my new yellow Jeep Wrangler, which I bought after selling my Lexus, beside my realtor’s SUV. Before climbing out of the car, I wrapped my scarf around my neck and buttoned up my jacket.
“Good evening,” Amy said, walking around the front of her car to meet me.
She was dressed in a long black skirt and a dark gray petticoat. I really liked her when she helped Daniel and I find our house, and I knew she would be the perfect one to help me sell it.
She smiled and said, “Thank you for meeting me here. I was in the area and thought it would be easier to get the paperwork done.”
Shivering, I tucked my hands in my wool pockets and smiled. “It’s perfectly fine. I can’t believe the house sold so fast. It’d only been on the market for two weeks.”
Amy giggled. “That’s the way it goes sometimes. Did you want to take one last look around inside or do you want to sign the papers out here?”
“Out here is fine,” I told her. “There are too many painful memories inside that house.”
She opened the passenger side door of her car and pulled out a yellow folder. “I completely understand,” she said, sorting through the papers. “I know it has to feel good to be away from here.”
“You have no idea,” I mumbled to myself.
Slamming her car door, she fumbled with the papers in her hand and laid them on the hood of her car. “Okay, here we go.” She pointed to the vacant lines on both papers. “All right, Melissa, I need you to sign on both of those lines and you’re done.” She handed me a pen, and wasting no time I signed my name on the empty lines.
“There you go, Amy. Thank you so much for taking care of me and finding someone so quickly. I really appreciate it.”
Amy waved me off and shook my hand. “It was no problem. Good luck with everything.”
“Thank you,” I replied, letting go of her hand. “For once I feel like luck is on my side.”
As soon as Amy got in her car and drove away, I took one last look at the house before turning my back and driving away. It wasn’t my home anymore. My home was with Brett and that was exactly where I was headed.
Before getting on the road, I dialed Claire’s number to tell her the good news. She answered with an excited, “Hey, girl. How are ya?”
I chuckled. “I’m doing well. I just signed the papers over to the house. It’s officially been sold.”
Claire shrieked. “No way! Does this mean what I think it means? Please tell me you’re going to move out here now. Does Brett know that you’ve been thinking about it?”
I sighed. “No, he doesn’t know yet. I didn’t realize the house would sell so fast and now that it has ...” I paused and massaged the tension at my temples. “I just thought I would have more time. I won’t be able to leave Brett. I love him too much.”
“Just talk to him, Melissa. I’m sure things will work out perfectly. All you have to do is ask him one simple question and go from there. If he says no then … I don’t know.”
“Thanks, Claire,” I retorted dryly. “You were such a big help.”
She giggled. “Anytime, babe. Call me tomorrow and let me know what he says.”
“I will,” I said. After hanging up the phone with her, I started up the car and headed home.
It was early evening, so I knew I would make it to the condo before Brett, but when I opened the door to our home, I
was completely surprised with what I saw. Our Christmas lights on the tree were all turned on and twinkling in the darkness of the living room while our gas logs were burning bright. I gasped when I saw that Brett had a laid out the perfect picnic in front of our beautiful Christmas tree that we both spent a whole day and night making perfect together.
“I thought I’d surprise you,” Brett muttered, coming up beside me and handing me a glass of sparkling white wine.
“Surprise me?” I began. “What’s the occasion?”
Unbuttoning my coat, Brett smiled as he took it from me and hung it on the coat rack. “It’s been a good day and I just wanted to let you know how much I love you.” Grasping my hand, he pulled me over to our picnic. “Sit,” he commanded playfully. “Let’s eat.”
I took a seat on the soft pillows he had spread out and drank the rest of my wine. “Actually, it has been a good day,” I remarked. “My house is officially sold.”
Brett’s eyes went wide. “Already? Wow that was fast.” He pulled the top off my plate and poured me another glass of wine that he had chilling in a tub of ice.
Taking the filled glass of wine, I agreed, “Yeah, that’s what I thought too.” Just go ahead and tell him what’s on your mind, I thought to myself.
With my stomach in knots, I sat there and ate the delicious chicken parmesan and salad that had my mouth salivating as soon as I entered the door. The meal satiated my growling appetite, but it did nothing for my nerves. Once we were all done, Brett cleared the plates and settled behind me on the massive pillows and blankets he had scattered across the floor.
Brett nuzzled his nose in my hair and breathed me in, moaning as he exhaled. “I think it’s time for dessert, don’t you?” His hands slid down my arm, down the side of my stomach to my thighs and then back up making shivers race across my skin.
“I couldn’t agree more,” I acknowledged, breathless.
Reaching around to the front of my shirt, he slowly undid my buttons one by one. My lip tilted up in a smirk as I watched his hand deftly undo each one, exposing the bare skin underneath. I sat up and slipped my shirt off once it was completely unbuttoned while Brett did the same with his. Kissing me tenderly on the lips, he reached around my back and unhooked my bra while I worked on the button of his jeans. Once my breasts were exposed from the satiny cotton of my bra, he pulled one of my peaked nipples into his mouth and licked the sensitive flesh until I was bucking underneath him.
Silk Page 137
