by C. J. Thomas
A few minutes later, Noah parked in the alley and I had the front door unlocked and opened. The temperature was hot, the air dry. Since there wasn’t a chance of rain, I opened the bay doors to circulate the air inside.
Noah stood in the bay and tipped his head back to soak up the sun. I moved to the bench and reached for the bottle of whiskey. Twisting the cap off, I lifted it to my lips. The warm burn calmed my unsettled stomach.
“You know I could smell it on your breath this morning?” Noah walked toward me with his hands casually buried in his pockets.
I offered him the bottle.
He waved his hand, declining the offer. “Too early for me.” When he leaned against the bench and folded his arms over his chest, I prepared myself to receive another of his infamous lectures on professionalism and how I was now a company face. Instead, he completely surprised me. “Have you been sleeping much?”
I cast my gaze to the bottle, swirling the liquid around the bottom. Thinking about my insomnia, I shook my head.
“Nightmares?”
I pulled back another healthy swig before nodding. It didn’t take long for the alcohol to mix with my blood, causing my head to spin.
“If you need someone to talk to—”
“—I’m fine.” I set the bottle down, skirted around him, and fell to the couch. Stretching my arms over the back, I stared ahead with dull eyes.
“Where did you sleep last night?”
Noah knew that I had been staying here. It was the only place I had a chance of sleep, the only place I was truly at peace. When I wasn’t sleeping, I kept my thoughts distracted by tinkering away at my car. “Last night I was at my place.”
“That’s good.” The room fell quiet.
He didn’t know the reason why, and I wasn’t about to bring up Sienna.
I retreated back into my thoughts, reliving last night with Sienna. We didn’t make any plans to see each other again, and having learned about her wedding, now I knew why. I still wanted to know why she kept coming back to me and if I should even think there might be a chance to turn it into something more.
Noah stepped to the Mustang. “Did you get the head gasket to stop leaking?”
“Finally.”
He glanced over his shoulder to me. “Now what?”
“I’ll find something else to work on.”
He continued perusing my shop, stopping when he reached the picture from my days in the Marines. “Cooper really respects you, you know.”
“He can respect me without using my life as a marketing tool.” My hand involuntarily rubbed the thigh where I’d been shot—wounded in the line of fire during the battle that would forever change my life’s course.
Noah turned and cast his gaze to my hand. Though I hadn’t talked much about what happened that night, my family knew that I had been wounded. “What happened that day?”
My chest tightened as I stared into his sympathetic eyes. Pain watered his irises and I knew he was asking to understand who I was. It hadn’t always been like this. There was a time I could easily sleep without having to worry about what nightmares were going to present themselves when I least expected it.
When I blinked, a bright, blinding light exploded like a flash grenade inside my mind. I could still hear my friends’ cries to save them, stop the bleeding. Their last gasps of air echoed between my ears like a persistent wind that would never stop. I’d done all I could. We’d been surrounded by heavy fire. A surprise ambush no one saw coming. Something I would have to live with forever.
“I should have died with them,” I murmured.
“But you didn’t.” Noah stole one last glance at the photo before strolling over to me. “Telling the story will start the healing process.”
I rolled my neck to him with a knitted brow. “Are you asking because you’re genuinely curious, or because Cooper is?”
His mouth pinched. “What do you have against Coop?”
“Never mind.” I looked away, needing to cool my head before I said something I’d regret.
“Look, Trevor, we all know you don’t sleep and that you hole yourself up in this garage for hours every day. That’s fine. But since we don’t know what happened to you, we can only assume the worst. We care about you and we’re here, ready to listen, when you’re ready to tell.”
A slight chill rolled over my body in waves. “When you’re in the hell storm we were in, you’re not thinking about the politics that brought you to that fight.” My words were barely a whisper, but they were as strong as the emotions I felt harbored inside my chest. “All you care about is the brother laying in the dirt next to you.” I turned my head and locked eyes with my brother. “It’s all you have.” I paused to listen to my heart faintly beat against my sternum. “Nothing else matters.” I pointed to the wall. “Those men—my friends—are dead because I couldn’t save them.”
Noah’s eyes rounded into the size of a quarter as he listened. Then he glanced over his shoulder to the photo that started this conversation.
“They were good men. Better than you and me.” I leaned forward, resting my elbows on my knees. “Far better than I’ll ever be.”
“You might not see what I see,” Noah turned back, flicking his eyes to mine, “what we all see, but you’re a hero in my eyes. I know that doesn’t mean anything to you, but I’m proud to have you as a brother.”
I held my breath as the room fell silent again.
Falling back, the couch swallowed me up as I stared up into the ceiling rafters.
I wondered how close Senator Day was to Coop. What kind of influence he had when deciding to send young men like me into war. I had my reasons for not wanting to talk about my experience, but since Cooper decided to run for governor, it was mostly because I didn’t want my life to be used for political gain.
Changing the subject, Noah pointed to the front door. “So she just came running through there?”
Transporting myself back in time, I stared at the front door, able to see Sienna entering my life. I told Noah how I had been under my car working on the head gasket, and how when I came out she trembled with terror as fear flashed over her eyes. “It was nothing short of life threatening. Trust me, I know.”
Noah let out a heavy sigh.
I continued painting the picture of what yesterday looked like, never once holding back the important details I needed him to hear. Noah listened intently, anger growing in his eyes. “I hope you’re wrong about it being her fiancé,” he said.
Standing, I moved to the bay door, needing some sun on my face. “Me too.”
Noah’s cell chimed with a message. “Evan’s flight is about to land.”
I closed the bay and locked the garage on our way out.
Sliding behind the wheel, Nolan said, “I’ll be attending Sienna’s wedding, along with Nolan and Cooper. You should come.”
I rolled my window down and rested my elbow on the ledge. “No thanks. With both Cooper and Senator Day there, it will be a political gathering that I want nothing to do with. I’m done with politics.” But I knew it was more. Really, I was afraid of how I would react when I came face to face with the man who had hit her.
Noah took his foot off the brake and set the wheels in motion.
I glimpsed at my brother out of the corner of my eye. “You wanted to know where I was this morning?”
Noah glanced to me.
“I was with Dad’s PI”
His brows raised. “Dare I ask why?”
“To learn who she’s marrying.”
“Fuck.” He shook his head. “I told you stay out of this.”
“The asshole hit her.” I leaned across the console and put my face directly next to Noah’s. “Hit her, Noah.”
He gave me a sideways glance as I backed off.
I balled my hand into a white-knuckle fist. “You know I can’t stand on the sidelines and let him think he can get away with it.”
Noah rubbed his face. “You’re right. But you shouldn’t have don
e that.”
Whoever the asshole was, I would make sure he paid.
Noah put on his blinker and merged onto the highway. “What are you going to do with the information that comes back?”
“Stop the wedding before I’m too late.”
16
Sienna
There was a light knock on the door before Sophia peeked her head inside.
I was still hovering somewhere between the kitchen and living room, feeling the aftershock of my visit with Gary when I waved for her to come in.
Monica stood in the doorway, staring down the hallway, making sure Gary didn’t think twice about leaving. “You want me to go after him?” She pointed her finger toward the elevator.
“Leave the man alone,” Sophia said.
Monica came in, closing the door behind her. “We could spy on him.”
Monica’s words made me chuckle, helping to erase the blubbering mess I just was. I didn’t need him followed. Knowing that it was getting late in the morning, I looked to them both and said, “You don’t need to wait around for me. I’m fine. You two should go to work.”
Sophia swayed her hips over to me. Lifting her hand to my cheek, she wiped the stream of tears away from my face and looked me in the eye. “Really?”
Still hugging myself, I told them, “I wanted to be strong. And I was. I swear I didn’t open the faucet until he was gone.” I shook my head with disbelief.
“What did he say?” Sophia tucked a loose strand of hair behind my ear.
“He said that she messaged him when she learned he was about to get married.”
Sophia frowned.
Monica squared her shoulders as if preparing for a fight. “And how did his ex learn about it?”
“I don’t know. And he didn’t say if they met up.”
“I’m sure they did.” Monica said it with the kind of confidence to make us believe she had the evidence to convict.
Sophia pinched her eyebrows and tossed daggers over her shoulder at Monica with her eyes, telling her to ease up.
“I can’t do this.” I choked on my words. “I can’t pretend that everything is all right when it isn’t.”
Sophia wrapped her arms around me, pulling me into her soft chest. “I’m going to take the day off. I’ll stay with you.”
I pulled back, tucking my chin into my neck. Shaking my head, I said, “No. You can’t do that. I’m fine. Really.”
Monica stepped forward with crossed arms. “This is so fucked up.”
“My dad is the one who won’t cancel the damn wedding.”
“What if you just don’t show up?” Monica asked hypothetically.
I blinked my eyes dry and straightened my spine. “Really, you two need to get to work. I’m fine. Gary won’t be coming back.” I turned Sophia around, nudging her toward the door. “I’ll call you tonight.”
“I already talked to Nolan. My work is covered for as long as I need,” Sophia said over her shoulder.
“I don’t like this,” Monica admitted.
“I will call you both tonight.” I continued herding them closer to the door. “I promise.”
“Stand up to your father.” Monica reluctantly pushed her arm through her purse strap.
Sophia met Monica’s gaze. “It’s not that easy. The rules are different for her.”
Monica’s face twisted with confusion. “I don’t get it.”
“You wouldn’t. And be thankful you don’t understand the rules Sienna has had to live by all her life.”
I rolled my eyes, but Sophia was right.
Monica shifted her weight between her feet, casting her gaze to the floor. “My family may be blue collar, but we can still talk things out.” She lifted her eyes to me. “There has to be a way.” Her eyes sprang open with renewed excitement. “What if you go through the ceremony but don’t sign the state’s marriage papers?”
I reminded them of my plans to get ready for the family dinner at my parents’ house. Sophia smoothed her reassuring hand down my arm, giving me a quick smile to remind me that she was there for me no matter what.
Monica stepped forward and we hugged. “We could go for bloody maries.”
“Now you’re just trying to avoid work.” I snickered.
“Well, yeah.” A knowing glimmer twinkled in her eye.
Sophia looped her arm through the crook of Monica’s and towed her to the door. “Bye, Sienna. Call us if you need us.”
I shut the door, turning to face my empty apartment.
Falling back into the door, I tipped my head back and closed my eyes.
The absence of noise was exactly what I needed. Room to breathe. A moment to reflect. Everything I couldn’t find when I was constantly surrounded by friends or family. Sure, my dad was determined to see his daughter get married while I was trying to stop it without causing an earthquake.
My cell phone started ringing.
I groaned, not wanting to pick it up.
I had to see who it was, especially considering the girls had just left. It could be them—or worse, Gary.
Hurrying across the room, I picked it up and saw that it was Mom.
Sucking back a deep breath, I collected myself before answering. “Hey, Mom.”
“Sienna, sweetie.”
“What’s up?”
“Just wanted to call to see how your day is going.”
Mom was always casual, never direct. I knew she was gauging my feelings about the wedding—or, hopefully, lack thereof. Though she hadn’t been at dinner last night, I knew she had learned all the news from Dad. “Was Dad pissed I ran out on him last night?”
“Disappointed.”
I moved to the window with the lines on my forehead deepening. “I made a scene.” The thickness in my throat moved down my chest.
“Give him some time.” Mom’s voice was light as a feather. “He’ll forgive you.”
“Dad wasn’t listening.” I choked up.
“What’s this about you calling off the wedding?”
“It’s true, Mom. I can’t marry him.”
“Tell me what happened.”
I closed my eyes and took the next several minutes to tell her my side of the events, purposely leaving out the very big detail of how he struck my face with his hand. It was too painful to discuss, too embarrassing to admit. I still felt like it was my fault. The way I’d acted or the tone in my voice.
“Gary stopped by.”
My heart stopped. I held my breath, imagining Gary heading to my parents’ place immediately after talking to me. “Today?”
“Just now.”
The balls that man had. It only infuriated me more.
“He’s confused. Afraid that you have cold feet.”
“Mom, Gary has been messaging his ex. Monica swears they have been secretly meeting.”
Mom was quiet for a long while. It had been years since Gary had an ex, so the idea of him seeing anybody but me was difficult for us to believe. “Why don’t you come by early tonight? We can talk about this in person.”
I agreed and ended the call, not wanting to talk any more about what I already knew to be true. Mom needed to know he’d struck me. His constant running to my parents behind my back was a ploy to put pressure on me to go through with the wedding when I knew I couldn’t.
Suddenly, my apartment walls closed in and I felt stuck without a way out. Glancing to the unopened bottle of wine, I thought of Trevor. When I was with him, everything was brighter. He set me free. I knew I needed to see him again.
Padding to the bathroom, I turned the hot water on for the shower. When I turned to the sink, anger surged through my blood as I found myself staring at Gary’s toothbrush. Lunging for it, I tossed it into the trash. Then I searched for more of his things, wanting them all to be gone—out of my life forever. After a minute of clearing out my bathroom, the trash bin was completely full.
Feeling lightheaded, I latched onto the counter ledge, heaving through dizzying breaths of air.
; Don’t let him win, Sienna.
No matter if Gary was telling the truth about the messages with his ex, it didn’t erase the fact that he’d hit me. Remember that. Don’t let that become your life. You deserve to be loved.
Tears swelled my eyes and soon they turned into uncontrollable sobs. My knees gave and I collapsed to the floor. Falling into the corner, I hugged my knees into my chest and rocked back and forth, listening to the shower run hot.
It may have been the one and only time he had been violent toward me, but it didn’t make it right. When I compared him with Trevor, the two were complete opposites. Where Gary was loud, Trevor was quiet. Where Gary was rough, Trevor was gentle. The list went on, and soon there was no denying which of the two men I preferred.
But I didn’t know Trevor as well as I knew Gary, and that was what made it all that much scarier. Because I only had two days to get this right.
I rocked back and forth, staring wide-eyed at the floor.
Inside, I believed Monica was right. Gary was hiding something from me and I needed to know what that was. It had to be big enough to make my parents see the truth of what kind of man he really was—what kind of husband, what kind of son-in-law, we were all getting.
Wiping the tears from my cheeks, I shook my head with renewed determination. Pushing myself to my feet, I stood and entered the shower saying, “Two can play at this game.”
17
Trevor
Passenger names were being called over the intercom as I stared at the growing line at security. It snaked back from the scanning machines, impatient faces looking on with worry as to whether or not they were going to catch their flights.
I was happy to not have to deal with the stress of flying. It was a growing inconvenience. I understood Charlotte’s reasoning for using the company jet as much as she could get her hands on it. Not like I had anywhere to go, but still. We had options.
I turned back to Noah who was still pacing in small circles, talking on his phone.
