by Trisha Grace
She dropped her phone into her bag and wiped all expressions from her face. She stood and turned. “You shouldn’t have done that today. You just solved my problem, the cat is out of the bag. This is over.”
“This is over for Evelyn. As for you, Amy, it depends.”
Evelyn recognized that voice anywhere, but instinctively, her hand was already reaching for her gun. “What are you doing here?” she asked, releasing her grip on the gun and casting a quick glance over her shoulder to keep an eye on Amy.
“To help you put a stop to her nonsense and bring you home,” Dan answered, stepping closer.
“I—”
“You don’t need to do everything by yourself,” Kate interrupted, stepping out from behind Dan.
Evelyn took her eyes off Dan and peered behind him to see the rest of the guys.
Before she could get her throat working again, Dan stepped forward and pulled her to his side in time for her to see the smirk on Amy’s face.
“If you think that the few of you are going to scare me, you think wrong. You,” Amy said, pointing her index finger at Evelyn. “You’re going to keep paying me as long as I want, or I’ll haunt you, telling all your colleagues and clients about your past.”
“Tell them what? That she’s a survivor? She’s a successful business owner? Her only colleague is standing right here, with a very angry husband.”
“Oh, the prince is upset that the princess got hurt? That’s what happens to people who get in my way. That slash is my warning. The next time, it’ll be on your pretty little face.”
Evelyn couldn’t stop the corners of her lips from turning up. She shook her head as Amy took an audacious step forward, clearly intending to continue her threats in Kate’s face.
Tyler stepped forward calmly—way too calmly.
She watched Tyler reach into his pocket and pull out his cell phone. She frowned, her brows deepening as Tyler tapped something on his phone looking up at Amy.
“I highly suggest that you watch your tone.” Then with another tap on his phone, Tyler turned the phone toward Amy.
Though soft, Evelyn could hear the conversation they had with Amy over the past few minutes.
Amy stepped forward and tried to grab the phone away from Tyler, but compared to him, Amy was a dwarf.
Tyler merely raised his arm above him while the other hand pushed into Amy’s face, forcing her to stagger back.
“That’s my first warning to you. I don’t want you near my wife, so if you step forward again, I’ll break you.”
When Evelyn saw the disorientation in Amy’s eyes, she gave up trying to conceal her smile and broke into a wide grin.
“On top of this recording, a veteran lawyer is now getting an official statement from the cab driver who saw everything you did, and he’s more than willing to appear as a witness,” Dan added.
Scorning at Dan’s words, the smirk returned to Amy’s face. “I’ve been to jail before. It’s nothing.”
Evelyn shifted uncomfortably. The problem with dealing with people like Amy was that they had nothing to lose. Dan must have felt her anxiety; he took her hand and gave it a gentle squeeze.
“You stay in a neighborhood with quite a lot of gang influence, and Tyler won’t have a problem getting detectives to arrest certain gang leaders and give them the impression that you’re the cause of the harassment. What kind of problem do you think that will have for you?” Dan paused for a moment before continuing. “We can start with your drug supplier,” Dan said, staring at the bruises right below her elbow.
Amy’s face blanched, but she quickly composed herself. “All your reputations will be ruined when people know that you associate with a woman like her.” Amy’s index finger jabbed forward again and she took a step nearer.
Evelyn wanted to reach out and break Amy’s finger, but Dan tightened his grip and pulled Evelyn a step back before grabbing Amy’s finger and twisting her arm backward in an awkward position. “Don’t struggle. Your arm will pop out of your socket.”
“I think we forgot to mention that we’re all judo black belt. You should stop stepping within our reach,” Ryan said while Joseph pulled Evelyn back farther from Amy.
Before she knew it, she was half a step behind the group, the guys all standing protectively in front of her.
She stared blankly, looking at the backs of the guys. For the first time in her life, she didn’t have to fight her own battle. Ironically, it was also when she had the epiphany on why Kate got irritated whenever the guys jumped in front of her for every problem she had.
It was slightly demeaning; it was as if they all thought she wasn’t capable of solving her problems, and the feminist in her was tempted to shove her way back to the frontline and take Amy on herself.
Then again, she’d never felt so protected in her life.
Evelyn glanced to her side and saw the small smile Kate had on her face.
“I’m so sorry for getting you hurt,” she said, forgetting about Amy.
Kate’s smile was immediately replaced by the rolling of her eyes, followed by an unforgiving glare. “I’m not angry with you for this,” Kate said, raising her arms with the bandages. “I’m disappointed that you chose to keep this to yourself instead of telling me. I already knew what happened before; why didn’t you just tell me about this? You know I would’ve helped.”
Evelyn nodded.
“Then, to top it all off, you ran off after talking to Dan. What were you thinking? Do you know how worried we were? Did you think we’d just let you walk out of our lives and not give a damn?” Kate continued her tirade, her voice rising with each question.
When Kate stopped speaking, Evelyn suddenly realized how quiet it was. She turned and noticed all eyes on them. With a quick glance over at Kate, the two of them burst out laughing.
“I see what you mean about her monstrous side,” Ryan joked.
“I’ll see how long your friendship lasts when everyone knows about her past.”
Evelyn immediately stopped laughing and she clenched her jaws, taking in a deep breath.
“You think I’ll be embarrassed?” Kate asked, looking right at her.
Softly, she finally admitted, “Everyone will know I’m a murderer. None of you should be linked to a murderer.”
Kate’s head swayed side to side. “Really, Eve, sometimes you can be rather thick-headed.” Looking at Ryan, Kate gave him a mischievous smile. “I’ll show you my monstrous side,” she whispered.
Striding forward, Kate moved to stand right in front of Amy. “Amy, you’re a prostitute, and you’ve been to jail, right?” She smiled politely, then fluttered her eyelids innocently. “Besides you, none of us here has a record. In our group, we have successful business owners, a firefighter, and a doctor. Even if you speak to everyone we’ve ever met, how many of them will choose to believe you instead of me?” Softening her voice further, Kate continued. “If we were to both cry wolf, who will the people run to protect?” Again, she paused, allowing Amy to take in her words. “So, Amy, unless Evelyn allows it, I will keep her secret and defend her to the end. You, on the other hand, are on your own. She has all of us.”
With her polite smile, her fluttering eyelids, and her soft, sweetened voice, Kate was able to do what the threats hadn’t, she removed the carefully placed facade on Amy’s face.
“All yours,” Kate said as she gave Dan a pat on his arm, returning to Evelyn’s side.
“Wow,” Evelyn uttered under her lips.
Leaning closer to her, Kate whispered, “I think I did pretty well.”
She shook her head and whispered back, “Oh, Kate, you did much better than pretty well.”
“Here’s how it’ll go,” Dan said. “You keep your mouth shut, and you disappear from all of our lives. That way, we all get our peace.”
Amy tried wrenching her hands from Dan’s grip, but immediately winced and stopped. “Bullies. You’re just behaving like Mrs. Moore.”
Evelyn stared at Amy, dumbfounded.
“Maybe, but who are you to complain? You should be glad we’re standing here, speaking to you as if you’re a sensible human being instead of the animal you truly are.”
Amy scowled and struggled against Dan’s grip, trying to pounce on Kate. It was ludicrous for Amy to think that she could ever hurt Kate with all the guys around, but she tried anyway.
Without hesitation, Dan deepened the angle of her already awkward arm position, causing her to scream from the sudden pain. “Disappear from our lives, do you understand?”
“Let me go!”
“Do you understand?” Dan asked again.
Curtly, Amy nodded and stepped away when Dan released her arm.
Amy glared at Evelyn while her fingers kneaded the strain on her arm.
Evelyn supposed Amy was considering her next move. The odds weren’t in her favor, and she appeared to have finally understood that.
With her fingers still on her arm, Amy turned and was about to walk away when Evelyn stopped her.
“How did you know where to find me?” The question had puzzled her from day one. Since they were minors when the investigation on Mrs. Moore began, the records would have been sealed. There was no way Amy could find out about her new identity.
With a smugness fused with contempt, Amy replied, “You’ll find out soon enough.”
It was nowhere near a satisfying answer. She was tempted to ask more questions, but she already knew Amy wouldn’t entertain them.
Quietly, they all watched as the figure of Amy’s back got smaller before disappearing into the darkness of the park.
“What the hell does that mean?” Evelyn asked, her eyes still in the direction where Amy had disappeared into.
Kate shrugged nonchalantly. “I’m sure it’s nothing. She’s probably just trying to scare you or something.” Turning toward Evelyn, she continued. “You need to get your stuff from wherever you’ve taken them and go home,” Kate said. She returned to Tyler’s side and took his hand, heading back toward their car.
“Kate, I really am sorry.”
Kate stopped and turned back to her. “I just hope that the next time, if ever such things happen again, you’ll choose to trust us instead of trying to handle things on your own. I know what you’ve gone through, but I hope this proves that we’re not like those people you met in the past.”
Evelyn nodded and turned to the rest of the guys. “Sorry for the trouble.”
“You’re sounding a lot like Kate now. You should stop apologizing,” Joseph said. “You’re our friend, too. We’ll help as long as you allow us to.”
“Actually, we’ll help even if you don’t allow us to.” Ryan gave Evelyn a soft nudge on her arm before leading the group back toward the car.
“See you for breakfast in the morning?” Kate asked.
Evelyn smiled and gave Kate a tight hug. “Thanks.”
Kate returned her hug and whispered into her ears, “If you ever do such a thing again, I’ll kill you.”
They laughed, breaking off the hug and getting stares from the rest of the guys.
“Goodnight,” Kate said and got into Tyler’s car.
Dan leaned against the passenger side of his car and waited for Evelyn to walk over.
“I’m not going eat you,” he said when he saw Evelyn dragging her feet.
“I’m sorry.”
He ran his hand through his hair and sighed. “You cannot dump your life story on me, then disappear while I’m getting the first-aid kit.”
“I didn’t think you’d want to be associated with me, not after what I told you.”
Dan moved and closed the distance between them, speaking in a low, soft tone. “Tell me, what did I do to make you think so low of me?”
“I just…”
Clipping his hand under her chin, he tilted her face up to him. “I never know what to do with you.”
His arm wrapped around her waist, and he pulled her closer, holding her tightly against his arms. “Don’t you ever do this to me again.”
Evelyn tensed up in his arms.
She stood, not moving, not saying anything.
“What’s wrong?” He released his arms around her. “I don’t care what happened in the past. I don’t care what people say. I want you, that’s all I care about.”
Evelyn sighed and tears brimmed in her eyes, glistening off the light from the lamppost. She took a step away from him and turned. “I can’t give you what you want.”
“You don’t want to be with me?”
She spun around. “No, not that.”
“Then?”
She swallowed hard and tipped her head back. “Remember the last time we were here? Remember what you told me?”
“That I want a family?”
“I can’t give you that.”
“I’m lost. Are you saying that you don’t want a family? I—”
“I’m saying, I can’t.” She looked up at him and waited for a moment for the information to sink in. “I can’t get pregnant.”
His eyes widened. “Was it because of…”
“No. I don’t think so. I didn’t really hear what the doctor said, it’s not like I understand the medical terms. And I never thought I would want children anyway.” She sighed and turned away. “So you see, it isn’t just my past. I can’t give you the future you want.”
He drew in a slow, deep breath and nodded. “Is that all?”
Evelyn blinked. “So this is it, I guess.”
“No, it isn’t.” He took a step toward her. “Marianne kept saying that I wasn’t stepping up, not going after what I really wanted. I thought I’d done what I could, but I always gave in to your decisions, thinking that you knew what you wanted—and it wasn’t me.”
“That’s not—“
“Hear me out. I want you, I’ve told you that more than once, and each time you’ve turned me down. And when that happened, I simply moved back and gave you space. This time, we’re doing it my way. You try me out. We go out as a couple, for say…three months. If at the end of it, you decide that I’m not what you want, then fine. But until the end of the third month, no matter what happens, you’ll try to work it out with me instead of running away.”
“Dan, did you hear what I say? I can’t—”
“We’ll adopt, or if you would rather just have me to yourself.”
“Dan, you’re going to regret this.”
“You don’t understand,” he said, tucking her hair behind her ear. “Everything I want, I want it with you. It doesn’t matter to me if we can’t have our own children. We can always adopt. We can take in foster kids, give them a home, a safe home that you couldn’t have.”
Tears fell from her eyes. “You’d do that?”
He smiled, his thumb wiping away her tears. “If that’s what you want.”
She gave a strangled laugh and brushed her tears away on the back of her hand. “Are you sure?”
“Yes.”
“And my past…I killed someone.”
“In self-defense. She would’ve killed you.”
“I still get nightmares. Sometimes I still wake up screaming.”
He could see they weren’t going to get anywhere until he could convince Evelyn that nothing was going to change his mind.
He had already waited this long, he didn’t mind thrashing everything out now. “I’ve accompanied you when you couldn’t sleep. If you wake me up, I’ll just accompany you like I always did.”
“I don’t know how family works. I didn’t grow up playing with dolls; in fact, I didn’t even own any toy, I didn’t get to go to amusement parks or have family picnics.”
“You said Kate was your family. You and Kate worked out just fine.”
“I’ve never been in a serious relationship before, I don’t know how to be a girlfriend.”
“Then you ask. No drama, no secrets. You said that, remember?”
That drew a smile from her. “No drama, no secrets,” she muttered under her breath. “I’ve been keepin
g such a huge secret from everyone, and I would say today has been a drama-filled day.”
“Then starting tomorrow, promise me that.”
She stared back at him, her face straight and without expression.
He narrowed his eyes, scrutinizing her face for any hint to what she was thinking. “This is the time when you should say something.”
She chewed on her lips and he saw the hesitation in her eyes.
“Give us a chance. Three months, that’s all I’m asking.”
“Three months?”
“Yes,” he said, gazing into her eyes.
The corners of her lips curled. “I can do that.”
“Finally.” He closed the distance between them and pulled her into his arms.
Chapter Thirteen
Evelyn woke up the next day in Dan’s arms. He’d sent her home and stayed to help her unpack. She fussed over returning her bags to their proper place while he helped with the folding and hanging of the clothes.
All he had to do was to stuff it into her already messy wardrobe, but he insisted on packing everything.
After that, they had supper and chatted until she fell asleep.
She didn’t know how she ended up snuggling on top of Dan while he took up the whole of the couch underneath them, but she’d fallen asleep without any pills and, for the first time in a while, she didn’t have a nightmare.
She tried to slide off Dan without waking him, but when she began moving, his arm tightened around her waist and he held her in place.
“Where are you going?”
“To wash up, then we’re going to your house so that you can change. Otherwise, we’re not going to Kate’s for breakfast.”
Dan laughed and shifted his arm from under his head, wrapping it around her. “Five more minutes.”
She smiled and leaned her head against his chest. “Five more minutes.”
When they finally got to the mansion, all eyes turned toward them as they strode in.
“Good morning,” she said.
Settling into the chair that Dan had pulled out for her, she glanced around, glad that everyone was behaving as though nothing had changed.
On the drive over, she was worried about the looks of sympathy that they might start giving her. She smiled to herself, relieved that her needless worry was simply her over-active brain screwing around with her.
