“He said he was going to look into it and he would notify the police there and in Alabama if he found anything.”
“Call him,” she says.
I pull my phone from my pocket and dial his number putting it on speaker.
“Yeah?”
“What do you know?”
“The house is in a small town in Ohio. I called the authorities and left an anonymous tip. It was the best I could do.”
“Thanks, Luca.”
“I will let you know when I know more.”
I hang up the phone and look to Joslynn and wait for her reaction.
“We are in Georgia and he is in Ohio or so we think right?”
She looks around the room all of us saying right in unison.
“Great, I am going to bed.”
As soon as she leaves we all look at one another confused. I was expecting tears or thrown objects, but she just gets up and leaves the room like I just told her it was going to rain tomorrow. I walk to the room and lay down beside her, her body shaking with tears.
“My uncle helped my alcoholic father try to kill me. My mother comes back to town and wants to act like she didn't walk out on me and my father was just sent to prison for life. Anything else, Marshall? Please tell me now because I can't take anymore.”
“What do you want to know, baby?”
“I don't know,” she says crying. “All of it…none of it. I fucking hate all of them.”
I kiss her head and pull her into my arms her head falling in her favorite spot.
“Let's get some rest and you can sleep on it okay?”
“Do you think she loves me?”
I think for a second back to our last conversation and everything she said.
“Yeah, I think she does.”
She nods her head and soon I know she is asleep. I tighten my arms around her and stare at the ceiling. She never ceases to amaze me each and every day.
Chapter Fifteen
Joslynn
When I wake the next morning my heart hurts, if that's even possible but after a long and restless sleep I have made my decision. I walk in the kitchen and make some coffee finding Marshall on the back porch.
“Hey, beautiful.”
“I want to talk to her, Marshall. I want her to tell me everything.”
“Okay. Are you sure?”
“Yeah. Stay with me?”
“Of course.”
He pulls his phone from his pocket and dials her number handing it to me. My stomach feels like someone set a jar of fireflies in it and my heart feels like it could beat out of my chest.
“Hello?”
“Uh...Josi...Josie?”
“Joslynn? Is that you?”
“Yeah…”
My hands are shaking. I have no idea what to say to her next. I used to dream of the things I would say to her and now that she is on the phone I am drawing blanks.
“I am so glad you decided to call me.”
“I am still wondering if it was a good idea.”
“I understand. Please, just give me a chance to explain?”
I nod my head and then roll my eyes when I realize she can't see me.
“Okay.”
“I loved you so much. You were the prettiest little girl I had ever seen. Your father was so happy. He used to hold you and sing to you every night. He had a bad drinking problem, Joslynn.”
“I know this better than you think.”
“I am so sorry, Joslynn, I know that probably means nothing to you but I am. I never wanted to leave you. He made me. I packed our bags one day while he was at work and he came home early and was drunk. He used to beat me when he was drinking. He was two different people. When he saw I was leaving he told me he would kill us both if I tried to take you. He said if I left you he would leave me alone but I would never take his babygirl.”
“He beat me almost every day. I never saw the good side of him. Ever.”
“I heard everything you said today. I had no idea you went through all of that. Your grandmother always told me you were a happy baby. Always taken care of. I called and checked on you every day for years.”
“Why didn't you take me with you? Or come back and get me? You just left me and never looked back and I paid for it.”
“Joslynn, I had no idea honey. I wanted to take you with me. I was so scared. I thought if your father ever saw me again he would kill us both. I thought you were happy and taken care of. When you applied for a job at Frank's, Frank called me and told me about you. I used to come in and watch you for hours.”
Her words shock me and I try to think back to my time at Frank's. Did I ever see her or wait on her table? Marshall tightens his hands in mine. His thumb rubbing small circles on the top of my hand.
“Why didn't you approach me? My grandmother had to have told you when I moved out? You could have talked to me at Frank's anytime and told me who you were.”
“And what would you have done? You hated me, Joslynn. Everything was my fault even if I had never been there. To you I was just as bad as your father.”
She did have a point. At times I think I hated her more than I hated him. She should have taken me with her. None of the pain would have happened had she taken me with her. After everything she has said I don't know what my opinion is now. What if she is just trying to hurt me like her brother did?
“How do I know you don't want to hurt me like Frank did?”
“I hate your father as much as you do. He took my daughter from me. He's done and said many hurtful things to me. There is no way in hell I would ever hurt you. I would love to get to know the woman you have become. You have a very protective husband,” she says and I hear the pride in her voice.
I look to Marshall and smile.
“I know. I don't know how I feel about being around you but I am willing take it slow and talk to you on the phone for now.”
“I'll take anything I can get, baby.”
“I'll call you later.”
“Bye, Joslynn.”
I hang up the phone and smile. To know that she didn't leave me for all the reasons my father said makes a world of difference and to know that he loved me once changes nothing. He made the decisions he made and my life was hell because of many of them. I know that with time, I can come to forgive Josie but forgiving my father is something I don't know if I will ever be able to do.
***
(Five months later)
“Your son is making me fat! Nothing fits anymore and I can't see my freaking feet. Are they even still down there?” I ask pouting.
Marshall is standing behind me in the kitchen. His arms wrapped around my waist rubbing my stomach.
“You look beautiful, baby.”
“I don't feel beautiful. I feel like an alien is in my stomach sitting on my bladder and making me eat everything in the house.”
I turn around and wrap my arms around his neck kissing him softly. I pull his bottom lip into my mouth and suck running my teeth along it before letting it go with a loud pop. He moans and leans in grabbing my bottom lip and growling.
“EWH, get a room you two.”
I lay my head on Marshall's shoulder and blush. It feels like I can't get enough of him. We are either having sex or I am thinking about what I want him to do to me when we do have sex. He runs his hand down my back and grabs my ass. Taylor fake gags and leaves the kitchen laughing.
“What are you doing to me?” Marshall asks laughing.
He pulls back and leads me to the room. My heart racing and my core soaked at the thought of getting him inside of me. As soon as we walk through our room, I start taking off my clothes throwing them behind me as I walk towards the bed. When I lie down and look at him, he's standing by the door his mouth hanging open.
“Pick your tongue up and take off your clothes.”
I scoot up on the bed and spread my legs, winking. He shakes his head and walks towards me with heat in his eyes as he takes his clothes off and climbs on top of me. He slides into
me and moans.
“I can't get enough of you. If this is how you are with each pregnancy I am making a solemn oath now to see to it that you stay pregnant.”
I run my hands down his back, grabbing his ass. His eyes roll back, and I smile as a chill breaks out along his skin. He moves in and out of me, his eyes locked on me the whole time. I stare into his eyes and see love and admiration. Tears come to my eyes as he speeds up and leans in to kiss me.
When he pulls back I watch as he moves in and out. It is the most amazing thing I have ever seen, to watch his muscles flex and his eyes roll back and know that I am the cause of all of it. Soon our orgasms come and we are both moaning.
He lies down beside me breathless.
“Damn, baby, that was amazing.”
I wrap my arm across his chest and like every other night, I fall asleep to the sound of his heartbeat.
Chapter Sixteen
Marshall
“Yeah?” I answer my phone after the third ring.
“Marshall?”
“What's up, Luca?”
I step off the treadmill and grab my bottle of water. Even though Trevor and I have started going back to the gym each week, I am here alone today because he bailed on me. He says he wants to stay in shape because having two women in the house, especially one who is pregnant is making him lazy. I know that's just his way of saying he wants to stay in shape for Taylor.
“They got ‘em. They stopped Frank on a traffic stop and Tank was with him. They brought them in on their warrants.”
“Fucking hell finally!”
“Yeah they are both in jail until their court hearing.”
“Great thanks, man.”
“No problem.”
I finish my workout and head home. When I get home all the lights are off. I walk through the door as the yells start.
“SURPRISE!!!”
“Holy shit!”
“Happy birthday, baby,” Joslynn says kissing my cheek.
I look around the room and see Taylor, Trevor and Luca all standing around a cake with candles lit. I roll my eyes as they sing happy birthday and I blow out the candles.
“So this is why your sneaky ass didn't workout today?” I ask Trevor.
He nods to Joslynn and smiles.
“She made me.”
She smiles again and leans up kissing me again.
“I love you, baby.”
“And I love you both.”
I kiss her and rub her belly earning an ‘AWWW’ from the rest of the room.
“Who knew the asshole Marshall Andrews could be so sweet,” Luca says laughing.
“Fuck you,” I say and smile.
Joslynn and Taylor cut the cake and passed out beer.
“So I guess you know?”
“I know and I hope both of them rot along with Nick.”
“I chased all the bad things away.”
I rub icing on her lips and lean forward to lick it off. Her moan makes me want to take her to the bedroom and rub it all over her body.
“Save some icing for later,” I say and wink.
***
Joslynn and I lay in bed her arm across my chest and her head in her favorite spot.
“I know what we can name him,” she says her voice sleepy.
We have been tossing names back and forth for days now and nothing has seemed to stick.
“What?”
“Emmett Mason Andrews,” she says laughing.
“You are not naming our son after vampires.”
“Oh come on it's cute.”
“Baby, I love you but no.”
“Fiiiine. How about Marshall Elijah?”
“Really?”
“Yep, really.”
“Marshall Elijah it is.”
I wrap my arms tighter around her and kiss her head. With her and my son, life has a new meaning and everything we have been through- the good and the bad- has brought us to this moment. We are stronger, and I know that I am going to show her what life was supposed to be like for both her and our son.
Epilogue
Joslynn
Things will never be perfect but when I look in my son's eyes they damn near are. Marshall Elijah is one spoiled little boy. Taylor and Trevor have finally decided to admit that they are a couple and I can see the love they have for one another each time I am around them.
My mother has started to come around and I know that she is truly sorry she walked out and left me to a life with my father. She has moved to Georgia and we see her almost every day. I see myself in a lot of her actions. And she loves Marshall to pieces...both of them.
She sold Frank's and has opened a small restaurant here in town called J&J. Taylor and I both work there. Marshall and Trevor opened their tattoo shop and I got my first one.
“You sure?” Marshall asks again for the third time.
I nod my head and smile. His eyes light up as he tattoos a beautiful M on my wedding finger. It is for both of the M's in my life.
For their involvement in everything with my father, Frank and Tank are both in prison for a very, very long time.
Life is amazing in our small, little world. Luca comes around a lot and helps with baby Marshall. He soon found a permanent place in our little family.
In more ways than one, Marshall is right when he says he chased the bad things away. He has kept me safe and is giving me the life that I have always dreamed of having. And I gained things that I never thought I would want in my life. Having my mother back is something I never thought would happen but when I see her hold my son I know it is the right decision. In a lot of ways she knows what life I had growing up.
I no longer blame her for the things that my father did. My father and his goons are something that we have all sworn we will never talk about.
I have my heartbeat back- both of them- and nothing nor no one will ever take them away from me.
I want to say a huge thank you to my amazing PA Krystin. Without you I don't know where I would be. You’re the best PA and friend a girl could ever ask for. I love you chicka!
X, thank you for all of your advice and being the voice of reason when I need it. And for always being there.
Nina, you freaking rock! You never cease to make me laugh when I need to and sometimes even when I don't know that I do.
Angie, thank you for believing in me and in return making me believe in myself.
Tina, thank you! Thank you, thank you! I can't say it enough. You have been my biggest fan since the beginning. Thank you for pushing me to get my books out there (Marshall thanks you too).
Dusty, not only are you the coolest aunt ever you are my biggest fan. You are always there to tell me how much you love my books and my characters (even though we both know you have to ‘cause you’re family lol).
Kathy, the coolest most awesomest editor around. You're a rock star!! Thank you for helping me kick some of the southern slang in my books and making me sound smart… lol
My street team! You ladies are the best street team an author could ever ask for. I love you all to pieces.
Forgive Me (Say Something Book 2) Page 6
