Everything I Need (The Everything Series Book 1)

by A. K. Evans

  After I received input from Wes, I got to work on the revision for Stone’s board design. It didn’t take long at all now that I had a bit more information to work with. I completed the revision, went back to Wes and got his seal of approval, then put a call out to Zane, Stone, and Luke. Since it was crunch time and we did not have much time left before the final designs needed to be sent down and put on the boards, the guys agreed to stop in later that day to take a look at what I had come up with (and hopefully give their approval at the same time).

  It was about a half hour before I was set to go home that day when they arrived. They looked wiped when they came in.

  “Looks like you guys had a hell of a day,” I said.

  “Been training hard since Monday after the New Year. Today Stone and I were testing out a bunch of new tricks using a shortened pipe and the air bag. It’s a little easier on the body when you test on the air bag, but since you’re attempting new tricks it can be a bit physically demanding,” Zane responded.

  “It can also make you question how far you should push things. If you keep practicing a new trick and it’s just not working, you begin to wonder if you should move on to something else. It’s a good thing and a bad thing all at once,” Stone added.

  Luke chimed in, “I worked on the air bag too, but not on the pipe. Big air is completely different. Regardless, we’re all beat at this point in the day. It’s time to recuperate and get back at it tomorrow.”

  “Well I’m hoping that you get it figured out and are ready to rock in a couple weeks. More than that, I’m hoping you all are going to be able to do in style. I’ve worked up some designs for your boards and wanted to get your opinion before we pushed them out to production.”

  “Sweet. Let’s check them out.”

  I showed them what I had come up with and they were ‘blown away.’ Those were the actual words they all used. It was safe to say I had their stamp of approval and they were all very satisfied with what I had put together.

  I told them I’d get everything finalized so the boards would be done and ready to go before we left for Aspen. I then wished them luck on the rest of their training.

  Stone and Luke excused themselves so that they could stop over to see Wes. Zane hung back for a minute. I had a feeling I knew where this was going.

  “Hey Charley, wanted to talk to you a minute about something if you don’t mind,” he said.

  “Sure, Zane. What’s up?” I asked.

  “It’s about Emme. I’m not going to sit here and sugar coat it. I like her. A lot. But there’s something going on with her that I can’t figure out. She’s only given me very little to go on and I am stuck. I want to pursue something more serious with her, but she is so cautious and hesitant. The girl won’t budge.”

  I took a deep breath not knowing what to say.

  Zane spoke up again, “I’m not looking for you to betray any confidence of hers, but please give me something, Charley. What am I up against here? Is this going to go nowhere?”

  “It’s pretty bad, Zane. She’s fragile. I can’t tell you her story, but I will tell you this. I don’t know if Wes has told you anything about me, but I came here to Wyoming because I needed to leave California. Ten years ago, both of my parents died in a car accident. I was devastated, but I got through it because of Emme, Nikki, Monroe, and most importantly, my big brother, Taj. Then, not quite a year ago, Taj died. Part of what I dealt with surrounding Taj’s death is connected to Emme, but she’s been through far worse.”

  Zane pulled in a sharp breath.

  I kept going.

  “I don’t know you that well, Zane, but from what I do know you seem like a really great guy. If you are anything like Wes, I know that I’m not wrong in assuming you’d take care of Emme in all the ways that matter. I feel very lucky right now. Wes found me, and in that I found my happy. I want my best friend to find her happy, too. I need to believe that deep down she also wants it. Please don’t give up on Emme. I promise you, no matter how long it takes, she’s worth the fight.”

  He nodded.

  “Thanks, Charley. Going to head over and say good-bye to Wes before I leave, but kick ass job on the designs. Can’t wait to see the finished product.”

  “No problem, Zane. And, thanks.”

  Zane walked through the door connecting my office to Wes’ office and I followed behind him. Luke and Stone were both still there and when Zane and I walked in they looked to us.

  “All good?” Wes asked.

  I nodded.

  “Some seriously kick-ass stuff she put together, man,” Zane said.

  “No joke. Been doing this shit for how many years now and have yet to see anything that good on any board ever,” Luke chimed in.

  My jaw dropped. Wes looked to me, smiled, and winked.

  “Wow,” I mumbled under my breath. I couldn’t believe they thought it was that good. I was humbled and appreciative of their kind words.

  “Alright, Wes. Gotta get out of here. It’s been a long fucking day and I need to eat,” Stone said.

  “Ok, guys. Happy to hear it’s going well out there for the most part. Going to try to make it out to one of your training sessions at the end of this week to check in and see what you’ve got planned. We’ll get the designs over so they are ready to go as soon as the boards are finished in production. I was a bit worried since we were getting so close. Thankfully, since Charley did such a great job on them from the start we have now got enough time that it won’t be too hard to finish them before we have to head to Aspen,” Wes said.

  “Awesome. Heading out now,” Luke said. He chin lifted to Wes and said, “See ya, Wes.” He turned to me, “Later, Charley.”

  “Bye, Luke,” I answered.

  “Catch ya later, guys,” Stone said as he followed behind Luke.

  Zane turned so he was facing me, reached an arm out to put his hand on my shoulder, squeezed, and said quietly, “Thanks again, Charley. Just so you know, I’m holding you to your word. You say it’s worth it; I’m going to keep fighting.”

  My heart melted and I was overwhelmed with joy. I was so excited I squeezed his wrist at my shoulder, gave him a hug and said, “Thank you. It may take some time, but I promise you won’t regret it.”

  He pulled back, squeezed both of my shoulders this time, and then nodded. He turned to Wes, gave him a chin lift, and walked towards the office door as he said, “Later, Wes.”

  “Later.”

  I had the biggest smile in the world on my face as Zane walked out. Zane wasn’t going to give up on Emme and all of the guys loved the designs I came up with. I turned to Wes and noticed he wasn’t smiling. In fact, he looked a little angry. I frowned.

  “What’s wrong, Wes?” I asked.

  “What was that all about?” he asked.

  “I’m sorry?”

  “With you and Zane. The whispering, the touching and squeezing of shoulders, and the hugging. What. Was. That. About?”

  My eyes nearly popped out of my head. Wes was jealous. “You can’t be serious, Wes.”

  “Completely,” he answered.

  I stood there and stared at him. Then I took a deep breath and said, “I just received overwhelming support from you and your friends about the designs I put together being worthy of boards that are going to be seen by millions of people. That is huge news for me and I’m sorry, but I’m happy about that. Then, your friend just spent a few minutes in my office asking me about my best friend with whom he’s interested in pursuing a relationship. I told him she has been through a lot and that he’d need to be patient with her, but that she would be worth it. Just now, what you saw, was him telling me that he was going to put in the effort and pursue things with her. I’m sorry if what happened made you uncomfortable, but that was not my intention. I simply reacted to the news that my friend might finally get what I know she so desperately needs…that she’d finally get what I got when you walked into my life.”

  I started to feel my throat constrict on my last few
words and knew I was going to break down if I didn't get out of there. With the wetness pooling in my eyes, I looked one last time at his face and turned to walk back to my office.

  “Charley, wait.”

  I stopped, but didn’t turn around.

  “Look at me, gorgeous.”

  I turned around to look at him as a single tear fell from each eye. Through the wetness in my eyes I could see his jaw clenching.

  “I’m sorry,” he said. “I was wrong. I wasn’t prepared for what I’d feel in seeing another man’s hands on you and I overreacted.”

  “Zane is your friend. He’s not just some random man.”

  “I know that, Charley. And I know he’d never cross that line.”

  “So, you know he’d never cross that line, but you doubt me and my loyalty to you?” I asked, shock registering and filtering through my voice.

  He stared at me and said nothing.

  And then I knew.

  “You don’t trust me,” I said, my voice just barely above a whisper.

  “It’s not that,” he said as he started to stride toward me. I kept my eyes on him as I took a step back with each step he took toward me.

  I put a hand out in front of me cautioning him to stop. “Then what is it?” I asked. “Because it sure as hell feels that way.”

  He stopped and stood there with a mixture of emotions running through his features. Anger. Sadness. Guilt, maybe.

  “Charley, I’m sorry. This was a great day for you. I don’t want to ruin it by arguing. Please don’t walk away from me.”

  His voice was strained on his last statement. I realized then what was going through his head.

  “Oh my God. You think I’m like Dana,” I said, my voice now significantly louder than before.

  “No. Not at all. You are nothing like her,” he answered, certainty emanating from his statements.

  “I know that. I hear you saying it, but I’m not certain you believe it. You think I’m going to leave you just like she did.”

  He stood there in shock. Yep. He couldn’t deny what I was saying.

  We stared at each other for several minutes before I broke the silence and spoke.

  “I’m going to go home now, Wes.”

  “Charley…” he croaked out.

  I cut him off. “No, Wes. Please don’t say anything else. Think about what you just did to me. Aside from Emme, Monroe, and Nikki, I have no family left. They are all dead,” my voice cracked. I took in a breath and continued through the tears now streaming down my face, “I told you what you’ve done for me. Over the past couple weeks, you have become my family. Why? Why do you think I would I ever do something to destroy that?”

  He closed his eyes and dropped his head in defeat. When he opened his eyes again to look at me I could see the pain registered all over his face. It broke my heart to see him like that.

  It broke my heart more to know that he didn’t trust in my love for him.

  I turned, walked to my office, grabbed my things, and walked to the elevator. Wes didn’t follow me.

  Chapter 29

  Charley

  The problem with not having a plan in any emotional situation is that you realize far too late that having an actual plan would have been a brilliant idea. This was my current predicament and the precise reason I was now standing in the bathroom around the corner from the elevator on the first floor of the Blackman Boards building.

  I had just stepped off the elevator on the first floor about five minutes ago and planned to walk out to my car when I realized I was going to need to walk past Flo. There was no way I was going to be able to walk out without her noticing that something was up. I’m not so great at handling this kind of pressure so I was now in the bathroom trying to give myself some time to come up with a game plan.

  So far, I’d only come up with staying in the bathroom until everyone left. Unfortunately, if I didn’t leave my car would remain outside and then I’d likely have Wes looking for me. Or, maybe he wouldn’t. I wasn’t sure which would be worse.

  Finally, I realized I had no other means of escape and would need to face the music. Heck, if I didn’t do it now, Flo would catch me on the way back in tomorrow. I looked over myself in the mirror and though I didn’t look horrible I absolutely didn’t look my best. She’d know something was up. I turned, walked out the bathroom door, and made my way to the front door.

  “Charley girl, what’s wrong? Did the guys not approve of the designs you came up with?” Flo asked as I approached.

  I told her that morning that I was nearing completion on the designs and would likely be showing them to Wes and the guys today.

  “Quite the opposite, Flo.”

  “That’s great news. So, what’s with the puffy eyes?”

  “Wes and I had our first argument. But, I’m not sure I should be talking about this with you considering he’s not only my boss, but yours as well,” I answered honestly.

  “You need someone to talk to, Charley, you talk to me. It won’t prevent me from doing my job and doing it right.”

  I nodded.

  “Ok, then. I’ll keep that in mind. I will be honest, though. I don’t think I’m ready to talk about this now. I haven’t had enough time to really process it yet.”

  “You’ve got my number, girl. You call me. I want to know everything is ok.”

  “Thanks, Flo. I’ll see you tomorrow.”

  She winked at me.

  I turned to walk out to my car and my phone rang in my purse. I walked out the front door, picked up my phone, looked at the display, and didn’t recognize the number. I answered and put the phone to my ear.

  “Hello,” I said as I walked to my Jeep.

  “Charley, it’s Tony,” I heard come through the line.

  I was a bit thrown to hear Tony’s voice over the phone. “Tony? What’s up?”

  “Greg was in a car accident. We were on our way home and I was following in my car behind him. Charley, it was so bad. Someone drove through a red light and ran right into the driver’s side door. They’ve rushed him off to Rising Sun Medical Center. Someone needs to call his parents, but I’m not sure I can do it,” he said.

  He was talking so fast and his voice was laced with panic and anxiety.

  “I’m on my way now, Tony. I’ll call Hannah to let her know and I’ll meet you there in fifteen minutes,” I told him.

  I called Hannah, told her what I knew, and she said she was calling Mark to cover her at the lodge and then she’d be over. I threw my phone back in my purse, started the Jeep, sped out of the parking lot, and took off toward the hospital.

  I got to the hospital in record time. As I walked from the parking deck to the emergency room entrance I sent Emme a quick text to let her know where I was, why I was there, and that I’d likely be home very late since I didn’t quite know yet how bad it was. She replied almost instantly and told me that she was heading home from a shoot, but to keep her updated on Greg’s status. She also said that she was going to stop in at home since it was on the way to the hospital so that she could change her clothes and drop off her equipment. She said she’d meet me at the hospital shortly.

  The sliding glass doors to the emergency room opened as I approached. I walked in and immediately saw Tony. He looked devastated. I went to him, wrapped my arms around him, and just held him.

  After a few minutes of standing in silence he spoke.

  “I can’t live without him, Charley,” he croaked out.

  “You won’t have to. He’s going to be all right. He will be fine,” I said, not sure I believed my own words. I just knew that I needed to be strong for Tony and tell him what he needed to hear in that moment. “Come on, let’s go sit and wait until they come get us.”

  We sat. Twenty minutes later, Hannah came barreling through the door.

  “What happened?” she asked, tears streaming down her face.

  “T-boned. Someone ran a red light and drove right into him. I was following behind him and watched the whole
thing happen. It was like slow motion. I couldn’t do anything to stop it or help him,” Tony answered her. He continued, “He’s in surgery right now. He’s in such bad shape. Oh God, I hope he pulls through.”

  I couldn’t help myself. In that moment, I started to lose it. Why was this happening? Greg was such a great guy and he was now fighting for his life.

  “His parents. Charley. Hannah. They need to know he is here. I know things are strained among them, but they need to know their son is struggling to survive right now. You know they don’t agree with our relationship. They won’t want to talk to me.”

  A deep voice then said, “I’ll call them for you.”

  I looked up to see Wes standing there, his face loaded with concern. At the sight of him I completely lost it. Wes immediately had his arms around me and I cried. Body wracking sobs tore through me and I held on to Wes like my life depended on it. Several minutes later I started to calm down and Wes finally spoke to me.

  “Gorgeous, let me call Greg’s parents and tell them what’s going on. I’ll be two minutes.”

  I nodded.

  Wes got Greg’s parents’ phone number from Tony and walked out to call them. I sat there letting it sink in that he was here. I had walked out of his office after our first argument not much more than an hour ago and here he was by my side.

  Minutes later, Wes walked back in and told us that he spoke with Greg’s father. He and his wife were on their way to the hospital.

  Wes sat down next to me and held my hand. I squeezed his and looked up at him.