Page 137 of Hurry Up And Wait
“I can’t do it.”
“Yes, you can. You pick up the phone and call him.”
She made it sound so simple. “And what about everything else?”
“You deal with that in the morning. Until then…”
I nodded in understanding, but I wasn’t sure I could do it. I still felt so angry about the whole situation. He had been sleeping with me while lying to me the whole time. How did I know it wouldn’t happen again? I was frustrated with the whole thing, and I couldn’t settle my brain down. At this point, I was pretty sure sleep wouldn’t come anytime soon.
“I’m getting some water. Maybe I’ll watch some TV.”
She nodded and headed back to her room while I walked downstairs. I flicked on the lights, not wanting to walk through the dark.Water seemed like a fruitless attempt at falling asleep. What I really needed was a shot, but I had no alcohol in the house. After grabbing a bottle of water, I headed back into the living room and sank down on the couch in front of the window.
My eyes drifted into the darkness without my consent, searching for anyone who might be here to harm us. Instead, I saw the OPS minivan parked out front. I knew the guys were around the outside of the house, watching and waiting for anything that might happen. I should feel safe. I should be able to sleep just fine, but…
My eyes landed on a pickup truck parked out front, hiding just to the right of the minivan. How had I not seen it before? I sat up straight, squinting in the dark to see and…
I was at the door, flinging it open before I could think twice about it. My T-shirt billowed in the cool breeze, and I was all too aware of the man standing on my porch, watching me curiously. But as Kavanaugh got out of his truck and ran across the lawn to me, nothing else mattered.
He was at the door in seconds, scooping me up in his arms and holding me tight. I buried my face in his neck, finally taking a deep breath as his hand ran soothingly up and down my back. A fissure ran through my chest, breaking the wall I had built since the day I found out Kavanaugh had lied to me.
He had. But he was here now. He was sitting in his truck, watching for any threats and protecting me the only way he knew how.
“It’s alright,” he whispered. “I’m here.”
Then he had me in his arms, cradled gently as he carried me upstairs. I heard the door shut and assumed it was one of his men, making sure the house was locked up tight. I kept my eyes closed as he pressed a kiss to my temple, then gently laid me down in the bed, kicking off his boots as he settled beside me, cocooning me in his arms.
“I—”
“Don’t,” he whispered. “It doesn’t matter tonight.”
I didn’t have the words to tell him what it meant to me that he was here despite not knowing what the future held. I felt like things were shattering around me, and I didn’t know how to handle that. But hewas here, holding me together when we hadn’t even discussed what happened.
“Thank you,” I whispered, hoping it conveyed my utmost gratitude.
His hand soothingly slid up my arm, then back down over and over again. “I’ll always be here for you. No matter what.”
I swallowed hard as tears filled my eyes. I didn’t want to think about what that might mean for our future, so I closed my eyes and snuggled into his warmth as he chased away the nightmares.
I swung openthe door to the house, putting on the best smile I could muster as Riley yelled at Bowie as he attempted to climb the stairs. The house was exactly the same as I left it when I ran out a week ago to save Riley’s life. The only difference was that IKE was no longer looming in the background. He’d left the night I was attacked by Shawn, claiming he had business to attend to.
Then I got the phone call the next night from Shawn’s boss, claiming he’d been in a horrific accident. Apparently, he was on the roof of his apartment building and accidentally fell off, breaking both legs and one of his arms, along with almost every rib. And that didn’t include all the lacerations to his body and the concussion he suffered. I was shocked and my voice reflected that, but deep down, I knew who really did it.
IKE hadn’t been back since, and I wondered if that was because he was working on an alibi or because he couldn’t face me after he nearly killed my husband. I was still struggling to come to terms with how I felt about all that. No, I didn’t want anyone killing Shawn on my behalf, but after seeing Bowie in the hospital, fighting for his life and in so much pain, I couldn’t say I was sorry it had happened either.
“Isles, move your ass. Bowie needs to get through.”
“I told you, I’m fine. Stop babying me,” Bowie retorted.
I moved out of the way and smirked at Bowie as he passed, rolling his eyes at how my sister was acting.
She rushed after him, moving things out of his way as he struggledto work the crutches. “Maybe I wouldn’t baby you if you hadn’t fallen outside the hospital because you were too stubborn to use the wheelchair they offered you.”
“I told you, I don’t need help!” he snapped, spinning on her. But he lost his balance and crashed to the ground, shouting out as he landed on his bad leg.
We both rushed to him, trying to help him up, though he wouldn’t let either of us.
“Just back off! I’m fine!”