by Anna Blakely
Though she knew his touch was innocent, the sensation it caused was one she hadn’t felt in years.
Not bothering to knock, Derek opened the screen door and stepped aside, giving her room to walk past.
“Knock, knock!” he hollered from the doorway.
“Come on in!” Mrs. West hollered back. “I’m in the kitchen!”
“Where else?” Derek mumbled playfully.
He gave her a wink and an adorable sideways grin. Damn, he’s nice to look at.
They made their way through the cozy living room on their left and into the kitchen. Hundreds of pleasant memories assaulted her as she entered the room she’d spent much of her childhood in.
Mrs. West saw them come in and quickly sat the metal tongs she’d been using to turn the chicken down onto the counter. After hastily wiping her hands on the front of her apron—Charlie loved that she still wore one of those—the older woman rushed over to greet them.
“There’s my boy. Well, one of them, anyway. Come give your mama some lovin’s.”
Charlie watched with envy as the woman embraced her son the way she wished her own mother would’ve done with her. Instead, her mom was always too busy either trying to make her dad happy or trying to calm him down when he wasn’t.
Mrs. West’s sudden laughter broke through the depressing memories.
“Good lord, son. Are you ever going to stop wearing those ridiculous t-shirts?”
Charlie’s thoughts had been so scattered, she hadn’t even paid attention to the one he was wearing today. Looking at it now, she understood why his mom was laughing so hard.
It’s not the size of my hard drive that matters. It’s how I use it.
She snickered, and Derek immediately looked her way. The boyish grin he wore made her insides flutter.
“And Charlie!” Mrs. West exclaimed as she slid over to her. “Oh, my goodness, child. It is so good to finally see you again.” The sweet woman pulled her in for a tight hug.
“Hi, Mrs. West.”
“Oh, don’t you Mrs. West, me. I think you’re plenty old enough to start calling me Marcia.” The other woman pulled back. “Now, let me get a good look at you.” A set of beautiful, blue eyes ran across her face. “Aren’t you just the most beautiful young woman? Isn’t she beautiful, Derek?”
“Yes, ma’am,” he agreed, wearing that same, almost sultry look he’d had in the car.
“And you’re blonde, now,” Marcia noted with a surprising tone. “I wasn’t expecting that.”
Before Charlie could stop her, Derek’s mom had reached up and brushed a bit of hair from her face. The same section that had been covering the cut and bruise there.
She gasped. “Oh, honey. What on earth happened?”
“It’s nothing.” Charlie moved the hair back into place, but it was too late.
Mrs. West had already seen it, and the look she was giving Derek told Charlie she understood exactly what had happened.
“That sonofabitch.”
“Mom!” Derek reprimanded.
“Don’t you ‘Mom’ me.” She turned to Charlie. “Your husband did this to you, didn’t he? That’s why you left him?” Marcia put her hands on her hips. “Did you press charges?”
An obvious blush crept up the back of Charlie’s neck and into her cheeks. She opened her mouth, but nothing would come out. God, she didn’t want to talk about this. Not with his mom.
“I hope like hell you did,” his mom continued. “A man does somethin’ like that to a woman, especially his own wife, he deserves to be locked up for the rest of his life.”
Charlie looked to Derek, unsure of what she should say. Thankfully, he took over.
“Mom, stop. Charlie doesn’t need you badgering her over this.”
The woman’s eyebrows bunched in confusion. “I’m not badgering her. I just want to make sure the bastard who did this to my girl pays for it. That’s all.”
My girl. Marcia used to always call her that. Hearing it now, after all this time, was like a soothing balm to the soul.
Derek’s mom swung her gaze back up to him. “Tell me you’re on this.”
“I am.”
“Good.” Marcia thought for another moment before asking, “Does Eric know?”
“He does.”
Derek’s answer caught Charlie by complete surprise. “He does?”
Unapologetic eyes found hers. “I called him last night, while you were sleeping.”
“Great,” she mumbled under her breath.
At the same time, Marcia said, “Good. I didn’t want him to be as taken off guard as I was.” She looked at her watch. “He should be here in a few minutes.”
“Eric’s coming, too?”
As much as she hated Derek’s family knowing all her dirty laundry, Charlie found herself looking forward to seeing Eric. It had been far too long.
Marcia nodded. “I called him as soon as Derek phoned and said you two would be coming here.” The sympathy she’d wanted so badly to avoid was written all over the sweet woman’s face. “I’m sorry this happened to you, honey. And I’m sorry about your daddy. I know you two had a...rocky relationship. But, he was still your daddy. I would have gone to the funeral if I’d known in time.”
Charlie forced another smile. She’d gotten the call about a year after she left with Caleb that her father had passed away. He’d passed out on the couch and never woke up. The doctors said it was a heart attack.
In a rare show of empathy, Caleb had flown her back to make the arrangements and attend the meager funeral. Other than her and Caleb, only a handful of people from his work had shown.
She’d desperately hoped Derek would be there but learned he’d been deployed with his SEAL Team at the time.
“Thank you.”
With a solemn nod, Derek’s mom clapped her hands together loudly and smiled again. “Okay. Enough of that. Do you still know how to mash potatoes?”
Charlie smiled back. “I do.”
“Well, let’s get to it, then. Derek”—she looked back up at him—“I believe your father’s out in the garage. Will you tell him to come inside and get washed up for supper?”
“Yes, ma’am.” When his mom looked away, Derek mouthed, sorry.
Charlie grinned and mouthed back, It’s okay.
Then, she went to work mashing the boiled potatoes the way his mom had taught her years ago.
****
“Thanks for supper, Mom.”
Derek leaned down and gave his mom a kiss on the cheek.
“Of course, dear.” She kissed him back. “You know you’re welcome here any time.” Hugging Charlie she said, “That goes for you, too, young lady.”
Charlie returned the kind woman’s embrace. “Thanks, Marcia. Your cooking tasted even better than I remembered.”
“That’s sweet of you to say. I just wish Eric could have been here, too.”
Eric had gotten a last-minute break in a case he’d been working and had called to tell them he couldn’t make it.
“That’s all part of the job, dear,” his dad told his mom as she went back to his side. “You know that.”
“I know, I know.” His mom waved it off. “Anyway, your dad and I made a trip down to the beach house this morning. The refrigerator and cabinets are full, and I put clean sheets on both the beds. Oh, and I also made sure both bathrooms had a new bar of soap and shampoo and whatnot in them. So, you should be all set.”
Derek smiled lovingly at his mom. “You didn’t have to do all that. Thank you.”
“Mr. West.” Charlie held out her hand. “It was great seeing you again.”
His dad scoffed and opened his arms wide. “Put that hand down and come give me a hug.”
Charlie gave his dad a sweet smile that reminded him of when they were younger.
“You take care, you hear?”
“I will.”
“Be sure you do,” his mom chimed in. Turning serious, she looked Charlie right in the eyes and added, “Our boy, here, will
take care of things. Don’t you worry.”
Putting on a brave face, Charlie let her smile grow a bit more. “Thanks again for dinner.”
Derek didn’t miss the way she’d totally bypassed his mom’s advice.
Maybe she doesn’t want you taking care of things.
Ignoring the annoying little voice in his head, Derek gave each of his parents one last hug before he and Charlie made their way to the car. Both lost in their own thoughts, the drive to the beach house was fairly quiet.
By the time they were pulling in, it was well past dark, and Derek could tell Charlie was ready for bed.
Wish she was sleepin’ in mine.
He gave himself a mental slap on the head.
Seriously, West? After what she’s just been through?
That time, the little fucker was right. While certain parts of his body were more than ready to move out of the friend zone, Derek knew he needed to proceed with caution.
For one, Charlie was still married, although the ride here had given him time to think about that pending issue.
Two, he had no idea where her head was at. Hell, for all he knew, she didn’t even see him like that.
And three, given what that fuckface Porter had done, becoming intimate with a man was probably the last thing on her agenda.
“It looks just like I remember,” Charlie said sleepily from beside him.
“Yeah.” Derek followed her gaze to the small, sky blue house in front of them. “They repainted it a few years back but kept the same color.”
For some reason, this made her smile. “I’m glad.”
“Come on. It’s still early enough. I was thinking we could have a drink on the back deck and then go to bed.” His choice of words hit him instantly, and he tried to recover. “Uh...I mean...to our separate beds. Not the same bed. I didn’t mean—”
Charlie’s laugh was music to his ears. “I know what you meant, Derek.”
“Oh.” he laughed at himself. “Good.”
Smooth, dickhead.
He was glad she understood his true intentions, but when she looked over at him, he could’ve sworn there was something else there. Unfortunately for him, she blinked it away and got out of the car.
Once inside, Charlie had taken a few minutes to walk around and reminisce. Derek stood back and watched, enjoying the way she smiled at what must have been a barrage of old memories.
Though he’d tried talking her into taking the master bedroom with the en-suite bathroom, Charlie had insisted on sleeping in the smallest bedroom. It was the same one she’d stayed in the few times her dad had let her come here with him and his family.
Once they had everything settled, Derek found a few bottles of wine and a six-pack of his favorite beer already chilled in the refrigerator.
“Thank you, Mom.”
Having made their way to the back deck, the two sat in the wooden lounge chairs, their legs stretched out in front of them as they overlooked the quiet waters of the Gulf.
After several minutes of peaceful silence, Charlie turned her head to face him and stated, “You were wrong, you know.”
Derek swallowed a sip of his beer and looked back at her quizzically. “About?”
She smiled. “I feel like I have gone back in time. First, the visit with your parents. Now, this.” Charlie’s beautiful eyes glistened in the moonlight as they returned their focus to the beach.
Several minutes passed before he heard her soft voice again.
“Can I ask you something?”
“You can ask me anything.”
Charlie played with the thin rim of her glass. “Why are you doing all of this?”
“This?”
She carefully set her glass on the table between them and stood from the chair. With her arms crossed in front of her, she allowed a little bite to come through in her voice. Oddly, Derek liked hearing it.
“Yes, this. First, you come into my hotel room, which, by the way, you have yet to tell me how you got in. Afterward, you take me to your house and make your friend come over to check on me. Then, this morning I mentioned coming back home and you bring me to your parents’ house and then here.”
Derek raised a brow. “Your point?”
“My point is, it’s been over ten years, Derek. We don’t even really know each other anymore, yet, you still dropped everything to help me. I’m just confused as to why. I mean...what do you get out of all of this?”
Setting his bottle down next to her glass, Derek got up and stood a few inches in front of her.
“That’s a lot of things runnin’ around in that brain of yours, so let’s get you un-confused, shall we? One, I already explained that I went to your hotel room because I was worried about you. As for how I got inside”—he gave her a smirk and a wink—“that’s all just tricks of the trade.”
He’d used a plastic keycard embedded with a specialized chip. The program he’d designed enabled the card to read and unlock any electronic hotel elevator or door.
“Next, I took you to my house because there was no way in this goddamn world I was going to leave you there, alone and hurt, just waitin’ for that prick of a husband of yours to come back. And Jake and Olivia came to help because that’s what friends do. As for today, I brought you to my folks’ and then here because, and don’t take offense to this, I figured you had nowhere else to go, and I thought you’d feel safe here.”
Derek moved in closer, his voice softening a bit. “Most importantly, I don’t give two fucks how long it’s been. I do know you. And you know me, too. Otherwise, you wouldn’t have come here with me.”
Taking a chance, Derek slowly raised his hand and placed his palm over her pounding heart. Ignoring the current penetrating his fingers, he locked his eyes with hers.
“The Charlie I knew from all those years ago is still in there, somewhere. She just needs to find her way out again.”
A tear escaped from the corner of her eye. The thin, silver streak shimmering in the moonlight as it fell down over her soft skin.
“I don’t know if she can,” Charlie whispered softly, her bottom lip began to quiver.
She’s breaking my heart.
Moving his hand upward, Derek cupped the side of her face. “She can, and she will,” he said with confidence he knew she didn’t feel. “Sweetheart, you just have to give it some time.”
Her eyes remained locked with his for a few more seconds before Charlie backed away from his touch.
“It’s been a long day. I should probably go to bed.”
Ignoring the disappointment he felt, Derek smiled down at her. “Okay.” When she made a move to grab her glass he said, “I’ll get it.”
“Thanks,” she whispered back. “I’ll see you in the morning.”
“Sleep tight, darlin’.”
With one last, barely-there smile, Charlie gave him a nod and went inside. Derek stayed on the deck for another hour, trying to think of the best way to help her through the whole, fucked-up situation.
A couple of ideas came to mind, but for now, he needed to remain focused on doing what was best for her.
She was still untrusting, which he got. It wasn’t personal. Just another side-effect from being abused for so long.
For now, he’d do everything in his power to make her see she could still have the life she wanted. That she was protected and safe.
And, when the time was right, that she was loved.
****
Chapter 8
“What about this one?”
Charlie glanced at the bikini Derek was holding up. “Uh, definitely not.”
“I like it.”
She scoffed. “You would.”
“And just what is that supposed to mean?” He hung the suit back on the rack with the others.
“My shoestrings would cover more than that thing.”
Derek flashed his teeth in a devilish grin. “Exactly.”
She swatted him on the arm and moved to another rack.
“I still can
’t believe you don’t own a swimsuit. Didn’t your place in New York have a pool?”
Charlie bit her bottom lip as she considered how to answer. He already knows what an asshole Caleb is. Just be honest.” “I wasn’t allowed to wear one in public.”
His brows arched. “You weren’t allowed?”
Shrugging, she picked up a one-piece she thought she might like. “Caleb was always accusing other guys of staring at me. Or worse, he’d accuse me of flaunting myself in front of them.”
“What a dick.”
She snickered. “That he is. What do you think?” She held up the one-piece.
Frowning, he shook his head. “I don’t like it.”
Charlie held it out in front of her again. It was navy blue with see-through mesh material from the round neckline to just above where the swell of her breasts would be.
It would cover all the important parts without making her look like a total nun.
“What’s wrong with this one?”
Leaning over the top of the rack separating them, Derek gave her a straight face and said, “It covers more than your shoestrings.” Then, he waggled his eyebrows.
Charlie glared at him through narrowed slits. “Very funny. I’m going to go try it on.”
As she made her way to the dressing room, it hit her that she was still smiling. She knew Derek was only flirting like that to help her relax, but still. She’d almost forgotten how much fun he was to be around.
Charlie had been conflicted. She was more than grateful for everything Derek had done to help but felt unworthy of his efforts. After all, she’d put herself in this situation.
But over these past few days, something had started to change. She could feel it deep inside. Like a regrowth of sorts. And she owed it all to Derek.
It took a couple of days, but eventually, she began to relax. She realized she could say and do the things she wanted without the fear of being reprimanded.
Simple stuff, like throwing her hair into a ponytail and going makeup-less, brought her a ridiculous amount of joy. As did spending time with Derek.
They’d hung out on the beach and gone for walks around town. He took her out to dinner a couple of times. Not like a date or anything. Just two friends becoming reacquainted.