by Traci Sek
“Of course honey. I’m glad I could help you,” she smiled and wrote down her cousin's information. When she left the room I picked up the hospital phone and dialed his number. Before I knew it a meeting had been set up right here at the hospital since I wasn’t being released yet and Mr. Williams was determined to handle this as quickly and painlessly as possible. I guess that showed what kind of man he was.
I still looked absolutely horrid with this silly neck brace around my neck that my doctor insisted I wear for the next two weeks. The bandages had been taken off but it left my hair unruly and matty. It hurt to brush my hair from the cuts and bruises I had, but the doctor assured me they would shortly heal and that I would be back to normal.
My lawyer arrived first, going over the procedure and telling me to let him do all the talking. He warned me that Mr. Williams might try to persuade me in a different direction and all though he had every right, to be mindful and do what I felt was right.
Knocking, a young man with dark wavy brown hair, stood in the doorway. His face was distorted and sweat beads were forming on his forehead. He was clearly uncomfortable and almost looked sick and yet he held a bouquet of flowers. Our eyes connected for a long moment before I forced myself to look away.
A tall clean-cut man stood behind him holding a briefcase. He gently nudged the guy further into the room. The young man shook his head and sucked in a deep breath before releasing it. He closed his eyes and spoke.
“I’m Mr. Williams. The idiot that accidentally hit you with my vehicle.” He holds out his shaky hand holding the flowers. His grip was so tight, that it made me wonder if the poor things would survive the next five minutes. My eyes grew wide.
“Thank you. I mean hi, I, uh, my name is Emily Nellish.” I take the flowers from his hand. My hand brushes gently on his and a spark of electricity sets off on my skin. We both jerk away in surprise but he quickly hides it.
“I’m Mr. Hung, Ms. Nellish’s lawyer.” I watched as Mr. Williams gritted his teeth before shaking his hand.
“I’m Mr. Weston, Mr. Williams' lawyer.”
“Alright now that the introductions are done let's get down to it. As you can see my client has sustained some rather serious injuries and she would like to be compensated for it.”
“Can I speak with Ms. Nellish alone?” Mr. Williams asked, ignoring what my lawyer had just told him.
My heart does a small clumsy dance in my chest forcing a deep inhale to my lungs. They all looked towards me for an answer. My lips form different shapes before any coherent words come out. “Yes,” I said hesitantly.
“Just remember what we talked about earlier.” My lawyer says before walking out of the room followed by his lawyer. The door closes with a click and I’m met with silence. He seemed to be breathing extremely heavy.
“Are you ok?” I asked, trying to relieve the awkwardness that was filling the room.
“Yes.” he waved my question off. “I’ll- I’ll be fine.”
“I’m very sorry for hitting you, I'm a complete fool.” He paused and took another deep breath. “You must think I’m the worst person in the world. Trust me, I have been beating myself up over this for days. I was so worried that I wouldn’t be able to talk to you. I really want to help in any way I can. Tell me what I can do to make this situation better.” He was full out ranting.
“I don’t know what to say.” Was all I could say back.
“I’m afraid neither do I. I was expecting you to shout profanities at me and curse my unborn children.”
“I’m very upset with you, there is no doubt, but I'm in too much pain to scream and shout. Besides, they may kick me out of this hospital and I can’t have that right now.” He winced at my words.
“Miss Nellish, I apologize profusely for my careless actions and I vow on my life, that I will do whatever it takes for you to feel better and recover quickly.”
“The police said I had the right to sue you for my injuries and hospital stay that's why I called the lawyer…”
“I understand and I’m not going to try and tell you what to do but if you just hear me out for a second I would appreciate it.”
I dipped my head slightly letting him know I was listening.
“I will pay for your hospital stay and I’m willing to pay for any accommodations you may need. Like rehab or physical therapy for as long as you need it.”
“I don’t know if I will need that stuff, but what you don’t realize is that I um- lost my job because of you and now I can’t um, afford to pay my rent and so they kicked me out. Yeah. They kicked me out. I lost all my stuff.”
“What? That’s terrible! Oh my gosh, now I feel even worse. Is that even legal? I mean you have a legitimate excuse.”
“That’s not the point. I have nowhere to go now and it's your fault.” I snapped at him.
“Come stay with me,” he blurted out.
“I’m sorry, stay with you? The guy who deliberately hit me? Are you even listening to yourself?”
“I know. I know it sounds crazy…and I didn’t deliberately hit you. It really was an accident.”
“You are a complete stranger! How do I know you aren’t trying to murder me?”
“Ok I admit I deserve that, but I can tell you with one hundred percent confidence that I am not a murderer! Besides you said so yourself you have nowhere else to go, I owe you my life. I can let you stay in my pool house if that makes you feel more comfortable, and I can hire someone to come in to help you recover. You have to admit that's way better than having to go to court and pay for a lawyer and then waiting for a payment that I’m willing to give you upfront and more. Where would you stay in the meantime?”
“A hotel.”
“A stuffy hotel with an uncomfortable bed and no one around to make sure you are well cared for?”
“Listen, Jake, can I call you Jake?”
“Yes of course.”
“I don’t even know you.
“I’ll pay your lawyer whatever he wants for his wasted time. And when you are ready to leave I will pay for your apartment until you find a job of your choice.” He lets out a deep sigh before continuing.
“Look, Emily, I know you have the legal right to sue me and all but I’m asking you from the bottom of my heart not to. My father is, well, he's not a very understanding man. If he found out that someone was suing us, due to my careless actions, I would be a dead man. All I’m doing is trying to help both of us with as little involvement from him as possible.”
More silence ensued.
When he mentioned his father, I wanted to break down and cry. I couldn't let him see me cry. I was weak enough in his eyes. Holding back the tears, I say,
“Can I think about this all?”
“Of course.”
The lawyers came back in and gave me a rundown of the way things could go if I were to decide to pursue this matter further. Jake’s lawyer gave me his legal offer which was a little bit different from what he had asked me, and when everyone had left, I broke down and cried.
Chapter Nine
Jake
I had a meeting with a big client who we worked closely with at all our locations. Mr. Garrett typically bought up or rented all the property we would obtain. We made a decent living just off of him alone. When he got word, we were planning on revitalizing the once vibrant part of Oakley, he blew up my phone wanting to be first on the list.
I arrived on-site to meet my brother Josh and Mr. Garrett waiting outside staring at the abandoned building.
"Hey! Look who finally decided to show up fashionably late." Josh greeted me with a grin as I stepped out of the car.
He was always the carefree, laid back, grungy one of the family. Don't get me wrong, he knew how to clean up quite nicely, especially around his wife of four years. I envied him because I wanted what he had so badly. I was in no shape though to be in a relationship. Occasionally, he acted like he never had a care in the world, which was the most frustrating thing about him. He had three of the
cutest boys, ranging from six months old to three years old. Jack, Liam, and Anthony. I loved being an uncle to them.
"Sorry, I was held up in another meeting." I lied. If my family knew I was helping a stranger, they would eat me alive. Especially my dad and especially since she was a girl. They had been wanting me to settle down for a while now but I always refused.
"Mr. Garrett. How are we today?" I asked, reaching out my hand. He shook it firmly and smiled at me.
"This is a fine establishment you got going on here. You picked a good one this time Jake. In fact, your brother was just going over some plans with me what he is going to do to this place."
"I'm glad to hear that. So, can we count on your business in the near future?"
"Of course. You know me boy, can't back down from a good deal!" He chuckled slightly, keeping his hands in his long black jacket.
"Great! If anything shall change just give me a call. Do you have any questions for me?"
"Well we haven't seen the inside yet, we were waiting for you."
"Yeah, no problem. Just be careful it's obviously not structurally sound yet." He simply nodded and proceeded in.
Emily
It had been a few days since the meeting with the lawyers, which was plenty of time to think of my next move. I thought long and hard about Jake’s offer and about his situation, to the point that I almost couldn’t sleep. I stayed wide awake both nights until the early hours of the morning, mostly from being so uncomfortable but also because I kept having this strange feeling. It was a feeling that made me question my sanity and it left me with loads of memories from my mom. The good ones of course. Up until then I hadn’t realized how loving and caring my mom was. I don’t just mean with me, but with everyone in general. I must have blocked a lot of it out with the torturous memories.
Something kept telling me to trust him. He seemed very sincere and nice. He seemed like he had it all together well except for that little nervous episode but I chalked it up to stress and nerves. He didn’t give off this aura of being a serial killer instead quite the opposite vibe of gentleness and caring and maybe even a little understanding, almost as if we were on the same page. I knew deep down somewhere in the depths of my soul that I was making the right decision so I called my lawyer and told him. Then I called Jake.
“Hi, this is Mr.Williams,” his smooth confident voice vibrated in my ear making my heart leap into my throat.
“Hi, this is Emily.”
A moment of silence hung heavy between us before he spoke again.
“Hi Emily, how are you?”
“I’m getting better, the doctor says I’ll be released today.” I gulped and closed my eyes trying to calm my wild heart.
“That’s amazing news.”
More silence as I tried to find the right words to tell him.
“I assume you have made your decision about the lawsuit?” Nothing like cutting straight to the chase. Just tell him, Emily.
“Yes. I’ve decided that I won’t be suing you… yet.” A loud whooshing sound graced my ears.
“Oh thank God! Thank you, Emily, You have no idea-”
“Hold on cowboy, I wasn’t finished.”
He cleared his throat, “sorry please continue.”
“Thank you. I’m still keeping the file open, just in case you try anything funny and I’m giving you a trial run. If this arrangement doesn’t work out for some reason, I will sue you without blinking an eye. You got that?”
“Of course that sounds very reasonable. I’m so happy you are willing to give me that chance and like I said I’ll still pay for your hospital bills and any help you may need. I promise on my life.”
“Alright. So how is this going to work?”
“What time are you being released?”
“In the next couple of hours I assume.”
“Excellent. I’ll be there to pick you up.”
“Um, no offense or anything but I’d rather not be driving in a car with you considering how reckless you were the first time.” I couldn’t help the last part from coming out of my mouth maybe a little too sarcastically but hey, he deserved it.
“Ouch,” he chuckled but continued, “no offense taken. I understand, lucky for you I got my vehicle impounded and my license suspended so even if you wanted me to I couldn’t.”
I detected a bit of amusement in his voice which meant he had a good sense of humor. It made my nerves calm down just a bit.
“So how do you plan on picking me up?”
“I have a driver. I’ll call him as soon as I end your call and then I’ll be over.” Driver? He had a driver?
“You have a driver?”
“Yeah, it’s no big deal I hardly ever use him. My father uses him more.”
“Right. Ok, so I’ll see you soon?”
“Yes. Except I’ll be waiting outside, I don’t think it would be appropriate for me to come in or anything.”
“Oh Alright. Well goodbye then.”
“Bye.” I listened for the click of the phone before I placed mine down. The thought of getting out of those four walls excited me, but at the same time, I was nervous. Was I making the right decision? Was this going to turn out alright? I had no idea but I was determined to at least try.
"Good afternoon miss," a nurse hummed as she walked into my room startling me out of my reoccurring daydreams. I nodded my head unable to form words.
"You are being released, honey, I just need you to sign some papers and here are some clothes for you to put on. Your other ones were not salvageable. I'll be back to get you in ten minutes."
Not reading over the paperwork, I signed in the spots marked and quickly got dressed. Before I knew it, she was back with a wheelchair.
"I can walk. Really, I'm ok now."
"Ok miss, if that's what you want." She placed the wheelchair in the corner of the room and then walked over to me, linking her arm in mine.
We walked slowly down the hallway towards what I assumed was the front lobby and past a set of sliding double doors. I was immediately hit with a chill as my whole body shivered and ached. To my surprise, Jake stood against a sleek black limo typing away on his phone. He glanced up for a moment and looked back down only to look back up again placing his phone in his pocket.
“Hey.” He smiled, looking much more relaxed than the day he had come to visit me.
“Jake, hi.”
He looked lost for words for a moment as the nurse walked away back into the hospital. I shivered again making me wince as my neck started to stiffen up.
“It’s freezing out here, let's get inside,” Jake said gesturing towards the limo.
I approached the long black limousine in which the driver who had been standing patiently waiting for us, had opened the door. He gestured for me to get in first. Slowly, with Jake's help, I managed to enter into the spacious limo. I winced as I slid down onto the leather seat, allowing the warmth from the heated seats to soothe me. I sighed at the feeling, sinking deeper into them. Jake quickly followed and sat on the opposite side in silence.
I took this opportunity to revel in all the limo’s glory and the sights out of the window as the limo started to pull away. I glanced sideways at him. His brows were furrowed as he quickly typed on his phone. He looked up and I quickly looked away.
"I have prepared everything for you at my house. I hope you will be comfortable there." I looked back at him and gave him a small smile.
“Pool house right?"
"Yes. Sorry slip of the tongue.” I smiled once again and laid my head against the window.
The limo came to a stop at a set of big iron black gates. I looked around at the beautiful scenery surrounding the house. It was breathtaking. Every known flower must have been in those gardens. Yes, I said gardens, multiple. The yard seemed to go on as far as the eye could see.
We continued to move through the black iron gates as they slowly opened. The letter W splitting in half, no doubt representing the Williams family. The lengthy driveway wrapped
around through the gardens before finally coming to a stop. Within minutes, the door to the limo swung open and in a flash, Jake climbed out and extended his hand back in.
I grabbed it revealing its soft warmth that sent a shock through me. I climbed out of the limo, struggling a bit, blinking a few times from the sunlight. Once my eyes adjusted from the blinding rays, the largest mansion I had ever seen, came into view. Everything about it screamed money, from the white stone-faced walls to the giant porch pillars, that looked sturdy enough to hold up the entire structure. Granite statues are strategically placed around the parameter giving off an obnoxiously wealthy vibe. This place is surreal.
"Do you like it?"
I looked at him, my mouth was slightly agape.
"It's beautiful. I've never seen anything like this before." He smiled at me as we were greeted by a tall, slim man with jet black hair, slicked to the side, and an older looking lady with short graying hair and glasses.
"Emily, this is Miss Aida. She's in charge of housekeeping and she's one of my oldest dearest friends. She will be at your beck and call."
"Hi, it's nice to meet you, dear." Her smile was warm and friendly again, something I wasn't used to. I shook her hand.
"This is Mr. George. He is our butler and between him and Miss Aida they keep the house together and me sane." They all chuckled as I quickly shook his hand as well.
"It's nice to meet both of you and I’m so grateful to be here. I promise I won't be a burden.” I said shyly. I looked at Jake who had a frown on his face.
"Nonsense. You’re not a burden, Aida, can you show Emily to the pool house please?"
"Yes Mr. Williams, I'd love to. Come on honey." She embraced me with one arm around my shoulders and guided me away from the two men. I quickly glanced back at Jake who was now in a discussion with the butler.
As I entered through the grand double wooden doors, I was greeted with an amazing sight before me. I couldn't tell if it was a living room or just the front hallway as there were deep blue couches on each side. A chandelier hung in the center of the room; A glass table sat underneath holding a beautiful bouquet of flowers. To the left of me stood a large marble fireplace with gold trim and a white marble staircase ascended all the way to the top.