by Lee Heaven
At the mention of Kevin’s name Decker was up and pacing the kitchen. I know he wasn’t happy, hell I’m never happy when the mention of her psycho ex who decided to kidnap her is mentioned. I can see Sarah silently pleading with him to sit down and relax. I also noticed that Tobias has neither moved nor said a word.
I touched his arm and he flinched. He turned his steaming blue eyes on me. “Did he hurt you?” he asked and I held out my arms to show him my bruises. He sucked in a loud breath through his teeth as he lightly wrapped his hands around my wrists as if his touch would erase my bruises.
He looked at Decker and it was a silently conversations they had. Tobias turned to Liam “You are never allowed to leave her side unless I’m with her.” The tone of his voice alone was something to scare the shit out someone.
“Understood sir,” Liam replied back.
Decker turned to Jimmy “You do what you need to do, but if one hair on either of their heads is harmed in whatever it is you’re doing, it’s your ass.” He was up and ushering Sarah out of the kitchen and towards their bedroom without even an answer from Jimmy.
Tobias nodded at the boys and took my hand and pulled me towards the bedroom. As he pushed the door closed with his foot his arms were reaching for my shirt and pulling it over my head. He shoved my pants and underwear to the floor and I stepped out of them. He slowly removed my bra. Taking my arms he picks them up and looks over my bruised wrists again, than his eyes slowly travel up my arms, over my neck, down my breast and down the front of my legs. Spinning me around he did the same look over to the back of my legs, back and neck.
When he was done inspecting me he pushed his hard body into the back of mine and ran his teasing lips up the side of my neck. His hands were all over my body and he spun me around and hoisted me up onto his body. I was pinned against the wall as Tobias plowed into me over and over. The last thing I can remember is chasing my third orgasm and falling onto the bed with the weight of Tobias holding me to him.
Chapter 10
It’s been eight months since Jon attacked me. Eight months of having Liam “The Tree” with me at all times. And eight months of Jon hiding around the corners of store fronts where ever I went. I could feel his eyes on me all the time. I knew Liam knew it to. I could tell by the way he constantly looked over his shoulders and around the streets whenever we were out.
Jimmy and Liam have been taking Sarah and me to a shooting range and just like Sarah said that night, she knew how to shoot. On the first day Jimmy was showing us how to load the gun and all the safety about it. Sarah got bored with it took the gun from him loaded the fourteen bullets into the clip, locked it in, slipped off the safety and then proceeded to fire off thirteen bullets right through the center of the red dot in the middle of the man on the target. She saved her fourteenth shot and put it right in the head where it would have landed between the guys eye.
When she was done she unlocked the clip, slipped the safety on and spun around while taking off her ear protection. She was met with three wide eyed, mouths a gaped people who couldn’t believe what they just saw.
“What I told you I knew how to shoot,” she said as she shrugged and turned red with embarrassment.
Jimmy stepped forward and pressed the button to bring the target up. “Holy Fuck,” he said as he looked at the target. There were only two holes, one through the middle and one through the head. “I’ve seen men trained by the military who can’t even do that. How the fuck did you?”
“Like I said, I know how to shoot. I was barely ninety pounds when I learned. I had to figure out how to keep the recoil from affecting my shot. Kevin taught me well.”
Kevin was her psycho ex-boyfriend who kidnapped her. Just six months ago he was sentenced to a hundred years in prison for her kidnapping and rape. The judge did not go easy on him and sentenced him to the max of all four of the charges he was found guilty on. But it didn’t come easy. He had pulled out every dirty trick he could think of and it pushed her over the edge, she almost jumped off the court house building one day. It took a lot to talk her back and the scary past that she was hiding from all of us came out in full that day. But she also learned how much Decker loved her when he didn’t walk away from her like she was afraid of. Instead two days later in front of fifty plus thousand people in the stadium and the millions watching on TV he got down on one knee and asked her to marry him.
Me on the other hand, I couldn’t hit the target to save my life. I figured out how to load and unload the gun pretty quickly, that was the easy part. However trying to figure out how to aim and deal with recoil was another thing. As soon as we mastered one gun the boys would move on and teach us, well, really just me as Sarah knew how to use most of them, another gun. I remember the first time I was handed a rifle. The recoil on it sent me flying back and straight onto my ass. Sarah spent ten minutes laughing at me and I swear to god she almost pee’d her pants. After figuring out all the guns the guys had us run through all sorts of scenarios such as being mugged, kidnapped, held hostage, etc, and how we should react in each situation.
Tobias was true to his word and took me out on a date that weekend. He took me to Jean-Georges. I don’t even want to know how much the bill was. We sat there for three hours, drank two bottles of wine while we just talked and laughed.
After dinner we walked through Central Park. Tobias tucked me under his arm and we strolled around the park. I’m not sure how he did it, but at ten-thirty he took me for a spin on the carousel. He placed me on a horse sideways and climbed up on the one next to me. We rode around in a circle for five minutes, giggling and laughing at nothing in particular. As the ride stopped Tobias got off his horse and picked me up off mine. As I slid down his body his lips landed on mine. This kiss was perfect, it was a mix between soft and firm, it wasn’t too much it was just right.
When he pulled away he took my hand and led me off the carousel. As we walked away he fist bumped a guy standing near, who I can only guess was the guy operating the ride. He draped his arm back over my shoulder and we continued to walk through the park.
Upon exiting the park we didn’t head back to the building, we kept walking down Broadway. We walked for a couple of blocks. As we walked some people noticed who Tobias was and asked to stop and take pictures. Tobias was always too happy to oblige. Not once did he turn a fan away. I couldn’t help but smile at how friendly he was when out on his private time.
As we reached the corner of 54th and Broadway we turned left and headed down the block. Crossing the street we entered into Iguana. It turned out to be more than just a Mexican restaurant. We first went upstairs where we spent time doing the salsa, merengue and bachata.
Tobias knew how to move. His hips swayed and grinded against mine, he spun me around and his hips grinded against mine again. When I thought I couldn’t move any more Tobias took me two floors down where once again we danced to dance music of yesterday and today.
We danced for hours. His hips planted firmly against mine as we swayed and grinded to different songs. The last song of the night was Jacob Plants Fire, Tobias took a play out of Decker’s playbook and bent me backwards. As he pulled me upright he ran his mouth up my stomach.
As he reached my throat he spun me around and locked his hips on mine. He guided me up the stairs as his lips stayed attached to my neck. As we hit the streets the camera bulbs went off like crazy. With Tobias’s lips still on my neck and I’m sure a smile plastered on my face, gave it all away to the fact that we were indeed a couple.
Tobias hailed a cab and we piled in. Tobias barely pulled his mouth away long enough to give the driver my address. We were only headed six blocks and I at first I couldn’t understand why we were taking a cab instead of walking, but as the cab pulled away it all came in clear as he sealed his lips on mine and his tongue mixed with mine.
By the time the cab pulled up to the building we were practically having sex in the back seat. Security rushed out the building to clear a path for us and Tobias pushed me a
long the cleared path and into the building. We spent the next eight hours in my bed only getting out long enough for one of us to grab snacks from the kitchen until Tobias had to leave for his game.
After that night Tobias and I were inseparable. Besides for when they were out of town for games, we were always together. Taking me to Sarah’s fundraiser wasn’t even a question. He didn’t even have to mention taking me again after that first phone conversation.
Sarah’s best friend Chrissy had moved back home in July. It only took a matter of a few days, but we had seen how she looked at Tyler and how he looked back at her. Sarah and I had seen the signs and were hatching a plan to hook them up when they announced they were dating. Chrissy told us she took one look at his eyes and knew that he was it.
Sarah, Chelsea, Chrissy and I have become fast hard friends. We’re always together. Where there is one you will find at least one other. Spa days, shopping days and even just lounging around days we were always together. Plus the boys were all best friends, so it’s not like we even had a choice if they were together then we were.
In October The Yankees won the World Series against the Mets in game 7 after Decker hit a grand slam to close out the twelfth inning and the game. A week after the game Sarah and Decker were married in one of the most romantic weddings I had ever seen. Decker told her whatever she wanted she could have and expense was not an option. Sarah being herself didn’t do an over the top wedding but did it her way instead and had a sweet hometown wedding. If it wasn’t for all the celebrities and paparazzi hanging about you would have thought it was just a normal wedding.
For Thanksgiving Tobias took me Arizona to meet his family. I have to say at first I was nervous, but after being there for a couple of hours I was relaxed and in love with Tobias’s family and they welcomed me as if they had known me my whole life. I was shown photo album after photo album of pictures of Tobias and told countless stories of the trouble he caused. By the time I left I was calling his parents mom and dad and was part of the family.
Christmas was spent at the apartment with everyone’s family. Between Sarah’s, Decker’s, Tobias’s, Liam’s, Daniel’s, Jimmy’s, and Chelsea’s family there was close to two hundred people in the apartment. At one point I found Sarah hiding in my bathroom. She looked at me and I knew instantly the signs of a panic attack coming on. I grabbed my phone and quickly shot a text off to Decker and Jimmy hoping just one of them had their phones on them. As soon as I hit send I had the music opened on my phone and was scrolling through for her song.
Sarah had explained that her first therapist had taught her to find things that calmed her during a panic attack and music, especially a song on repeat could help. Sarah’s favorite movie was Robin Hood Prince of Thieves starring Kevin Costner, the theme song Everything I do (I do it for you) by Bryan Adams had quickly become a relaxer for her. Decker made us all download it on our phones in case she was ever without hers.
Just as I had pressed play Jimmy and Decker had come running in the bathroom. By the time she was calm she was even more embarrassed than ever. “I know their all family, but there’s just so many of them. I couldn’t breathe and I couldn’t find my phone,” she had muttered into her hands. Decker slide into her and started whispering something in her ear. Jimmy and I slipped out of the room and when they emerged sometime later I recognized the look of a well satisfied woman. I laughed and Tobias gave me a weird look, but as soon as he saw what I was looking at he knew and whispered into my ear that I would have that look later. I wanted to rush everyone out of the house after that.
New Years Eve was spent much like Christmas, close to two hundred people in the apartment, however most of the people here were friends and not family. Decker and Tobias had invited the whole team and office staff. Unlike Christmas where Sarah and I cooked the whole dinner, they had this event catered. We didn’t argue at all, we were still trying to recover from all that cooking a week earlier.
It was a fun night, our first New Years as an extended family. By the time the last of the guests left it was close to four in the morning, we all knew with Josie passing out shortly after midnight we would be running on a few hours sleep so we all stumbled to bed. Sure enough Josie had us all up at seven-thirty the next morning. The following four days became a blur to us all.
Around ten am New Years Day, Sarah walked out of the kitchen and collapsed on the floor. She started having a seizure, by the time the paramedics arrived Chelsea and Chrissy had Josie hidden in the bedroom and Jimmy and Tyler were performing CPR. Tobias and Liam actually had to hold Decker down on the floor as the paramedics shocked Sarah’s heart to try and start it again. I almost passed out myself as I watched one the paramedics jab her with a needle as he pushed in medicine to help start her heart.
We spent the next two days talking with doctors trying to figure out why she kept having seizures and her heart stopped twice. It was only when a specialist came in that they figured out she was suffering from severe anemia because she was pregnant. When they did an ultrasound and showed Decker that not only was she pregnant but was having twins, I swear his heart stopped beating for a second.
We spent the next two days taking turns sitting with her. No one wanted to leave her side, waiting for her to wake up. Decker of course refused to leave her side until she woke up. Even with us insisting he go home and shower and take a nap, he just gave us all a stern look and would shake his head no. We didn’t argue with him, at least to a point we didn’t argue.
For four days he sat there holding her hand and searching around on his phone for something. He would always put the thing away when someone came in the room. We all knew he was searching for something but no one knew what.
When Sarah finally woke up, Decker finally relaxed and offered a full time nanny job to Chelsea. Then explained to all of us that they were going to be getting a bigger place and we were all expected to live with them. Like we would have had it any other way, we were a family, we may not be a blood family but we were family and we needed each other.
Sarah was finally released from the hospital a few days after she woke up. On the way up to the apartment, Decker stopped right outside the elevators and we all looked at him like he was crazy.
When he turned to face us all he said, “I was thinking about moving all together into someplace bigger, but then I received some information and I came up with a better idea.” He looked down the other side of the hallway and then back at us.
I noticed Tobias nodded at him and I was beginning to wonder what these two were up to. Then he began to talk, “Decker, Jimmy and I made a decision to buy the other three apartments on this floor. We’re going to remodel the entire floor. It will be like we all have our own places but all will be connected by doors to each apartment.”
My heart skipped a beat. I was going to live with Tobias, but I still got to stay with Sarah and Decker and Josie. I looked over to see Sarah slipping into Decker’s arms while she was crying and I realized I was crying also. Tobias slipped his arms around my waist and I snuggled into his neck.
Tyler owned one of the apartments on the floor above us and Chrissy had spent the last four days moving her and her kids into his place. On Christmas he asked her to marry him, she didn’t even think twice before screaming yes. Now all they had to do was wait for her ex-husband to stop being a bastard and sign the divorce papers. They slipped back into the elevator and headed back upstairs to their place.
Three days after that we had appointments set up with different architects to design the floor space of our new apartments. Sarah fell in love with the very first one and practically begged Decker to go with that one, but he insisted we had to look at all of them.
I had fallen for the sixth one we saw and Sarah was starting to see it my way. The design linked all three apartments by a central hallway that had doors to close off each one. It added two more bedrooms to Sarah and Decker’s apartment. Jimmy and Chelsea would have the middle apartment and it was designed to have four bedrooms,
living room, dining room, four and half bathrooms, an office and a kitchen.
Mine and Tobias’s apartment would be set up similar to Decker and Sarah’s except we would only be having five bedrooms instead of their six. Our master bedrooms would share a wall and as soon as the architect said that I burst out laughing looked at Decker and Sarah and said, “You are never allowed to rearrange you room.”
Sarah turned red and hid in Decker’s shoulder, while he burst out laughing. Tobias just kept asking what I was talking about. After the architect left I explained to Tobias what had happened the first night Sarah had stayed here almost a year ago. He turned to them and said, “Please don’t ever move your bed.”
The one year anniversary of the night Sarah moved in with Decker was only three days away. It also meant that the boys would be leaving for spring training in two weeks.
I knew everyone was thinking about what happened last spring training. I knew everyone was hoping something different would happen this time. I know I was praying for a happy spring training season.
As we sat there debating over the designs we’ve already seen and figuring out how many more the house phone rang. Liam came into the room as we were all laughing and said, “Maggie, there’s a London Castle down in the lobby for you.”
“Tell him to fuck off and never step a foot in my fucking building again,” Sarah jumped up off the couch and snapped at Liam. I had told Sarah all about Landon and she knew I wanted nothing to do with him. The boys also knew the story but had no idea what his name was.
“Sarah relax, it’s not good for you to get upset. You need to remain calm so you don’t wind up in the hospital again,” I pleaded with her.
“He has no right after all this time. He can’t come here and demand anything out of you anymore,” she countered back.