"Morgan, how is your dad? Answer that, and I will tell you everything, and by the way who called and told you?"
"Oh Lana, dad is good. He starts rehab for PT and OT tomorrow. He is already regaining some of his strength, so hopefully, he won't have to be in therapy for long. " I am so glad to hear that her dad is doing well. I glance at Ash and take a deep breath to calm myself so that I can tell Morgan about everything. Ash reaches across the console and takes my hand, he pulls it to his lips and kisses the back before resting our hands laced together on the console. I give him a quick smile and directions to the grocery store then focus back on the phone call with Morgan.
I finish telling Morgan about our run in with Josh and reassure her that everything is fine. As I am saying goodbye to Morgan, we pull into the grocery store parking lot. When I round the truck Ash picks me up in a bear hug and spins me around, I can't help the squeal that escapes me as I laugh. I ask him what that was for he simply says he just wanted to put a smile on my face. I can feel the flush come up my neck and into my cheeks. I grab his hand and link our fingers together as we head toward the store. Just before we make it to the entrance, a black truck blocks out path. Once we stop the driver side window rolls down to reveal a very angry Josh. As soon as Ash sees who it is he moves me behind him. Josh looks at Ash and says "I don't know who you are t if you are smart you will get away from my girl there because if you don't, you will surely end up like Jacob." Ash takes a step toward the truck and speaks in a low voice that is almost nothing more than an angry snarl. "You need to listen and listen good. If anyone needs to stay away from her, it is you. If I catch you around her, you will be the one who never comes back. Oh, and by the way, she is not your girl; if she was she wouldn't be planning on marrying me. Now if you will excuse us Allen, Josh, or whatever your name is; my soon to be wife and I have some shopping to do." Then he smiles, wraps his arm around my shoulders, and we start to walk around the truck. As soon as we started moving Josh spun the tires on the truck and drove away.
As soon as he was out of the parking lot, I let out a breath that I didn't realize I was holding. Ash kept his arm around my shoulders as we walked into the store. We grabbed a cart and started picking out things we needed for dinner and general snacks to have including more beer. As we were walking down the pasta aisle, it suddenly dawned on me what Ash said to Josh. I stopped mid-stride in the middle of the isle as I finally processed the information. When he realized that I stopped Ash pulled me close and tilted my head so I would look at him. "Lana, what’s wrong?" I tilted my head a little more and asked "why did you tell him that we are getting married? That’s only going to piss him off more and make him worse to deal with. For some deranged reason, he thinks I belong to him. If he thinks we are getting married, he is going to come after you." I feel the panic rush in and realize I am on the brink of an attack, one like I haven't had since my brother died. I start taking deep breaths to try and calm down. Ash pulls me in for a hug and kisses my forehead telling me to just breath.
Chapter 8
Ash
I am standing in the middle of a grocery store parking lot with my arms wrapped around the most amazing woman I have ever met. I am not sure how to answer her question as to why I did what I did. All I know is that when Josh pulled up in front of us, my initial reaction was to move Lana behind me to protect her. I know how men like Josh think. He really believes that Lana belongs to him. Men like him will take out anyone they think stands in their way to claim their prize. I also know that when that man does get the prize, she is the one who gets hurt. That is one reason I told Josh that she didn't belong to him and that Lana is going to marry me. I know that telling him that his focus will be taken off of Lana and put on me. I want him focused anyone other than her, and if that means putting the proverbial target on my back then so be it. However, even now I like the idea of seeing Lana dressed in white for me. I don't know where that last thought came from; I must be losing my mind.
I can feel some of the sudden panic dissipate slightly as she wraps her arms around my waist. I tilt her chin, so she is looking at me and give her a small smile. "Baby, please relax, don't worry about me it is going to take a lot more than some little shithead like Josh to take me away from you. I'm not going anywhere. The only thing that can make me go away is you. Even if you tell me to go, I will have to know for certain that you are sending me away because you truly do not like me and not because you think it is best for me. I get to choose what is best for me, and right now the best thing for me is being here with you. Now quit worrying and let’s finish getting the groceries so we can get home and get some packing done; then we will cook dinner and enjoy another night together."
I place a soft kiss on her lips, turn her around and playfully smack her on the butt. This earns me a beautiful, yet mischievous smile that helps me relax a little as we go back to shopping. It only takes us about twenty minutes to finish shopping. As we are loading the bags into the truck a patrol car pulls up next to Lana, I immediately start making my way around the truck to her. I recognize Lisa immediately; she gives me a sad smile, and I can see the worry in her eyes. She starts talking to Lana
"Hey girl, I thought you might like an update on Frank. I saw your truck from the road so I figured I would stop to see you. They have Frank in ICU for now. Dr. Gauthier said he had a massive heart attack and if it had not been caught when it was he would not have made it. They are planning to do open heart surgery when he is stable. They are asking for blood donations though since he has Type O blood and our local bank is short. Apparently, the regional blood bank was vandalized causing them to discard the majority of stock leaving our local guys without a backup. I know you are going to try and donate but be aware Dr. Gauthier is in charge and you know how protective he is of you, so you know he is not going to let you donate because of what happened. However, he is chomping at the bit to see you and make sure you are ok, and he is driving the other nurses crazy so you may want to pop in and let him see that you are ok."
Lana tells her thanks for the update and assures Lisa that she will pop in at the hospital to check on Frank and see Dr. Gauthier to tell him to back off the nurses, especially the new girl. When Lisa drives off, we get in the truck and drive home.
I can feel the tension rolling off Lana. I decide to try and make her smile. "So, want to tell me just how protective this Dr. Gauthier is; do I need to be worried about him trying to stab me with a needle or something when we go to the hospital to check on Frank?" This earns me a smile from Lana. "No need to worry about Dr. G. he is harmless. He is a little protective of me since I lost Jake, but there is nothing going on between us if that is what you are thinking." When she finishes the last sentence, I reach over and take her hand to lace our fingers together. "Good because I don't share." She laughs, but I get the feeling that if she would agree Dr. Gauthier would be more than a friend.
Once we get home and get the groceries put away, Lana leans against the counter and lets out a hard sigh. I step up behind her and rub her shoulders gently. I kiss the top of her head as she leans back into me. "Mon trésor, do you want to relax for a little bit or do you want to head on over to the hospital?"
"You know what, Ash, let’s go blow off some steam and head to the hospital, then we will have the rest of the day just you and me no interruptions. How does that sound?"
"I think that is a great idea, how do you propose we blow off steam?”
When I ask that question, I already have a few different things come to mind. However, I doubt she is thinking the same thing. Lana turns in my arms and grins at me and says "we will get to that, but for now come meet Eleanor." I know what that name means to me, but surely she doesn't mean the same thing. I've seen her vehicle; it's a truck; while it is one hell of a fine truck that you can have a lot of fun in but Eleanor that is a different class altogether. My thoughts must be written on my face because Lana laughs, tugs my hand, so I follow her out the back door. When she opens the doors to the shed, we take
a step forward, and Lana says "Ash meet Eleanor, Eleanor this is Ash. He is important to me, so I need you to be good to him. I think Jake would have liked him too."
I think I am drooling as I stand there in front of a car that I loved for as long as I can remember. My best friend before I moved, J.J., and I both loved this car. It is a 1967 Ford Mustang Shelby GT. I glance back to Lana who is nervously watching my response to the car. I walk around the car until I am standing in front of her. "Are you fucking kidding me? Where did you get this car? Can you get any more perfect? If I am dreaming, do not pinch me because I have just found heaven with the perfect girl with the perfect car." She laughs at that, then pulls me down to kiss her.
She tells me that she is nowhere even remotely close to perfect and Eleanor was her brother’s car. It was his prize possession. She tells me that she remembers her brother and his friend talking about this car when they were kids. After she says this she looks at me over the roof of the car, then I hear her mumble to herself "no it is not him, it can't be." Before I can say anything, she opens the door and slides into the driver's seat.
When she starts the engine the car growls and rumbles as it comes to life, it is almost better than sex. Lana eases us out of the backyard and out to an intersection that will put us on an open road. When she comes to a complete stop, she looks over to me and says "I have something I want to show you and talk to you about later, but for now let’s just have fun." I nod in agreement, but now I am worried about the pending talk. Before I can dwell on it, Lana eases through the turn until she is straight. I feel her concentration and emotions slide into place but before I comprehend what she is doing the tires are smoking and the ass end of the car squats and we are off as she slams the car into gear. Lana pours her emotions into her driving. The next thing I know we hit some gravel, and she takes the car into a slide and pulls it back out without any trouble. Holy shit, this girl can drive. As we make another turn, I see a police SUV sitting just off the road. When she straightens back out from the turn, she pushes even harder and blows the horn as we pass the cop. Ok, so my girl may be a little nuts, but that's alright.
It is not too long until we are pulling into the hospital parking lot. Lana seems to have her emotions under control now. When we are out of the car, she tosses me the keys, smiles and says "you can drive us home, if you want." That statement floors me simply because I know the car was her brothers and according to Morgan, Lana doesn't allow anyone near her brother Jake's stuff.
As we make our way through the hospital to get to the emergency department, I quickly realize everyone knows Lana. She smiles and greets everyone, even patients. It seems the only person in town who has a problem with Lana is Josh and the only reason he has a problem is because she will not submit to him. The thought of Josh makes me tense. Lana seems to pick up on my tension because she grabs my hand and gives it a small squeeze, so I will look at her. When our eyes meet, I know that I will do whatever it takes to protect her for as long as I can. I won't let myself say forever because I made that promise once before and failed, so I will never again make that mistake. That thought brings me back to Ali.
Chapter 9
Lana
As soon as we get into the exam room, Dr. Gauthier grabs me and pulls me into a tight hug. "I was so worried about you Lana When I saw him in here this morning I knew that he had been after you, but there was no police report from you, so we didn't know what to think. Then when Lisa and Frank came in to get his statement, he said he had been in a fight with a stranger there was nothing we could do. Lisa promised me that she would go by and check on you. Then the next thing we know is that you are on the phone saying that Lisa is bringing Frank in for cardiac issues. We at least knew you were alive." Once Lisa got here with Frank things got kind of crazy, so I didn't get a chance to talk to her about you. She was so worried about Frank, who by the way is alive right now because you caught his symptoms early."
"Paul, I am fine. The only injury I have is this cut on my hand. It wasn't real deep, so I had Ash get the glass out of it, apply Dermabond and dress it. He did a good job; apparently, he has experience with Dermabond from when he was fighting MMA. So while I appreciate the concern, you should know by now that I can take care of myself." I wink and smile at him, so he knows that I do genuinely appreciate his concern but that I really am ok.
I have known Paul almost my whole life. He is a year older than my brother. Since I was just about always with Jake, I saw Paul at parties and just hanging around in general. He and Jake were never real close, but they always got along. Paul was always cute and very popular with the girls in high school, so I never thought he even knew who I was other than the little sister that was always with Jake and Blake. At least that is what I thought until the summer after he graduated when he was at a party that one of the other football players was having, and Paul approached me; that night changed things in so many ways. Before I can get caught up in my thoughts and memories, I ask about Frank’s condition and what he will be looking at for recovery. We fall into a comfortable conversation on neutral ground. Then I remember that Ash is waiting for me so I tell Paul that I should be going I don't want Ash to have to wait too long. Paul looks down to me and says "So Blake is back, huh?" I just look at him for a moment and ask what he is talking about. "That is Blake at the nurse’s station, right?" "No, that is Chase's friend Ash; that he played football with in high school and at Vanderbilt." "Oh, I guess I just assumed that it was Blake, he kind of resembles him, and he seems to have the same protective instinct when it comes to you."
Chapter 10
Ash
As I wait for Lana to finish up with Dr. Gauthier, who like every other man in town seems to be in love with her, I get lost in thoughts of the past. I still think about Ali frequently. I haven't seen her since I moved away from Louisiana. Although I know the more time I spend with Lana, the more I think about Ali. I can picture Ali being a lot like Lana today. From what Lana has told me her childhood was much like Ali's. They both had big brothers they loved and adored. I remember my first year in Atlanta I spent many days and nights wishing that I was back home with JJ and Ali. I missed them so much; they were like family to me. Well, JJ was like a brother, but Ali she was so much more than just a sister. I was always protective of her and thought of her as mine. I knew back then Ali would always have my heart. I also knew that when she got older, I would have to convince her brother, my best friend, that I am what is best for her. However, I think JJ already knew how I felt because I always turned down offers from other girls and he would just smile and shake his head. Things were perfect until my mom got sick. When she passed away, I lost the world I knew and loved. That summer turned out to be one of the best and absolute worst times of my life.
I am brought out of my thoughts when Lana slides her arms around my neck from behind, and she kisses me on the cheek making me smile. I like that she wasn't shy about showing affection in front of everyone. When she stands back up I follow her line of site and see her glare at a couple of women standing at the nurses’ station; I notice she is still touching my shoulder as they watch her. I notice Lana has moved just enough to place herself between the other women and me; almost as if she is laying claim on me. I ask her if everything is ok, and she tells me that one of the ladies at the station is Josh's sister and she would just rather not have her looking at me. I can't help the smirk I give her when she looks down at me. Before I can say anything about it, she asks me if I am ready to go. I smile back at her "almost; I just need to do one thing then we can go." She looks at me curiously; I stand up next to her, turning us just slightly. I look up to the women still standing at the nurses’ station; when I am sure I have their attention, I wrap one arm around Lana's waist and pull her against me. I bring my other hand to the back of her neck and pull her up as I crash my lips into hers. When I pull my lips away from her, I smile then kiss her on the forehead. "Now, now I am ready to go home mon trésor."
Lana is quiet as we make our way bac
k out to the car. When we reach the car, I walk her to the door, but before I open it so she can get in, I turn her around and step up to her, so her back is pressed up against the car. I place a finger under her chin to tilt her face up to mine. Once she meets my eyes, I ask her what’s wrong and why she is being so quiet. I am not sure I am ready for her answer. She tilts her head slightly to the side, her eyes never leaving mine; she says “you called me your treasure, and it’s not the first time.” I smile at her; it’s the only thing I can do. I have only called one other person that; Ali.
I used to say that to Ali; she was my treasure, my first and only love. I haven’t used that term since I had to tell Ali goodbye when I moved to Atlanta. The fact that I called Lana that without thinking tells me how much she already means to me. If I didn’t know better I would say she is my Ali, but I just don’t see how that could be; even with the similarities, there are just enough differences to make me doubt.
I hear Lana mumble something about someone who used to say that to her. My first thought is that I don’t want anyone else calling her that, then my thoughts are back to Ali. However, for the time being, I need to focus on Lana, and she is mine, at least for the time being. Without verbally commenting on her statement I kiss her on the forehead and open her door. As I slide into the driver’s seat, my thoughts are all over the place, and I take my frustrations out on the car as I try to get myself under control. It seems all I think about now it comparing Lana and Ali. If it were Ali, surely I would know, wouldn’t I? The more I think about it; the more frustrated and confused I seem to get.
Chapter 11
Lana
I am glad I told Ash he could drive the care home. My mind is consumed with thoughts of the past, and there is no way I could concentrate enough to drive. The way Ash talks to me, more specifically certain things he says makes my mind fuzzy, and I get caught up in thoughts of the past. Surely Paul wasn't right, but Ash is saying things that make me think about the past and things that Jakes friend Blake used to say. Jake's friend Blake spent so much time at our house. We were all very close. Jake thought of him as a brother they were nearly inseparable which means I was with him a lot. I would dream of how things could be when we grew up and how happy we could be as a couple; not that I thought it would happen. I continued to dream of him even after he moved the summer after his mother passed away. I think maybe Josh showing back up has just caused me to think about the past causing me to maybe hear what I want to hear instead of what is actually being said. The fact that Paul thought it was Blake didn't help either. Surely I would have recognized him if he was Blake because I spent so much time with him growing up. I will never forget the night he kissed me. I find myself back in the memory I had earlier at the hospital.
His To Protect (Four Seasons Security Book 1) Page 4