Bob lifted his eyes back to Shannon’s and the bleakness he saw was almost too much. “A functioning addict is still an addict, Shannon. He’s my brother. More than that, he’s my twin, and there is not a goddamn thing I can do to help him. Neither can you. You have to grab what happiness you can without worrying about anyone else,” once again, he shook his head sadly. “Sometimes you got to cut a man loose before they drag you under.”
***
Flower’s boutique was located on the main strip in Flatline Texas, but since the town was home to only a few hundred residents it was still a quiet street. Genie sat in her car for a few minutes before she managed to work up enough courage to venture inside.
Bradley worked as her partner for three years now, but in that time she failed to get to know Flower as well as she should have. She didn’t have any real excuse for why she failed to reach out to her, except that Flower seemed so different from her. Genie was raised mostly around men, and not just any men, but the kind of men that were warriors. The leading female influence in her life was her mom, and she was just as cutthroat as the men, literally, since she worked as an Assassin for an anti-terrorism team. And Flower, well, she was feminine. She made dresses for goodness sake, but Genie was dearly in need of some female advice.
Flower glanced up from her sketchbook as Genie came through the door. “Genie!” She cried in obvious surprise, then after a moment she added. “Bradley’s not here right now. I left him at home today with a honey-do list as long as your arm.”
“I came to see you.”
“Oh,” Flower said lifting her eyebrows. “Are you looking for an evening gown?”
“No, um, I was kind of wondering if I could ask your advice about something.”
“Well sure,” she motioned for Genie to join her in the back room. “We’ll have some coffee. How does that sound?”
Genie followed Flower to a small table and searched her mind for the best way to start while Flower poured two cups of coffee. After setting one down in front of her, Flower settled into the seat across from Genie. “What can I do to help?”
Genie poured out the entire story, leaving out nothing, no matter how intimate. By the time she had finished, Flower was staring at her with glassy eyes.
“What do you think I should do?”
Flower continued to stare straight ahead as if not hearing the question, forcing Genie to clear her throat. “Um, Flower?”
Flower shook her head as if she were shaking away cobwebs. “So you managed to snag two of the three sexy security men?”
At Genie’s nod, Flower seemed to lose focus again and Genie snapped her fingers in front of her face. “Oh sorry,” Flower blushed. “I was picturing a Shannon-Weave sandwich and it was making me hungry.”
At Flower’s words, an image floated before her eyes and she put her hand to her stomach to quell the butterflies. “I like you a lot more than I ever thought I would. That sounded different in my head,” she added as she realized how it sounded out loud.
Flower tilted her head to one side, assessing Genie with her eyes. “I should have made more of an effort to get to know you since you are Bradley’s partner, but I admit to being slightly intimidated by you, since you seem so very capable, and I’m a bit of a flake.”
“Bradley doesn’t seem to think you’re a flake. He’s completely enamored by you.”
“Hmm,” Flower said thoughtfully. “You have noticed that Bradley is a bit strange too, right?”
Genie snorted into her coffee then covered her mouth to hide the sound, and Flower laughed before sobering. “I almost missed out on the best thing that has ever happened to me because I thought things were either right or wrong. Bradley lied to me, hid things from me, tricked me, but if those things never happened I would never have realized I was in love with him. Friends are nice to have, but someone to love—that’s priceless, and Shannon is a wonderful person who deserves to be loved. I don’t know Weave, but he didn’t want to be with you or he would have been, no matter the personal cost to himself, because that’s what it’s like to love someone. If he is really Shannon’s friend, he will want him to be happy and it will all work out in the end.”
“They’ve been friends their whole lives. I don’t want Shannon to have to choose.”
“Oh sweetie, he already made his choice long before he clued you in.”
Genie stared off into space, shocked into silence. It was true; at any time over the past months he could’ve walked away from her. They lived in different states. It wouldn’t have been that hard to ignore her, and he did reach out to her just as often as she reached out to him.
Flower sat quietly waiting for Genie to work out her own thoughts. “Bradley is lucky to have you,” Genie said finally.
“Luck has nothing to do with it. It’s pure skill.”
***
Shannon made it exactly three days before he found himself standing outside Genie’s door. As soon as he cleared the door, he admitted. “I couldn’t stay away.”
Lowering his head, he touched his lips to hers and couldn’t resist pulling her body to his. She was so perfect for him that he knew he was a goner. “You belong with me,” he whispered against her skin before pulling away. He held her gaze so that she would never doubt his sincerity in this. “You have to be with me because I don’t think I could stand for you not to be. I can’t get enough of being with you. I find every excuse I can think up to come see you every chance I get, and when you’re not around, I think about you nonstop and plot the next way I’m going to make you smile. I stand closer to you than I should so I can steal a whiff of your skin, a brush of your fingers, for a chance at touching you with mine, and I don’t think that I’m capable of not doing those things because I’m in love with you. My love is pretty well settled in too, so I’m afraid you’re stuck with me.”
“That’s good, since I love you too.”
Shannon was still trying to think up a stronger argument so it took a minute for her words to sink in. “You do?” he asked skeptically.
Genie rolled her eyes. “Well, wow,” he said wonderingly. He thought he’d have to make a spectacle of himself but she loved him too. He didn’t really want to make a fool of himself. However, he would have if she had kicked up a fuss, except that she already loved him simply because she did. “Wow,” he said again.
“You just said that.”
“It’s still true.”
A small frown appeared between her brows. “You can’t really be all that surprised. You’re perfect in every way.”
He snorted at her words. “I’m not perfect. I’m a workaholic and,” he searched around for more faults to point out about himself since he didn’t like being thought of as perfect—that was a tall pedestal to fall from. “And I snore,” he added.
She nodded her head solemnly. “I bet you pick up after yourself too.”
“Well of course I do, I mean, I live alone. If I don’t do it, who else will?”
She burst out laughing, finally after a deep breath, she seemed to have it all out of her system, but her eyes were still shining as she said. “I love you, Shannon.”
CHAPTER FIVE
Six months later- Murfreesboro, Tennessee
The distance between Shannon and him had grown by leaps and bounds over the last several months, leaving Weave at a loss as to how to fix it. They were receiving considerable amounts of work from the contacts they made while in Abernathy, and now Shannon divided his time between the two places, making it even more difficult for Weave to try. Shannon had been gone the past two weeks, only returning a day earlier. They hadn’t exchanged two words since his return even though their offices we’re right next to each other, and he knew Shannon would be leaving again the next day to return to Texas making it impossible, once again, for Weave to nail him down for a much needed talk. He was debating the merits of storming Shannon’s office when Bob skidded to a halt outside the open doors of Weave and Shannon’s offices. He bent at the waist in an attempt to
catch his breath, managing to gasp out: “Turn the T.V. to channel 2.”
Both men shot out of their seats since Bob wasn’t one for dramatics. Shannon was the first to find the remote, and he flipped through the channels, finding the right one. A special news report was flashing across the screen, and as an anchorman read the story, a picture of a burning building with a huge presence of emergency personnel played on a screen behind him. “Sources confirm that at least fifteen are dead and dozens more are injured tonight after a car bomb exploded in front of F.B.I. headquarters in Abernathy Texas earlier today. The names of the victims are yet to be released pending the notification of family members.”
The three men along with Mookie, who was attracted by all the attention, stood in a shocked silence, and Weave felt the world sway beneath his feet. Bob reached out to steady him, holding his gaze as he breathed. “Genie.”
“We don’t know anything yet,” Bob reassured him. “Let Shannon call around and find something out.”
It was only then that he noticed Shannon was indeed already making calls.
“There’s no answer on her cell phone,” he called over his shoulder. “I’m going to try her brother and see if her family knows anything.”
Her brother must have answered right away because Shannon switched his attention back to his phone. “Hey it’s Shannon, how bad is it?” He listened intently and when Shannon lifted his eyes to meet his, Weave knew the news wasn’t good but still he held his breath and prayed.
“Thanks for letting me know, and don’t hesitate to call if you need anything or if you hear anything more. I’ll let you know if I hear anything on my end.”
Shannon slid his phone into his back pocket. “She was inside the building at the time of the explosion, but that’s all they know so far. They haven’t been able to reach her or any members of her team and Jacob can’t get a flight out for three more hours which means I probably won’t be able to either.”
Weave didn’t hesitate. “Get his ass back on the phone and tell him to meet us at the air strip in half an hour.” This was one of those times that he was never more thankful to be the grandson of a famous pro wrestler. The family’s private jet was going to get him to Genie, and, brother or no brother, he was flying out of here as soon as he could have it fueled.
The tension inside the plane was thick enough it could be cut with a knife. Shannon switched his attention between staring out the window, as if he could will the plane to go faster, and texting Genie over and over again. Jacob, Genie’s brother, who Weave never met before today, stared straight ahead, not seeming to so much as blink. Bob and Weave both tapped their fingers nervously on their knees, and when Jacob’s cell phone rang, they all jumped at the sound. He glanced at it telling Shannon as he answered. “It’s mom,” he put the phone to his ear. “What’s the latest?” He listened intently then dug through his pockets until he found a scrap of paper and pen. “Okay I got it,” he listened a moment longer, scratching something down. “He’s right here; do you want to talk to him?” Jacob held the phone out for Shannon, and he quickly put it to his ear. Weave switched his attention to Jacob, keeping Shannon within his sights. Shannon closed his eyes covering them with one hand while listening to Genie’s mom talk. He looked as if he were trying to hold back tears.
“My Uncle Dan was able to find a person on the ground there, and they said Genie was taken to Mangold Memorial hospital, but whoever he talked to didn’t know her status,” Jacob said to no one in particular.
Shannon finished his call and was back to staring out the window, Jacob’s phone still held between his hands. Jacob reached for it, bringing Shannon’s attention back to him. “Oh sorry, man,” he told him, holding the phone out. Jacob squeezed Shannon’s arm in an obvious show of support. Weave couldn’t help but wonder when Shannon became so tight with Genie’s family.
After landing, they went straight to the hospital, exchanging as few words as possible since they were each lost in their own worries. Jacob went to the front desk as the rest of them hung back to wait. The nurse directed them to a waiting room before paging the doctor. They all refused to sit while they waited, and when a man in blue scrubs arrived, they all held their breaths. The doctor glanced between them. “Which of you is the husband?” Shannon stepped forward at the same time as Jacob pointed at him and Weave felt the air leave his lungs in a whoosh. The sound of his own heartbeat drummed loudly inside his ears, drowning out all other sound, and he searched for the edge of the chair, sitting down hard. Bob laid a hand on his shoulder while Jacob and Shannon stood hovering over the doctor, listening intently to what he was saying. It was then that Weave noticed the thin gold band that Shannon was wearing on his left hand. He had done it. He really had married her, and it was too late.
Shannon nodded absently at the doctor’s words. Jacob waved for them to follow, and they fell in line behind him as they worked their way through the halls of the hospital.
When they came to a closed door, they all paused with the exception of Shannon who rushed in ahead of everyone. Genie was turned on her side, one arm encased in a cast, and her body was covered in so many cuts and bruises that she was almost unrecognizable underneath the many bandages. Her gaze locked on Shannon, and a tear rolled out of the corner of her eye. He ran the length of the room, skidding to a stop at her side. Wasting no time, he framed her face with his hands, touching his forehead to hers. Shannon was openly crying now, as he spoke to her quietly, and it was then that Weave knew; not only were they married, but Shannon loved her as well.
The flight to Texas was almost unbearable for Shannon. The not knowing was too much. When he finally laid eyes upon her, he thought his heart would stop. Now that he was touching her, and knew she would be okay, he also knew he’d never be able to leave her side again for any length of time, which was really going to play hell on his business, but nothing else mattered in the world but her.
She was crying and that was killing him, but he knew the tears weren’t hers alone. Jacob was patting her foot just to have some contact with her, but Shannon found himself unable to back away long enough to let anyone else in.
“The doctor says I’m going to live,” she rasped out through dry lips. “But right now it doesn’t feel like it.”
Jacob, who was still dancing in place trying to find a way to be of use, jumped in. “Do you need pain medicine?” Feeling around her bed, he looked to see if there was a pain pump. “Do I need to find a nurse? Doesn’t anyone work around here?”
“I’m fine,” Genie croaked, bringing Jacob’s pacing to an end. “Have you called mom and dad?”
“Shit. I forgot,” Jacob, muttered leaving the room to make the call.
As soon as he was out the door, Shannon touched his lips to Genie’s, and then, because he couldn’t stop himself, he did it again. “I love you so much baby. I’ve never been so scared in my life.”
She started crying and babbling at his words. “Oh baby, I love you too, and from now on, wherever you go, I go. I don’t give a shit how we have to work it out. When I woke up, I didn’t know where I was, and all I wanted was to find you. I’m pretty sure my cell phone got it in the blast, and Steven is dead,” she added before her voice seemed to give out.
“Oh my god,” the air left his lungs making his chest tighten. “And Bradley?” he asked.
She shook her head. “Barely a scratch. It was the way we were standing huddled together when the blast hit. Bradley was standing in front of me looking down at our honeymoon pictures, and Steven was standing behind me looking over my shoulder, so Steven took the majority of the blast and we both, for the most part, shielded Bradley.”
Bob, like everyone else, was engrossed in the scene playing out in front of him. He had never seen Shannon like this, and as happy as he was for his lifelong friend and as relieved as he was that Genie was going to be alright, his heart was still breaking for his brother.
Shannon’s forehead was resting on Genie’s and his eyes were closed as if he w
ere simply breathing in her scent. Jacob glanced away obviously uncomfortable with intruding on the couple. “Hey, wasn’t there two of you?”
At Jacob’s words Bob turned back finding Weave gone. Bob took off in pursuit, knowing he couldn’t have gotten far. After questioning a couple of nurses, Bob found Weave sitting inside the hospital’s chapel. They were alone, and Bob slid into the seat next to Weave’s. He held his silence, since, as usual, he didn’t know what to say to ease his brother’s pain. Weave spoke without turning to look at him. “Did you know?”
“About which part?” Bob asked, unwilling to shoot himself in the foot.
Weave snorted at the obvious evasion. “I guess that answers that.”
“She couldn’t fix you,” Bob told him gently. “No one can fix you; believe me we have all tried, including Genie. She offered you a different life. She gave you a chance to turn it all around, but you didn’t want it. You have to fix yourself. I know that misery loves company, but Dude, you have to let other people be happy even if you don’t want to be. Did you expect her to never find anyone else? Did you expect Shannon to hold your hand through your depression for the rest of his life? Do you think you’re the only one to blame?” His chest felt heavy at the look of shock and hurt that crossed his twin’s face, but it was time for Weave to face the facts. “I killed that boy just as surely as you did. You were there and you know the truth. That kid didn’t think that I was you. He knew full well who he was attacking because I goaded him with my taunts, and I am every bit as guilty as you are.”
At Weave’s continued silence, Bob gave up. He said his peace. That was all he could do. It was all that he was ever able to do. So with one last squeeze of his brother’s arm, he walked away, passing Shannon as he came in.
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