Second Chances (sequel to Over You)

by Christine Kersey

  Chapter Thirty Three

  When she reached the base of the attic stairs she paused to listen, but no sounds drifted to her ears. Growing more frantic to know that Kyle was okay, she crept toward the main staircase, then peered downward. She couldn’t see anything. Holding the golf club over her shoulder like a bat, she tiptoed down the stairs. At the bottom, she pressed herself against the wall, and peered around the corner and into the living room.

  A loud grunt came from somewhere near the kitchen, and she hurried through the living room, then stopped to peek into the sunroom. The sight that met her eyes nearly made her gasp but she held it in, not wanting to give herself away.

  Kyle and Gary were on the ground, fighting, each trying to gain the upper hand. Jessica saw Gary’s gun lying on the floor about eight feet away from the men, but there was no way she could get it without them seeing her.

  Desperate to help Kyle, she stood where she was, helpless to do anything. When Gary slammed a fist into Kyle’s face, Jessica cringed, and mentally urged Kyle to fight harder. The men continued to pummel one another, with Kyle gaining control, and then Gary getting on top, but they moved so fast that Jessica was afraid to try to intervene for fear of hurting Kyle by mistake.

  After the fight had gone on for what seemed to Jessica like forever, Kyle sagged to the floor, gasping, his face bloodied. Then to her horror, Gary wrapped his thick fingers around Kyle’s neck.

  Sirens sounded in the distance, but Jessica feared they wouldn’t get there in time. Without conscious thought, she raced to where Gary sat on Kyle’s chest, and with the golf club held high, she swung it at his head as hard as she could.

  Gary released Kyle’s throat and fell to the side, but now his gun was only a few feet from where he lay. Jessica’s gaze darted to Kyle, but his eyes were closed and she feared he was unconscious.

  A movement caught her eye and she saw Gary slithering toward his gun, his hand outstretched. He was too far for her to hit him with the club, so she did the only thing that she could think of. She threw the club at him as hard as she could, but it bounced harmlessly off of his back at the same time that his fingers wrapped around the gun.

  Her gaze ricocheted frantically between Kyle and the gun now in Gary’s hand. As if by instinct, Jessica threw herself across Kyle’s body, then braced for the impact of the bullet. A gunshot rang out and she squeezed her eyes closed, waiting for the agony to swell over her and finally crest, but instead there was nothing.

  Confused, she lifted her head to see why Gary had missed when he had been so close, and was stunned to see him lying in a pool of blood. Her gaze rocketed around the room as she tried to comprehend what had happened, but when she saw Officer Parks standing where the French doors used to be, understanding dawned.

  Parks put two fingers to Gary’s throat, then turned to Jessica. “Are you okay?”

  “Yes, I’m fine, but Kyle’s unconscious.” She rolled off of him as Parks knelt by his side.

  Just then, several officers burst into the room with guns drawn, but quickly took in what had happened and holstered their weapons.

  “Over there,” one of the officers said to a pair of EMT’s, who rushed to Kyle’s side.

  Jessica moved back so that she wouldn’t be in the way and watched them care for Kyle. After a moment he began to stir and his eyes opened. Relief crashed over her in waves. More than anything she wanted to go to him—to hold his hand, to stroke his face, anything that would let him know she was there.

  The EMT’s put him on a stretcher and wheeled him to a waiting ambulance.

  “Where’s Ellen?” Officer Parks asked.

  “Oh!” In all the drama, Jessica had forgotten about her aunt. “She’s in the attic. I’ll go get her.”

  Parks smiled. “I’ll get her. You follow Kyle to the hospital.”

  With a look of gratitude, she said, “Thank you.” She dashed upstairs to get her purse, then hurried to her car and followed the ambulance as it drove away. With its lights flashing and sirens screaming, the ambulance went much faster than Jessica, and by the time she reached the hospital, Kyle had already been taken inside.

  As she waited for word on his condition, she wondered if on the day she’d been shot by Harrington, if Kyle had felt as frantic as she felt now. Pacing the small waiting area, her gaze went to the face of every person who walked by to see if they were coming to talk to her. She’d spoken to her aunt, who assured her she was fine. Jessica had explained what had happened, and told her aunt she’d come home as soon as she knew Kyle was going to be okay.

  An hour later Barnes came through the outside door, and Jessica was surprised to see him. “What’s happening?” she asked as she approached him.

  “I’m here to talk to Kyle.”

  “So he’s okay? Has anyone told you anything?”

  He smiled. “That’s what I’m here to find out.”

  “What about Gary Fuller? Is he . . ?” She pictured the pool of blood spreading beneath him, and frowned.

  Barnes nodded. “He didn’t make it.”

  With a mixture of sadness and relief, she nodded.

  “I’ll get your statement later,” he said. “Right now I want to talk to Kyle.”

  Forty-five minutes later, Barnes walked back out into the waiting room.

  “Is he okay?” Jessica asked.

  Barnes nodded. “I think he’ll be fine.”

  “Can I see him?”

  Motioning to a doctor who had come out behind him, Barnes said, “That’s up to him.”

  Her gaze went to the doctor, who said, “There’s someone asking to see you.”

  “Kyle.” His name came out as a sigh.

  The doctor nodded. With a smile to Barnes, Jessica followed the doctor, who led her to a short hallway, then into a small room. “I’ll leave you to visit,” he said, then he left.

  Kyle lay on a bed, a blanket up to his waist. Wide bandages wrapped around his ribs, and a row of neat stitches stretched across the left side of his forehead.

  With her eyes locked on his, she hurried to his side, then grabbed his right hand. “How are you feeling?”

  He smiled. “Much better now that you’re here.”

  Her eyes shimmered with unshed tears. “I was so worried. You were unconscious and I didn’t know how badly you were hurt.”

  With his left hand, he pointed to his mid-section. “Just a few bruised ribs.”

  She gently stroked his cheek. “And some stitches.”

  He laughed, but then grimaced. “I also have a split lip, but I think a kiss from you would help it feel better.”

  A smile lit her face, then she leaned over and pressed her lips against his. His free hand came up to the back of her head and he held her there for a moment. After breaking away, she gazed down at him. “After Ellen and I went into the attic, we heard a gunshot. What happened?”

  “That was Gary shooting through the French doors.” He frowned. “And I just replaced those a few weeks ago.”

  Jessica laughed.

  He smiled. “Anyway, I was in the living room, so I crept toward the sound and saw Gary standing there with his gun. Obviously I didn’t want to get shot, so I snuck up behind him and punched him, but he’s a pretty big guy, and all I managed to do was to knock the gun out of his hand. He spun around and started punching me. I got a few good hits in, but he overpowered me.”

  His description brought back the feelings of helplessness she’d felt as she’d watched them fighting, and her grip on his hand tightened. “I saw it. I saw you fighting.”

  “You did?”

  “Yes. I came to see what was happening. I was so worried about you.”

  He frowned, but didn’t say anything.

  “I saw you fighting, and then I guess he knocked you out because you stopped moving. And then . . .” Tears filled her eyes at the memory. “He was trying to . . . to strangle you.” She smiled. “Ellen told me to take a golf club with me, and when I saw him choking you I had to do something.” She
gazed at him and felt adrenaline pulse through her at the memory. “I swung that golf club at him as hard as I could. It got him off of you, but it didn’t seem to faze him at all.” Her heart pounded as she continued. “And then he got his gun.”

  Kyle stroked the back of her hand with his thumb. “Barnes told me that he talked to Officer Parks, and Parks told him what he saw.”

  Jessica stared at him, unsure what he meant.

  “Parks said that when Gary pointed his gun, you threw yourself on top of me.” His voice cracked. “To protect me.”

  “I couldn’t let him kill you,” she whispered.

  When he held out his left arm, she bent over his chest, careful not to put pressure on his ribs, and let him pull her into a warm embrace.

  “I love you so much,” he murmured into her ear.

  “And I love you.”

  After a moment she stood and gazed down at him.

  With his eyes full of love, Kyle gazed at her. After a moment, he smiled. “Maybe this isn’t the best place for this, but I just feel like the time is right.”

  Jessica watched his face, wondering what he was going to say.

  “Jessica, over the last few weeks, we’ve been through some challenging times, and I want you to know how much it means to me that you’re still here. By my side.” His voice began to shake. “Even willing to sacrifice your life for me.” He swallowed a few times until his voice was under control. “All that has added up to a very obvious conclusion. One that I don’t want to ignore any longer.” His sea green eyes seemed to glow from within. “Jessica, I want to spend the rest of my life with you.” He paused, and his smile grew. “Will you be my wife?”

  Her eyes widened as an overpowering feeling of joy swelled within her. “Yes.” Fresh tears filled her eyes. But this time—finally—they were tears of happiness. “Yes, I would love nothing more than to be your wife.”

  She bent and kissed him, but this time, knowing that he was truly hers, a feeling of passion and love like she’d never felt before flooded her. When they finally broke apart, she gazed down at him, then laughed.

  “What?” he asked.

  “I can’t marry you with you looking like that.”

  He chuckled softly. “I’m sure all these bumps and bruises will be healed by the time of our wedding.” His face turned serious. “And there will be a wedding.”

  She smiled. “After all we’ve been through, I have no doubt about that.”

  Epilogue

  Six Months Later

  Jessica peered out the window of her aunt’s spare bedroom, watching her wedding guests as they milled about the yard. Smoothing her white silk gown against her waist, her gaze eagerly sought out Kyle, and when she saw him talking to a group of people, looking extraordinarily handsome in his black tuxedo, she smiled. This was the day she’d been awaiting for years—ever since the first time she and Kyle had been engaged. Even though things hadn’t worked out the first time, with all they’d been through together, she had no doubt that they were better matched now than they’d ever been.

  Her gaze travelled to the faces of her parents, and a feeling of love filled her. Even though her mother had been worried about her dating Kyle again, she’d soon come to understand that this time was different, and she had embraced him fully, drawing him into the fold of their family.

  Then she saw her sweet aunt talking to Kyle’s mother, and felt so very lucky to have so many good people in her life. People who loved her and cared about her, and once again she felt blessed that her aunt was such an important part of her life. She’d even been the one to suggest holding the wedding at her house, joking that Kyle had done so much renovating there, that it seemed only right that he and Jessica should be married there.

  Her gaze was drawn to Detective Barnes, who had become a friend to both her and Kyle, and she smiled as she saw him laughing with someone. She thought about what had brought him into her life, and felt her smile fade just a bit, but when she considered how things had turned out, her good feelings returned.

  After that night when Gary Fuller had come into her aunt’s house with the intent of killing her, Douglas Harrington had come to realize that going to trial would not be the best course of action for him, and he’d pled guilty to a number of charges that would keep him in prison for a very long time. His son, Trey, had been cleared of any wrongdoing as he’d had no idea what his father had been up to with Gary.

  Remembering the unpleasant events surrounding Douglas Harrington brought Jessica’s mind to other challenges she’d faced during that time. She thought about Melanie and Avery, and all the difficulties she and Kyle had gone through as Kyle had worked through his feelings regarding the woman he’d so recently dated. She’d heard that Melanie had begun dating a man with whom she was becoming serious, and that made Jessica glad. She’d never wished unhappiness on the woman who had competed with her for Kyle’s heart, so to know that Melanie was on a path to finding someone she could love pleased Jessica.

  Then she thought about Melanie’s daughter. After Kyle had told Melanie that he wasn’t going to adopt Avery, Melanie had eventually come to realize that there was no future for them and had agreed to help Avery transition away from Kyle, and after the number of visits from Kyle had tapered off, Avery had stopped asking for him and had settled into her life with Melanie and her new boyfriend. It had been hard for Kyle, but he knew in the long run, it was the right decision. The fact that Melanie was becoming serious with someone else only seemed to emphasize the correctness of his choice.

  Thinking of Melanie led Jessica to thoughts of Alex. After Gary had tried to kill her, Jessica had called Alex and told him what had happened. She’d also told him that she and Kyle were engaged, even confessing that they’d been engaged before. To her surprise, not only had he told her that he was happy for her, but he’d apologized for claiming that she’d sent him an email when she hadn’t. They’d had a good talk and by the time they’d hung up, Jessica was glad she’d called him.

  And finally, as Jessica thought about what had happened with her job, she silently nodded, knowing that everything had worked out for the best. After she and Kyle had become engaged, she’d gone on several job interviews, but when nothing had panned out, and after thinking about different cell phone apps that she wished were available, she’d gotten the idea to try to create some of her own.

  On the suggestion of her aunt, she’d given up her apartment and moved in with her, and then worked on her ideas. She’d been pleasantly surprised by how well the apps were selling, and had come to realize that she’d created a new career for herself.

  She turned and looked at the room where she’d been living, knowing that after that day she’d be moving into Kyle’s house, and a feeling of nostalgia swept over her. She had loved living with her aunt, and would miss seeing her everyday. Her gaze went to the bed, where Hudson lay in a puddle of sunshine giving himself a bath. His fur had grown back in, and he looked like himself again.

  A soft knock on the door drew her thoughts away from her memories and back to the excitement of her wedding day. “Yes?” she called out.

  “It’s me,” her father said through the door.

  “Come in,” she said.

  Her dad opened the door and when he looked at her, he smiled. “Ah. You look lovely.”

  “Thank you.”

  “I know a man who is eager to see you walking down the aisle in that gorgeous dress, but are you ready?”

  A glow lit her from within. “Yes. I am more than ready.”

  “Good.” He held out his arm.

  She took it, then let him lead her down the stairs and out to the yard where everyone was waiting. When the Wedding March started, everyone stood and turned to watch her walk down the flower-strewn aisle, but her gaze was focused on only one face, and when her eyes met Kyle’s, she smiled, and her heart brimmed with love.

  Her father walked her up to the front, then placed her hand in Kyle’s, and as she and Kyle clasped each other’s ha
nds and spoke the words that truly made them belong to each other, Jessica knew that her dreams had finally come true, and that sometimes second chances came along, and she knew that this was meant to be.

  # # #

  Christine may write a book about Melanie and Avery. However, she is already committed to three more books in 2014, so it depends on reader interest. If you’d be interested in reading about Melanie and Avery, please send Christine an email letting her know. Her email is christine@christinekersey.com

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  Check out books by Christine

  Lily’s Story Trilogy

  He Loves Me Not (Lily’s Story, Book 1) — FREE

  Don’t Look Back (Lily’s Story, Book 2)

  Love At Last (Lily’s Story, Book 3)

  Ty and Alyssa’s Story — coming Fall, 2014

  Parallel Trilogy

  Gone (Parallel Trilogy, Book 1) — FREE

  Imprisoned (Parallel Trilogy, Book 2)

  Hunted (Parallel Trilogy, Book 3)

  Morgan and Billy, a Parallel story — coming May, 2014

  The Other Morgan, a Parallel story — coming August, 2014

  Over You — 2 book series

  Over You — FREE

  Second Chances (sequel to Over You)