Lucky Me

by B. B. Donnelly

  Asher tells his side of the story while the other paramedics check me out. Asher is reminding him that Tim was trespassing on his property. The officer is very understanding and is taking notes. He keeps nodding at parts just like he did during mine.

  “I think we should admit you and get an x-ray done on your pelvis area.” The paramedic says.

  I just nod my head. I’m too exhausted to argue tonight. They load me up and Asher jumps in with me. Michael stays behind to tell his side of the story to the police officer but promises to follow us to the hospital.

  Asher clutches my hand the whole ride and caresses my head in gentle motions. He is so emotional right now that it’s breaking my heart. When we arrive at the hospital, they take me to a room. As we are waiting for them to take me back for x-rays the nurses check me over.

  “Will someone tell me if Tim dies?” I ask Asher. He glances over at the nurses and leans in close.

  “I pray he does. He deserves to rot in hell.” He says with so much hate. I look at him with worried eyes.

  “Asher, I saw the text from Cala.” I state. He looks at me in shock.

  “Charleigh…”

  “We are ready for you.” A nurse says, bringing in a wheelchair. He looks at me in panic.

  “We will talk about it when you get back. It is not what you think.” He says with intensity. I just nod, but tears fill my eyes.

  “Charleigh, I swear.” He insists. The nurse gives us an odd look but helps me into the wheelchair.

  They run multiple tests and I’m taken back to the room to wait the results. Asher is there, but so is Michael.

  “Char Char!!” Michael says, leaping to his feet at my entrance. He comes over to me and helps me back into the bed.

  “How are you feeling?” He asks, worried.

  “Sore.” I say.

  “Your mom is out in the waiting room.”

  “I doubt for me.” I say and he looks at me with pity. I turn my head away, trying to hide the hurt.

  “What’s going on with Tim?”

  “He’s in surgery.” He replies.

  The door flies open, and my mom is standing there.

  “You whore!” She yells coming towards me. Asher stops her.

  “You lying little bitch! You stabbed my husband! He was just trying to help you!”

  “He had her pinned to a counter and was ripping her pants off, you dumb bitch!” Asher hisses at her.

  My mom looks at him in shock.

  “I can’t believe that!” She exclaims, her eyes wild.

  “Just like you could never believe the other times?” Michael says with a cold look towards her.

  “Not you too, Michael. After everything I have done for you. You are just going to take her side?”

  “I saw it with my own eyes, Cindy.” Michael says. He is lying, but I appreciate it. My mom just shakes her head in denial. She points a finger at me.

  “You are not my daughter. You are nothing to me.” She says coldly. I stare at her in silence. I will not cry. I will not shed a tear for her.

  “Nothing to say?” She fires at me with hate.

  “I feel sorry for you. I will never understand you and that’s okay. It will take time but eventually I will forgive you. I will never forget though.”

  “Get out.” Asher commands. He leads her to the door by the arm.

  “Let go of me!” She shrieks, but Asher just shoves her out the door and shuts it behind her.

  Michael is holding my hand and whispering that he loves me.

  “You have me.” He keeps saying over and over.

  There is a knock on the door and the same doctor I had before comes in.

  “Charleigh. I’m sorry about what happened to you.” Dr. Manning says, gives me a knowing look. He comes closer and checks the chart.

  “But I’m glad you got the bastard.” He says calmly and softly. I let out a short laugh.

  He smiles at me.

  “I will tell them what I can professionally and that I suspected the injuries were more than claimed. I will do what I can to help you put him behind bars.”

  “Thank you.” I murmur.

  “I have a daughter your age.” He says as an explanation. He pats me on the hand.

  “You are good to go. I didn’t see any damage, but you will be sore. You are pretty banged up. You do have a nasty concussion. Who is going to wake you every two hours?”

  “I am.” Asher jumps in. The doctor nods.

  “Okay, sign the papers and I’m going to give you a prescription for some pain medicine. Let me know if you need anything else. I’m really happy you were honest this time.”

  “I didn’t have a choice. I stabbed him.” I say dryly. The doctor laughs.

  “Yes, yes you did.” He says, smiling.

  “Is he alive?” I ask, signing the papers.

  “I can’t disclose that information to anyone but family. Oh wait, you are his stepdaughter, right?” He says with a wink.

  “Yes….”

  “Good. Yes, he will live to see another day. You stabbed him clean through. You didn’t hit any vital organs.”

  “Thank you.”

  “Good luck with everything, Charleigh.” He says and then leaves the room.

  The boys take me back to my apartment. They wanted me to go to Asher’s house, but I refuse to return there. When we enter the apartment, Roxy comes out of her room. She rushes towards me in her bathrobe.

  “What happened?” She asks, looking me over worried. I guess no one called her.

  “I’ll fill her in. You go get settled.” Michael offers.

  She watches me as I walk to the bathroom with Asher right behind me. Michael is talking to her in a hushed tone. I’m thankful he took over. I can’t repeat it again.

  The door closes behind us and I don’t look at Asher. I peel off my clothes, still not looking at him. I turn on the shower until it is hot. I get in and try my best to scrub away everything, but nothing helps. I can’t get his touch off my skin. I scrub and scrub. My tears intertwine with the water. Soon, I’m sobbing.

  The next thing I know, I’m in Asher’s arms. He is naked and holding me in the shower. I let him hold me as I cry on his shoulder. We stand there until the water turns cold. He helps me out of the shower and wraps a towel around me.

  I’m exhausted. He helps me back to my room and I pull on an extra-large t-shirt and a pair of underwear. I crawl into my bed and lay on my side. Asher climbs in bed and cuddles against me.

  “I know you are mad at me, but will you listen. Will you let me explain?”

  “Yes.” I say softly. I turn over to look him in the eyes.

  “I came over to your house for that reason. I had to know why you didn’t tell me you hooked up with her. Why did you lie?” I ask, breathless.

  “I didn’t lie. I never hooked up with her.”

  “She sent you a picture.” I say.

  “Yes, she did, and I was going to show you tonight. We had the perfect night last night. I didn’t want to ruin it. I was going to show you this.” He slides his phone open and hits the message.

  The picture pops up, but then I read the message he sent back.

  I’m sorry you are under the impression that there was more than just us posing for the paparazzi. I am not single. I am completely in love with my girlfriend. She is the real deal and I’m not going to do anything that would risk losing her. Please do not send me anymore pictures like this. It makes me uncomfortable and will hurt my girlfriend.

  I read her response.

  I’m so sorry! I totally misread the situation. Please apologize to your girlfriend for me. I swear I am not that kind of girl to try to get with someone that is taken. Good luck with your career and I wish you two the best!

  “I love you. I will never do anything to hurt you. You’ve been through so much in your life. There have been people that have hurt you and taken advantage of you, but it has made you such a strong person and a fighter. No one, including me, will ever hurt you a
gain. I will never love anyone as much as I love you. I know how lucky I am to find you. I will not risk this chance I have at happiness. You trust me, don’t you?”

  “I do. I love you so much. I’m so scared of what the future holds.” I say.

  “We all are, but we have to take that chance.”

  “It’s the luck of the draw, isn’t it?” I say softly.

  “I like to think I make my own luck.” He says with a wink.

  Epilogue

  I healed from my injuries and Tim survived like the doctor predicted. I was not charged with anything, but Tim is going away for a while. He was charged for breaking and entering and assault. My mother has not spoken to me and I have not attempted to contact her. I’m putting it all behind me. I heard through the grapevine that she is divorcing Tim and is already dating a multimillionaire. People like her always seem to land on their feet. I wish her good riddance.

  I finally found the courage to go back to Asher’s house. When I arrived, I noticed a FOR SALE sign in the front yard of my old house. The house looks empty and lonely.

  We graduated from high school in the middle of May and I’m so proud of my boys. We have come a long way. We took our pictures with our fellow classmates and accepted our diplomas to the sound of Tammy screaming out our names. She has been my rock and the mother I never had. She is dating Mr. Brown and is very happy. I think it helps Asher’s anger towards his father and the situation, seeing how happy she is.

  After graduation, we recorded the song Lucky Me. It hit number one on the billboard and stayed there for weeks. I model every once in a while, but I decided to go on tour with The Orphans. I open for them and sing my songs that I’ve written. I’m making quite a name for myself. Torture Me is skyrocketing on the billboards. It’s the song I started writing when I was staying with Michael in the hospital. I join the boys on stage every show and we sing Lucky Me because it is a fan favorite. Fame and fans follow us everywhere. We are in the spotlight constantly.

  No matter how crazy our life is, Asher has been amazing. Our love grows stronger every day. The groupies do their best, but he only has eyes for me, and I only ever had eyes for him.

  Michael had a relapse and it was a really hard time for us all, but he pulled through and is doing well. Our relationship has grown. We are each other’s only real family and that will tie us together forever.

  I moved out of Roxy’s apartment since I was traveling so much with the band. We are really close friends and she is proud to say she is my personal stylist. Trix left for college and we stay in touch, but it’s hard. Blake was arrested and sent to prison for selling drugs to minors.

  I look back on my life and always thought how unlucky I was, but in the end, my luck changed.

  I’m brought back to the present when the beginning of Lucky Me starts playing and I look out into the crowd. Asher comes up to me and grabs my hand. He pulls me towards him so he can stare into my eyes. He mouths I love you. I wink at him and smile. I start singing the song we wrote. More than ever the lyrics sing to my soul.

  When Asher joins in, a hush goes through the crowd. It’s so beautiful. I will never forget all that it took to get to this point. He cups my face and I swear I hear the crowd sigh. We show our love through our voices and let our hearts sing as one.

  When the song ends, the crowd explodes. Asher pulls me into his arms and kisses me passionately, not caring about the thousands of fans screaming our names. The lights shine down on us and in this moment… all I can think is….

  Lucky Me.

  Acknowledgments

  To my family and friends, you truly are the reason I keep writing. Your faith and support mean the world to me. I seriously love getting your messages after you read my books. Your encouragement keeps me going!

  To my husband, thank you for listening to me, tolerating me when I’m in my zone, answering my crazy police scenario questions, giving me names for characters, and mostly, for loving me. I love you! To my three kiddos, thank you for loving me, encouraging me with your sweet hugs and telling me how proud you are of me. I love you so much. You are my world and always will be.

  To my mom, thank you for being my best friend, confidante, and the best mother in the world. To my dad, thank you for being my hero and biggest cheerleader. I thank god every day that you guys have never given up on me and have always supported me and my crazy dreams. I love you and thank you for giving me everything in the world to succeed.

  To my IGCO book club and IGCO family, you guys keep me laughing and I can’t thank you enough for pushing me with your kind words. I love my little fan club. You all know how crazy my life can be and you continue to encourage me with your support.

  To my readers and fans, thank you for taking a chance on my books. I love writing and I hope you enjoyed Charleigh and Asher’s journey. Thank you so much for your words of support and taking the time to do reviews. I really appreciate it! Like my Facebook Page for updates and new releases!

  Keep Reading, Keep Dreaming, and Always Reach High!

  Til next time….

  B.B. Donnelly

  ABOUT THE AUTHOR

  B.B. Donnelly lives in Illinois with her husband and three amazing children. She is an Instructor at a Junior College during the day and a Dance Instructor at night. When she isn’t writing, working, or running children to their many events, you can find her drinking lots of coffee, reading anything to help her escape her crazy, busy, life, and of course, enjoying her family.

  BOOKS BY B.B. DONNELLY

  Available on Paperback and Kindle

  I SEE YOU (Book 1)NO REGRETS (standalone)

  I MISS YOU (Book 2)LUCKY ME (standalone)