Finding Peace (Breaking Free Series Book 2)

by Becca Taylor

  Mike

  I SIT ON THE COUCH contemplating what I should do. How do I get to show Alyssa the errors in her ways? God dammit, I never should have let her stay in that house with that dipshit. He’s ruined everything. He’s got in her head. She’s never acted like this before.

  I thought if she saw me, I could change her mind, but she signed the papers; I didn’t think she actually would. Then, she just walked out, like it meant nothing. I just needed to talk to her and things escalated. I wanted to knock some sense in her. She never should have talked to me that way.

  I give her some time to think about things, but it doesn’t take me long to realize it is time to end this nonsense. I head to her place just after dark. I knock on the door and she doesn’t answer. By the forth knock, I figure she isn’t here. I sit on the deck, waiting, for over an hour. I get in my car and drive away. I sleep on the couch hoping she will call or text to say that she has made a mistake. That all of this was a mistake. That's all it is, one big fucking mishap.

  Someone rings the doorbell early the next morning, and I think it is my Alyssa finally coming home. But I get a bigger surprise when I answer and the police are on the other side of the door. Some bullshit documents in their hands.

  For the second time this week, I'm meeting with my attorney, Mr. Schmidt.

  "I don't understand how she can be doing this. I didn't do anything."

  He looks at me with a raised eyebrow. "Are you sure about that? Ms. Amsel's attorney has enough statements that prove otherwise. And this too." He tosses some photographs in front of me. I look at them.

  "I didn't do that. This is bull."

  He adds another piece of paper on top of the photographs. "This person says otherwise. This is a statement from a witness who saw you hold Ms. Amsel by both wrists. She then goes on to say you raised a hand to her before taking off."

  I know I was angry, but there's no way. I’d had a few drinks before I got to the restaurant to calm myself before seeing Alyssa. I remember we kissed. She yelled and I remember thinking she needed time and space to think about what she said. Fuck, I don't remember.

  "Now what? How do we fix this? Do I talk to her?" I ask, thinking maybe if I talk to Alyssa we can clear up this nonsense.

  "You do nothing. You let me handle it. You don't go near her. Don't contact her at all. If you do, you will head straight to jail. We have one week until court. I will work out a deal and you will follow through with whatever it is."

  I have no choice but to do what he says. Aly had better drop this before then. She will come to her senses. She always does. It's just taking her longer than I expected.

  Bentley

  MY PHONE HAS BEEN blowing up. The rage I am feeling is so strong, I don’t want to talk to anyone, so I turn it the fuck off.

  I stood across the street and watched it happen. I couldn’t hear what Aly was saying to Mike. I didn’t need to. I saw him take her hands, then pull her close and put his mouth on hers. I watched for what seemed like hours. Aly saw me, she looked right as me as she caressed her mouth. My mind kept going back to all those times she said it was over between her and Mike; my hopes constantly crashing and burning. The next day, she’d be back together with him. I didn’t think she would do that again, but what I saw, looked like what I feared. My brain and heart couldn’t process what was going on, couldn’t take it again. When I watched Mike take her hand and pull her close, all I could do was turn and walk away.

  What no one knows, not even my best friends, is that just an hour earlier I got the keys to another house, one that I want to renovate with Aly in mind, a house we can call our own. It’s close in location to my current house, similar in style, but made for a family. It makes the perfect place for me to lay low and figure out what the hell to do with it now that Aly isn’t going to be a part of it.

  Before you think I made a rash decision, let me explain that I was planning on talking to Aly to find out what happened. I took a run to cool off that night. When I got back to the house, the lights were off, and Mike’s car was pulling away. Since then, like a fool, every night, I go for a run on the beach and check her apartment. The first two nights she wasn’t there, but the past few nights I’ve seen her in the kitchen cooking. Thankfully, she has been alone.

  Tonight, I am using a sledge hammer to demolish the kitchen. I know I need to call Caleb as I am ignoring our business. After I finish taking it out on the cabinets, it is time to talk to him. Turning on my phone for the first time in 4 days, my phone instantly starts buzzing with all my missed calls and texts. It takes a few minutes for me to use it due to all the notifications.

  I can hear how pissed Caleb is at me when he answers. “What the fuck, Bentley? I’ve been trying to reach you.”

  I interrupt his rant. “Shut up. I called, didn’t I? Listen, I don’t want to talk. I just want you to know I need a little more time off.”

  “You need to know what’s been going on.”

  No, I don’t. “I don’t want to talk about anything but work. Can you handle it without me?” If it wasn’t for Butter My Bread, I would have gone into complete hiding until I work my shit out.

  “Work is fine. I got your back, but you need to hear me out about Aly.”

  “No, Cal. My head is too fucked up right now. I got some shit I need to take care of, so I’ll let you know when I’ll be back. Plan for me to be out at least another few days. I’ll make it up to you, bro.”

  He tries to talk to me about Aly again; I hang up and turn my phone off again. I glance at the text messages.

  Aly: Call me.

  Aly: Where are you? Please come home.

  Aly: Why aren’t you answering your phone? Are you okay?

  Aly: Just call me.

  Aly: I’ll be at Kat’s and Caleb’s tonight.

  Aly: If you are home, I’ll come back tonight. Let me know.

  Aly: Good night, Bents.

  I stop reading after that one. I need time. I head straight towards the air mattress I bought, praying tonight I’ll get some sleep.

  I spend the morning cleaning up the mess I made in the kitchen. By the time I finish, I’m covered head to toe in dust and grime. I head to the apartment in need of clothes and a decent shower. Knowing Aly is probably at work, it’s clear for me to go for a while.

  The house is silent. I shower quickly, grab some clothes and food and head back out. As I’m leaving, Hunter is sitting at the bottom of the stairs.

  “You want to talk here or upstairs?”

  I opt for here, but don’t say anything else.

  “Where the fuck have you been?” he asks, completely pissed off at me.

  “Around. How did you know I was here?”

  “I saw your car when I was out for my run. And while you were ‘around’, shit went bad. Why haven’t you answered anyone? You have a business to run, yet you just decide you’re not going to show up for days? That’s fucking selfish, man. What’s worse, you’re ignoring someone who needs you right now.”

  I know I ignored everyone, but I didn’t understand why he was giving me such shit.

  “What are you talking about?” I demand angrily.

  “Listen, I don’t know what’s really going on. Caleb’s not talking about it. All I know is something is going on with Aly, and it’s not good. You want to tell me what happened?”

  I rest my arms on my lap, head in hands.

  “The short version. Saw her kissing her ex. I just walked away, haven’t talked to her since.”

  “Shit, sorry man. I’m pretty sure you got it wrong though. That girl, she’s crazy about you. Any chance you saw wrong?”

  “No, Hunter. I saw it with my own eyes. I’m not crazy.”.

  He holds his hands up in surrender. “Didn’t mean it like that. I know the type that cheats, and Aly’s not one of them. Besides, Caleb’s been stressing. All I know is it has something to do with your girl. He’s not talking, said it’s not his business to tell. What he did say was if you resurfaced, he needed to t
alk to you. He said and I quote, ‘Shit is so fucking bad, you can smell it from miles away.’ So call him, sooner rather than later. You know where I’m at, if you need anything.” He jogs out to the beach, heading back towards his place.

  I head back upstairs. I sit out on the deck for a while before turning on my phone. I start thumbing through my messages. Most are from Aly, asking me to call her, she needs to explain, come home. Some are from Hunter, asking me where I am. The rest are from Caleb, telling me to get my fucking ass back home. Aly is in trouble. That gets my attention. I call Caleb first.

  “Talk.” I say, when he answers his phone.

  “Nice to hear from you too, asshole.” I deserve it.

  “Just tell me what’s going on, Caleb.”

  “Why the fuck should I tell you anything? I thought you needed more time.”

  I can just picture him standing, arms crossed with a fuck you look on his face. So, I go for the gut punch.

  “Because if it was Kat, you would want to know. Cal, I don’t know what’s going on, but from what Hunter just told me something is.”

  “You got that right.”

  Fuck, he is frustrating.

  “You going to tell me or should I call Kat for answers?”

  He laughs.

  “Oh, I wouldn’t call Kat if I were you. She already told me when she sees you she’s going to chop off your balls and hang them on our Christmas tree as an ornament. And, man, I don’t want to have to look at your balls swinging on my tree.” The dude is serious.

  “Then talk. I like my balls right where they are. Come on, Caleb, tell me how I fucked up. I know I did.”

  He scoffs at me.

  “It’s not good, Bent. After you walked away, shit went down. What you saw was not what you think.”

  I already figured that. In fact, I knew it all along; it just took some time for my head to play catch up.

  “I don’t know how to tell you.”

  “Just say it.”

  “She told Mike to fuck off, and he came close to swinging. Put his hands on her so hard, I saw the bruises on her wrists.”

  My heart jumps out of my chest. I pray I just heard him wrong. I feel like I am going to be sick. I walked away from her right before the fucker hurt her. I could have stopped it.

  “You hear me, bro?”

  “Yea, I hear you. God dammit.” The pressure on my chest is so intense, I think I am having a heart attack. I feel like I am suffocating. “Just tell me she’s okay.”

  “She’s alright. From what I know, before he could make any major physical contact, she screamed, and the tool took off. Kat took her to the police station. Aly stayed here for a few days. She’s going to be going through a lot in the next few weeks.”

  “What do you mean?” I feel like scum. If I had only stuck around, she wouldn’t be going through anything.

  “Restraining order, court dates, attorneys. That’s all I know.”

  I let loose a stream of curse words.

  “I messed up. Cal, if I would have stayed a little longer… If I had gotten there sooner, it wouldn’t have happened.”

  “What’s done, is done. Can’t change what happened, Bent. You can change what you are doing now. She needs you, more than ever. The girl was more worried about you than herself the first night. So what are you going to do? You going to keep hiding out, or are you going to make things right?”

  He’s right. Hiding out isn’t helping anything. I don’t feel any better.

  “I’ll talk to her. I’m at the house. I’ve been keeping an eye on the place.” That’s when I tell him about the new house, why I ran off, and where I’ve been the past few days.

  “Time to make it right, brother.”

  I hang up after him. I sit on the swing by her apartment for the rest of the afternoon, waiting for her to come home. When I hear her car pull up, my heart leaps. I don’t know if she is going to tell me to fuck off; she has every right to. I have been a complete ass, ignoring her for almost a week now.

  Aly stops when she reaches the top step. Her briefcase falls to the ground. Before I can even get out of the seat, she’s already running straight to me. Her body hits mine with a thud.

  “I’m so sorry, Aly. I never should have left you there.”

  Alyssa

  THE MINUTE I SEE Bentley puts me down, both anger and relief flood through me. I lock my gaze with his. “You know I’m mad at you.”

  “You have every right to be.”

  “I should kick you in the balls for not talking to me.”

  “You could, but I hope you won’t.”

  “You didn’t respond to any of my millions texts. Not a call. Nothing. I should walk away and not talk to you.” Every emotion I kept inside the past few days finally breaks free. “But I really need you right now.” He holds me in his arms until my crying subsides. “Where have you been?” I ask Bentley when it finally feels like I can talk.

  “Not close enough. I should’ve been here.” His arms wrap around me tighter. “I don’t blame you if you hate me, because after speaking to Caleb I hate myself.”

  “What did he tell you?” The truth is, I am ashamed to tell Bentley everything, I wonder how much I won’t have to.

  “Enough. I know what Mike did and what you are going through now. Fuck, Aly, if I had gotten to you seconds earlier, this wouldn’t have happened. His hands wouldn’t have been on you.”

  I don’t want Bentley blaming himself; I blamed myself enough through the past week. “It’s not your fault. The only one to blame is Mike. I don’t want you to think I initiated the kiss, or that I liked it. I tried to pull away. Then I went into shock that it even happened. It was my fault. I should have walked away and gone straight to you, but I chose to stay and yell at Mike. I should have known what he was like.”

  He groans when I finish. “Fuck, Aly. I just want to go and kill him for hurting you. You shouldn’t have needed to come after me. Fuck, I shouldn’t have left.”

  “You can’t go after him, Bentley. Besides he can’t come near me now, and from what my lawyer says the case is in my favor.”

  “Will he go to jail?”

  I shake my head.

  “Why the fuck not? Look at your wrists, he left bruises on them!”

  “I didn’t press charges. I am just getting a restraining order.” I knew that would upset Bentley, but I didn’t want to deal with an added assault charge. I told my lawyer what happened. She has the pictures Kat took if we need to use them. Because we didn’t go to the hospital and get it formally documented, it might not hold up in court. She said the verbal abuse should be enough evidence for the order to go through. We have enough statements, including the woman who helped me to my car. My lawyer found her, she is a waitress at the restaurant, and she is our best witness.

  “Aly, I don’t like this. There should be a stronger punishment than that he can’t come so many feet from you. He physically hurt you.”

  I can feel his heart racing below his shirt.

  “I know everyone disagrees with what I’m doing, but I don’t want that. I just want to move on and forget it happened. Please, Bentley, let it be.” I plead with him.

  “I’m not happy about it. But it’s your choice. I have no right to tell you what to do after my actions.” He wraps his arms tighter around me, holding me close. “But if he so much as looks at you wrong in court, I will bring that shit up.”

  “My lawyer assured me if that if I feel uncomfortable at all, I can ask to be separated from him. Once my lawyer hands over everyone’s statements, the judge will hear my case. The court will then decide if the restraining order will be placed. I may need a statement about what you witnessed between him and me.”

  “I will give you anything to help your case, and I’ll be here any time you need me. You call, I’ll come.”

  “Bentley, I understand why you walked away. I might’ve done the same thing. I’m just glad that you came back.”

  He lifts my head with his fingers. “W
hy would you forgive me so easily? I ignored you and everyone else for days. You should be yelling at me, telling me I’m a complete jerk. A coward.”

  I disagree. “You’re not any of those. I couldn’t hate you, ever. You mean too much to me.” What I want to add is “because I love you.” I don’t though.

  “Right back at you, Angel.”

  “Are you going to stay here tonight?”

  “I’ll be right upstairs in my apartment.”

  “That’s not what I mean. I mean here in my place.” Now that he is here with me, I don’t want to be apart from him.

  “I didn’t want to press my luck.”

  As I unlock the front door, Bentley grabs my briefcase and follows me inside.

  Bentley makes us dinner. He holds me while we watch television and while I sleep that night. It’s the first night I’ve felt safe this week.

  Bentley

  I WAKE WITH ALY in my arms. She looks like an angel, with her blonde hair fanned across the pillow, lips opened slightly, arms wrapped around me. I don’t want to leave her, but I know it is well past time for me to get back to work. I’ve been neglecting Butter My Bread for too long.

  My lips touch her forehead, and she starts to stir. “Wake up, Angel.” Her blue eyes open, looking straight into mine. It takes all I have to keep from burying myself deep inside her. But, now is not the time, damn it.

  “Morning, Bents. Why are you up so early?”

  “I need to go to work today. Caleb’s been covering for me, and I owe him. Will you be okay here alone?”

  “I understand. I’ll be fine. I have another few hours before work. Will you be home for dinner?”

  I like the way she says home.

  “I’ll probably be at work all day. Can we have a late dinner?”