“I remember Aiden coming into my room one night when my parents were fighting over whether he should go to college,” she said, sprinkling salt and pepper onto her eggs and hash browns. “I was nine at the time. I just asked him which option would keep him closer so I could see him more often. The next day, he applied to Georgia Tech without consulting our parents. He was accepted and offered a full scholarship.
“When my father found out that Aiden was going to skip the draft and play college ball, he was furious. Aiden told him that he wanted to be close to home so I could see him play.” She ate some hash browns, then fiddled with her fork. Her eyes were on her plate when she said, “That was the first time my father hit me.”
Cole slowly lowered his fork. The bite of sausage in his mouth suddenly tasted bitter, but he swallowed it. His gaze swept over Everly’s face as he pictured a father raising a hand to a nine-year-old little girl. The dusting of freckles on her nose stood out in unusually stark contrast to her pale skin, making her look fragile. The bruise made her look broken.
He shouldn’t have asked her to revisit this, he realized. He couldn’t bear it.
But he would do this, because Everly had borne it.
When he didn’t comment, she ate another bite of hash browns, then went on, “He waited until Aiden and my mom were both out of the house. He asked me if I had said anything to my brother about going to college. When I confessed about my conversation with Aiden, he hit me in the side of the head. It knocked me over a footstool. I sprained my wrist. He told me that I’d better tell everyone that it had been an accident or I’d suffer far worse. So I lied. Clearly, it was far from the last time that sort of thing happened.”
She drank some more coffee. Finally, her gaze met his. “As you may know from your earlier research, Aiden was spectacular at Tech. He broke a couple of records.” She smiled briefly. “The first three years he was there were the happiest of his life. He met a girl his sophomore year. Natalie. She was nice. Didn’t treat me like a dweebie little sister. Anyway, she graduated the year before Aiden did. I realized they were having some problems as his senior year went on, but I was too young and self-involved to know exactly what was up. Later, I found out that Natalie was taking care of her sick mother and trying to get her career off the ground, so she wasn’t as much a part of Aiden’s life as he was used to. At his funeral, she was a wreck. She blamed herself, which is foolish, of course. But I’m getting ahead of myself.
“Early in his senior year, Aiden’s elbow started bothering him. At first, it was only during certain pitches. Sliders, mostly. He thought there was something off with his mechanics. My father paid for special consultations with pitching instructors, but none of it helped.”
Cole nodded. For him, the shoulder pain was first noticeable while throwing a curve.
“It got progressively worse. By mid-season, Aiden’s team doctors recommended that he consult with an orthopedic surgeon. My father blew them off. I overheard him convincing Aiden to do the same. They knew that surgery meant an end to his season. It also meant he’d miss out on the draft. To my father, there wasn’t anything worse. He could all but taste the success he’d experience by having fathered a star athlete. It was all he ever wanted since he missed out on being the star himself.”
She ate some of her eggs, then sipped her coffee. Manny walked over with the pot and refilled both of their mugs. After making sure they had everything they needed, he left them alone again. Outside, the snow continued to fall.
“I spoke with my brother separately, tried to reason with him. He was about to earn his bachelor’s degree in computer science from one of the top universities in the country. It wasn’t like he didn’t have a fall-back if things didn’t work out with baseball. This time, however, he listened to my father. Two weeks later, he tore his UCL.”
Cole winced. Everly nodded.
“Yeah. Doctors decided that Tommy John surgery was the only option. Put him out for the rest of the season. That was really the beginning of the end.”
Finished with his breakfast, Cole reached across the table and touched her right hand. “Your food has to be getting cold. Why don’t you humor me and eat.”
She didn’t argue. They both knew what was coming. He figured a couple of minutes for her to collect her thoughts wouldn’t hurt.
When she had cleaned her plate, Manny walked up and took the empty dishes. “Take your time,” he told them. “Just holler if you need anything.”
They thanked him. Then Everly’s gaze once again grew reflective.
“Aiden wasn’t the same after the injury. He lost a lot of the spirit that I loved about him. Instead of focusing on getting healthy and finding another way to pursue his dream, he dwelled on what could have been. He neglected his conditioning after the surgery, basically giving up. I tried to help motivate him, but I couldn’t get through to him.”
Her eyes grew damp. He reached across the table and took her hand. She gripped it tight.
“After graduation, with the draft behind him and no offers made, Aiden sank deeper into depression. He broke things off with Natalie and stopped hanging out with his friends from school. He refused to talk to me about what bothered him. And he argued with my parents on a daily basis. I listened to numerous shouting matches with my father going on about how Aiden had blown his chance at greatness. How he’d never amount to anything now. It was horrible.”
He couldn’t even imagine.
“Then Aiden started issuing dark comments. Comments about how it would have been better if he’d never been born. He frightened me. When I expressed my concern to my mom, she said that Aiden was just going through a tough time. That it would pass. But I didn’t think so.”
She took a shuddering breath and let it out. Her hold on his hand was crushing.
“I don’t know why I went home early that day. I was supposed to stay late for an introduction to drama club, but I knew my parents would be at marital counseling and Aiden was home alone. The way he’d been acting...” She shook her head. “Anyway, I skipped drama club and took the bus home. I had just opened the front door when I heard the shot.”
It took her a moment to continue. A tear rolled over her bruised cheek. He felt like he was in the middle of a horror movie, reliving this tragedy with her.
“I don’t really remember much after that. Images, really. Nightmares. Doctors said that my mind is protecting me from the trauma. Whatever. I remember enough to know that Aiden missed his heart with the shot. He was still alive when I reached his bedroom.”
Cole’s throat tightened. “God. I’m so sorry, Everly.”
She just nodded as tears continued to fall. After a moment, she reached into her purse and pulled out a laminated slip of paper. Handing it to him, she said, “I lost the person I loved most that day. After that, everything changed.”
The paper had something that looked distressingly like blood around the edges. Handwritten on it was the message, I love you, Everly. I’m sorry.
His gaze lifted to hers. He didn’t know what to say.
“You’re the only person other than me or Aiden who has seen that,” she said. “I hid it before the emergency crews arrived, though I don’t remember it. A couple of months after his funeral, I spotted some blood on the edge of one of my jewelry boxes. I’d stuck the note in there.”
Handing it back to her, he squeezed her hand again. “Thank you for sharing that with me. You don’t have to tell me more if you don’t want to.”
“Thanks. But we’ve come this far. Might as well bring it home.”
Seeing that she wanted to go on, he nodded.
“I’ll bottom line it for you. My father blamed me for Aiden’s death. He insisted that I forced Aiden into going to college...that Aiden would have started in the majors out of high school if I hadn’t interfered.”
Cole’s temper simmered. “That’s ridiculous,” he said.
She shrugged. “Sure it is. I told him that. So he shoved me down a flight of stairs.”
Fury all but choked him. “Son of a bitch. That’s why you have those remodeled injuries.”
For a moment, she looked blank. Then she seemed to realize he must have heard about the injuries when she was hospitalized.
“Yes. By then, I was used to explaining my injuries away as accidents or klutziness. Since my father left while I was still in the hospital, there didn’t seem to be any reason to bring the authorities into it. So I lied again.”
His jaw worked as he bit back a comment. Her bastard father should be rotting in a prison cell. But Cole hadn’t been the one enduring the abuse. He knew she’d done what she had to.
She saw his expression. “I was protecting my mom, not him. Please understand that. Mom and I were suddenly on our own. My father left his steady job here and took an umpiring gig out of the country. Mom hadn’t worked a day in her life. Although a friend of hers got her a part-time job in a women’s clothing store, it barely kept the power on and gas in the car, never mind paying for a mortgage or health insurance. By the time I was fifteen, we had to sell the house and most of the furnishings and move in with my grandpa.
“He was a godsend. He knew his son had failed his family by abandoning us, so he took us in and made us feel welcome. I was in a tough stage...acting out, full of hate and anger, keeping everyone at arm’s length. My mom was too busy drinking or taking pills to deal with me, so he did. He was there after Mom died, too. He’s everything to me.”
When she got teary again, he said, “That’s why you worked so hard from the time you turned sixteen, isn’t it?”
She nodded and wiped her wet cheeks. “My father came home for my mother’s funeral. He cashed in her life insurance policy and headed right back out of the country with the money. Since my grandpa was retired and only receiving small pension checks, I got a job flipping burgers and worked my ass off at school. Ironically, my father is the one who motivated me to become a physical therapist. I vowed that I would do whatever I could to avoid anyone else ever going through what Aiden’s death did to us.”
He held her stare for a long moment before he realized that she had finished her story. She wiped another tear away. Her expression wavered between worry and relief.
Did she wonder how he’d take all of this? How could she not know?
“Everly Wallace,” he said. “You’re the strongest person I’ve ever met. I understand why you don’t talk about your past with just anyone, and I can’t tell you how much it means that you shared it with me. I’m awed by the courage you’ve shown in overcoming such tragedy. I’m saddened by all that you’ve lost. And I’m proud of all that you’ve accomplished.
“But you should know that if I ever see your father again, I’m going to rip out his goddamn throat.”
Chapter 46
Everly’s eyebrows shot up after Cole’s declaration. She hadn’t ever seen this particular look in his eyes before. She believed that he meant what he said.
Outside of her grandpa, no one had ever stood as her champion. It made her want to weep.
Since she’d done enough of that already, she smiled and said, “Thanks.”
He reached over and brushed the backs of his fingers against her bruised cheek. “Why did your father do this?”
Her eyes drifted down to the table. “He wanted me to do something I wasn’t willing to.”
When he didn’t reply, she looked up. He just sat there staring at her. She realized he was waiting for more of an explanation. She supposed he deserved that much after all of this.
“He wanted me to ask you to get him an umpiring job here in the States,” she said in a flat tone. “He figured you’d do it since we’re sleeping together. According to him, I’m fulfilling my role as his female child by whoring for favors.”
Cole sat back in the booth, his gaze disbelieving. He looked out the window at the lightening sky. They sat in silence for a couple of minutes. Everly finished her coffee and used a napkin to wipe the residue of her tears off her face. She was sure she looked wrecked. The lack of sleep and emotional purging were taking their toll.
A ring sounded from Cole’s pocket. “Shit,” he said as he reached for his cell. “I called your grandpa, but I forgot to call Wyatt and let him know I found you.”
Guilt struck her again when she realized she’d affected even more people than she thought with her behavior the night before. “May I?” she asked, reaching out before he answered it.
He shrugged and handed it to her. She tapped the accept button.
“Hi, Wyatt,” she said. “Yes, I’m fine, thanks. I’m sorry I caused you—oh, he didn’t do anything. No, I swear—well, if you want to kick his ass, that’s between the two of you. Wait until after dinner, though. I’m sure your mom’s spending a lot of time prepping it and—what? Oh, yes, he invited me and Pee Paw, but—Wyatt, we can’t just—okay, I’ll see you later.”
When she ended the call, she stared at the phone in confusion. Cole took it from her with a laugh.
“That’s Wyatt for you,” he said. “If you’d let him go on long enough, he’d have had you bringing the neighborhood kids, too.”
She blinked. “I’m not sure what just happened.”
“Sounds to me like he convinced you to come to Christmas dinner with the family.” He reached over and took her hand. She caught his gaze. “I’m glad you said yes. It saves me from a sad episode of shameless, unmanly begging.”
Her lips twitched. “Hmm. Maybe I spoke too soon.”
“If you want, I can engage in shameless begging to get you to come back with me to my place.”
“That won’t be necessary. I’d like that.”
He smiled. “That wasn’t so hard. Tell you what. Why don’t you go get in the car and get the heat going? I’ll pay the check and then we’ll go pick up your car. Did you run out of gas?”
“No, the battery died. I’ve got jumper cables.”
“Easy fix, then.”
Soon, she was sitting in Cole’s car with the windshield wipers going, watching him through the Waffle House windows as he shook hands with Franklin and Manny, signed autographs, and gave them each enough cash to have their eyes going wide. She knew he’d sent her out before he did those things because he didn’t want to seem as though he was showing off.
He was so generous, she thought with a soft smile. So kind and considerate. She knew what it had cost him to listen to her talk, but he’d done it without hesitation. All that mattered to him was that he knew everything he could about her.
She’d picked well, she thought, trusting him with her heart.
When he stepped outside, he paused as he approached the vehicle. Then he tilted his head as if to say, Really? She just shrugged and grinned. Shaking his head, he walked to the passenger door and got in.
“I’ve never let anyone drive the Maserati before,” he said as he buckled his seat belt.
“That’s not true.” She shifted into drive and pulled out of the lot. “You always valet park.”
There was a moment of silence. Her grin widened since she knew he couldn’t argue.
“Can I call my grandpa on the Bluetooth doohickey?” she asked.
“I’d rather you focused on driving.”
She gave him a sideways glance. “There’s sex in it for you.”
“Let me dial.”
* * *
It was almost seven in the morning when they pulled up at his house. He parked the Maserati in the garage and waited for Everly to park in the driveway. He really needed to think about making a space in the garage for her car, he thought as she hurried in after him. Hell, he’d give her one of his cars if he thought she’d take it, but he knew better.
When she was inside, he hit the garage door opener. She took his hand and pulled him toward the door leading to the house. He disarmed the alarm when they entered, then continued to follow her as she led him to his bedroom.
She let go of his hand and headed to the bathroom, where she proceeded to turn on the shower. Understanding,
he took off his coat.
They undressed each other without speaking. The look in her eyes touched every part of him.
He washed her hair to keep her stitches dry, but she refused to allow him to offer her any further assistance. In fact she insisted on washing him.
Still, they didn’t speak. This was about expressing themselves without words. Everly did a very thorough job of washing him, giving him more of the looks that had his heart feeling like it was going to burst out of his chest. The combination of tenderness, sensuality, and love she showed him was something he’d never realized he’d craved until now.
Finally, they headed to the bed. And he took over.
He knew he couldn’t make up for the years she’d lived in Aiden’s shadow...for the years of childhood that she’d lost in the wake of his death. He couldn’t make up for the fact that she came second in her parents’ love, even when she was the only child they had left.
What he could do, though, was let her know that she was first in his love. So he set about showing her.
He kissed her injured forehead. He kissed her bruised cheek. Then he kissed her lips, gently at first. Just tenderness.
Just love.
When she moved impatiently against him, he deepened the kiss, enjoying the satisfied sound she made as his tongue rubbed against hers. He stayed just where he was for several minutes, glorying in the taste of her. Only when his body raged against him did he finally part from her delicious mouth.
There was plenty of soft, scented skin for him to attend to, though. He worshipped her body, responding to her sounds and movements as he went. He kept every caress of his lips, tongue, and hands gentle, even when it nearly killed him. Knowing just when to stop, he brought her to the brink, then eased back. He knew it drove her crazy, which just escalated his own pleasure.
Finally, he sent her over. She cried out his name, her body bowing beneath him. Her response nearly pushed him over the edge, too.
He took the time to put on a condom, though it cost him dearly. Sweat beaded on his forehead as he once again positioned himself over her. She held his gaze as he slowly joined his body with hers. Then she pulled him down to kiss him.
The XOXO New Adult Collection: 16 Full Length New Adult Stories Page 57