“Hey, sleepyhead.” He smiled, without looking up from his monitor.
“Hey.” Addie murmured as she stood at the window, looking out at the greyness of the day.
“What time do you need to be back? I have somewhere I’d like to take you.”
“I probably outta head out by 3:00 p.m. I’d like to see the boys before their bedtime.”
William nodded. “Come here.”
Addie turned around but didn’t move. “When are you going to tell me what’s going on? One minute you want me, and the next you don’t.”
William stood up and closed in on her. “I always want you, Addison. Wanting and having, though, are two very different things.”
She sighed, exasperated.
“I need you.” He whispered, as he unfastened the robe and watched it fall to the floor.
Addie removed his hands from her breasts and took a few steps back. “Yeah, well, needing and having are two very different things too, you know.”
William grinned. “Oh, really,” he whispered, closing the gap, grabbing her with one arm by her waist, pulling her in. “We’ll see about that.” He laughed, wrestling her to the floor.
Addie toppled him, pinning his biceps to the floor with her knees. “Hmmm. I could get used to this view.” William remarked, clearly enjoying letting her win.
She sensed the desperation in his gaze as she trailed her fingers down his chest. “Tell me what’s going on, William. I need you to give it to me straight.”
“Oh, I plan on it.” He whispered, as he writhed beneath her, feigning a struggle.
Addie rose up and lowered herself down on him slowly, before pulling up again. “You mean like this?” she said, sinking lower.
William flipped her on her stomach before she realized what was happening. He pulled her into the position he wanted her in, ass in the air, head down, and gripped one arm behind her back. “No, like this. He groaned, pushing inside her.
He held her there like that until they both found their release. Stated and sweaty, William gently urged her all the way down as he hovered just above her. “You make me crazy,” he said, his voice rough and hot against her ear.
Addie smiled to herself but remained silent, trying to slow time and enjoy in the buzz that he’d given her. William startled her when he tapped her bare ass with the back of his hand. “Get up, they’re waiting on us,” he said, extending his hand to help her up. Taking her hand, he led her to the shower where he washed her with such care she wondered how the man standing before her could be the same one who’d just dominated her and left her in a speechless heap on the floor.
As he toweled her off, Addie swallowed the lump in her throat and met his gaze with certainty. “I can’t keep doing this. The coming and going . . . I can’t do it, William.”
William smiled but just slightly. “You seem to be doing okay with the coming part.”
“I’m not joking.” Addie threw up her hands and backed away. “I shouldn’t have come here. It’s not healthy. If we’re going to end this, then we need to really end it.”
“What is it you want, Addison?” he demanded.
“Isn’t that what you want? To end this? Wasn’t that the point of your letter?”
“I want you safe and happy. That’s what I want.”
Addie scoffed. “Yeah, well the fucked-up part of all of this is that I only feel that way when I’m with you. Then I leave, and it’s like I’m constantly waiting for the other shoe to drop.”
William walked from the oversized bathroom into his massive dressing room. He tossed Addie her clean clothes. “I lied, Addison. It’s just that we have reason to believe that someone is feeding Hammons information about us. He sent pictures of you that prove he’s been close. Too close. And he knows more than he should for someone who’s on house arrest, so clearly, he’s either working with someone or he’s found a way to beat the system. While we’re trying to figure out which one it is, I need to keep you away. Safe. If he or whomever he works with knows that we’re seeing each other, it just makes you that much more of a target. I knew I had to end it so you’d stay away.”
Addie swallowed hard. “Yeah, well, you can see how well that worked out.”
“I need to know if you slept with him, Addison.”
“Slept with who?” Addie replied, flinching as though she’d just been backhanded.
William’s jaw tightened. “You mean there’s a possibility that there’s more than one person I could be referring to?”
“Where are we going, anyway?” Addie asked, changing the subject. He’d broken her heart; she wasn’t giving him anymore.
William stared at her for what felt like an eternity before he finally spoke. “I know I don’t have the right to ask, Addison. The truth is I’m not even sure I want to know the answer. But I’m going to say this, and this is the last time I’ll ever say it. I’m warning you. If you’re going to show up here like this, don’t fuck with me. I’m not a toy that you can just take out when you feel like playing with it and toss aside the rest of the time.”
Addie was pretty sure that’s exactly why she’d come here so that she could see for herself that he’d been lying all along. He loved her. She’d known that deep down. And she had prayed that he would say something to that effect, even if it was in the only way he knew how. So why then did her victory feel so bittersweet? She offered up a slight smile, swallowed the words she so wanted to say, and instead offered up the only words someone who didn’t want to get hurt again could muster. “Fair enough.”
William handed Addie a ball cap and wig. He instructed her to put them on, that he had a surprise for her as he’d led her to a silver sports car she didn’t recognize. A Mercedes McLaren, he’d later explain. It wasn’t his yet because he didn’t want it to be traceable to him while they were out, in case they were being watched. But when he’d asked her if she liked it and she told him she did, he’d said that was it—he practically had to buy it now. She laughed and suggested to him that perhaps this wasn’t the car to take if he planned on being inconspicuous. Maybe they should’ve taken a Pinto, she’d teased, as he drove her to an indoor gun range on the outskirts of town. The place was seedy and empty. William had rented it out for the afternoon, he said once inside, after he’d handed her a small handgun. It was a gift for her, a 9mm handgun, and they were there to get her concealed carry license, he explained before introducing her to a balding man, who would be her instructor.
For the next two hours, Addie practiced shooting, earning her right to conceal and carry. “I want you to be able to protect yourself,” William had whispered as he positioned himself behind her, showing her the proper stance. She was apparently a natural, he told her once they were back in the car. It was times like these Addie thought she could almost picture them together for real. Times like this when things were so abnormal they almost seemed normal. She never imagined that she’d ever need a gun, but something about being with William just made everything seem different.
William had decided to drive Addie back to the lake house and have Carl follow in her car. After being warned that it wasn’t the best idea, William had finally agreed that he’d drive her most of the way and Carl could take her from there. After picking up a late lunch, they found a scenic overlook and pulled over. William grabbed a blanket that they ended up spreading out on under an old oak tree. It had turned out to be the perfect winter day, mostly sunny, not too cold and not too hot. They sat there like that for a long while, talking, laughing, and watching the clouds roll by.
Finally, Addie laid her head in William’s lap and touched his face. “I almost don’t want to go back.”
“I know, but you have to, for now.” William gently pushed Addison up to a sitting position and looked her directly in the eyes. “About that, though . . .” He hesitated before finally going on. “I need to tell you something, Addison, and I need you to promise me—swear to me—that you won’t repeat what I’m about to tell you. Not to anyone. Do you unders
tand?”
Addie swallowed. “William.”
“Promise me.” He repeated, stroking her cheek.
“Okay.” She relented.
“I’m going to take care of him, Addison. That’s why I wrote that. That’s why I lied, why I need you to stay away.”
Addie laughed, and when his expression didn’t change, she sat up, searching his face. “You’re joking, right? William, tell me you’re joking.”
William shook his head slightly. “He’ll never stop, Addison, not until he wins. Men like him never do. My guys are having a tough time getting anything on him, and the cops don’t do anything with what they do get. I know what I’m doing, and I need you to trust me. I know I shouldn’t be telling you any of this because now you can be implicated should something happen—if it goes wrong, I mean. It won’t. And I’m sorry, Addison. I didn’t want to involve you in this any more than I already have. But after I wrote that letter, I swear I could almost fucking feel your pain, and it gutted me. When I called, I was going to tell you, Addison. I was going to tell you what a piece-of-shit liar I am, but I could tell how angry you were with me, and then I heard your boys in the background, calling you to dinner. I thought about you being with him, and I lost my nerve. Lying to you like that, knowing I hurt you and that he was there to ease the pain I’d caused and I couldn’t do anything about, it killed me. When you showed up last night, I thought I was dreaming. I saw the look on your face, and it confirmed everything I already knew. I can’t take seeing you hurt like that. I know I hurt you, and I’m sorry, so fucking sorry.”
Addie grabbed his face and kissed him hard. She pulled back as tears sprang to her eyes. “No, William, you can’t do what it is I think you’re planning to do. I won’t let you. Don’t you see? You’re letting him win. This is what he wants. I’m asking you . . . I’m begging you not to do anything stupid. I love you and I need you. You have to promise me.”
William watched her face grow more and more serious as her eyes plead with his. Finally, after what seemed like an eternity, he leaned in and kissed her forehead. “Silly girl,” he chuckled, “you thought I was serious?”
Fourteen
Patrick knew Addie would be furious if she found out that he’d invited Michele to the lake around their children, but what was he to do? Michele was furious with him as it was, and she was carrying his child too, after all. Addie would just have to deal. So far, though, inviting her there had mostly been a disaster because as it turned out, motherhood apparently didn’t come naturally to Michele. She seemed like a fish out of water and pretty much kept her distance from the boys. She was cold and distant, not too much different from how she was in the boardroom, and it worried Patrick. He finally got up the nerve to mention it after they’d had lunch and he set the boys up in the media room.
“Are you feeling okay? You seem, I don’t know, unhappy.”
“I’m fine.”
Patrick smiled condescendingly. “Are you sure? Because I thought you wanted to be here.”
Michele slammed the magazine down she’d been reading. “I said I’m fine, all right? What more do you want from me?”
“I don’t know, but I’m thinking a little interaction might be nice, though.”
She frowned before storming to the table for her purse. “I’m going.”
He stood and took her purse from her. “Don’t be ridiculous.”
“You want me to sit here and play house, Patrick. That’s what you want. Your wife left, so you called me for back up. Well, I’m just not going to do it. I’m finished playing second fiddle to her. And you know what? Now that I’m having your kid and you’re busy acting like one, you suddenly don’t seem all that appealing anymore,” Michele hissed.
“I beg your pardon,” a voice interrupted.
They turned in unison to see his parents standing there. “Mom. Dad.”
“Who is this, Patrick? And what is she saying?”
Michele squeezed at her temples. “Oh fuck,” she whispered under her breath. “I’m going now,” she said louder.
“Mom, Dad, this is my boss, Michele.”
They both stepped forward and shook Michele’s hand; they were nothing if not polite.
“I thought I told you guys not to come. What’re you doing here?” Patrick asked as he looked from his father to his mother.
“We wanted to see the children, and we were worried,” his father replied.
“Obviously, for good reason,” Penny chided, fluffing a throw pillow.
“Well,” Patrick started before he was interrupted by a loud thud as Michele fell and landed motionless on the floor. “Call an ambulance,” he screamed as his parents scrambled. “Mom, get the boys; keep them upstairs.”
“It’s okay, baby. Everything is okay.” He whispered over and over as he rocked her back and forth. “It’s going to be all right, I promise,” he soothed as he watched the blood pool around Michele’s head, and he realized he wasn’t quite sure who it was he was trying to convince.
Patrick paced the hospital halls as he waited for an answer as to what was going on. Michele hadn’t regained consciousness that he’d seen, and they were running a battery of tests, trying to figure out what was going on. He still hadn’t been able to get ahold of Addison. Despite everything that had happened, he was pretty glad his parents had shown up when they did.
It seemed like hours before a nurse finally came out to get him, ushering him into the tiny room where Michele was. She looked different, lying there in a hospital gown, hooked up to so many monitors—definitely, not like the strong woman he was used to seeing.
Suddenly, an older tallish man in a while coat appeared from behind a curtain, startling him. “Are you next of kin, sir?” he questioned.
“I’m . . . I’m, um, the baby’s father.”
The man glanced at the chart and nodded.
“I’m Dr. Patel.” He thrust his hand in Patrick’s direction, catching him off guard.
“Patrick Greyer.”
“Mr. Greyer, we’re running some tests and haven’t found anything conclusive as to why Ms. Raines passed out. She needed a dozen or so stitches, but so far, but her scans are clear, and her labs look pretty promising. Right now, my suspicion is that this is mostly pregnancy-related. Dizziness and even fainting is sometimes caused due to the elevation in hormones. The urinalysis shows she’s dehydrated, so I’ve ordered fluids to help with that. It’s possible that the dehydration alone was enough to cause this episode, but I want to run a few more tests to rule anything else out. Can you tell me . . . Has she been under a lot of stress recently? How about her eating habits? Is she eating okay? Any morning sickness?”
Patrick twirled the ring on his left hand, the way he always did when he was nervous. “Um, no, not that I know of. I mean she mentioned being a little sick, but I think she’s eating okay,” he replied, running his hand through his hair as he stared at the monitor, silently wondering what all of the various numbers meant. “And the baby? How’s the baby?”
“The baby looks great. Everything looks normal at this stage in the game.”
Patrick breathed a small sigh of relief. “Is she going to be okay?”
“After we get some fluids in her, I think she’ll perk up just fine. She requested something for pain down in CT, and once everything looked clear, I gave the go-ahead for a small dose of morphine, which is likely why she’s out right now. She’s going to need to take it easy for the next several days. I suspect after the fall she took that she may have a concussion. By the way, I need to get the name and number of her obstetrician in order to request her medical records.”
Patrick’s heart sank. “I, um, I don’t know. I guess I can make a few phone calls and find out,” Patrick replied, suddenly aware of how little he really did know about what was going on with Michele.
The doctor nodded and continued watching the monitors, appearing to jot down notes.
Patrick sunk further in the chair.
“Check the phone.�
� The man said as he moved closer to the curtain and turned to leave.
“Excuse me?”
“The phone. Her cell. Her doctor’s information is probably in it.”
“Oh, right,” Patrick said, but the man had already disappeared.
William pulled the car off the road near the spot where they’d agreed they would say their goodbyes and Addie would travel on from with Carl. He put the car in park and shut off the ignition. They had driven much of the rest of the way in silence, save for the radio, and Addie had a few things she wanted to get out. She cleared her throat and swallowed hard and stared out the window. “I didn’t sleep with him, William. I haven’t slept with him or anyone in months. I don’t care if you have . . . I mean . . . I know this isn’t a relationship or anything, but I wanted you to know.”
William nodded and laid his head back on the seat eyes closed. “Why did you agree to go away with him, Addison? Before any of this ever happened with the dog, you’d already made plans. I’m sure you know what that looked like—how it made me feel. My question is why?”
Addie shifted and turned towards him. “Because I’m scared. My marriage is over, and I hated to see it ending on such a bad note after everything, especially after having three kids together. But mostly, it’s because I’m scared to let myself love you the way I want to.” She drew in a deep breath, let it out, and continued. “I know about your past and why you are the way you are, but the truth is that you know very little about mine. We all have pasts, William, and those pasts shape us into who we are. I’m not ready to share all of mine with you, but let’s just say that I learned not to show my feelings. I learned that if I wanted to survive I had to make myself as small as possible and avoid feeling anything. But . . . before I was old enough to figure it all out for myself—if I was sad or happy, depending on what was going on that day—I figured out that I’d better damned sure not show it. If I did, I didn’t eat. I was sent to my room to be alone because no one cared enough to just let me be. People leave, William. They die or they leave. That’s what they always told me.” Addie paused and shifted. “I’ve never shared this with anyone besides Jessica, and even Patrick only knows bits and pieces because it’s just too painful, but there’s this huge part of me that no one really knows. Maybe that’s, in part, because I believe that if they did then they’d somehow see me as less than I am.”
Breaking Bedrock (Book Two) Page 11