Someday Beach
Page 14
“Continue.” She smiled.
“Well, let’s just say when I broke it off, my truck suffered some damage.”
He saw her eyebrows crease in question.
“She keyed my truck and threw cow manure in the open windows.”
Shelly laughed. “What did you do to deserve that? Cheat on her?”
“No!” He leaned back a little. “I don’t cheat. If I’m with someone, I’m with that person. If things change…” He shook his head. How had this conversation taken this turn? “Anyway, she was just bitter for a while. In the end, it worked out. She met her husband to be, Jake.”
“I don’t think my mother would stoop to keying my car, and she would never touch cow manure.”
He chuckled. “There are other ways to get back at a person.”
He could see Shelly thinking about it. “I don’t see how she could do anything. I already have the inspection approved. My business license is hanging up behind the counter.” She shook her head. “Everything is ready for me to open next week.”
He pulled her close. “Good, then we have nothing to worry about.”
*******
Shelly looked at the pile of papers and smiled. This is what she loved about opening her own store. Placing orders. The magazines sat all around her as Marlene looked over her shoulder.
She knew her mother was still in town. The woman hadn’t traveled this far to return empty-handed on the first try.
Marcus had probably guessed as much, too. She looked across the room and saw him hanging the mirrors in the dressing room, a task which should have taken him less than half an hour to complete, but which was going on its third hour.
She liked that without even saying anything, he’d shown her that he would be there for her. She couldn’t complain; she liked watching him work.
“What about this one?” Marlene asked, drawing her attention back to the magazine.
“Yes, that’s nice,” she said absentmindedly.
Marlene chuckled. “You two have it bad.”
“Hmm?” She looked over at the woman.
“I remember when my husband and I looked at each other like that.” She sighed and rested her chin on her hands.
Shelly looked at Marcus again. He was busy making sure the last mirror was level. His worn jeans hugged him tightly and she remembered exactly what it felt like to get her hands on that tight butt of his. She sighed.
“Love does strange things to us all,” Marlene said, causing Shelly to tense slightly. “Now, how about these?” Marlene pointed to the magazine again.
Before she could look down, she saw a movement out of her eye and was completely shocked to see her father walk up to the glass doors and knock on them. Her mother stood by his side.
“Marlene, why don’t you and Laura take lunch now,” she said, not really looking over at the other woman. Her hands shook as she walked across the floor and unlocked the doors, letting her parents in.
“Daddy, I didn’t know you were in town.” Her voice sounded a little far away. She cleared her throat to gain a little of her strength back.
“My flight arrived just an hour ago. I came as quickly as I could after your mother told me what was going on.” He stepped inside and glanced around the room quickly.
She knew what he was seeing. There were still boxes of product laying around the floor. Half of the hanging products had yet to be steamed or pressed. The shoeboxes were still piled up along the wall instead of being organized in the back area. Basically, the store was a mess, but it was her mess.
Her mother didn’t even bother looking around. Instead, her eyes bounced between them, impatiently. She felt like she was eight years old all over again and had just asked if she could stop taking dance classes. This was not going to end well.
Sighing, she motioned for them to move farther into the room. It wouldn’t do any good to have potential customers witness what was about to go down.
She walked to the back room, knowing they would follow her. When she stepped inside her office, she turned and was happy to see that Marcus was right behind her.
“Is this where you’re staying?” Her father looked around the smaller room with a frown.
“No!” She almost gasped. “My place is upstairs.”
“So, you’re living upstairs?” Her mother almost sneered.
“Um, no, not yet actually.” She bit her bottom lip.
“Shelly, where are you staying?” Her father crossed his arms over his chest, a move he’d used on her countless times.
“Right now I’m staying at Marcus’s place.” Her chin rose a little in defiance.
Her father sighed. “I suppose I should have expected this.” He walked over to the window and shook his head. Then he turned back to her, tilting his head a little. “It’s just last-minute jitters.”
She gasped. “It’s not—”
“Don’t speak back to your father.” Her mother stepped forward.
Shelly felt deflated and looked down at her hands. It was an old emotion, feeling small around them.
“I’ve explained to the Daltons. They’ve agreed to postpone the wedding until you’re up to it.” Shelly bit back a remark. “Now, are you ready to leave?”
She didn’t know exactly what she was saying in the next few moments, only that her entire body vibrated with every word. Her voice rose and she dug her fingernails into her palms so much that the pain shook her out of the trance.
“Easy,” Marcus said in her ear. “Take a breath.”
She closed her eyes and did as he said. She felt his hand in hers and focused on how good it felt. “I won’t be going anywhere.” She looked directly at her father. “I plan on staying in Surf Breeze forever.”
The room was silent and she realized both of her parents were staring at her like they’d never seen her before.
“Clearly you’re having some sort of breakdown,” her father said, walking towards her slowly with his hands up.
“Be careful, Gerald,” her mother said. Shelly almost laughed. What? Did the woman think she would bite?
“I’m perfectly fine. For once in my life, I’m doing what I want. I want to be in Surf Breeze. I want to live with Marcus.” She turned to him and gave him a smile, which he quickly returned. “I love it here.” She turned back to her parents.
Her father stopped and looked at her. “What are we going to tell the Daltons?”
Shelly shrugged her shoulders. “You don’t have to say anything to them. I broke it off with Tyler almost two months ago. He’s a big boy; he can break the news to his own parents.”
Her father looked like he was thinking about the situation. He sighed. “Well, looks like I need to have a little talk with Tyler.” He turned to her mother. “Come on Cherease, we have a call to make.”
It shocked her to see her mother smile and follow her father through the front doors.
“Did they just give up?” Marcus asked from beside her.
She sighed. “God! I hope so.” She closed her eyes on all the pain. “They didn’t even comment on my store.”
He pulled her close and brushed his hands through her hair. She loved it when he did that, when he touched her softly, making her feel cherished.
“From where I’m standing, they don’t deserve you.” He rested his forehead against hers as the tears started to fall down her cheeks.
He pulled her closer as she let the hurt and pain show. “Why can’t they just accept me for who I am? It’s like they don’t even see me. All they see is a pawn to be moved around and sacrificed.”
He shook his head and held her close. “Trust me, sometimes it’s better to wash your hands completely of people who don’t believe in you.”
She pulled back and looked at him. “Like you did with your parents? Your real ones, I mean.”
He nodded slowly. “You can’t even imagine what life was like for me. Not that you don’t have it bad.” He closed his eyes and sighed. “Sorry.”
She shook her head. “N
o, I understand. I’d love to hear about it. Go on.”
He looked around. “How about we go sit in a dark booth at Cassey’s and have a beer. I could use a beer to get through this story.”
She nodded. She could use a beer too, maybe even two.
“I’ll leave a note for Marlene and Laura telling them to take the rest of the day off.”
He smiled. “Now you’re talking.”
Chapter Seventeen
“I was five years old, almost six, when my mom’s new boyfriend first started abusing me.” He looked at her across the table and felt his stomach roll. He’d never talked about it, not to anyone before, not even his father or brothers. No one knew the silent pain he’d gone through. But something in him wanted—no, needed—to tell Shelly. Especially after today. She had to know what she was committing herself to.
“I’m sorry.” She frowned and took another sip of her beer. “It must have been horrible.”
He nodded. “Not the kind of abuse you’re thinking.” He waited and watched acknowledgment cross her eyes. Her hand quickly reached across the table and took his.
“Oh my God!” It came out as a whisper.
“Eight months. Most of my very first memories are of what he did to me on an almost nightly basis.” He watched tears come to Shelly’s eyes again and blocked out the memories that threatened to drown him. “At first I was too young to really understand. I listened to his bull about it being a game and a secret.” He closed his eyes, then opened them again and took a large drink of his beer so he would have the guts to finish the story.
“How’d you get away?” Her hand felt cold and smooth in his. When he looked down at their joined fingers, he was amazed at the difference between them. Her pale skin was perfect and his darker hands showed signs of hard work. Suddenly, he didn’t feel good enough for her. He wanted to pull his hand away and shove it in his pockets, but she held it firm.
“I didn’t get away as much as was abandoned.” He heard her gasp. “One night my mother was watching the news. There was a report of a woman who had stabbed a man that had broken into her house to rape her. After Mom left to go to work, I took the biggest knife we had in the apartment and hid it under my pillow.” His eyes were focused on her hands as he talked. He couldn’t bear to see the pain and sympathy in her eyes. “The first time he woke me that night, I was too afraid.” He shook his head. “I’d been asleep and had forgotten about the knife. But sometimes he would come back a second time, and this time I was waiting for him. I stabbed him six times.” He looked up at her when she gasped again. “I didn’t kill him. Actually, I didn’t do much damage. It took my mother less than five minutes to fix him up. He was more pissed than anything. I remember sitting in the corner holding the bloody knife, thinking I should have tried harder.” He looked back down at their hands. She’d tightened her grip on him and he was thankful. It was almost like an anchor, holding him to the present. “When I told my mother why I’d stabbed Mike, she slapped me and called me a liar. The next week, she drove me to the boys’ home and signed the paperwork, dissolving her rights to me.” He blinked and was shocked to see a tear fall onto his hand. He looked up and realized it was his. Shaking his head, he smiled a little. “It was the second best thing that has happened to me.” He looked at her face and felt all of the bad memories fade away.
“Marcus…” She shook her head and closed her eyes. “I had no idea…” She looked at him and he could see the pain in her eyes. “My parents look like saints now.” She chuckled nervously.
“Don’t,” he said in a low voice. When she looked up at him with questions in her eyes, he continued. “Don’t pity me. Like I said, it was the best thing that could have happened to me, getting away from that evil. You did the same thing by coming here.” He reached over and took her other hand. “You took your own life in your hands and decided to start over.” He smiled. “If I was half as strong as—”
Her chuckle interrupted him. “Half as strong… You were stronger at six than I am at twenty-four.” She shook her head. “I can only hope to be as strong as you one day.”
He smiled. “You were today.” She looked up at him and smiled back. “Freaking Xena the warrior, facing off with her mortal enemies.”
“Who?” She blinked up at him and he laughed.
“Okay, I see a whole weekend and a stack of DVDs in our future.” He laughed some more when she just smiled at him. “You are every inch a warrior princess, and I was so proud of you today.”
Her smile brightened and then quickly changed as she looked down at their hands. “I just hope it did the trick.”
“If not, I’m sure you can stand up against anything.”
“With you by my side, I feel like I can.” She got up and crossed over to sit next to him. When she reached up and placed a soft kiss on his lips, he realized he’d been denying the depth of his feelings for her.
Looking into her eyes, he felt something loosen in his chest. “I love you.” It came out as a whisper and he felt her tense in his arms. “No, don’t tense.” He used the back of his fingers and brushed them up against her soft cheek. “Listen to me. Look at me. I run a construction business in a small beach community. I’m no high-powered businessman with fancy cars, fancy houses. I’ve got a pretty screwed-up past, but a wonderful family that I wouldn’t trade for the world, and I love you. Completely. Wholly. Painfully. I’m not asking you to—”
“I love you too,” she interrupted. When his eyes moved to hers, he saw that she was telling the truth. “I can’t believe it happened so quickly, but there it is. I’ve been denying it for days.” She sighed and shook her head. “Weeks actually.”
He chuckled. “Me too.” He rubbed a finger over her wet cheek.
“I’ve never felt this way about anyone before.” She sighed.
“So you’ve said.” He pulled her closer and enjoyed the way she fit against him. “What do you say to eating some food and then clocking off early? I’d like to drive by the place on Sugar Sand Lane and take another look at it with you. I’ve got the code so we can take our time looking.”
She pulled away and smiled up at him. “I’d love to.”
“Good, because I hope you know, I plan on making it our place. If you’ll move in with me once it’s finished, that is.”
She smiled. “I’d love to.”
When they drove up the driveway, he couldn’t stop himself from smiling. His mind was whirling with ideas and plans for the place.
“Tell me what you’re envisioning,” Shelly said beside him.
He glanced over at her and nodded, then proceeded to tell her all his ideas. As they walked through the place, he told her his plans. He even sketched out the kitchen for her as they stood at the island.
When they stepped out onto the back deck, he wrapped his arms around her and pulled her closer. There was a light breeze coming off the water and she shivered in his arms.
“We should have grabbed your coat.” He kissed the top of her head.
“I’m okay as long as you have your arms around me.” She rested her head back against his chest and he could imagine them standing here like this for the rest of their lives.
*******
The next day Marlene, Laura, and Shelly had to play catch up. Marcus had been called off early to another job. But he hadn’t left her until she’d promised to call him if her parents showed up.
She doubted they would, but she knew the fight wasn’t over. She’d logged into her bank and changed her security information, removing them as her emergency contact. She’d noticed that her trust fund was blocked to her, but she didn’t care. As long as they couldn’t touch her inheritance from Nanna, she was fine. She had plans to call the bank later today to make sure that they couldn’t.
It took the three of them all morning to finish setting up the store. By the time lunch rolled around, the place was looking great. There were still a few items that had to be tagged, but for the most part, they were ready to open the doors.
Marlene and Laura left to grab some lunch, so she stood in the store and soaked up everything. Her eyes scanned every detail, from the color of the walls to the warm rich feeling of the floors, the bright-colored clothes that hung on the racks and the shoes that shined on the wall. She would have loved to shop at a place like this.
Sighing, she turned and almost bumped solidly into someone.
“Oh!” She gasped when she saw Tyler frowning down at her. His hands were on her shoulders, keeping her from falling over. “Tyler?” She frowned and wished more than anything that she’d anticipated her parents making this move. “What are you doing here?”
He dropped his hands and she watched his left eyebrow rise in question. “I came because your parents asked me to.” Even though his voice was calm, she knew it could raise higher with anger.
“They shouldn’t have called you.” She crossed her arms over her chest. She desperately wished to take a step back, but she wasn’t going to give him that satisfaction. “I meant it when I ended it between us.”
He nodded slightly. “Well, I understand, but our parents have a different agenda for us. It looks like we’ll be going through with the wedding after all.”
She sighed. “I’m not marrying you. You know that.” She flinched a little when his hands went back to her shoulders and tightened on her arms.
One of the reasons she’d broken off the relationship was his recent behavior. She didn’t like to be dominated. He had started to act differently, demanding to know where she was, what she was doing at all times. He’d never hit her, but he had yelled and cussed and said some hurtful things to her.
“Listen, I dislike the plan as much as you do, but I’m not going to jeopardize my inheritance or yours.” He turned and started walking towards the door. “So, we’ll just go tell them the wedding is back on.”
At this point, he was almost dragging her out of the front doors. She was so shocked at his behavior, she didn’t think to pull away.