Sophie smiled, not just a small, wimpy smile she had been giving them, but a smile of all smiles. A smile so bright it would've knocked him to his knees in pain if he had been standing.
"Thank you, Emmett. I think I'm starting to actually believe that."
"As you should. I'd never lie. I'm E-man," he said with a serious expression.
Deja busted out laughing. "Now I think that nickname's going to your head."
"You're the one who gave it to me," he said, giving her a wink.
"I'm glad you're here," Sophie said.
"And I'm not going anywhere."
"Well, I'm not just glad you're here for that reason," Sophie said, glancing at Deja.
"Oh, what's the other reason? You two missed me?" Emmett said, pulling his hand away from her and put it to his chest.
"In your dreams. We kinda suck at this whole sleepover thing. We were gonna wake you up at like one in the morning to ask what we were supposed to do next," Deja said.
"Were you now? I can't imagine you suck at this sleepover thing. Looks like you were having fun until the party crasher came rolling in. Since I'm here, we can do all sorts of things. Spin the bottle, truth or dare, or—"
"Don't forget I still have my tire iron, E-man," Deja said, lifting it up to show him.
Emmett laughed. "Just kidding. Austin would have my hide if I kissed Sophie. Unless of course I'm more dashing than he is and you wanna," Emmett said, smiling wide at Sophie.
Emmett thought maybe he was pushing it in his teasing, but to his delightful surprise, Sophie smiled back. "Sorry, Emmett. Austin's the only man for me. Think of another game besides spin the bottle."
Emmett's witty reply almost rolled off his tongue when a knock sounded on the door. Deja instantly lifted her tire iron as Sophie cringed with fright.
"Settle down, ladies. It's okay. I'll get the door," Emmett said, standing up.
"You want my tire iron just in case," Deja said seriously.
"I'm good, Deja," Emmett said, showing her a fist.
He walked to the door, making a note to tell Austin to get Sophie a new door. She needed a damn peephole to check who was standing on the other side before she opened the door. He took a small breath, so small so they couldn't see his nerves. He wasn't scared.
Apprehensive. Yeah, apprehensive described much better how he was feeling. He grabbed the lock, twisted it quickly and pulled open the door.
"Hey, Chief. Good to see ya," Emmett said, resisting the urge to put a hand to his chest from the apprehension running through his veins.
"You okay, Emmett?" Chief Tanner asked with a smile.
"Never better. A man has a right to be slightly nervous when he's about to have a sleepover with two women who've never had one before. I have a lot to live up to. Make it the best damn sleepover ever."
"Sucks to be you. Can I come in?" Chief Tanner asked.
"Yeah, yeah, come on in." Emmett held the door open and shut it after the chief stepped inside.
"I hope you're not planning on using that tire iron on me," Chief Tanner said, looking at Deja. Deja stood in front of Sophie, her tire iron firmly in her hand, although hanging down by her side.
"Depends who you are and what you want," Deja said matter-of-factly.
"Stand down, Deja. This is the chief of police, Chief Tanner," Emmett said, finally realizing that nobody in this family had to worry about her anymore. She would never harm Sophie, especially considering how she stood in front of her ready to fight off anyone who dared to try harming her.
"Oh, okay," Deja said, loosening her grip on the tire iron.
"Where are your manners, Emmett? Introduce these beautiful ladies to me already," Chief Tanner said with a grin.
"My apologies. Fierce lady with the tire iron is Deja. And the sweet, quiet one is Sophie. Sophie took pity on Austin and decided to settle him down into a real relationship," Emmett said.
"Never thought I'd see the day. He's a lucky man. And you are a lucky woman. Best boys I know are the McCord's," Chief Tanner said.
"Yes, they are, Chief Tanner. It's nice to meet you," Sophie said softly.
"I just got the full story, or what Ava knows anyway, from Ava herself. I had an officer take care of the car outside the house. Made it look like some of the neighbors called it in, not Sophie. He, not surprisingly, had no business sitting in the neighborhood. I'll have frequent patrols coming through the area from now on. Each officer will be given a picture of Mr. Dittmore. If he's spotted in this neighborhood, or near Sophie, he'll be stopped and questioned. Austin is still working on trying to get a flight out tonight, but it doesn't sound like it'll happen until early tomorrow morning," Chief Tanner said with a soft tone.
"You...you would have an officer stop him," Sophie said with a shocked tone.
"When it comes to Ava, I trust her when she tells me something. If she tells me this is a bad man, I believe her. I can't have him arrested, of course, unless he does something to warrant an arrest. No reason I can't have my officers put a little fear into him, though. It doesn't take much for me to see you're frightened, Sophie. Two questions, if I may. How bad did he hurt you? And what did the cops do to you?" Chief Tanner asked.
***
For once in her life, Sophie finally felt the fear leave her body. These people would truly stand by her and help her. Here was the chief of police of this wonderful town telling her his officers would scare Kevin. For her. It just didn't seem possible.
Before she could stop the words, they left her mouth. "I could write a book on how bad he hurt me. Perhaps telling you what happened the last time he hurt me would give you a small clue. He hit me. He hit me so hard that I fell into the dresser and dropped to the floor from the pain. He proceeded to kick me in the stomach. I thought it was over until he jumped on top of me and started to squeeze. He squeezed my neck so hard I knew I was going to die. A knock on the door saved my life. That was when I knew I had to run away."
The silence in the house should have deafened her, made her terrified to continue talking. She felt Axel by her feet, his nearness always a comfort to her. She felt Deja standing next to her, their new friendship a true strength to her. She could feel Emmett's eyes on her, his kindness and loyalty to Austin—support she hadn't realized she would ever get. She sensed Chief Tanner waiting patiently for the second question to be answered. No demands, no requirement for her to continue, just patience that if she did, he would do something about it.
Sophie rubbed a hand across her cheek to wipe the tears away. She couldn't look up, the fear overwhelmed her to even try, but feeling their presence was enough. "The first time I actually tried to call the cops he convinced them I hurt myself. He told them I had mental issues and I did it all the time. They threatened to lock me up for a false report. I never called the police again. He has money, influence—"
"That will do absolutely nothing for him here, my dear. You are in good hands. Not only with me, but most importantly, with Austin. I can't do anything about what happened in New York, but I'll do what I need to here if he comes anywhere near you," Chief Tanner said, interrupting her.
Sophie finally looked at Chief Tanner. "I think I'm starting to truly believe that. Thank you, Chief Tanner."
"You're welcome, Sophie. You ladies be gentle with Emmett here. He can be very sensitive, especially when playing games. He likes to win. Don't let him get away with pouting when you beat him," Chief Tanner said with a grin, glancing at Emmett.
"I don't pout," Emmett said with a frown.
"Sounds like you're pouting now," Deja pointed out.
"What games you got, Sophie? I'll show you I don't pout when I lose. If I even lose," Emmett said.
"I don't really have any games. I have cards. Austin has been teaching me how to play card games," Sophie replied.
A slow grin formed on Emmett's face. "Perfect. I love card games."
"Me too," Deja said, as a slow grin formed on her face as well.
"Oh, how I would love to stay for this sleepover. I can t
ell this is gonna be one for the history books. But I gotta go. I just wanted to stop over personally and relay what I know on my end. Call me if you need me," Chief Tanner said. He looked over at Sophie with a tender expression. "Welcome to this family. I think Austin has chosen a wonderful woman to finally settle down with."
"You don't really know me, Chief Tanner," Sophie said, confused.
"I know enough. I can see it. You all have a wonderful sleepover. Remember, he pouts," Chief Tanner said with a laugh as he pulled open the door.
Emmett shut the door behind the chief, then turned to the girls. "I don't pout. I might cheat, though."
They all started laughing as Sophie walked towards the kitchen. "I suppose that means so you can win...so you don't pout. Deja, the cards are in the desk by the window, second drawer down. I'll make Emmett a daiquiri and then we can play some cards to start out the night."
"Make enough to refill our drinks. Let's get this gaming on. I can't wait to see E-man pout," Deja said, walking into the living room.
"I said I don't pout," Emmett said, firmly.
"You're pouting now," Deja and Sophie both said at the same time.
Chapter 11
The door swung open with a frenzy, his face etched with stress he had never felt in his life. "Sophie, are you alright?" Austin asked, dropping his bag by the door and walked into the living room where she sat with Emmett. She didn't appear to be in distress or nervous like he imagined she would be.
"Austin, you made it finally," Sophie said with a bright smile. She stood up walking over their makeshift bed still laid out from the sleepover and went into his arms.
Austin squeezed her so tightly he could have cut off her airflow. He knew he should loosen his grip, and almost did, until he heard her whisper in his ear, "I missed you."
He closed his eyes, kept squeezing her in the fiercest hug imaginable and whispered back, "Oh, Sophie, I missed you, too. That was the longest flight I've ever taken."
"I'd say get a room, but I'm almost done with my string of beads here. I refuse to miss my praise from Sophie. I've worked hard on this," Emmett said from the floor as he picked up another tiny bead and carefully added it to his string.
Sophie chuckled in Austin's ear, the sound bringing joy to his heart, yet surprised him. It obviously didn't take much for Emmett to gain Sophie's trust. Reluctantly, because he would have liked nothing better than to scoop her up into his arms and whisk her away to the bedroom, he let her go. She looked at him briefly, grabbed a quick kiss, too quick in his opinion, and went back on the floor by Emmett.
"I've already praised you several times, Emmett," Sophie said with a grin as she picked up her string of beads.
"Yes, but not a full-on praise. One I expect to get when I finish. It better be a good one," he said, his eyes focused on his string as he put another tiny bead on.
"What are you doing?" Austin asked, taking a seat on the couch, noticing how Emmett sat on the floor not too far from Sophie.
"Beadwork. Sophie's making a curtain or something frilly and it needs beads. She made me help. It's hard as shit," Emmett said, holding up his string of beads, the pride on his face. "It's not easy. These beads are tiny, tiny, tiny, and my fingers are big, big, big. Imagine the difficulties I've been having. Sophie's gonna be picking up these beads all day because I've dropped a lot of these damn things."
Sophie cleared her throat, glanced at Emmett with a look, and went back to her beads.
Emmett looked sheepishly at her. "Sorry, Soph. Those dam...nuzeling swear words just come out so easily."
Emmett looked up at Austin with a grin. It slowly withered away as Austin's hard glare trained on him. "What?"
"I hope you aren't flirting with my pixie angel," Austin said with a frown.
At his words, Sophie quickly looked over at him. He flashed her a bright smile, which must've soothed her rattled nerves as she went back to her beads without an issue.
Emmett started laughing. "Jealous, are we? We had the best sleepover ever."
"You think you're funny, Emmett," Austin said.
Sophie glanced up again at Austin. He couldn't seem to remove the anger from his face, but his eyes softened when they landed on her. She tentatively smiled and let out a tiny breath as she lowered her head back to her beads.
"I'm very funny, Austin. I was told that several times last night by Sophie and Deja. I'm downright hilarious, actually," he said with a wide grin, as Austin's face got harder with anger. "Lighten up, buddy. If I was after your woman I would have insisted on spin the bottle last night."
At those words, Austin almost jumped from the couch and decked him. Emmett slapped him on the knee, making him flinch. "Just testing ya, man. You passed. Good job."
"Testing me?" Austin asked confused.
"Well, now, Sophie and I bonded last night. We're like this now," Emmett said, twisting his pointer and middle finger in a gesture that they were close. "I had to make sure you truly want Sophie because I'm not gonna let anyone hurt her. I had to make sure your player ways are behind you. They are. You passed."
"She needs protecting even from me. Did I hear you right?" Austin asked, shaking his head in disbelief.
"No, not anymore. I told you, you passed the test. I've never seen you get that jealous or possessive over a woman. She's special. Don't hurt her."
"I would never hurt her, you dumba...can you cover your ears, Sophie, so I can swear?" Austin asked with a small smile.
"No," she said, picking up another bead as a huge smile emerged. Her eyes slowly lifted to his.
No nervousness. No fear. No worry. He may have displayed his anger with clipped words and the fury etched on his face, but she knew he'd never act out. Thank goodness she knew. He had her trust. That was the most precious thing in the world.
"You know what you are, Emmett, so I don't need to verbalize it," Austin said with force.
"A handsome, charming, dashing, sweep you off your feet kinda guy. That's what I am. Thanks for reminding me," Emmett said with a chuckle.
"You're a moron is what you are. You're lucky no spin the bottle was played. Only I get to play that with Sophie," Austin said almost in a whine.
"I never noticed before, but you pout, too. It must be a family trait. Does Zane do it as well?" Sophie asked.
"I'm not pouting," Austin said.
"That's the same thing Emmett said all night last night every time we pointed it out. He had that same pouty face you have right now," Sophie replied with a grin.
Austin glanced at Emmett. "I don't have a pouty face on, do I? I call this a grin." Austin raised the left side of his lip.
"I see no pout. I see a little of Elvis, but no pout. We McCord's do not pout. I've told her this. She doesn't listen," Emmett said, grabbing another bead.
"I told him if he just admitted it, I'd make him a pie. He refuses to admit it," Sophie said, glancing at Emmett.
"I don't pout," Emmett said.
"Oh, that's the face." Austin pointed to Emmett. "Okay, I pout. When do I get my pie?" Austin said with a deep smile.
"I never said you would get one by admitting it," Sophie said. His smile started to waver, when she added, "But I'll make you one anyway."
"That's because I do the pouting the right way," Austin said.
"No, she's just a sucker for you. Do you smell that?" Emmett said, sniffing in the air.
"Emmett," Sophie exclaimed.
Austin sniffed his nose, his eyes bulging in surprise. "You tricked me. You're already making pie. How did I miss that?"
"I have no idea. Let me go check on it. You boys behave," Sophie said with a stern look.
Sophie walked away, her steps steady and unwavering. They watched her walk away.
"She's putting on the bravest front I've ever seen. That's the first time she walked out of this room without shaky feet. It's gotta be because you're home. I've tried and tried to keep her happy and her mind off that bastard and what he's up to, but it's been hard. And that pie is for you. I
refuse to admit I pout. I don't pout." Emmett nodded, confirming to himself that he didn't pout.
"I'm gonna gloss over the pouting bit for now, since we all know you do pout. Why is she even making me a pie? How did the night actually go?" Austin asked concerned.
"She was fidgety as all hell, then suddenly she was like...I gotta make Austin a pie. He'll like that. So I let her. Once she got done doing that, she went back to being fidgety. I couldn't take it anymore. I saw her crafty crap in the corner and suggested we work on that. She pulled these beads out and here we are. I'm going insane doing these beads just to make her happy and get her mind off everything. Surprisingly, the night went well. We had fun and stayed up real late. The minute Deja left, her nervousness increased. I don't think it's because she was alone with me like you would think. Deja just has this way with her. They definitely are kindred spirits or some shit like that," Emmett said, waving his hand in the air at his last statement.
He looked over at Austin, who couldn't manage to keep the concern or worry hidden. "Trust me, Austin. The night was good. We played cards, and damn! Don't play with Deja. She'll take all your money. Pretending like she doesn't know what she's doing and then wham! She's taking your money. Or potato chips, because that's what we bet with. We sang karaoke, told ghost stories, and laughed about nothing. I didn't lie...best sleepover ever. Sophie didn't start to worry again until this morning. She got anxious waiting for you to get home."
"Thanks for watching out for her, Emmett. And making it a good night. I knew I could count on you. I never expected any of this. I figured down the road she would finally share what happened. I never thought I would find out about him like I did. You should've seen him, the sleaze ball. He thinks he's untouchable. He's about to get a rude awakening if he attempts to contact Sophie."
"Let me know when you need me and I'm here. Gabe's covering at the farm this morning instead of me. No sign of the car since last night. She said some things last night, Austin, that...that was disturbing," Emmett said, dropping the bead he almost had on the string. His hands started to shake as he looked around for the lost bead.
"Yeah, the chief called and relayed what she said. He wasn't too happy hearing about it and swore he'd find any sort of reason to have that bastard arrested. Peter's working on investigating what officers responded to the call she mentioned."
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