Touched by You

by Elle Wright

  He thought he’d feel guilty about being with Brooklyn, but the guilt didn’t come. Instead, he had peace about his decision to let go with Brooklyn, to move forward. He wasn’t sure the peace would last, but it felt good to have it in that moment.

  It was sometime during the night, after they made love on a chair on the balcony, that he’d figured out what had scared him about Brooklyn all along. She was a free spirit, and she’d made him feel free. It made him almost feel invincible, like he could do anything, be anything. For once, it felt like he had life ahead of him.

  He didn’t know what his revelation would mean for their relationship, or if she even wanted a relationship with him. All morning, long after Brooklyn had left, he’d been thinking about how he was going to tell her about Krys and Chloe. Because he needed to tell her, if only because he wanted to be transparent with her.

  “Carter, what are your intentions with my sister?” Parker asked, pulling him from his thoughts.

  “What do you mean?”

  “It’s a question. Is this just a fling, or it is more serious?”

  “There hasn’t been a conversation between us about it yet. Right now, we’re just getting to know each other.” And he’d explored every inch of her body, gotten to know her intimately.

  “Well, just so you know, you hurt her and you’ll deal with me.”

  Carter nodded. “As long as you know that I don’t plan on hurting her, but I will protect her as long as I’m here to do it.”

  “You do realize that you aren’t a resident of Wellspring.”

  Frowning, Carter sat back in the chair. “What are you getting at?”

  “Brooklyn lives in Wellspring. Whatever you’re doing, be careful. You two live on different sides of the state. Unless you have plans to move to Wellspring or move her to Detroit, you need to tread lightly. Don’t make any promises you can’t keep.”

  Parker hadn’t said anything wrong. Essentially, he’d only pointed out a truth that Carter hadn’t even considered. He’d been so wrapped up in the haze of their night together, so intent on being with her, that he hadn’t paid a single thought to what would happen when his project was over. Would he stay? Would she go?

  Carter knew he was jumping ahead, but it was a necessary evil. “I know you’re concerned, but Brooklyn and I are grown people, capable of making our own decisions. We’ll handle things as they come.”

  “Okay.” Parker leaned forward, tapping a pen on his desk. “So, let’s get to work.”

  * * *

  At the Bee’s Knees, Brooklyn started her business plan. She’d driven to the credit union and had no luck gaining access to her money. Then she’d hightailed it back to Wellspring, just in time to beat the lunchtime rush.

  Will Clark slid into the booth, across from her. “Hey there, Brooklyn! Aren’t you supposed to be at work?”

  Brooklyn glanced up at Will and smiled. “I am currently unemployed.”

  The older man frowned, confusion written on his face. “What? You loved that clinic. What happened?”

  “My father happened, Will. He’s upset because I won’t bow down and marry Sterling King. So he’s basically declared war on me.”

  Will shook his head, a disgusted look on his face. “That’s cold. I’m sorry, darling.”

  “There’s really nothing I can do. I just have to deal with it, and move on.”

  “I wish you didn’t have to go through this.” Will patted her hand tenderly. “You deserve better than that. You’ve made good on your life. Your mother would have been proud. Never forget that.”

  Will and Dee had been good friends with Brooklyn’s mother, despite their age differences. Brooklyn had spent many an evening with her mother at the Clarks’ home and even more time at the Bee’s Knees in her younger years. “I know. I’m so glad I’ve been able to come here and hear stories about her.”

  After her mom died, her father had wiped everything of her from the house. It was almost as if he wanted to wipe her existence from the earth, make it like she’d never existed. Her mother was a brilliant and wise woman. Brooklyn often thought about how her life would have turned out had her mother still been alive. Would her father still be the overbearing man that he was now?

  Brooklyn had naïvely hoped that her father would actually listen to her. She’d wished that he’d tell the King family, her mean and hateful stepmothers, and everyone else that meant her harm, to fuck off.

  Unfortunately, her father always fell short. He’d never had her back. Ever. And that hurt Brooklyn to her core.

  Will sighed heavily. “What do you need?”

  “A job?”

  Brooklyn had to do something for money, especially since she would need it to aid in her new business endeavor. It made sense to get a job, from someone who would not be bullied into firing her because her father requested it.

  There was no love lost between the Clarks and the Wellses, and it had all stemmed from a time before Brooklyn was even a thought. She’d heard bits and pieces of it over the years, but everyone was still pretty hushed on that part of Wellspring history.

  “You got it, darling.” Will stood. “Start Saturday morning, and we’ll see how you do.”

  Brooklyn slid out of the booth and hugged the old man. “Thank you so much. I appreciate you.”

  “Your father is a ruthless bastard. He doesn’t deserve you.” Will pinched her chin like he’d done so many times in her life. “Now, you finish eating. It’s on the house.”

  Before she could argue, Will had walked away and started yapping with another couple on the far side of the restaurant.

  * * *

  Carter left WWCH a few hours later. On his way to his car, he dialed Aisha. “Hey, can you set up a phone conference later today with Martin? So far, we’re still on the job, but I want to have a contingency plan in case something goes down.”

  “I’ll let Martin know about the conference call later. His travel arrangements have already been made, and he’ll be there Monday morning.”

  “Thanks, Aisha.”

  “Is everything okay?”

  Telling Aisha about his night with Brooklyn would probably mean another two hours on the phone, and he just didn’t have any time to answer a trillion questions about his feelings. “I’m fine. Just leaving work for the day. I have plans tonight.”

  “With Brooklyn?”

  “Actually, yes. It’s a Wellspring thing, to party on Thursday night, so we’re going over to a local pub to shoot pool.”

  “She shoots pool? Mom would love to hear that.”

  Carter smiled. “Mom would love her.”

  “Well, I may have to come with Martin so I can meet this woman. She sounds amazing. I haven’t heard you talk about any other woman since you met Krys over a decade ago.”

  “Aisha, please stay home. You can come when things die down.”

  “Okay, punk. But I’m coming soon.”

  Carter laughed, told Aisha to give their mother a hug from him, and disconnected the call. He had just made it to his car, when Sterling pulled up beside him in his Mercedes-Benz.

  “Well, if it isn’t Mr. Marshall, the hero.”

  Carter glared at the other man. “What do you want?”

  “I heard about your little show in the office. I hope you know this is the beginning of the end for you. Mr. Wells doesn’t take kindly to being told what to do, especially about his kids.”

  “Well, that’s where your problem is. Mr. Wells treats Brooklyn like she’s a child when she is a grown woman.”

  “You don’t know them. And here you are, inserting yourself into business that doesn’t concern you.”

  Carter wanted to wipe the smug look off of Sterling’s face. “Why don’t you get out of the car and tell me that to my face?”

  Sterling shut his car off and climbed out. “I don’t have to explain anything to you. But I think you owe Brooklyn an explanation for not telling her that you have a wife and a daughter.”

  Carter’s body tensed,
and his vision grew cloudy. “What did you just say to me?”

  “I said Brooklyn will be so upset to find out that you have a wife and daughter.”

  Carter gripped Sterling by the collar of his suit and jacked him up. “I would suggest you shut the hell up. I don’t care who your father is, I will beat the shit out of you.”

  Sterling found his footing and pulled away from Carter’s grasp, nearly falling to the ground in his haste to get away. “I got you. You’re going down.” Sterling jabbed a finger in Carter’s direction. “You’re no good for Brooklyn. You’ve been snowing her this entire time. And I can’t wait to tell her all about your deception.”

  Rage filled Carter, swift and hot. Before he could even reason with himself, or even count to ten, he swung on Sterling. His fist connected with the jerk’s jaw, and he felt the bones crack under the force of the blow. A writhing and screaming Sterling on the ground in front of him drew the attention of onlookers. He registered mortified gasps behind him as people gathered.

  Several employees, curious about the crowd in the front of the building, walked out. Some of them he recognized from his interviews. A security guard also rushed over to them, and ordered Carter to have a seat. It was going to be a long evening.

  Chapter 16

  Brook’s Pub was live, people crammed into the space, drinking and laughing and shooting pool. Brooklyn sat at the bar, nursing a drink. Carter was late. Not just late, he was three hours late.

  Brooklyn tried to call him numerous times but had gone directly to voicemail. Did he stand me up? If so, she’d scratch his eyeballs out later, right after she had her pity party of one.

  “You okay, Brooklyn?” Juke said, from his spot behind the bar. “You look like your dog died. Or something.”

  Brooklyn snickered, touched by what constituted Juke being concerned. “I’ll be fine. Just disappointed is all.”

  She wasn’t a great judge of character. In fact, she’d been wrong about people on numerous occasions. But Carter . . . She thought she had a good read on him. He struck her as the honest type, a man who would tell her the truth, no matter how much it would hurt her. He’d never given her any indication that he wasn’t going to meet her for a game of pool. It was just the opposite, actually. After she’d left him that morning, he’d kissed her and promised to see her soon. Then he’d texted her during his lunch break with a “See you soon.”

  Where is he? She glanced at her phone, willing it to ring. No such luck. Frowning, she turned the phone off. At this point, even if he was coming, she was leaving. She’d be damned if she sat there much longer, waiting on someone who wasn’t coming.

  Motioning for Juke, she told him that she was out of there, paid him, and walked out into the cool night. As she strolled through town, she thought about the last time she’d walked the strip. With Carter. She passed the ice cream shop, waved at a few of the customers, before veering east down Baker Avenue. Earlier in the day, she’d looked forward to having a cone with Carter after they left the pub, but she didn’t even want her favorite cool treat now.

  Her mind rolled over every detail, every word. Nothing. There was really no excuse, and no good explanation, aside from death or jail. And both of those explanations were horrifying in their own way.

  Grinning down at Mr. Paul, a homeless veteran she’d often helped at the clinic, she pulled a twenty-dollar bill from her pocket and placed it in his hand, closing his fingers around it. Mr. Paul had served two tours in Afghanistan and settled in Wellspring. The war had done unimaginable things to his mind, and he’d been unable to keep a job. When his mother died, he was left with no family, no one who cared. But he was a proud man, stood tall no matter who was in the room. It was unfortunate that he didn’t have a place he could call home.

  A homeless shelter would be perfect for Wellspring and its surrounding communities. The growing homeless population needed help. Maybe she could build her own clinic, attached to the Loving Brooklyn Homeless Shelter. Smiling, she made a mental note to jot that name down when she returned back to her house.

  “Marie?”

  Brooklyn froze. It wasn’t a coincidence. It couldn’t have been. Her mother’s name was Marie, so what were the odds someone would call her by her mother’s name by accident?

  Turning around slowly, she laid eyes on a petite woman, unkempt, with dirty hair and dirty clothes. She was sitting on a cardboard box, rocking back and forth. Brooklyn walked up to her and asked, “Did you call me Marie?”

  “Marie, it’s been so long since I’ve seen you,” the woman said. “I missed you.”

  Brooklyn swallowed past a lump in her throat. “I’m not Marie, ma’am. She was my mother.”

  The woman turned startling blue eyes on Brooklyn. “Your mother is Marie.” The pale woman smiled. “You look just like her. Where is she?”

  It was obvious the woman had been through a lot. Her eyes were bloodshot, her pupils were dilated and she was shaking uncontrollably. She was an addict. There was no way to tell what she was on, but Brooklyn suspected heroin or opioid addiction. “How do you know my mother?”

  “Sweet Marie went to my school. She always smiled. That’s what I remember.”

  Brooklyn knelt down in front of the woman. Her face looked familiar, but she couldn’t place her. It was too late to take her to the clinic, but Brooklyn didn’t want to leave her by herself, out in the open. The crime rate in Wellspring was pretty low, but there were several people in town that wouldn’t think twice before they took advantage of the woman’s mental state. “What’s your name?”

  The woman chuckled. “Marie called me Lisa Lisa.”

  Brooklyn smiled. Her mother’s favorite ’80s group was Lisa Lisa and Cult Jam. She remembered hearing “All Cried Out” nonstop one summer. The song was so sad she’d grown to hate it over the years. But she was grateful she could actually recall her mother’s angelic singing voice.

  “Lisa Lisa, how can I help you?”

  Lisa Lisa looked at Brooklyn. “Your mother loved you.”

  Brooklyn’s breath caught in her throat, and she fought back tears. “I know. But you need help. Let me get you to someplace warm. Would you like to sleep in a bed tonight?”

  “I haven’t slept in a bed in months.”

  Brooklyn’s heart broke for the woman. She wanted to help her get back on track. But not all people wanted help, and she wasn’t sure where Lisa Lisa fit on the spectrum. She reached out and wrapped an arm around the woman, pulling her in close. “I can get you a bed.”

  She led Lisa Lisa down the street and back over to Brook’s Pub. Juke had a few rooms over the bar that he’d often rent to patrons who were too drunk to drive. If she asked, he would give up a room in a minute. Then she could call her good friend Dr. Warsaw, to come and check her out.

  As they walked back over to the pub, she wondered about the history between Lisa Lisa and her mother. Had they known each other long? Or were they passing acquaintances?

  “Parker Wells is a bad man,” Lisa Lisa mumbled, taking Brooklyn by surprise.

  “You know my father?”

  The lady nodded. “He’s bad. He treated Marie bad, and took her money. He deserves to rot for what he did to Marie.”

  Brooklyn continued forward, ignoring the talk because she was focused on caring for the older woman. She lead the woman through the crowd gathered in front of the pub.

  One look at her and Lisa Lisa, and Juke immediately shook his head. “No.”

  Brooklyn pleaded with her friend. “Please. She has to go somewhere tonight. I need your help.”

  Juke sighed. “Why do you always do this? She’s a pill popper. I’ve seen her around here on many occasions, trying to steal food.”

  Brooklyn glanced over at Lisa Lisa, who was sitting on a nearby stool, biting her fist and mumbling something to herself. With a heavy sigh, she turned back to Juke. “I promise I’ll stay with her.”

  “No. You don’t know what she’s capable of. I would burn this place down if something
happened to you under my roof.”

  Juke didn’t issue idle threats. She knew he’d move heaven and hell to avenge her if she found herself in dire straits. He really was a big, soft teddy bear—with scary tattoos. “Okay, how about we—”

  “Call the police. That’s what they’re for. She can stay the night in a holding cell. It’s clean and she can have a shower and a meal.”

  “But she knows my mother. I can’t take her to jail, Juke.”

  “Seriously, I know you have a big heart. But she needs help you can’t give her here. If you want, I’ll walk with you to the jail, to drop her off.”

  Biting down on her lip, she nodded. “You’re right.”

  Juke ordered one of his employees to take over at the bar and he walked around, helping Lisa Lisa to her feet. They left, and walked over to the police station.

  When they arrived at the jailhouse, Sheriff Walker took pity on her and allowed her to help clean the woman up. He even gave her clean scrubs to put on her. Once Lisa Lisa was settled in a cell, with a Subway sandwich, Brooklyn joined Juke and Sheriff Walker in the front room.

  “Thanks, Sheriff,” she said, taking a seat next to Juke. “I just didn’t want to leave her out in the streets. It’s cold at night.”

  Sheriff Walker smiled kindly. “You’ve always had a big heart. She’ll be safe here.”

  “Do you know her?” she asked.

  With a far-off look in his eyes, Sheriff Walker nodded. He was born and raised in Wellspring, just like her parents. He’d actually graduated in her mother’s high school class. “Her name is Lisa Castle. Both of her parents worked for Wellspring Water.”

  Lisa Castle. She remembered that name, and recalled her mother mentioning her friend Lisa who lived out of town. “She called me Marie.”

  “Makes sense. She hasn’t been in her right mind. I don’t even think she remembers your mother died. They were very close. They spent a lot of time together. I’m surprised she’s back in town.”

  Brooklyn wondered why the woman had returned and how she ended up an addict. Juke wrapped an arm around her and squeezed. “I wonder if she has any family.”