The police are just now leaving the house. It’s been three hours since we came back from our run. It’s eleven o’clock at night. Mickey comes down the stairs with some rags now stained with ruby red lipstick from the bathroom mirror. Abraham comes down right after him with our comforter. The blood on the dress was dry, but we thought it better to wash it anyway.
I proposed that we burn the damn thing, but Abraham said I should sleep on it. I know it’s expensive. I don’t care. Every time I see it, all I’ll think about is that dress, stained in some poor soul’s blood.
Kate is sitting on the couch with me in the game room, helping me down ginger ale and soda crackers. We didn’t call Devon or Damon. The only reason Mickey and Kate are here now is because they saw the cop cars in the driveway. I’m getting really sick of getting treated like the damsel in distress.
Mickey and Abraham step out into the backyard and shut the door behind them. It’s not like we don’t know what they’re talking about.
“Are you okay, wife?”
I turn my tired eyes to Kate. “Yeah, I’m fine. I just really want this to be over. I want him to do whatever it is that he’s going to do and get it over with. I’m really sick of having my happy brought down by his dead, psychotic weight.”
“Reagan Nichole! Don’t you dare think that he’s going to get to do whatever it is that he thinks he’s going to do. They will catch his twisted ass before he gets to you.”
I look out of the glass paneling at Abraham. “It’s not me that I’m worried about.” I turn my attention back to her. “Besides, get real Kate. He’s been lurking around me since I told his ass to get lost. He’s gotten to me several times so far. Who’s to say how many times he’s been around me without any of us knowing? If they haven’t caught him so far, what makes you think they will now?”
“He’s bound to slip up. Reagan, you can’t think so negatively. What’s gotten into you?”
I look at her like she’s dense. “My psychotic ex-boyfriend has gotten into me, Kate. He was in my house. And who knows if it’s even the first time since he shot Damon? He’s escalating. He’s amping up for something. I can only hope that it doesn’t include Abraham. I’m not stupid enough to think that he can’t get me, or that the cops will get him before it’s too late. The only thing I can do is be on my toes and wait for him to make his move.”
“Mickey, Kate, would the two of you mind heading home? I need a word with Reagan.” I turn to see he’s not only back in the house but is also staring at me, pretty pissed off.
His jaw is set and ticking, his lips are tight, and his eyes are piercing mine at the moment. Fuck.
Mickey looks at me as he talks. “Yeah, I’ll see you tomorrow, little miss.” He has a little pity in his eyes when he walks out.
Kate kisses my cheek. “Love you, wife. Try to get some rest.”
“I will. I’ll see you in the morning. Give that baby boy some ice cream for me.” She smiles and joins Mickey at the door.
Abraham shuts and locks the door behind them. “Can I ask what the hell that was all about?”
I stand and head for the freezer. If we’re gonna do this, I’m going to need some ice cream. He holds his patience until I’m sitting on the counter, cross-legged, with a spoon full of banana split ice cream in my mouth.
“Reagan?” He leans back on the counter across from me and crosses his arms and ankles.
“Look, I’m tired, I’m stressed out, and I still feel pretty ill. I hate that Chris is still lurking around us, poisoning our relationship. Personally? I don’t like waiting for the other foot to drop.
“You know as well as I do that Chris is up to something much bigger than just scaring the hell out of me. He tried to kill us for fuck’s sake. Maybe if I just…maybe if I moved out—”
He steps to me and cuts me off. “No. Absolutely not.”
“Hear me out.” He grits his teeth but gets comfortable again. “Maybe, if I move out of your house and in with Devon, he might stop fucking with us. Maybe if we make it look like we’re not seeing each other, and we get some distance, he will leave us alone or fuck up enough to get caught.”
“Are you done?” Awesome. Those three words, coming out of anyone’s mouth, means you’re not going to like what follows. Already I feel like a scolded two year old. I nod and he continues.
“Number one, this is our house, not mine. Number two, I know damn well why you’re suggesting this. I will be fine, Reagan. He’s not going to hurt either one of us. I promise you that he will be put in the ground before either one of us is. So no, I do not agree with what you’ve suggested.”
I jump down from the counter and point my spoon at him. “He already did hurt us, Abraham! I watched you get pulled from that wreckage. I am the one who had to cut you down! I won’t fucking go through that feeling again!
“Do you know what that was like for me? To watch the man that I want to marry, the man that I want to spend the rest of our happy lives together with, fade away right in front of me?
“It was the worst fucking nightmare that I’ve ever had in my entire existence. And it was real! I could see, feel, smell, and even taste the blood that was leaving your body.” Tears start to pool in my eyes but I keep going. I’m on a roll. “For all I knew, you were already dead the second that they loaded you into that ambulance.
“My own brother had to restrain me. I couldn’t even feel the damage that the wreck had caused my body. All I could feel was my soul being ripped from my body and my heart shattering to the ground, along with all of the dreams that you let me build and promised to be there for.
“Tell me how you can promise me that he won’t actually take you from me, because, in his mind, I still belong to him and you’re just a toy that I’m playing with to piss him off. Tell me, Abraham. I really want to know.”
The tears are streaming freely down my face now. I hang my head when I can’t make myself speak anymore. Abraham picks me up and cradles me to his chest while carrying me up the stairs. He doesn’t say a word until he has us settled in our bed.
With his breath in my hair, he says, “Reagan, I know that you’re stressed. I know that this is all a little more than overwhelming. I am sorry that you were conscious long enough after the wreck to see what you saw, for more reasons than just one.” He hugs me a little tighter and takes a deep breath before he continues.
“But don’t you ever, not for one second, think that it didn’t cause irreparable, agonizing pain, for me to wake up and see you in the state that you were in. Knowing that my body got off a lot easier than yours did, only furthered the pain in my heart.
“I know that it must have been an otherworldly kind of hurt. But you are not the only one who went through all of this. I will not let some snot nose punk drive a wedge between us. It’s not just you in this. If we were apart, even just to put up a front, it would not only be painful, but it would be dangerous.
“For all we know, he’s biding his time until he can get to you when you’re by yourself. I love you, Reagan. I won’t lose you. To anyone or anything. Please, just stay with me. Let’s fight this battle together.”
“Just promise me that…I won’t have to see what I saw ever again. I don’t want to have to go through it.”
“You know that I can’t promise that. But I can promise that I will do all that is in my power to keep it from happening.”
»»•««
Abraham and I are lying in a field. He kisses my neck, making me hum with contentment. “It looks like rain.”
I open my eyes again and look at the sky. It’s bright blue with the odd white fluffy cloud spotting it here and there. “It looks clear to me. There’s not a storm cloud in sight.”
“We will see. I still say, it looks like rain.”
“And I still say, you’re weird.” Honestly, rain? It’s a perfect day outside.
“I love you, Reagan Nichole.”
“I love you too, Abraham.”
I roll over and snuggle to him. “
Mm. See, I knew you’d come back to me.”
My eyes bulge and my body goes stiff. Dark angry rain clouds move in faster than is possible. I’m not on Abraham any more. It’s Chris.
I jerk to a sitting position. He has his hands behind his head and a smile on his face. “Where’s Abraham?”
He rolls his eyes and sits up. “God. Will you not just let it go? Come on, let’s go say our ‘I do’s’ and then consummate our eternity of love for one another.”
My mouth drops open. I look down to find that I am wearing a white dress…or is it black? Red maybe? Yup, that’s what you should concentrate on, you idiot. Fucking run!
When I’m on my feet and about to launch into a full-on sprint, Chris grabs me by the waist. He puts his lips to mine and my body goes limp.
I’m trying to hit him, I’m trying to make my feet move, to scream, something, anything. But nothing is working. He throws me on the ground hard enough that it knocks the air from my lungs.
I can do nothing but watch as he strips down and lowers himself to me. When he pushes my dress up, my hand moves to my mouth.
Oh shit, I’m gonna puke.
»»•««
Yup. I’m gonna puke. My eyes fly open and I sprint for the bathroom, knocking my knee into the corner of the entryway as I go. Awesome.
I don’t have the thought process to shut the door behind me. I dive for the toilet and start throwing up. Milk? Ah, ice cream. Well, at least the dairy is keeping my throat from being burned by the stomach acid.
Dozer lays his body so it’s butted up against mine, and Thor plops down in the doorway. Dozer begins to whine. By the third time that I’ve started to dry heave and am sweating like I’ve just run a marathon, Abraham turns the light on. “Angel? Baby, are you okay?”
“Do I look okay? Out, get out, Abraham.” He doesn’t listen. He grabs a hair tie from the vanity, sits on the tub, and puts my mangled main into a bun. His hands move up and down my back.
When it looks like my body has settled, I lay my sweating forehead on his knee. He moves the stray strands of hair away from my face. “What brought that on? You’re not running a fever.”
“Bad dream, I think…I can’t really remember it. I don’t know, maybe I shouldn’t eat ice cream after a run and right before bed.” All I can remember about the dream is that I think Chris was there…I think. And maybe some rain. “What time is it?”
“It’s three in the morning. I’m sorry that you had a bad dream.”
He’s so fucking sweet. “Me too. Let me brush my teeth and then we can go back to sleep.”
“Okay, sweet girl. I’ll meet you in bed.” He kisses my head after helping me up from the floor.
Chapter Ten
Abraham
“So, you’re really doing this then?” Devon looks at me with both skepticism and a sense of pride.
“It’s not like I’m going to ask her today, or even this week. But yes, I’m really doing this. I love her, Dev. She’s the only one that I want to be with. What do you think?” I hold up the finished engagement ring.
“I think that you hit it out of the park. She’s really going to love that you involved my mom’s emerald. She’s totally going to cry. When are you going to do it?”
“I don’t know yet. Maybe when all of this ‘Chris’ bullshit dies down. You really think she’ll like it?” I know damn well she’s going to like it. Not only is it her favorite color, it was her mother’s emerald. It’s beautiful. It’s absolutely perfect for her finger. It was literally made to be worn on her hand and her hand alone. Now I just need to choose my timing.
“Why do you ask questions that you already know the answers to?” He shakes his head and smiles.
“Call it an ego boost.” He punches my arm.
“Who would have thought, Abraham fucking Stone is going to ask my little sister to marry him?” I did. Every day of my life since the moment I laid eyes on her in that white sundress. “Fucking weird. Damon is going to have kittens.”
“Yeah, about Damon. You can’t tell him, dude. He will give it away for sure. And Kate sure as hell can’t know.”
“What about Mickey?”
I smile. “Mickey’s known for about two weeks now. I showed him my design for it.”
His mouth pops open. “Dude?”
“Don’t ‘dude’ me. Whether you said yes or not, I was going to ask her for her hand. Mickey is the one person that I knew, without a shadow of a doubt, would be happy about it.”
“That’s just crap, Abraham.”
The casher rings up my card. After the ring is put in a very expensive wooden box, bag, and has tissue paper thrown on top, we leave the store.
“Where are you going to hide it?” I look at him like he’s stupid. “What? You think I’m going to lead her to it?”
“No. But I will be the only one who knows where this bad boy is.” We get into my car and I pull my seatbelt on.
“Whatever. Let’s go pick up lunch and swing by the tattoo shop. I wanna watch Kate pierce Reagan’s nose again.”
My head whips in his direction and my hand stops its mission of turning the key in the ignition. “Reagan’s doing what?”
He cocks his head and smiles at me. “Hmm, interesting.”
I start the car and head for the shop, making the fastest food run I’ve ever made.
»»•««
“I still can’t believe I missed it. Did she tear up?” Kate throws her marker at Devon and hits him in the forehead.
“Let me stick a needle through your nose, let’s see if you can keep your eyes from watering.” He takes a few steps back.
I turn toward the bathroom door. “Reagan, get your ass out here. Quit stalling. I want to see it.” She had her nose pierced when she was in college but had to take it out for her clinicals. I remember how upset I was when I saw her for the first time without it.
The door opens and she walks right up to me. “Well?”
Her smile grows and I get smacked in the back of the head by Devon. I lurch my arm out, shoving him a few feet to the side without taking my eyes off of Reagan.
“By the growl, I’ll assume that you missed it?”
I lean down and gently kiss the tip of her nose. “So fucking much.” My eyes still don’t leave her face, “Mickey, I’m taking Reagan home.” I don’t wait for his answer. She’s thrown over my shoulder and I grab her things from under her desk.
She’s laughing the whole way. Devon scowls at me. I talk through my laughter. “I’m not even sorry, bro.”
»»•««
Chris
“He fucking bought her a ring!”
“I don’t believe you.” I shove the picture from the burn phone in her face. “Okay, we need to move this thing along. I refuse to be thrown aside like the garbage that she is.”
I lean closer into her and she backs herself into the wall. Once I’m in her face, almost nose to nose, I say, “You watch your fucking mouth, Sasha. That’s my future you’re bad-mouthing. You keep your damned opinions to yourself about her.”
Her eyes flick to my mouth and then back to my eyes again. I cock a brow at her. “Does this turn you on?”
She makes a face. “Please. Your vulgarity is nothing more than just that, vulgarity. It doesn’t have a place.” I cage her with my hands on the wall next to her shoulders. When I push my pelvis into hers, her lips part and she exhales in a rush.
“There is a place for it actually. With you it’s apparently in the bedroom.” I grind into her harder. “Do you want me to fuck you, Sasha?”
Her mouth says no but her body says yes. I reach my hand through the waistband of her pencil skirt and around her panties. “Your body is betraying you. You’re soaked. Say it.”
“I beg your pardon?” Removing my hand and licking her arousal off, she watches my tongue.
“Say you want it, and I’ll show you how a real man fucks a woman.”
She just stands there, staring at my mouth. I brush my lips against hers for a
fleeting second. “Do you want me to show you?”
Her head nods the tiniest bit. Hopefully she can handle it. I don’t really care either way. I can get Reagan with or without her at this point. But the release is needed. Jacking off to Reagan’s photos just isn’t cutting it anymore.
»»•««
Abraham
“So let me get this straight, my mother called you and asked if we would go to family dinner night? With Damon and Sam too?” Reagan is pulling her freshly curled hair into a ponytail off to one shoulder.
“Yes. She said that we can leave whenever we want, but that she wanted us to attend since it’s been months since you and Sam went to one. She misses you, Abraham.”
I laugh. “Right. Reagan, I’ve known that woman my entire life. She never does something without an ulterior motive.”
She goes to the closet and pulls out a gray, flowy, layered, floor-length dress, one my mother would definitely approve of and is perfect for a dinner at my parents’ house. I so don’t want to go there and do this.
“She’s trying to make amends, Abraham. Put your big boy pants on and let’s go. You’re going to make us late. I know we told her that the effort will be hers in this, but we have to pull our weight as well. Go. Put one of your suits on.” She shoos me and I stomp into the closet like a two year old.
“Fine. But I don’t have to like it.”
She pokes her head around the corner. “If you behave yourself, I’ll let you see what I’m wearing under my dress.” She stands fully in the doorway. I cock my head and look her dress up and down. “Uh huh, no peeking. You have to be good tonight. Only then, will I let you play with what’s underneath.”
“Mm. Fine. Color me intrigued.” I turn to the rack next to me and grab a pair of dress socks off of the shelf. When I turn to walk out of the closet, I spot a shopping bag nestled by all of Reagan’s shoes. “What’s that?” Her eyes follow my finger.
“None of your concern.” She snatches it up and I look at her in suspicion. “You will see it when I’m ready for you to see it. Promise that you won’t peek?”
“Fine, I promise. But you better show me soon. I’m a very impatient man.”
The Call Page 14