Broken Series

by Dawn Pendleton

  A bright red welt was already forming on his skin and I immediately felt guilty. I hadn’t thought it was that bad, but seeing it was a reality check.

  “I’ll go call us a cab,” I said with a pat on his back. I turned away but he grabbed my hand and pulled me into his lap.

  He growled again, a trait I was beginning to find endearing, then put his lips on mine. Passion roared between us, in the midst of the crowd around us, and by the time he lifted his head, my hands were molded to his neck, clinging to him for dear life.

  “Go get a cab,” he ordered.

  I almost reminded him that I had been about to do just that, but instead, I stood up, straightened my dress, and left him there.

  Outside the club, there were people everywhere. It was after ten and the strip was full. Getting a cab was not going to be an easy task. I went to the curb and put my hand out, just like I’d watched people do on TV for years. Not a single cab stopped. I sighed.

  When I felt heavy hands on my hips, my first thought was that Baker had limped his way outside to help me hail a cab. No such luck.

  “Hey, baby, how much for the whole night?” a deep voice boomed behind me. I turned around and looked up at the man before me.

  He wasn’t gross, per se, but he was definitely dirty. His hands on my waist were covered in filth and he was missing one of his front teeth.

  “You couldn’t afford me,” I said and immediately regretted it. I wasn’t in Maine, where an advance at the bar could be pushed away and there were plenty of good Samaritans to help. People here in Vegas probably wouldn’t help unless I screamed rape. And even then it was iffy. I tried to push his hands away from me, but his grip tightened and I was stuck in his grasp.

  “You whores are all the same. Think you’re too good for a paying customer. Maybe I’ll just take the goods for free,” he threatened.

  Just as panic set in, a hand landed on the creep’s shoulder and he whirled around to face his attacker, my protector. Baker’s eyes were engulfed in silver flames and his face was flushed in anger. He swung a punch at the guy’s face and then lifted him up by his neck. No small feat, considering the guy was beefy and at least an inch taller than Baker.

  “You touch her again and you’re dead,” he promised before he tossed the guy to the ground. His body hit the pavement with a loud thud and he groaned. Baker met my eyes. “You okay?”

  I nodded, still a little shaky from the encounter.

  “Let’s get out of here,” he suggested and I agreed. He tossed an arm across my shoulders and we walked several yards away from the scene. He managed to get us a cab and we climbed in the backseat, where I got as close to him as I could.

  “What were you thinking?” he accused as soon as he was comfortable.

  “Me? You’re the one who punched that guy!”

  “I’d do it again if anyone dared to touch you,” he vowed.

  “You were just jealous,” I joked, desperate to lighten the mood.

  Baker turned his unusually serious gray eyes toward me. “It wasn’t jealousy, Rain. It was fear. If I hadn’t come out when I did, what would have happened to you?”

  It was a question I didn’t want to answer. “I know. I’m sorry.”

  “It wasn’t your fault.”

  And I knew he was right, but I couldn’t help but look at my outfit and wonder if my attempt to push Baker over the edge was actually a little incriminating. I looked like a high-priced call-girl, no matter what Baker thought. I sighed and hung my head, shamed.

  Baker shucked a finger under my chin and forced me to look up at him. “I love you.”

  I never tired of hearing him say it. “I love you, too.”

  He smiled and kissed me gingerly. He entwined his fingers with mine and I rested my head on his shoulder, utterly content.

  When the cab stopped in front of the hotel, Baker paid the driver and then hobbled out and into the lobby. Just before he reached the glass doors, he whirled around to face me.

  “You know what I want?” he asked, his eyes back to his playful self.

  I thought about it for a second. “Tacos?”

  “Hmm, not a bad suggestion. But what I really want…is to marry you.”

  I stared at him, unmoving, shocked, and completely frozen in place. I searched his eyes, desperate to find a hint of amusement in them. I found none.

  “Are you serious?”

  “This wasn’t how I wanted to do it. I have a ring,” he mumbled. A ring!? “And I planned to do it tomorrow morning at breakfast. But I love you, Rainey. No woman will ever compare. You’re it for me.”

  I gulped.

  “I know it’s sudden and probably just a tad bit crazy,” he limped forward to take my hands, “but I want you to be my wife.” He awkwardly knelt down on one knee and pulled a little black box out his pocket. He flipped open the box and the diamonds glinted in the bright lights. “Marry me.”

  It wasn’t a question so much as a demand. Chris Baker wanted to marry me. Even though I was dying. Even though he would have to live his life as a widower. Even though –

  “Stop thinking, Rainey and just feel. What does your heart tell you?”

  “Yes,” I said before I could think too much.

  He slipped the silver band onto the ring finger of my left hand, kissed it, and then stood, gathering me in his arms. He spun around, his damaged foot forgotten as we both laughed with glee. I was giddy.

  “I love you,” he finally whispered into my ear when we came to a stop.

  “I love you,” I replied as I looked around. People around us were snapping photos on their camera phones and I realized that Baker would want to remember this moment.

  I asked a beautiful Asian couple to take a few pictures for us, showing them how to use my cell phone camera. Baker and I posed ridiculously for at least a dozen photos. I figured we were bound to like one of them. I took my phone back from them eventually and thanked them profusely. They congratulated us.

  We walked hand-in-hand to the elevator to our room. Once the doors slid closed, Baker pressed me up against the wall, pressing kisses down my throat. I moaned in delight and then groaned in frustration when the doors opened much too quickly on our floor.

  We entered the suite and I half-expected him to jump me as soon as we were behind the closed door. Instead, he poured two glasses of champagne.

  “Champagne upsets my stomach,” I confessed as I took the goblet from him.

  “I guess it’s a good thing its sparkling grape juice, then.” He kissed my forehead and we sat on the couch, snuggled together. “A toast,” he lifted his glass, “to the most beautiful woman in Vegas agreeing to marry me.”

  I clinked my glass against his and took a sip, the bubbles tickling my lips. Doubt settled in at that exactly moment and I thought about the repercussions of my actions. Whether he accepted it or not, I was going to die. That meant he was going to come to terms with my illness, even though we agreed not to discuss it.

  “We need to talk.” I set my glass down on the coffee table and tucked my feet beneath me. Baker’s arm was resting along the back of the couch and his fingers played absently with my hair.

  He sighed. “Already? Can’t we just enjoy it?”

  “I know you hate to be serious, but this is important. I can’t marry you unless you promise me something.”

  “An ultimatum already?” He set his glass next to mine. “Lay it on me.”

  “After I’m gone,” I started. Baker made a movement to interrupt me but I stopped him. “No, let me finish. After I’m gone, and you’ve had time to grieve, I want you to promise me that you’ll find someone who makes you happy.”

  “What? That’s insane,” he argued.

  “I know it seems weird, but, Baker, you were made to live a long, happy life with someone, not to be a widower your whole life. I understand why you want to marry me – believe me, I get it. And I love you for it. But if we’re going to do this, then I want to know, beyond a shadow of a doubt, that you will m
ove on someday and allow yourself to love someone else. I need to know that you’ll be happy.”

  “I am happy,” he started.

  “You know what I mean. You deserve to be in a committed, long-term relationship where you are loved every day for the rest of your life.”

  “I have you, Rainey.”

  “Not for long. My time is limited. And although I will love you forever, the truth is, I won’t be around forever. I won’t marry you unless you promise me,” I confirmed, sticking to my convictions about it.

  He seemed to realize that I didn’t want the easy answer. He sat back on the couch, pulled his arm away from me, and looked at his hands. He fiddled his fingers together for a moment before he answered me. When his eyes came back to mine, they were misty.

  “I’ve never felt this way before. Hell, I don’t think I’ve ever been in love at all. And if this is your requirement for marriage, then I can’t do anything but agree. I don’t like it. But I’ll do it. After you’re…” he struggled to find the right word. “…gone, I will, at some point in my life, move on and love someone else. But let’s get one thing straight.” His eyes bore into mine. “I will never, ever stop loving you. As long as there’s air in my lungs, you will forever be in my heart, the completion of my soul.”

  I gave him a little smile through the tears that had already formed. “I love you.”

  His reply was to pull me in for a kiss.

  Eighteen

  Baker

  I lost my mind.

  That was my only thought when I woke up, slumped over on the couch hours later. Rainey was nowhere to be found and I didn’t go looking for her right away. I needed some time to think. Marriage wasn’t a problem. I wanted her to be my wife more than anything in this world.

  The more I thought about her demands, though, the more nervous I got. I had been holding out for a new treatment or miraculous healing, but the cold, hard truth was that Rainey would die. Whether I wanted to deal with it or not, facts were facts. I picked up a glass of leftover juice and took a swig, not caring about the fact that it was old. I needed to appease my overly dry mouth. I swallowed the now flat liquid and took deep breaths, determined to calm my anxious heart.

  I loved Rainey. Logically, I knew I didn’t need to worry about anything more than that. She was the only person in the world I would fight for, and even though the ending of this fight was predetermined, I still wanted to win. I wanted to save her, to be her knight in shining armor. If only things were that simple.

  Marriage was the one option I thought for sure she would refuse. And for a minute, it looked like she would. But then she threw caution to the wind and accepted me. It was liberating. I wanted nothing more than to prove my devotion to her for the rest of my life, whether she lived or not.

  Her demand that I find love again after she passed was insane. I agreed to placate her, but there was no one my heart would survive this plague. I was already half brokenhearted now, what was going to happen in a few months when I couldn’t look at or be with her at all?

  I sucked in a breath, but didn’t feel the air rush into my lungs. All I felt was despair at the thought of never being able to see her again.

  I leaned forward and hung my head between my knees, drawing gasping breaths. It took a full minute before I calmed down enough to lift my head. When I did, Rainey was standing in front of me looking sleepy and so sexy.

  “You okay?”

  “Yeah, I’m fine,” I assured her. I stood and walked over to her, wrapping my arms around her in a hug.

  “Still want to marry me?” she asked with a glint in her eyes.

  “Abso-fucking-lutely.”

  She grinned, her teeth glinting in the light coming from the strip. “That’s good to know,” she said, turning in my arms to lean her back against my chest with my arms still around her.

  I leaned down to kiss her neck, softly inhaling her sweet scent.

  “So when do you want to marry me?” I asked her softly.

  “Oh, I don’t know. How about next year?”

  I squeezed her a little to let her know I didn’t appreciate the joke.

  “I was actually thinking we should do it in Maine,” she answered.

  “Are you sure? That means flying out there, you know,” I teased, knowing how much she hated to fly.

  “I’m sure.”

  “Next week?” I suggested.

  She gulped. “I think that would be perfect.” Her voice quavered a bit but she kept her smile frozen in place.

  “Don’t be afraid,” I whispered in her ear.

  She turned in my arms, lifting her hands to the back of my neck. “I’ll never be afraid of you,” she promised.

  I kissed her but pulled away before I could enjoy it too much.

  “I’m starving,” I admitted with a smirk.

  “Does this place have food?”

  I barked with laughter. “Does this place have food – that’s like asking if the place has air!”

  She stuck her tongue out at me and then moved away toward the window to watch the city below us. “Make us something, then,” she demanded.

  I gave her ass a playful slap and was rewarded with her yelp of surprise. I winked at her and went into the kitchen to search for food.

  When I returned to the living area a few minutes later, Rainey was sitting on the couch, very quiet and almost nervous. I set down a tray of food for us to share and her eyes widened.

  “You still eat Doritos and Skittles?” She stared up at me in shock.

  “Some things are too good to leave in childhood,” I replied, plucking a handful of chips from the bag and tearing open one of the small bags of fruity goodness.

  I popped a chip and several pieces of candy into my mouth all at once, chewing loudly just to annoy her. “This is me, babe. Maybe you should be the one rethinking this marriage thing.”

  She seemed to ponder my words, and my gut clenched in anxious anticipation. Fear flooded me and I stopped breathing, afraid she would admit to not wanting to marry me after all. But then she laughed and swiped the bag of Skittles off my lap.

  “You’ll be a diabetic with all this junk food,” she said, even as popped a few Skittles into her mouth.

  “Look who’s talking,” I admonished, giving her a glare. “Besides, life doesn’t get much better than chips and candy with the girl I love.”

  Her emerald eyes turned watery and she looked wistful. There were circles under her eyes and I realized that being up this late wasn’t good for her condition.

  “Let’s go to bed,” I suggested as I stood. I held my hand out to her.

  “Sounds like a plan,” she said seductively.

  By the time we walked into the bedroom, though, she was half-asleep already and I had to lift her into the bed. I laid her on the mattress and she mumbled in her near-sleep state.

  “I love you, Baker,” she whispered and then rolled over, snuggling under the thick covers. I stood there smiling like a fool at her for several minutes, just watching her sleep.

  When I turned away, I had a big smile on my face and I knew, without any doubt, that loving Rainey now would be worth whatever heartache came later. I went out into the living area, picked up the tray of food, and took it to the kitchen. I noticed my phone blinking when I passed where I had set it on the coffee table, so I picked it up on my way to clean up.

  There were four missed calls from Mallory and I assumed they were from Luke, but I listened to the voicemail anyway, just in case.

  “Hey, man. What the hell is going on? You and Rainey just disappear and now we’re all worried about you two! Call me back,” Luke pleaded. I rolled my eyes and pressed the button to delete the message.

  There were several text messages and I scrolled through them.

  I typed out a quick reply to Jimmy, who asked about how to close out the bar sales for the day on the main computer.

  Two messages were from Mallory’s cell and a quick glance told me they were really from Luke. Where the h
ell is his phone? I sighed and sent a quick reply telling him that everything was fine and Rainey and I would be back in Casper next week. I didn’t tell him why, though. I figured Rainey would want to tell her friends herself.

  A text from Gabby asking about my whereabouts and mostly giving me hell for up and leaving town like a jerk made me feel like a small child being reprimanded by his mother. I sent her a message, too, promising to have Rainey call her tomorrow and explain everything.

  Wolfe even texted me, although his message had nothing to do with my whereabouts and everything to do with alcohol. What’s the best mixer to go with spiced rum? I laughed softly to myself and answered him. Leave it to Wolfe to not even acknowledge my disappearance and act like I’d been there the whole time.

  It was nice to hear from everyone, though, as much as I didn’t want to admit it because they were mostly annoying. They all cared about Rainey and me and this was just their way of showing it.

  My phone rang in my hand before I could put it down and I sighed again. The caller id showed it was Mallory and I hoped it would be.

  “Hello?”

  “Baker! Where the hell are you?” Mallory’s voice rang out through the line.

  I grinned. “Didn’t Luke tell you?”

  “He said you were in Vegas. That’s not true, is it?”

  “Of course it is,” I assured her. “We are having a great time, too.”

  “Let me talk to Rainey,” she demanded.

  “She’s asleep. It’s like two in the morning here, Mal,” I informed her.

  “Oh. Right. Well, have her call me as soon as she wakes up. No excuses.”

  “Yes ma’am. I’ll have her call you,” I promised.

  “Good. Now tell me something,” she started.

  “What’s that?”

  “Are you really bringing her home?”

  “The short answer is yes. I don’t know for how long, though. It might be just a short visit,” I told her, aware of every word I spoke so that I didn’t give away too much information.

  Mallory breathed a sigh of relief. “Good. I need to see my best friend and give her hell.”

  “No giving her hell, Mal. She’s been through enough,” I chastised her. “I mean it. Just let her do things her way.”