Only for You

by Marquita Valentine

  His head jerks up, and he gives me this look. “What?”

  I’ve known Cole for months now, shared every deep, dark secret with him, and he with me. I know we’re young at twenty and twenty-two, but both of us have had to grow up fast, and we’d both be going into this with eyes wide open.

  My parents dated only for six weeks before they got married. So the idea of a marriage lasting after a short dating period is not a foreign concept for me. Besides, I’ll never be loved by a man like Cole again.

  Miracles like him only happen once in a lifetime.

  Taking a deep breath, I say, “Marry me, Cole, and make an honest man out of yourself.”

  *** *** ***

  Cole

  Marry her?

  Marry Violet Rae Givens aka Violet Lynn, Country Music Princess? Not that the title matters to me, it doesn’t. I fell in love with Rae long before I knew who she was. I don’t care who she is.

  In fact, if I could have things my way, she’d only be Rae Givens, not Violet Lynn. Mostly because I’m a selfish S.O.B. that would rather have her all to myself.

  And there’s still the matter of that tour with her ex-boyfriend.

  “Just how hard did you bump your head?”

  She laughs, the sound making my heart flip. Only she can do that to me. “Not very.”

  Marry Rae. I can’t stop thinking the words. Me married. Me with a wife. Me with another mouth to feed and look after and make sure… I blink.

  “But you’re rich.”

  Her nose scrunches on one side, the diamond in it flashing. “Yeah, and, so what? My money would be our money. ”

  “You can’t do that. I didn’t earn it.” The thought of taking her money makes me queasy. Sure, it would make my life easier but it’s not mine.

  “But I did, and what kind of nonsense is that? If you made more money than me, should I refuse it because I wasn’t the one making it?”

  “Well, no but—”

  “No buts.”

  “Rae. People will talk. They’ll think I’m like Jessica Simpson’s boyfriend, taking advantage of you.”

  Her chin drops. “You know who Jessica Simpson’s boyfriend is?”

  “Football announcers get chatty.” I shift in my seat. “Hell, Beau is the chattiest guy I know, and tells us everything while we play poker. He and Parker gossip worse than a bunch of old ladies at a quilting circle.”

  I rise from the chair, and start pacing the room. She watches me, leaning back on her pillow as the nurse comes into check on her. They talk in low voices.

  “I get to leave, as soon as they get the doctor to sign my discharge papers,” Rae announces, all casual, after the nurse leaves, like she hadn’t just hadn’t asked me to marry her.

  “You know I love you, but—”

  She holds up a finger. “At least think about it.”

  “Fine,” I grudgingly agree. It’s not that I don’t want to be with her like that. I mean, sometimes, I think about our future, and it does involve an even deeper commitment than what we have right now.

  But marriage? I know nothing about it, and I’m pretty damn sure I’d screw it up somehow. Not by cheating on Rae or physically hurting her. I just… honestly, I have no idea what I have to offer her, beyond loving her.

  Marriage is more than just love, right?

  After another hour, we finally get to leave. They wheel Rae out. She’s wrapped up in a robe with a blanket over her legs.

  Standard procedure, they’d informed us when Rae had refused to ride in it.

  A crowd greets us, larger than I’ve ever seen. Thank God, they let me pull my Jeep up to the curb.

  Rae holds her arm up to cover her face, and I get in front of her, trying to protect her from whatever I can. A police cruiser pulls up, lights flashing, and its siren making furious little beeps.

  Ford steps out, with a partner, and they start to manage the crowd. Questions and comments are shouted together. But the questions aren’t only directed at her.

  “Is it true you’ve been arrested for battery multiple times?”

  “Are you pregnant again, or was this another relapse?”

  “Did you hit Violet Lynn?”

  The crowd of press and onlookers edge closer.

  “I said take a step back!” Ford shouts.

  “How many people have you assaulted, Cole?”

  Biting back my answer and clenching my fist to keep from flipping them off, or worse, popping one of them a good one in the mouth, I help Rae into my Jeep and jog to the other side.

  “God, they’re assholes,” I mutter, closing the door and glancing at Rae. “How in the hell did you deal with this, from day to day?”

  Instead of answering me, she exhales and closes her eyes. “Take me home, Cole,” she whispers.

  ***

  There’s a police escort almost the entire way to my house. I park the Jeep and ignore the one cop car that decides to park beside me, so I can get Rae inside.

  She’s lightly dozing when I scoop her up in my arms. Her eyes flutter open. “Please don’t leave me.”

  My heart stutters. “We’re at my house, baby. I told you in the hospital—”

  “Not that… just don’t let what happened tonight make things worse for us.”

  I climb up the steps right as my brother opens the front door, saving me from coming up with an answer.

  Parker’s gaze clashes with mine, questions gleaming in his eyes.

  “She’s fine. Hit her head is all, but no concussion.”

  Rae stirs in my arms. “I have really sweaty hands and really bad taste in online viewing.”

  “The bug was worried. She tried to wait up for you,” he says, following us down the hall.

  “Can I sleep with her tonight?” Rae asks.

  Automatically, I change course, heading for Kelly’s room. A ballerina nightlight is on in the corner, toys carefully put up and school clothes laid out for tomorrow on a small chair by the window.

  I wonder if Kelly will always be so careful with her things, if the pain of having so little for so long will make her forever grateful for what she gets.

  “I love her so much,” Rae says as I tuck her into bed beside my little sister. They curl into each other, Rae wrapping her arms around Kelly and pulling her close. My heart does a funny flip at the reminder of what Rae won’t ever have or be.

  I pull up the sheets, smooth back Rae’s hair, and kiss his forehead. “She loves you too, you know.”

  Rae yawns, baby blue eyes blinking up at me. “Don’t forget what I said.”

  “Said about what?” Wanting to marry her or pleading with me not to leave her?

  “About everything.”

  “We’ll talk later, okay?”

  She mumbles sleepily and I leave the room, Parker hot on my heels as I head for the back porch. Lighting a cigarette, I push open the door and find my usual spot on the stairs.

  “What?” I ask.

  Parker joins me at the stairs, but he doesn’t sit. Instead, he leans against a post and crosses his arms. “Did she really hit her head?”

  For a moment, a flash of self-righteous anger rises. “What do you think?” I snap.

  He takes a breath. “I think the two of you need a break.”

  I take a deep pull from my cigarette and blow out a thin stream of air. “That so?”

  “Yeah.”

  I grunt and hear the sound of another vehicle pulling into our driveway. Hemy engine. Wyatt’s here. Grinding the cigarette into the heel of my boot, I shove it into a nearby bottle and stand, giving my brother an accusatory stare.

  “Think of this as a bro-vention,” he jokes, but I’m not laughing.

  Wyatt appears, beanie on his head and jacket zipped up tight. “Everything okay?”

  “Apparently not,” I say, slicing my gaze once more to my brother. “Apparently, Rae and I need to take a break.”

  “That’s not a bad idea.”

  My head whips around to face my best friend. “Excuse me?
”

  He doesn’t look away, and I didn’t expect him to, but I did think he would at least look a little contrite. “Look, I like Rae… But, she’s not like us. Any of us.”

  “You don’t seem to have a problem with Beau.”

  “Beau hasn’t been famous since the age of thirteen. And the press doesn’t follow him around like they do her.”

  “And that’s my problem how?”

  Wyatt shoves his hands into his pocket. “Because you love each other, and with the good comes the bad, but dude… lately, the bad has been overshadowing everything.”

  “And that’s your problem how?” I punch the post beside Parker, wishing it were him instead, but a part of me thinks that both Wyatt and my brother might be right. But I’d made promises to Rae and to myself. Just because things got tough, didn’t mean I should walk away. She’d defied her parents to be with me. She’d chosen me over them, not that I’d ever ask that of her. But she had anyway.

  “Both of you can kiss my ass.”

  “It’s only a suggestion, Cole,” Wyatt says. “Nothing you have to do right now, but maybe think about taking a step back and—”

  “Leave her? Like she is right now?”

  “Do you really want to be with a woman just like Crystal?” This from my brother.

  It dawns on me. They believe the shit that’s been said about Rae. They believe that she’s some strung-out starlet who relapsed, not the truth about her.

  “She’s nothing like Crystal,” I snap, fighting for control of my temper. I curl my hands into fists, clenching them tight and keeping them by my sides. “And for your information, both of you, some sick bastard put up the video of Rae after her wreck. She watched the EMT’s pull the windshield from her body. She watched the baby inside of her die, because of her stupid mistake. But it didn’t stop there… oh, hell no. God thought it would be extra special to punish her even more by making it so she’ll never be able to have kids again.”

  “So you know what—if she did have to go to the hospital for a relapse… Damn it, she’s earned it.” I give them both a long, hard stare, daring them to say a word against her.

  “Jesus Christ,” Parker curses.

  “Shit,” Wyatt mutters. “I’m so—”

  “Save it… Carry your asses somewhere else. That includes you, too, Park.” Without waiting for an answer, I head back inside, slamming the door behind me. I get ready for bed, grab some pillows and blankets, and head for Kelly’s room. Once there, I check on her and Rae, then make a bed in the floor.

  But with Parker and Wyatt’s words rolling around in my head, it’s a long damn time before I can sleep.

  Chapter Seven

  Cole

  It’s Christmas, my favorite holiday for once.

  Things are still tense with Rae, even more so after Wyatt Parker’s failed bro-vention but she’s here with me, smiling and sitting beside me on the couch while Kelly opens presents.

  Maybe this is the best time to talk to her. “Rae?”

  “Yes?” Rae’s pretty smile falls and so does my stomach. I don’t want to do this. I want things back to the way they were before, we were just a guy and a girl meeting down by the creek and flirting with each other.

  Before I knew she was famous or what had happened to her. Before I loved her.

  I glance at Kelly. She’s just opened yet another present from Rae. This time it’s a pink makeup vanity. Luckily, it’s already been put together and Kelly sits down on a stool that pulls out, immediately enchanted with all the buttons—and the makeup that comes with it.

  “Can we talk?”

  “Sure.”

  “Kelly, Rae and I are going to the kitchen. Want anything?”

  Kelly doesn’t answer at first, too absorbed in her pretend play.

  “Kelly Morgan, do you want anything from the kitchen?”

  “Nope! I got all I need right here,” she exclaims, all cheerful and still in her pajamas from this morning.

  We make our way to the kitchen. I lean against the counter and pull Rae between my legs. She looks up at me, blue eyes wary.

  “So I guess you’ve noticed the foul mood I’ve been in lately.”

  She nods. “And my trip to the hospital didn’t help things.”

  “Not your fault. You didn’t make anyone put that video up.” Since then it’s been taken down. Rae’s legal team had threatened to sue that blog, and any other, so fast that my head spun.

  “But I do bring the press around.”

  “Still not responsible for my mood.”

  “Doesn’t help it.”

  “No it doesn’t,” I admit. “But the real reason, and I’ve been thinking about telling you this for a while now, is that Everett said something the night you and Jaxon sang together.” Okay, so that’s not the entire reason I’ve been such an ass, but it is most of it.

  She makes a face. “He’s not been a very good dad to you, Cole. And I’m sure it hurt to know he adopted a kid he didn’t know instead of taking care of the ones he had with your mom.”

  This response of hers is one of the reasons why I love her. Cupping her face, I kiss her lightly on the lips. “Is that why you’ve been so sweet to me? Why you’ve put up with everything?”

  “It hasn’t been easy, but I figured you needed time to work things out. And you’ve been there for me, too.”

  This girl knows me so well, and now I feel even worse. “Everett said that Crystal sold Jaxon to him.”

  “Sold?” Big blue eyes go wide. “You believe him?”

  I nod. “He’s Crystal’s all right, and I think he’s Everett’s too.”

  Her face pales. “Are you sure?”

  “He might not be, but I am.”

  Violet and I turn at the same time.

  “Mommy?” Kelly gasps, running to her. “Merry Christmas!”

  Crystal tips up her chin, sending her blond hair swinging, as she wraps one arm around my sister. “What—no Christmas greeting for me, Cole?”

  *** *** ***

  Violet

  So this is the woman responsible for making Cole’s life so miserably hard. This is the woman responsible for stealing from him and not taking care of him, Parker, or Kelly.

  This is the woman who made Cole grow up too fast and play daddy to his sister and his brother. This is the woman who sold her child into luxury while her other children wallowed in squalor.

  My hatred of her doubles as she bends down and kisses Kelly’s curly head. “Still in your pajamas in the middle on the day?”

  “Rae said I could,” Kelly says, running to me. I pick her up, holding her close, because I’m afraid her mom will leave at any time and crush Kelly’s fragile little soul.

  Blue eyes, so like Jaxon’s, I realize, focus on me. “You’re Rae?”

  “I am,” I say. I’d love to say more but none of those words should be said with Kelly in hearing distance.

  Cole has yet to say a word. I glance up at him. He’s just starting at her, more in shock than I am after his disclosure.

  “And you are?” I ask.

  She gives me this smile, this ‘you can’t out bitch a bitch’ smile that would frighten most people, but not me. “Crystal.”

  I pretend to brighten. “Oh! Cole’s grandmother.” I glance at Cole. “You were right. She does look good for her age.” Turning my attention back to Crystal, I smile sweetly. “It’s so nice to meet you.”

  “Bitch,” she says, smiling back just as sweetly.

  It actually hurts my heart to see her smile like that, because in that smile, I could see a woman capable of many things: love, abandonment, loyalty, and deceit.

  I take Cole’s hand in mine. He grips me tight while Kelly’s hanging on to my neck like a little monkey in a tall tree but I don’t care. If I have to take on this woman for both of them, I will.

  “Why’d you do it?” Cole asks, his voice raspy.

  “Why not?” Crystal says with a shrug. She glances around the room, noting all the improvements Cole h
as made. The new table and chairs in the kitchen. The new cabinets and granite countertops he’d traded several kegs of beer for with a local contractor who had some leftover from a job site. She turns a calculating smile on Cole. “Somebody hit the jackpot.”

  “Answer me, damn it,” Cole suddenly shouts and takes a step forward.

  Kelly whimpers and I let go of Cole, wrapping my arms around her. She buries her face in my neck, small puffs of air tickling my skin.

  Crystal crosses her arms, all defiant in her pose, but I also notice she takes a step back. “I needed the money.”

  “Not good enough,” he says. “The real reason.”

  Her lips smash together, jaw working. She takes a breath. “Because he said if I gave him this gift that he’d finally leave Kathy and be with me. That all she wanted was a baby boy, with blonde hair and blues eyes, just like her.”

  “So you just did it?”

  “I was homeless, Cole. We didn’t have anywhere to go,” she screams, her façade finally breaking. “It was you and me, and I was pregnant with a baby I couldn’t afford. With a baby Everett told me he’d take care of… that he’d take care of us.”

  “Jaxon’s not…” I begin, and then smash my lips together. This revelation of Crystal’s makes no sense to me. At twenty-four, Jaxon is two years older than Cole. I want to point this out to both of them, but I’m positive that my interference wouldn’t be welcomed.

  “Like he had with me? You say you were homeless, yet you were pregnant again and you had me. It doesn’t add up. It doesn’t make sense,” Cole says.

  That’s because she’s still lying, I want to say.

  “My parents kicked me out. Okay? They kicked me out because I was a pregnant slut.” Her lower lip trembles. There’s truth in her word. I’ve known enough liars in the music industry to spot them, but she’s still lying. She’s still playing the sympathy card. “You know what they are, what they do for a living. Forgiving me for one sin was one thing. Something they could tell their parishioners at their mega church they’d done. But twice a prodigal daughter, then a third and fourth time—not happening. I wasn’t supposed to see Everett in the first place, after I got pregnant, but I needed him. Not them.”