“No, that isn’t ever going to happen again. Fuck Sweets. If that bastard gets you, fight Sweets, because I’m coming to get you.” I cry, I believe him. “This time Sweets, you’ve got me, he may try, but he isn’t going to succeed.” I kiss his cheek and rest my head against his shoulder.
“I know, I’m never going to let that happen again, I can’t. I don’t think I will ever survive that again. I barely survived that time.” He kisses my head and just holds me. We stay like this for ages, until there is a knock on the door. Sammy kisses me once more and opens it. I walk to the bathroom and wash my face. It’s blotchy and puffy. I walk out of the bathroom and see Sammy has the food set up on the table. I walk over and thank him, but that is all that is said during our meal. I can feel him retreating from me, his anger is palpable.
Once we finish the dinner, I go and brush my teeth, I feel hurt yet freaking stupid, I shouldn’t have brought up the conversation, but I feel so safe being around Sammy that I thought I could talk to him about anything. Obviously, that wasn’t the case, he’s shut down, he’s so quiet around me now, and I feel hurt about that. After brushing my teeth and then my hair, I wash my face and walk out into the bedroom, Sammy is on the phone, so I walk to the bed and get in. I lie on my side and listen as he finishes his call.
“Yes Buttercup, we will go to the park tomorrow and I’ll get you some ice cream.” He’s talking to Katelynn, from what he’s told me she is really sweet, his mom sounds as though she isn’t able to handle all the energy that comes with a four year old. Katelynn has been through so much already. Not being able to be around her parents must have been confusing. She’s really young, and I doubt she fully understands what has happened. It is so sad.
“Okay Buttercup, go to bed, and I will see you tomorrow.” He sounds sad, I hate that he sounds like that. It must hurt him knowing that his sister murdered someone out of greed. My phone buzzes and I see that Soph is calling me. That’s weird, when I spoke to her earlier she told me she was going to spend the evening with Nathan and the boys. I answer it wondering what’s happening.
“Soph? is everything okay?” I see out of the corner of my eye that my tone of voice has Sammy looking at me.
“Yeah, we’re all fine, honestly. Look I have just gotten a call from Hailey, who by the way didn’t know anything about today. So I was the one who told her about Connor. Fuck! She is with Maddie, and the reason she called is that Maddie wants to meet us tomorrow, she has something she would like to talk to us about.” As much as I blame her, she is still my sister, I love her but hate her. It plays fucking havoc on my heart, I love her yet I don’t want to be around her so I miss her. Fucked up!
“I don’t know Soph, I don’t think I’m ready for that. Also, I’m at your dad’s tomorrow, and I’ve promised Sammy I wouldn’t be by myself or put myself in any danger.” I notice Sammy is getting closer to me.
“I know, she can come to dad’s, she does anything to upset you, and then Luke will kick her out, I’ve already spoken to them, and Luke said not to worry he has your back.” I laugh at that, Luke is so amazing and truly does treat me like family, when we were growing up, he didn’t mind me annoying the hell out of him and would always introduce me as his sister. Scott would just make fun of me, but he always made sure I was okay.
“Fuck! Fine, I’ll listen to what she has to say.” I’m already regretting saying it, but I know that I’m not the only one missing her, Soph is too.
“Okay Wints, we let her say what she has to and then she can leave, let you think about whatever it is if you want, then it’s up to you what you do next. I will be with you every step of the way. I told you before; no one is going to hurt you again. That includes Maddie and whatever she has to say. I love Maddie, but you’ve been through enough.” I can hear the sincerity in her voice.
“Don’t Soph, don’t make it look like your choosing between us. I love you so much and not having her around you, or the boys is killing you. I will not be the reason she stays away. It will take me a while, but I promise you if she has something that is meaningful to say and not what she said the last time I saw her then I will try and be in the same room as her without wanting to slap her.” I probably sound like a fucking bitch, but she called me a slut, she set back months of progress with her words.
“Okay Wints, I’ll call Hails back and let her know. I’ll see you tomorrow. Night hon, love you like a kid loves chocolate cake.” I laugh. I love her silliness. I can hear her drinking, so I tell her.
“Night Soph. I love you like Kanye loves Kanye.” Just as I thought, I can hear her spit her drink out and start laughing.
“Bitch, I spit out my drink!” I laugh, serves her right, making me want chocolate cake.
“Good, I’ll see you tomorrow. Night hon.” I tell her and hang up after she tells me the same.
“What’s going on Sweets?” Oh, so he wants to talk to me now? He hasn’t spoken to me in over an hour and now wants to know what’s going on. I don’t have it in me to argue. I’m sad, and I’m nervous about tomorrow.
“Maddie is coming to Steven’s tomorrow.” That is all I say, and I need to pee so I get out of the bed and go to the bathroom. When I come out I see Sammy sitting at the end of the bed, his head down. He looks at me when I get closer.
“I fucked up. I know that. I'm not used to this, but completely ignoring you after you told me how scared you are was wrong. Fuck Sweets, I haven’t stopped thinking about him getting you. I want to kill him so he doesn’t even get the chance. I’m sorry Sweets, you have to bear with me through this.” I get that. I walk over to him and nudge his thighs open and walk between them. I wrap my arms around him.
“Sammy, don’t shut me out. We lean on each other when times are rough or when we’re worried.” He leans his head against my stomach.
“Okay Sweets, I’ll do better.” It’s my turn to kiss the top of his head and he chuckles.
“So you’ve never had a girlfriend?” I ask. I would have thought he would have, he’s fucking hot.
“No Sweets, not even when I was in school. It makes me sound like a man whore, but I wasn’t interested in a relationship, I knew I was going into the Army, so I didn’t want to form attachments. I just wanted sex, and I wanted a different women each time, nobody has gotten me to change my mind until I was asked to do a favor and met the sexiest woman I ever fucking saw. She brought out all my protective instincts with just a look.” Wow. That is all I can think off to say. Damn, he always makes me melt.
“You have got to stop doing that Sammy. You always make me forget everything, with either a kiss or just speaking.” I say with attitude.
“Sweets, that is one of the fucking things I love about you, you don’t hide from me, you tell me what you think. I love you Sweets” Bastard. Damn it, he can’t tell me he loves me in public. Nu uh. I’d be a puddle of mush if he does.
“I love you too Sammy. Come on let's go to bed, you have a date with a little princess tomorrow.” I say and lean down and kiss his lips. I pull back and skip out of his hold and to the side of the bed.
“Sweets, that wasn’t very nice.” He growls out at me. I give him a smile and get into bed.
“What time are you leaving in the morning, Sammy?” I ask as he takes off his t-shirt giving me a good look at his chest.
“I’ll drive you to Steven’s and leave from there. What time do you want to be there at?” He asks as he walks towards the bed.
“Umm, I don’t mind.” I honestly don’t. I’ll be bringing my Kindle with me, just in case Scott and Luke annoy me.
“Is 8 am too early?” He asks me as he slides into bed beside me. And fuck yes, it is, after the day we’ve had I’d like to sleep until noon, but that is never going to happen.
“Yeah, that’s fine Sammy.” I may be a bear in the morning, though. Oh well.
“I’ve been thinking about something, I know you said you and your mom haven’t spoken in a while, but I think that she has a right to know what happened to you.” I
have been thinking about that too, but how do I tell her I’ve kept it from her for four years? Our relationship is strained enough as it is.
“I’ll call her tomorrow and see if she will come to lunch with me.” Even though she is flighty I really do love her, I have missed her, and I’ve missed her crazy ways.
“Okay Sweets, I will come with you if you want.” I turn and face him on the bed; I can’t believe how amazing he truly is.
“That would be really good. Thanks, Sammy.” He pulls me into his body, and my head falls to his chest, It’s not that comfortable, so I pick up my pillow and place it length ways and lie down again, I sigh in content and hear Sammy chuckle.
“You comfortable there Sweets?” He asks with laughter in his tone.
“Very, thank you for asking,” I say, and he laughs, he leans over and kisses my head, I lift my head, and he captures my lips. I open up and let his tongue in, his kisses ignite me and send heat running through my body. I forget everything but us. As quickly as it starts, it ends. My heart is racing, and I open my eyes and see Sammy’s eyes are full of heat and lust.
“Sleep now Sweets. We’ve got a long day ahead of us. Good night Sweets.” I snuggle into his body, the pillow still on his arm.
“Goodnight Sammy. I love you.” His arm that is holding me squeezes me.
“I love you too Sweets.” I want to melt every time he says those words to me. To know that someone can love me when sometimes I don’t even love myself means so much, with Sammy knowing what happened and has seen some of my meltdowns, but still wants to be with me. It makes me happy and optimistic that with him by my side I can overcome anything. I fall asleep thinking about how much I love Sammy, and how much I’m going to miss Connor.
~*~
I’m walking down the street; I’m so freaking mad at Maddie leaving me in the club by myself. I can’t believe she is so fucking selfish. I sigh and make my way down Madison Street. I feel the rain and sigh, I’m almost home. I feel someone push my back. I go to scream, but it gets muffled as a hand gets placed over my mouth. My heart starts racing, and I start trying to get away, I can smell tobacco it’s really strong, I’m pulled against a hard body, and I know it’s a man because I can feel his erection against my back, bile rises and I have to swallow it back. I need to get away.
I don’t get a chance to do anything as my body is pushed into the wall. My face is pressed up against it, I feel my face scrape against the wall. The stone of the wall against my belly is uneven and there’s a piece jutting into my stomach. It’s better than the alternative, having my back pushed against his erection. I’d rather scrape and hurt myself from this fucking wall than have that thing touch me again. I feel dirty.
“It’s been a long time Winter. You’ve gotten even prettier. I’ve missed you.” I still at his voice. It’s familiar to me, but I can’t quite place it. I can feel his breath on my neck, I’m bucking against him trying to get away, every time I do he’s groaning in pleasure as if it’s turning him on. I manage to lift my foot and slam it down on his, the grip he has on me loosens, and I manage to break free of his hold. I start to run away, but these fucking shoes are too high to run in, I know if I stop to take them off I’ll never escape. The rain is pouring now. I’m soaked.
I can hear somebody calling my name, it’s muffled. “Sweets, wake up.” I feel my body shaking, and I want to cry, why is Sammy here, he can’t be, I don’t want him to see what’s going to happen. I’m still being shaken.
“Sweets!” He sounds so worried.
~*~
I had awakened with a fright when someone shouts. There’s sweat soaking my body, and I’m sobbing, I feel bile rising and run for the bathroom, I pull the toilet seat up and land on my knees, just in time as I vomit, I’m still sobbing. I vomit until I dry heave. Once I’m finished, I clean my face and sit against the wall, my knees up, and I’m hugging myself. When am I going to be able to stop dreaming of the attack? When am I going to have a full night’s sleep?
“Sweets? Can I come in?” Sammy asks after he knocks on the bathroom door. I must have closed it behind me, I don’t remember doing it.
“Yes, Sammy you can come in.” My voice sounds hoarse, I still have tears falling down my face, but at least I’m not sobbing. I feel defeated. The door opens, and I look into Sammy’s worried eyes. He walks in and sits beside me.
“I’m sorry I wasn’t in here, When I shouted your name I woke Scott up, he knocked on the door when you ran to the bathroom. I told him what happened.” I nod, now everyone knows how fucked up I am. “Sweets, talk to me.” I turn and face him, he’s blurry from the tears in my eyes.
“I’m so fucked up Sammy. He not only stalks me during the day but he also invades my dreams. I’ve never had a night I haven’t dreamt of him raping me.” I start sobbing again. He puts his arm around me and pulls me to him.
“You are not fucked up. You went through something that nobody should go through. You are getting stronger every day. Don’t ever think you are anything other than amazing. What you’ve overcome, well Sweets, it’s inspiring. And I’m not just saying that because I love you. It was one of the many reasons I fell so fucking hard for you. Your strength is amazing.” Fuck, he always knows what to say to get my mind back to positive thinking.
“Thanks, Sammy. I really needed to hear that. I’m sorry I had a meltdown.” He kisses my head and stands up. He holds out his hands for me and pulls me up. I wash my face as he stands behind me, his arms are around my waist, just hugging me. It makes me realize that I’m no longer alone. I have Sammy to lean on when things get too hard for me. We get back into bed, and I lie down, this time, Sammy’s on his back, both hands behind his head, I snuggle up and put my arm over his stomach.
“Sweets, remember our earlier conversation? You told me that we lean on each other when times are rough or when we’re worried? Well Sweets, I’m here for you to lean on when you get scared. Fuck I’m here if you just want to cry. But please fuck! Don’t cry. I hate it.” I laugh, just like I presume he meant for me to do, he brings his arm down and holds the hand that’s on his stomach. I yet again fall asleep with a smile on my face, feeling lucky that I have someone to love me.
Chapter Fifteen
Sam
We arrive at Steven’s house at 7:50. We’re early, but neither of us slept much last night, after Winter’s nightmare I spent the night watching her, I couldn’t watch that again. It fucking kills me to know that not only has she lived through it once, but she also has to re-live it every motherfucking night. I understand why she drank. I would too if I had to endure that every night. She is such a strong woman.
I called Oscar earlier asking how Ryder was last night, and it's good news; he’s awake and pissed as hell. So he’s getting better, he’ll be back to his old self in no time. He will power through the physiotherapy and get back to where he was. Ryder hates being ‘idle’. I understand, if it happened to me, I’d be the same, going from active and always busy to lying in a hospital bed for a period of time it would drive me crazy.
Skye has told Ryder what happened with Winter and Ryder went crazy, he shouted at Skye and made her cry which is something I’ve never seen happen, Oscar said he felt pretty bad for her. I understand she was worried, I know she loves him. What she said to Winter wasn’t fair and wasn’t even remotely true. I know she realized what she had done was wrong as soon as Winter left, but her rash reaction could have caused another fatality.
Winter is excited to spend the day with the Dallas’ I think it’s the fact she gets to see George and Liam. It’s going to be the first time she’s seen them since she’s come back to New York. I have no ties to New York other than my team, I could live anywhere so when Sweets told me Maui felt like home, I didn’t hesitate in telling her that I could get used to it. I know that she is it for me, there is nothing that is ever going to change that. Katelynn would love the beach, it would be a great for her when she visits. Also giving mom a rest. It’s an idea that has a lot of merit.
>
Steven comes out of the house just as Luke pulls up in the driveway. Scott gets out of the passenger side, and Luke jumps out the driver’s side. I sigh in relief, she’s going to have the three around, and I know Soph is coming too. I get out of my truck and walk over to Winter’s side and open her door for her, she smiles brightly at me, her brown eyes are happy today.
“Morning you two, do you want some breakfast?” Steven says as soon as Winter is out the truck.
“No thanks Steven; I’m going to leave now. Winter hasn’t eaten so she’d love some,” I say and see Winter’s head turn my way and her eyes narrow. I chuckle so does Steven who’s watching us carefully.
“Come on Wints, I’ll make pancakes.” He tells her and her head spins yet again, reminding me of the Exorcist. I watch as her eyes light up, and she smiles at Steven.
“With syrup and chocolate chips?” Sweets asked him. She’s like a child all happy about getting pancakes.
“Is there any other way?” Steven says insulted. I watch the way that they interact with each other, and it really is like a family, Steven treats her with the same affection he treats his other kids.
“Okay I’m going; I hope to be back by 5. If you need me, you have my number.” I say to Steven, and he just nods. I walk over to Winter, and she wraps her arms around my waist.
“I’ll see you later Sweets, remember what I said, please stay close to Steven or Scott. Don’t go anywhere by yourself.” She smiles at me and stands on her tip toes and kisses me on the check. That won’t do. I claim her lips and kiss her properly.
“That Sweets is a goodbye, I’ve got to go, I’ll talk to you soon. I love you Winter, please be safe.” Her eyes widen and she kisses my lips.
“Promise I’ll stay safe Sammy. Text me when you arrive. Have a good day with the little princess.” I smile at her calling Katelynn a little princess. I give her one last kiss and get back into my truck, as I pull away I see Winter in my rearview mirror standing watching my truck drive away with her arms around her stomach. Fuck, I have a bad feeling about this.
Deadly Obsession (Deadly Series Book 2) Page 19