by A. K. Evans
“No, Charley. I’m fine. I just wanted you to know that I was leaving so you didn’t worry. I’ll call a cab,” she interjected.
“We can take you back, Emme,” Wes chimed in.
“I appreciate that, but it’s a big night for the company, Wes. I don’t want to take you or Charley away from that. You’ve both worked hard and I want my friend to have this experience. Besides, I would really like some time alone if that’s ok.”
“Not for nothing, Emme, but you aren’t leaving here in a cab. You drink anything tonight?” he asked.
She shook her head.
“You want alone time you take one of the cars back. I’ll just grab Zane and get the keys for the other one from him.”
Emme’s eyes completely bugged out of her head and I knew something was really upsetting her. I had a feeling it had something to do with Zane.
“Wes?” I called.
He looked to me.
“Can we just give Emme the keys to the one we drove here, please?” I asked, my eyes pleading with him.
Wes stared at me a beat, searching my eyes, and conceded. He looked to Emme and said, “Come on. I’ll walk you to the car.”
She let out a breath. She looked to me, pulled me into a hug, and thanked me. I squeezed her tight and told her to text when she got back so we knew she was ok. She agreed and pulled away.
Wes bent down to kiss me quickly and said, “Be right back, baby.”
I nodded.
Wes came back in and twenty minutes later I got a text from Emme that she had made it back to the house and was going to take some ibuprofen and head to bed. Another thirty minutes after that, Zane had appeared. Every time I saw him, Stone, or Luke throughout the night they had been tied up with either promotional stuff or the occasional fan that insisted on autographs or pictures. The guys were good about obliging.
“Hey, either of you see Emme?” he asked, his eyebrows drawn together.
Uh oh.
“She left about an hour ago,” I said.
A look of concern washed over his face.
“What? Where did she go? Is she ok?” he asked.
My heart broke. I still had no idea where he and Emme stood, but Zane was really such a great guy. It was very clear to me he cared a lot for her.
I answered him. “She was feeling tired after everything the past few days so she went back to the house.”
He stayed silent, confusion still marring his features.
Wes spoke up, “She wanted to take a cab. Charley and I offered to take her back, but she insisted on going herself. Let her take the Tahoe.”
Zane reached into his pocket, pulled out the keys, and handed them to Wes.
“Here. Going to catch a cab back.”
I looked to Wes. I didn’t know if this was a good idea.
“We’re ready to get out of here anyway. We can all just head back now. We’ll let Stone and Luke know. Let them enjoy the rest of the night. I’m sure they’ll have no problem getting back safely.”
Zane nodded, but stayed silent. Wes took off to find Stone and Luke. I stood there with Zane and my heart continued to hurt. Surprisingly, I realized my heart hurt for Zane. At the same time, it shattered for Emme.
“Zane, I’m sorry.”
“Nothing to apologize for, babe.”
“I feel like I need to do something.”
“She’s wound tight and it’s been a struggle to get in there. Not sure what else I can do. She’s not giving me anything and, swear to God, I’d do whatever I could for that girl.”
My eyes welled up with tears.
“Zane. My God, she needs someone like you more than you know.”
His eyes cut to mine, but he said nothing.
Wes came back and said, “Luke and Stone are covered. They’re going to hang and have some fun. They’ll call if they need rides, but something tells me they’ll be fine. Ready?”
Zane was already heading toward the door. Wes looked to him and back to me.
“Come on, gorgeous.”
The first five minutes of the car ride were silent. I couldn’t stand it and I knew that I needed to give Zane something to let him know that Emme needed him to stick with her, despite what she might currently be showing him.
Wes was driving, I was in the front passenger’s seat, and Zane was in the back seat behind Wes.
“Ok, I need to say something,” I said turning in my seat to face them. My nerves were back at it again and I was certain I was going to throw up. I was suddenly feeling very hot so I took my jacket off.
Wes turned to look at me a minute and immediately pulled over.
“You alright, Charley?” Zane asked. “You don’t look so good.”
My eyes filled with tears.
“Charley?” Wes asked, reaching out to grab my hand.
I took a deep breath.
“I’ve never talked about this. Ever. I need to do this now, though. Not so much for me, but for Emme,” I said, tears streaming down my face.
Wes squeezed my hand and Zane sat forward.
I looked to Zane and through my tears I squeaked out, “Don’t give up on her. She is so worth the fight. I promise you, Zane.”
“I’m frustrated, but I’m not going anywhere, Charley.”
“I’m sorry to do this today. It’s supposed to be a happy occasion and...”
“Fuck the happy occasion, Charley. Get it out,” Wes demanded.
I looked to him and then back to Zane. He nodded to me. I took this as indication that he didn’t give a shit about the happy occasion either.
“Emme carries around a lot of guilt. And when I say a lot, I mean a fuck ton. You both already know that my brother, Taj, died. What you don’t know is that he was murdered and that Emme blames herself for it.”
As soon as I croaked out the last few words I turned, opened my door, stumbled out, and vomited. Seconds later, I felt Wes pulling my hair away from face and holding it for me. When I felt I had sufficiently emptied the contents of my stomach on the side of the road, I stood up, shaking and shivering. I’m not sure if it was from the cold or the shock of finally having told someone the truth. I turned to Wes and pressed my face into his chest while I gripped his shirt in my hands. I then felt him wrap his jacket around me before wrapping his arms around me.
“Christ, baby. Let’s get you back. Zane’s had a couple drinks so I’ve got to drive. You going to be ok?”
I nodded.
He helped me back into the truck, closed the door, walked around the front of the vehicle, and slid in the driver’s seat. He put it in drive and began to pull away. I felt something tap my left shoulder at that moment. I looked to see a water bottle being handed to me from Zane.
“It’s mine from the pub. Grabbed it on the way out.”
“Thank you, Zane.”
The rest of the drive home was silent. We all made our way inside and Wes said, “Taking her up. Catch you in the morning.”
I looked up to see Zane nodding at Wes. He then looked at me.
“Thanks, Charley. I’m really sorry about your brother, but thanks for giving me an idea of where her head is.”
“She deserves to be happy. Be patient with her. What she needs from you…if you give that to her, I promise she’ll give it back. Tenfold. She just needs some time to realize you are what she needs. There’s more to her story, but that’s hers to give.”
He nodded at me.
“Let’s go, gorgeous.”
Wes wrapped an arm around my shoulder and walked with me to the steps. When we got to the bedroom, Wes walked over to my goody bag. He found a nightie and a pair of panties. He walked back over to me and removed the jacket he’d draped over me earlier. He sat me down on the edge of the bed, pulled off my heels, and slipped the straps of the dress down my shoulders. When he got to my waist he said, “Lift up.”
I lifted and Wes continued to slide the dress and g-string down my legs. He kept his eyes on mine and my heart squeezed at the warmth I saw in his eyes.
He pulled my panties up my legs and then the nightie over my head. After, he stood and held out his hand. I stood and put my hand in his.
“You want something to eat?” he asked.
I shook my head.
“Ok, go ahead and brush your teeth.”
I walked into the bathroom, brushed my teeth, washed my face, and then went back into the bedroom. Wes had just stripped out of his clothing and was standing in a pair of boxer briefs.
“Let’s get in bed, baby.”
I climbed into the bed with Wes and curled into him. He was on his back, had an arm wrapped around me, and had his hand resting at my hip. It wasn’t long before his fingers started tracing circles on the skin at my hip.
After some time had passed I said, “Thank you, Wes.”
“For what?” he asked.
“For being there when I need you. Not sure what I’d do without you.”
“Don’t plan on ever letting you have to figure it out, either.”
“I’m sorry I didn’t tell you sooner about Taj.”
“Always told you from the start that I wouldn’t pressure you to tell me anything. That’s still the case. You’ll tell me whatever you need to tell me when you are ready. I’ll always be there when the time comes.”
I squeezed him and snuggled closer to him.
“I love you, Wes.”
“Love you, too, gorgeous.”
Minutes later, we both fell asleep.
Chapter 36
Charley
We returned from Aspen just about a week ago. I sat staring out the window of my office at Blackman Boards, thinking. I was still trying to process the past two and a half weeks, including all the success of the new Fire line launch, the situation surrounding Emme and Zane, Greg’s recovery, my newfound sense of peace surrounding Taj’s death, and my relationship with Wes.
First and foremost, the X Games had proven to be wildly triumphant for the company. Between the results of the contest with our boys placing at the top of the pack to the sales on the new product release, Blackman Boards was certainly riding, pun intended, a huge wave of success. Over the course of the last week I put my effort into the designs for the Air line even though there was not nearly as much pressure to get them completed as there had been with the Fire line.
Upon returning from Aspen, Luke took two days off from riding and was ready to get back at it. Since he was the best big air rider on our team and one of the best in the world, he was heading up testing of the new boards. It would still be several weeks before the designs would be needed. Regardless, I was determined to do my part to make the Wind line at least as successful as the Fire line.
While things were going really well with the company, I was heartbroken that the same couldn’t be said for things between Emme and Zane. Following the last night in Aspen where I had spilled my guts, literally on the side of the road and figuratively about Taj’s death, the situation with Emme and Zane had grown tense.
This was partly because I saw that Emme had done a lot to avoid Zane during breakfast that next morning. She accomplished this by mostly keeping occupied with cooking and talking with everyone but Zane. It was also partly because when breakfast was over, everyone went about the business of packing up their things for the return flight home. About fifteen minutes after Emme had gone to her bedroom to do this, Zane came out of her room, slammed the door, and stalked off looking supremely ticked off.
This is where things went from bad to even worse. I was certain nobody had shared any news about Taj’s murder with Stone and Luke, but it would have been impossible for them to not feel the shift in dynamics between Emme and Zane. Everyone either heard or witnessed the door slamming incident, so it was no secret that things weren’t good. At this, Luke didn’t help in alleviating any of the tension. Rather, he pushed the issue further by being excessively attentive to Emme.
When she had finished packing up her things and was pulling the suitcases out of the bedroom Luke saw her and carried everything down the stairs for her. Then, once we were on the jet it still hadn’t eased in the least. She sat in a seat and Luke dropped into the seat right next to her. When Zane stepped on the jet a minute or two later and saw this, his hands curled into fists as he clenched his jaw. Ultimately, he turned his head and moved to another seat facing away from Emme.
I was then sitting there thinking about my role in all of this. I thought I had done the right thing by telling Zane about Taj and where Emme’s head was, but at that point I wasn't so sure.
Wes came and sat next to me. He reached over, put my hand in his, and squeezed. I was thankful for his silent support. He always seemed to know just what I needed without me needing to ask for it. I pulled my knees up to my chest, shifted in my seat, and rested my head on Wes' shoulder.
He kissed the top of my head and whispered, “It’s going to be ok, Charley. Promise you.”
Needless to say, things weren’t exactly ok yet. That said, they hadn’t really gotten any worse. The flight back to Rising Sun was relatively uneventful and mostly quiet. When we landed, Wes took Emme and me home in his truck that he left at the airport. Zane, Stone, and Luke all took their own cars home.
Everything sort of fell back into sync for her and him, individually, over the course of the last week. Emme hadn’t talked about the situation with Zane and he hadn’t stopped in my office at all to discuss it. I decided it would be best to let things settle before pushing either of them on the subject. I knew Emme was really upset, more than she had been in a long time, but I understood her reasons for keeping her distance, despite how much I disagreed with them.
To distract myself from the situation with my best friend, the day after we returned from Aspen I went to visit with Greg. He was finally home from the hospital. I had been in touch with him while I was in Colorado and knew he was doing much better, but still wanted to check in with him in person. It was such a relief to see him home with a lot of the cuts healing and bruises fading.
What made the visit even more wonderful was seeing and hearing the excitement he was feeling over his newly revived relationship with his father. Greg’s mother had still not come around; however, his father had been to see him several times and Tony cooked dinner for the three of them one night.
Before leaving Greg and Tony’s place Greg had insisted that we set a date to go out together. I was worried it was too soon after the accident, but he all but demanded that we get it figured out. Apparently, the accident made him realize just how precious life is and wasting time sitting around was no longer an option. We planned to get together two weeks from then at Big Lou’s since Elle would be performing.
This is what I never thought I’d have again. Outside of Emme, Nikki, and Monroe, I hadn’t expected I’d have new friends that I cared about like they were my family. I never expected or hoped that I would ever recover from the loss of my brother. While I could never forgive what happened to him and I’d absolutely never forget the happiness I felt around him, I was beginning to feel more at peace with his death.
I knew, beyond a shadow of a doubt, that Wes was solely responsible for piecing me back together and helping me really learn to live life again. And live life is exactly what we had been doing since we got back. Before heading out to Colorado I told Wes that I was really missing the laid-back feel we had experienced in the beginning of our relationship. He promised to give that back to me when we returned. He’d held true to his promise. We hadn’t yet gone riding, but we had taken plenty of time to slow down and spend time together, just the two of us.
Just as I was sitting there in my office thinking through all of this, I heard the door between our offices open. I turned to see Wes walking toward me.
“Let’s go, baby,” he said.
“It’s lunch time already?” I asked, glancing to the clock.
“Yes, but shut everything down for the weekend. I’m taking you to lunch and we are going to go riding afterwards. Want to get back out there and, more importantly, want to give
you what I promised you I would.”
My face lit up and I grinned huge at him.
“Really?” I asked.
“Fuck.”
“What?”
“Just realized I’m ruined. Looking at you with that look on your face, I realize there is nothing I wouldn’t do to make you feel that happy every day.”
I stood up and walked to him. I wrapped my arms around his waist, looked up in his eyes and said, “You already do. You know, I was just sitting here thinking about you. It took almost a full year to feel this way again, but you are the only reason that it’s happened. Don’t know that I’d ever be able to thank you for it.”
“It takes the fucking cake that you are this excited for not just spending the time with me, Charley, but that you want the time with me doing something that I love. That, gorgeous, is all the thanks I want,” he said.
I smiled up at him.
“Now, give me that mouth and then go shut everything down for the weekend,” he demanded.
Considering he’d made good on his promise to give me what I wanted I figured it was only fair that I give him what he wanted. So, I gave him my mouth before I shut everything down.
*****
“Oh, fuck!”
Wes roared with laughter as I shouted obscenities at him. It had been entirely too long since I was last on a board and this was made evident by the fact that I was now sitting on my ass coming down the mountain.
“You ok?” he asked, stopping in front of me and holding out a hand to help me up.
I reached out to grab his hand, pulled myself up, and said, “What the hell? I thought this would be more like riding a bike. You know, like once you learn the skill you don’t forget how to do it,” I said.
“It is. But, you really only just learned how to do this and you definitely did not get out here enough to continue practicing. You’ve only fallen a handful of times and we’ve been out here for a couple hours already.”
“It’s incredibly frustrating and extremely exhausting. Who knew that falling took so much out of you? What time is it anyway?”