by Rye Hart
It was one of those unique stores that you hoped would never go away. But with Mrs. Elwood getting on in years, and no kids to take over the business, I wasn't sure how much longer Boulevard Books was going to be around. The thought of it not being open anymore, honestly, made me a little sad.
In the center of the bookstore, there were couches and chairs. A couple sat together, reading and sipping hot tea, just relaxing and enjoying their purchases.
“Do you remember that poem I read in high school?” I asked. “After my grandma passed away?”
“I think so?” she replied. “If I remember right, Mrs. Doyle praised it highly. And she didn't hand out compliments very often.”
“Yeah, and she encouraged me to submit it to a couple anthologies,” I said.
I took her by the hand and led her back to the local authors section, suddenly feeling a little queasy about showing her. I hadn't showed it to anybody – least of all, my brothers. They didn't get it and probably never would. But, I figured it'd be something Hailey would understand, and could appreciate. I skimmed the shelves until I came across the book, which had been published about five years ago. It didn't sell many copies, but Mrs. Elwood always made sure to keep a copy or two in stock, just because I was a local boy.
“Anyway, I submitted it like she told me to, but I didn't have real high hopes,” I said. “So, it surprised the hell out of me when it was selected for publication.”
Hailey's eyes were wide. “Wow, Quinn, that's amazing,” she said. “I honestly had no idea.”
“Well, it's not like I told anyone,” I said, flipping through the book until I came to my name. “My brothers would have never let me live it down.”
Hailey took the book from me and read my poem, which I had to admit seemed pretty childish now that I was older and had a little life experience under my belt. But, at the time, it had been what I felt. Hailey smiled as her eyes skimmed over the words on the page and it looked like a wave of nostalgia came crashing down on her.
“I do remember it,” she said softly. “I remember that it brought tears to my eyes when you read it out loud in front of the class.”
“I'm sorry,” I said.
She looked up at me, a startled expression on her face. “Why would you be sorry, silly?”
Leaning against the bookcase, I said simply, “Because I made you cry. That's the last thing I would have ever wanted to do, Hailey.”
“I cried because it was so beautiful,” she said. “You have a way with words, Quinn. You can really make people feel something. That's an amazing gift and isn't something you should be ashamed about. Nor is it something you should try to hide, either.”
She held onto the book, tucking it underneath her arm instead of putting it back on the shelf.
“I'm not ashamed, it's just not what men in my family do.” I shrugged. “We're not supposed to be in touch with our emotional side. We're supposed to tuck feelings down deep inside and be stoic. After all, I come from a long line of football players. Tough guys. That's who everyone expects me to be, so it's who I pretend to be.”
“But you don't have to pretend to be someone you're not,” she said, her lips curling up into a soft smile. “Especially now. High school is long over. We're adults now and are free to be who we want to be. If writing makes you happy, write. Don't even think twice about what anyone else has to say.”
“What if I told you that being here with you makes me happy?” I said.
Color rushed to her cheeks as she stared down at the floor. “Listen, Quinn – ” she started to say, but I kissed her before she could say another word.
Her lips tasted minty, and they tingled as they touched mine. They were so soft and luscious, they felt amazing and I got lost in the moment, slipping my tongue into her mouth. As soon as our tongues touched though, she gasped and pulled away from me, stumbling backward and nearly falling over, a look of absolute shock and mortification on her face.
I caught her arm. “Careful now,” I laughed. “I didn't mean to knock you off your feet there.”
She avoided my gaze and muttered something so low, I couldn't make out what she'd said.
“What was that?” I asked.
“I have to go,” she said, her face bright red.
She still had the book under her arm as she rushed toward the front of the bookstore.
“Hailey,” I called out, following her.
I caught up with her and grabbed her hand, but she yanked it away from me and kept walking with her head down, a bright red burn in her cheeks.
“Hailey, stop,” I said. “Please, just talk to me. What happened?”
She almost walked right out the door with the poetry book in hand, but then stopped, staring at it as if she couldn't decide what to do with it. She looked toward the counter and over to Mrs. Elwood.
“Can I come back for this later?” she asked, handing the book over to the older woman.
“Sure, darling,” Mrs. Elwood said with a polite smile. “I'll hold on to it for you.”
“Thank you,” she said.
Hailey quickly turned and pushed open the glass door, rushing out into the afternoon sunlight. I was on her heels though, and wasn't about to let her leave like that. I needed to apologize and get some answers from her. I'd thought I was getting some signals from her. But judging by her reaction, she'd either changed her mind or I'd read them all wrong from the start.
“Hailey, I'm really sorry,” I said. “I thought you liked me like that. I guess I misread the signals and –”
She stopped suddenly on the sidewalk, then turned to face me. “I do like you that way, Quinn,” she said, resignation and frustration in her town. “And that's the problem. I can't right now. I just can't.”
“Why not?”
“Because my life is too complicated as it is,” she said. “I came back to Black Oak because I need to be alone for a while to figure some shit out, and to get my head straight.”
“Let me help you, Hailey,” I said.
I reached for her hand again, and this time she didn't pull it away. Her eyes welled up with tears and her hands were shaking as she opened her mouth to speak, but then she closed it again without saying a word. She kept looking around her, almost like she expected to find somebody standing there watching her, and she curled her arms into herself protectively, holding them close to her body like she'd done last night at the bonfire.
The way she was standing there made me think she was scared of something. Or maybe somebody. It struck a nerve and ignited a protective instinct in my gut.
“Hailey, what's going on?” I asked, stepping closer and fighting the urge to wrap my arms around her, knowing that wouldn't go over very well.
She stepped back and pushed the sleeves of her sweatshirt up a bit, and that's when I saw the bruise on her wrist. Like someone had grabbed her too hard and restrained her. She caught me staring and pulled the sleeve back down, covering it once more. Hiding away what was obviously causing her a lot of emotional pain.
“Did someone do that to you?” I asked her, motioning toward her wrist. I felt a vein in my temple begin to throb.
She looked away, not answering. Her jaw was clenched and there was a strained tension in the air between us. She looked like she just wanted to run away. She looked so scared and so lost in that moment and I wanted nothing more than to comfort her – and throttle whoever it was who'd hurt her.
“Who did that to you, Hailey?”
My blood was boiling. Someone had hurt her, and regardless of who it was, that wasn't okay in my book. You didn't hurt women. “No one,” she muttered, turning away from me. “I really have to go.”
She bolted away, but I followed her, keeping up with her stride for stride. She refused to look at or even acknowledge me, but I walked beside her the entire time. “Hailey, someone obviously hurt you,” I said. “Will you talk to me, please?”
“There's nothing to talk about,” she said, a single tear falling down her cheek. “Just leave m
e alone, Quinn. And tell your brothers to leave me alone too, okay? I just want to be left alone.”
“I won't do that,” I said. “I won't just walk away,” I said. “Not when someone's hurting you, Hailey. I can't just pretend I didn't see it. I won't.”
She shook her head and stopped abruptly, which made me almost stumble. I looked up and saw that we were standing outside a two-story brick home – her parent's house. Both of their cars were out front, meaning they were home. Through the front windows overlooking the yard, I saw her mother moving around inside and awkwardly felt like a teenager doing something wrong all over again. Hailey reached for the gate, but I put my hand over hers and stopped her.
“Don't you get it, Quinn? No one is hurting me. Not anymore at least,” she said, wiping her nose. “And that's why I can't get involved with anyone or be part of whatever game you have going on with your brothers. I just can't handle being hurt again.”
“Hey,” I said softly. “I'm not going to hurt you, Hailey.”
“Yeah, that's what they all say. And I'm sure they even mean it,” she said. “Doesn't keep them from doing it though.”
She looked at me as she gripped the gate tightly before slinging it open. Stepping into her yard, she slammed it shut again behind her and without turning to look at me, ran up the stairs to her front door.
I fought with the gate, which was stuck, as she went inside. I called out to her, one last time, before the door closed behind her. If she'd heard me, she ignored me. Not even a glance back at me. I stood there for a moment feeling absolutely awful and completely powerless to do anything about it.
CHAPTER TEN - CASON
“Wait, so you think someone is abusing her? Who?” I asked as I got ready to pick Hailey up for our dinner date.
Quinn told me everything that happened earlier – including the part where she said to leave her alone. All of us. Not like I was going to let that bother me – for all I knew, it could be Quinn trying to pull one over on me to keep me from seeing her. It's not like it would have been the first time he'd tried to get over on me.
I straightened my tie and looked in the mirror, making sure it was perfect as Quinn paced my bedroom behind me. I could tell there really was something bothering him. He was a little more agitated than usual. Whatever had happened with Hailey had rattled him.
But, I was determined to not let it bother me. I was determined to see Hailey.
“I don't know,” Quinn said. “She was really upset though. And I don't know if it's a good idea if you – or any of us – try to see her. She was pretty clear about wanting to be left alone.”
Bennett was standing in the doorway, leaning against the jamb, eating a leftover BBQ pork sandwich, listening to us with curiosity. Quinn went on about the bruises on her wrist for another couple of minutes.
“It's not like we know much about her,” Bennett said around a mouthful of sandwich. “Maybe she's got a boyfriend already that we don't know about.”
“Here in Black Oak?” I asked. “You can't believe that. We'd have heard about it.”
“Maybe he's not from around here,” Bennett said. “Maybe he lives a town over or something.”
“And if she does have a boyfriend already, he's an abusive prick,” Quinn said.
He paced the room, his fists balled up, and his jaw clenched tightly. From one side of the room to the other. Back and forth. Back and forth. His agitation seeming to grow with each step he took.
“We need to beat the shit out of him,” Quinn announced. “No one hits a woman and gets away with it.”
“He hit her?” I asked.
“Well, he did something to her obviously,” Quinn said. “You should've seen the bruises on her wrists, man.”
“This may sound bad and I don't mean it to,” I started, “But are you sure she's just not into some BDSM or something?”
“Nah,” Quinn said, stopping his pacing to look over at me. “No, man, the way she reacted – it wasn't like that. She wasn't embarrassed about having some fetish. She was scared shitless. Trust me, this wasn't the case of a woman being into kinky shit.”
“Well I'll ask her about it tonight,” I said.
I looked over at the clock and then back at my reflection, straightening my tie one last time because I had to leave in a few minutes if I was going to be on time picking her up.
“You're still planning on meeting up with her?” Quinn looked at me with a look of disbelief on his face. “Even though she asked us to leave her alone?”
“I want to get to the bottom of this and clear it all up,” I said. “If someone is hurting her, I want to help her.”
“Someone is hurting her,” Quinn reiterated. “There is no if about it.”
“Then I'll help her,” I stated matter-of-factly. “Jesus Christ, Quinn. We'll get to the bottom of it, don't worry. I'll find out who it is and we can figure it out from there.”
Picking up my phone, I looked and saw that there were no messages from Hailey canceling on our date, and shrugged. As far as I was concerned, it was still on. I slipped my phone into my pocket and grabbed my jacket, stepping around Bennett to get out of my room, before rushing out the door.
Quinn was hot on my heels, and Ben was right behind him.
“What?” I said, turning around and glaring at both of them.
Sometimes living with my brothers could be a pain in the ass. No matter how close we might be.
“I just can't believe you're still thinking that you're going out with her,” Quinn said. “She told you to stay away,” I said confidently. “She has my number. If she wanted to back out on me, she would have called or texted me.”
Quinn looked over at Ben. “And how about you? You still planning on seeing her?”
“Yeah, I'm still planning on taking her out tomorrow,” he said, wiping BBQ from his chin with the back of his hand.
“Assholes,” Quinn muttered under his breath.
“You're just jealous because she told you to get lost,” I said and chuckled. “Get over it, Quinn. You're out.”
“It's not a game,” he said.
“Oh, it's not? That'd be a first,” I smirked as I stepped out of the house. “But then, of course you'd say that since you've already lost.”
***
Standing on the porch, I took a deep breath and let it out as I rang the doorbell to the Roberts' home and waited. From inside the house, I heard footsteps approaching the door as a female voice called out, “I'll be right there.”
The door opened, and I stared back at Ada Roberts, Hailey's mother, who looked a bit taken aback by the fact that I was standing on her porch. Ada looked like an older version of Hailey with her dark brown, almost black hair, and very large hazel eyes. The only difference was the Ada had a bit of gray mixed in with the brown and smile lines on her face. Otherwise, they were almost mirror images of one another.
Ada had been the librarian for our school for a really long time. She only retired within the last year or so, in favor of working from home. The scent of lavender oil filled the air as soon as she opened the door, and only grew stronger the longer I stood there. “Cason? What a pleasant surprise,” she said, hands on her hips and a warm smile on her face. “What in the world are you doing here? How's your mama doing these days?”
“She's good, thank you, Mrs. Roberts,” I said and laughed. “Enjoying life as a retiree in Florida. Dad too.”
“Glad to hear it. I think it's great that you and your brothers are sharing your family home, by the way. Family is everything,” she said. “So, what can I help you with?”
“Actually, I'm here to see Hailey,” I said. “I'm taking her out to dinner tonight.”
“Oh, are you?” she said, her smile widening a bit. “Hailey didn't say anything to me about that.”
“It was sort of last minute,” I said. “I hope you don't mind.”
“I don't mind at all,” she laughed. “If you can actually get her to go with you, that is. I think getting her out of the house
would be good for her.”
“Oh?” I cocked an eyebrow.
“Well, it's just –”
Before she could finish her sentence though, I heard footsteps coming down the stairs. I peeked over Mrs. Roberts’ shoulder and looked right at her daughter. Hailey's long hair was pulled back in a ponytail, but tendrils fell around her chin and highlighted her delicate features. Her wide eyes looked even larger than life, and when she caught sight of me standing in the doorway, her face fell.
She was wearing leggings and an oversized sweater. No makeup and no shoes. Just bright pink and neon green socks that didn't match the rest of her outfit. She looked ready for a night in, rather than a night on the town.
“Cason?” she sighed, stopping before coming all the way down the stairs. “What are you doing here?”
Her mother answered for me, “He said he's here to take you to dinner, dear.”
Hailey shook her head. “Uh no,” she said, stomping the rest of the way to door, a look of anger on her otherwise sweet face. “I cancelled. I can't go out tonight.”
“Why not?” both her mother and I said at the same time.
“Because I don't feel like it,” she said. “Do I really need any other reason than that?”
Hailey stood her ground in the doorway, glaring at me, arms crossed in front of her defensively. I could see why Quinn said she was so freaked out. Among a mix of emotions, I saw genuine fear in her eyes.
“Come on, dear,” her mom said placing a hand on her shoulder. “Cason is a nice boy, I think you two would have a great time. Getting out and about might even be good for you.”
She bit her lip and continued shaking her head. “I'm not dressed for a nice dinner out anyway,” she said. “And I don't feel well. I'd rather not get dressed up anyway.”
“You don't have to get dressed up,” I chuckled. “You look beautiful just the way you are.”
The look on Hailey's face – as well as the look on her mom's – was priceless. They both softened their expressions and smiled gently, as if they were reacting on cue. Hailey, however, still shook her head, quickly losing the softer expression.