“Sabotage?” Benny asked. “Tell me something, Heath. Why didn't you come after her? If you didn’t know where she was, it wasn’t that hard to find out. If you really loved her, you would have come after her.”
“No. I really loved her, so I did as she asked and respected her wishes. That’s something you need to learn how to do. So, I suggest you tuck that tail between your legs and shuffle back to New York.”
Benny laughed, “When she's ready to come back to New York, we'll leave.”
“Oh Hell no,” Brandi cut in. “You're delusional if you think she'd ever go back to you.”
“You'll get sick of protecting her, Mitchell,” Benny continued. “And when you ditch her, I'll be there to pick up the pieces. Again.”
“We'll see about that,” Heath rolled his eyes. He knew the guy was losing it, but this was ridiculous. Benny didn't respond though, choosing instead to leave.
“Justifiable homicide,” Brandi stated after he'd left.
“Not worth the headache,” Heath grinned, “think you could whip up a couple coffees? And bagels. Please?”
“To go, I'm guessing?” Brandi asked as she got to work.
“To go,” he confirmed.
“Ryan said you took the afternoon off yesterday,” Brandi said. “How is she?”
“Health-wise, she's getting there, but that asshole stopped by yesterday and filled her head with so much damn nonsense that she spent most of the afternoon in tears.”
“Explains why you were more hateful than usual,” Brandi sighed, “don't let her believe his crap.” She finished putting together his order and handed it over. “On the house.”
“Thanks Brandi,” he smiled, “I owe you a drink.”
***
By the end of the week, Everley was relieved to find that she could breathe again. Just as he'd promised, Heath avoided catching whatever plague she'd brought upon the house.
Ryan and Harper weren't so lucky, even though Heath had been around her much more than they had, taking Everley to his place so she could hopefully avoid another confrontation with Benny. As far as they knew, the guy hadn't progressed to full on stalking yet, and they didn't think he knew where Heath lived.
It had worked out well, he took off a couple more days and watched after her until she felt well enough to go back to work. He insisted she stay with him until Benny left town, and he was so damn sweet about it, she couldn't find it in her heart to say no.
He backed off a little, without her even asking, as if he knew she needed space. She sensed a fear in him though, as if he was afraid a little space would put a stop to what they were building. It killed her to see him so hurt, so she tried to meet him in the middle. Pushing the boundaries of her comfort zone in hopes of assuring him that she wasn’t giving up on them.
Everything was easier at night, when her guard was down. Heath had set up the spare room for her, but she found herself sliding into bed with him at night instead. It was easier to sleep with him next to her, and he seemed to enjoy the company. They both slept soundly, and the spare room sat empty.
When she went back to work, she found that she enjoyed their morning carpool. They’d fallen into a nice little routine of stopping for breakfast before work. While they always made sure to grab something for Ryan, Everley decided sitting at the shop and sharing a meal with Heath was much more fun than wolfing her food down at the station.
“Dammit,” Heath groaned. They’d just arrived home after a long Friday shift. The station phone had been non-stop for Everley, and Heath seemed to be drowning in term papers.
Everley just wanted to be home, but Heath’s annoyance indicated that there was a problem. Looking around to see what was upsetting Heath, she spied a car blocking them when Heath pulled into the driveway. “Is that-”
“Benny?” he growled. “Yes.” He turned off the car, and handed her the keys. “Get in the house, and I'll deal with him.”
As much as she wanted to tell him that Benny wasn’t his problem, she was grateful that Heath was doing what he could to protect her. She wasn’t ready for another confrontation with her ex. “Thank you,” she whispered as she kissed his cheek.
He smiled, though his jaw was clenched. Everley opened her door and ran for the house. When Benny made a beeline for Heath, she silently thanked the universe for the opportunity to get away.
“Turn around and go home,” she heard Heath say as she shut the door.
***
“I’m not here to see you,” Benny informed him.
Like he didn't know that.
“Well, she doesn't want to see you, so here we are,” Heath said. “Seeing as I've got nothing to say to you, you can get your sorry ass off my property before I have Everley call the cops to come remove you.”
“He'll get sick of this Everley!” Benny called.
“Get off my property,” Heath growled. “You aren’t welcome here.” He didn’t want to fight, but if it came down to it, he knew he had the right to defend his property.
And his family.
“Make me.” Benny stood his ground, but didn't try to move forward again. There was fear in his eyes. After their scuffle in the sandwich shop, Benny seemed to be more cautious in his dealings with Heath. Bold, but toeing the line just enough to keep a fist out of his face.
They stood there for a time, and Heath could only hope that the situation wasn't causing Everley any more pain. He wanted to glance to see if she was watching from the window, but knew that taking his eyes off Benny would be a mistake. When he saw Ryan pull up, Heath’s shoulders relaxed.
Benny took notice of Heath’s change in demeanor and turned around. “Really?” he grumbled when he saw the police cruiser. “You called the cops?”
Ryan stopped the car and stepped out. He approached Benny and Heath cautiously, ready to use force if need be.
“Benny,” Ryan said carefully. “You need to leave.”
“Must be nice,” Benny shook his head, “having the law in your pocket.”
“You and I both know this has nothing to do with who my friends are, and everything to do with you trespassing. But please, go ahead and blame everyone but yourself for your problems.”
“He’s right,” Ryan stated. “You know very well that you’re not welcome here. If this was a public place, that would be one thing, but this is Heath’s private residence, and since you’ve been asked to leave and refuse, that means you’re trespassing.”
“I’ll leave after I talk to Everley,” Benny snapped.
“You’ll leave now,” Ryan said. “Or I’ll remove you myself. What’s it going to be?”
Benny rolled his eyes, but slinked away. Heath and Ryan watched as he got into his car and drove off.
“You all right?” Ryan asked after Benny pulled away. He looked over at the house and nodded. “And Everley? Is she okay?”
“Yeah,” Heath nodded. “We're okay. I’d just hoped he'd be too dim to go looking for her at my place.”
“Thanks for not killing him,” Ryan said. “I wouldn't have blamed you, but I'd still have to lock you up. Granted… I’m sure they’d count it as self defense, but still. It would be a huge legal hassle.”
Heath laughed at that. “It took every ounce of willpower. I’m glad Everley didn’t wait to call.”
“You know my number,” Ryan reminded him. “I may have scared him off, but he'll be back. You could always press charges, you know.”
“Next time,” Heath agreed. “I just want to make sure Everley’s okay.”
“I mean it,” Ryan said, “if he looks at you funny, call me. No more of this trying to handle it yourself, because that will only escalate things.” He left, and Heath went up the walk to the front door.
***
“Evie?” Heath called when he opened the door.
It wasn’t necessary. She could see how he might think she’d find a place to hide herself, but she’d been too worried to take her eyes off of him. She’d watched the whole interaction from the window
as she’d called Ryan for help.
“Oh!” He exclaimed when she ran up to him and threw her arms around his neck.
She barely gave him a chance to lock the door and before he could say another word, she was kissing him. His back hit the door with a quiet thud, and he was noticeably shocked by her sudden attack. It wore off quickly though, and soon, he’d wrapped his arms around her and tugged her closer, only pulling away when she moved to unbutton his shirt.
“Everley, what are you doing?”
“What does it look like I'm doing?” She could feel her face flushing, but didn't abandon her task.
He stopped her, pulling back a little more, and covering her hands with his. “Sweetheart...”
“Come on, Heath,” she said with a roll of her eyes. “It's not like we haven't done this before.”
“Not the point,” he whispered, sounding both broken and conflicted all at the same time.
“Please?” She looked up at him, tears pricking in her eyes. Was he rejecting her? After all the talk of how he wanted a second chance? How he wanted to be with her? Now he was pushing her away?
“Come here,” he said, letting go of her hands and pulling her into a tight hug.
“I thought you said you wanted me,” she whimpered.
“I do, Everley,” he said, “more than anything.”
“Then prove it.” It was a low blow, and she could feel him tense against her. But if he didn’t want her, then why was she wasting her time?
“I am,” he stated. “By not taking advantage of you right now.”
Everley pulled out of his grasp and pushed away. “How in the hell is it taking advantage when I've made it perfectly clear that this is what I want?”
“Listen to yourself,” he tried to reason with her. “You're upset and you've got a million things going on right now. This isn’t a rejection. This is me, wanting you to be in your right mind before we do anything. I don’t want you to regret anything, nor do I want to be just a distraction from things you don’t want to deal with.”
“How do you know?” she asked. “How do you know this isn't just me wanting to be with you?”
“Maybe you do,” he inched closer to her, and pulled her back into his arms. “But the fact remains that right now, you're upset, and we both know that people do things they sometimes regret when they aren't thinking clearly.”
“You think I'm going to freak out and avoid you again,” she guessed.
“Can you blame me?” he asked.
“Not really,” she sighed. “Especially since my last confrontation with Benny… I get it.”
“I don't want to rush, and I certainly don't want some asshole being the deciding factor in anything.”
“Think he'll leave town soon?” Everley asked. “Because I'm ready for him to leave.”
“He seems to think he's taking you with him.”
Everley laughed at the idea. “Does he really think that after all the crap he put me through, that I'd be dumb enough to go back to him?”
“I put you through quite a bit-”
“Don’t even compare yourself like that,” she interrupted. “You said it yourself. We can’t carry that guilt anymore, and what happened with us was different. You never put me down the way he did. Even at our worst, we were still better than what Benny and I were at our best. And if you want to keep score, I put you through a lot too.”
“Fair enough,” he agreed. “Listen, it’s Friday night. Why don’t we find something better to do with our time than worry about Benny and his crazy schemes?”
“Want to head out to that old drive in a couple towns over?” she asked.
“It’s possible they have an 80s marathon going on,” he grinned. “Let me check the website.”
“Should I get started on all the food we're going to pack in the car?” she asked.
“Nothing healthy,” he reminded her. “I'll get the blankets. They’ve got some classic double feature tonight.”
“No sleeping,” she warned.
“Wouldn’t dream of it,” he assured her.
Chapter 15
Two movies, and just over four hours later, Heath pulled down the familiar road that led to his house. Everley was asleep in the passenger seat, as she had been since the last half of the second movie. He chuckled quietly, knowing he'd have to tease her about that tomorrow, especially since she was the one who had specifically warned him to not fall asleep.
All he wanted to do was crawl into bed and crash, but as he approached his home, he noticed something was quite off. “Dammit,” he grumbled, realizing the front door was open, and the frame looked almost destroyed. “So much for bedtime...”
“Hmm?” Everley stretched her arms and opened her eyes. “Are we home?”
Heath’s heart nearly burst at her mention of home. Just as soon as the thought made him smile, he frowned. Home, yes, but there was something amiss. He debated lying and saying they weren't. What would scare her more? Knowing they had a visitor, or discovering something was wrong when they pulled up to the Sheriff’s Station?
“We have company,” he said. Ryan had the day shift, and he’d rather not wake his friend at two in the morning. “I’m just going to drive to the station, all right?”
“It’s Benny, isn’t it?” she asked.
Heath shrugged. “I don’t know for sure.” He had a good idea that it was, but that didn’t mean he wanted to find out if anyone was still there. “Go back to sleep,” he told Everley. “Might as well get some rest, right?”
She smiled and took his hand as she closed her eyes again. Satisfied that she wasn’t going to worry anymore, he drove down the road. As he bypassed his house, he looked around for any cars that didn't belong, but saw none.
When he arrived at the station, he saw a young deputy at the desk, looking like he was about to fall asleep. With a grin, he tapped on the desk, and the man woke with a start, “Sorry! Won't happen again, boss!” After looking up and realizing Heath was not his boss, he sighed in relief.
“I won't tell the Sheriff about your nap,” Heath promised. “But perhaps you should lock the door next time?”
“Stupid partner, always forgetting to do that,” the man grumbled. “So, how can I help you? Mitchell, right? Deputy Romero said to call him if you needed help. I'm guessing since you're here...”
“I need help?” Heath finished for him. “Yeah… it seems someone has broken into my home, and I'm not sure if they're still there or not. Seeing as the only gun I keep is in a safe in my closet, I'd rather not find out the hard way should I be outmatched.”
“All right,” the deputy nodded. “Why don't you wait here for Romero, and my partner and I will go check out your house.”
He’d rather they not wake Ryan up, but he knew his friend would be upset if they didn’t. Heath thanked him and then went back to the car where Everley was still sleeping. With a smile, he got back into the car and waited, trying his best to keep from waking her. He failed when he just couldn't resist touching the hair that had fallen over her face. Tucking it back behind her ear, he couldn't help but chuckle. Even when she was out to the world and in complete disarray, she was beautiful.
She opened her eyes and smiled at him. “What?”
“Seems there’s a lovely lady who's decided to sleep in my car,” he said. “And I just can't take my eyes off of her.”
“Stop it,” she blushed. “You're being ridiculous.”
A light tapping on his window signaled Ryan's arrival. “Hey,” he said, once Heath rolled down the window. “I hear you had some problems.”
“Your deputies went to check out the house,” Heath said.
“Yeah,” Ryan nodded, “I just got a call. They're bringing Benny in. Seems like you arrived shortly after he broke in.”
“What the hell was he doing?” Everley asked, the sleepiness seemingly vanishing. Heath wasn’t sure if it was anger or worry, but either way, it wasn’t good.
“Doesn’t matter,” Heath growled, “lo
ck his ass up.”
“Working on it,” Ryan assured him, “I was told that everything was relatively undisturbed, and that Benny looked like he was just waiting. I still want you to make sure, so if anything is out of sorts, we can add it to the report.”
“I’m sorry we had to wake you,” Heath said.
“Don’t worry about it,” Ryan said, “I told the guys I wanted to be notified. Why don't you two come inside and I can get your statement?”
“Ready Evie?”
“Yeah,” she nodded. Heath rolled the window up, and they got out to follow Ryan into the station.
Because they’d been gone all evening, there wasn’t much to tell. Heath told Ryan what he could while Everley worked with another deputy on a temporary restraining order.
Heath wondered if Benny had watched them leave. How else would he have known the house was empty? Or… had he expected them to be there? Dread washed over him. If Benny didn’t stay locked up, it was only a matter of time before he tried again.
“This is ridiculous!”
Everyone turned their attention towards the door as they dragged Benny in. His focus zeroed in on Heath and Everley right away. “I have rights, you know!”
Everley looked away and Heath didn't say a word. Benny would twist anything they said. Despite the gravity of the situation, he could find the humor and irony. The man had broken into his home and still thought he was blameless.
“You do have rights,” Ryan agreed. “I'm sure my partners here reminded you of them.”
“Yeah, you know they did,” Benny snapped. He argued with the deputies a bit more, but didn’t put up a fight when they put him in his cell. “I want to know why I'm being locked up like an animal.”
“You’ve got to be kidding me,” Heath muttered.
Ryan shot him a look as if to say “let me handle this.” When Heath promised to keep his mouth shut, his friend looked back at Benny. “I’m sure you know that breaking and entering is still a crime. Even in Mer Harbor.”
Benny rolled his eyes and slumped onto the cot in his cell. Heath knew it was all for show. His father would bail him out sooner, rather than later, and they’d have to deal with his nonsense all over again.
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