by J. L. Drake
Chapter Six
Arizona
I fell asleep on the couch and woke to my alarm alerting me to get my butt up and moving. I nearly tripped over Jessi as I hurried to the shower. I was out the door within fifteen minutes.
While I was at a stoplight, I suddenly had a weird feeling that I was being watched. Using my sunglasses as a cover, I scanned the faces on the sidewalk. I found myself looking for Myles. Strange.
I rushed into the doctor’s office and checked in with three minutes to spare. I wasn’t used to being up that late, and it took a toll on me.
“Looks like we’re good to go,” Dr. Bloom muttered as he looked over the x-rays. “I bet you’re glad to see this go.”
“More than you know.” I wanted nothing more than the last reminder from that awful night gone.
After the cast was removed, he checked the flexibility in my wrist and how sore it was. It hurt a little, but not enough to worry about, he assured me.
“Take it easy, and if you feel it is getting more painful, you come right back in.”
I hopped off the table and grabbed my things, happy to be free of that nasty plaster. “I will. Thanks, doc.”
I hurried down the stairs toward my lawyer’s office a few blocks away. Heels and a slippery New York sidewalk were not a safe combo. However, I was running late again and needed to move it. I went to rip open the door when I wobbled and nearly fell, and a set of strong arms reached out and caught me.
“Oh, sorry,” I blurted, but when my eyes focused, I saw I had run into Cook. “Hey, Cook.”
“Fancy meeting you here.” He eyed the lawyer’s office I was standing in front of. I suddenly felt sick when I read the lettering on the door. “Divorce Attorney.” My hand dropped away, and I tried to change the subject.
“Are you working today?”
“No, I have the same shifts as Carter. I was just coming back from lunch with my cousin Jenelle. She leaves for home tonight.”
“That’s nice.” I had to get moving, as I was almost at my appointment time. “Well, I must be going, but I hope to see you soon.”
Cook turned as he walked backward, again eyeing the office. “Drinks?”
“Yes, for sure.” I closed my eyes and pushed open the doors, leaving whatever horrible thought with Cook to stew over.
I hated lawyers. Well, not all lawyers, maybe, but when you needed one it wasn’t normally for a good reason, so therefore—in my mind, anyway—they weren’t likable. Mine was now opening a rather large file and told me what I needed from Myles to get a clean-cut divorce.
“As of right now,” my lawyer adjusted her glasses, “if he doesn’t contest this, he should be able to sign the paperwork, and you’ll be divorced within the next six months. However, if he does, you may be in for a long road.” She sighed when she saw my worried face. I was scared he would cause me problems. “I understand the worry you have. The good news is that you have documentation that he was violent with you, and the fact that you didn’t press charges will show the judge that you just want out with no problems.” She stopped to think for a moment. “By any chance, has Mr. Young ever gotten violent with you before the breakup?”
“Why do you ask?”
She leaned back in her chair. “Because if he has and you can prove it, you can speed up this divorce. It will mean you getting out faster because of his violent behavior. Remember you can say anything to me. I need to know.”
I rubbed fingers over the sensitive skin on my wrist. “And if I say yes, could he be charged?”
“Do you want him to be?”
My cheeks blew out as I let a long breath slip by my lips. “Does it make me sound weak if I say I don’t know?”
“Not at all.” She granted me a small smile. “I just need to know if we have an ace in our back pocket in case he starts to cause problems over our demands.”
That sent me into a tremble. I guessed it was time to share some truths. “Um, do you have a few extra minutes, then?” I felt like a pathetic fool for not leaving him sooner.
“I have the afternoon.” She placed a hand over mine. “You’re safe here, Arizona.”
I let my walls slip, and I spent the next hour filling her in.
Half a Kleenex box and an exhausted soul later, I had officially let someone else into my past. It wasn’t easy. Only Jessi and my therapist knew the whole truth, but if that was what it took to free me of our vows, I’d do it.
“All right, I will get these sent off to Mr. Young today, and we’ll wait to see what happens.”
I glanced outside and saw it had begun to snow. “Yes, fine.” I stood to shake her hand. “Thank you.”
She motioned for me to follow her to the door. “Arizona,” she waited a beat, “you call me if you need anything. That’s why I’m here.”
“Thanks.”
Once outside, I thought I might get sick. I hated to dig up old memories, especially ones like that. It made me see how foolish and blind I had been. No one who loved you should ever treat you the way Myles did me. I was raised better and should have seen the signs.
I swallowed hard and lowered myself to a park bench, needing a moment to think. Snowflakes fell and covered me with a soft blanket. It was almost as if they were trying to heal me. If I had never met Myles, I wondered where I would be now. Married with even more bruises, or would I be single and have an amazing number of girlfriends who filled the lonely void? My eyes felt like lead, and my heart felt like it didn’t fit inside me anymore. Square peg, round hole kind of thing.
I lost track of time in my trance. All I knew what that it was late, and I had at least half an inch of snow on me.
By the time I got home, I was frozen, soaked, and my head pounded. I changed into some dry clothes and fixed myself a hot cup of tea, not feeling very well. I groaned when my phone rang and leaned over to answer it without a thought.
“Hello?”
“Really, Arizona?” Myles’s voice snapped over the line. “You want fifty-fifty?”
I jolted straight up, and any warmth that had tried to comfort me quickly turned into ice. No! I would not let him get to me that way.
“That only seems fair, Myles. I could take you for more since you were the one who was unfaithful.”
“I’ll fight you every step of the way—”
He stopped, and someone whispered in the background, making me see red. I knew it was Aubrey. I couldn’t forget her voice even if I wanted to.
“Shit!” he barked into the phone. “Let me meet with you, let me talk some sense into your stupid head. We’re still married, and you’re still mine.”
“No!” I almost laughed at how terrified that made me. I promised myself I would never be alone with him again.
“Please.” His tone dropped, and once upon a time I would have fallen for his mood swings, but not anymore.
“No, Myles, you can’t see me.”
“Be calm,” I heard the bitch warn him, and suddenly the line went dead, leaving me with another lash across the chest. I didn’t even notice I was crying until the tears started to drip off my chin.
I wrapped my arms around my stomach and moved to see out the window. Fear raced through me, and I wondered if I should move. Did he know where I lived? Would he really hurt me again? Then I remembered my mother’s words at the hospital. “When a man hits you, it won’t be the last time.” Sadly, she didn’t know about the other times, but she was right, though. He always had a violent side, and it had gotten worse over the years.
It was sad how you could dismiss so much when you thought you were in love.
A knock at the door made me jump and scattered my nerves. I covered my mouth in fear of screaming. I spotted Nix’s baseball bat and opened the door as much as the chain would allow.
“Hey.” Carter’s face dropped when he saw my terrified expression. “Are you al
l right?”
I cleared my throat as I looked past him. Holding up a finger, I shut the door and unlocked the chain. “Hey.” I stepped aside to let him pass, and the moment he was inside, I relocked the door.
He set a bag on the table and turned to me, worried. “Why are you crying?”
“Ahh,” my thoughts were cloudy as I scrambled for an answer, “I hurt my arm again. It’s fine now.”
He eyed the bat before he reached for it and removed it from my tight grip. He examined my wrist carefully. His hands were a wonderful combination of rough but warm and gentle as they moved about. “You’re freezing.” His head moved to study my face, and I looked away, feeling too vulnerable. “And you’re shaking.”
I removed my arm from his hands. “Just got a chill from walking home in the snow.” I headed to the couch, cuddling under a blanket. He didn’t miss a beat and joined me. I noticed he brought a bag over. “What’s that?”
He pulled out four boxes of mini lights and some colored glass bulbs. “You haven’t decorated your tree. I was thinking maybe you didn’t have any decorations. So, I got you these just to start you off.”
“Umm…” I glanced at my tree and wondered how I didn’t notice that. “Wow, thank you.” I watched as he started to take the lights out of the box. “You don’t have to do that.”
“I know,” he shrugged, “but maybe I want to.”
“Why?” I closed my eyes and wished I didn’t just say that. My need to protect myself was right at the surface, but it didn’t seem to faze him, because he started to weave the lights in between the branches, ignoring my comment. “Can I get you something to drink? Beer?”
“Sure.” He plugged another set into the string.
A tingle swept up the back of my neck and across my face the whole bloody way into the kitchen. I seriously shouldn’t be around humans today. My emotions were on steroids.
I peeked in my fridge at the two different types and wasn’t sure what was better, so I walked in reading the labels. “I have KCCO Black Lager or a Long Board. Neither would be my choice, but Phoenix likes my fridge stocked.”
“Phoenix?” He stopped what he was doing and pulled away from the tree.
Point in fact why I should not have opened my mouth.
I sighed, embarrassed. I didn’t usually use his full name. “My twin.” I held up my hand to stop his growing smirk. “I know—”
“Wait,” he rubbed his lips to try to hide his shit-eating grin, “you mean your parents called you Phoenix and Arizona?”
“So, about the beers?” I licked my lips, trying not to admire his sexy smile. I held them up, and he pointed to the KCCO. He used his keys to snap off the top and did the same to mine. He tapped the necks as if to say cheers and waited for me to finish the story.
I sat back down on the couch and tugged the blanket over me. Where to begin? “My father travels a lot for work, and my mother always joins him on the road. It’s something they’ve been doing for the past forty years. They were in Phoenix, Arizona when she went into labor. My brother came out first, so he got the boy-ish name, and I got the other. They said they did it so they would always remember the best day of their life.”
“Okay, that’s actually a better story than I thought.” He winked playfully then took a long drink of his beer. Good Lord, the guy gave me feelings I wasn’t sure how to navigate.
“Yes, it’s sweet, but also pretty damn funny when my parents tell the story, especially if my little brother is around. His name is Damien.” I laughed at a memory of his face when people asked to hear his story, because there wasn’t one. Carter moved to fix something under the tree. “He was born here in New York. Thank God they didn’t call him that.”
“Now, that would have been funny.” He inched under the tree, which caused his t-shirt to ride up, and I caught a glimpse of his incredibly toned stomach. “Any other siblings?”
I shook my head. “Just me and my brothers. You?”
“Just me and my baby sister. Parents are still together, still play matchmaker whenever they can.” He shrugged like it was an everyday thing for his parents. “All right, here we go.” He plugged in the lights, and the tree glowed a warm white.
“Wow.” It was so pretty, just what I needed today. “Nice job.”
“Thanks.” He started to hang the bulbs as I watched, admiring the way his jeans hugged his curves. He was solid muscle; he was the poster boy for good looks. “What are you thinking about?” I snapped out of my shameless gawking and blinked to recall what he just asked.
I jumped to my feet and grabbed a bulb from the box. “I was thinking how you’re doing all the work,” I lied, threading the ornament onto the tiny branch. “You’re a handy neighbor to have, Carter.”
“I’m glad you think so.” He put the last of the bulbs on in record time then sat down on the couch to admire his work. “Well, that sure brightens the room, hey?”
“Yeah, it really does.” I stepped back and felt a tiny speck of sadness. This was the first year I wouldn’t be in my house celebrating the Christmas holiday with all our friends.
“Hey,” he said softly, “where did you just go?”
I snapped out of my sorrow and shook my head. “Sorry. It looks great. Thank you for doing this.” I headed over and sat next to him. We both watched the tree with the dark sky and the snow falling behind it. It was the perfect backdrop. It reminded me of a photo you’d see on a Christmas card.
It had been a long time since I had enjoyed a man’s company other than Myles. I really enjoyed Carter, not to mention he was extremely easy to look at. A text message made my phone light up, and I glanced at the sender before I swiped it open.
Jessi: You with Mr. Tall, Tanned and Handsome?
I rolled my eyes and laughed softly when Carter glanced over at me with sleepy eyes, wondering what was going on.
“Jessi says hi.”
“Is that all she said?” He chuckled.
Another text came through and pushed Jessi’s off my screen.
Myles: You will meet with me.
The hair on my arms stood as the goosebumps traveled across my skin like a speeding train. I hurried off the couch and scrambled to the window to scan the street. That odd feeling of someone watching me crept back up my spine.
“What’s wrong?” I heard him set his beer on the table as I whirled around, hating that he was here to see me like that.
Okay, that was Myles screwing with my head. This was what he did. Mind games and fear were his specialty. You’re over-reacting. Get a grip. My eyes flickered to the door then back to Carter.
“I’m sorry. Umm, I just had a strange feeling. It was nothing.”
He studied my face for a moment then checked the time. “Maybe it’s time for me to go?”
“No,” slipped from my lips, which sounded rather like a desperate plea for help, “you don’t have to leave.”
“Do you want me to stay?”
I did. I really did, but I wasn’t sure if it was wrong of me to say so. I was still technically married. Was this wrong?
He moved to stand in front of me, and his broad shoulders seem so large and strong. “I need to hear you say it, Arizona.”
“Stay,” I whispered, “please stay.”
He nodded and took my frozen hand and led me back to the couch where he covered me with a blanket and settled in next to me. “You want to tell me what that was about?”
“I do, yes.” I panicked again, but for a different reason. What if it was too much for him? What if he just walked out and left? I wasn’t sure I could take another heartbreak. “But I can’t. Ummm…I just don’t know if I can yet,” I answered truthfully, then I felt bad because here was this amazing guy who had just decorated my tree and who knew nothing about me, wanting to know why I was scared to be alone. “My life was very different a few months ago. It wasn’
t good, but it was what I knew. It was comfortable, but it was a lie. Someone just hurt me, and I guess I’m still recovering.” He rested his arm along the back of the couch and played with a piece of my hair as he listened. “It really sucks.” I laughed and tried to cover the fact I was moments away from crying.
“What sucks is that you said someone just hurt you,” he frowned, “like it was something small that he did that. Any man who hurts a woman is a coward and must have had a pretty sad upbringing to think that’s okay.”
“Yeah.” I shrugged and closed my eyes to stop myself from instantly defending Myles like I always had.
He cleared his throat. “Can I ask you something?” I nodded. “Was this someone the one who hurt your wrist and gave you the bump on your cheek?” His hand swiped over the old bruise. “I saw the writing on your cast.”
I rubbed my arm to ease the dull ache. “My dad wrote it one night when I fell asleep.” I couldn’t say the rest.
“Are you sure you won’t take him back?” He slowly pulled his arm away, and I felt at a loss. “I think it’s pretty clear that I like you, Arizona, but if I’m stepping into the middle of something that’s not finished—”
“Like I said before, I would be a damn fool.” I pushed to my feet and felt all the words I wanted to tell him rush to the surface I whirled around to tell him, and he was right in front of me. “Carter, there’s something.”
He threaded a hand into my hair and gently pressed his lips to mine. His kiss was different. It held so much passion behind it. His tongue was soft but I could feel he was holding back. It was the perfect combination. I moaned as his hand moved down my side and slid over the curve of my behind. A hot burst burned through me, making me bold. My hands started to wander up his t-shirt and felt around his stomach over his steel curves. He must have liked that, because his kisses grew wild. Well, holy shit. I never would have thought I would ever be kissed like that.
Every single nerve ending became heightened, and my heart rushed to keep up with the excitement. I wanted more so much more, but…
The sound of someone behind us clearing their throat had us flying apart. With a beet red face, I turned to find my little brother Damien grinning like a fool. I stepped back farther, almost feeling guilty. Why? I wasn’t sure, but nonetheless, I was.