Faded (Shattered Book 4)

by Diana Nixon

  "Does this mean the pain in your foot will no longer be an obstacle on my way to get the desired?"

  Trying to hide my smile, I said, "Hope your father can't read lips. Otherwise, we are screwed."

  He chuckled and looked at his dad. "Don't worry, he's too busy showing off."

  About an hour later, when all the questions seemed to be answered, Jeffrey's father thanked everyone for coming to his lecture, wished us good luck on the exams and started to walk to the exit. When passing by us, he spoke to his son, "Can I have a word with you?" Though his look was focused on me. "In private," he added.

  "I'll see you later," I told Jeffrey, to lessen the tension between the three of us.

  "Okay." He leaned in and OMG - kissed me on the cheek. An innocent move as it was, it made Mr. Coleman's face turn blood red.

  I knew why Jeffrey did that – he wanted to show his father that he was the only owner of his life and that not even his father's power could stop him from doing the things that he wanted to do. Smart wish, not so smart way to demonstrate it.

  ***

  Jeffrey

  I watched Rhea leave the classroom and then I turned to my father. His face was as unreadable as a stone.

  "What is it, Dad? What did you want to talk to me about?"

  "I haven't seen you for months. Don't I have a right to talk to you for a few minutes?"

  "Of course, you do."

  "Why don't we go somewhere else? There's something very important I would like to discuss with you."

  So I thought…

  "Sure. Let's go outside."

  "Do you like it here?" He asked as we walked through the park.

  "I do. I always wanted to study here, you know that."

  He nodded, obviously thinking about his next question. "Do you have problems with any of your classes?"

  "No. Everything's fine. Why?"

  "Do you have enough time to study?"

  "What are all these questions about, Dad?"

  He stopped walking and looked at me. "That girl… The one who was sitting next to you… Who is she?"

  "A student of this university, obviously." I didn't like the way this conversation was going.

  "Are you dating her?"

  "I'm sorry, Dad, but that is none of your business."

  "No pressure, son. But do you remember what we talked about before you went to New York?"

  "I do. But I don't see how that talk is connected to the girl you've mentioned," I lied. I knew exactly what he was referring to.

  "Distractions often lead to failures."

  "She is not a distraction."

  "Yes, she is. She's pretty and she's obviously into you."

  "I'm a nineteen-year-old guy, I do have a right to date and have a relationship. It's normal, dad."

  "I'm not saying you can't date. All I'm saying is that girls like her can become a serious distraction for someone who wants to build a career."

  "How so?" I was getting closer to losing my patience with him. I prayed he wouldn't say anything stupid that would make me lose it completely. No matter how much I hated him nosing into my personal life, I didn't want Rhea, of all people, to stand between us.

  "You like her, don't you?"

  I smirked. "You think I'm only allowed to date girls I do not like, so as not to have problems because of their possible crush on me?"

  "We've never talked about this, son. But there are a few things that you need to know about…"

  "Just don't tell me you're about to lecture me on sexual relationships. I don't think you can tell me anything new."

  He looked embarrassed. "I know you don't need any lectures on that topic. All I want to say is that having a serious relationship now, at the very beginning of your evolvement as a future businessman, is not a good idea. You need to focus on what's really important at this moment."

  "I know what's important to me, Dad. I never forget about it, but thanks for the reminder. Is that all that you wanted to talk about?"

  "Mom wants you to come home for Christmas."

  "Okay. Anything else?"

  "No."

  "Then I have a few questions for you, if you don't mind."

  "About what?"

  "About the driver that you hired here, in New York - Mr. Burns."

  Dad looked puzzled. "What about him?"

  "How long has he been working for you?"

  "God, as long as I can remember."

  "Do you know anything about his family?"

  Dad's eyebrows rose in surprise. "His family? Not much. I know that his wife died and that he has a daughter about your age."

  "Have you ever seen them?"

  "No. Dennard and I have rarely talked about his family. He doesn't like me asking about them. Why?"

  "Just curious… I once saw him driving you home," I lied, "and I wondered why you never told us anything about the people who worked for you."

  "I keep my family away from my business, you know that."

  "I know." We watched each other for a few moments, then I said. "Forget about it. You are right – family and business should stay away from each other." He was hiding something, I could feel it. He tried his best not to show his emotions, but I could see his nervousness and I knew he had lied to me. He knew Rhea's mom. Maybe even better than I could have imagined.

  He looked at his watch and said, "My flight to Pittsburgh is in two hours. I need to go to the airport now, if I don't want to miss it."

  "But you hate planes."

  "Yeah, it's just that Dennard is in the hospital now, or I would ask him to drive me back home."

  "Right…" I remembered Rhea's words about my father's hate for planes. "See you at Christmas then."

  "Take care, son. And please…" He touched my shoulder. "Don't lose your head over girls."

  "I won't, I promise."

  He smiled curtly and walked away.

  The image from my dream filled my mind. It couldn't be just a coincidence that I dreamed about Rhea's mom. Now I knew for sure - it wasn't just a dream, but a memory. A very vivid one.

  I never told Rhea the details of that dream, but I clearly heard the words my father told her mom – he said he loved her… And despite how much I refused to believe it was still true, the fact remained.

  I thought it would be better to keep that part of their conversation for myself. Rhea didn't need to know the woman she admired her whole life could have a lover, who also happened to be the boss of her husband. The news would upset her, and it was the last thing she needed now. Especially when her father was in the hospital. She was scared to lose him. I still remembered how frightened she was the night I paid her the unexpected visit. She wouldn't survive losing another parent. So maybe it was better to keep her memories about her past unchanged that telling her about the possible romance between our parents. Maybe she was right and some things were better to remain unknown…

  I knew Rhea would be waiting for me to know more about my conversation with my father, that's why I went straight to her room. She was having a day off, so I knew she would be there.

  "How did it go?" She asked right after she opened the door.

  "Not so bad. But I didn't get the answers I needed."

  "He wouldn't tell you anything, would he?"

  "How do you know that?"

  She wrapped her arms around herself and rubbed her shoulders, as if she was cold. "One look at your father was more than enough to know he would never give away his secrets, if there were any of course."

  "He knows your mom, I'm sure he does. But I don't understand why he didn't want to tell me the truth."

  "He looked at me as if I was the worst person in the world. He doesn’t want us to be together, does he?"

  "God, Rhea, stop saying nonsense."

  "It's what he wanted to talk to you about, isn't it?"

  I sighed. "He doesn't know you."

  "He thinks I'm an unnecessary part of your being here."

  How could she know so much about our conversation
? For a second I thought she used my quadcopter to spy on me.

  She smiled and came closer to touch my cheek. "Don't worry, I'm not a mind reader. Or I would read all the dirty thoughts running through your head."

  I wrapped my arms around her and pulled her closer to my chest.

  "My father… He's just a man of control."

  "I can see that."

  "But it doesn't mean I will let him take you away from me. He doesn't have any right to tell me what to do with my personal life."

  "Did he ask anything about me? Does he know I'm his driver's daughter?"

  "No. I thought it would be better if I didn't give him your name."

  "Good."

  "Do you still want to know if he ever met your mom?"

  "Yes, of course."

  "Then I think you need to talk to your father. Maybe he'll be more talkative than mine."

  CHAPTER 14

  Rhea

  The days went on. It was the middle of December that brought a lot of sleepless nights with books covering my bed and the floor around it. My very first university exam was going to happen soon and I seemed to be unable to remember everything I needed to know not to fail.

  "For God's sake, Rhea, will you ever stop reading?" Sandy lay down on my bed and opened one of my textbooks.

  "I need to be ready to answer any question that the professor might want to ask me."

  "You've got all A+ on your pre-exam tests. I doubt there's at least one question that you cannot answer."

  I rubbed the bridge of my nose and leaned against the pillows. "I'm stressed, Sandy."

  "Figures. You haven't seen anyone but the pizza guy and me for the last four days. Isn't Jeffrey missing you?"

  "He is. But he knows how important exams are for me. Besides, he's busy studying too."

  "No, shit? Is that why he went to Bradley's party last night?"

  My brows rose in surprise. "What time did you see him there?"

  "Around nine."

  "That was about the same time he called me. But he didn't say a word about the party."

  "Well, maybe he thought you were too busy to give it a thought."

  "Maybe."

  "You don't seem to be angry at him."

  "Why would I be angry at him? It's not like we can't go to parties separately."

  "Levy and I go everywhere together…" Sandy ended the sentence with a meaningful intonation, indicating there must have been a very good reason for Jeffrey to have fun without me.

  "I'm not going to play a jealous girlfriend if this is what you expect from me."

  "As you wish." She stood up and headed for the door. "But if I were you…" She stopped and turned to look at me. "I would at least ask why he never mentioned the party. Even if he knew you wouldn't go there with him."

  "Get out, Sandy. I don't have time for this." I pretended I was reading a book, when in reality, all my thoughts (thanks to my roommate) were now wrapped around last night.

  It was the first time that Jeffrey hid something from me. Well, at least as far as I knew.

  He always told me about his plans for the day, and so did I. Maybe that's why thoughts about jealously never crossed my mind. I was sure I knew everything I needed to know.

  Just out of curiosity, I picked up my phone and dialed Jeffrey's number.

  He answered after the first beep, "Hi, Cherry! Please tell me you've missed me enough to see me tonight."

  "I have missed you, it's true. But it looks like not all of your night plans include me…" Now, I did sound like a jealous girlfriend and I was sure he could hear it.

  He chuckled into the phone. "Sandy told you she saw me last night, didn't she?"

  "Well…"

  "I wasn't trying to turn it into a secret. Though I truly hoped she would keep her mouth shut and let my reason for going to the damn party be a surprise for you."

  "What surprise are you talking about you?"

  "Tell me you are not going to study tonight and you will see everything with your own eyes."

  I thought for a moment before saying, "Fine… I'm all yours for tonight."

  "Damn… It sounds so tempting." The words said in a husky voice made butterflies dance in my stomach.

  It'd been almost two months since Jeffrey and I started dating, but we still postponed bringing our relationship to a new level. And it looked like the more I thought about it, the more I wanted to throw my books away and just run into his room and beg him to make my very special dream about him come true.

  I felt my cheeks turn red.

  "See you later then," I said.

  "Can't wait."

  I hung up the phone and smiled dreamingly. I was lucky to fall in love with the best guy in the world. He was everything I ever needed and even more. And maybe I was being too stupid to stop looking at him through pink glasses, right there and then I wanted to believe our small happy world would never shatter.

  Around six in the evening when I was going through the last chapter of the book I needed to read for my Monday's exam, someone knocked at the door of my bedroom. I knew it wasn’t Sandy, because she never ever thought about knocking. She hardly cared if I was running naked around my room or generally too pissed to talk to anyone. She thought she was allowed to do whatever the hell she wanted and nothing seemed to be strong enough to stop her.

  "Come in!" I said, closing the book.

  "You look damn sexy with a book in your hands."

  I looked up and saw Jeffrey leaning against the doorframe. He was wearing torn here and there jeans and a black shirt, unbuttoned on top and with its sleeves rolled up to his elbows.

  No wonder I was crazy about the guy, he was a walking dream coming true every time my eyes laid on him.

  "Look who's talking," I said, rising from my bed to come and greet him. We hadn't seen each other for a few days, but only now did I feel like years had passed since the morning he gave me a quick kiss before my history class started back on Tuesday.

  I came closer and wrapped my arms around his neck, intending to give him the best kiss ever.

  He read my intentions and willingly lowered his head to meet my lips half-way.

  The kiss started slow, with our lips playing in a sensual connection. It had always been good to feel him this way. His lips could tell me so much more than their owner. Every new kiss felt different and I caught myself thinking if I could ever get tired of kissing him, or loving him.

  I hardly had a moment to react before he grabbed my wrists and locked them behind my back with his death grip. "You are driving me insane, Cherry."

  "That was the point."

  He smiled into my lips. "Then don't blame me if I lose control over what's happening between us." Holding my wrists tightly he pulled me closer and whispered, "I have never wanted anything as bad as I want to claim every inch of you with my kisses. Be sure, I will make it happen."

  "It's because you are used to getting everything you desire."

  "Exactly. And right now I want you, all for myself. Are you ready for my surprise?"

  "More than ready. Especially if it justifies the fact that you went to the party without me." I pretended to be super offended by the act.

  Chuckling, he kissed me one more time and said, "Who would have thought you were such a keeper?"

  "I think it makes two of us, considering the look you give every guy who dares to talk to me in your presence."

  "I'm not going to deny it. What's mine is mine. Period."

  I liked the way it sounded. I didn't mind being his for the rest of my life.

  "Let me take my phone," I said.

  He let go of my hands and waited for me to find the thing. It got stuck between the two piles of books on my bed.

  Suddenly, Jeffrey asked, "How's your dad doing?"

  I knew exactly what he wanted to hear from me.

  "I haven't talked to him about your father. I'll do it on Christmas." It was going to be one of a few Christmas Eves that he was going to spend at home. I thought it was ti
me to clarify a few things between us.

  "Okay… Shall we go?"

  I nodded. "Let's go." He didn't push it and I appreciated his patience. He knew I was kind of scared about the upcoming talk with my father, but there was no way we could avoid it. Especially now, that Jeffrey and I were dating and the issues between our families were like shadows that followed us everywhere. Both he and I wanted to know the truth about our parents' past, no matter how little we might like it.

  "Top floor?" I asked, surprised when the elevator stopped. "Are you taking me to the roof?"

  "I've got the key." He showed me the little thing he was holding in his hand.

  "How on Earth did you get it?"

  "The party, remember? A friend of mine who had a copy was there too. He said we could borrow it for one night."

  We came to the door that led to the roof of our dorm and Jeffrey opened it with the borrowed key.

  "Wow…" I stopped, stunned.

  A part of the space in front of me was decorated with small shining lights that looked like a night sky full of stars. There was a couch, standing under the white tent, with rose petals all over its floor. Transparent curtains danced in the wind, creating an illusion of a secluded paradise that belonged to us only.

  "God, Jeffrey…this is amazing!"

  "I'm glad you like it. I know it's a little cold for dates on the roof, but I couldn't pass on the opportunity to come here with you."

  "I feel like a princess invited to a ball. The only thing that is missing is a fancy dress."

  He looked at me from head to toe and said, "You look great no matter what you are wearing." Then he stepped closer and added in a low voice, "And even better when wrapped in a silky sheet."

  I smiled and lowered my head. "Thank God, my leg was hurt back then, or I don't think I would have been able to stop you from taking that sheet off me."

  "True." He put one arm around me and pulled me to the couch.

  We sat down and watched the lights shining above our heads. For the first time in days, I didn't want to think about the upcoming exam.

  "Thank you for bringing me here," I said.

  Jeffrey took a blanket lying on the armrest of the couch and wrapped it around me.