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“Shh, love. Whatever is wrong, we can figure it out,” I whisper, kissing the side of her head and tightening my hold around her.
“If he had… if that monster had hurt Lottie… because of me… I’d never forgive myself,” she cries hysterically.
I let her cry, knowing she won’t be able to explain what has caused her so much grief until every tear has been shed.
“Help me off the floor, Trent,” she says in a weak tone after a few minutes. “We need to meet Lottie at the District A-1 Police Precinct. Nathan has been arrested.”
“What? How?” I ask, helping my love to her feet while simultaneously wondering what Wilder could have done to get himself locked up.
I thought he’d turned a new leaf, but if he’s in jail, it means he let his anger get the best of him again. And if Charlotte Moore is involved, whoever he took his rage out on is probably in a body bag by now.
I wipe Piper’s tears away from her face as she gathers her composure long enough to explain what happened.
“Remember when I told you that Lottie dumped that bastard, Coop, to be with Nathan?”
I nod, not wanting to interrupt her train of thought.
“Well, the fucker ambushed her back at her old apartment when she was getting the rest of her things this afternoon. And he… and he… he assaulted her.”
“Shit,” I roar, grabbing Piper by her nape so I can hold her tight. “I’m so sorry, love. I’m so sorry. Is she okay?”
Piper shakes her head, her tears seeping through my shirt’s fabric.
“Nathan was able to get there in time before he could—”
“Shh, love. I understand,” I whisper, not wanting her to even think aboutthatword much less say it out loud.
“They’ve taken Cooper to the hospital after the police arrested Nathan.”
“So Lottie’s ex is still alive?” I ask, surprised since I would have killed anyone who dared to lay a malicious hand on my Piper.
“He is. Or at least I think he is. Lottie isn’t sure. She’s too upset that Nathan is locked up to worry about anything else.”
I nod because it’s understandable that her friend is still in shock after the ordeal she went through.
My Piper seems just as shaken, and I recall that she mentioned feeling responsible for her friend’s assault.
“What did you mean when you said this was your fault?” I ask cautiously.
“Because it is,” she sobs again. “Coop blames Lottie for that stupid video I uploaded online, which I also sent to his parents and his office. He told her because the video showed him doing coke with two prostitutes, and because of that, he lost his job, and his parents cut him off for good. I did this! Me! Me and my temper did this. And now my best friend is hurt while the love of her life is behind bars. I’ll never forgive myself. Never!” she cries, her guilt coming back to her in full force.
“Shh, baby,” I coo, brushing the back of her head as she continues to cry on my shoulder. “This isn’t on you. It’s on him. He’s the monster that’s to blame here, not you. You were only acting out in defense of your friend. The way you are so protective of the people you love was one of the reasons I fell in love with you in the first place. You didn’t do anything wrong, Piper. He did. He’s the only one at fault here.”
“But if… I didn’t put that video up,” she stammers.
“Then he would have found another excuse to hurt Lottie. Men like that, with large, fragile egos, don’t take rejection well. You are no more at fault for his actions than Lottie is for hers. He’s the true monster in this equation. No one else.”
I wait patiently as my words sink in and start to make sense to her.
I know my woman.
In the back of her mind, she will always wonder,what if?
But she is also intelligent enough to know that my reasoning is also valid.
She admitted to me that she never liked Lottie’s ex. That her intuition always told her that he was a bad guy.
She just never imagined to what extent.
