“He looks like a guy with tattoos, but he’s the furthest thing from bad.” I swear this hallway gets darker and darker the further I go down it.
“Oh shit! You’re in deep. I’m jealous! You’re out in the world really living, and I’m still helping my dad sell houses.”
“What does he have you working on now?”
“Selling a houseboat. I’ve known the guy forever, but it’s still going to be a hard sale. Lord knows there aren’t a lot of people who want houseboats. My dad’s really riding me like this is the world’s biggest deal.”
“And when are you thinking you’ll free yourself of that mess?” I finally leave the tunnel of darkness and head into the cafeteria where the scent of industrial coffee, plastic trays, and steam table food punches me in the stomach with a bit of nausea.
Dinner was a while ago, so all they have left are a few scary looking hot dogs and a slice of pizza that looks like it’s been sitting out for hours.
“I don’t think one ever truly frees themselves from a man like my father, do they?” She huffs out a long, heavy sigh and Ifeel bad that I’m not there to help her more. I know she’s lost right now.
“Why don’t you leave for a while. He can’t hurt you if you’re not there. You can stay at my parents’ place.”
She laughs under her breath. “I appreciate you, babe, but he would come find me, drag me out by my hair, and threaten more awful things again. It’s best if I stay until I figure a better way out. You, though,” she forces her voice to perk, “you are doing something special over there. So, tell me how serious it is with this Rhett guy?”
I grab a tray from the side wall and load it with prepackaged muffins, candy bars, chips, and a few bananas that don’t look overly spotted. “I like him. Probably too much.”
“Can you like someone too much?”
“Yeah. I mean, he took me from my wedding as ransom, now my engagement ring is missing, and I’m just glazing over all these very red flags because he’s hot.”
“That’s, umm,” Nikki pauses for a moment, “that’s not good. Do you think he took the ring?”
“He says he didn’t, and I want to believe him really badly, but we’re the only two people in the house and I don’t know where else it could’ve gone.”
“Maybe it fell down the drain or something. That happens, right?”
“Maybe,” I sigh, tossing another package of chocolate chip cookies on the tray. I was too busy fucking him in the shower to think any of those very smart thoughts.
“Go with your instincts, babe. You knew Nathan wasn’t right for you. If this guy feels right, trust it.”
I wish I had the same sort of sage advice for Nikki. She’s the sweetest person, and she doesn’t deserve the way her dad treats her. “As soon as all this settles, we should get out of town for a while. Girls’ trip.”
“Sounds fun,” she says, her tone more somber than I’d like. “I’ll call you again tomorrow. Good luck with your mom.”
“Love you.”
“Love you more.”
The line disconnects, and as I glance down at the screen, I see a text that’s come in from Reed. I don’t have to click on the message to get the gist.
Reed: I grabbed the ring when I was taking a piss the other day. I didn’t want you to do something stupid with it.
It’s then that I feel Rhett’s heavy hand on my arm, his voice deep and graveled as he says, “The doctor came back to talk to your parents. No surgery necessary.”
Oh my God!My shoulders relax, and I exhale as I lean against Rhett’s chest, my heart warm and full. He didn’t take the ring, my mom is going to be fine, and maybe, just maybe, everything I’m feeling for Rhett is finally okay to feel.
It’s that, or I fell in the tunnel of darkness, hit my head, and I’m currently experiencing the greatest coma dream. If that’s the case, please, just let me sleep forever.
Chapter Fourteen
Rhett
“I’m going to kick Reed’s ass,” I groan, reading the text he’s sent. I’m tempted to call him right now and tell him to deliver the ring to the hospital, but I don’t want the interruption.
“Reed? Is he the one you called earlier?”
