AllFreeNovel
Share Us
All I can say is he got damn lucky I was kidnapped that night, so his abuse was concealed, yet again. No one thought to ask how I got my injuries, they assumed it all came from Jade, and I didn’t offer an alternate explanation. Except Tate, he sensed something was off. Yet another reason to stay away from him.
When I get to my bedroom, I survey the damage. There’s blood on my beige carpet. I close my eyes and inhale deeply, trying to calm myself. I can still remember it like it just happened.
I hear a knock on my door and freeze. I lean out into the hallway to see if I locked the door when I came in. I did. My phone dings with a text. I see Taylor’s name on the screen, but I don’t open the message.It’s him, he’s here again.My heart starts to pound with fear. I search my kitchen for something, anything I could use as a weapon. I decide on the hammer in my junk drawer. I grab it before creeping closer to the door and hear the knock again.
With shaky fingers, I touch the doorknob to unlock it when I’m startled by a deep voice I wasn’t expecting.
“Hey Lucy, it’s me, Tate.”
I let out an even shakier breath and open the door to see the man I wish wanted more than a fling in his life standing on my doorstep. He locks eyes with me before dropping his gaze to the hammer in my hand.
“Are you, um, are you okay? I didn’t mean to scare you. I know it’s kind of late.” He runs a hand over the stubble covering his face.
“Yeah, I’m…I’m fine. What are you doing here?” I ask a little harsher than I mean to.
“Can I come in?” he asks like a man on a mission.
“Uh, sure,” I step to the side letting him in and shutting the door behind me, then locking it out of habit. “You think you might put the hammer down? I’m only here to check on you.” He grins and lifts his hands in surrender. I start to smile back.
Then I see it and I feel sick realizing my mistake. I left my bedroom door open and from this angle, you can see into my room and most definitely the broken mirror with glass littering the floor. Tate notices my reaction and follows my line of sight.
I quickly rush past him to shut the door to my bedroom but he’s on my heels in an instant. He stops the door from shutting with his hand and steps into my bedroom. His face becomes expressionless for a moment, then turns as hard as steel. Once he examines the damage, he faces me. “What the hell happened in here, Lucy?”
I have no idea what to say. “I...”
“Don’t you dare lie to me. You expect me to believe this was Jade, right? Darlin’ don’t even try to spin that tale. Jade may have been ruthless, but there’s no way she hurled you into your vanity. Your injuries from that night are far more than what she is capable of. It’s the guy, Taylor from the bar, right? He did this to you?”
I’m silent as a damning tear falls down my still bruised face. I’ve been hiding this for so long, but I don’t know how to hide from Tate. He can see all the way to my soul.
He steps closer and I see the anger swirling in his blue eyes, so I step back, hitting the wall. I know he won’t hurt me; I can sense he wouldn’t, but nonetheless, he’s an angry man standing in front of me, and my track record doesn’t bode well in situations like this.
“Lucy, I’m sorry. I didn’t mean to scare you. I did though, didn’t I?”
I can see hurt flash through those brilliant blues of his.
I’m still silent and he tries again more gently, “Please Lucy. Tell me what happened. This is not okay. Don’t hide the truth from me.”
I look into his pleading eyes as I decide whether I can be brave enough to finally tell someone. In a matter of seconds as if the weight of my secrets finally crushes me, I slide down the wall to my knees, burying my face in my hands. He kneels with me for a moment before taking my hands gently in his to uncover my face. “Lucy, darlin’ I’m going to pick you up and we’re going to the couch, okay?” I nod in agreement and let him help me to my feet before he lifts me into his arms and walks us to my couch. He sits down, keeping me on his lap as I bury my face in his neck and cry. These tears are straight from the depths of my soul. He rubs his hands up and down my back and doesn’t say a word while he allows my emotions to rain down on us both.
When I’m finally done, I feel weak but also refreshed. I’ve never let someone take care of me or see me vulnerable. I’ve always kept my walls up. Somehow, this sexy man on my couch has knocked them down. Now I fear my heart will be broken for another reason entirely. This man doesn’t want love. I start to remove myself from his lap as the thought crosses my mind.
“I’m not going anywhere. You might as well start talking,” he says gently but firmly.
“Lucy, if he did this to you, you can’t hide it. You need to tell someone.” I plead with her to tell me, even if I know in my soul the bastard inflicted most, if not all the injuries she had when we found her and Ivie at the old hospital that night. There are so many emotions unfurling in my chest as I take in every inch of her beautiful face. For starters, I want to find this Taylor guy and introduce him to my fist, then I want to take this gorgeous woman home with me so I can make sure she doesn’t get hurt again, ever.Wait, what?Did I just think that?
Lucy nibbles on her lip nervously as if she’s deciding what to say, drawing my attention to her mouth. She notices me looking at her lips and glances at mine as well. She pulls back from me and sits by my side so she’s no longer looking at me. Instead, her eyes are trained down toward her clasped hands with her elbows on her knees. I lean up as well, waiting on her to answer me.
“I can’t. I can’t talk about this with anyone. I appreciate your concern, but you shouldn’t even be here. I’m fine, I mean, I’ll be fine,” she says quietly, barely above a whisper.
“Lucy, I’m not going to let this go. If you don’t tell someone, I will. I won’t sit by and let this happen to you. How many times has he done this?” My chest is burning with rage.
She stands up and eyeballs me. “You can’t say a word, not to anyone. Do you understand? You have to leave and forget about this. Forget about me. If you don’t…”
I’m on my feet in front of her in an instant. “If I don’t, what? He’ll do it again? Do something worse next time?”
She visibly flinches as if my words slap her, but I don’t back down, and neither does she. She stands before me, lips pinched and spine straight, exhibiting a glimpse of the fire I saw the night we were at High Road Bar.
“If you don’t want to tell anyone, and you don’t wantmeto tell anyone, then you better tell me. Tell me all of it,” I calmly offer. I mean business, and if she doesn’t let me help her, I’ll tell Sterling so he can haul the piece of shit in.
