Fighting Temptation (Men Of Honor) (44 page)

A few hours later I’m pulling into the gym. I got a text from Sawyer an hour after leaving Anna’s telling me to meet him here. I told him I wanted to see Julia first but he reminded me that she and Kayla were gone dress shopping today.

Cade, Sawyer and Cooper are all standing by the ring looking pissed when I walk in. Well fuck, I can tell already this is going to get messy. Shaking my head I start towards them. As soon as Sawyer spots me he starts over, meeting me halfway. His posture is relaxed and easy but his eyes are blazing fury.

Before I can fully register his anger he catches me off guard, throwing a left hook to the side of my jaw. My head snaps back and I fall on my ass, not expecting the blow.

“You sorry son of a bitch!” he yells coming at me again.

This time I’m ready for him. Standing up I block his next blow and take a shot of my own.

“Jesus Christ! Take it easy, both of you,” Cooper bellows, pulling me back.

Cade grabs Sawyer and restrains him. I wait for rage to consume me so I can take off Sawyer’s head, but it never comes, because I know I deserved it.

“Is she alright?” I ask quietly.

“No! She’s not fucking alright! What the fuck is wrong with you? I walk in and find your woman on the floor, surrounded by broken glass. Crying her fucking eyes out that you don’t love her or want the damn baby you knocked her up with.”

A sharp ache seizes my chest and I shake my head in defeat, “I know I fucked up.”

“You’re goddamn right you fucked up! And I hope she cans your sorry ass.”

His words set me off and I fight against Cooper’s hold, “Oh I’ll just fucking bet you do. I’m sure you just fucking loved being there for her last night, trying to console her.”

“Oh fuck you, asshole. You know I would never do that to you. I have more respect for both of you than that. But I’ll tell you something, it would have served your ass right. Have someone else step in and take care of her since you sure as hell can’t.”

Our chests are both heaving with fury and I try to calm the rage, knowing everything Sawyer says is true.

Suddenly Cooper’s radio goes off at his hip, “Sheriff?”

Cooper keeps a hand on my chest and reaches down grabbing his radio, “Ya what is it?”

“I’m sorry sir, but you need to get over to the hospital right away. Kayla’s been in a bad accident.”

Julia!

Without a second thought the four of us are running out the door. “Get in,” Cooper yells for us to hop in his cruiser. He flicks on the sirens and hauls ass.

As soon as we break through the emergency doors we hear Kayla crying and yelling, “Please you’re wasting time. You need to find her!”

We follow the sound of her pleas and run into her room. Kayla is sitting up at the side of her bed with a bandage wrapped around her head. Her face is cut and swollen. Grace is sitting beside her, holding her hand and crying.

“Where’s Julia?” I ask looking around frantically.

Before Kayla can answer Cooper pushes me aside and rushes over to her, “Jesus baby, are you alright? What the fuck happened?”

“Oh god, Cooper, you need to help Julia.”

“Where the fuck is she?” I ask again.

My stomach clenches in dread when Kayla starts crying harder, “He took her. He fucking took her.”

Panic threatens to choke me, “Who, goddamn it?”

“Wyatt! He ran us off the road. I passed out but I woke up to her screaming my name. He was dragging her by her hair to his truck, then he hit her.” She starts sobbing uncontrollably, “Oh god Cooper, he hit her so hard that she stopped screaming, he knocked her out.”

My knees threaten to buckle under me. A mixture of fear and rage has my heart pounding so loud it’s all I can hear.

Fuck no! No! No! No!

“Jaxson man, take it easy. We’ll find her.” I hear Sawyer’s voice in the distance.

“Fuck! He’s fucking dead! I’m going to fucking kill him!”

Arms try to grab me while shit flies all over the place. A force knocks into me from behind, taking me to the ground.

“Goddamn it man, get fucking control over yourself. You’re trained for shit like this Jaxson. So get your fucking head together or you’re not going to be able to help her.”

Cade’s words breaks through the rage that consumes me.

My chest heaving with fury and fear I close my eyes and try to calm down, knowing he’s right.

Jesus Julia, I’m so fucking sorry.

“You good?” Cade asks a minute later through an exerted breath.

I nod, “Ya, I’m good.”

He gets off me and helps me up. I look at our surroundings and see the damage I caused. A chair is splintered in a million pieces, a table and tray lay on it’s side, it’s medical tools scattered all over the place.

I run my hand through my hair, “Shit, I’m sorry.”

Grace nods at my apology, looking ghost white. Kayla continues to cry, “Cooper, please. You guys need to go find her.”

I walk over to her, “Kayla, did you hear anything else? Did he say anything about where he was taking her?

She shakes her head crying harder.

A deputy speaks up now, “Sheriff, we have the 911 recording Miss Julia made during the accident. The operator stayed on the line while the crash happened, we have her being taken on tape.”

Cooper nods then looks at Kayla regretfully, “Jesus I don’t want to fucking leave you right now.”

“Cooper listen to me,” Kayla says, taking his face in her hands, “I’m going to be fine. Julia needs you now, more than I do. You’re the best, please go find her.”

“I’ll stay with Kayla,” Grace says through her own tears.

“Alright,” Cooper agrees reluctantly. Then he kisses Kayla, “I love you.”

His three simple words strike a chord deep inside me. I never fucking said them to Julia, all because I was too scared. Now she’s god knows where, scared and alone, thinking I don’t love her or our baby…

Fuck! The baby.

I look at Sawyer and Cade, “Let’s go.” I take off out the door and sprint down the hall.

“Jaxson hold up,” Cooper says catching up behind me, but I don’t stop.

“Goddamn it, I said hold up.” When he grabs my arm I throw him into the wall and get into his face.

“I don’t fucking have time to hold up. I need to find her now.”

“What, you’re going to fucking do it without me?” Cooper asks angrily.

I shake my head regretfully, “I have no choice Cooper, right now the law means nothing to me and it’s not going to. That son of a bitch took my girl and my baby; he’s fucking dead.”

“Listen Jaxson, I get where you’re coming from, I do. I want to kill the bastard myself. But right now you need the law on your side. I have resources that you don’t. Working together is only going to find her faster.”

“He’s right Jaxson,” Sawyer says cutting in, “think about Julia and the baby, they need you when this is over.”

I keep my eyes trained on Cooper, “Do you understand what I’m telling you? The only thing that matters to me is getting Julia and my baby out alive, and I will stop at nothing to do it, even if it means breaking the fucking law. Are you prepared for that?”

“Do you really think my first priority isn’t the same as yours? She means a lot to me too Jaxson.”

I nod knowing he’s right, “Alright then, let’s fucking go, time’s wasting.”

“Sheriff?” a deputy yells coming over, “I just got word from Reynolds that Wyatt’s home has been searched and cleared, no sign of either him or Miss Julia.”

“Alright, I want all property records pulled under Jennings, that includes his old man. Also bring Ray in for questioning, we’ll meet you there.”

“Yes sir.”

The four of us hop in Cooper’s police cruiser and head to the station.

Jesus Julia, hold on baby, please, just hold on.

I awake shivering, my body cold and aching; it feels like someone took a sledge hammer to me, especially my head. I moan trying to bring my hand to my head but can’t.

What the heck?

Then memories flood me, shit, Wyatt. My eyes shoot open and a small whimper escapes when I take in my surroundings. I’m in a cold dark basement laying on a cot. My hands chained to the rod iron headboard. My mouth is gagged, making it hard for me to take in the deep panic breaths that my lungs are desperately trying to inhale. Looking down, I see I’m wearing nothing but my bra and panties.

Oh god!

I try to get a grip on my fear knowing I need to stay calm and find a way out of this, for both mine and my baby’s sake.

Oh please let my baby be okay.

A loud noise has me turning to the right, I instantly regret it when pain radiates through my head. Wyatt is pacing back and forth on his cell, “Come on you bitch. Pick up!”

What I see beyond Wyatt has my panic escalating: candles are lit highlighting an entire wall of pictures of me. He captured me walking around town, in my car, my house. Worst of all, some of me sleeping in my bed. He was in my house while I was sleeping and I never knew.

“Well look who’s awake.”

My gaze snaps to Wyatt’s, his silhouette blurry from the tears that streak down my face. Walking over he sits next to me on the bed and trails a finger from my cheek down between my breasts. Whimpering behind the gag I try to wiggle away from his unwanted touch.

This infuriates him. He back-hands me so hard that my cheek splits on the inside, filling my mouth with blood. Darkness dances in my vision, threatening to take me under again.

“You’ll let that fucking trash touch you, but not me?”

Crying has me trying to take in deep breaths but the stupid gag doesn’t allow me to.

“If I remove your gag, you’re going to be good right? Not that anyone will hear you scream, but it will get on my nerves. And right now Julia, my patience is thin when it comes to you, do you understand?” His voice is soft again contradicting the wild rage that is in his eyes.

“Answer me!” he yells squeezing one of my breasts painfully, making me scream behind the gag.

I nod my head to answer him.

“Good girl.”

When he removes my gag I take lungfuls of sobbing breaths, “Wyatt, please don’t do this.” I know my pleading is probably pointless, but right now that’s all I can think of.

Wyatt cups my face gently, “I hate that it had to come to this Julia, I really do. You have no idea how much this pains me, I’ve loved you for so long…” His crazy words trail off as he gets a faraway look in his eyes.

I decide to try my own crazy: “I know that now. I’m so sorry Wyatt. You were right, we had something special and I should have given us more of a chance.”

He stares down at me, trying to see if I’m being truthful. Whatever he finds isn’t what he was looking for. Fury fills his gaze and his hand tightens on my cheeks painfully. “It’s too late, you let that son of a bitch take you from me. You ruined my reputation with that fucking restraining order. Now you’re both going to pay.”

I cry out in pain as blood begins trailing down my mouth. Wyatt sucks in a sharp breath as his eyes fill with lust. Growling he leans downs and crushes his mouth roughly to mine, forcing his tongue in my mouth. It takes everything in me not to gag from the bile that threatens to choke me.