Hold On - Part Three (The Hold On Series Book 3) (2 page)

We stand up, brush the sand from our clothes, and head back toward the apartment. Ethan takes my hand in his and I lean into his strong frame for support. I’m nervous about everything that is about to happen, but I trust that Ethan is going to help me through it, and at the end of all of this, we’ll be together as a strong couple.

Before we reach the building I’m distracted by movement to my left. I turn to see a man move silently into a shadow made by a nearby building, he’s still there watching us.

I whisper, “There’s someone over there.”

Ethan’s head whips around to see where I’m indicating. The man moves out of the shadows briefly so he can be seen by us. He looks rough and not the type of person you’d want to meet on a dark night like tonight. “Go inside,” he says.

“Are you coming too?” I ask. Ethan lets go of my hand and I can tell he’s not going to follow me into the building.

“Whatever happens now, don’t tell Lili about this. She cannot know I’ve talked to anyone except you.”

I’m confused. Tell Lili what? That there is a strange man hanging around outside our building? I don’t move when Ethan walks over to the stranger. I almost expect the man to pull a gun on Ethan but instead they both walk into the shadows together and disappear.

“Ethan?” I call out. He doesn’t respond.

“There you are.” My sister’s voice comes from behind me and I whip around startled. “I’ve been trying to call you and tell you I’m on my way over, but you’re not picking up your phone. Did you lose it again?” She rolls her eyes dramatically. “Well don’t just stand there, let’s go upstairs.”

“Tessa? What are you doing here?” It feels like my feet are stuck to the pavement and I can’t move. Everything is happening at once.

She places her hands on her hips like mom used to do. “I had to come, silly. You need someone to talk sense into you.”

“Talk sense into me?” I don’t know what she’s talking about. She links her elbow with mine and leads me toward the front door of the apartment building.

“Yes.” She exhales loudly and pushes open the glass doors as we go inside.

I turn my head to see where Ethan has gone with the stranger, but I can’t see him. I don’t know who he was or why Ethan is talking to him. Ethan has already said that he doesn’t have any friends so it can’t be that. Maybe it was someone he used to know from his motorcycle club days? Whoever he was, he looked dangerous and I’m worried about Ethan’s safety. I know he can look after himself but this is something different, something unknown. If I can’t mention to anyone that he’s talking to him, it’s not a good sign.

We take the stairs and reach the front door of my apartment and go inside. Lili is holding my phone in her hand and I know she’s been going through my messages. I glare at her and grab it out of her grip. I won’t make the mistake of leaving it out on the counter again.

“You’re sister called again,” she says, trying to offer an excuse about why she was holding it.

“That would be me,” says Tessa, brightly. “Hello, I’m Tessa.” She holds out her hand for Lili to shake.

Lili looks her up and down, unsure of what to make of my sister. “Liliana.” She takes my sisters hand and shakes it quickly.

Tessa drops her bag onto the ground and places her hands on her hips as she looks around the apartment. “It’s different since I was last here.”

“I haven’t done anything,” I say. I haven’t. Maybe Tessa senses the tension in the room and that’s distorting her sense of what the room is supposed to look like.

“Where’s Ethan?” asks Lili.

I hesitate as I try and figure out a response. I haven’t had time to come up with a good reason of why he hasn’t returned with me. “He’s coming. Just wanted to think about something alone.” It’s a lame excuse and I’m sure she is going to see right through it.

Lili narrows her eyes suspiciously. “Think about what?”

“Is this the same guy that’s making you act irrationally?” Tessa walks between Lili and me, placing herself into the conversation.

“I’m not acting irrationally,” I say as I try to figure out why she knows about Ethan. I haven’t told her about him as I was waiting for the right time. “Is that why you are here?”

She presses her lips together mockingly. “Well, duh, of course! When I hear that my little sister rejects a marriage proposal from the love of her life because of some guy she’s just met, then it’s my obligation to come and see if she’s taken crazy pills.” She turns to Lili. “I’m studying to be a doctor, so I should know when my sister is acting crazy or not.”

I see the smile form on Lili’s lips like it’s happening in slow motion. She looks over at me. “You turned down a marriage proposal?”

Tessa sits on the couch and lifts her feet so she can rest them on the coffee table. “Crazy right? She’s been with Danny for over five years and they had a few problems last year and break up. Just when he comes to his senses and pops the big question she tells him she’s moved on.” She looks over at me and lifts an eyebrow. “You don’t move on that quickly from the one you are supposed to be with.”

“I’m guessing Danny called you.” I want to slap him. I want him to leave me alone and stop messing with my life. He isn’t getting the message that it’s completely over. “Danny is a jerk and treated me terribly. You need to quit saying I’m supposed to be with him because I’m not. I don’t love Danny anymore and I never will.”

“Right.” She rolls her eyes again. “And I suppose you like this new guy better.”

“Yes, that’s right,” I say. “I do like Ethan better.”

“He’s only using her for sex,” offers Lili. “He doesn’t care about her.”

This makes Tessa jolt up straight. “Are you sure?”

Lili smiles. “Oh, I’m positive. It’s what he does. He finds a nice innocent girl and then ruins her life. It gets him off having so much power over them. Turns him on. He destroyed his last girlfriend, Winona. Changed her so much that she ended up losing her life to someone else. He’ll do the same to you.”

“That’s not true,” I say. “Ethan does care about me. We love each other.”

Just at that moment, Ethan returns to the apartment. He looks between all of us and leans casually against the wall. “I don’t love you, Sarah. Lili is right, I just like fucking you.”

Ethan’s bottom lip twitches slightly as I stare at him in disbelief. I can’t understand why I’m hearing this now, especially not after we just talked on the beach and he asked me to trust him. Now he’s throwing everything back in my face.

Tessa stands up and clenches her fists as she glares at Ethan. “You have some nerve saying that. You’re a bigger asshole than I thought.”

He shrugs casually, but I can tell that his movements are deliberate and measured. He’s watching every word and making every move like he’s an actor on a stage delivering the right lines for a believable performance.

“What are you saying, Ethan?” I ask carefully. I can’t tell what’s true anymore.

He laughs. “You fell in love so quickly, Sarah. It was easy. Danny did me a favor by breaking your heart, because you were ready to give your body away to the next guy who came along. I told you that you were easy to fuck, because you were. God, I liked fucking you. All I had to do was touch you and say nice things and you opened your heart and your legs so quickly. It was almost too easy.”

I can’t breathe. All the insecurities I had about myself are rushing to the surface so fast it’s making my head spin. “That’s not true.”

“Did I ever tell you I loved you Sarah?”

I search back in my mind to every conversation we’ve ever had. “No,” I admit. The words choke my throat.

“I can’t be the fantasy you’ve created in your head. I’m not the happily-ever-after kind of guy.”

“Shut your mouth!” says Tessa, as she strides over to Ethan. She brings her hand up ready to slap him across the face. He grabs it before it makes contact and throws her arm back at her. “You’re a monster,” she spits as she rubs her wrist where he held it. “You better get out of this place before I call the police.”

I turn my head and watch Lili’s eyes sparkle with delight. Every word she’s said to me has been confirmed, and the more I’m crumbling in front of her, the more joy she’s getting. If she wanted me destroyed, then she got her wish and more.

“I can’t stay here,” I say weakly to Tessa. “I can’t breathe.” I fall to the ground on my hands and knees and struggle for something to make sense. Tessa rushes to my side and tries to pull me up. “It’s not true,” I say. No one hears me.

“You shouldn’t stay here,” says Ethan. He walks over and picks me up off the floor.

“Don’t you fucking touch her,” says Tessa. I’ve never heard my sister curse before, but then I’ve never seen her so angry either.

He ignores her and carries me over to the couch and lies me down. As I stare into his eyes searching for the truth, I can see the conflicted emotions struggling to escape. “Ethan?” I whisper. Something isn’t right. It doesn’t add up. 

“Hush,” he says, quietly. He glances across to Lili. “I’ll do the job tonight and then we’ll leave. We won’t come back here after that.”

“That’s right you won’t,” says Tessa. “You’ll stay away from my sister and this apartment if you know what’s good for you.”

“But tonight I’m staying,” he says. “You both should go.”

“No way,” says Tessa. “This is Sarah’s apartment. You don’t get to say where and who stays here.”

“It wasn’t a debate,” he says. His voice is low and gruff. “You both leave so I can discuss the plan with Lili alone.”

“Why don’t you go and stay at your old boyfriend’s house,” offers Lili. She’s enjoying this far too much and I almost expect her to giggle and clap her hands together with glee. “Maybe you can tell him how sorry you are and take that stupid ring of his after all.”

“No,” I say. I sit up and reach out for Ethan. My hand trembles. “No, I can’t.”

Ethan pushes me aside and walks into his room, slamming the door behind him. I stare at it, waiting for him to come out and tell me that this is some big joke and that he does love me after all. It can’t be over, it just can’t be. Not like this.

“Come on, we’ll get a bag packed and I’ll take you back to my hotel room,” says Tessa. She turns to Lili. “You both better be gone when we get back here tomorrow night.”

“I’ll make sure of it,” says Lili. She limps over to me and pushes out her bottom lip. “Sorry it didn’t work out for you, but I did try to warn you about him.”

“Thanks for your help,” says Tessa. She holds out her hand for Lili to shake. “If you need me to look at your injuries before I leave, I’d be happy to.”

Her help? Lili didn’t help anything except bring all this drama and chaos with her. Everything that has gone wrong between Ethan and I, started when she got here and has only got worse and worse.

“No thanks. It’s over,” says Tessa.

I look back over to the closed door of Ethan’s room and then across to Lili. I know this isn’t over. It can’t be. Something happened between the time we talked on the beach, to when he arrived back at the apartment and the only thing that was different was the stranger he was talking to outside. The one he didn’t want me to tell Lili about.

“Okay,” I say. “I’ll pack some overnight clothes and we can leave.” I walk numbly into my room and close the door behind me, leaning against it until I can think straight. Nothing about the last half hour makes any sense and I think that’s because it’s not supposed to.

The only thing I can cling to is that Ethan told me to trust him and I haven’t stopped doing that. If he wants me to leave, then that’s what I’ll do, although I’m not going with Tessa back to her hotel room. Ethan told me that if anything happened I should go and stay at his cabin. And that’s exactly where I’m going to go.

“Drop me at Lauren’s.”

Tessa turns her head in my direction. “No, you’re coming with me.”

I frown. “You don’t have a spare bed at the hotel and you move too much when you sleep. Lauren has a whole spare room she doesn’t use; I’ll get a better sleep there.”

She eyes me suspiciously. “Fine, but I want to talk to Lauren first before I agree.”

“That’s fair,” I say. I know Lauren will have my back and let me stay. It’s sweet that my big sister is worried about me, but there is no need. I can look after myself. The more I go over the evening’s events in my head, the more I’m sure that I’m right about all of this.

Tessa turns the corner and proceeds toward Lauren’s apartment building. I pull out my phone and let her know we are on our way.

~

Lauren is standing at the front of her building waiting for us. She’s wearing pajama’s which is unusual for her. I figure she’s only pulled them on so she doesn’t have to stand out in the street naked.

Tessa pulls up at the front and hops out before I can say anything more.

“He’s a complete asshole,” says Tessa as she throws her hands up in the air. “You have no idea what he said to her.”

Lauren looks between Tessa and me as I get out and shut the car door behind me. “I’ll tell you when we get inside. It’s not that big of a deal.”

“Not that big of a deal?” Tessa is fuming. “He just told you he used you for sex. He told all of us that you were a good fuck, nothing more.”

“He what?” Lauren grabs hold of my arm and I can feel her fingers digging into my skin. “Is this true?”

“Yes,” I say weakly. “But I’m fine.” At least, I will be.

“Are you sure?” She still has hold of my arm.

I nod and smile halfheartedly. “I really am.”

She narrows her eyes suspiciously and releases my arm before turning back to Tessa. “I’ll take it from here.”

“Call me the minute that reality sets in and she starts to have a breakdown.” Tessa gives Lauren her cell phone number. “I can get some medication to help her sleep.”

“I’m not going to have a breakdown and I don’t need any medication.” I cross my arms over my chest.

Tessa and Lauren look at each other like I’m in complete denial about what just happened. I know what happened, I was there. I also know what happened half an hour before Ethan said those hurtful words out loud.

Tessa gives me a hug and holds me for a few seconds longer than she needs to. “We’ll get them out of the apartment tomorrow. I’ll arrange a police officer to accompany us so it doesn’t get messy. I’ll see you in the morning.”

“I’m fine,” I say again.

~

Lauren shuts the door behind us and I walk over and look out the window, watching as Tessa’s car disappears up the darkened street. “Thank god she’s gone. She was starting to drive me crazy.” I turn back to Lauren. “It isn’t as bad as she said it was.”

“Then you are going to have to talk fast to convince me, because I’m on Tessa’s side.” She shakes her head and sighs loudly. “I knew you should never have got involved with him. He’s trouble.”

I take a deep breath. “You don’t understand, he only said those things to get me out of the apartment. He didn’t want me to be involved and get hurt.”

“Involved in what? What is he up to?” I know she doesn’t understand. Part of me doesn’t either, but I have to trust him. What else do I have?

I decide there is no point in lying to Lauren so I sit down on the couch and pat the seat next to me. She sits down and I proceed to tell her everything I know, which admittedly isn’t much. After I’ve let the situation sink in I add, “Do you still have access to police records?”

“You want to look up Lili or Ethan?” She tips her head to the side to challenge me. “Because I’d be happy to show you what a bad guy he is.”

I shake my head. “You know who I want to find out about.”

She purses her lips tight. “You better be 100% sure about him, or else you are making a huge mistake.”

“I don’t know if I am, but what choice to I have?”

“You have the choice to run as far away as you can. You can end this now and stop him hurting you anymore.”

“But he’s not hurting me. Don’t you see?”

She looks at me with pity in her eyes and shakes her head. “No, Sarah, I don’t see. All I see is someone you’re infatuated with is now showing his true colors. You aren’t thinking straight.”

“Then let me show you. Let me prove that Lili is the bad person here. I want to look up her records and not just on Google like before, but her actual police records.”

I can tell Lauren doesn’t want to do this but she agrees anyway. “Fine. I can access the police records on my boss’s computer.” She walks over to a drawer and opens it, pulling out a shiny silver key which dangles on her finger. “I still have access to his office,” she says, grinning.

I return the smile. “Oh, you’re bad.”

She shrugs. “You have no idea.”