Patch Up (33 page)

It’s difficult to breathe, like I have something heavy on my chest, but I know it’s just the shock after everything. I’m aware of what happened and what could have happened, but I’m not sure I realize completely. In a way, it’s like I’m looking through someone else’s eyes because I never thought something like this could happen to me. After all, every time we hear about a woman or teenager abducted or raped or both, we always think that it could never happen to us. But it can.

“Honey!”

I look at the door and meet my mother’s devastated eyes. She’s been crying for a long time; her eyes are so bloodshot and swollen. She tries to say something else, but only loud sobs escape her mouth.

My father walks in after her, a reassuring hand on her thin, shaky shoulder. He’s more composed, but it’s like he aged ten years. His wrinkles are more visible, his cheeks are not his usual healthy pink, and his greyish-blue eyes have a hard time focusing on my face.

I know what they’re seeing. I saw myself in a mirror half an hour ago after I insisted. A sweet, young nurse held a mirror in front of my beat up face and I had a hard time recognizing myself. I’m several shades of purple, blue, black, and even a hint of yellow. I’m not their Skye. I’m just a victim.

“We came as soon as possible,” my father says, his voice weirdly feeble, something I’ve never heard from him. Even when I told him the truth about Sean he didn’t look weak.

I nod and wince. God, even the slightest movement is painful despite the medication they gave me. “I know, and I’m glad to see you.” My voice is still raw from all the deafening screams that escaped me earlier.

My mother cries harder and snuggles into my father’s chest. His eyes fog up. They know why my voice sounds like this. An apology almost escapes my lips but I keep quiet. I don’t have to excuse myself for Sean’s craziness. I know it, and now I need to act like it.

“They told us that Sean didn’t ... that he didn’t have time to ... but ...” Hearing my father unable to finish a sentence is unsettling. He doesn’t look like a well-trained soldier; he just looks like a man facing one of his worst fears.

“He didn’t.” I take a deep breath and ignore the pain shooting from my ribs. “I still don’t know why the police acted so fast. They should have waited since I’m not a minor.”

My parents finally walk to my bed and both sit on one side, my mother’s sobs easing but she’s still clutching at my father’s arm. I smile at them and they both smile in return. We all know it’s a fake smile, but it’s good to try and it’s comforting, too.

“We all have to thank Duke.” My mother’s tiny voice rings out in the calm room. She straightens the cover over me with a shaky hand.

I frown and curse when it pulls at the three stiches just above my left eyebrow. It makes my dad smile and my mother purses her lips. Just these normal reactions at my cursing words make me feel better. “What did he do?”

“After he waited for you for almost an hour and you didn’t answer your phone, he called Kate and your other friend ... uh, Derek?” At my nod, my mother resumes her explanation. “When Duke realized no one knew where you were, he thought immediately about Sean. He went to the police but they didn’t want to do anything because you’re an adult.” My mother’s voice breaks and a new round of tears fall on her face. I can’t imagine how awful it was for them when they received a call to tell them that I was missing.

My father kisses the top of her head. “Then he told them about what Sean did to you and how he was still trying to approach you. When they still didn’t want to do anything, from what the officer told us he went ballistic.” Dad chuckles, but his eyes still look too sad for words. “Then he called the base and reached me. He was frantic and told me everything. I spoke to the officer and even pulled a few strings thanks to General Mason. Long story short, they hurried to look for you.”

I glance down at my right hand where my knuckles are enveloped in white gauze. “But how did they find me? We were in a deserted neighborhood,” I mumble more for myself than my parents.

My mother takes my injured hand in her shaky ones. Her fingers are cold. “A young dealer saw Sean taking you into the building. He hesitated to call the police but he finally did and with the description of the car, they knew it was Sean with you.”

I nod and laugh. Both my parents’ exchange a worried look and it makes me laugh louder. I shake my head and compose myself. I’m freaking them out. And I’m freaking myself out, too. “Sorry, but it’s just so ... crazy. And I’m so tired.”

“We understand, honey,” my mother says in a soothing voice. Hearing my mother talking to me like that makes it difficult to fight the tears threatening to pull me down. But I can’t. They have enough on their plate. “Sean’s parents are on their way, but we told them to stay away from you.”

“Is his mother still with him?”

My father nods, his expression darker. “You don’t have to worry about her. We will try to help her, but you don’t have to see her or think about it. You shouldn’t have to think about these people anymore.”

I shrug. “I’ll always think about it. It’s a part of me and ignoring it won’t make it easier.” It would be ridiculous on my part to ignore the awful images of Sean naked above me, touching me, replaying in my head. I have to deal with them, not ignore them. It’d be worse.

“We were so afraid, honey,” my father says, his eyes focused on the bed and not on me. He dries a tear falling from his eyes. “I never felt so afraid in my life.”

I take both their hands and squeeze. It’s the only thing I know I can do without waking the pain in my aching body. “You know I love you both, right?”

“We love you, too. You’re our baby girl,” my mother says between sobs, a small smile curving her lips.

My father brings my hand to his lips and kisses it softly, like he used to do when I was five and told me I was his princess. God, I love them so much. I missed them. I smile, but it feels bittersweet.

My parents both smile at me and walk to the door. Just as they leave, Duke bursts in. He doesn’t look happy to have to wait outside. I smile at his scowl that disappears as soon as his eyes land on me. Seriously, how could he look so happy to see me when I look like a human punching bag?

“That took a long time. I know they wanted to have some privacy with you, but it was too damn long,” he says, walking to my bed and sitting on the edge, his hip against mine.

Carefully, he brings a hand to my cheek and brushes my skin with his fingertips. I barely feel it but it’s good to feel his skin against mine. I wanted to see him so much when I was locked up in that building. No, I needed to see him.

“I think you saved my life,” I whisper, not wanting to hear the raw sound of my voice that makes everybody wince, even me.

He chuckles. “Maybe.” He shrugs and his eyes lose the happy light in them. They darken and this time I know it’s not because he’s thinking about Juliet. It’s because of me. “I could kill him, you know. I was never the violent type, even at my lowest. I drank too much, was overly reckless, and acted like a rebellious little shit, but I never fought. However, since you told me about this guy I’ve wanted to kill him.” His fists clench tight in his lap. “When I think of him touching you—”

“Hush, Duke.” I put my hands over his and force him to open them, entwining our fingers. “I’m fine.” I don’t want him to think about this. I don’t want him to be so disgusted that he won’t ever touch me again because Sean tainted me.

“You’re not fine, Skye.”

I cringe at his tone but I understand why he is so harsh. He’s still running high on his fear. “You’re right. I’m not, but I will be.” I shrug and lock my eyes with his. It’s hard to focus on something with my concussion and the raging headache, but I hold his gaze. “He’s out of my life and I’m building myself a new life, a future. I’ve got my parents, Kate, Derek, and you.” I exhale and hesitate. “I’ve got you, right?”

“You got me the day you snapped at me in the psychology class,” he says in a laugh that shakes my bed. I join in but it’s cut short when my cracked ribs bring tears to my eyes. “That’s why it was so hard to acknowledge how I feel.” He cups my cheeks in his big hands, careful to not touch my bruises. “Nothing is going to be easy for us. We still have issues to heal from. Life, which can be a real pain in the ass, but I want you. We don’t know how long we will last or even if it’s a mistake, but I love you and I don’t want to ignore how much you mean to me. I don’t want to waste another minute away from you. Not anymore. Not ever.” He takes a deep breath, his eyes scrutinizing my battered face. “Hearing you scream when I was outside that building and not being able to do anything, not being able to get to you, was the worst thing for me. It’ll haunt me.”

“I’m here now. We’ll fight together. That’s what I want.”

“Believe me, I’m not going to let you push me away again. I love you too much.”

“You know what?” I take a deep breath, a smile tugging at my split lower lip. “I think I love your stubbornness.”

He laughs and shakes his head. “Please tell me you love me and not just my stubbornness.”

I trace his well-defined mouth with my fingers. We can’t kiss because of my injuries and my beat up lower lip, but I need to feel his lips against my skin. I run my fingers past his delicious lips over his goatee and smile at the memory of it against the crook of my neck and on my face when he kisses me. “I think it was obvious the first time I found you at the cemetery,” I whisper with a bittersweet smile.

He sees it and because he gets me so well he knows what’s on my mind. “It’s still hard to have lost Juliet, but when I told you I’d never give us up it was the truth. You’re my future and I don’t love you any less than Juliet. With you everything feels different and more exhilarating. Juliet was my best friend, the girl I knew everything about; we knew where we were both heading. With you, it’s like I have a whole new life and I’m crazy about you. Never doubt that. Please, never doubt me.”

My heart is beating loudly in my chest. I never thought colliding with someone could change lives, but it is possible. I hit the bottom tonight, I experienced a true nightmare, but I know it’s over now. I don’t have to live with the fear of seeing Sean again. I can focus on this amazing guy, this guy strong enough to open up his heart all over again. He is strong enough to fall in love again and fall for a scared and broken girl like me. In turn, he saved my life time and time again. He even saved me from the shell I built for myself.

“Say it again.”

He smiles softly at me, his eyes never wavering from my bruised face. He bites once on his lower lip and softens it with the tip of his tongue. “I love you, Skye. You’re in my heart, in my head, under my skin. You’re my present and my future.”

I sigh and feel my eyes getting all watery. My emotions are all over the place, but my heart is warm. For the first time in a long time, I feel a new peace take hold of me. I don’t just feel safe, I feel peaceful, too. “I never thought it was possible to love someone so much that he can make you forget all the wrong things that happened.”

He comes closer, his soft breath fanning my face hot with pain and the explosion of all my feelings for him. “So, you really love me?”

Instead of saying anything, I bring his head to mine and kiss him. To hell with my injuries. I love this man. We’ve got time to patch up our lives now. Together.

Did you enjoy Skye and Duke’s story? Find more about them in the sequel coming soon.

Acknowledgements

With this novel I ‘met’ virtually amazing people who are book lovers just like me, and who believed in me and my story enough to work hard by my side to make it the best possible. Without you ladies, it wouldn’t be published. Thank you with all my heart.

First, thank you Wendy Shatwell. You’ve been FABULOUS! (I really love this word now). You read the worst draft ever known to man and enjoyed
Patch Up
like I never thought someone would have. Without your help, your emails and support, I don’t think I would have been able to go through with this story. You were the first one to tell me to write a sequel and a companion novel with Derek and Kate’s story. The sequel is written, but I’ll wait a little longer for Derek and Kate’s story. I hope you’ll be there to beta read it.

Then, I have to thank someone who told me that
Patch Up
is different from other New Adult novels out there and that it deserved to be published and read. Thank you Laura Carter. Your help, your comments and enthusiasm on Twitter are invaluable. Not only did you push me to dig deeper on some scenes, but knowing that my characters moved you was the best thing ever. I know you’re rooting for a novel with Kate and Derek’s story so I can already tell you that I’ll start writing it before the end of the year!

Maria Raycroft, thank you for your time, your comments, your ideas and your support. It means a lot that you enjoy my stories enough to beta read them all. I really hope that you’ll love my other ones because I’ve got many ideas and it’ll keep me busy for a while!

Stacie Drake, thank you for reading the last draft of
Patch Up
and for your support. It means a lot when someone is moved by my stories and
Patch Up
will probably be the one meaning the most to me. So, thank you for reading it, telling me how you loved it, and for enquiring when it’d be published. I hope you won’t be disappointed by the sequel.