Relentless Hope (Resilient Hearts) (10 page)

I nod my head.

“Yea, right. Well, if that’s all you want to take with you, that’s fine. You won’t ever see the inside of this place again, but if you want to leave your stuff here, that’s okay by me.”

“That’s all I want to take,” I reply, avoiding his eyes.

“Fine. Let’s go then,” he says, pointing to the direction of the staircase and leading the way. I try to take small steps and walk slowly behind him. Once we reach downstairs, he waits for me to catch up. As we get closer to the front door, I walk slower trying to think of a way to stall. This agitates him and before I have a chance to come up with a stall tactic, he puts his hand behind my back, opens the door and pushes me out and right into a wall of muscles. Two strong arms go around my back trying to steady me. I look up and gaze into striking emerald eyes.

“Whoa. You okay?” Aiden asks. I just stand there staring into his eyes, overwhelmed by flood of emotions from everything that has happened today and unable to form any words. And for a split second, I do feel okay. I feel strangely safe in his arms. As if I’ve found my home. I inhale a faint scent of his cologne and bask in the feeling, but the fleeting sense of comfort doesn’t last long. Aiden pulls his arms off and takes a step back to take a look at me.

“What is going on here?” he asks, looking from me to Tom and back. “Why are you carrying a bag?” And why were you pushing her out like that?” He asks Tom and me in succession.

“Because she’s leaving. That’s why,” Tom responds in a clipped tone.

“What do you mean she’s leaving? She’s Grandpa’s caregiver. The best one we can find anywhere. Why would she leave?” Aiden asks Tom.

“I’m taking Dad to a care facility. They can give him better medical care there. Plus we don’t need a teenage gold-digger lurking around the house when the old man does not have his wits about him anymore.”

One of Aiden’s arms automatically goes around my back in a protective manner at Tom’s words, the gesture giving me butterflies.

“There’s no need for name calling Tom, and I think Grandpa would hate a care facility.”

Before Tom has a chance to respond, his phone rings and he steps away for a second to talk. Aiden turns his head back to me. “I’m sorry about him… Are you okay?” he asks, his voice laced with concern. Tom doesn’t give me a chance to respond, as he quickly comes back.

“I’m getting called into an emergency meeting. I’ll be back in less than an hour, and I
better
not see
you
or your car here when I get back. Understood?” he directs at me.

I just nod my head. Of course, I have no intention of not being here when he comes back, but I’m hoping by then, he won’t be allowed in.

As soon as he’s gone, I release a tense breath I had been holding. Aiden turns around to face me. “Wow. I can only imagine how that must have gone down. I’m sorry you had to go through that, but I thought I warned you about him. Why didn’t you stay away?”

“I wanted to, but then I heard him shouting at your grandpa and heard your grandpa’s pleading voice with him, and I couldn’t stay away. David sounded like he needed help.”

He takes a deep breath. “You should’ve stayed away. What are you going to do now?”

I hesitate for a moment, not knowing if I can trust him, but I decide to go with my gut. “I called Lou. He’s on his way. He said Tom has no authority to make decisions for David.”

“That’s good. It was smart to call Lou. Let’s go inside and wait for him then.” He puts his hand in the small of back, gently steering me inside, and the feel of his hand on my back has tingles running up and down my spine.

We haven’t taken more than two steps inside the house, when we see Maria rushing down the stairs in tears.

“Aleah–I’m so glad you’re still here. David…David,” she manages to say in between sobs, while pointing upstairs.

“David what, Maria? What happened?” Aiden asks.

“David…he collapsed in his room…his heart.”

Before she has a chance to say anything else, I’m tearing up the stairs two steps at a time.

David’s lying in the middle of the floor in his room, the nurse actively giving him CPR. I kneel down next to him and hold his lifeless hand in mine, tears running down my face. Aiden kneels next to me, gently asking the nurse, “What happened?”

“He had a huge argument with Tom. After he left, he was worried about Aleah. Said something to the effect of having to go check on her to see what Tom is doing to her. He got up, but hadn’t taken more than two steps when he held his chest and collapsed on the floor,” the nurse responds.

My broken heart shatters into a million tiny pieces at her words. I can’t believe that David worried about me, and was on his way to come check up on me when his heart gave out. My stream of tears turns into small sobs as I struggle to keep my emotions under control.

Aiden puts his arms around me trying to comfort me and I rest my head on his chest while I sob.

Within a few minutes, EMS personnel storm the room and take over. They try to resuscitate David for a few minutes, but after a few failed attempts, bring out a stretcher to take him to the waiting ambulance. We follow them downstairs somberly, running into Lou as we exit the door.

Lou tells us he will go with David to the hospital, asking me to stay here at the house.

“I’m not staying here.” I respond immediately.

“I don’t think she should stay here by herself. My uncle will be coming back here soon and he won’t be happy to see her here,” Aiden chimes in.

“I can’t stay back here not knowing what’s happening to David, and I really don’t want to deal with Tom right now,” I add.

Lou releases a deep sigh. “Okay, but we have to be mindful of your brother too. Don’t leave here by yourself.” He turns to Aiden asking, “Can you go with her?”

Aiden turns his questioning eyes to me with a raised eyebrow, but nods his head.

“Don’t take your eyes off of her,” Lou warns Aiden, before whirling around and rushing to the ambulance.

Aiden tugs on my arm, when the ambulance leaves, pointing towards his car. I take a look at the fancy red sports car and my stomach coils. For some reason, the thought of sitting in Aiden’s car is too nerve-racking to me right now. With all the emotions running through my body, I can’t deal with the intensity of being around Aiden. I need a moment to get myself together and catch my breath before I get to the hospital.

“Actually, I’d like to bring my own car, in case I need to go somewhere after the hospital or need to leave early.”

Aiden hesitates for a moment, but then nods his head. “Okay. I’ll follow you in my car then.”

The drive to the hospital is a blur. There are so many things running through my mind that I don’t even know how I make it there safely. I remember at one point during the drive that I should be paying extra attention to my surroundings, making sure no one is following me, but my mind is so convoluted that the thought quickly drifts away. Once we arrive there, I park at the first available parking spot and just sit in the car for a moment, trying to mentally prepare myself for what may await me at the hospital. Aiden walks to my car, opening the door.

“I think you should stay here for a minute until I go in and figure out what’s going on. Tom may have heard and may already be here. Plus, a couple of other people from my family could already be inside. You don’t need to deal with more drama today, so just stay here till I gauge the situation and come back. I’ll be back quickly.”

The thought crosses my mind that I shouldn’t stay here in the parking lot by myself, but I dismiss it quickly. What are the chances that Shane was sitting outside David’s house waiting for me then successfully followed me to the hospital, and is now going to approach me in a public parking lot? Plus, I still need a minute to compose myself before walking inside, so I decide to agree.

After Aiden leaves, I cover my face with my hands and concentrate on my breathing. A few minutes later, I raise my head and stare right into angry black eyes. My heart drops immediately, every muscle in my body locking up.

Shane is standing a few feet away from my car, a smirk on his lips. Panic hits my belly like a fireball, the resultant shock paralyzing my limbs. When he sees the panicked look on my face, his smirk spreads.

He slowly pivots up to my car door, trying the door handle when he gets there. Thankfully, my car doors lock automatically when in idle, because in my frozen state, I don’t even have the wits about me to lock my door.

“Open the door Aleah,” he says, while yanking on the door, “open the damn door and step out.” I just stare at him. I know I should try to get away, to back up the car and drive away or at least call for help, but I’m so shocked and panic stricken that I sit there like an idiot and just stare at him. He keeps yelling and pulling on the door in anger. When he realizes that I’m not going to open the door, he lifts up his right hand holding a baseball bat to my window. But before I even have a chance to react, the baseball bat is being dragged away along with Shane’s hand. I stretch my neck in time to see Shane on the ground holding his nose, with Aiden standing over him.

“Who the hell are you? And what the fuck do you think you’re doing with a baseball bat at her window?” Aiden shouts, his face crimson red.

For a second, Shane looks ready to attack, but as soon as he notices Lou approaching him from one side and a hospital security guard, who must have noticed the scuffle, from the other side, he jumps up, running full speed to his car and putting his cowardice in full displaying. I guess it’s easy to target your defenseless little sister and act all tough, but be confronted with three grown men and all you show is the back of your head.

Within a couple of minutes, we see a Honda Accord peel off of the parking lot and speed away, and I finally release a breath I had been holding since I first saw Shane. Blood slowly starts to make its way back to some of my limbs.

I tilt my head back from the parking spot Shane just vacated to see Aiden standing at my door.

My face must still show the extent of my shock and distress, because as soon as his eyes fall on me, he pulls my car door open and kneels down next to me, grabbing my shaking hands in his.

“Are you Okay? Did he hurt you?” he asks in a rush.

I shake my head, still unable to form a coherent sentence.

“I’m so sorry I left you all alone here. You should have told me not to go. When Lou said not to leave you alone, I thought it was because he was worried about how you are handling all the drama of this morning with my grandpa. I didn’t realize you were in danger.”

He reaches up with one of his hands and tilts my chin up, breaking my gaze away from our touching hands directly into intense emerald eyes. “I’m so sorry I left. As soon as I got upstairs and Lou said I shouldn’t have left you alone, I ran back down here.
Thank God
, I made it back in time,” he whispers, releasing a deep sigh, and wrapping his arms around me in a tight hug.

I only hesitate for a second before lifting my arms up to return his embrace. Being in his strong arms has a strangely calming effect on my nerves. I feel secure and comfortable, and for a split second even content, forgetting about how I almost got physically attached by my brother, how the man I have come to care so much for is lying unconscious in a hospital bed, and how his son threw me out of the house. For that split second, I feel as if the world is as it should be and I am where I belong. Of course, delusions don’t last long, the feeling of contentment is fleeting, and before I know it Aiden is untangling his arms from around me and taking a step away to study my face. I feel the absence of his warmth immediately, sensing a shiver run up my spine.

“Are you sure you’re okay? You look really pale and you’re shivering? Let me give you my jacket,” he says, as he takes his jacket off to wrap it around me.

Lou steps in at this moment. “I think you need to go home and rest. You’ve had a hell of a day, and looks like you’re still in shock. Nick just got here. I’ll ask him to take you home. Tom’s been told about David, so he’ll be coming here, and not to the house, and both Maria and Nick are under strict orders to not open the door on anybody.”

I simply nod my head. I have no energy left to argue, and even though I want to be here for David, the idea of facing Tom or anybody else from David’s family is too daunting at the moment.

They keep David at the hospital for a week. He
had
a mild heart attack. On its own, the heart attack would have been manageable, but added to all of his other medical issues; it has left David in an extremely fragile state. The doctors recommended that he should either stay at the hospital longer or go to a long term care facility. Of course that’s what Tom wanted him to do, but David hates hospitals. He wants to stay at home as long as possible, and Lou, Nick and I have all agreed to abide by his wishes. So we made sure he’s back at home, as soon as possible.

After my encounter with Shane, we also now have twenty-four-seven security personnel present at the house who accompany me outside whenever I go somewhere. I feel ridiculous having a bodyguard follow me around, but the encounter with Shane has rattled me enough that I gladly take the bodyguard over the risk of running into Shane by myself again.

Two days after David comes back home, Lou asks to talk to me privately in David’s study. The look on his face when he asks this makes my stomach cramp up with nerves and my mind going in a million different directions. Lou has never asked to talk to me privately before. I wonder if this is about David’s health, or could it be that Shane’s been making trouble again without me knowing and he wants me to go to the police?

We walk into the study and he has me sitting in a chair across from him. I sense his uneasiness at what he’s about to say, this only exasperating my nervousness.

He takes a deep breath and begins. “Before I start, I want to say that I’m only suggesting this because I think it is in everybody’s best interest, but it is absolutely fine if you disagree with me. I don’t want you to feel uncomfortable around me or David after this conversation if you’re answer is no, okay?”

“You’re really making me nervousness Lou. Can you please just say what you are trying to say?”

He nods his head slowly, taking another deep breath. “I’ve taken care of your brother for now. He won’t be coming around the house anymore, and if he does he won’t be able to get past the gate, as we’ve installed cameras around the perimeter and the security guards are constantly checking everything… But you won’t be living here forever. No matter how difficult it may be to talk about this, we have to discuss what happens after David is gone... He is going to make sure you are financially secure after he passes. Based on that, you should be able to afford having your own security personnel, but I doubt you want to have a bodyguard shadow your every move indefinitely. I understand you are planning on going back to school in the fall, and I can only imagine how weird it might be to have a bodyguard walk around the campus with you. Your other options are to take self-defense classes, get a gun, or move far away from here, and maybe start over somewhere else with a new name and a new identity. But I have a feeling none of those options are ideal for you, correct?”

Ideal? None of those options are remotely palatable.

“You’re right. I’ve thought about that too, and I honestly don’t know what I should do.”

“I know. It’s an impossible position to be in. In addition to that, we have to think about what happens in a few weeks when David’s condition starts to get worse. Tom is probably going to show up again towards the end, and although he has no legal rights to keep you away from David, he could create a lot of drama. And from the discussion I had with him, I have a feeling he will. As long as David is home, I can have the security guards turn him away, but if we move David to a hospital, it would be hard to keep him away from David’s room. He’s a conniving manipulative man and for some reason he has it in his head to keep you away from David. He could come up with a story as to why your presence is harmful to David and try to get the courts involved. The way I see it, there’s only one way to guarantee he can’t keep you away and that’s if you’re close family.” Lou says the last part in a low voice while avoiding my eyes.

“I don’t understand. I’m not related to David. Are you suggesting David should adopt me?”

A hearty laugh escapes his mouth. “That would be one way to go about it, though I have to admit that idea didn’t cross my mind.” He pauses to take a breath before continuing. “Adoptions take time Aleah, particularly since you’re over eighteen and David doesn’t have much time left...my idea is for you to marry David.”

My jaw drops at those words. I must have heard that incorrectly. Did he just suggest I marry David?

“WHAT? You can’t be serious?”

“Hear me out before you say no. First, you should know this was my idea, not David’s. But I mentioned it to David yesterday and after I explained all of my reasoning, he agreed with me that it’s the best way to resolve both issues - your brother and Tom at the same time. My understanding is that your family is very conservative, and they really want you married. I had a private detective talk to some of your brothers’ friends. The PR says they really think that your behavior has hurt the family reputation and want to get you settled down. If you marry David, you would be living here officially as David’s wife, not just living in some guy’s house. That should resolve the majority of their issues with you. And after David passes away, you would be considered the widow of a well-respected, wealthy man. From what I’ve learned, I think that knowing you married such a rich man would actually make your family very happy. I doubt they would bother you after that. Plus, the Pierson name goes a long way in this town. It would be very helpful to you in general, in the future.”

When Lou sees the scorn on my face, he raises his hands before I have a chance to open my mouth. “Wait, let me finish first. I know you are going to say that you don’t want to marry a man because his family name might be beneficial to you in the future. But that’s not why I am suggesting you should marry him. That would be an added benefit, but the main reason is to help keep your family away from you and to ensure you can stay by David’s side till the end… Aleah – the only way to guarantee that Tom can’t interfere with your ability to stay by David’s side is if you’re his wife. You know how David’s family is. The few times they’ve come to visit him the past couple of months have been disastrous. Even if they do show up at the end, it probably wouldn’t be pleasant. David’s grown really close to you the past few months. He would want you by his side, especially at the end, and that is the only way to guarantee it could happen. I know this is a big deal. I understand this is probably not how you envisioned your wedding, but please think about it. Don’t say no without giving it some good thought. You don’t have to say anything now. In fact, I’ll leave right now, so you don’t say anything. Think it through. Take as long as you need, and just let me or David know when you’re ready.”

As I lie awake in my bed staring at the ceiling at the early hours
of
the morning, my mind is still reeling with questions from the earlier conversation with Lou. His suggestion has shaken me to my core, making me question everything.

During the period of my friendship with David, each time someone assumed there was something going on between us, I would cringe, getting frustrated at the judgmental attitudes of people who couldn’t imagine an older man having an innocent relationship with a young woman. Now, however, I wonder if it’s me who’s been naïve. Is it possible that David has had other ideas about me all this time? The thought has my stomach roiling in disgust.

After running these troubling thoughts through my head all night long, I decide that I have to confront him. I have to ask David first thing in the morning.

Upon walking into David’s room the next morning, seeing the
lines
of worry on his frail face makes some of my anger dissipate, but not enough to prevent me from asking the questions. I need answers.

“Good morning, David,” I say, in a serious tone. “Lou talked to me yesterday about your
idea
of marrying me, and I can’t get this out of my head ever since. I have to ask, at what point during our friendship did you start looking at me as more than a friend? More than a
grandchild
, as you’ve referred to me on multiple occasions, and wanting something different?” I ask, with a hard edge to my voice.

He cringes, his face going pale and his eyes displaying so much pain that it is as if my words have physically hurt him.

“I was worried you would see it that way...I told Lou too. I didn’t want to risk making you uncomfortable or worse, losing you, but he convinced me to let you hear it,” he starts, his voice laced with pain.

“You have to believe me Aleah, I don’t see you as anything but a beautiful strong young lady who has a heart o
f gold and is nice enough to adopt me as her grandfather during my last days on this earth. I have to be honest with you, if I had met you a couple of years ago, it is possible that I would look at you differently, even see you as a sexy piece of meat. I’m sorry if that makes you uncomfortable, but I want to be absolutely honest with. You should know that’s who I used to be, but the last year has opened my eyes and made me a changed man... It’s funny how staring death in the eye changes your perspective. I’m not that person anymore and that is not why I want to marry you. Lou told me about your brother and we’ve been having a couple of PI’s dig up things on him and your family. I don’t know how to tell you this…your brother seems to have some serious issues, the most obvious ones anger and substance abuse. I think he needs help. He should probably go to an in-residence facility. I’d like to offer to help to pay for it, but I doubt your family will take that very well. Lou and I went over all of our options. If we just approach your family with money, they would probably be offended, given that they view me as an older guy who’s taking advantage of their young daughter. We could make threats, but that wouldn’t help in the long term either. Besides, I think your parents really feel your actions have hurt the family reputation. As unfair and ridiculous as that may be, it is the way they think. When Lou first suggested that I should marry you, I felt the same way about the idea as you do now, but as he explained his reasoning and we went over all other options, I started to agree with him.”

He takes a few deep breaths, clearing his throat before he says what comes next. “You should know that what I have in mind is not a real marriage. I’m not capable of having any…any sexual activity anymore, but even if I was, I wouldn’t touch you in that way. I respect you too much, care about you way too much to ever do that. This would be a marriage in name and appearance only.”

Hearing him say that makes some of the uneasy feeling leave my stomach, finally allowing me to breathe a little easier.

“You should also know,” he continues, “that I plan to take care of you financially, regardless of whether you agree to this or not. I’m leaving you enough money to make sure you don’t have to worry about money anytime in the near future.”

“You don’t have to do that. I’m not here for money.”

“I know and that’s particularly why I’m giving you money. You’re too nice for your own good. You’ll need money when you go back to school and back to real life. I have no doubt that you can make it out there on your own with hard work and determination, but there’s no reason for it. I have more money than I know what to do with. And don’t worry, I won’t give you too much. Just enough to make sure you’re comfortable and financially secure, but not too much. Money tends to change and corrupt people, and I really don’t want you to change. Plus, if I give you too much, Tom and the rest of my greedy brood will no doubt come after you. There is no reason to subject you to that... I’m giving you a penthouse condo in one of my residential towers, a car of your choice, and a few million dollars in a diversified investment portfolio. Nothing that would put even a small dent in my pocket, but enough for you to be set for a while, at least until you’ve finished school.”

A few million dollars? That’s more than what I hoped to be able to make my whole life, and he’s saying that would be enough for me until I finish school. I can’t help the chuckle that escapes my mouth. “I think that would be more than enough for my whole life. I wouldn’t even know what to do with a few million dollars.”

“That’s why I’m having someone at my company manage it for you. I’m giving that to you outright, not as a part of my will. That way no one can dispute the will. Plus, if I don’t give you anything in my will, my family will leave you alone after I’m gone. If you do agree to the marriage, we’ll do the transaction before the wedding, making it legally clear that it had nothing to do with it.”