Scattered Thoughts (Betrayed by Love Book 1) (17 page)

Tears filled my eyes as I considered the gravity of the situation. Alec pulled me into his arms. “Don’t cry, baby. We’ll figure it out.”

Wrapping my arms around him, I buried my face in his chest, all my built up emotion exploding in the form of a steady stream of tears. “What about Drew and Anna?” I cried. “What if this psycho tries to hurt one of them?”

“Drew and Anna are safe. They’re staying at the Wyndham Garden. Frank is with them.” His reassurance didn’t make me feel that much better. Frank had been at my house when I’d been attacked. How could I be sure he could protect them?

I squeezed him tighter. “Why are you doing this?” I cried.

“Shhh,” Alec whispered in my ear. “Don’t cry, baby. I don’t like it when you cry.” He kissed me softly on the forehead. “I’ve told you, Isabella. I just want you to be safe. And when you’re with me I know you’re safe.”

What was he saying? Was he planning on staying at the hotel too? Was he going to finally let me travel with him for work like he’d said when I started this contract?

Drugs from the attack still lingered in my system. Add that to the  emotional  breakdown  I’d  just  had  and I was more than exhausted. “It’s late. You should go.”

“I’m not leaving you, Isabella.”

“Alec, please. We both need sleep.” I reached up and touched his cheek. “I’ll be okay here.”

Reluctantly, he finally agreed. “Okay, I’ll go but I’m coming back first thing in the morning.”

“I’ll see ya in the morning then.” Truthfully, I didn’t really want him to go but it wasn’t fair of me to ask him to stay. We weren’t even seriously involved and already Alec had done more for me than I would’ve expected even if we had been.

He kissed me goodnight then turned out the light on his way out the door. I turned on the hospital’s ambient relaxation channel, and closed my eyes, letting the soft sounds of the ocean lull me to sleep.

Light flooded the room when I woke the next morning. The air was filled with the sweet smell of flowers. Everywhere I looked there were flowers, vase after vase overflowing with tulips, and orchids, and lilies, all in an array of amazing colors. My drab hospital room had been transformed into a beautiful garden. A smile crossed my face. “Alec,” I whispered, knowing it could only be him.

My legs were stronger this morning and I made my way to the bathroom with ease. The shower was calling my name but I wasn’t sure how I’d manage with an IV in each arm so I settled on washing up in the sink again. The bruise on the side of my face had spread even bigger but at least it’d started to heal, the dark shades of purple fading to hideous shades of blue and yellow, and the scab wasn’t nearly as big as I’d thought it be given the amount of blood. “It’ll heal,” I said out loud, doing my best to reassure myself that it was only temporary.

I brushed my teeth then hurried out of the bathroom and away from the mirror. As I stepped back into my room, my own private garden, I was reminded of the garden Alec and I toured onboard the Fantasy the day we met. Closing my eyes, I thought back to that day. The electricity between us so strong neither had been able to stay away.

The door swung open and my smile quickly disappeared. “Who sent you these?” Spencer snapped, his voice dripping with disdain as he motioned around the room.

“Does it matter?” I snapped back, my icy tone mirroring his. “Izzy, wait. I didn’t come here to fight.”

“Then why are you here, Spencer?”

He moved to the edge of the bed, lifting my hand in his. “I came to check on you, to make sure you’re okay.” I pulled my hand away. “I know you’re mad at me, and you may never forgive me, but I still love you. I’ll always love you.” I looked away. I wasn’t ready to talk about this with him. “Izzy, please, look at me, talk to me.”

“Seriously, Spencer? I was drugged, and attacked. And to top that off you decided the best time to tell me about your affair was while I was lying in a hospital bed.” Adrenaline rushed through my veins. “It was bad enough knowing you cheated on me. But you didn’t just cheat, Spencer. You had an ongoing, intimate relationship with another woman. And I don’t want to talk about this with you right now.”

“Damn it, Bella, I said I was sorry.”

“Sorry!” I shouted, my emotions boiling over. “Sorry doesn’t begin to cut it, Spencer. I said I don’t want to talk about this. Now please, just go.”

“Izzy,” he said; the tone in his voice desperate now. “Please, I need you to forgive me.”

“She said not now, Mr. James.”

Spencer spun around. “Well, well, well, if it isn’t Alec Payne.” He turned back toward me. “Now it makes perfect sense; that picture, the cruise, Drew and Anna’s security detail. And you’re mad at me? Isn’t that the pot calling the kettle black, Bella?”

“Not even close,” I screamed, all my anger exploding. How dare he accuse me of adultery? “I NEVER cheated on you, Spencer!”

Alec stepped between us, effectively blocking my view of Spencer. “It’s time for you to go, Mr. James.”

Spencer stormed toward the door, throwing his arms in the air. “Fine.” He turned to look at me once more. “But at least I’m honest about what I’ve done, Izzy.” With that he slammed the door behind him.

I covered my face with my hands, embarrassed by what just happened; even more embarrassed that Alec was there to witness it. “Alec, I’m sorry.”

He pulled my hands away from my face. “You don’t need to apologize for him. He’s an asshole for putting you through that.” He stroked my cheek. “Besides, I’m the one who’s sorry. I knew I shouldn’t have left you here alone.” Leaning closer to me, Alec kissed me gently on the lips.

“Good morning, Ms. James, Mr. Payne,” Detective Rux called out as he strolled through the door.

“Detective,” Alec sighed. “Do you have any news?”

“We pulled a partial print from the alarm keypad. We’re running it through our database now.” He opened his notebook and looked right at me. “It says in my notes that you kept a journal.”

“That’s right.”

“We’ve searched your house from top to bottom but I’m afraid we didn’t find it.”

“What do you mean? It’s right next to my bed.”

“We searched everywhere, ma’am,” he said, his tone all business. “It’s possible your attacker took it. I’ll need you to go through the house to see if anything else is missing.” The realization that some creep could be reading my private thoughts, even if they were all scattered, made me feel sick. I nodded my head, afraid I might throw up if I tried to speak now. “We’ve finished collecting evidence so you’re free to return home anytime. I recommend rekeying all the locks and changing the alarm code though.” I nodded once more.

“The department has also increased patrols in your neighborhood and I want you to call if you see anything suspicious.” He closed his notebook. “I don’t want to scare you, Ms. James, but you need to accept that this wasn’t a random act. This perp chose to come after you and there’s a real possibility he’ll come back.”

“Thank you, Detective,” Alec said, looking right at me, a smirk on his face. “I was just telling Ms. James last night how unsafe it was to stay at that house until you figured out who was behind the attacks.”

“I’m not telling you what to do, Ms. James, but if you have another place to stay I’d seriously consider it.” He made a move toward the door. “I’ll be in touch when we get results back from the crime lab. In the meantime let me know if you notice anything missing.”

“Okay,” I managed to say, my voice a whisper. The door closed and just like that he was gone. I pulled a pillow over my face and screamed. My life was spinning out of control and I felt completely powerless to stop it. Alec sat down beside me and pulled me into his arms, neither of us saying anything.

When the door opened again it was Nina who walked in. This time she was carrying a stack of papers. “Are you ready to get out of here?”

“Dr. Leonard is releasing her already?”

“Her labs look good today. Both Dr. Leonard and Dr. Jensen think she’ll be okay at home.” Alec’s jaw tightened but he didn’t say anything else. Nina handed me the stack of papers she was holding. “These are your discharge instructions. You’ll need to limit your activity and get plenty of rest for the next couple of weeks. Dr. Leonard is also recommending you to take at least two weeks off work, preferably three.”

“Yeah right,” I laughed. “I’ve already taken too much time off.”

“You hit your head so hard you blacked out, Ms. James. Your brain is bruised. It’s important for you to get plenty of rest and limit stress so your body can heal.”

“Are you sure it’s safe for her to leave?”

“She’ll be fine,” Nina said, “as long as she follows doctor’s orders that is.” I rolled my eyes at the tone in her voice. And when I turned my attention back to the two of them Alec was staring at me, his head tilted to one side, every muscle in his jaw tightened.  I wondered what is was about him and eye rolling but this certainly wasn’t the time to ask. Nervously I bit my bottom lip and his expression softened.

“I’ll see that she does,” Alec said without taking his eyes off me. Great, that’s just what I needed, Mr. Control Freak watching my every move, armed with a whole new list of things I shouldn’t be doing.

Nina removed my IVs and put my fractured arm in a removable splint. I’d started to object but decided it was better than that ridiculous cast I’d been wearing. She went through the rest of the instructions then left me to get changed. Carrying the bag Anna packed for me into the bathroom, I hopped into the shower.

Alec took the bag from my hand when I emerged from the bathroom and escorted me into the hall where the hospital transporter was waiting with a wheelchair.

“I can walk,” I protested.

“Hospital policy, ma’am.”

I opened my mouth to object but Alec stepped in front of me. “Sit down, Isabella,” he said. I groaned in protest but did as he’d ordered knowing that arguing with him would only slow the process.

When we made it outside, Alec helped me into the car then slid in next to me. “The Wyndham, Preston,” he said. I leaned back against the cool leather seat, thankful to be leaving the hospital, even if it meant staying at a hotel.

The suite at the Wyndam Garden was bigger than I had expected. Complete with a large sitting area and a balcony that overlooked the Gulf, plus three bedrooms, each with its own bathroom, and a master suite almost as big as my room at home, but after two weeks it felt as though the walls were closing in around me.

Spencer went back to the house as soon as he heard it had been cleared. He said he couldn’t handle sleeping in the same hotel where Alec and I were staying. And honestly, I was glad he’d left. Dealing with him was the last thing I needed.

Drew and Anna stayed with me at the hotel for the first week but had gone home now too. Spencer changed the locks, and the security code, and managed to convince them both they’d be safe, that it was me who was in danger and not them. The novelty of the hotel had worn off fairly quickly for them and they were both set on going home. I couldn’t blame them. Hell, I’d have gone home if I’d thought I’d be safe.

Only four miles separated me from my kids but it might as well have been a thousand. I’d barely seen them this past week, and when I was fortunate enough to spend time with them it was only one at a time. It felt like ages since we’d hung out as a family. I missed our time together; all those simple moments I’d taken for granted, breakfast, dinner, bedtime. I knew the day would come when they’d be living away from me, but I wasn’t ready for it so soon.

Alec left for Houston yesterday. I’d begged him to let me come. “Please, Alec, I need to work,” I’d said. “I’m going crazy here doing nothing.” He wasn’t having it though. Nothing I said was going to change his mind. Damn Dr. Leonard and her overly cautious discharge instructions. If she hadn’t recommended I take a few weeks off work then I’d be in Houston too instead of being stuck inside a hotel. “You
are
doing something, Isabella,” Alec had said. “You’re resting so your body can heal. And I expect you to continuing resting while I’m gone.” What he hadn’t understood was I was too restless to actually rest.

Unfortunately, Alec had repeated his orders to Frank before he left for Houston and Frank followed me wherever I went. I couldn’t even open the door without him knowing about it. I needed a break from him, a break from all of this.

“Ahhhh!” I shouted at the top of my lungs.

Almost instantly there was a knock at the door. I jumped up off the couch and stormed to the door. “I’m fine, Frank,” I shouted through the thick wooden barrier.

Another knock followed. “Mom, it’s me,” a muffled voice said.

I swung open the door. “Anna!”

“Mom,” she said, wrapping her arms around me. “Are you okay? I heard you yelling.”

Frank poked his head around the corner. “Nice to see you again, Miss Anna.”

Anna let go of me. “Hi Frank,” she said with a big wave. Grabbing her hand, I pulled her inside my room. It had been two days since I’d seen my daughter and I had no plans of sharing our time with Frank.

“I’m glad you’re here. I’ve missed you so much.”

“I’ve missed you too, mom.”

“Is Drew with you?” Anna shook her head. “Dad?” She   shook her head again. “Then how’d you get here?”

Anna opened her purse and pulled out her wallet. “I drove,” she said flashing her new driver’s license in front of my face.

“You got your license! Oh, Anna, I’m so proud of you.” I pulled her into a tight hug. “When did you get it?”

“Today. I drove straight here to tell you about it.”

“Whose car are you driving?” I asked cautiously, hoping she wasn’t driving my E350. Surely, Spencer wouldn’t let her drive my car, at least not the first day she got her license, would he?

“Mine!” she squealed.

I tilted my head to one side, surprised by her answer. “Yours?”

“Oh, mom, stop acting like you don’t know Alec bought me a car.”

“What do you mean Alec bought you a car? When?”

“It came today. Did you really not know about it?” I shook my head, not trusting myself to speak. “I’m sorry. I assumed you knew. Are you mad? Please don’t be mad. Please say I can keep it.”

Control freak
, my inner voice snapped. There was no way she could accept a gift like that from him. She was
my
daughter. It wasn’t right for Alec to buy her a car. But how was I supposed to say no after he’d already given it to her?

Spencer couldn’t be happy about this either. Maybe he’d be the one to tell her we had to give it back. “Did dad say you could keep the car?”

“Yeah, he helped me pick it out.”

That was a surprise. I certainly hadn’t expected the two of them to become chummy, not with the way Spencer had reacted when he saw Alec in my hospital room. “You guys went car shopping together?”

“No,” Anna laughed. “Alec had some brochures sent over and told me to pick the one I wanted, and I asked dad to help.”

Was I the only one who thought this was a bad idea?
I took a deep breath to calm my nerves, not wanting to put a damper on her excitement.

“What kind of car did you get?” I finally asked, doing my best to hide my frustration with Mr. Control Freak.

Her face lit up. “I don’t know, a Volvo something.” She waved her hands in the air. “It’s the coolest blue. You have to come see it.” Before I could object Anna grabbed my hand and pulled me into the hall.

We made it all the way to the elevator before Frank caught up to us. Damn Frank. I’d swear he had supersonic hearing. Every time I opened my door he seemed to know it. Despite my objections he followed us into the elevator. Anna could hardly stand still she was so excited. And when the elevator doors opened she grabbed my hand once again, pulling me toward a row of cars, stopping in front of a brand new Caspian blue Volvo S60.

“Isn’t the color amazing?”

“It’s awesome, sweetie,” I said with a forced smile. All the while wondering who in their right mind would buy a teenager a
brand new
car. It was bad enough knowing Alec had gone behind my back and gotten her one, but finding out the car was brand new made it that much worse.

“Get in. I’ll take you for a drive.”

“I don’t think Mr. Payne would like that, ma’am,” Frank offered.

Well, too bad! If he hadn’t wanted me to take a ride with her then  he  shouldn’t  have  bought  her  the  damn  car.  I opened the passenger door. “I’d love to go for a ride, Anna.”

“Ms. James—”

“Frank,” I interrupted before he could say anything more.  “I appreciate your concern here, but I’m going for a ride with my daughter, alone. Now, if you’ll excuse me.” I pulled on the door, encouraging him to move out of the way.

Reluctantly, Frank stepped aside. “Please drive careful, Miss Anna,” he said nervously.

Anna climbed in behind the wheel then shifted into reverse. “Don’t worry, Frank. I will.”

She drove east on Santa Rosa Boulevard then sped off in the direction of the Miracle Strip Highway. “You have to see how this thing handles,” she said excitedly. “With these sport seats you won’t even know we’re going sixty.”

Nervously, I bit my lip. Suddenly the thought of barreling down the highway at sixty miles per hour didn’t seem like the smartest thing for me to be doing. It wasn’t like Anna didn’t know how to drive, I mean, she’d gotten her permit when she was fifteen and she had logged hundreds of hours behind the wheel these past three years, but Dr. Leonard warned even the smallest head injury could cause permanent damage until the bruise on my brain had completely healed.

Anna merged into traffic then mashed down on the accelerator, propelling me back against the seat. It was too late for second thoughts now. Gripping the door handle, I squeezed my eyes tightly shut.

Within minutes of our drive my phone started to ring. I fished it out of my pocket to silence the ringer, and to see who was calling. “Alec,” I sighed when I saw the screen. I wanted to answer the call; to tell him exactly how I felt about the gift he’d bought Anna, but it wasn’t the right time for that. I sent the call to voicemail instead.

“Mom! Why’d you do that?”

“I didn’t want to distract you while you’re driving,” I said quickly, her question surprising me. It wasn’t that long ago that she’d gotten so mad she stopped talking to me, all because of a completely innocent lunch where Alec just happened to show up. And now she was scolding me for not answering his call?

“You could have at least answered and told him that,” she snapped. “You know how much he worries about you.” I shook my head, unsure of what was happening.

Anna’s phone rang before I could answer her. “Hi, Alec, you’re on speaker.”

“Anna, where are you? Is everything okay?”

“Everything’s fine,” I said, doing my best to hide the irritation in my voice. “We’re just taking a drive in Anna’s new car.”
The car he bought without your knowledge or permission
, my inner voice snapped.

“Why isn’t Frank with you?”

“We’re just taking a short drive, Alec. There was no reason for him to come.”

“We can debate that later.” Yeah, he had one thing right, we would definitely be debating later, just not about whether Frank needed to ride with us. I wanted to lash out at Alec, to tell him exactly how I felt about him buying the car in the first place, but that was a conversation I’d have with him later, when Anna wasn’t in ear shot.

“Alec, Anna’s a new driver. Can we talk later?”

“Fair point as usual, baby. Call me when you get to wherever it is you’re going. We’ll talk then.”

“She will,” Anna said, jumping into the conversation.

“Drive safe, Anna. You call me later too.”

“Yes, sir. I will.” With that she disconnected the call.

My mouth dropped open. Had she just called him ‘sir’? “That’s quite a turn-around in your attitude toward Alec. I hope it doesn’t have anything to do with your new car.”

“Of course it doesn’t,” Anna snapped. “I can’t believe you’d even say that.” She glanced over at me, her eyes narrowed. “I mean, sure, I didn’t like him at first but that was only because I thought the two of you were having an affair. When I found out that wasn’t true, I stopped being mad at him. And when I stopped being mad I realized he’s a pretty great guy.”

“I told you from the beginning we weren’t having an affair.”

“I know but, no offense, I didn’t believe you. Not until Drew pointed out you didn’t even meet Alec until after you and dad filed for divorce.” I wondered how Drew knew when Alec and I met, and what else he knew for that matter. I said a silent prayer that he didn’t know about Spencer’s affair, and especially not about the pictures.

“Well, what makes him so great?” I asked. Distraction deployed. Anna rolled her eyes as she looked over at me. “Are you blind, Mom? There’s nothing that man wouldn’t do for you. He’s gone out of his way to keep you safe, to keep us all safe. Can’t you see he’s completely fallen for you?”

“He hasn’t fallen for me, Anna.”

“Keep telling yourself that,” she laughed. “But it won’t make it true.”

Sitting back in the seat, I stared silently out the window, wondering. Had Alec fallen for me? Was it even me he wanted or was it control he was after? I hadn’t hopped into bed with him on our first date, willingly given him whatever he’d wanted like so many women had probably done. Was he out to prove he could have whatever, and whoever, he wanted?

Anna moved from lane to lane on the scenic highway, showing off her new found skill. “Driving is a lot more fun than I thought it’d be,” she said, finally breaking the awkward silence that had fallen between us. “Don’t tell Drew, but he was right. I should’ve gotten my license sooner.”

We both laughed at the thought of her keeping a secret from her brother. It was something she’d never been able to do for very long. And she was right too. Drew would never let her live this down. He’d told her hundreds of times how much fun driving was.

Anna pulled into the parking lot of the Sandestin and turned the car around. “We better head back. The Senior Activities Committee is meeting tonight to finalize the plans for our class trip.”

Great, something else I’d missed. “Class trip?”

Anna reached over and squeezed my hand. “I’m sorry, mom. With all the chaos lately I forgot to tell you. We’re going to the Bahamas! And it’s going to be amazing; no parents, no school, no responsibilities, just five straight days of all-inclusive fun.”

“Who’s going? When do you leave?”

“We leave the day after graduation. Final reservations are due tonight. That’s what the meeting is for.”

“How much is this going to cost?”

“Nothing, it’s completely free.”

“Free?”

“Yeah, it was a gift to the senior class.”

“Who’s the benefactor?”

“Seriously, do you really not know the answer to that question?”

Closing my eyes, I gritted my teeth.
Alec!
I screamed to myself, my patience with him wearing dangerously thin. First the car. Now a trip for the entire senior class. Did he not understand boundaries?

Anna pulled under the portico at the main entrance to the Wyndam Garden and I hopped out. “Thanks for the ride, sweetie. I love your new car.”