A Safe Place To Fall (The Fall Book 1) (24 page)

How could you misread the signs of a
girl begging you to get off of her?

“
I just thought you were trying to
make me work for it, or you liked it rough,” he told her,
running his hands through his spiky hair. “The next morning,
when I was sober, I realized what I had done.”

“
Why didn't you try to contact
her?” Drew spoke up, wrapping his arms around her shoulders and
pulling her closer.

“
I was afraid I would just freak
her out,” Shawn confessed. “Hell, we were kids, I didn't
know how to handle the situation.”

It was a weak apology, but oddly enough
Lana understood. Her brothers had done a lot of stupid stuff under
the influence of alcohol and lite drugs; not that her parents had
ever known about those activities. Granted, as far as she knew, her
brothers had never raped anyone.

“
I'm not saying I will ever be okay
with what you did,” Lana admitted, “but I'm adult enough
to forgive you. Hell, as bad as what you did was, it doesn't compare
to what Devin put me through.”

His eyes widened. “I'm so sorry I
didn't go into that room sooner. If I'd had any idea that was going
on, I would have put a stop to it myself.”

She shivered at the meaning of his words.
The thought of anyone killing someone on her behalf was just
chilling.

“
Thanks, I think.”

“
Well, I think I'm done here,”
Shawn said, standing up. “I want you to know, I am clean now.
If you ever need anything don't be afraid to call.”

It was a phone call Lana knew she would
never make.

Nobody made a comment until Shawn let
himself out the door.

“
I wonder how he feels about his
cousin being sent to the same ward his mother is in?” Drew
asked.

Lana allowed her head to fall back
against his shoulder. “I don't think he cares that much. He
practically admitted if he had discovered the truth about Devin
sooner, he would have killed him.”

“
How are you feeling right now?”

She shrugged her shoulders. “It's
time to move on.”

Truthfully, Lana wasn't sure what to
feel. Things seemed to be lining up too well after all of the drama
that had unfolded since she arrived in Morgantown. She couldn't
help, but to wait for the next foot to drop

All she knew for sure was she wanted Drew
by her side for whatever happened.

Epilogue

1
year later

“
Hurry
up,” Ricky shouted from the living room of his apartment.
“We're going to be late!”

Lana made one last inspection in the
mirror. It was a complete turn-around from last year. There was no
skin-tight, revealing black dress; instead, a red plaid long sleeved
shirt cinched at the waist with a belt and a long blue jean skirt sat
in its' place.

This was her style now that she and Drew
lived in his family's cabin. They had tried living in his old
apartment, but after a month of nightmares Drew decided they needed
to get away from the place that held all of the bad memories. The
cabin had been a place that represented safety for her; so, there had
been no choice of where they needed to live.

The location of the cabin was also great
for the band. The fallen Angels had gain popularity and had been
playing shows near Wheeling and small bars in surrounding areas. On
nights they played in Wheeling most of the band stayed with Drew and
Lana.

The cabin was also their favorite writing
spot. Lana couldn't blame them. The scenery was amazing. It was
well worth the commute for the bad, along with Drew and Lana to get
to class.

“
You
look hot,” Tracie said from the bed. “Now let's go
before the vein in Ricky's head explodes.”

The two women giggled as they walked out
the door.

Ricky was a control freak, even if he
tried to deny it. It was probably a good thing he was gay because
that controlling gene of his would drive a woman crazy. The friends
often butted heads when Mr. Controlling reared his head.

“
Finally,”
Ricky said in feigned irritation. “Let's get out of here.”

Lana watched him use his cane to assist
getting up from his chair and felt a moment of guilt. Her stalker
had done that to him. If she hadn't run away to the cabin, Ricky
would not have a permanent leg injury. It was a reminder of her dark
past every time she was near her friend.

Tracie put an arm through Lana's and
guided her through the door. “Don't let him see that look on
your face.”

“
It's
my fault,” Lana whispered back.

“
How
many times do I have to tell you nothing that happened last year was
your fault?”

Lana sighed. She knew Devin had made the
decision to stalk her and cause others pain along with her; but no
matter how many times she reminded herself of the facts, she couldn't
help still feeling responsible.

They both remained silent the rest of the
way to the car. The drive to the club was just as silent. Lana knew
she needed to lose the mood that had settled over her. Tonight was
about friends coming together to celebrate her.

Lana's jaws dropped when she walked
through the door of the back room of the club. Drew had out-done
himself. There was a country vibe in the room tonight. The tables
had wildflowers in vases as centerpieces with decorative country
themed table cloths. Over their heads, white Christmas lights had
been strung across the dark ceiling to make it appear they were under
a starry sky.

“
This
is amazing,” Lana breathed.

“
You
should have seen it last year,” Tracie stated offhandedly,
taking in the view.

A sad smile formed on Lana's lips at the
reminder of the birthday party that had never happened. Instead of
dancing the night away while her man and his band performed; she had
been rushed to the hospital with a gunshot wound.

Tonight was her do-over. She really
needed to shake this mood!

“
Happy
birthday, honey,” Drew said, dropping a kiss on her mouth. He
had walked up to her at some point when she was lost in the past.

“
This
is beautiful,” Lana complimented him with a small smile.

“
I
had a little help,” Drew stated simply.

“
A
little help,” Tammy huffed walking over to them. “Try a
lot of help!”

“
OK,
I had a lot of help,” Drew admitted with a glare at his sister.
“Happy now, sis?”

Tammy smiled. “You know it.”

Lana shook her head listening to the
siblings bicker back and forth. They always did this whenever they
got together. It made them sound like they couldn't stand each
other, but in reality the exact opposite was true. Tammy had
recently become the band's manager.

“
Where's
Chris?” Lana asked, searching the crowd for Drew's former
roommate.

“
He
already ran off with some girl,” Tammy replied with an eye
roll.

Lana had the distinct impression the
other girl's annoyance was covering up the fact that Chris' play boy
behavior hurt her. Feelings could grow stronger once two people
began living under the same roof. Only time would tell what was
meant to happen with them.

“
Hey,
Drew, you ready to play or what?” the lead singer of the band
called from the stage.

Drew sent a nod in the direction of the
stage. “I gotta hit the stage.” He dropped another kiss
on her mouth. “Save a dance for me.”

“
Always,”
she promised as he walked away from her.

***********************

Just breathe
,
Drew told himself as he prepared to move away from his drum set.

The band had been playing for the last
two hours. For the last two hours he had watched his girl dance with
different guys. A year ago she would have just stayed in a chair
watching him play. Most guys would get irritated over the change in
her behavior. Drew, however, felt confident enough in their
relationship. Instead, he viewed this change as being a sign that
she was no longer scared. She felt safe for the first time in a long
time, and he liked to think that he had something to do with that.

This is it
,
he told himself, as he approached the microphone.

Ryan patted his shoulder. “You got
this.”

Drew playfully shoved the lead singer
away towards the exit steps of the stage. “Go find someone
else to bug.”

“
You
know what? I think I will,” he said, scanning options in the
crowd.

Drew
shook his head as he watched his friend run down the steps.
Some
people will never change,
he
thought.

He took a deep breath and let it out
before speaking into the microphone. “Lana, can you come to
the stage, please?”

All eyes were on Lana as she made her way
slowly up to the stage from the table she'd been sitting at with her
two friends. This was it. In just a few moments, she would know he
planned to make her his forever.

When she stepped up beside him he took
her hand in his. From out of nowhere a lump formed in his throat.
This was his girl. How had he gotten lucky enough to find her?

He brought her hand up and brushed his
lips across her knuckles. Looking into those beautiful eyes, his
carefully planned speech escaped his head. Knowing he had to say
something he decided to wing it.

“
Honey,
you know I have loved you from practically day one,” he began.
He hoped no one could hear the shake in his voice.

“
That
love has only continued to grow over the past year,” he
continued.

Just get on with it already
,
said the little voice in his head.

He swallowed nervously and pulled out the
ring burning a hole in his pocket all evening, out.

Lana's eyes widened as she stared up at
him.

Drew was not the get-down-on-one-knee
type of guy; instead, he replaced her right hand with her left and
spoke the words he'd been rehearsing for the past two days. “Lana
Richards, will you marry me?”

Lana stared at him for a moment then a
smile broke out onto her beautiful face. “Yes! A thousand
times, yes!”

He stumbled backwards as she launched
herself into his arms.

***********************

Later that night Lana could not help but
stare at the diamond sparkling against the black dress shirt her man
was wearing. She had wondered all evening why Drew had dressed up
this much. Normally he only wore jeans and a t-shirt.

“
Are
you having fun?” Drew asked pulling her closer as their hips
moved in rhythm to the music.

“
It's
been the best night of my life,” she replied honestly.

She couldn't wait to start the rest of
her life with him by her side; she just wished her parents would be
around to watch her say 'I do'. Somethings couldn't be helped; her
parents were still mad she refused to go back home with them the
previous year.

The
future was uncertain. Who knew what would happen from day to day?
The only thing Lana was certain of was that Drew would always be her
safe place to fall.

********************************

Play List

These
songs and/or bands were mentioned in
A
Safe Place to Fall.

Far Away

performed
by:
Nickleback

Enter Sandman

performed
by:
Metallica

Mama I'm Coming Home

performed
by:
Ozzy
Osbourne

Lips Of An Angel

performed
by:
Hinder

Nightmares

performed
by:
Avenged
Sevenfold

Dude Look Like a Lady

performed
by:
Aerosmith

Acknowledgments

The idea of A Safe Place To Fall
came to me while I was laying in bed trying to go to sleep. Sleep
didn't end up happening that night; instead, I mapped out this new
idea I had just come up with. The next day I finished my outline and
began writing Lana and Drew's story. Due to unforeseen circumstances
their story had to be set aside for four to five months. In January
I picked right back off where I had left off, determined to move on
with my life. Half-way through this book I had a whole series mapped
out in my head.