Never to Keep (Accepting Fate #1) (15 page)

I started moving my hips again. I didn’t think being with him could feel any better, but I was wrong. Knowing he wanted me enough to bend his diehard rules made me crave him even more.

“I’ll agree to be nice and keep it a secret, but I can’t deal with this job. Please, tell me why you don’t get a job somewhere else.” I found it a little strange to have this conversation while he was still moving inside of me.

“Can’t this wait?” I sped up the pace of my hips. Trying my best to distract him because I needed time to remember my argument, and I wouldn’t be able to think clearly until I came.

“No, it can’t. I really need to know.”

“I need the money. We’re just barely getting by as it is.” I pulled off of his lap. “This job pays the most with the fewest hours. I’m all ears if you know of a better option.”

“What are you doing?”

“The mood has passed.” I reached for the condom only to realize there wasn’t one. His gaze followed my hand, and I watched as understanding filled his eyes.

“Shit. Isn’t there a rule about using condoms?”

“You didn’t exactly give me much of a chance to prepare, and it’s not like we haven’t done it without one before.” Not to mention the fact that we had both received clean bills of health from our doctors. There was only one test I’d asked them not to run. “Does it really matter now that you’re my boyfriend?” I couldn’t help but tease him about his fear of the word.

His erection quickly softened. He jumped from the chair and pulled up his pants. “Take the rest of the night off. I’ll see you later.”

I guess I pushed him a little too far.

Madison

“You okay, sweetie?” Lisa asked as she knelt next to me on the cold tile floor. I’d lost the contents of my stomach a while ago, and the dry heaves that followed were relentless. “Try to take a deep breath. Focus on breathing.” She pulled my hair away from my face and gently stroked my back.

I finally calmed down enough to get up from the nasty bathroom floor. “Thanks, I’d probably be praying to the porcelain gods the rest of the night if you hadn’t found me.” I flushed the toilet with my foot and stumbled out of the handicap stall. I braced myself on the counter to regain my balance.

“Are you coming down with something?” She pressed her wrist to my forehead.

“No, something’s just not sitting right in my stomach.” I had a suspicion as to what that might be, and it wasn’t something I’d eaten. I scrubbed my hands twice and then rinsed my mouth with questionable tap water. “I do have some news, though. Remember I told you I’d slept with Peyton’s teacher a couple of times?”

“Yeah,” she replied. Her glossy red lips turned up into a huge smile.

“He was my client tonight. Paid for my entire shift. He said he likes me and wants to be exclusive.”

“Oh my god! That’s so exciting! I had an all-nighter too, said he was waiting around for his brother and decided to pass the time with me. It wasn’t a chore, if you know what I mean.” She gave me a mischievous wink.

Lisa touched up her mascara while I tried to rinse the vomit out of my hair. “Are you feeling well enough to eat?” I nodded in response. “Let’s go collect from Bruce and get something in your stomach.” She saw my reluctance. “You’ve earned the right to splurge on crappy diner food.”

“Go on without me. There’s something I need to do before I head home.”

“Suit yourself.” She looked me over one last time. “See you next week.”

I waited until I was sure she was gone before I retrieved the small box from my locker and headed back to the disgusting ladies room. My fingers trembled violently as I opened the package and read the instructions. Three minutes later, my world came to a complete stop.

*

“I didn’t think you were ever going to leave.”

The all too familiar voice made me jump. I’d been so wrapped up in my thoughts I hadn’t realized I wasn’t alone. My hand rested on top of my racing heart. “You startled me. What are you doing out here?”

His wiry frame emerged from the shadows as he sauntered closer. “I didn’t get what I wanted earlier.” The hollowness in his eyes sent my defenses on high alert. Lisa had left over an hour ago. I was completely alone with him in a dark area of the parking lot in the middle of the night.

I took a few slow steps toward my car. “I’ve had about all I can take tonight. You of all people should know that. How about next week?” My voice was as light as I could make it. Pissing him off wouldn’t improve my chances of getting away.

“No. I need it now.”

“Please, let me go home. I’m really tired.” I remembered that I had pepper spray in my purse. I had barely moved the zipper an inch when the loud crack of bone against bone echoed through the deserted area. Sharp pain radiated through my skull. I fell to my knees, clutching my cheek. An angry hand tangled in my hair. My scalp burned as he violently yanked my head to where he wanted it.

“Open wide, bitch.”

I tasted blood when I squeezed my lips together and clamped them shut with my teeth. I wouldn’t give in easily. A fist crashed into my nose. I gasped, and he used the opportunity to shove his erection into my mouth. Not considering the consequences, I bit down as hard as I could.

“You fucking bitch!” he roared. “You’re going to pay for that.”

My head bounced on the pavement as a boot crashed into my ribs. I pulled my knees up to my chest and rolled away from him. I watched a red puddle form on the ground from my bloody nose. The next blow connected with my shoulder blade. He grabbed my wrist and pulled my arm in the wrong direction as hard as he could.

“Get the fuck away from her!” I immediately knew who had come to my rescue. Turns out miracles do happen.

“Where are you hurt?” Ethan crouched next to me after my attacker fled the scene. He frantically looked me over while keeping his hands clenched into fists so he wouldn’t touch.

“F-face, ribs, shoulder…n-neck and back are okay,” I stuttered, barely able to draw in enough breath to speak. “I-I should be…okay to move.” Ethan gently pinned me down when I tried to push up on my good arm.

“Hold still. I’ll call nine-one-one.” He shoved his trembling hand into his pocket in search of his phone. “I don’t want to take any chances.”

“No,” I said as loudly as I could manage. “Don’t…you can pop my shoulder…back in its socket…I’ll be fine.” I had to make sure he believed it even if I wasn’t so sure myself.

“This is serious, Madison. You could
die
.” His eyes darted around the parking lot as he rubbed his head in frustration. “And, the asshole that did this to you will get away with it. What if he does this to someone else?”

I grabbed the front of his shirt as new bout of panic took hold of me. “If you call…the police…they’ll find out…about my job…take Peyton away…” A sharp pain stabbed through my chest with each shallow breath I took. “Hospital…will call…the police. Can’t afford…ER.” Ethan loved Peyton. I knew he wouldn’t do anything to put her future in jeopardy. “I’ll be…f-fine,” I said right before the darkness took over.

Sawyer

I could barely breathe when I left Madison in the private room at the club. She’d become overly eager after our conversation about our relationship, which only made me regret it more. I knew it was a mistake the moment the words passed over my lips, but I couldn’t take it back, not with her riding my cock and looking at me like I’d given her the greatest present in the world.

I bumped into Thomas as he came out of the room next to Madison’s. “Dude, you look like you’re going to hurl.”

“I made a big mistake. I broke all of the rules,” I confessed. I gave my brother a detailed account of what I’d said to Madison as we walked toward the exit.

“Shit. How did she respond?”

“She did exactly what you predicted. She told me she’s broke.” I ran my hands through my sweaty hair. “She implied that I’d have to pay her bills if I didn’t want her to strip.”

“I know she’s super-hot and you think you like her, but you’re going to have to break up with her. She’ll get herself knocked-up, and have her name on your checking account within a month.”

“Damn it! I fucked her bareback.” A few times. I hoped to God my big brother was wrong.

“You fucked a whore without a condom!” Thomas yelled.

I grabbed a handful of his shirt and pulled his face close to mine. “She’s not a whore. I’d better never hear you say that again!”

“Take it easy, man. I’m not the enemy.”

I pushed him away. “What the hell am I going to do?” I didn’t want to stop seeing Madison, but I couldn’t stand the thought of things changing between us. I didn’t want to believe she was just after money, even though the proof was right in front of me.

I cursed when my finger caught on the door handle of my truck. “What happened?” Thomas asked.

I held up my swollen finger to show my brother. “I forgot to get my stitches taken out. I think it’s infected.”

“I saw a hospital a few blocks north. You should go have it looked at. They can test you for STDs while you’re there.”

I chose to ignore his dig at Madison. “Thanks,” I agreed. Wasn’t like I was going to be able to sleep anyway.

I arrived at the emergency room around two in the morning and finally made it to an exam area after an uncomfortable five-hour nap. The doctor quickly removed the stitches and said the nurse would be back with discharge instructions and a prescription for antibiotics.

The physician went to check on the patient in the bed next to me. I could hear everything he said through the thin curtain that separated us.

“How’s she doing?” the doctor asked.

“About the same. She keeps waking up and doesn’t remember what happened the last time she was awake.”

“Does she remember anything about the attack?”

“No, from what I can tell, she’s lost all of her memories starting several hours before the attack.” The male voice talking to the doctor was eerily familiar.

A small groan echoed through the pale blue curtain. “Help,” the hoarse voice quietly pleaded. Violent retching filled my ears.

“That’s the fourth time she’s thrown up tonight,” the male companion explained after the woman calmed down.

“We need to send her to radiology for additional scans, since she isn’t showing any improvement,” the doctor said. “We’ll repeat the brain MRI.”

“No. I don’t need it,” the female voice said.

The doctor ignored her statement. “I’ll have them do an MRI of your ribs and abdomen after they scan your brain. That way we can check for internal bleeding.”

“I’m feeling better.”

“Do you remember why you’re here?” he asked.

“He said I was attacked,” she rasped.

“It’s promising that you are able to remember that. Try to remember the following three words: cat, blue, house. If you remember those in that order in an hour and your MRI comes back okay, I will move you to a room in the intensive care unit.”

“No, I need to go home.”

“Mads, don’t be ridiculous. You have a traumatic brain injury. You need to stay to be monitored.”

I felt as though I’d been kicked in the stomach as the pieces clicked into place.

“He’s a doctor; he can monitor me at home,” the hollow voice trailed off into a long pause. “I promise to go to the hospital if he thinks I need to.”

“I’ll consider it depending on the test results and your ability to form new memories. Dr. Madden, could I speak to you for a moment?”

I yanked open the curtain between us as soon as the two men left. My heart stopped beating as rage flooded my system.

Madison’s left eye was nearly swollen shut, and small pieces of tape held together a cut on her cheekbone. Dried blood was caked under her bandaged nose.

“What happened? Who hurt you?” I would kill the monster who did this to her. A murderous strategy formed in my mind involving the need to buy a shovel and a thick plastic tarp.

“It’s none of your business, Sawyer.” Intense pain echoed through her sweet voice. The bastard had stolen the familiar melody from her words.

“How can you say it’s none of my business after everything that happened last night?” I whispered so only she could hear.

“What are you talking about? I told you I wasn’t going to accept your offer.”

Holy shit. She really doesn’t remember any of it.

I had been given the opportunity of a lifetime. I could bend the truth just a little to get exactly what I wanted, and she’d never know. I debated my words before I spoke. “I saw you at the club. We spent the evening together in a private room, and I convinced you to agree to my proposition.” I felt guilty about the lie, but it was the only way to get things to go back to normal between us.

“You’re okay with my job?” Her confusion was thick in her voice. She shifted in the bed and squeezed her eyes closed in pain.

“Not really, but we can talk about that later. Doesn’t look like you’ll be in any condition to work for a while.”

“Did we…?”

I nodded in response.

Ethan came into the room and stopped short when he saw me. “What are you doing here?”

“I came to get my stitches out. I was in the next bay over and heard the conversation. I came to make sure Madison is okay.” Now for a more important question. “What are
you
doing here?”