Rose In Bloom (21 page)

Laying my head back down on his chest, I listen to his heart as it beats against my skin. I pray for so many things, but more than anything that we get our new beginning and happily ever after.

“I’m going to go into work for just a bit,” I say, knocking on his office door. He looks exhausted. Neither one of us slept after I woke up last night. We just lay there, holding each other in the dark.

“I told you to let our team handle it. I don’t want you working right now,” he says, tossing a file on his desk and walking towards me.

“I’m pregnant, Sebastian, not helpless. Plenty of pregnant women have careers, too.” I laugh.

“Yeah, but you’re
my
pregnant woman,” he teases, grabbing my ass and pulling me in for a kiss.

“Someone is taking you, right?”

“Yes, Sam is already waiting up front to pick me up.”

“Maybe I should just drive you myself,” he replies, looking worried.

“No, I will be fine. Besides, you said yourself that Brandon hasn’t even come near the office or here. I don’t think he is stupid enough to try anything. He doesn’t want to go back to jail.”

According to Sebastian’s men, Brandon has been hanging around his father’s company and staying clear of anywhere near me. Of course, the fact he is out of prison terrifies me, but I also know he is smart enough to leave me alone.

“Let’s hope so, but I’m not wanting to chance anything, especially now with Maverick in the picture.”

“Remember, call me when you get to the office and don’t go anywhere that one of Harrison’s men aren’t with you,” he says, cupping my face for a kiss.

“I’ll be careful, I promise.”

Traffic is pretty heavy for this time of day, but finally we make it to the office. Sebastian has texted me like every ten damn minutes it seems. Since there is some sort of delivery truck parked in the front of the building, I instruct Sam to drop me off in the garage. He is hesitant at first, but complies with my request. Waving him off, I tell him I will call him when I need him to pick me back up.

Since I know there isn’t signal in the elevator, I go ahead and make the call to Sebastian to let him know I am here.

“Hey Beautiful,” he answers. His voice still makes me tingle with excitement.

“Hey Handsome, I’m here safe and sound,” I inform him.

“Good, but I still think I should have taken you myself.”

“I will be fine, so stop worrying.”

“I won’t ever stop worrying so you can get used to that one now.”

My voice goes quiet. ”I just want all of this to be over.”

“I do too, baby. And that’s what I’m working on. Until then, this is how it has to be.”

“I love you.”

“And I fucking love you! Now hurry your ass back home!” he teases before ending the call.

I’m just tucking my phone back into my purse when a familiar black truck pulls up beside me, rolling down the window.

Lucas.

“Get in!” he demands.

“I’m not going anywhere with you!” I return, walking around the truck to head to the elevators. His door flies open and he moves to stand right in front of me, blocking me from going any farther.

“Get out of my way, Lucas,” I say, trying to push him aside, but his full wall of muscle doesn’t budge an inch.

Before I know it, I’m being lifted and carried to the truck.

“PUT ME DOWN!” I scream, hoping someone will hear me. I don’t know what has gotten into him, but he’s seriously freaking me the hell out right now. When he opens the door and sits me inside, I slap him hard across the face. My hand stings and I watch the fury and hurt register on his face before he climbs in beside me.

“Stop it, Skylar! You have to come with me. There is some heavy stuff about to go down and we need to talk.”

“Then fucking talk, but I’m not leaving with you.”

“I was afraid you might say that,” he says, pulling out a pair of handcuffs and slapping one on my arm and then the other on his.

“What the fuck, Lucas? Are you insane?” I scream as he throws the truck in gear and barrels out of the parking garage and out onto the street. Angry drivers honk their horns, but Lucas just ignores them, his eyes fixated closely on the road. I can still see the handprint I’d left on his face. I don’t regret hitting him and the moment he lets me out of these handcuffs I’m going to bust him in the nuts.

“Stop the truck, Lucas.” I demand, yanking our handcuffed arms.

“I will when we get there. And stop doing that before you hurt yourself!” He presses down on the accelerator and changes lanes quickly.

“What are you trying to do, get us killed?” I scream as he rushes around traffic and pulls onto the interstate.

“Calm down, Skylar.”

“No! I am not calming down until you tell me what the hell you’re doing. I think you’ve caused enough trouble already, don’t you?”

He doesn’t respond to my last comment, but I can see the effect of my words. He has no idea the hell my life is now because of him.

No other words are spoken until he takes the familiar turn off of the interstate. Immediately, I know where he is taking me. When he turns onto the long gravel drive, my heart sinks. The white lake house comes into view and makes my head swim with memories from the last time he and I were here together. Turning the truck off, he sits there for a few moments before reaching in his pocket and handing me a tiny silver key. Hesitantly, I take it and unlock my side of the cuff, leaving his arm still connected to the metal.

His brow furrows and he grabs for my hand, looking down at the red rims that have formed around my wrists.

“Look, I’m sorry, but I had no choice,” he apologizes while tenderly rubbing my wrist.

Yanking my hand away, I glare angrily at him.

“Save it, Lucas! There is always a choice.” I say, throwing open the door of the truck and climbing out. Digging my phone out of my bag, I’m just about to call Sebastian when Lucas yanks my phone out of my hands.

“Give that to me now, or so help me,” I demand, now ready to beat the hell out of him.

“Or so help you what? You’re here now, so deal with it, Skylar. I’m going to talk and you’re going to listen,” he snarls, pointing at the chairs on the front porch of the house.

“What has happened to you?” I ask, shaking my head in disbelief as I sit down in one of the large wicker chairs.

For a few seconds his harsh look softens, but he refuses to sit down. Instead, he leans against one of the large white porch columns and crosses his arms. For a few moments, he looks out at the lake in front of us without saying a word.

“It’s funny, I guess, because I thought things would be different. I thought that the next time the both of us were here together, it would be for good. I really love it out here, you know. Until you, I’d never given any thoughts to settling down. The first time I saw you standing in this yard, looking at this place with the same wonder and admiration that I do, well… I knew. All along, so many things told me I could trust you with my heart, but I’d been wrong. I don’t regret trusting you, I regret that you didn’t trust me enough back. We can’t change how our heart feels.”

“Lucas, I…”

He interrupts me by holding up his hand. “I love you so much, Skylar. I’d convinced myself that I could love enough for the two of us. Deep down, I knew… I’d always known that you’d pick him in the end. You even warned me of that yourself, but I still thought there was hope if I just had enough patience and waited. Love makes us do all kinds of things, Skylar. Desperate. Ugly. Things. I’m not proud of who I am now, nor am I proud of what I’ve done. But no matter what, the one thing I won’t apologize for is loving you.”

Choking up, I reply, “What do you want from me Lucas? I swear with everything in me that I never wanted to hurt you.”

“I know that,” he whispers, his voice softer.

“It kills me that I’ve caused you this much pain. That you would do the things you have done just to get your revenge on me.” I sob as I stand and walk towards the rail of the porch.

“Do you honestly believe that this is about me getting revenge on you? Because that isn’t what I want at all.”

“Then what do you want from me, Lucas? I know you love me, but you have to let me go.”

“What do I want? I tell you what I want. I want you to choose me. I want you to want me… to love ME! I would happily give up my life just for one of the looks you give him. So don’t you dare ask me to walk away and let you go. My heart will never allow it, and I will never survive it.”

His words cut into me like the sharpest of daggers. All of this is because of me. Another life destroyed and hurt because of me. When is anyone going to realize that I’m not worth it?

“You really have no idea do you, Lucas? All of this is, every fucking last thing, is my fault. If my parents hadn’t taken me out to celebrate my birthday that night, then none of this would have happened. There would be no wreck. Everyone’s life would still be normal. My family would still be here. My grandmother would be alive instead of being so stressed with the extra burdens of raising two young girls. Hell, I would be away at a dance school right now, far away from the deranged psychopath that attacked me. So don’t you see? This is all MY fault. I have to live with it every single day. I hurt everyone. Everyone always leaves me. It’s just a matter of time before everyone else sees that.”

“Stop it!” he says, taking me into his arms. It feels so good for him to hold me again, but it’s never been an ounce of what I feel when I’m in Sebastian’s arms. “This is not your fault.”

“Yes it is!” I scream, pushing off his chest. “All I want is to be happy, and I’m never going to have that now.”

“I’m trying to fix this, Skylar. I brought you here to let you know that.”

“How, Lucas? How are you possibly going to be able to fix this? It’s too late now for any of that.”

“No… no, it’s not. I have enough on Maverick that he won’t want to risk exposing Sebastian. Trust me.”

“What are you talking about?”

“I bribed him to help me in the first place, now I’m going to bribe him to forget.”

“You and I both know Maverick isn’t going to forget.”

“That is why you are going to help me talk to Sebastian. It’s the only way we can be on the same page to make sure this stops. I may hate your husband, but I can’t allow the chance of you getting hurt. That has never been the plan. Enough hurt has happened already.”

“What do you want me to do?” I ask and he hands me back my phone.

“Call your husband and have him meet us here.”

“What? Why?”

“He and I have a lot of talking to do.”

“He will kill you for this.”

“I don’t care, Skylar. I’d do it again in a heartbeat. I had to talk to you. Now call him.”

After I dial his number, his frantic voice answers on the first ring.

“Skylar? Where are you? I’ve been going crazy. Sara said you’d never arrived.”

“I’m fine, Sebastian. I’m with Lucas.”