~ Mason ~
When I get back to my place after watching Haywood, I’m surprised to find Olivia sitting outside my door.
“Olivia?” I ask as I get closer.
She just stares at the floor, shaking her head slowly.
I crouch in front of her. “Hey, what happened?”
Her eyes leave the floor and crawl their way up to mine. I’m surprised to see that she’s wearing make-up. Except for the distraught look in her eyes, she actually looks better than I’ve seen her look in the past few weeks.
“I went to Walmart,” she whispers. Her eyes mist up with tears, making them take on a vulnerable look.
“And?” I ask, praying that someone didn’t say something about her scars. It was a huge step for her to go to the store, and I’d hate for her to suffer a setback.
“I wanted to make dinner tomorrow night …” she tries to smile but it changes into a painful grimace. “Steaks and mashed potatoes.”
I sit down in front of her and patiently wait for her to go on.
“I saw him.” It’s such a soft whisper I have to strain to hear her. “He bought beer. I followed him home.”
I frown, not following her at all.
“Who did you follow, Sweetheart?”
“John Brown.” A tear spills from her eye and trickles down her cheek. “The man who did this to me.”
I take a deep breath and try to think of the right thing to say but I come up empty.
“Why did you follow him?” I ask instead.
“He should pay for what he did to me. He never paid.”
She starts to shake her head again, looking so forlorn that it tears at my heart.
“What do you mean, he didn’t pay?” I ask patiently, wanting to keep her talking.
“His brother is some big shot investor for the city. He got away with a suspended license and some community service. He got away because I didn’t matter.”
Her face crumbles and I quickly move forward. I pull her into my arms and hold her tightly to my chest as she cries for the injustice done to her.
I press a kiss to her hair and whisper, “You matter, Olivia. You matter.”
My body stiffens when she inches closer to me, almost climbing into my lap. Her arms come around my waist and she clings to me as if I’m the only thing keeping her from drowning in her despair.
“Only to you,” she whispers into my chest and then her shoulders start to shake with laughter. I’m just about to think she’s losing it when she pulls back and says, “You know you’re screwed when your biggest fear becomes your only hope.”
She laughs harder until tears overwhelm her again.
Patiently, I wait for her to calm down before I say, “I’m sorry I scared you that day.”
Her eyes come back to mine and she starts to shake her head.
“No, let me do this.” I slip my hand over her scarred cheek. “Someone has to say sorry to you, Olivia. You deserve that much. I’m sorry I scared you so much that you ran into the street. If I hadn’t been there, you might have seen the car coming. Things might have been different. I’m sorry for the part I played in your accident.”
She pulls away from me and a hurt look shadows her face.
“Is that why you’re spending time with me? You feel guilty?”
I drop my eyes from hers and get to my feet. I help her up and then step back from her.
“At first, yes,” I answer honestly.
She nods once and wipes her hands nervously over her stomach.
“You don’t have to,” she says, her voice hoarse from the tears she’s trying to keep back. I can see the flicker of rejection in her eyes.
“It’s not why I spend time with you now,” I whisper, not wanting her to look so dejected.
“Oh.”
I’m not sure what’s happening right now and I honestly think she’s just as lost as me. It’s as if something more than friendship has sparked to life between us. Neither of us is in a good place in our lives to start a relationship, but then again, if something more is meant to happen between us, I’m definitely not going to say no.
“So I take it you didn’t get the steaks?” I ask to change the subject.
She shakes her head and sighs, “No. I left it all there.”
“You want to go get them quickly? I’ll take you.”
She looks at her watch and then back up to me. “It’s late. You can’t drive me around in the middle of the night.”
A smile pulls at the corner of my mouth. “Sure I can. Let’s go.”
I take her hand and pull her behind me before she can argue anymore.