Chapter Twenty-Four

Matthew

I hate this fucking room. It has a smell of stale coffee and smoke, which is weird since I didn’t see anyone smoke. I’m sitting at the table, my hands on top, my foot moving a million miles a minute.

“So tell us where you were last night,” the detective who calls himself Martinez asks while he leans back in his chair.

“I told you I was in my room as soon as I got back from the game.”

“Were you alone?” the other detective, who goes by Mabie, asks, leaning on the table. “The whole night?”

“Yes, the whole night, alone.” I’m not bringing Karrie into this. I don’t give a shit what happens to me and my name, but they aren’t fucking touching her.

Martinez snickers while he leans back, the button on his gut about to pop open. “You want me to believe the player of all players just finished the game and went back to his room?” He laughs.

Mabie, who is balding on top, leans forward. “The woman says you called her from a private number at about one a.m. Then you went to her hotel room. You guys had sex, but then you flipped.”

“I’m telling you it wasn’t me.” I shake my head. “I was in my bed all night.”

There’s a knock at the door and a huge detective comes in. “You read him his rights?”

“They haven’t and I want a lawyer,” I say out loud, making Martinez and Mabie get up, glaring at the guy who came in. They shut the door behind them. I breathe out a sigh, wondering if this is actually happening to me. This is a fucking nightmare. My thoughts go straight to Karrie. The need to go to her. I don’t think long because the door opens and Noah comes in, closing the door behind him.

“Noah,” I say with hope.

“Hey there,” he says, sitting down. “So this is the story. This woman claims you called her, went to her apartment or hotel, had sex with her, then you wanted rough sex, and when she said no you didn’t listen. You beat her. From the pictures I just saw, if you did this your knuckles would be bruised. She can barely see. One side of her cheek is swollen so much you can’t see her eye. Her lip is cut open. She looks like she went twelve rounds with Tyson.”

“I was with Karrie the whole night.” I shake my head. “But there’s no way in fuck I’m dragging her into this mess.”

“Oh, you don’t need to drag her into this. She is here willingly,” Noah says while he leans back in the chair. “Your girl just about laid out her father, or at least that’s what I’m told.”

“What?” I ask, my mouth dry, my tongue thick. “Where is she?”

Noah smiles at me. “She’s outside in the room with your mother, Cooper, her father, and some chick who looks like she drank way too much fucking coffee.”

There’s a knock on the door again. The one who came in before asking if I was read my rights comes back in. “Hey there, sorry to interrupt. I’m Mick Moro. There has been a development in the case,” he says, sitting next to Noah.

“What development?” Noah asks, sitting up now.

“We have a video putting you not at the scene of the crime. In fact, the video shows that you snore like a fucking hog.” He smiles at us. “You owe your woman more than you know. She just saved your ass. Although I will say there’s no way this was going to stick. She couldn’t identify you in a line-up. Plus, her description of you didn’t even add up.” He shakes his head. “I’m sorry that you got dragged into this,” he says, rapping his fingers on the table. “Hang tight, we should be able to let you out of here soon.”

He closes the door.

“Well, my work here is done. I’ll be billing Cooper more than I’m worth.” Noah slaps the table, walking out.

I sit here, looking at my hands that are still shaking with fear and anger. My head is down as I think of the mess this is going to make for me, but most of all for Karrie. A tear escapes as the door opens again. This time when I look up it’s into the eyes of the woman who saved me without even knowing it.

“Baby,” I say, getting up while she runs to me and buries her face into my chest. Her body shakes with the sobs that are coming out of her while her hands claw into my back as she bunches the shirt in her fingers. “It’s okay.”

“I’m so sorry it took so long,” she says in between sobs. “I forgot about the video.”

I bring her so close to me I want it to be like she is in my skin. “Baby, I didn’t want you to drag yourself into this mess.”

“Drag me into this mess?” she says, letting me go, leaning back. “What the fuck did you think I would do, Matthew?”

“Obviously nothing is what I thought you would do.” I shake my head. “You think I wanted your name to be linked to this garbage? Never.”

“You know, I don’t know how it is that I can go from loving you to hating you in a split second.”

“You love me?” I ask her. I’ve told her a bunch of times. Okay, yes, she’s been asleep, but...

“She loves you so much she went toe-to-toe with me and told me that if I didn’t choose you to basically fuck off.”

I look at the door where Doug stands with Noah.

“Did she now?”

She rolls her eyes at me.

“He’s exaggerating a bit,” she says while she relaxes in my arms.

“I love you,” I tell her quietly. “I love you so much that my heart hurts when you're not there. I love you so much that every breath I take is for you.” I kiss her lips. “Thank you for saving me and loving me enough to want to stand by and hold my hand. And especially thank you for taping me while I snored.” I grab her while Jackson comes in.

“Okay, you are free to go.” He nods at me. “We fixed it up that you can leave out the back since the front has now become a media nightmare. They are saying that the mayor has to come down and make a statement.” He shakes his head. “This is one time I’ll be glad to rub it in Martinez’s and Mabie’s faces.”

I thank him and walk toward the door where we make a quick getaway, the press oblivious to anything that’s going on. We go straight to the airfield where a private plane is waiting.

“Your parents will be coming with us,” Doug says from the front seat.

I nod to him, looking out the window while Karrie sleeps on my shoulder. When we get to the tarmac I wake her up so she can get out of the car. When I hold out my hand to her, she takes it, coming down from the SUV.

“I don’t feel so well,” she says while her father closes his door. “I think—” It’s the last thing she says before her legs give out on her and she collapses in my arms.