One
Present Day
Parker
"I can't believe you watch this shit."
"For your information, this is quality television," Eve states as she crosses her arms.
"Quality?" I ask. "Your definition of quality is completely different than mine."
"You can't deny this is entertaining. Look, someone else just threw a punch. Get ‘em girl!" Her light brown hair sways in the ponytail it’s pulled into, as she punches her fists in front of her in a mock fight.
I stand and make my way to the kitchen. "It's boring, Eve. Plain and simple."
"Do you always need to fight with my wife?" Cy asks. He's my best friend. Him and his wife, Eve, have been living with me for a while now, since they are between places. As much as we bicker over what's on television, I fucking love having these two in my house. They might not be my blood, but they are part of my family.
"It keeps things interesting," I reply over my shoulder, then start pulling items from the refrigerator to make a sandwich and place them on the counter.
Cy drapes his arm behind Eve where they sit on the dark leather couch. "Ignore him, baby. He wouldn't know quality if it smacked him in the face."
"Oh, I know it when I see it," I reply.
Eve turns so she can see me. "Those women you sleep with every night aren't quality, Parker."
I lift the butter knife I’m using to spread mayonnaise on the bread and point it at her. "Don't talk about my women."
She laughs. "Random hook-ups are not your women. They're like stray cats. You might have fed them for one night, but once they see the bowl is empty, they are on to the next house begging for another meal."
"They are not strays. They are good women, who just don't deserve an encore."
"You're such a pig."
"You love me."
She rolls her eyes and faces the television again. "I do, and you're lucky I keep your ass in check.”
I bark out a laugh. "What's that? You check out my ass?"
Cy shoots me a death glare. Even after all this time, he still gets jealous if I mention anything whatsoever sexual about Eve. Cy and I have been friends since grade school. I love riling him up. It's so much fun.
Eve pats his arm. "Don't you worry, it's only your ass I look at."
"Damn straight," Cy mumbles, then possessively pulls her close so she's pressed right up to his side.
I finish making the sandwich and lean back against the kitchen counter to eat. I'd do anything for these two. I don’t want to think about what’s going to happen when they move out. It will be very quiet in my home again, that’s for sure. Too quiet.
They bought a plot of land and are having a house built. Luckily, it's just up the street from me. I've grown too attached to them in the past year to have them go far. They are the closest friends I have, outside of Blair.
On cue, my phone rings and Blair’s name flashes on the screen. "Hey, what's up?"
"Parker..." she sniffles and releases a soft sob on the other end of the line.
I straighten. "What happened?" It's early in the evening, the sun beginning to set.
"I fell asleep, and..."
"I'm on my way." I hang up and grab my keys, leaving my sandwich to sit on the counter.
"Booty call?" Eve asks as I rush by.
I force a smile. Only a few people know what Blair goes through, just my parents and me. "Something like that," I reply. I don't like lying to them, however, in this case, it's necessary.
I run down the stairs of my raised log cabin to the garage and am out the door, driving down the mountain in no time. Blair lives across town in the wealthy part of Arrow Falls, as the locals refer to it. It's where there are large homes on acres of land spread far apart. It's also where my parents reside. When Blair moved back to town, she decided she wanted to be close to my family and me. She bought a home she fell in love with in that area.
I hit the gas in my Range Rover and am thankful I spent more for the supercharged model. This isn't the first time I've driven to Blair's as I am now. I've done it in the early morning, late at night, middle of the day. There is nothing I wouldn't do for her—absolutely nothing.
When I finally reach her house, I throw my SUV in park and kill the engine. I hit the button programmed into the Rover, opening her garage door. Jumping out, I don’t bother locking it. No one is going to steal it here. Arrow Falls isn't exactly crime-ridden.
Once inside, I disarm the security system on the house and take the stairs two at a time. When she calls me upset, she could only be in one of two rooms. Never anywhere else. I open Blair's bedroom door. She’s not in her bed, but then again, she rarely is when she calls me crying. I look throughout the bedroom and the bathroom, finally finding her in the back corner of her walk-in closet with her knees up to her chest and tears running down her cheeks. Her bottom lip trembles as her puffy eyes lift to mine.
Dropping to the ground, I wrap her in my arms and hold her tight. "I've got you. I'm here."
"I saw him, Parker."
"It was just a dream. He's still in prison and not coming anywhere near you."
"When will this stop?" she cries. "Ever since they told me he could be released soon, the nightmares have gotten worse."
"You need to keep going to counseling. It will help. I'll go with you, if you want."
"I don't want to leave the house."
"I know, but it's good to get out and you've been doing much better. I'll pick you up and take you wherever you need to go. Don't worry. I'll be here."
Over the years, she's made a lot of progress, but since she found out Brant was getting out of prison soon, her nightmares have returned full force. And every time they do, she calls me, just as I asked her to. They are real to her. With each one, she relives the horrific abuse she endured at his hands.
"Come on. Let's get you back to bed."
She nods as I help her stand. She's lost weight in the past couple of weeks. Blair has always been slender, but she's too thin now. She's not eating. Instead, she's working herself sick to keep her mind off things and not sleeping as much as she should be. Then when she eventually passes out, she's dreaming of him and what he did to her.
I get her into bed and pull the covers up, then turn to go back downstairs.
"Don't go," she pleads.
"I'm not. I left the garage door open. I want to close it and rearm the house."
She pulls the covers up to her chin and curls into the fetal position. I press a kiss on the top of her head before going downstairs.
Blair is one of those people who puts on a brave front and doesn't let anyone see what's going on deep inside. Not even Eve, who works for her. Blair’s pen name is Brenda Simone. She’s always been Blair to me, though. She’s a best-selling romance author. Together, Eve and Blair are a great team. Eve is amazing at keeping her organized and allows her to devote more time to her writing. Blair's been an author since I met her years ago. Her books sell like crazy, and readers line up at her table when she attends signings. I personally don't get it. I mean, Blair is awesome and all, but I don't read, so going to these events and getting a book signed by an author doesn't appeal to me.
Blair loves it, though. She's really in her element there. She doesn't go to many. Mostly she goes when she's been doing well emotionally and feels like she's got her head in the right place. I went once when there was a local signing a couple hours away. She told everyone I was her brother, and they all kept saying I should be on one of her covers. Um, no. A cover model I am not. Although, I did love the lustful looks the women gave me. I ate that shit up.
Eve is here five days a week and spends hours with her, but Blair keeps it professional, for the most part. She doesn't let anyone get close to her anymore. Brant destroyed her in so many ways. I'm sure she and Eve talk about Cy, or me even, however Blair would never mention her past or why she uses a pen name on the books she writes. She wishes she could put everything that happened behind her and have it stay there. Using a pen name allows her to be someone else. Someone who hasn't gone to hell and back. Yes, there are some things Eve has to do where she needs to use Blair's real name, but Eve also signed a non-disclosure agreement when she started working for her. She also strictly refers to her as Brenda, so she doesn’t accidentally slip if they are at a signing together.
After locking my Range Rover, closing the garage door, and arming the security system on the house, I grab a glass of water from the kitchen, along with one of Blair's pills, which help her relax when she has a panic attack. It dissolves in her mouth and works pretty fast.
Blair is still in the same position she was when I left her bedroom. Sitting down beside her, I find her hand and work to unclench her fist, so she can hold the water. Then I place the pill in her mouth. She closes her eyes, while it quickly dissolves, then takes a sip of water. There were times I couldn't get here fast enough, because I was in the city at a club or somewhere else. I've told her to get her medicine, but she refuses to take it when I'm not here. It relaxes her to the point that it knocks her out, and she hates feeling vulnerable. I stay in her room, until she wakes hours later and tells me she's all right.
Placing the glass on the nightstand, I kick off my shoes. Sometimes she sleeps on me. Other times she holds my hand. There is always one constant—she needs to be touching me, assuring herself I’m here. With me beside her, she feels safe. I would fight to my death to keep her that way.
I've taken her to the shooting range to learn how to handle a gun, however she refuses. She's afraid of an accident happening. I respect her decision, but that doesn't stop me from having a gun in my home and another in the glove compartment of my SUV. I mean it when I say I'll protect her and will do so by whatever means necessary.
I lie next to her in bed as we face each other. I don't take my eyes off of her until her breath evens out. Her body starts to relax, and her hand doesn't have the death grip on mine it did a minute ago.
When I can finally wiggle my fingers free, I slip out of her grasp and dig my phone out of my pocket. The last thing I want is for it to ring and wake her. Granted, that pill knocks her out, however, I don't want to take any chances. Cy and Eve won't expect me home tonight. Once I leave, I usually don't come back until the morning. Yes, sometimes I do have legitimate booty calls, but more than half the time, I drive to Blair’s. I'll always come to her. Years ago, I became her protector, and that's a role I gladly still hold to this day.
Blair mumbles Brant’s name in her sleep. The fucker who abused her plagues her dream and has her body tensing. I can only hope the dream quickly fades and she's able to slip into a peaceful sleep. It makes my blood boil with rage that he still haunts her. What I wouldn’t give to make it so she would never have to worry about him again. And to think he’ll be out of jail soon. Blair isn’t the only one worried about what will happen when he’s free.