Cori
Cori woke up in a hospital room alone. Where was everyone? Where was Paxton? Her heart sank a little. She could feel a bandage around her head as well as her arms and legs. Her head felt like it was in a vise. The pounding seemed like it was beating in time to the rhythm of her heart.
She wanted to vomit. Bolting upright, she grabbed the bucket on the rolling tray next to the bed and dry heaved.
She didn’t think she was ever going to stop. Now in addition to her head, her stomach and throat hurt. She pressed the call buzzer. Almost immediately a nurse came in.
“How are you doing, honey?” the short, silver-haired nurse asked her.
Cori’s voice sounded gravelly even to her own ears. “Water, please.”
“Oh sure thing. I’ll be right back.”
The nurse disappeared just as quickly as she had entered. Cori lay back on her pillow. The lights were dimmed, but still they seemed too bright. She tried to recall what happened, but she couldn’t remember everything. Paxton had come for her after all. He must have shot Luke. No…Paxton couldn’t have been the one to shoot him. She’d been looking right at Paxton. It wasn’t until she had felt the spray of warm blood on her face that she’d closed her eyes. So who shot him?
The nurse came back in with a Styrofoam cup filled with ice and water. “Sip at it, dear. Don’t guzzle.”
A doctor entered reading her chart. “Dr. Transue. How are you feeling?”
“I have the worst headache I’ve ever experienced in my entire life.”
“Well, you had some head trauma that resulted in a slight skull fracture and a concussion. So a headache is completely normal. So is nausea, vomiting, dizziness, loss of balance, and a few other things we will watch out for. I’ll have the nurse bring you something to dull the pain. Luckily, your other injuries were much less severe.”
Cori could attest to some of those symptoms already. The doctor continued.
“Your ankles had minor scratches. Your wrists, however, suffered a little more damage. Nothing that won’t heal on its own over time. I do recommend that you put some Neosporin or something like it on the wounds to help heal them with minimal scarring. Also, take it easy for a while. No activity that could have you reinjured. No bike riding of any kind for a few months. Be smart when exercising. First and foremost, rest. For no less than two weeks. Think couch potato.” He smiled warmly at her.
“I understand, doctor.”
“Good. Now, if you’re feeling up to it, there is a small crowd in the waiting room wondering how you are. Shall I have them come back or would you rather rest? For the record, I prefer you rest.”
“Can I see them, please?”
“I figured you’d say that. Only for a few minutes.”
“Thank you.”
Once the doctor was gone, Cori scooted herself up in the bed some. She didn’t want to look pathetic when Paxton came in. She fixed the sheets around her, smoothing them in place, and rested her hands on top. It didn’t take long before her door opened. Krysta came barreling in first. Cori was being squeezed to death as everyone else entered the room. Gutter Mouth closed the door behind him with a sad look on his face. The one person missing was Paxton. The door opened again and excitement flooded through her. Paxton?
“Bri.”
Brianna hurried to her and wrapped her arms around her shoulders. “You scared me. Don’t do that again.”
“I’m sorry.”
Cori felt a tear slip from her eye. Brianna was crying freely. She missed her sister. With everything that had happened, maybe she should go stay with her for a while after all? Her house held so many bad memories now. How could she go back there?
As if she’d read her mind, Brianna smiled sadly at her. “You can come stay with me. For as long as you want.”
“Thank you.”
Krysta sat on the edge of the bed, hurt evident on her beautiful face. “What about us?”
Brianna looked confused. “I don’t understand?”
“Why don’t you stay with me and Paxton?”
Cori whispered as if everyone in the room couldn’t hear her anyway. “I can’t do that.”
“Why not?”
The door opened again and this time Paxton entered the room. “Hey, Doc.” He smiled, but it didn’t reach his eyes. Something wasn’t right. His knuckles looked red and now that she was really looking, so did his eyes. He noticed her looking at his hands again and shoved them into his pockets.
Krysta took ahold of her hand. “We care about you too. None of us want to see you go.”
It wasn’t long before Sloane interrupted the conversation. “Sweetie, I’m really sorry. We have to run. Mother has been watching Mia and we need to get home.”
“Please don’t apologize. I’m grateful that you both came by.”
“Of course we would be. You’re one of us.” She winked before walking over to the door to where Max stood. He waved goodbye to Cori and they left.
Brianna stood up. She stretched her arms above her head. “I’m going to grab a soda. Does anyone want anything?”
They all declined and Brianna left the room. It only took ten seconds before Krysta started in. She looked around the room at everyone. “She wants to leave us.”
Cori smiled sadly. “Krysta, you don’t even live around here.”
“Yeah, but I’m in town often enough.”
Paxton’s gaze met his sister’s. “What are you talking about?”
“She’s thinking of moving in with Brianna.”
Cori waited for Paxton to tell her to stay. She waited for him to offer his home to her like he did before. He came for her tonight. That must’ve meant something. She waited.
“If that’s what she really wants to do, Krysta, we can’t make her stay.”
Cori thought she might actually be feeling her heart breaking. It took superhuman strength to hold back the tears.
Gutter Mouth placed his hand on Krysta’s shoulder. “You look tired, Doc.” He knew somehow that she was barely hanging on. She could tell by the sadness reflected in his own eyes. “Let’s let her get some sleep, kitten.”
Krysta leaned down to hug her. “Please, think about it.”
“I will,” she lied.
Paxton maneuvered himself to her bedside. Leaning down, he kissed her forehead. “Get some rest. We’ll see you soon.”
Cori watched as they left her hospital room. She couldn’t hold the tears back any longer. She had a feeling that she had just said goodbye to Paxton for good.
***
Tank
“You’re a selfish, no good bastard of a chicken shit,” Krysta screamed at him at the top of her lungs after an intensely quiet elevator ride.
He waited until they were out of the waiting room and in the parking lot to answer her. “What the fuck did I do this time?”
“You don’t know?” she screeched. She turned to Gutter Mouth. “He really doesn’t know?”
“No, Krysta, I really don’t know,” Paxton snarled back at her.
She stopped in her tracks. She whispered almost too softly for him to hear her, “She wanted you to ask her to stay.”
Was that true? Did she still want him after he’d failed her? There was no way. Only…maybe she did. Could he take that chance? What if she needed him and he fucked up again? No. He couldn’t risk her again. He fucked up. He broke his promise to protect her. She was better off far away from him.
“I’m not good enough for her, Krysta. She needs to find someone better.”
“Paxton…”
“Please, can we drop it?”
He wasn’t sure if it was the look in his eyes or the sound of his voice, but for the first time ever, his baby sister didn’t argue with him.
Paxton glanced at Gutter Mouth once they started walking again. “Are you coming to the house?”
“Nah. I’m gonna head home and get some sleep. I’ll talk to you in the morning.”
“All right.”
They bumped fists and Paxton climbed into his truck. Krysta was already inside staring out of the passenger window. It was dark. He didn’t know what she could be looking at. He couldn’t see anything other than parked cars. But maybe her mind was replaying this evening. God knows his was. His knuckles still hurt from punching the dumpster out back, but not as bad as his pride.
He couldn’t forgive himself. He’d been too worried about getting her out of his damn head to focus on his job. Lack of focus got people hurt. He knew that. He needed to refocus himself. The only way he knew how was by letting her go.
***
It had been three weeks since he’d seen Cori. He’d never returned to the hospital and he had been on a job the day she’d moved out. He regretted not being there to say goodbye to her. At the same time, he was relieved not to have had to watch her go. She still haunted his dreams every night. He saw her lying in her bed. Sometimes he made it in time to save her, sometimes he didn’t. Those were the nights he woke up covered in sweat, ready to break her door down. Then reality would sink in. She didn’t need him because she wasn’t there.
Krysta talked to her almost every day. Usually whispers that stopped once he entered the room. Today was no different. She was sitting at the kitchen table on her laptop working with her earbuds in so she could talk hands free.
“Oh hey, let me call you back.”
She hung up the phone and went back to her work. He crossed his arms over his chest and stared at her until she looked up.
“What?”
“Was that Cori?”
She glared at him. “As a matter of fact, it was.”
“How is she?”
“None of your damn business.”
He was instantly pissed off. Hell, he was pissed off a lot lately. “What the fuck do mean, none of my business?”
She looked at him like he was a piece of shit. “I mean, if you cared so fucking much, you’d call her yourself. Prick.”
She packed up her things and stormed out of the room. He plopped himself in the nearest chair. She was right, of course. That’s exactly what he should do. He shouldn’t have had let her go in the first place. He had fucked up, but that’s because he’d been fighting his feelings. He pounded his fist on the table, disgusted with himself. Krysta was right. He was a chicken shit.
With his mind made up, Paxton ran back upstairs to shower and get dressed.
He wasn’t going to call her. Fuck that. She was his girl. He was going to go get her. He grabbed a pair of blue jeans, a black cotton t-shirt, and his Fear Incorporated ball cap. He was walking out of the house when his past got out of her car.
Gillian smiled at him. He braced himself for the feeling she had always stirred in him. Only this time, there was nothing. She didn’t look like his dream girl. She looked like a nightmare. He thought back to the good times they’d had. He had to admit, before he knew Gillian was cheating on him, they’d been happy. She had treated him good. That’s when he realized why he’d been holding back with Cori: He was afraid he wouldn’t know if it happened again. But Cori wasn’t Gillian.
He couldn’t tell the future. But he did know the future would be bleak without taking a chance with Cori. And just like that, his anger toward Gillian was gone.
Gillian had given him the opportunity to find Cori.
“What could you possibly want from me, Gill?”
She smoothed down her extremely tight skirt. “I made a mistake. I’m here to make things work with us. I was stupid. I’m sorry.”
This is a joke, right? Paxton laughed loudly. No, he didn’t just laugh—he held his mid-section and belly laughed until Krysta came outside to find out what was going on. Gillian had confusion written all over her face, which only added gasoline to the fire.
“What the fuck is she doing here?” Krysta yelled with her hands fisted at her sides. “I swear on our parents, may they rest in peace. Paxton, if you even entertain the thought, I will kick both of your asses here and now.”
He held up a hand to Krysta. “Give me some credit.” He turned toward his ex. “Gillian, you’re barking up the wrong tree. Once upon a time we could’ve been great, but not now. Or ever. Thanks for the laugh, but I have to go pick up my girlfriend now.”
Gillian didn’t try to hide the surprise on her face. “Girlfriend?”
Krysta jumped up with her fist in the air. “Hell yes. Let me grab my phone.”
He watched her run inside. “Wait, what?” Now he was the one that was confused.
Gutter Mouth picked that moment to pull up on his Harley. He lifted his helmet off and glared at Gillian. “What the hell did I miss, dude?”
Krysta stormed out of the house like a woman on a mission, slamming his front door behind her hard enough to rattle the windows. “We’re going to get Cori.” She beamed.
Gutter Mouth shut off his engine. “Count me in.”
“Shot gun!” Krysta teased and ran for the front passenger door. She made it a moment before Gutter Mouth and being the brat she was, she stuck her tongue out at him before hopping inside. “I win.”
“This time, kitten.” He grinned.
What the hell was going on? Deciding it was best to just go with the flow for once, he hurried to his truck. He’d just opened the door when he remembered Gillian was still standing there, dumbstruck.
“We gotta go. It’s over. Don’t come back here.” He got in, closing the door. “By the way,” he called. “That lipstick looks whorish. I’d rethink that color.”
And off they went.
It seemed as though he had been driving for days when in reality it had only been a couple of hours. Since Krysta had Brianna’s address, he was able to show up unannounced and uninvited. All women loved that. Yeah, right. He pulled up to a small white ranch-style house. The front lawn was manicured nicely. Flowery bushes lined the front under the windows. He wondered if Cori had a hand in its conception.
Her car was sitting in the driveway. He suddenly felt nervous. No, he wasn’t going to chicken out. He was going to do this.
“You two wait here.”
Krysta pouted. “Aww, come on. I wanna watch you grovel. Ass face here does too.”
Paxton smiled at her. “Abso-fuckin-lutely not.”
“At least we can see if she slaps the shit outta him,” Gutter Mouth chimed in.
Krysta shrugged. “True.”
Paxton took a deep breath and got out of his truck. He should have stopped for flowers, but between his nerves and the two adult children he’d had bickering the whole ride, he’d completely forgot. He knocked on the front door. Maybe he should have called instead. Maybe he should have—
His mind went blank as Cori opened the door. Fuck. She was beautiful. She just stood there, staring at him.
Say something, he mentally scolded himself. Only he didn’t know what to say. I’m an asshole, please forgive me? “Hello,” he blurted.
“What are you doing here?” She looked around him to where his truck sat. Gutter Mouth and Krysta had their faces in the window and Krysta was smiling and waving like a happy circus monkey. Why did he bring them? Oh, that’s right, they didn’t give him a choice.
“I came for you.” He held up his hand to silence whatever it was she had been about to say. “Let me say this, please.”
She nodded her head. He couldn’t read her expression at all. It was now or never and his gut told him not to lose this woman. Swallowing his pride, he hoped what he had to say would be enough.
“I’m sorry. I should have never let you walk away. I was scared. I didn’t think I was good enough for you. I still don’t, but I’m a selfish bastard and I want you anyway. I know I hurt you, but if you give me a chance, I’ll make it up to you. I think there’s something here worth fighting for. I think you feel it too. Please, Cori. I’ve missed the fuck out of you. Come home.”
***
Cori
She couldn’t believe Paxton was standing in front of her, much less saying that he had missed her. She had so many emotions running through her that she couldn’t hold them back any longer. Tears streamed down her face. Concern and uncertainty showed clearly on his. She smiled at him. This beast of a man that she was crazy about was here and he wanted to be with her. She opened the screen door and threw her arms around him.
“Paxton,” she whispered.
Krysta and Gutter Mouth catcalled from his truck and they both laughed.
He squeezed her tighter. “Did I have you at hello?”
She looked up at him. “Not even close.”
He smirked. “No?”
“You came for me. You took your sweet ass time, but you came for me.”
“Come home with me, Cori.”
“I want to, but…” She lowered her head in defeat. “I just can’t stay in that house. Not yet.”
He slipped his calloused fingers under her chin, lifting her head. “Who said anything about you staying in that house?”
“I don’t understand?” She didn’t dare say what she had hoped he meant.
He cupped her face in both of his hands and looked into her eyes. “I said, come home with me. I want you in my house. No, make that our house. In our bed, because, sweetheart, I have a whole lot of making up to do to you.”
His grin ignited everything inside of her. She wanted him to start right this very minute. Unfortunately, Krysta and Gutter Mouth were still watching intently from the truck.
“So should I go get my things now or send for them later?” She giggled.
“You won’t be needing anything except my shirt for a few days. Leave it all.”
Paxton slipped an arm under her butt and threw her over his shoulder in a fireman’s carry. Swinging her around, he started marching toward his truck.
“Paxton,” she screamed through her laughter. “I need my purse and my phone.” He continued to walk like a man on a mission. “Paxton, I need to lock the door.”
Paxton opened the truck door and placed her inside. He swung her legs in and shut the door. He turned to Gutter Mouth and Krysta, who were both in the back seat now. “Don’t let her go anywhere.” He winked at her before turning back to the house.
A few minutes later, he emerged with her purse in one hand and her phone in the other. He raised them both in the air like prizes while he jogged back to her. He handed them over through the open window.
“Thank you.”
He grinned like a kid before rounding the truck to get in. Once inside, he leaned over, slipping his hand behind her neck. She felt her pulse quicken before his lips even touched hers. He pulled her forward and claimed her lips. His kiss was intense and thorough. It took her breath away.
Krysta leaned over the front seat. “Okay, can we just get home now?”
“Yeah, yeah,” Paxton responded. He started the truck and headed for the highway. Paxton took her hand, lifted it to his lips, and placed a soft kiss on her knuckles. Without letting her hand go, he veered onto the highway headed home.