Since I was little, I always swore I wanted someone who looked at me like Dad looks at Mom. Of course as I got older I realized that men like my dad and uncles were an anomaly.
I move to step out of the room, but my dad’s voice stops me. “Hey honey.” I turn to look at him. “What time is it?” He covers his mouth as he yawns.
“After twelve, I was just coming down to take a muscle relaxer and a pain pill.” I sit on the arm of the sofa.
His brow furrows. “Do you need to go to the hospital? Are you okay?”
I shake my head. “No, I’m just a little sore and couldn’t get comfortable.”
“Do you need anything?”
“No, Dad. I’m okay, I promise.” I stand up. “I love you.”
“I love you too, sweetheart. Try to get some sleep. Hopefully you won’t be so sore tomorrow.”
In the kitchen, I grab my meds and pop them into my mouth, swallowing them down with a glass of water. I head back up to my room and climb back into bed. I’m lying on my back, trying to find sleep when I hear a knock and then the door opens slowly.
“Hi baby girl. Daddy says you were downstairs to get some pain meds. Are they helping?” Mom sits down at the side of my bed. She brushes my hair out of my face.
“A little. I just can’t get comfortable. Maverick sent me a message. He wanted to see how I was.” I’ve always been able to tell Mom anything. She’s always encouraged us to be open and honest with each other.
“That was nice of him. Tomorrow I’m taking him some meals so he doesn’t have to worry about feeding himself. You can come with me if you’re up to it—see how he’s doing for yourself.”
I grab Mom’s hand and kiss it. “That’d be nice.” I cover my mouth as I yawn widely. My eyes suddenly feel heavy.
“I think your medicine is kicking in.” She leans down, kissing my forehead. “I love you beautiful girl.”
As soon as she steps out, I finally fall asleep.
I climb out of Mom’s minivan and wait for her on the sidewalk. We head up the walkway to an adorable gray siding and red brick craftsman style home. The covered porch needs a porch swing, and then it would be the perfect reading spot.
The door opens and Maverick stands in the doorway. A yellow lab comes toward us, wagging its tail. “You guys didn’t need to do this,” he says as he looks between the two of us, and then his eyes stay locked on mine.
“Oh honey, it was no trouble. It’s the least I can do after you looked after Gwen.” Mom steps inside.
I don’t think twice, I walk right up to Maverick, wrapping my arms around him. I’m almost sure he’s going to push me away, but instead he wraps his arms around me too.
“You doing okay?” he asks quietly.
I nod. “Yeah. I actually had to take a pain pill and muscle relaxer so I could sleep last night. How are you?”
“Same; sore and stiff.” He lets go of me and leads me into his place. We follow my mom into the kitchen where she’s placing containers into his refrigerator. “Mrs. Malone, I appreciate the food, but it’s not really necessary.”
Mom shuts the refrigerator and stands right in front of him. “It’s no bother and I’m happy to do it. It takes one thing off your plate while you’re healing. We won’t keep you, but please…” Mom grabs Maverick’s hands. “Please let us know if you need anything.”
“I will, thank you.”
He walks us to the door and I squat down and give Maverick’s dog a quick rub. Mom hugs Maverick before heading out the door. He reaches out and helps me stand.
“See you later,” I say before stepping outside.
Once I’m back inside Mom’s minivan, she pulls away from the curb. I turn my head as we drive away and see he’s standing on the porch watching us as we disappear down the street.
I face forward and close my eyes. The meds from this morning are starting to wear off, which means my headache is back and my chest is starting to hurt. To keep the seatbelt from rubbing against my chest, I put the strap that goes across it, behind me. Mom wasn’t thrilled with me having just the belt around my waist, but I wanted to come and the belt across my chest hurt too much.
“Are you okay, honey?” I feel Mom grab my hand.
“Just sore, the meds are wearing off.”
Once we’re home, I take my meds and head up to bed. Marcie is coming over to hang out tonight and I wanted to be rested so I don’t fall asleep on her. I grab my phone and check my email. I respond to a couple of fans and post some teaser photos from my Fiji trip.
I start feeling sleepy so I lie down, close my eyes, and fade into la-la land.
The raucous sound of metal crunching causes me to fly up in bed, clutching my chest, and panting. I look around me and realize I’m in bed at home. I turn to sit on the side of the bed. My hands tremble as I lift them to push my sweaty hair out of my face.
My bedroom door opens and Taylor and Marcie come in. Their smiles immediately fall. Marcie squats down in front of me. “What’s wrong? Are you okay?”
“Yeah sis, you’re really pale.” Taylor turns her head. “Mom,” she yells, and I put both hands to my head. “Sorry,” she says quietly.
Mom comes in and looks between the three of us. “Girls, give us a minute.”
They both disappear into the hallway and close the door behind them. Mom sits down next to me, brushing some of my hair back. “You’re all sweaty. Are you feeling sick?” She places her hand against my forehead. “You don’t feel warm, but you are clammy. What is it, baby?”
“Nothing, I just woke with a start. My heart was racing and I was confused,” I tell her. I lay my head on her shoulder, mindful of the staples in my scalp. “I could hear metal crunching.”
She kisses my forehead. “You went through a trauma, baby. That’s completely normal and if it doesn’t stop, I want you to tell me and we’ll find someone for you to talk to.”
“I will, promise.”
Mom kisses my forehead one more time and then steps out of the room.
Taylor comes in, shutting the door behind her. “Marcie went to get you ice cream.”
I nod, and then lie down on my side. My sister crawls into bed with me so we’re lying face to face. We’ve done this since we were little girls. She grabs my hands in hers. “Are you okay?”
“Yes, I promise.” I lean in. “Can I tell you something? You can’t tell anyone.”
“I won’t, I promise. What’s up?”
I take a deep breath. “Maverick and I had sex.”
“What? When?”
“When we were trapped in the van—it just sort of happened. One minute I was freaking out and the next minute he was kissing me. Things were fast, but intense and so amazing.” I close my eyes. “When they were rescuing us, he wrapped himself around me to protect me.”
Taylor wraps her arm around my waist. “Are you into him? We told you, he’s a player.”
“I’m not, just thankful for him being there for me. Plus when I was out running one morning I saw him leaving Tawney Jacob’s house. You know how I feel about her.”