Chapter 18
Asher
Everyone is silent for the entire forty-five minute ride back home. I’m dying to ask Clara a million questions, but I just want to get her home safe.
I keep glancing behind us, making sure we’re not being followed.
I want to hold her but I can’t sit still.
I’m dying to get my hands on the guy. Even from the other side of the rink, I could tell he was hurting her.
And the fact that he had his dirty hands on her to begin with makes my blood boil with rage.
I’m dreading the conversation, but I’m hoping she realizes it’s time to tell us the full extent of what’s going on. There is no way for us to protect her properly if she doesn’t.
When Leo pulls into the driveway and switches the engine off, Clara reaches for her door, but I grab her hand and tug her gently towards me. “Come out this door.” She frowns but obeys, soothing the part of me that needs to take care of her without explanation.
I help her down then wrap my arm around her as my head constantly swivels to take in our surroundings, looking for threats.
Grant unlocks the front door, and I guide her inside. We all remove our winter gear, and I grab her hand again, leading her to the living room and guiding her to sit in the middle of the couch. I take a seat on the coffee table, right in front of her as Grant and Leo sit on either side of her.
I lean towards her, resting my forearms on my knees as I press my fingers together and watch her nervous face.
“Clara, we want to help you. But you’re going to have to do some explaining. We need details.”
She nods her head as she nervously eyes all of us.
“Well, to start, my name isn’t Clara Wolf. It’s Rosalie Ralston.”
My eyes widen in shock. I had not expected that.
“Who’s Clara?” Leo asks as she turns to him.
“I made her up, I needed a fake ID. I chose the name Clara because I love Christmas and it’s from the Nutcracker, and Wolf is from the Tenth Kingdom, my mom and my favorite movie.”
My brows furrow as I try to piece things together. She arrived in this town with a fake name and bruises all over her body. We knew it had been from an ex, but I didn’t actually realize she was in hiding.
“You’re on the run from him,” I say, getting her attention back on me. “Why? He hurt you, why didn’t you go to the police?”
“I tried,” she says, her hands fiddling with her sleeve cuffs nervously. “When they went to talk to him, he had bruises, too, and said he was just defending himself.” My brow furrows. “I swear I never hit him!”
I reach forward and grab her hand. “It’s okay, Clar—Rosalie.” Her name feels strange on my tongue, but I instantly decide it suits her better. “We know you didn’t. He was obviously manipulating the situation.”
She nods and licks her lips. “Are you mad?”
“Mad?” Grant asks.
“That I lied… about my name?”
“Of course not. You know you don’t have to hide anything from us now, right?”
She bites her lip nervously as she stares at Grant, then she nods once and lets out what looks like a breath of relief.
“I met him a few months after my mom had passed. I had been a bit depressed and felt really alone. But when Scott came into the picture, that changed. He was kind and nice, he brought me gifts and he helped to take care of me, to pull me from my depression. He constantly told me how pretty I was and how much he loved me.”
My eye twitches at the use of that word. She loved that asshole? I keep her hand pressed between mine, gently rubbing the back, as she continues her story.
“We moved in together after a couple months, but pretty quickly, he started to change. But it wasn’t instant.
There were still a lot of moments of the sweet version of him, the one who would bring me flowers and compliment me.
But the insults started to come out more and more.
And I got the first glimpse of his anger. ”
She stops to clear her throat, and Leo jumps up. “I’ll get you some water.”
“Thanks, Leo.” She waits until he comes back, passes her a big glass of ice water, and she drinks a third of it before continuing.
“The first time, he hit me in the side. I went to the police and… well, I told you how that went. When I got home, I expected him to be angry, but he was apologetic and said it would never happen again. He was good for a week, and I started to actually think he genuinely felt bad.”
“But he didn’t,” I say, making her look at me.
She sighs and shakes her head. “He was just placating me.”
“What did he do?” I can feel my anger boiling beneath my skin, but I try to remain calm. I need to hear it all. I need to know the reason when I’m kicking his ass. And if his crimes are bad enough… I know people who could get rid of him for good.
“He punched me… in the face. Then he threatened to get me committed.”
“Committed?” Leo asks in confusion.
“Yeah, I…”
“Sweetheart,” Grant says, taking her glass of water and setting it on the table beside me before grabbing her hand. “You can tell us anything; we won’t look at you differently.”
She licks her lips then tells us, “After losing my parents within a year of each other, I was a bit of a mess. I went to a mental health facility to try to get myself some help. I was only there for a week.”
“Did it? Help?” Leo asks.
“Sort of. The place was actually really scary, and I knew I didn’t want to be there any longer than necessary, so I forced myself to get my emotions under control so I could leave.”
“And then you met Scott, who took advantage of your weakened state of mind,” Grant says, fitting the pieces together.
I see a flash of guilt cross her face, and I frown, trying to read between the lines of what she just told us.
“Rosalie?” She glances up at me. “Where did you meet Scott?”
“I—” she cuts herself off, glancing at the other two before looking back at me, her shoulders dropping in defeat. “He was the psychiatrist at the facility I was being treated at.”
“That motherfucker!” Leo exclaims, and I feel my nostrils flare as I try to contain my anger for the man.
“Jesus Christ,” Grant whispers, falling back against the back of the couch and pushing his free hand through his hair.
“You’re all mad,” Rosalie whispers, her eyes bouncing between us.
“Come here, baby,” I say, reaching forward and lifting her up.
I take her place on the couch between the other two and sit her in my lap sideways.
I hold her head against my chest and I tell her, “We’re livid at him.
He had an extreme position of power over you and took complete advantage of that.
And he definitely broke the rules. I’m sure there is a policy in place at the facility that says the staff can’t date the patients. ”
“We didn’t start dating until he released me.”
“That fucker took complete advantage of you. He released you before you were ready just so he could keep you under his control in the real world, knowing you’d need him.”
She’s quiet for a few minutes, seeming to take in everything I’ve said. “So what he did was wrong?”
“What state was this in?” Grant asks, and we both turn to look at him on his phone.
“Colorado,” she tells him.
His lips press together, and he turns to look at her. “What he did was illegal. It’s considered sexual misconduct or possibly even sexual assault. At the very least, they should have fired him and revoked his license.”
“Is that why he’s following me? Does he think I’m going to the cops or something?”
“Has he been following you this whole time?” I ask with concern.
“Well, I’m not sure, exactly.”
“Before today, had you seen him since you ran?” I ask.
She nods as a look of pain and fear crosses her face.
“Tell me? Please?” I whisper the last word, and she rests her head against my chest as she answers.
“About two weeks after I ran, he found me at a bus terminal. He dragged me through the parking lot, but when I saw his car, I freaked out. I couldn’t go back with him.
And he…” I wrap my arms around her tighter, hoping it will help ground her in the present here with me, with us.
“He beat me. The bruises you saw on my neck and side, they were from that night.”
“But you got away,” Grant says.
“A couple of people saw what was happening, and when they called out, he took off. They tried to help me, but I jumped on the bus, wanting to get away from that town as fast as possible.”
“So you went from town to town looking for a cash-paying job and cheap accommodations,” Grant surmises. She nods.
“And that’s how you ended up here, working on the holiday train and living at the crack house,” Leo concludes.
“Yep, now you know it all.” She pauses for a moment before asking, “You’re not going to fire me, or kick me out, are you? I mean, I’d understand if you did, but can you give me the night to—”
“Baby,” I cut her off, using the crook of my finger to lift her chin so she’s looking me in the eyes. “You’re not going anywhere.” Seeing her blue eyes looking worried as she sits in my lap, I’m unable to control my impulses as I lean forward and press my lips to hers.
The kiss is quick, a mere peck, but it still makes my dick start to harden with eagerness.
She bites her lips as her eyes bounce between mine. “Why don’t you go get ready for bed? We’ll have a relaxed night in our pjs, watching Christmas movies,” I suggest, not really wanting her to get up but afraid if she stays she’ll feel my dick getting hard.
Her smile is filled with relief and gratitude as she nods her head. “Okay, thanks.” She jumps to her feet and glances at the other two as she adds. “For everything. I don’t know what I'd do without the three of you.” She smiles again, somewhat more hesitant this time before she heads upstairs.
As soon as she’s out of sight, Leo states the obvious. “You kissed her.”
“So did you,” Grant says in defense.
“And you,” I say, turning my head to Grant.
He frowns. “How did you know?”
“You just told me.”
“Asshole.” He half-heartedly punches me in the shoulder.