Chapter 29
CHAPTER TWENTY-NINE
JAKE
G rabbing her hand tightly, I walk with her down the hallway to her mother’s room. I’ve been on edge all week since we found out he’s looking for her. The security guards have no new information and haven’t heard from him since.
I glance in the rooms as we pass by them and see patients walking around or watching TV. Hospitals have always given me the creeps, and this one is no different. It looks nice enough, but there’s something off that I can’t put my finger on.
Lyla stops when we get to her mom’s room. She hesitates before turning to me.
“I’m not sure what you will see when we walk in. Sometimes, she will talk to me, and other times, she just stares out the window. I just can’t seem to break through to her.”
“Maybe my irresistible charm will work,” I tease, wanting to make her smile.
“It worked on me, so it’s worth a shot,” she gives a sad laugh before opening the door.
It’s a small room with minimal furniture. A twin bed sits against one wall, and a small dresser on the opposite. A woman with a touch of grey in her brunette hair sits with her back to us in an oversized chair facing the window.
I follow Lyla and sit beside her at a small round table facing her mom.
“Hi, Mom.” Lyla’s voice filters softly through the air.
You can tell she’s a beautiful woman like her daughter. They look so much alike that I’m taken aback. She has the same big caramel eyes with long lashes, but as she stares at Lyla, I notice how vacant they are. There’s no life to them. A deep sadness seeps into your bones when you gaze into them.
“I want you to meet someone. This is Jake,” she says, taking my hand. “He’s very special to me, and I wanted you to meet him. You will love him, Mom. He reminds me so much of Dad,” she says with a small smile. “He has the biggest heart and treats me just how I know Dad would have wanted me to be treated.”
Her mom turns to me, and for a brief second, I see something flash…something real. It’s gone in the next blink, replaced with the emptiness that has taken over.
“It’s nice to meet you, Mrs. Pierce. Lyla has told me so much about you. You have an amazing daughter here,” I smile but get nothing back.
I hear Lyla sigh, and I squeeze her hand. The nurse comes in and hands her mom a cup full of pills. She takes them without question and stares back out the window once the nurse leaves.
The view is of the parking lot, and I frown. I’m feeling depressed just looking at it, so I can’t imagine how she feels staring at it endlessly day after day…if she’s even focused on it.
“Where’s Tim?” I whip my head to the sound of her mom’s voice. Lyla’s eyes widen before she looks over at me.
“I’m…I’m no longer with Tim.”
“Good,” she says, keeping her eyes on the window. “I didn’t like his eyes. ”
Lyla grips my hand tight and leans forward. “How? I never brought him with me, Mom. You never met him.”
“You can’t trust eyes like that. He has a dark side.” She ignores Lyla’s question as I get up and kneel in front of her.
“Mrs. Pierce. Did Tim come to see you?” I block her view, hoping she will focus on me. Her light brown eyes blink before meeting mine.
“He would come to talk to my nurse a lot at the other place. Wanted to make sure I was taking my meds.” She seems to be studying me, but I can’t tell from the blank stare she’s giving me. “You do remind me of Sean. He had nice eyes, too.” Recognition of a memory flashes across her features, and I get a glimpse of the woman trapped inside before it disappears again.
“Mom, why didn’t you tell me Tim came to see you?” Lyla takes her hand as I stand up, trying to put the pieces together. I walk over to the window as my thoughts race.
“Mom?” Lyla asks again but gets no answer. I glance back and see she is more gone than when we arrived.
“I’m tired,” her mom says, making it clear our conversation is over. Lyla walks with her to her bed and covers her with a blanket.
“I’ll be back soon, Mom. I love you,” she whispers, kissing her forehead gently. She brushes back the tears when she doesn’t get a response. I feel a deep ache in my chest as I watch a daughter wanting so desperately to have her mom back.
We say our goodbyes and leave the room quietly, her mom’s eyes already beginning to close.
She’s silent as I help her into the truck and head out of town.
“Do you know what meds they have your mom on?” She stops looking out the window to look at me.
“I’m not sure..why?”
“I’m just wondering why Tim would come by to talk to her nurse and ask about her medication. Something is not sitting right with me. Did he pick the place, or did you?”
“He did. He took care of all the paperwork and financial part. He told me he had heard good things about the place and that she would be taken really good care of. What are you thinking?” She studies my reaction as I focus back on the road.
“I don’t know yet. It’s just this gut feeling that something isn’t right. When I was talking to her, I swear I saw the real her for a second…like a glimmer of who she was before. Then she took all those pills the nurse gave her, and she got more vacant the longer we sat there.”
“The doctors at the first facility said it would be normal for her to come in and out of it. They diagnosed her with severe depression along with a dissociation disorder of some kind. When someone goes through something traumatic, it can trigger an emotional numbness where they shut themselves off from the outside world because the pain is too much. I guess losing my dad was just too much for her.”
“When you had her moved to this new place, did they go over her medical records with you or change any of her medications?”
She furrows her brow in concentration. “I had copies made of her medical records, and as far as I know, her meds haven’t changed.”
“I’m probably just overthinking everything.” I turn to smile at her. “She’s very pretty,” I say, wanting to lighten the mood and take away the worry on her face that I caused. “You both look a lot alike.”
“She is,” she smiles. “Dad always used to call me her little mini-me, and she always called me her beautiful Lyla Rose. She loved her rose bushes so much that she named me after them. Lyla Rose Pierce .” A sad look briefly crosses her face, and I squeeze her hand.
“I didn’t know your middle name was Rose. It suits you,” I smile. “She’s still in there, Lyla. She just got lost for a little bit, but if there’s a way for her to come back to you, she will find it.”
“Do you really believe that?” She looks at me with her big doe eyes, and I want more than anything for it to be true for her.
“I do,” I smile.
Unbuckling her seatbelt, she moves closer to me and fastens herself back in. Lifting my arm, she snuggles in close, and I kiss the top of her head. The truck lulls her to sleep moments later as she rests against my chest.
I try to ease some of the tension coursing through my body, but I’m like a tight coil ready to spring. I can’t shake this gut feeling that Tim was way more involved with her mother’s care than just paying the bills. All I know is if he can find her mom, then it’s only a matter of time before he finds Lyla, and I’ll be ready when he does.
A few hours later, we finally pull up to the house, and I turn off the engine as the garage door closes.
Lyla’s been sleeping on and off the whole way back. I know this has taken a toll on her the past couple of weeks. I’ve held her more times than I can count when she wakes up shaking from a nightmare.
I gently brush back her hair and watch her eyelashes flutter before her eyes find mine.
“Hey,” I say softly. “We’re home.”
“I’m the worst road trip buddy ever.” She sits up and smiles sleepily. “I must have been more tired than I thought. I couldn’t keep my eyes open on the way home. What time is it?”
“After midnight. And yeah, you are the worst road trip buddy. You snored the whole way home and drooled on my shirt.” I wipe the nonexistent wet spot on my shirt, causing her to laugh.
“I did not snore or drool on you.” Her eyes shine with laughter, and nothing makes me happier than seeing her smile.
She scoots up on her knees and swings her leg over me in the driver’s seat. She’s straddling me in seconds, and my hands slide up her bare thighs to cup her ass under her blue sundress.
“I do, however, want to make it up to you for the sleeping part. Every road trip should have at least one instance where we do more than just drive in the vehicle.
Her hands wrap around my neck and sink into my hair. When her pussy rubs against the front of my pants, I close my eyes at the sheer bliss she creates in my body.
“I couldn’t agree more,” I growl out, piercing her with a hooded look.
A sexy smile plays on her lips when she realizes I’m all in for making this road trip last just a little bit longer.
“Come here,” I say, grabbing the back of her neck and bringing her lips to mine. I dive in and tangle my tongue with hers. Her fingers grip my hair tighter as I pull her bottom lip between my teeth before deepening the kiss.
She moves against me, and my dick strains hard against the fabric wanting to break free of the restraints. I lower the straps of her dress and push her bra down, exposing those beautiful tits to me. Taking a tight nipple in my mouth, I suck hard while teasing the other one.
Her moan shoots straight to my cock as she throws her head back and arches her chest further into me, giving me complete access to do as I please.
I feel her hands claw at my shirt, and I quickly remove it before feasting on her again. Nails scrape down my back, and I groan in pleasure as she loses control with me. Her hands lower to the waistband of my pants before they fumble with the button and zipper.
When her palm slides down the length of me, a deep guttural moan penetrates the air as she squeezes me. One touch from her has the ability to make me lose myself.
She frees me from my boxer briefs and strokes me long and hard. I feel my arousal leak out as pre-cum coats my tip. She’s swiping it with her finger and sucking on it with her next breath. I stare, mesmerized, as she enjoys my taste with a look of sheer seduction on her face.
There’s not an ounce of the timid girl I first met in front of me. She’s confident, sexy, and knows exactly the power she has over me. For her, I will gladly drop to my knees and worship her till my last breath.
My hand moves to her pussy, and I easily slide her panties to the side and sink a finger in deep. Her eyes roll back in her head with a moan as I slide another one in. She’s soaking wet for me, just the way I like, as I tease her before removing my hand.
She whimpers when I stop, and a smirk plays on my lips. “You got to taste what’s yours, so it’s only fair I get to taste what’s mine.” I suck my fingers clean and can feel the dampness between her legs seep onto the side of my cock.
Her eyes hungrily watch me enjoy my treat as I force myself to let this play out a little longer. I want her at her breaking point and begging to have my cock inside her.
“Touch your breasts for me. I want to watch you tease yourself,” I say in a low voice, laying back against the seat.
She does what I ask like a good girl, and my cock hardens further when she squeezes her breasts and moans as she gets herself worked up. Her fingers tease and pull her nipples, and I feel her hips start to move as she tries to relieve the ache between her legs .
“Now, touch your pussy.” Her eyes flick open to meet mine, and for a second, I think she will be too shy. I know we had phone sex, but she hasn’t masturbated with me right in front of her yet. I see the moment she accepts my challenge as her eyes go dark with curiosity and the need to please me.
Her hand slides down her belly before cupping her center. I watch her rub her palm over her mound, and my cock feels like granite against my stomach.
“Lie back on the steering wheel,” I say quietly. I rip her panties in one tear as her pussy comes more into view. Her eyes widen in shock as I throw them on the seat next to me. “Now slide two fingers in.” I see her throat move as she swallows before I focus on her hand. She lies back further, and I couldn’t tear my eyes away from her now…no more than I could live without air.
Her fingers sink in, and her head falls back in pleasure as she moves against her hand. I grip her thighs tight to keep myself from diving in as I watch her fuck herself. Her other hand squeezes and teases her breast while she works herself into a state of pure sexual need.
Her little sighs and moans have me biting down so hard that my jaw aches from the pressure. I don’t move, though. Not until I hear it.
She moves her hips up higher, trying to bring her release, but without my words or my touch, she’s struggling to get herself there.
“Jake…please. I need you,” she begs with a plea.
That’s all I need to hear to lift her hips and fill her deep in my next breath. Her pussy molds around me, and I fight to stay in control of my body. I could easily cum now, but I hold off because I want more…so much fucking more when it co mes to her.
“Yes,” she rasps out as I stretch her to the max and bury myself so deep that there is no doubt she will feel me tomorrow.
“Is this what your pussy needed, little hummingbird?” I breathe out into her hair, holding her tight against me as I let her take over and ride me.
“Yes…God, yes,” she moans as her body takes what it needs.
Her breasts slide against me as a thin sheen of sweat breaks out on our bodies. Fingernails dig into my back as she holds on tight with each deep plunge onto my cock.
“That’s it, baby. Ride me until your sweet pussy gets what it needs.”
My words push her over the edge as I feel her body greedily squeeze me tight.
She cries out my name, and I grab her hips, slamming her down on me roughly as we shatter together.
“Fuck!” I loudly moan as my body pulses deep inside her. We both hungrily feed off one another, taking and giving every last sensation to be felt.
“Jesus Christ,” I pant against her neck as tremors wreck my body. “There’s no way in hell a condom would have held that. The whole damn thing would have burst wide open.”
She giggles against me, her head buried against my chest. “I hope I redeemed myself as the best road trip buddy in the whole wide world.”
“If road trips with you end like this, then I say instead of buying a house when we get married, we buy a goddamn RV and never look back.”
She lifts her head and meets my eyes. “That’s an awfully big promise you just made there.”
“Lucky for you, I never break my promises, especially to people I love. And you…I love you the most,” I grin, brushing her hair back over her shoulders .
“And I love you the most,” she says softly. “Thank you for coming with me today. It was easier having you there with me.”
“I’ll always be with you, Lyla. Nothing is ever going to change that.” I bring her close to my heart and hold her tight, knowing I’ll do whatever it takes to make it true.