Chapter 5 Wes
Wes
Sometimes I’m not sure why I became friends with Jameson. He’s a cool guy, and I like helping around his family’s property and working with the horses. He calls it equine therapy, but I don’t like to think of it as therapy because then I feel like it takes some of the enjoyment out of it for me.
I do it because I want to, not because something is wrong with me.
However, I’m questioning this friendship because this is the second get together in a short amount of time. And then we still have his wedding coming up. I offered to officiate, though I’m somewhat regretting that now.
The only thing I’m not regretting is how much I’m getting to see Bailey and watching how she interacts with others. Every time I’m involved she scowls at me or has some sort of snarky comment or remark to say. Both of which I enjoy more than I should.
But it’s also interesting to watch how she is with her friends and even with strangers. There’s something about her, a darkness behind her eyes. She doesn’t smile a lot and I don’t know much about her as a person but I can tell she hides from most everyone, even those closest to her.
I recognize it because I’m the same way.
I would never tell her that, and I’m sure she would rather chop my balls off than hear we have something in common.
Except maybe our preferences in the bedroom.
Those seem to be a perfect match, if our one night together is any indication.
I’d love to see if a second time would be just as good or even better.
“You going to join everyone else, Wes?” a soft voice asks, and I look down to see Jameson’s mom, Emily, smiling up at me. She’s the only person around here that knows even a fraction of my story.
I don’t have my own parents to talk to about anything, not that I would anyway, but Emily’s presence is so peaceful and calming that she managed to get me to share a couple of things.
Though, it felt like I was talking to the horses more than to her, but even then she never seemed to pity me. She didn’t say a word, just listened.
“I’m just observing,” I tell her honestly, leaning against the wall as I nurse my now lukewarm beer.
The people around me often feel like too much.
I find myself more comfortable observing and hidden in the background.
Interacting too much can drain me, but sitting back and watching gives me breathing room.
“I see that. You could talk to her instead of standing here staring like a creep?”
I scoff. “I’m not staring like a creep.”
“I raised a stubborn boy already, you know.”
“I’m just trying to stay out of the way.”
“You don’t need to. As much as you’d like that wall to suck you in, it’s not going to. Try to enjoy yourself.” Emily walks over to Jameson, squeezing his arm before walking over to Sutton who pulls her in for a hug.
I watch Bailey’s face as she observes these two women who clearly have a close bond smile as they say something to each other.
Bailey looks uncomfortable, shifting on her feet and looking around as though she’s trying to avoid watching them.
Her gaze lands on mine, and just like it always does, her eyes narrow.
She mouths, “What?”
I just shake my head, bringing the rim of the bottle to my lips for a drink while she keeps glaring at me.
It’s enough to have me pushing off the wall and walking toward her, and I see the questioning look on her face as I do.
The other people she was standing with, including Lily and Sutton, don’t seem to notice her start to inch away as I get closer.
“You like something you see? Because you keep staring.” My voice is low so others can’t hear me.
“Just wondering what you’re even doing here; vampires usually can’t come out during daylight.”
“You’ve seen me outside in the sun, clearly not a vampire.”
“I’m still not convinced.”
“I willingly helped your friend and I’ve yet to hear a thank you from you.” I move a little closer to her, my shoulder brushing hers.
“Nobody forced you to help.”
“No, knowing you owe me something is enough.”
She rears back slightly. “I don’t owe you anything.”
The corner of my lip quirks up slightly. “Don’t worry, I’ll make sure to cash in soon.”
I don’t give her a chance to retort before I’m walking away and joining the small group of people, even though it makes my skin itch trying to be social. I push through because I know I’m getting under Bailey’s skin and it only makes it worse when she can’t do anything about it.
To some, my job as an Apache pilot is unreal, a lot of people really don’t think about what we do. To me, it’s just another day’s work. We lift off into the air, the heavy machinery moves easily under my control as we navigate the sky.
We’re preparing to do just that, the anticipation always gets to me while we inspect the choppers before heading out.
There’s a loud booming sound.
“What the fuck?” my copilot, Chris, exclaims.
I’m looking around, searching for the threat.
A flash of light.
Another booming sound.
There’s yelling to take cover. But I try to grab anyone I see to take them with me. Chris drags me down, stopping me from running out toward anyone else.
More booms, more explosions, there’s dirt, debris, and metal pieces flying everywhere. There’s no time for emotion, all we have is pure adrenaline. We do everything we can to remain calm as the world around us explodes and we’re unable to do anything to stop it.
There’s another boom even closer, this one makes my ears ring. There’s a pain in my leg that’s so bad I’m blinded by it. Then everything goes black.
I jolt awake, heart racing and drenched in sweat.
My breaths come in sharp, uneven gasps as I struggle to orient myself in the darkness.
The scar on my leg pulses with a deep, familiar ache.
A reminder of the metal buried beneath the skin, fused to me since the surgery.
I’m wide awake now, tangled in the sheets.
Dropping my head into my hands, I try to calm myself as the memories from that day assault me.
We all understand what we might experience the day we sign up for the military, but nothing prepares you for it actually happening. I know sleep is going to evade me for the rest of the night. Needing to distract myself, I throw on some clothes, grab my keys, and drive out into the night.
By the time I get back home, the sun is rising, haloing the trees in a soft glow. I cut the engine and just sit in silence. I wait for the exhaustion to hit me, wait to feel anything, but the numbness has taken over. It always does. It’s never if, it just depends on how long it takes to get here.
There’s a pounding on my window and I immediately go into defense mode.
When I see it’s Bailey standing there, my shoulders relax.
Instead of rolling down the window, I open the door and step out.
She’s tall for a woman, and it’s one of the things I liked about her from the start, but right now as I tower over her with the half a foot I have on her, the numbness begins to fade away.
Even while she scowls at me, I feel myself drawn to her even more.
“What’s the problem, Angel?”
The nickname only makes her scowl deepen, which also has my dick hardening. It may be inconvenient, but another outlet when I feel this way has been sex. Until that stopped helping and started to leave me feeling worse afterwards.
Except when it was with her. That one time felt different. And nothing has felt the same since.
“You waking up the entire street this early is my fucking problem.”
I look down and notice she already looks dressed and ready for the day in jeans and a basic shirt, her unofficial uniform for work.
“Looks like you were already awake.”
“That doesn’t mean everyone else is.”
“Are you the neighborhood noise police?” I step closer to her and she doesn’t back away from me at all.
“No, it’s called being a decent person.”
“Hm,” I hum, making a point to look down her entire body in an exaggerated way one more time. “You and I both know you’re not as decent as you want everyone else to think.”
She rolls her eyes, and I wrap my hand around the back of her neck, hauling her even closer to me as she gasps.
“What did I tell you about rolling your eyes at me?”
She swallows roughly, then shrugs, but I don’t miss the way she tamps down the smile that threatens to appear.
“Don’t test me, Angel. Next time I might not be able to let you walk away.”
I hear her sharp intake of breath and for a second, I don’t think she wants me to let her go. I think she may even fight it and beg me to close the small distance between us.
But she doesn’t.
Instead, my grip loosens on her and she backs away looking surprised with herself, shaking her head. “You can’t make me do anything.”
My jaw tightens as I watch her get in her car to leave. The numbness from before is long gone, replaced by the fire under my skin. I’m dying to touch her, to make her deal with the situation she caused. The one that is making my pants feel impossibly tight.
One day, I’m sure I’ll feel Bailey Collee again. And she’s going to see how much I was holding back that first night. The one and only time I will.