Chapter 22
CHAPTER
TWENTY-TWO
JAMIE
C had’s hate-filled voice pummeled through my blissful orgasmic haze like a brick to the head. I coiled in on myself and clutched Dillon’s leg like it was the last defense between me and the end of the world. The sound of flesh hitting flesh had me squeezing my eyes shut and a whimper ripping out of my mouth.
The sound of thundering footsteps and raised voices grew louder and louder with every second that passed. My heart pounded in my skull and adrenaline flooded my system, making me shake so hard my teeth chattered. Dillon let loose a pained grunt and shoved me off him, the movement forcing me off the bed. I crashed to the floor with a shout. The impact forced my breath from my lungs, and copper burst across my tongue.
Fear consumed me, turning the blood in my veins to ice as images of my dad beating my mom half to death choosing this moment to assault my mind. One after another, they flashed behind my eyes in vivid technicolor. Bile churned in my gut and coated the back of my throat.
“What the fuck are you doing?” someone shouted. “Vieck, get Chad the fuck out of here.” I cowered, pushing myself flat against the carpet as each barked word felt like a physical blow.
“Ahh, shit. Stevens, get in here and help,” another voice ground out, strain evident in their tone.
“Chad. Chad? Chad! Come on, you dick, cool it. Or you’ll be on the bench.”
“Fuck you! I will not be benched for a fucking fa—” A loud thud echoed in the silence as something heavy hit the floor. I flinched at the sound it made when it landed. Tears leaked from my skewed-shut eyes as I whimpered.
“How much does he weigh? Ugh.”
“Three hundred or so, I reckon. He’s a big boy.”
“Haha. You can say that again.”
“Stop wasting time and throw his ass outside. The rest of you clear out while I check Cap over.” Heavy footsteps were accompanied by a low groan as bodies moved and followed instructions. A foreboding silence filled the room, and tension coiled through my body like a compressed spring. The pressure in my lungs didn’t abate as a shuddering breath stole through me.
“Dil, sit down. I need to clean you up.”
“Fuck off, B. I need to find him. Shit . Fuck!” I could just imagine Dillon carding his hands through his hair and yanking on the strands as frustration ate away at him. “Little crow, are you okay?” The soft words were closer than I’d expected, and the tentative hopefulness in his tone almost killed me.
The air around me felt charged, and apprehension slithered over my skin as I felt Dillon’s presence next to me. I refused to open my eyes, even when he stroked his fingers up and down my arm in a soothing motion. I wanted to lean into his touch and find solace in his arms, but I couldn’t. Not yet. It was too raw. I was undone and vulnerable in a way I wasn’t prepared for him to see. A garbled whimper left my lips, and I shook my head, unable to find the words to express myself.
“Jamie, please open your eyes. Come on, baby. It’s okay. He’s gone.” I wanted to believe him, but my mind rebelled, triggered by the fight that had broken out. All I could see was my dad’s face as he promised mom it was all over. Lies . That it had been a mistake and would never happen again. Lies. The pitch of his voice had burrowed under my skin and echoed through my mind. I hated it. I hated him for making me fear Dillon’s closeness, for making me want to recoil from his touch.
“Maybe he needs some space, Dil?”
“Fuck off, B. This doesn’t concern you.”
“Well, I’m here, so it kinda does.” I could hear the shrug in his voice but it didn’t make me want to venture outside of the space I’d created for myself in my mind. Here, I was safe. Here, I was untouchable.
“Baby,” Dillon breathed, his hot breath like a caress on my skin. His lips brushed over my cheek, and I shuddered. “I’m here, okay? Chad’s gone and won’t be back.” He kissed my temple in the sweetest way. It was a simple brush of his lips, one you’d miss if you blinked, but I felt it all the way to my heart. “Can I hold you?” I considered his request, the pained tone of his gravelly voice, and chose to be brave, to trust that he would never hurt me. I nodded the barest of movements.
Dillon’s strong arms wrapped around me, bracketing me in the safety of his embrace. The heat of his body dulled the sharp edges and thawed me from the inside out. I was safe. I was finally home. The place I’d been searching for for the last five years found me. Chose me.
“T-thank you.”
“Anything for you.” He kissed my cheek, and the ghost of a smile played over my lips.
My eyes fluttered closed as the exhaustion I’d been pushing down became too much to ignore. I needed to give my mind a chance to reset and rest. The trouble with suffering from nightmares and flashbacks from some of the worst moments of your life, is that it infected you like a cancer. It took root in every facet of your mind, body, and soul. People might see how it affects you physically, but they couldn’t feel the relentless mental anguish that holds you hostage, or the way it made your mind play tricks on you, forcing you to question everything.
I was tired, and not the type a weekend’s worth of sleep could fix. I was emotionally drained and running on empty. My soul ached, and it felt like my bones were turning to dust. I just needed someone to hold me together, to love me even on the days when it was impossible to open my eyes.
“Put him on the bed, Dil. Let me check you over.” Dillon’s grunt made me want to laugh, but I couldn’t move. I was weighed down by the world.
“I’ve got him,” he snapped as he lifted off the floor and tucked under the covers on the bed. Warmth suffused my heart at Dillon’s tenderness. Fingertips brushed the hair off my face, and he placed a kiss to my forehead. I wanted to melt in my semi lucid state.
“B…” Dillons aching sigh made my heart clench.
“Don’t, Dil. Tell me when you’re ready, okay?” The sound of a zip being undone made me flinch, and the pregnant pause that followed as everyone in the room held their breath was suffocating. “Tip your head back, or it’s going to run into your eye.”
“He’s gonna pay for this. No one gets to touch him or hurt him like that.”
“Alright, big guy, calm down. You can go all caveman on Chad later. Right now, you need to get dressed and get out of here. Take him home, Dil. He needs you.”
“I know, B. But someone insisted on cleaning up my face.” I smiled at Dillon’s amused tone. “What I don’t understand is why he came up here in the first place.”
“Um, well, Tristan turned up and brought some of his crew to join the party.”
“Fuck!”
“Yeah, you could say that. He brought some heavy shit too, so you know it’s going to get messy.”
“I need to get him?—”
“No! You’re going back to the dorms and taking care of what matters. If people here fuck themselves up, that’s on them, not you. Not us. Got it?”
“Sure. Catch ya later, and thanks, B.”
“Anytime, Dil. You know that.”
I listened to Dillon’s soft foot falls as he moved around the room before the bed dipped, and he kissed my nose. “Hey, little crow. Open those beautiful eyes for me. We need to go.”
I peeled one eye open and stared into his ebon depths. Ones that had previously been filled with glacial hate now brimmed with concern and maybe, possibly, something much more powerful.