Chapter 13 - Chanel
The drive to our destination took a little under three hours, but we ended up in the beautiful North Georgia mountains at a luxury two-story cabin.
I was nervous about being in a location that was so far from home and unfamiliar to me.
I hadn’t seen another cabin for a few miles, which terrified me.
Here I was with a man who, though he was very familiar to me, in some ways was still a stranger. Not to mention I had someone stalking me, and I had no idea who it was. I was far from the security of everything I knew such as my family and friends.
“You okay?” Ashton asked, looking at me as he turned the ignition off. I held the seat belt strap tightly in my hand as I looked around at the landscape. Snow covered everything, glittering like tiny diamonds on a pristine carpet of white.
It covered the roof, the balcony of the deck and railings, and made the trees beautiful.
“Um, . . . yeah.”
Ashton reached over and touched my hand gently. “I know that this is scary for you, being so far away from what you know, but trust me, you’re in a safe space, and I know all my neighbors, even though they are not extremely close.
“I know. I just need a night to figure some things out.”
“Did you not hear me when we were at your house? I told you that you needed to get enough to last for a while. What’s going on here is going to take more than a night to get to the heart of. That won’t happen overnight.”
“I’m sorry for inconveniencing you.”
“I have a few days off, and I needed to get away to do something different too. I need to clear my mind and find my place of peace, and this is that for me. I thought you could use this too. But let’s go inside so that I can show you around. It’s cold out here.”
“Okay.”
I stepped out of the car, and we grabbed our bags. Titan raced off to some unknown location, and I could tell that they obviously came here often.
He showed me around the four-bedroom, five-bathroom cabin. The large kitchen with its commercial appliances had a fully stocked refrigerator and pantry, along with a wine bar.
“How often do you visit here?” I asked after looking inside of the refrigerator.
“At least once a month during the spring and summer, but in the fall and winter months, I come up here at least three times a month.”
“That’s nice.”
“Go upstairs and get changed while I fix us something to eat.”
“I’m not hungry.”
“You need something. It’s been a while, and you need your energy to figure out what your next steps will be.”
“Okay.”
I headed upstairs and took my time putting my things away in the drawers and the closet of the room I was staying in. It was a large second master across from the main master with an Alberta king-sized bed, a sitting room, and en suite.
After I finished putting my things away, I showered, oiled myself, and dressed in a champagne-colored loungewear set. I pulled the long cardigan over the cropped top and checked my reflection in the mirror to ensure the loose pants weren’t too loose, but definitely not tight over my ass.
I had felt Ashton checking my ass out on more than a few occasions, including at the bar in California. I had seen him doing it in the overhead mirror as I walked from the bar to the table. I knew that he was just as attracted to me as I was to him, but he held values, values that I respected.
I didn’t want to tempt the man any more than I already had, like when I showed up in the bodysuit that day, knowing that he would find me attractive. I often wore sexy clothing that appealed to men. Like most women, I loved being found attractive, and I loved the attention I received.
We were already in a situation of being close to each other in these mountains; I didn’t want to do anything that would push him over the edge. His divorce had just been finalized, and it was bad enough people thought we were creeping. I didn’t want to confirm that rumor.
When I finished making sure that my attire was appropriate, I headed back downstairs. Ashton was in the kitchen placing our plates on a tray, which he carried to the living room.
“You can grab the juice pitcher and bring it in here,” he suggested. “The glasses are in the cabinet to the left of the oven.”
I did as he asked and went to sit beside him on the couch.
“Anything in particular you want to watch?”
“Anything that takes my mind off tonight.”
Grabbing the remote, he surfed through channels and finally settled on an adventure flick. We prayed over our meal and dove right in. I was surprised to find that I was hungry after saying that I wasn’t.
“You can cook.”
“You thought I couldn’t?” he asked, smirking at me.
It was simply a turkey burger and fries, but it was delicious. He had sautéed onions and added a homemade sauce to it.
“It’s well-seasoned, juicy, and tender. This is so good,” I declared around bites.
He smirked and chuckled.
“Glad you like it. Wait until you see what’s for dessert.”
“You keep acting like this, you’re gonna spoil me and never get rid of me.”
He chuckled and wiped something off the side of my lips. My breath hitched in my chest, and I stared into his beautiful green eyes. I couldn’t do this. There was no way that I would be able to take staying here for several days and not kiss this man. I wanted him desperately.
I turned away from his piercing gaze and looked back at the TV. He made some idle comment about something that was happening on TV, but I suspected, like me, he was disturbed by the moment.
We remained quiet throughout the rest of our meal and finished the show before he left to head to the kitchen. I texted Thomasina to let her know that I was safe.
ME:
Hey, girl. I’m in a safe place, and I’m about to settle in for the night.
TOMMI:
I would ask where, but I don’t want to know. I strongly suggest you don’t tell anyone your whereabouts, including your parents.
ME:
You think my parents are coming after me? LOL!
TOMMI:
No, but you don’t know who is, and you don’t know who could be watching them.
ME:
You’re scaring me.
TOMMI:
Don’t be. You’re somewhere hiding out with big dog. Something tells me it doesn’t get any safer than that.
ME:
Try two big dogs.
TOMMI:
Huh?
ME:
Just him and his big ass Cane Corso. The dog looks just like him. LOL!
TOMMI:
Y’all have fun with that. I’m out.
“Here you go,” he stated, setting a tray down on the table and passing me a root beer float. The tray held several types of cookies, and I thought I was in heaven. Chocolate chip, oatmeal raisin, peanut butter, sugar, and cranberry with white chocolate chips.
Laughing, I stated, “I haven’t had a float since I was a teenager.”
“I have them all the time.”
“You have a nice place up here. I can’t blame you for coming up here as often as you do.” I pulled my feet up on the couch with me.
“Like I said, this is where I come to regroup when life becomes too much, or I’ve lost an especially hard game.”
“Like tonight?”
“Yeah. It was a hard one. We weren’t in sync, and I can’t blame it on anyone else but me.”
“I saw the game. It wasn’t just you. Neal wasn’t playing defense like he should have, and Angelo’s shooting was off tonight. He didn’t score any points at all.”
“I think it’s from me. We vibe off each other’s energy, and I’m certain they felt my energy.”
“Do you carry the responsibility of the world on those broad shoulders?”
He looked up at me with his eyebrows dipped into a frown. “Whatcha talking ’bout?”
“If no one around you has to take responsibility for what they do, maybe they shouldn’t be around. It seems like you take the blame for everything that goes wrong around you or every challenge or complication that arises, even when others create the problem.”
“Nah, I just know when I could have prevented a situation from occurring, or I could have made it better.”
“Yeah, I understand. But some of the people around you need to learn to do the same. It was up to Angelo and Neal to play the game they always play, not you. Neal let them score on his ass repeatedly, and I’ve seen him do that a few other times.
Had nothing to do with you,” I reaffirmed, swiping my hand sideways.
Titan loped into the room and came and sat on Ashton’s feet. I reached over and rubbed his head. He let out a contented sigh, and I looked at Ashton. “Your twin is so loyal.”
He chuckled and nodded before he reached down and scratched his dog behind the ears. “He’s ’bout the only loyal muthafucka I know.”
“I guess that makes two for me then.”
“What’s that?”
“Loyal muthafuckas I know.”
A slow smile graced his handsome face and made my heart squeeze. I knew that I was playing with fire, not only being at the cabin with him, but taking the chance to stare into his eyes as long as I did, never mind sitting as close to each other as we were.
He broke the tension by reaching forward and grabbing the remote. He pulled up the replays on his phone for tonight’s game from the link that his coach had sent earlier and cast it to his TV. We sat and watched it in silence.
Every now and then, one of us would point out a play that should have been run differently or something that was executed flawlessly.
He saw my point about Neal’s lack of defense and how Angelo’s shooting was off.
I saw his point about the lag in his energy based on the faces and body language he exhibited.
As he switched over to previous games, my attention strayed to thoughts about who had vandalized my car and apartment.
I didn’t always give off warm, cozy feelings to people, especially to the people in my interview subjects’ inner circle.
They became pissed if I pushed an athlete too far on touchy subjects.
Then there were the women connected to the male athletes.
Because I was a daddy’s girl and a grandaddy’s girl on both sides, I naturally got along well with men.
I was good at helping them let their guards down, but when they were more defensive or naturally guarded, I wasn’t afraid to use my feminine wiles to get what I wanted.
Women grew anxious when their men connected with me or seemed a little too comfortable.
It could have been anyone targeting me, but I knew that it was connected to Ashton rather than me.
Too many of the text messages were specific to him and me leaving him alone.
Whereas he didn’t think his ex-wife had anything to do with it, I wasn’t so sure.
I knew how it felt to be blindsided by a divorce when you thought everything was good.
Although Muffin had been cheating on him, Ashton had been letting a lot go for a while.
He was a protective man who could become aggressive, but there was a sweet side to him also, as long as he was handled properly.
I believed Muffin knew just how to handle her man when she pushed too far.
I believed that she knew how to pull his collar and rein him back in.
But he was smart, too, because he clearly had allowed her to have just enough rope to hang herself.
We had spoken a lot about his marriage, and he had let it slip that his mother had made sure that they had a prenuptial agreement in place before marriage, to his wife’s dismay.
But he had made sure that she had a certain amount set aside for her, to ensure that she would be okay in the event something happened to him or their marriage.
I sighed and sank further into the couch as I closed my eyes. My head was hurting from all the things that had occurred over the course of the day and from all the thoughts that I had been thinking.
Ashton squeezed my knee. “Hey, everything’s going to be okay. I promise. I know it seems overwhelming right now, but this will all come to a head soon.”
“Ashton, you don’t have to stay overnight with me.”
“I had planned to be up here for the next few days until our next game anyway.”
“I just don’t want to inconvenience you. Not that I’m trying to have you make that drive back, but if you wanted to, I just don’t want you to feel pressured to stay.”
“Hey, I don’t do anything that I don’t want to do.
Even when people see all the bullshit going on in my life, trust me, it’s only happening because I’m allowing it to.
I never feel forced about anything, and you’re no inconvenience for me.
I do appreciate you putting things in perspective about the game earlier and my attitude toward other people in my life though. ”
“You’re welcome. You’re a great man, and I just want to see you get the best. You’ve done a lot for your community throughout your career and used your platform to bless others. If you think about the tool library and the tech center, it will be great for some community too.”
“I’ve not only been thinking about it, but plans are in action to make it come to fruition.
I took your idea and ran with it. My family and my best friend and his wife are involved.
Everyone has a role to play to bring it to life.
I already have someone looking at the best communities to serve, land to build on, and demographics.
I have someone on marketing, someone pulling together the volunteers, and someone else getting the construction firm lined up.
I’ve got my parents on funding and donors, and I have someone developing and overseeing the budget. ”
My heart leapt in my chest. I knew that I had suggested it to him, and he seemed to have been excited about it, but I wasn’t sure if it was just for the moment and that it would fall at the wayside later. But he had genuinely taken it to heart and was moving forward on it.
“I love this for you, Ash,” I declared, not realizing I had shortened his name until he winked at me.
“I like hearing you call me that.”
I giggled. “I’m glad some good is coming out of this, even if everything else seems to be going crazy.”
“I’m not worried about it. A lot of good is coming out of all this.”
“What do you mean?”
“Somehow, I think I’ve found a new friend. Someone who gets me.”
I reached out and grabbed his hand, linking our fingers, and squeezed.
“You’re right. Everything else may be crazy in our lives right now, but this . . . our friendship feels good, it feels right,” I confessed.
But there were other uncomfortable feelings that I was experiencing that I couldn’t speak on. Feelings that conflicted with him being just a job for me. Feelings that I hadn’t felt in a long while, even with Collier.