Chapter 14
Summer
“Morning. There are egg muffins in the oven that'll be ready in twenty minutes. I’m going to get dressed.”
“Thank you, darling,” he smiles. “You’ve been cleaning again, I see. The house looks great.” Zander has taken to complimenting my early morning cleaning and cooking, knowing he can’t change my shortened sleep.
I smile and walk to my bedroom. After I dress, I grab my phone and see a text from Sue, who tells me to call her if I need anything.
Another text comes in from Sarah reminding me how strong I am and to focus on one moment at a time.
I thank them both, then go back to the kitchen to see Zander pulling the egg muffins out of the oven.
A knock on the door has me veering towards the front of the house.
Seb is waving at me through the window. I unlock the door and let him and Nick inside. “Morning, guys,” I smile.
Seb drops his bag and envelops me in a hug. “Morning, Sunshine.”
I turn my head to the side to greet Nick. “Morning.”
“Shortie,” he nods, moving past us to the kitchen.
“Z said I can stay here tonight. I texted him last night,” he says, wiggling his eyes.
I chuckle and shake my head. “I was thinking we could sleep on the couch tonight. The nightmares will be bad. We can see if you can keep the nightmares away like Nick does?” I ask.
“Absolutely, Sunshine,” he smiles.
We join Zander and Nick in the kitchen, where they are already eating. I grab two plates for Seb and me and take a seat on the island beside Zander. “Is this a new recipe?” Zander asks.
“One of Sue’s. Do you like them?”
“They are very good,” he replies, grabbing another one. The three of them finish the whole batch in minutes.
“We should get going. Nick, are you ready?”
“Yeah,” he nods.
Zander grabs their plates and puts them in the dishwasher, then gives me a hug. “We will be back as soon as we can.”
“I know. Get going. Seb will keep me company.” Zander and Nick leave as I clean up the rest of breakfast.
“What is on the agenda this morning, Sunshine?”
“I’d like to go for a run after an hour, then do homework, maybe?”
“Okay. Come snuggle on the couch with me until the food settles, then.”
I take the corner seat as Seb sits beside me and wraps his arm around my shoulder. I happily lean into him as he turns the tv on. “Cartoons Hurry?” I ask. I’m surprised initially, but if you think about Seb, it makes sense.
“Of course. They’re not just for kids. Watch, you’ll like this one,” he tells me.
The cartoon is actually hilarious, geared for kids, but with double entendre jokes for adults.
We watch three episodes, then I change into running gear and drive us to the park in my Jeep.
We run for an hour, then Seb turns into my cheerleader as I run sprints around the open trail by the parking lot.
I’m trying not to laugh while I’m running, but Seb is shaking his ass and attempting the moves Gabby does, but he’s not as flexible.
“You’ve gotta stop,” I giggle. “I can’t run. ”
“Why?” He asks, turning and twerking his butt. “Don’t like my moves, Sunshine? I have to bring pom-poms next time for the full effect.”
I plop onto the grass, laughing. “You’re the best, Hurry,” I say between chuckles.
Seb joins me on the ground with a big smile, a spark of joy lighting his eyes. “I love to see you laugh, Sunshine. Your soul glows when you’re truly happy. It’s hypnotizing.”
My insides quiver. I shove him in the shoulder, and he falls onto his side. “Come on, let’s get home and shower.” I stand up and offer my hand.
He grabs it and pulls himself up, slinging an arm around my shoulder as we walk back to the Jeep. I toss him the keys to drive and get into the passenger seat.
Seb tells me to grab a shower first, since I ran harder. “Are you telling me I stink, Hurry?”
“No, Sunshine, you always smell nice,” he winks. “I must confess I miss your herbal scent, though, now that you don’t need the recovery cream and bath soaks.”
“Hmm…” I respond, walking to my room to get clean clothes. Maybe I can create some kind of perfume with the herbs I used. It wouldn’t be exactly the same smell, but I bet I could get close. After a quick shower, I tell Seb the bathroom is free.
“Check your texts, Sunshine,” he smiles, passing me in the hallway.
Grabbing my phone, I see everyone is on their way here for lunch.
Ana’s plea deal is complete. One down! Holly texted that she and Jaxon are going to school this afternoon and will call later.
Deciding on buffet-style food, I prep chicken breasts in the oven and put a pot on for pasta, then cut veggies.
Seb joins me, arranging plates of crackers, cheese, and fruit on the island.
I ask him to grab brownies and cookies from the freezer to thaw.
As I’m mixing the pasta salad, everyone walks in.
I pass Seb the bowl and grab the chicken from the oven.
“Everyone dig in while it’s hot, then we can talk,” I say.
“Okay darling. Thank you for lunch,” Zander smiles. We all fill our plates and sit at the dining table, where I end up between Alex and E.
“Hey,” E says, bumping my shoulder, a soft smile playing on his lips.
“Hi you,” I smile back. “Doing okay?”
“I should ask you that,” he replies, raising an eyebrow at me. “I’m fine. The pasta salad is great, love the dressing.”
“Fresh basil from the garden. It’s time to harvest some greens, too.” Watching my plants grow brings me a joy I thought I lost.
“Excellent.” E grins, a sparkle in his eyes. He seems excited to get his hands on the freshness. “Can I harvest some for your power salads this weekend?”
“Sure can. I’ll leave enough for the weekend.”
As Nick and Seb get up for seconds, Zander clears his throat.
“Are you ready for an update?” He asks me.
I give him a nod between bites. “The judge this morning was a surprise; the scheduled judge was sick, causing a delay this morning. He wasn’t familiar with the case and asked a lot of questions, some relevant to Cara and Ben.
However, he signed off on the plea deal, deeming it fair.
Mr. MacLeod is expecting Cara’s lawyer to stall this afternoon.
Despite Cara’s agreement to the plea deal, he believes the judge might’ve chosen a spa-like mental health facility instead of one offering genuine help.
We’ll have to wait and see what happens. ”
That’s what I was afraid of. “Which judge will work tomorrow?”
“We don’t know. Mr. MacLeod didn’t have any information about the judge’s illness. I’m sorry there’s a complication, darling, but it may be a blessing in disguise.”
“We’ll see,” I say, as Bay sets a brownie in front of me.
I look up and thank him. Is appealing the decision worthwhile if she goes to a spa?
Could I even appeal? I’m not okay with her skipping punishment.
She needs extensive help, with almost raping Seb, then helping Ben kidnap me. A heavy weight settles on my shoulders.
Everyone needs to get back to the courthouse, so I tell them to leave their dishes, getting hugs and hand squeezes from everyone as they depart. Seb helps me clean up the lunch mess. He tries to get me to smile, but my nerves have finally kicked in today. “What do you want to do now, Sunshine?”
“I was planning on doing homework or gardening, but I feel restless again.” The idea of sitting still and studying seems impossible right now. Even my love of gardening won’t be enough distraction.
“I know just the thing. Let’s go.” Seb grabs my hand, pulling me out of the house after I grab my keys and wallet.
Locking the door, I hand him the Jeep keys and get into the passenger seat.
Seb turns up the radio and sings along as he drives us over the river to Charleston.
He pulls into an outdoor mini-golf course. “Ever played?”
“Yeah, but it’s been a while.” I’m intrigued. This might be enough to quiet my thoughts.
“Oh, maybe I can win for once,” Seb exclaims excitedly. “Come on.”
Seb pays for a round as we pick our putters and golf balls.
It turns out Seb is terrible at mini-golf.
He spends more time finding his ball than actually playing.
I’m not great, but it would be hard to lose to Seb.
My thoughts slowly ebb like waves after a storm; my breathing lighter.
He seems genuinely frustrated at how badly he’s doing, so I’m trying not to laugh.
“When was the last time you played?” I ask.
“Last summer, I think. Why?” he asks, bouncing another ball off the artificial grass into the surrounding trees. He grumbles and begins searching for his ball. It’s a good thing they are neon-colored, or we’d be here much, much longer.
“No reason.” I smile. “Can I maybe help you?” He agrees, so I have him line up for another shot.
“Let’s start with how you hold your putter,” I say, moving up beside him.
I show him how to line his putter up with the hole, and then how to be less aggressive when hitting the golf ball.
I keep adjusting his shots until the 18th round.
He improves a little, but it may be hopeless.
I hold in my giggles somehow, so that’s something.
We grab an ice cream and walk around the Battery for a while after mini golf, and Seb holds my hand as we stroll around. I get a text from Zander in the afternoon saying it’s going well so far, and he expects it to be over in an hour, so Seb and I walk back to the Jeep to head home.
Feeling more settled with the update, I decide to work on the group project until Zander gets home, and Seb does the same. It’s after 4pm before we finish, but there’s been no update from anyone. “I’m getting worried. They should have finished an hour ago,” I tell Seb.
“That doesn’t mean it’s a bad thing. Maybe the judge is on your side. Try not to worry. Why don’t we do some gardening outside?”