Chapter 8
Chapter Eight
I relaxed in André’s arms. “Six years ago, I got mixed up with a guy who wasn’t particularly good for me. I’m from a very traditional southern town. I’d known Regan since we were in diapers. We weren’t close by any means, but we were the same age, so we were always around each other.
“I came out to my parents my junior year, and by some miracle, they accepted me for who I was. My mom went out and bought a rainbow magnet for the fridge because I wouldn’t let her display one outside.
As it turns out, Regan was gay too. We bonded over being the only two queer kids in such a small town.
Slowly, those vent sessions turned into dates, which turned into more. I always thought we were careful.
“The first time he hit me was the one and only time we got caught. We’d met up at the edge of a farm, thinking the place was abandoned.
Only, the new owner saw Regan’s car headlights from his house and came out to investigate: It was the pastor.
We were too busy in the backseat of Regan’s car to see him coming.
Regan punched me, breaking my nose for the first time.
He said that I came onto him, pushed me out of his car, and left me there.
The pastor called my parents and they told me never to see him again. I should’ve listened.”
My eyes stung, and I paused to blink away tears. I wasn’t going to cry—I was determined.
“Like a fool, I forgave him. In some twisted way, it made sense: he was protecting himself. But we couldn’t meet up anymore—not in our town.
So, when we turned eighteen, we moved away.
I didn’t want to leave the state, and it was either we move north to Atlanta, or we come out to Savannah.
I always loved it here, and thought it would be much safer.
“Things only got worse from there. Over the years, he’s broken my nose more than once.
One Christmas, I had to have my jaw wired shut for six weeks—I didn’t go home that year.
I’ve had three surgeries on my left arm and have next to no feeling in those fingers.
The last time he nearly killed me. I ended up on a ventilator for a while.
The hospital caught on to what was happening and refused him entry.
They managed to track down my parents, but my dad was sick and my mom hesitated to leave him.
So, Dylan jumped into his car at three in the morning and drove four hours to where I was.
“That’s when the threats started. Of course, I didn’t get to my phone until I came off the ventilator.
It wasn’t just me, though. He went after Dylan too.
When I woke up, the police were waiting for me.
The hospital had called them. It was Dylan who talked me into the TPO, but Regan immediately violated it.
He spent thirty days in lockup, but that was practically nothing to him.
He still called, and texted. Dylan helped me move.
Regan found out where we went and started lingering around our front door.
He’d try to stare into the windows—we never kept the shades open. I couldn’t handle it.”
That security footage haunted my dreams. Throat tight, I forced myself to get it together.
I was almost through the story, and I couldn’t stop now.
My head was swimming. Whether it was from the drink or stress, I wasn’t sure.
I took a deep, shaky breath, and André tightened his arms around me.
“I’ve got you,” he whispered in my ear. “You’re safe. ”
I rushed through the rest of the story. “He ended up following me to work. They threatened to fire me if he didn’t stop, so Dylan convinced me to explore my options.
With all the combined evidence, they were able to press aggravated stalking and assault charges.
That, combined with the broken protection orders, earned him five years. He has to turn himself in tomorrow.”
André remained silent. I could imagine it was a lot for him to take in. Hell, I lived it and still couldn’t believe it.
“So… that’s what I’ve been up to since I got home: Putting my ex-boyfriend behind bars for nearly killing me.”
My voice broke, a lone tear breaking free and trailing down my cheek.
I didn’t turn around. I didn’t want André to see me cry.
The cold wind coming off the river seemed to turn it to ice.
André only tightened his grip around me.
He could have left. He could have turned and walked away and never talked to me again, but he didn’t. He stayed.
I choked back sobs, refusing to break completely. I wasn’t going to let Regan have the satisfaction. Eventually, my blood pressure must have risen too high, and my nose began to bleed.
Someone walking by with a stroller offered us some napkins and baby wipes, even asking if she could help.
André thanked her, and insisted on helping me stop the bleed. I was demoted to napkin duty. “You don’t have to do this,” I mumbled.
“I want to. Now hush so I can clean you up.”
André tossed the blood-soaked napkins into a nearby trash can, then used the wipes to clean my face.
“Can you breathe okay?” he asked, gently wiping away the drying blood.
“Best as I can.” My focus was on a building behind him.
An employee closing a shop caught my attention.
I thought I saw something in the alley, but I blinked and the shadow was gone.
Instead of looking André in the eyes, I focused on the employee leaving the store, tightening his jacket around him as he took off down the street, presumably to go to his safe, loving home.
“Look at me.” André hooked a finger under my chin, tipping my gaze to his. I prepared myself for the worst: that he wanted nothing to do with me anymore. I was too damaged; I came with too much baggage.
But as I stood there, looking into André’s sparkling green eyes, I felt nothing but warmth. I’d never seen someone look at me like that before, but that didn’t stop the tears from pouring down my cheeks like a waterfall.
“I’m not going anywhere. Your ex ain’t scaring me off.” André didn’t break eye contact with me. “I’ve thought a lot about this. I’ve never settled down before, but I do know that I’m willing to take the chance because I like you, David.”
He punctuated that with a kiss to my forehead, and I nearly melted into a puddle at his feet.
“I’m so sorry.”
“Don’t be. If this is you giving me an out, I don’t want it.”
We stood there beneath the streetlamp as the sun set behind us.
André never moved. Slowly, stores closed, and the street fell silent.
I enjoyed the feeling of being able to rest on his chest and feel his heartbeat.
Something about it grounded me. André rubbed soothing shapes over my back, intermittently pressing kisses to my hair, my cheeks.
A strong gust of wind had me shivering and moving in a little closer. He laughed, tightening his grip. “Why don’t you let me take you back to my hotel and run you a hot bath?”
“Please; I’m so cold,” I pleaded.
André gently tugged the hair at my nape, catching my attention so he could kiss me.
The walk back to the hotel was quiet. There was nothing much to say.
André tried to keep me as close as possible, either with his arm around me or his hand tightly holding onto mine.
I’d thoroughly exhausted myself. I was more than ready to put Regan and everything that came along with him behind me.
As if he understood, André paused at every crosswalk and nuzzled into my neck.
André led me to a part of Savannah I hadn’t been to in the years I’d lived there.
A tall brick building loomed over us, looking way too expensive for me to even be walking through the lobby.
There were a total of four elevators—a bit excessive if you ask me.
André pressed the button, then returned to his spot in front of me.
“Are you warming up?” he asked, pulling me into him.
I nodded, and we stepped into the elevator once a set of doors opened.
The moment they slid shut and André pressed the button for his floor, I pounced.
With a lapel in each hand, I crashed against the wall.
André filled in the space between us, wedging a knee between my thighs.
I moaned, tugging him down for a sloppy kiss.
“Are you sure?” he whispered. “I know it’s been a long day.”
“Trust me.” My lips brushed his, our breath mingling in the air between us. I rocked my hips, cock hardening against his. “I have been to hell and back lately but I don’t want to think about that anymore. I want to crawl into bed with you tonight… forget.”
With a confidence that seemed to come from nowhere, I pressed my mouth against his. “Help me forget, André.”
“Gladly.”
He swept me up in a toe-curling kiss. There it is.
Sparks ignited in my belly, zipping through my veins and tingling all the way to my toes.
This was exactly what I needed. André’s hands slipped beneath my jacket, pulling me closer by my hips.
One hand slipped down, palming my erection through the denim.
Fuck! André squeezed, not hard enough for my liking, and the elevator opened on his floor.
He took a step back, and I swallowed a groan of protest.
He led me down the empty hallway, opening the last door on the left with a key card he pulled from his pocket.
He allowed me to go in ahead of him, and I was blown away.
A picture window spanned the far wall, providing a breathtaking view of the city sparkling across the river.
To our right was a small kitchenette, and a sitting space to the left.
André flipped the lights on, a golden glow washing over the space.
Everything seemed so luxurious. I didn’t feel like I deserved to be there.
“Where’s the bathroom?” I asked, dropping my bag onto the couch.
“Just inside the bedroom to the left.” André gestured down the hallway, taking his jacket off and unfastening his watch.
I made my way down the hall, still taking in my surroundings. When I realized he wasn’t following me, I spun around. He still stood in the sitting area, unbuttoning his cuffs. “You coming?”
André glanced up at me, crooking a brow. “You want me to come to the bathroom with you?”
I paused, confused. Then it dawned on me that he might want to give me some privacy. I shrugged. “I thought that bath sounded nice.”
His mouth curled into that crooked grin I was quickly falling for. Glittering green eyes met my gaze under that mass of curls, and my heart thundered. “Go on, darlin’. I’ll be right behind you.”
Butterflies kicked up in my belly like a teenager with their first crush.
I continued down the hallway, flipping on the light in the bedroom.
A California King bed sat in the middle of the room overlooking the Savannah River, which twinkled light lightning bugs in the moonlight.
The rich red and gold bedding complimented the antique feel of the space.
Opposite the bed, a TV was mounted above a vintage dresser.
A roll-top desk sat in the corner, and the bathroom was to my left.
I didn’t think it could get any more posh than that, but upon entering the bathroom, I was sorely mistaken.
The first thing I noticed was the double vanity.
I stepped into the room, running my finger along the marble countertop.
A large jacuzzi tub sat with another private view of where the river curved.
A glass shower stall sat behind it, across from a private toilet.
I was… overwhelmed. This was all too much. But with the memory of the man waiting for me, I brushed it all away. I was getting my chance to start over, and I wasn’t going to let insecurity get in the way.
With that spark returning in my belly, I took advantage of the privacy to freshen myself up.