Chapter 28
I had to shower after Garrett left my room, the blood trails he left on my skin were a reminder of what he’s capable of, and the heat he put inside me wasn’t cooling down. I barely slept a wink all night, and as soon as the sun rises, I give up trying.
I throw on some yoga pants and an oversized tee and prepare myself to face everything. The police, Mom, him. It all seems so overwhelming.
When I get down the stairs, I’m surprised to see an unfamiliar man dressed in a suit sitting at the dining room table.
“Maisie, I assume?” He stands up and stretches his arm out.
“I’m Miles, the Carson’s lawyer,”
“Where’s Garrett?” I shake his hand and look around warily. Not only does this guy look far too young to be a lawyer, but I’m not liking the fact there’s no sign of Garrett.
“Unfortunately, death doesn’t stop a ranch from running. The fences need checking before the herd can be freed, and there’s a lot of ground to cover.”
“Sounds like you know what you're talking about,” I stare back at him blankly.
“My old man used to work in the bunkhouse, and I spent a lot of summers working her,e too,”
“And how does a cowboy become a lawyer?” I question, generally intrigued.
“Hard work and determination, I guess,” Miles smiles back at me politely, and I get the feeling I’m not even close to getting the full story on that.
“So, you're here because…?” I take a seat and wait for him to explain himself.
“I can imagine that last night was quite traumatic for you,” he starts, sounding like one of the therapists Mom made me see when she thought I’d got too attached to daddy number three.
“I watched my stepfather die and had a gun pointed at me, so that’s a pretty accurate assumption,” I pout and pour myself water from the jug.
“The police will be here in a few hours to take statements, and you should of course tell them everything you recall,” I wait for the but to come. I’m not stupid. I know how much trouble Garrett could be in. “There is a little part of that story I need you to omit,” Miles adds.
“Let me guess, the part where Garrett went after them in a murderous rage?” I smile at him cleverly.
“Three of the men have been brought to justice, and I assume you want to protect your stepbrother from any repercussions, that him serving that justice, may cause. I need you to adjust your story a little. You tell the police that Garrett left here with Tate, he’s Garrett’s alibi.
And when they ask what the intruders took, you tell them they took some cash and Bill Carson’s rifle.
Can you do that, Maisie?” He looks so serious, and maybe even a little hot, staring at me from behind his glasses.
I stand up, resting my palms on the table and lean over him.
“I could do that. But you should tell your client if he wants me to lie to the police, then he should have the decency to ask me himself,” I keep the stern look on my face as I turn my back and walk away, but on the inside, I feel crushed.
Garrett’s rejection last night hurt enough, and now this. I’ve never felt so distant.
I head straight for the shower and turn it on full power.
The water hitting my skin reminds me of the way we kissed in the rain last night.
It was raw, unfiltered and desperate. Garrett stopped holding back, he let the both of us experience how it could be, and then he took it all away.
It’s cruel and only proves how selfish he can be.
I let my tears come out while I think about the way he touched me and then how he cast me away. Having his lawyer talk to me on his behalf this morning has to be the final kick in the teeth.
I get out of the shower and wrap myself in a towel, then after brushing my teeth, I head across the landing to my room so I can get dressed.
When I open my door and see Garrett looking out of my bedroom window, I hate the part of me that wants to run to him, and I hate even more that he’s put the awkwardness between us that stops me.
“Miles said you wanted to talk to me,” he says, but refuses to look at me.
“Sorry for the inconvenience. I just figured if you were gonna ask someone to lie to keep you out of jail, you’d have the decency to ask them yourself,” I bite back at him sarcastically as I head to my wardrobe and take out some clean panties.
I keep the towel wrapped around me as I pull them up my legs and under my towel, and notice how Garrett’s eyes flick between me and the window uncomfortably.
“I didn’t know if you’d prefer some space after…” the words get blocked in his mouth, and I drop the towel and fasten on a bra before I step over to the window to join him.
“After you almost fucked me?” I finish his sentence for him, then watch how he heaves a steady breath as his eyes drop between us. And I see the anguish in them before he closes them.
“I would never have fucked you.” He glares at me, and I somehow manage to not let his words affect me.
“I don’t believe you on that, Garrett. But I will lie for you.
I’ll tell the police that you left here with Tate, and I’ll say those assholes stole your daddy's rifle. Guess you’ll have to get out of that bar brawl yourself.
But Garrett…” I place my palms on his chest and stretch up on my toes so my mouth touches his ear.
“Don’t kid yourself. We both know if I was sticking around, you’d fuck me eventually,” I go to walk away, but his firm hand clutches my hip preventing me from going anywhere.
“You better believe it, because it’s true. I wouldn’t fuck you, Maisie,” he drags me closer to his body, and his fingers dig deeper.
“I’d take my time and make sure your first experience was something you’d never forget.
I’d worship your body the way it deserves, and I’d make you cum so hard that you’d never want to be taken by anybody else,” he growls, looking down his nose at me.
“But then I’d have to let you go…” his voice turns weak.
“And I won’t put either of us through that.
” When his eyes close, he inhales like he’s absorbing me.
“You may not understand that right now, but one day you will, and you’ll thank me for it.
Find someone special, who’s worthy of it, but don’t ever think that I won’t be here wishing it was me.
” His lips touch my cheek before he walks away, and when he slams my door again, my heart sinks into my stomach, and my tears pour out.