Chapter 31
Eri couldn’t help but feel the Fourth of July event felt more like a block party than anything else, and she was digging it.
The organizers had rented the large event building at the park and opened the sliding back doors to allow it to spill out into the open space.
Outside, there was a DJ, food stands, tables set up with any game you could think of, along with a dominoes and spades tournament.
The former of which she, Avian, and Nesiah had left their men and Ricardo at in favor of getting a shaved ice.
There was also an area off limits to everyone except for the person who’d been hired to perform the fireworks show at the end of the night.
“Did you get everything planned for Javier’s birthday?” Avian asked as they waited for their turn in line.
“Yes, finally. I had to plan it when he was busy with work, or after he’d gone to sleep. That man is so nosy.”
Eri and Avian laughed as Nesiah fondly rolled her eyes. “Well, what did you plan?” Eri inquired as they moved up in line.
“We’ll spend the day doing all his favorite things, and I’m even going to cook all his favorite foods, which entail holiday foods.
I also got him this limited-edition action figure from the nineties that he was looking for.
It took me forever to find it, and it cost way more than I think any doll should, but I know he’ll be excited to have it. ”
“That sounds like a great birthday,” Eri responded.
In her opinion, there was nothing better than your special day being spent doing the things you enjoyed with the people or person you cared about the most. She’d always been more prone to intimate celebrations than big parties.
Even as a kid, she hadn’t wanted them and often avoided going to her classmates’ parties.
They placed their order when it was their turn, and once they had their shaved ice, they headed back to where they’d left the men.
Eri stepped beside the chair Elias occupied and noticed they were finishing up the current game.
He placed his hand on the back of her thigh as he played his next-to-last domino.
“What flavor did you get?” he inquired.
“Peach mango,” she replied, holding the spoon out and feeding him some.
“How long do you plan to play?” she asked after his turn came around again, and he played his last domino.
He and Marco were currently on standby since they’d won their first two hands, and were just playing for fun.
Since it would be at least an hour and a half before they had to play again.
“I can stop now, and we can do whatever you want to, Amate.”
“We can after I finish my shaved ice.”
He nodded in agreement and pulled her onto his lap as the dominoes were washed for the next hand.
Eri pulled Elias onto the dance floor a couple of hours later as the deejay played one of her favorite slow songs. She draped her arms over his shoulders, and they swayed to the music. She wasn’t surprised by the few kisses her boyfriend stole as they danced.
“Have you and Mamma decided what you’re doing for your outing?” he asked as the first song blended into another.
“We have. We’re going to the spa, and then to lunch. She wants to check out this new art exhibit, which sounds really interesting, do some shopping, and then have dinner.”
“So, she’s kidnapping you for the entire day?”
Eri tilted her head, smiling at him. “Are you jealous?”
“A little, yeah,” he teased.
“If I promise to come over and stay the night with you once we’re done, would it make you feel better?”
He gave her a soft kiss. “It would mend my hurt feelings for being abandoned for the day, yes.”
Eri laughed, shaking her head. “You’re so dramatic.” When the song finished a minute later, she stepped out of his hold and said, “I’m going to the bathroom. I’ll be back.”
“You want me to go with you?”
“No, it’s okay. I’ll be fine.”
She walked inside the building and found the sign for the bathroom.
When she walked in, there were a couple of women waiting.
Once she’d gone and washed her hands, she exited the bathroom and headed back outside.
She was fixing the bracelet she’d gotten for graduation from Elias when she bumped into someone.
The apology that had been on the tip of her tongue died on her lips when she looked up at the person in front of her. Her heart sank, and a hollow feeling settled in the pit of her stomach.
“Long time no see.”
“Not long enough, and you aren’t supposed to be near me.”
As part of his plea deal, a restraining order was to be put in place upon his release.
She’d signed it retroactively, and it was to be filed a week before he was released and sent to her in the mail.
They were also supposed to inform her of his release, which she hadn’t been.
Unless they’d mailed her something, then she could admit it might have been sitting on her entry table.
She went to step around him, but he blocked her way.
“What’s a piece of paper supposed to do?” he asked with a smirk.
Eri kept her breathing even. She would not allow this man — no, this monster — to think she feared him.
“You aren’t supposed to be released for another—”
“Two years,” he said, cutting her off, then tilted his head. “Didn’t you hear? I was a model inmate.”
No way they let this motherfucker out on good behavior, Eri thought.
She took a step back and turned her body as if preparing to go left, only to go right, and slip around him. She quickly scanned outside, found her boyfriend, who was already heading towards her, and started towards him.
“We weren’t finished talking,” came from behind her, but she ignored it and continued until he grabbed her arm, and she turned to look at him, panic rising in her chest. “Stop, or I’ll—”
Elias stepped between them and removed the other man’s hand from her arm as he said, “Back the hell up. That’s what you'll do.”
“Don’t waste your time. She’s a tease that’ll lead you on and give you absolutely nothing.”
Eri gritted her teeth because he was still living in the delusion that she’d led him on. Even worse was that he didn’t seem to think what he’d done was wrong. Elias reached back and placed his hand on her stomach, pushing her slightly, and Eri took two steps back on instinct.
She realized the pieces must have clicked for her boyfriend as he punched the other man in the face, and she released a noise of surprise.
∞∞∞∞∞∞∞
Elias glanced towards the building when Eri hadn’t come back after a while.
He knew there could have been a line for the bathroom with all the people in attendance.
He spotted her after a few seconds, talking to some guy, and normally, he wouldn’t care about something like that, except he could tell she was uncomfortable.
Maneuvering through the crowd, he headed in her direction as she stepped around the man. She scanned the crowd, and when her eyes landed on him, he could see relief settle in them as they approached each other. Before they could meet in the middle, the man grabbed her arm.
“Stop, or I’ll—”
Elias stepped between them, removing the other man’s hand from Eri’s arm. “Back the hell up. That’s what you’ll do,” he cut him off.
He didn’t know what was going on, but his girlfriend was off. Her energy was off, and he couldn’t pinpoint one emotion she was feeling. It all felt unpleasant, and it put him on alert. His instincts told him he knew exactly who the man in front of him was.
“Don’t waste your time. She’s a tease that’ll lead you on and give you absolutely nothing.”
That sentence told Elias he was correct in his assumption, and as his anger spiked, he reached behind him, placed his hand on Eri’s stomach, and gave her a soft push.
He didn’t want her to get hurt or caught in the crossfire, and it was the most he could manage before his anger boiled over, and he punched the other man in the face.
All Elias saw was red as he heard Eri relay what happened over again in his head.
He wasn’t sure how many blows he landed before the other man attempted to swing back.
He didn’t care where they were or about the surrounding people.
All that mattered was making this man hurt more than Eri had. He heard footsteps approaching.
“What’s happening?” he vaguely heard Avian ask.
“That’s him, and he grabbed me,” Eri replied.
“The man who assaulted you,” Avian whispered, and it was only then that Elias noticed that, other than the sounds of his fist connecting with flesh and cartilage cracking, all had gone quiet. There weren’t even the usual cheers that happened when fights broke out. Eri must have nodded in response.
More footsteps and then, “Shouldn’t you try to break this up?” Nesiah asked.
“Nah,” Marco responded. “If I get any closer, I might help him.”
When the other man fell to the ground, Elias took the opportunity to stomp him. It didn’t matter that he couldn’t fight back. It didn’t matter when he stopped moving. Nothing mattered but inflicting as much damage as he could.
And then he was pulled off of him, held back by two sets of hands as a female security guard stepped between him and the man on the ground.
“They’re not hurting him. Please don’t hit anyone,” Avian said quickly, and Elias glanced over to find her standing in front of his cousin.
“She’s right. I’m fine,” he stated, because he had a feeling Marco would start swinging at any moment if he thought he wasn’t.
“Let’s get them inside and separated,” someone holding him said, and they began steering him inside, still holding him as if they thought he’d attack again, and they were right.
“I’m coming too,” Eri replied.
“Ma’am, why don’t you—”
“No, I’m coming.”
He was led to one of the rooms inside the building, and the two men who had been holding him left him and Eri with the female security guard. He assumed so they could go get that bastard off the ground.
“Are you okay?” his girlfriend asked as soon as the door closed.
“I’m fine. Are you okay?”
She nodded. “Yeah. I’m…” she trailed off.
“Tell me the truth, Amate.”
“No, not really. I wasn’t prepared for that.”
“Do you have your ID on you?” the security guard asked. “You’ll need it when the police come.”
“No,” Eri started, turning to her. “Don’t call the police.”
“He assaulted someone. That man sustained a lot of damage. I need to—”
“Please,” Eri cut her off. “You don’t understand.”
“Amate,” Elias started, wrapping an arm around her waist. “It’s fine. Let them call if they have to.”
She looked over her shoulder at him. “It’s Saturday night. If they book you for assault, you won’t see a judge until Monday, and…”
“I’m fine with that,” he replied. “You don’t have to tell her.”
Elias had consciously decided to beat his ass. He would deal with the consequences of those actions, whatever they may be. It was worth it. He didn’t need her divulging something painful to a stranger in an attempt to keep him out of trouble.
Eri thought briefly before turning back to the other woman. “That man sexually assaulted me two years ago, and I have a restraining order against him. He wasn’t supposed to come near me. He cornered me, then grabbed me and…Elias was just protecting me, so please. Please don’t call the police.”
“I’m sorry that happened to you, and I can understand he was protecting you. If I don’t call the police, that means you can’t—”
“I know,” Eri cut her off. “I can’t report him for violating the restraining order.”
“Baby, you need to report it,” Elias told her.
“I don’t care about that right now. If it happens again, I’ll report it then. I promise. I just…I’m not letting you get arrested because of that asshole.”
“If you’re sure,” the woman replied. “I will let him know we decided not to call the police so as not to mess up anyone else’s night, and you’re free to go.”
Elias listened to Eri release a deep breath. “Thank you.”
The other woman nodded before turning and leading them out of the room. She walked into another, and he got a glimpse of that bastard sitting in a chair. Now conscious, he held ice to his face. It took everything he had not to start round two.
They had almost made it outside when a commotion behind them caught his attention, and he heard the female security guard.
“Sir, stop!”
Elias turned around to find the man headed towards them, and he pushed Eri behind him.
“Don’t think you won anything. See what you did to me? They might not want to call the police, but—”
“Get the fuck out of my face before I make you even worse.”
“Let’s see how you feel once I press charges.”
Elias raised a brow because it was just like a coward, who would prey on women, to want to call the police when they came face to face with someone they couldn’t intimidate.
“If they won’t call the police, I’ll do it myself,” he said, pulling his phone out.
“Do it,” Eri said, stepping around Elias. “And I’ll tell them you violated the restraining order, that you tried to isolate me, that you put your hands on me, that you threatened me, and you’ll be right back in that cage.”
He faltered in his movements before tsking and stomping off.
Elias watched him go, forcing himself to remain rooted in place, and then Eri was pulling him through the building and out of the front door.
They weaved through vehicles, stopping only when they made it to his.
She wrapped her arms around him, buried her face in his chest, and Elias held her tight.
Tears soaked his shirt, and he was pissed all over again, but he held it in.
His priority then was comforting her, allowing her to release what she felt however she needed to, and after several minutes, she looked up at him.
Big doe eyes wet with tears, and he’d never wanted to murder someone in his life the way he wanted to then.
“Take me home, please,” she requested, voice fragile.
He helped her into the car, and sent a text to his cousin as he went to the driver’s side. Then they were pulling out of the parking area and headed to her apartment. He wanted her to be as comfortable as possible, and he felt being in her space would do that.
As he drove, he made a mental note to message his mother and tell her she and Eri likely needed to reschedule, and then he’d message any appointments he had for Monday and push them back. He had no intention of leaving her until she was ready for him too.