Chapter 12
Megan
I looked at the clock on the tv box, eight forty-five. Should I text him and ask how his day went? Max was there for me basically daily when I was in the hospital, I kind of feel obligated to check in on him like he did me. I sighed loudly, frustration settling into my chest. I stood up from the couch and made my way to the kitchen. I knew which house was his. The lights were on, at least he was home.
I grabbed my phone from the kitchen counter where it was plugged in and opened my messages. Ethan left only ten minutes ago and already I have several voice messages from him. I’ll listen to those later. I tapped on my thread with Max, my thumbs hovered over the keyboard, I wasn’t sure what I was going to say. “Hey, how was work? Have you eaten?” I’m not his girlfriend. That’s something that girlfriends say to their boyfriends after a long day.
I set my phone back down on the counter, finally deciding that I’m not going to be weird. I open the fridge door and stare into the now fully stocked fridge. The damn courthouse kept us there for hours, but thankfully the judge agreed that I needed the protection order, and that Ryan has two weeks to get his things out of my home, only he isn’t allowed to come get his things. His brother, Alan, was coming tomorrow to start picking things up. Ryan gave a list to the judge of his things; it was handed to me and my lawyer to go over. He wasn’t asking for anything that wasn’t his. He also knew that most of the expensive stuff was destroyed.
After we left, Ethan went with me grocery shopping and going for some clothes. A lot of my stuff was destroyed. I still need to order a new bed, but I have a couch. That’s all that matters. The couch is soft and comfortable, large for just me. I still am trying to figure out what I want to eat for dinner as I hear my phone ding from the counter. I close the fridge door and walk to the counter where my phone is sitting. I looked down at the screen, a missed message from Max awaited me.
I grabbed the phone and opened it, looking at the message. “Hey, hope you had a good day today.” His message was nice. It let me know that it was safe to talk to him now. I quickly tapped out an “It was long. Hope you’re day was good.”
As if that was confirmation that I was available to talk, my phone rang a few seconds later. I hesitated a moment before answering him. I didn’t want him to think I was going waiting by the phone to talk to him. After the second ring, I picked up. “Hey.”
“Hey, how was your day? How did everything go at court this morning?” Max asked almost immediately. He sounded tired; I hope that wasn’t my fault for keeping him up late last night texting. I walked from the kitchen to the living room and plopped down on the couch.
“The judge granted the restraining order, his brother is going to be the one to come get his things,” I said, curling a strand of hair around my finger.
“Is his brother the same way? Will someone be there with you when he arrives?” Max listed off question after question like he was questioning a witness. I can’t blame him; he doesn’t know Alan.
“Alan isn’t anything like Ryan, or the rest of the damn family. He’s the only one I got along with. Enough about me. How was your day?” I chimed off into the phone, done talking about myself for the time being.
“It was,” he paused and took a deep sighing breath, “not that great.” The silence on the other end of the phone was suffocating. He had a heaviness to his voice. One I haven’t heard there in the short time I’ve known him.
“What happened?” I questioned, trying not to sound intense or demanding. “Did something big happen at a call?” He chuckled a humorless laugh.
“Not at a call that I was on, more like a call I had to make,” alarms rang off in my head. What could be so bad that had him calling 9-1-1?!
“What do you mean a call you had to make?” The nerves in my voice were bad.
“I came home to some bullshit with Sandra. She’s not supposed to be here, and she just let herself in, against an order by our captain by the way,” he let out a long breath. I tried to give him a second before I pester him with more questioning. I try to think about who Sandra is again or if he even talked about her before.
“Who?” I asked before a loud bang came at my front door. I jumped a little, I wasn’t expecting anyone tonight.
“Megan?” Max’s voice coaxed me back to our call. “Are you expecting anyone?” I put him on speaker phone and pulled up the front door camera. Whoever this was they were covering the front camera so I couldn’t see who was there.
“No, I can’t see who it is on the camera either,” I whimpered out. Fear locked me to the floor. I didn’t want to move. Another bang sound came from the front door again. No one was speaking.
“Megan, leave your lights on and either go upstairs or go downstairs quietly. Do not answer the door. Stay on the line with me and I’ll come over,” Max pushed out the orders like I was someone under his command. He was not someone I would want to disappointment. I decide going upstairs was the easiest. My office pointed to the front of the house so I could look out down at the front door. “Keep the lights off.”
“I’m upstairs in my office. Ryan broke the lamp in here, so I have no lighting at all, so no worries there,” I awkwardly chuckle out. I peek out of the blinds, trying to look down at the front door.
“Good, I’m on my way. You’ll hear my car coming first. I should be able to see if anyone runs,” he says into the phone. I try to catch my breath as I look out the window, still unable to make out who the figure at the front door is. There’s no car in the driveway except for mine. Whoever this is, they walked here or got dropped off.
I could hear the hellcat’s tires screeching around the corner down the street. Max wasn’t kidding that I would hear the car first. He pulled up right in front of the house and I watch the figure take off around the back of my house. I run across the hallway to try to watch the figure run towards a car on the street where Ryan lives. Whoever this was, they were familiar with the neighborhoods layout.
I watched another figure run through the grass filled alley way behind the house. I think that might be Max from the way he runs as if he is hunting down some peeping Tom. A car peeled wheels down the street on Max’s side of the neighborhood. I didn’t realize that Max wasn’t on the other end of the call anymore. The silence was eerie, I watched the second figure that I am assuming, hoping, is Max. It made its way around the house; I walked into the hallway and took a deep breath. I am going to die in this house.
“Are you still there?” Max whispers into the phone, well more like pants into the phone because of the late-night workout.
“Yeah, I’m still here,” I croak into the phone, “Are you okay?” I started to head down the stairs to head back to the living room.
“I’m at the front door, you can check your camera before coming to the door so you’re more comfortable with opening it,” he said as I did just that. I checked the camera and saw his chestnut brown hair and that jawline that looked as if it could cut glass. I made my way to the door and unclicked the lock.
I pulled open the door, taking in the tall, amazingly sculpted physique in front of me. If I didn’t just have my life upended by a fucking psycho, I would climb him like a fucking book ladder and sit on that gorgeous face. Fuck, Megan! Stop drinking in this man!
“Come on in,” I sheepishly say as I move out of his way, locking the door as he makes his way up the main stairs. He stops short at the top step, looking down at me. “Go ahead and have a seat. I can get you something to drink if you want. I don’t have much aside from water and some homemade sweet tea which is more sweet than tea.” I rambled off to him as I headed for the kitchen. I could feel his gaze burning into my ass. I may be a little on the thick side, but I do my squats so at least the view he has is nice.
“I’ll try your tea. It can’t be any stronger than my grandmothers. Six cups of sugar for six tea bags. I try telling her that her tea will give anyone diabetes, but she just shushes me and hands me a large glass,” he says as he follows me into the kitchen.
“She sounds like someone I could get along with. It’s called sweet tea for a reason Max. If it’s not super sweet, then it’s not sweet tea,” I giggle as I grab two glasses from the cabinet. He watches my movements like a predator watching its prey, I can feel his gaze drift over my body. I don’t think I want to see the look on his face right now.
“Do you have any idea who that was?” He questioned me, not accusing me of anything. He took a seat at the bar; I watched him through my peripherals as I continued to get our tea together. If he could handle six cups of sugar with his grandmother, he could handle the four cups I put in my pitcher.
“I think it was Ryan. The person knew how to hide from all the cameras. I have one on the side of the house and another one over the garage,” I said, placing the glass on the table in front of him.
“Thank you,” he replied before sniffing the drink like it was poisoned. He must’ve decided that it was safe to drink, until he took a sip. The sweetness might just be too much for this man. It was cute watching his face wrinkle from the sugar overload.
“I take it, that it’s too much for you?” I giggled out, drinking deeply from my own cup. It was sweet, but I thought it was perfect.
“It’s diabetes in a cup. My grandmother would love your version,” he chuckled out and set the cup back down in front of him. “Anyway, are you okay?” He looked at me.
“I’m not the one who looks like they’re about to go to war with several different people at once. I’m physically okay, mentally I am fucking torn apart and emotionally, I’ve been better. What about you? Are you okay?” I asked him, taking the other seat at the bar. There were only two bar stools that I refurbished last summer from the thrift store.
He let out a deep sigh and slugged down more of the tea, which shocked me to be honest. I thought the one sip was enough to knock him on his ass from the sugar rush. “Do you remember officer McKane? She was the one who came in the hospital room, informing you of Ryan’s bail,” I nodded, I remembered the bitch. The way she talked to him set my skin on fire. “She is my ex.” He paused again, sighing.
“I take it she’s the worst?” I tried to lighten the mood some, that tension in the air felt so thick I could probably cut it like it was a piece of cake.
“Yes, she is absolutely the worst. Me and several other male officers filed harassment claims and misconduct claims against her this morning. Ever since our split, our captain has been keeping us away from each other because I didn’t take her cheating on me in my home very well,” he ran his hand over his face. I watched the muscles in his arm flex with the motion. Damn, I bet he could life me up and put me up against the wall with those arms. FUCK! Stop going there you horny bitch.
“I’m sorry that happened to you,” but that means you’re single now right? The question clearly staying tangled up in my head where he cannot hear me.
“It is what it is. I’ve gotten over it for the most part. But tonight, after she was told about the harassment cases and shit against her, she decided to double down. I got home to her car across the street from the house. I went up to my door and it was unlocked so instead of going inside, I called my captain, and he sent out two officers to come get her. I’m pressing charges against her, but according to my buddy Roark, I need to burn my bed and sheets again,” he huffed out. Holy shit, he was dealing with bullshit no wonder he didn’t text me.
“I’m so sorry you have to deal with that. She seemed a little arrogant at the hospital and I didn’t like the way she talked to you. Do you have to deal with her when you go to work?” I asked, taking another sip from my cup. I wasn’t sure why I thought drinking this sugar rush was going to be a great idea, but I don’t plan on sleeping tonight after that bullshit.
“Yeah, my captain does his best to keep us apart though. How about you? How are you holding up? My bullshit is nothing compared to the shit you’re going through,” he said over his cup. I have a feeling we are going to need something stronger for the rest of this conversation.
“I’m dealing. Got a new bed delivered this afternoon, they took the old one with hem and I’ve been trying to put the pieces back together. Also, thanks to the judge, I’ve had to inventory everything that was broken. They’re making Ryan pay for replacements of everything he broke and since he is a Paxley, he’s court ordered to replace everything within a week. The judge wasn’t playing around,” I said as I reached for the whiskey in the cabinet. “Want something stronger?” I waved the bottle at him, and he smiled.
“Yeah, usually I would say no, but it’s been one hell of a day,” he placed his tea glass on the counter as I pulled out two fresh glasses from the cabinet and filled them halfway. Sliding the glass across the counter to him, I set the bottle down between us and sighed before holding my glass up.
“Cheers to a fucked-up night getting better,” I said, raising my glass up a little higher. He smiled and clinked our glasses; we both downed the dark amber liquid. It burned going down and I’m pretty sure I frowned the entire time, but I took it like a champ without puking. I haven’t drank in years, I couldn’t be caught off guard. “Want to watch trash tv or do you have to go?” I grab the bottle and head to the living room.
“As long as it’s not cops,” he chuckles, following closely behind me. I plop down on the couch and find some random show on Bravo that I have no idea what it’s called or what it’s about, but I’ll take it. I’m pretty sure it’s a real housewives show, I just don’t know which one. He takes the seat on the couch next to me, but he sits so rigidly that I’m worried he’s uncomfortable hanging out.
“You can relax, I won’t bite. Well, not unless you ask,” I try saying seductively, but it just comes out so awkward I want to bury my head in the pillows on the couch.
“Oh?” His eyebrows raise as he looks at me before kicking off his shoes and setting them next to the couch. He leans back and takes in the view on the tv. Two older women are arguing about some charity and who donated and who didn’t. “So, what do you do for work? I never really asked you before.”
“I work at the library. My job title is a librarian, but I like telling people I’m a keeper of stories. Each book can take you into a whole new world if you let it,” I spill out to him. I already know what his job is obviously. “What do you like to do for fun?”
“Depends on what you think is fun,” he laughed. “If the weather is nice, I like to go to the beach and try to surf. Sometimes I like to just go hiking and exploring new areas. Getting lost in nature is usually fun.”
“I like hiking, I just don’t like getting lost. I don’t do well when I get lost. Ryan used to tell me I could get lost in a paper bag though. He wasn’t wrong,” I sighed, reaching for the bottle once more. Why did I have to bring his name up? I poured us both another shot, downing mine without another toast.
“Getting lost is the fun part though. I found a random waterfall once when I got lost up in the mountains in Pennsylvania. It was one of the most peaceful places I’ve found, and I got back often now that I know where it is,” he said, drinking down his glass as if needing the confidence more than I do.
“Maybe one day you can take me there. I’ve always wanted to see a waterfall. Aside from on tv or in the movies,” I clarify. It would be nice to find one locally to just lose myself at. “I mean, if you want to that is.”
He laughed at my quick dismissal, “I’d love to take you. Maybe we can go one day next week.” He rested his arm on the couch behind me and it took a lot for me not to fall into familiar territory and lean into him. It wasn’t the right idea.
We both fell into silence as we watched the mind-numbing show fade into the next episode and into the one after that. I knew he had work in the morning and should probably head out, but I’m liking the not being alone. We drank through well over half of the bottle of whiskey. I was feeling very tipsy and very horny. I needed him to leave so I could take care of myself before I did something extremely stupid.
He looked at his phone, checking the time for the first time in about three hours. “It’s getting late, I shouldn’t keep you up any longer.” He went to stand up, but my dumbass grabbed his wrist. He looked down at me before sitting back down.
“I know you probably have work,” the words stumbling out of my head because I have zero filter when drunk. “But would you mind staying a little longer. It’s nice not to be alone.” I could hear how pathetic I sounded. I probably looked just as pathetic.
He leaned into me, brushing his hand across my cheek to move some hair behind my ear. Stupidly, I leaned into his touch. Bad move.
His lips were on mine within seconds of me leaning into his touch. His hand wrapped around the back of my head, pulling me deeper into the kiss. His tongue flicked against my lips. My traitorous lips parted for him, allowing his tongue to flick against mine, which I greedily accepted. His free hand moved to the other side of my face, caressing me like I was something precious. My own hands traveled up his arms until my hands were reaching for his face. Oh no, we have to stop before this gets to far. But he tastes fucking heavenly. The mix of whiskey and sweet tea on his tongue was intoxicating.
He laid me back on the couch, gently resting my head on one of the decorative pillows that I have on it. The kiss deepened and all thoughts I had of breaking this kiss were gone. I wrapped my arms around his neck and let go of all reservations.
Tonight, I will lose the waging war in my head. Tonight, I will give him a little piece of me without laying bare for him. Tonight, my world will start turning again.