Chapter 37
Chapter Thirty-Seven
Justin
I sit in the lock-up cell the whole night, not once closing my eyes because when I close them, all I see is Dylan rushing to me and calling out my name.
When they placed me in the car and pulled away, I looked out the window. “We just want you to know that we had no choice,” one of the officers said.
I didn’t say a word the whole time, and my lawyer arrived five minutes after me, and I got my hands out of the cuffs. “You know this is a bullshit case. I have seven eyewitnesses who say Mr. Woods threatened my client.”
He pushed and pushed, but the law was the law, and they couldn’t do anything until I saw a judge, and that was only happening at eight this morning.
They did give me five minutes with my father and Matthew, but the only thing I cared about was Caroline and Dylan. “Stay with them.” I looked at Matthew, and all he did was nod.
“Mr. Stone.” My name is called, and I stand up. “You’re up next.”
“Thank you,” I say and walk with him down the concrete hallway, and he stops at the big brown door.
“I’m sorry I have to do this,” he says, and I just nod at him and turn around to have him cuff me.
I would do whatever they tell me to do if it gets me one step closer to Caroline and Dylan.
I walk into the courthouse, and my eyes fly to the people in the room.
All the men in my family fill the first row with my parents at the end.
I make eye contact with Matthew, who just nods.
I also notice a couple of reporters in there, and I roll my eyes.
“All you have to say when they ask you is not guilty. Your bail is set to be posted, so it’ll be right after he calls out the number. We have a car waiting for you,” my lawyer says. “I’m not going to lie, though. The press got a hold of the story.”
“I don’t give a shit. I need to get home,” I say, and we stand in front of the judge. When the district attorney starts reading the charges, I almost want to snort when they call Andrew the victim.
The judge asks me how I plead, and I finally speak. “Not guilty, Your Honor.” He sets the bail, and I don’t even hear how much nor do I care. When he hits the gavel, I look at my lawyer, and he looks at the DA, who nods his head. “Go.”
I walk to my family, and my mother gets up and walks next to me with my father on her side, and Matthew on my other side.
Max, Viktor, and Evan walk in front of us.
“Caroline?” I ask Matthew. He avoids eye contact, and my stomach sinks.
My mother grabs my hand, and I look at her.
She tries to pretend she is okay, but she just shakes her head.
The car is waiting, and I get in the back with my mother and father, and Matthew gets in the front behind the wheel. The reporters try to take our picture, but I turn my head, and when we are away, I ask the question again. “Where is she?”
“At your place,” Matthew says. I look at his eyes in the rearview mirror, and I know he isn’t telling me something.
The drive home takes more time than I care for, and when I get out of the car, my father calls my name before I take a step toward the elevator.
I look back at him, and he stands there with my mother beside him.
My mother has tears running down her face. “Justin, we need to talk,” my father says.
“Dad, it’s really not a good time,” I say and try to turn around.
“I think this is the best time,” he says. “Justin, you have to take a second.” I turn and look at my parents. “I get that you have a connection with this woman, but, Justin …”
“What are you saying?” I look at my parents who have been by my side my whole life. By all of our sides without thinking twice. No matter how many times we fucked up, the only thing that was the same was their support for us.
“I’m saying you need to walk away,” my father says, and now my mother talks.
“You want to save her,” she says, and I shake my head. “I know how much you care for her and Dylan, but, Justin, this situation …” She swallows. “Justin, it’s not safe.”
“What the fuck?” Matthew says under his breath.
“Listen to us for a second,” my father says. “We always have your best interests at heart. Always.”
“Obviously not always,” I say, putting my hands on my hips.
“Justin, the guy threatened to kill you,” my mother says, almost shouting.
“Oh, for Christ’s sake!” I yell. “He’s crazy.”
“Exactly,” my father says. “What if the next time he comes with a gun? Justin, seriously, you are putting yourself in harm’s way, and I think you need to think about it.”
“I’m going upstairs now to the woman I love,” I say, and my mother gasps. “That’s right. I love her. I love Dylan. I love them both, and I know that if push comes to shove, I will pick them.” I look down. “Even if I have to walk away from my family.”
“Justin,” my father says, and I shake my head. “Maybe you think you love her, but you just want to save her.”
“What are you saying?” I look at them. “I love her. With everything that I have. Until my last dying breath, it will always be her. I will walk with her through fire if I have to, and if push comes to shove, I will.”
“You could be throwing away everything you have,” my mother says.
“Everything you’ve worked for since you were little could be taken away,” my father says, and I hold up my hand.
“You can either be with me or not, Dad,” I say, “but if you aren’t on Caroline’s side, then you aren’t on my side.
Now, I’m going to go up there and try to get her head out of her ass because if I know her like I think I do, she is probably already thinking of leaving.
I have to tell you, if she leaves me, I’m not going to rest until she is with me.
I will turn over every fucking rock on earth. ”
“I just want you to recognize the danger you are putting yourself in,” my father says, and it’s Matthew now who walks over to him.
“Dad,” he says. “If you met Mom, and she had Allison and me, and my father was Andrew, would you walk away from her?” he asks quietly. “As a dad, I know what you’re doing. I would do the same thing, but we both know you didn’t raise your kids not to follow their heart.”
“I blame you,” my mom says to my father. “It’s all your fault our children are like this.” He grabs her around her shoulders and pulls her close and they look at me. “You’re right about Caroline. She’s already planning on leaving.”
“What?” Matthew hisses, and I look at her.
“She came to me yesterday after everyone left, and she got Dylan settled down.” She looks at my father. “She would have been gone if Allison hadn’t walked into the room and grabbed her bag. She pleaded with us to just let her go.”
Without waiting for anything else, I run to the elevator and press it five times. When the doors open, my parents and Matthew squeeze in with me before the doors close. “I need to talk to Dylan,” I tell Matthew.
“I have it covered,” Matthew says, and when I finally open the door to my house and see both of them sitting on the couch, it’s now my knees that almost give out.
Dylan jumps off and runs to me, tears running down his face, and I crouch down to grab him in my arms as he hugs me with everything he has.
“I’m here,” I say to him as he cries in my neck. “I’m here, buddy.”
“I love you,” he whispers, and I hug him to me.
“Love you, too, buddy.”
“I’m sorry it’s all my fault,” he says to me.
“It’s no one’s fault,” I say and put him down. I see Caroline on the couch, trying not to cry, and I’m waiting for her to fight it. Waiting to see how high the wall she built is.
I walk to her, and I’m expecting her to fight it, expecting her to ignore what we have, but what she does is even better. She gets up and jumps into my arms much like her son just did. Her tears soak into my skin.
“I love you,” I say. “Love you so much,” I say into her neck.
“I love you more,” she finally says, and I feel someone hug my waist and look and see it’s Dylan.
“I’m here,” I tell them both, “but I need a shower.”
My mother goes to the kitchen. “I’ll make something to eat. Dylan, come and help me.”
“Go on. I’m not going anywhere,” I say. Caroline releases me, and I see she is still wearing what she wore yesterday. He walks to my mother who takes him in her arms, and I walk to my bedroom with Caroline’s hand in mine.
I close the door behind us, and she turns and hugs me. “I love you,” she says.
“So much you were going to leave me?” I say, and she looks at me.
“You don’t understand,” she says.
“No, you don’t understand,” I say. “It wouldn’t have changed anything if you left.” She looks at me. “I would have searched my whole life to find you again.”
She walks away from me. “You don’t need this in your life.”
“I need you in my life,” I say. “I need you, and I need Dylan.”
“Justin.”
“Sweetheart,” I say. “I just spent the whole night worried whether you would be here when I came home this morning. I need a shower, and then I want to sit on the couch and have a movie night with my family.”
I walk to the bathroom, and she calls my name.
“Justin.” I turn. “I was going to leave,” she says, which I already knew. “I was going to escape and disappear. You protect the people you love.”
I smile at her. “I would have found you. Without you, there is nothing.”
I pull off my shirt and throw it straight to the trash. “Now do you want to join me in the shower?”
“Your family is here!” she gasps, and I turn and walk into the bathroom, and when I turn around, she’s already naked and getting into the shower before me.
I step in with her, and my mouth finds hers.
I kiss her like it’s the last time I’m going to kiss her.
Her arms go around my neck, and she gets on her tippy toes, tilting her head to the side to deepen the kiss.
As I was sitting in that jail cell all night, not being able to hold her in my arms, the only thing I thought about was holding her and making sure she and Dylan were okay.
I didn’t care what they did to me. I just wanted them to be safe.
“I love you,” I say, kissing her neck and the water pouring over her.
“I love you,” she says, breathless, and I pick her up, pressing her back against the tiled wall as the water washes over us and I slowly lower her on my cock. My mouth swallows her moans. I make love to her in the shower, and she gives me what I need.
When we walk back out, my whole family is now there, and no one says anything about us taking too long or that her hair is wet. For the rest of the night, Dylan and Caroline never leave my side.