Kyle (Scandalous Boys Book 3) Page 17

  She moans and squeezes me hand lightly. The touch almost sends me off in a spiral. “Rest, baby.” I lean in and brush my lips against her forehead. “I love you, Emily.”

  As I’m returning to my seat, Madison bursts into her room. Her eyes immediately water. “Oh, Em. Oh God!”

  “Calm down, Maddy. She’s going to be okay. She just needs some rest.”

  “She has two broken ribs, two black eyes, and she’s lucky that asshole didn’t break her jaw or worse.”

  “I know,” I growl. I’m trying to rein in my anger, but with my sister ticking off ever freaking detail of what the doctors already told me, it’s a little hard to sit here calmly. I pull back from Emily and crack my knuckles. What I wouldn’t give to get ahold of that asshole right now.

  “Kyle,” Madison says. “They’re going to find him, right?”

  I nod. “Granger and I were already on it. We led the police in the right direction. Salvatoria isn’t going to be problem ever again.”

  “I called her parents. I didn’t know what to tell them exactly. They’re flying in tonight.”

  I nod. “Did you call Mom and Dad?”

  She shakes her head. “I know. I need to.” She chews on her lower lip. “I just don’t want them to look badly at us.”

  “They won’t.” I push out of my chair and hug my sister. “This isn’t your fault. No one could have stopped this.”

  “I know. I just feel helpless sitting here watching her lie there looking like she’s in a lot of pain.” She sniffles. “I want to hunt that jackass down and beat him until he can’t walk.”

  “You and me both. I’m going to go update Granger. He probably wants to return to California. This isn’t a vacation. You know?”

  She nods. “Go ahead. I’ll stay with her.” Madison takes a seat beside her bed, and I walk out of the room. Making my way to the waiting room, I notice all the people gathered there. Bryce stands near a water cooler while Graham holds Sarah to him as they share a cushioned bench.

  Granger is slumped in a chair staring at what looks like the floor. “Hey, she’s, um … resting,” I say to all of them.

  Sarah pulls back from Graham and swipes her hand under her eyes. “Did someone call her parents?”

  I nod. “Maddy took care of that.”

  “What about that prick who did this to her? Do the police have any leads?” Graham snaps.

  “Granger and I think we may have found the person. We gave the name to the police and they’re comparing video feeds from around the city to confirm that it’s him.”

  Bryce rests his hand on my shoulder. “It’s going to be okay.”

  “I know.” I’m just still seething. I want to give that Vince fuck a punishment of my own.

  “You should probably check on Maddy,” I say to him.

  He nods and heads off in the direction of Emily’s room. I should stay in the room, wait until my sleeping beauty wakes. I can’t.

  Chapter Thirty-Seven

  Emily

  Blinding shards of light assault my eyeballs. I blink rapidly, but it doesn’t ease away the pain. I try lifting my hands to shield it from my face, but things are stopping me.

  Madison’s voice echoes a few times. I turn my head to the sound and wince as a sharp pain shoots directly down my spine. “Take it easy, Emily,” she whispers. “It’s okay.”

  I feel a slight squeeze in my right hand. “You’re safe,” she amends.

  I blink two more times and then try to register where the heck I am.

  “She needs to keep hydrated,” a voice I’ve never heard before says. A bright yellow straw appears near my face.

  Trying to get my lips to spread even a small bit is really hard. For one they feel glued together. My jaw aches, and every nerve ending in my face throbs with sharp jabs of pain. I groan.

  Suddenly a thick glob of something, kind of feels like vats of Vicks VapoRub without the strong scent, is slathered around my lips. Then the straw is slipped through my lips. A woman with blond hair pinned against her head smiles at me. “Drink slowly.”

  I do as instructed while taking in Madison’s face. She looks like hell. Her eyes are all bloodshot, and she has black circles under her lower lashes.

  I sip too much water and sputter. The woman pulls my straw away. “All right, I think you’ve had enough. Don’t want to overdo it. I’m Nurse Cormick by the way. I’ll be overseeing all your needs for most of the afternoon. For now though, I’m going to check on your vitals and get out of your hair for while. Is that okay, Emily?”

  “Uh-huh.”

  She continues to smile and does whatever she has to.

  “Where is h-h-he?”

  “Who?” Madison asks.

  “K-kyle?”

  Maddy squeezes my hand again. “He’s going to be over in a little bit. He had to grab some stuff.”

  This should comfort me, but for some reason, these words terrify me. I don’t want him to see me like this. He’s the bright light to this dark tunnel I’m currently stumbling around in. I can’t drag him into my dark place though. I need to let him go. For real this time.

  Dr. Sommers’s words take hold, and I know what I need to do. I need to heal me before I bring someone in. The only way to do that is close the things I want off. I can let them back in once this part of me is better.

  “Em, I called your mom and dad,” Maddy says. “They’ve been here for three days.”

  “What?” I ask. I can hear the strain in my voice it almost sounds mannish.

  She smiles at me. “You’ve been in here for four days. You’ve been stirring a bit here and there, but this is the first time you’ve been awake and talked to anyone.”

  “Vince?”

  “He’s locked up. Don’t worry, Em. He won’t hurt you anymore.”

  Again, this should bring me comfort but for some reason it doesn’t. What if he escapes? Will he find me again? Would he succeed in killing me?

  My heart rate spikes, and the monitors next to my bedside sound like an alarm. Nurse Cormick storms into my room; to be honest I didn’t realize she’d left. She looks me over then hits a few buttons on the machine. “Is she okay?” Maddy asks.

  “She will be. It will be best if you don’t talk about anything upsetting. The less stressed out you are, Emily, the faster you heal.”

  “Should I go then?” Madison asks.

  “It’s up to Emily.”

  “Stay,” I whisper. I don’t want to be left in this tiny room all by myself.

  I must have fallen asleep. Madison is no longer in the chair beside my bed. Kyle is. His left hand is holding mine as his head is slumped against his chair. He’s so beautiful like this.

  A clearing of someone’s throat stirs my attention away from him. My mom smiles at me weakly from the other side of the room. “Mom.”

  “He’s been here all night.”

  I try smiling at this, but my jaw burns with pain. “Why didn’t you tell him to leave?”

  She grabs up my other hand and squeezes it. “Tell a boy who has nothing but love for you in his eyes that he isn’t allowed by your bedside would be cruel. Your father on the other hand would love nothing more than to tell that boy to leave his daughter alone.”

  “I’m sorry. Mom.”

  She frowns. “You should have told me.”

  I try sitting up but fail as my muscles and bones strain and protest against the action. “Told you what?”

  “That you were in trouble. You’re taking all these pills and seeing a doctor here. We could have gotten you help sooner.”

  “I was embarrassed,” I say. “I just … you and dad expect me to be responsible. And maybe … I just couldn’t bear to see you disappointed in me.”

  “Emily, I’d never be disappointed in you. Yes, sometimes you make choices I don’t exactly approve of like attending a college fifteen hours away. It makes me think that as a parent I failed. You didn’t want to be around us. Which is why we decided to give you some space during the holidays.�
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  “I needed you. I didn’t leave to get away from you. I left to get away from myself.”

  She nods. “How do you feel now?”

  “I feel like leaving in the first place was the biggest mistake I ever made. It was lonely.”

  “And the boy who did this to you?”

  “Another mistake. Look, I’m not perfect. I couldn’t see myself finding a relationship like you and Dad. Not that there is anything wrong with your relationship. You’ve guys never fought. You’re still together. It’s just … I’ve never seen you guys consumed with each other.”

  She smiles. “And that’s why I know that boy right there is good for you. The emotions he has clutched my own heart. Truth be told, he’s always had them, and that made me a little leery of you spending so much time at Madison’s.”

  “What are you talking about, Mom? Kyle just started noticing me this year.” I glance over at him and notice his eyes are still closed and his breathing steady.

  “If you believe that, honey, then you haven’t been paying attention as closely as I have.”

  Her words stun me. There’s no way. Kyle said as much, but I barely believed him when he said it. Could it be? I can’t think about that right now. “Is Vince really locked up?”

  She nods. “And as soon as we can, we’re going to take you home.”

  “That sounds good.”

  I think she was expecting me to fight her or something. She hugs me. “I’m going to go get some coffee for me and him. Do you know how he takes it?”

  “Two sugars.”

  My mom smiles and steps out of my room. The sound of my door opening and snapping close stirs Kyle awake. “Mmm, hey.”

  “Hi.”

  He rolls his head from side to side, cracking it in the process. He grins at me. “Wow. I didn’t think my neck would do that.”

  “That was kind of gross.”

  “I’m glad the swelling on your eyes went down.”

  “How bad do I look?” I ask, wincing at the idea of me looking like a disfigured monster.

  He leans forward and places a kiss on my forehead. “It was pretty bad. I tried leaving you here for a possible model, but then I thought plastic surgery works miracles. So while you were out of it, we fixed you up again.”

  I laugh even though my sides ache and my ribs practically scream against my bandage skin to stop.

  “You’re leaving me though, aren’t you?” he asks as if he could read all the thoughts swirling in my head.

  “I need some time.”

  He frowns. “I get it. I don’t want to, but whatever you need. My love for you isn’t going anywhere. Whenever you’re ready … I’ll be wherever you need me to.”

  “Kyle … I don’t want you to stop your life waiting for me.”

  “What are you saying, Em? I should pretend I feel nothing?”

  “Yes.” No. “I need you to follow your dreams.”

  He kisses me again lightly against my lips. “Bye, beautiful.”

  I wait until he leaves to shed the tears that well up.

  Chapter Thirty-Eight

  Kyle

  I left the hospital and went straight to the beach house. Granger leaves Em’s old room right as I make my way to mine. “Hey, man, how’s she doing?”

  “She’s awake.” I don’t want to tell him she also doesn’t want to see me. It crushes me knowing I somehow wasn’t there for her. That she got hurt and I couldn’t stop it.

  What sends stabbing pains directly to my chest is the last image of her face. The tears gathering at her lashes. The bruises fading into something ugly. Her staring at me without the smallest hint of a smile as she basically kicks me out of her life. And instead of getting mad or fighting her on it understanding she needs this. She needs time and space to heal. It just kills me that she feels she has to do it without me by her side.

  “Are you going to be okay?” he asks.

  I shake my head. “I don’t know. Maybe. I’m going to pack up though.”

  “So … we’re cutting this trip short then?”

  “I can’t be here when they come get her things. If you want to ride back with me, you can.” There I said enough without spilling all my freaking guts to him.

  He nods. “I get it. I was thinking we could hang out at the beach for a little, but it’s cool. I get it, man. You’re going to be shitty company. I’ll ride with you though.”

  “I really am going to be crappy company if I stay here any longer. Sorry about ruining your vacation.”

  “Dude, it’s cool. I still have winter, spring, and summer break. And it wasn’t entirely ruined man. Still got to hang with my boys, and we got to save a damsel. I’d call that a pretty good run. And we still have close to a month left before we have to go back.”

  We give each other quick one-arm hugs; then I slip into my room and begin to pack. Once I’m finished, Granger waits for me at the kitchen counter. “You all ready?” I ask.

  “Yeah.”

  I send a group text to Maddy, Bryce, Graham, and Sarah. I leave off Emily because I want to respect her wishes. She needs me to back off so hey, I’m backing off.

  Me: Heading out. Sorry to cut the trip short. I gotta focus on my training.

  Maddy: Okay. Be safe. Call me when you get there.

  Bryce: Right.

  Sarah: You’re an idiot!

  Graham: Um. Ok.

  I pull out of the driveway, and Granger flips on the tunes. This was by far the worst vacation and best I’ve had in my life. That’s pretty messed up.

  “What’s your plans now?” Granger asks.

  “Training. Lots of training.”

  “Cool. If you want to hang out at my house for the rest of the summer, let me know. We can do these drills and shit I have my uncle makes me do.”

  “Isn’t your uncle working for the Bulls?”

  “Yep. He just e-mailed me a whole list of workouts to go through.”

  “Cool.” I think about his offer a little more as I drive. It would keep me away from any temptation of seeing Emily when she returns home. It would keep my sister off my back and any chance of Emily stopping by our house before Maddy left for Pittsburgh. “You know what, I’m in. I’ll call my parents and let them know what’s up at the next pit stop.”

  Granger nods. “Awesome. I’ll let my folks know what’s up too. Although I’m more than positive they won’t give a shit. They’re not too worried if you don’t have a pair of tits or have a habit of breaking their shit.”

  “Haven’t, and if I start growing tits, I’m marrying myself.”

  He throws me a look, but we both end up laughing. It feels good to laugh after the shitty week I’ve had. “For real, it should be all good.”

  “Cool.” Next gas station I felt a little better that I had a game plan. One that was solid enough to help me avoid Emily.

  Chapter Thirty-Nine

  Emily

  I’ve been home for a few weeks, and there is no sign of Kyle. Not that I expected to run into him anytime soon. But I guess I hope there would be some sign he was here.

  Madison texts me to tell me she and the others will be back soon.

  She knows that I told Kyle I needed space. She also told me she understands, but she doesn’t agree with it. She also thinks my doctor might be full of shit. I think Bryce is rubbing his bullheaded opinions off on my friend.

  “I was going to send Deanne to the store. Do you need anything?” my mom asks.

  “Nope.” I say from the couch. I’ve been vegetating on the couch for the past two days. My mom is probably thinking of ways to remove it so I have to become active and not lay around like a lazy ass.

  I click through the list of movies on demand and land on Love and Basketball. It’s a terrible choice especially since everything with basketball or a boy who resembles Kyle in some way brings me to tears. My dad found me in a meltdown over a boy driving a sports car, and when he asked what was wrong, I blew up. He’s kind of avoided me. Mom, though, she doesn’t
ask. I think deep down she knows.

  I flew off the handle when Deanne tried washing a pillowcase I had taken from the beach house that smelled like him. She has not made eye contact with me since. The sensible thing for me to do is call him. I know this, but at the same time, it’s not. I’m still a mess.

  As the movie plays and the two characters are at college, I begin to sniffle. Hot tears run down my cheeks instantly, and it’s not a sad part in the movie. See, I’m a freaking mess.

  Mom enters the living room and sets down beside me. A box of tissues lands in my lap, and I just bawl. I miss him very much.

  “It’ll get better, honey. I promise.”

  “It really won’t, Mom. I messed everything up.”

  She pets my head. “Have you tried calling him?”

  “No. I let him go. What can I do or say to him anyway? He can’t possibly want me. Not now. I wake up screaming. I wake up in closets. It’s worse. You and I both know if I started something with him, it would only drag him down. I need to be better. Stable. Normal. I’m none of that right now.”

  “I get it, honey. But maybe hearing his voice will give you some comfort.”

  I shake my head and wipe my eyes. “It will just make this pain worse.”

  She kisses the top of my head. “I only what’s best for you.”

  “Madison might stop by later.”

  She nods as she moves from the couch. “Okay.” She turns to the TV and says, “Maybe you shouldn’t watch things with basketball in them, honey.”

  I squeeze the pillow that smells like Maddy’s brother and whisper, “I know. I can’t stop though.” The waterworks start all over again. It’s pathetic, I know. Again, it can’t be stopped.

  Madison sits on the corner of my bed. Yeah, I moved.

  She chews on her lower lip. Her tell that she’s nervous about something. I raise a brow. “What?”

  “How are you holding up?”