Olivia’s Ride(17)

***



“So I finally get to meet the guy that stole my sweet Liv’s heart?” Gran asked, and I could sense she was smiling. “I’ve heard about him from your dad, but I didn’t believe a word.”

“Um, Gran,” I said as I folded Keeton’s shirt and placed it inside the suitcase on his bed. “What exactly did my dad say about Keeton?”

“It’s not important,” she said.

“Oh yes, it is very important,” I assured her.

I could only imagine the things he ran back and told everyone. My dad had tunnel vision that night, every night for that matter. He only saw it as Keeton mauling me, pinned up against the wall. But I was the one who took control that night; Keeton just went along for the ride.

“He may have come back mumbling something along the line of some college asshole corrupting his daughter. I heard a few things about padlocks and a bodyguard.” I sat down on the end of the bed and rested my head in my hand. “But Uncle Noah talked him down from the surveillance camera outside your dorm room.”

“Oh my god,” I complained.

Her laughter filtered through the other end of the line.

“Gran, it’s worse than I thought.” I closed my eyes tight and began to wonder what I was going to do to save Keeton from my father’s crazy antics. “Keeton is gonna run away screaming, ain’t he?”

“Oh sweetheart, if that boy survives the summer with the Sawyer boys hot on his tail, then he is made for you.” Gran had always been on my side.

I remember growing up and running to her to fix things when my dad refused to listen. Now I felt like she was enjoying this all entirely too much.

After the phone call with my grandma, I finished packing Keeton’s things, then decided to walk to the store down the street to grab something for dinner to surprise him. I wanted to make sure he was overly full and unable to run like hell when I tried to warn him, just a little, on what was to come. I felt I owed him at least a small snippet about the Sawyer men and the torture I was sure he would endure.

As I was rounding the corner on my way toward the apartment, my arms full of bags, I saw Lacy entering the building. It was the first time I had seen her since the encounter that led to my weekend pity trip.

I slowed, hoping she would enter and I could waste a few minutes before following behind, but when she looked up and our eyes met, I knew I couldn’t avoid it.

“Where’s that sack of shit?” A loud booming voice bellowed out and I looked to my left to see a man stumbling toward Lacy. “You ain’t stopping me this time you damn little floozy. Where is he?”

I realized then he was talking to Lacy, and I slowed as I observed their encounter.

“Keeton’s not home.”

My stomach instantly tightened when she said Keeton’s name. But when she looked over the man’s shoulder and gave me a look that had me tucking myself closer to the building, I knew the man had to be Keeton’s father.

I remembered Lacy had been forced to deal with him before, and he must have recognized her.

“He thinks he’s better than us,” the guy said. Actually it was more of a scream. “He ain’t better. Even his own momma left him behind. He won’t amount to shit, and the day he comes crawling back looking for my help is the day I laugh in the little shit’s face. He can rot for all I care.”

My head pounded in my temples. My stomach tensed. It was all too much.

How could someone be so heartless and cruel to their own flesh and blood? It was sick.

I found myself wanting to rush forward and beat the bastard over the head with the sack of potatoes I had just bought, but decided that wouldn’t be best.

I leaned against the building making myself as close to invisible as possible as he stumbled away and walked toward a car waiting along the road. There was a younger guy behind the wheel, and I could instantly see the resemblance between Keeton and him. It had to be his brother. The idea of yet another person who made Keeton’s life hell only infuriated me more. The need to protect him engulfed me once more.

The man smiled as if what their father had just done was the most innocent thing in the world. He laughed as they pulled away.

“You’ve now witnessed it.” I looked up to find Lacy standing on a few feet away from me. “Now you know firsthand the torment Keeton faces with his family. Things aren’t easy, Olivia, and they never will be.” She didn’t pause even for a second before turning around and yanking open the front entrance to the apartment building and walking inside.





Chapter Twenty





Keeton



I left work in a decent mood, feeling as if for once things were falling into place.

I worked out a deal with the company that sublet out their computer programming to me. They agreed to allow me to work from Livingston over the summer. And Nate had assured me my job would be waiting for me when I returned.

I wasn’t sure how long I would stay, whether it be two weeks or the entire summer, but I was looking forward to getting to know not only Olivia better, but the family she loved so much.

Being surrounded by an actual family was something I never had and I wanted to witness as much of it as possible.

I pulled up in front of my apartment a little after five and grabbed the case of beer I had stopped for from the passenger seat. Walking up the path toward the front entrance I was startled by the sound of Lacy’s voice.

“Kurt showed up tonight looking for you.” She pushed off the wall as she stepped in front of me. “I saved your girlfriend from having to face them so you can thank me later.”

A rush of panic boiled within my stomach as I thought of what Olivia had to witness. Then that panic turned to anger, because I was damn tired of that man interrupting my life.

“Not that your sweet little Olivia could have handled the situation had I left it up to her. She kind of reminds me of a timid mouse, scared of her own shadow.” Lacy had always been cool. She and I had this relaxed relationship without any drama, but lately I was seeing a side of her I didn’t much care for.

“I can assure you Olivia can handle herself.” I pushed past her and reached for the front entry door of the apartment complex. Pulling it open, I looked back over my shoulder. “Do me a favor and stop thinking you need to handle shit for me. It’s becoming a problem. And let go of whatever the fuck your problem is with my girlfriend, because she isn’t going anywhere, Lacy.”

The moment I entered the building and walked in the direction of my apartment, I could smell something cooking. The aroma seeped out from beneath the door and filled the entryway.

A warm feeling slowly began to deplete the irritation I felt only moments ago. There was just something about coming home to Olivia. It was something I was growing quite fond of, something I found myself looking forward to each day.

People say home is not the house itself, but the people and the love shared with them that truly make it a home. I was beginning to understand just what they meant.

Olivia was allowing me to see that a little more each day. She was giving me the sense of family and hope, and I don’t think she even realized it.

As I entered the apartment, she turned around and looked back over her shoulder as she continued to stir something on the stove. A smile graced her lips, and no one would have guessed she had earlier witnessed the tantrum of the man who gave me shit almost on a daily basis.

“Smells good in here,” I said as I pulled off my boots and let them drop to the floor. That sweet damn smile of hers lit up my night in an instant. Forget about all the garbage that followed me; all it took was Liv to melt my heart.

I stepped up behind her and kissed her temple as her body relaxed back against mine. We remained in this position for a few moments without speaking. She continued to stir the sauce in the pan as I wrapped my arms around her waist.

“You gonna tell me about it?” I finally broke the silence even though I had to fight to do so. The moment was so peaceful I truly did not want to break it, but I knew I had to.

She lifted the spoon and tapped it on the side of the pan before lowering it to the holder sitting at the side of the stove. It was just another girly addition Olivia had added to my place over the last few weeks.

When she turned to face me, she looked up and her big blue eyes locked with mine. “You’re amazing,” she whispered. I was a little taken aback but remained quiet as I waited for an explanation. “You’re so kind and loving and are nothing like that man. I just need you to know I don’t pity you, not even in the smallest amount.” Her eyes filled with tears and my stomach tensed. “I admire you.”

My own throat burned with emotion.

“After everything you’ve gone through, you flipped it around and used it as motivation to do better, to be more. There is nothing about that which makes me feel sorry for you.” She rose up on her toes and placed her trembling lips to mine. “It only makes me love you more.”

She kissed me again and for a moment I got lost in that kiss. Until her words registered in my mind.

Pulling back from the kiss, I placed my hands on her face and held her close. “You love me?” I had to hear it again. It was as if I craved the words once she spoke them.

“Yes,” she nodded. “I love you.”

I could listen to her speak those three words over and over. I hadn’t realized just how much they meant until I heard them from Olivia.