Brett and Hannah (Soul Mates 101 Series) (19 page)

Brett and Hannah barely left their rooms for the rest of the week. Sleeping and barely eating were all they did, and they wouldn’t speak to their friends.

B
oth were miserable their first week on campus as everyone stared and whispered around them. They spent as little time there as possible. The Saturday morning after their first week of classes Brett’s phone rang.

“This is Brett.”

“Brett, this is Lorna. Do you have a few minutes?”

“I guess. What do you want?”

“I know this is a strange request, but would you please meet me somewhere?”

“Umm
... to talk?”

“Yes, and I need to show you something.”

“Ok, where?”

“I’ll need to give you an address.”

The more Brett had gotten to know Lorna, the more he realized Hannah had learned her persuasion skills from her mother. He had a suspicion she was up to something, but he had no idea what it could be.

Brett drove to a
gated community not far from the Masons’ home. As soon as he told the guard the address, he was let in. The homes were extraordinary with intricate details, each sitting on two acres.

He
estimated the price of the homes to be at least half a million dollars. He pulled in the driveway and took some deep breaths before walking to the door.

“Brett, please come in,
” Lorna said, smiling.

He immediately noticed the house was empty.

“Hi, c
an I ask why we’re meeting at an empty house?” Brett followed her into the kitchen.

“
I bought this home for Hannah. We love our home, but Hannah can’t stand living there after what happened. She won’t say it, but it’s obvious.”

“
Wow, it’s great. I’m sure she’s going to love it, but why am I here? I hope you’re not wanting me to do the landscaping. I don’t feel I can handle that, and I’m sure she wouldn’t like it, either.”

“
Actually, I want you to live here.”

Brett paused for
a moment. He saw the serious expression on her face.

“
Umm ... I don’t understand.”

“
Darlin’, I want you to live here with my daughter, and love her like I know you do.”

Brett became extremely uncomfortable
. Knowing he was going to have to discuss Hannah and his relationship with Lorna to this personal of a level unnerved him.

“
Brett, Hannah’s miserable. She won’t leave her room but to go to class. She didn’t want to break up with you.”

“She’
s furious with me. I betrayed her, and she made it clear she didn’t want to be with me.”

“
Do you honestly believe she’d be this upset at you for telling me about the singing? You took another life to save hers. After your selfless act, she wouldn’t hold this against you. She’s using this as an excuse to push you away because she thinks it would be best for you. She’s trying to set you free.

“Hannah believes you’
ll be miserable living the kind of life we lead, and she feels horrible guilt over what you had to do to keep her alive. I’ve also heard you’re just as miserable as she is.”

“Our friends gossip too much,
” he said, leaning his back against the kitchen counter.

“They
love you and Hannah and know you belong together. You both need to accept that and quit punishing yourselves. I’m aware this is an unusual request, but please think about it. I won’t tell Hannah about the house until you’ve had time to decide.

“
I have plenty of money to do this, so don’t let that be the reason you refuse. Todd and I have always planned to buy her a home in the future, but now is the right time.

“
I’ll think about it,” he said before Lorna hugged him.

“W
e want you to be a part of this family. Hannah loves you, Darlin’, so don’t be a horse’s butt and let her walk away.”

Brett couldn’t help but smile.

“Hannah, please
get up and go shopping with us. It’s Sunday, and we won’t get another chance again for a week because of studying,” Chelsea said, sitting on the end of Hannah’s bed.

Taylor stood over Hannah, moving stray hairs out of her face. “We miss you, and it’
s not good for you to lie in this house.”

Jasmine pulled all of Hannah’s blankets off the bed.

“We’re not leaving here until you get up and go shopping with us. So get your hot booty out of this bed,” she said.

“I don’t feel like it.” Hannah curled up into a ball on her bed.

“We know you’re depressed because of what happened to you, but we think it’s mainly because you miss Brett. Call him, and tell him you miss him. The guys said he won’t get out of bed, either. This is stupid,” Morgan said.

“I can’t call him. He doesn’t want the life
he’ll have if he’s with me, and I saw the pain I caused him when I broke up with him. I don’t think he’ll ever forgive me for saying he’d hurt me again.”

“He’s your protector, Hannah.
He’s been protecting you since the first day he saw you, and it’s all he knows to do … that and love you. Austin said Brett’s a mess without you,” Chelsea said.

“I’
ll go shopping if you stop talking about Brett,” Hannah said as she sat up in her bed.

“Brett, unlock this damn door,” Dylan said.

“Yeah, get your ass out here,”
Cody said, standing next to Dylan as he pounded on Brett’s bedroom door.

Brett opened it. “
Why can’t you all leave me the hell alone? I’m trying to sleep.”

“
You’ve slept for days, Brett. Get out here, now!” Matt yelled from the family room.

“Fine,”
Brett said irritated.

He thought when he walked into the family room the guys
would be playing Xbox or doing their own thing. Instead, the TV was off, and they were all sitting around the room.

“What’s
going on?” he asked.

“
This is an intervention, so sit your ass down,” Dylan said.

Brett stayed standing by the doorway.

Matt spoke first. “Bro, you know I leave you alone as much as I can about things, but you have to talk about Hannah. What happened to you two that night was fucked up, and we know you’re suffering from depression over it, but you and Hannah should be dealing with it together.

“
Go tell her you were a dumb ass to let her walk away, and then don’t let it happen again,” Matt said.

Brett pointed to Matt and Austin.

“Don’t say
anything
to your girlfriends because Hannah doesn’t even know, but Lorna bought Hannah a half a million dollar house, and she wants us to live there together. That’s plain nuts. You all know I’m not a mooch.”

“It doesn’t matter what you accept f
rom them. The people in your life who matter know you aren’t looking for a handout,” Austin said.

Dylan stood u
p and turned his ball cap around backwards before placing his hands on his hips. “She’s the most amazing woman I’ve ever met, and you’re a damn fool if you let her slip away.”

Brett glared at him, knowing
what Dylan’s underlying message was.

Dylan stared back and continued.

“When Hannah was in the hospital, and the paparazzi were outside the door here, do you remember what you told me? You said it was too late to do anything about them because you already loved her.

“
Nothing’s changed. It’s still too late. You two should be together. You know it—she knows it—and everyone else knows it. Get a fucking shower, and go tell her you love her and that you’re not going anywhere,” Dylan said, pointing to the door.

Brett walked over and sat on t
he couch next to Matt, falling back against it. “You didn’t see her that night. She lay in a pool of blood. I couldn’t even recognize her from all the red that poured from everywhere.

“
Her pants were around her knees. I thought he raped and killed her, and that’s why I beat him like I did. I’m afraid because of who she is, someone’s going to try again to take her from me, and I won’t be there to stop it.” His eyes filled with tears once again.

Matt looked at him
. “You can’t just live in fear of that happening. You love her, so you should take every second you can have with her. And you need to go get her, so our damn girlfriends will get off our back. We’ve learned if Hannah’s not happy, your good buddies here are not gettin’ any,” Matt said with a chuckle.

Austin started laughing.

“Seriously, bro, Morgan said Hannah never wanted to break up with you. She did it because she thought she was giving you an out,” Matt added.

Brett looked at him. “That’s what Lorna said, too.” He wiped his eyes a
nd stood up. “Thanks guys. I’m going to go get her back.”

Lorna had given Brett her phone number when they met at the new house, so after he showered
, he called her and told her what he wanted to do.

He felt like a fool as he roamed through the toy store. When he came to the doll isle, he glanced to see if anyone was around.

God I have it bad for her if I’
m doing this.

Brett went down the
aisle as fast as he could, scanning up and down the shelves quickly. He finally saw the Strawberry Shortcake dolls. He didn’t even know if they still sold them and was relieved when he saw them.

The few he picked up he remembered,
although, he noticed they had changed some. He grabbed the Strawberry Shortcake one and walked to the register, relieved that the clerk was a middle aged lady who didn’t seem to care what he was purchasing.

While standing there
, he realized he was old enough to be a dad, and even though that freaked him out, he felt a little more comfortable thinking that dads probably shopped there for their daughters all the time. He also bought a gift bag and tissue paper.

Brett checked with Lorna and found out Hannah was back from shopping, so he eagerly went
to her house. Lorna let him in. He walked quietly up to Hannah’s room and knocked on the door.

“Come in,
” Hannah said.

Brett pushed the door open and stood there. He didn’t want
to startle her after what she’d been through.

“
Brett, what are you doing here?” she asked with wide eyes.

“I really need to talk to you. Would you please go for a drive with me?”

“I don’t know. I want to, but I’m not doing too well right now. I don’t know if my heart can take anything else.”

“Please, Hannah. I’
m asking you to trust me.”

“OK, but you can drive my car. No offense, but your work
truck smells,” she said as a small smile curved from her lips.

Brett asked her t
o pull the car out of the garage while he got the gift bag from his truck. Since she was busy getting into the passenger side, he didn’t think she noticed him carrying anything before he slipped it in the back seat.

Hannah didn’t speak as she stared out the window on the way to their destination. He
could see how broken she was and felt overwhelming guilt knowing he’d played a role in causing her pain.

“Hannah, can I please hold your hand? I c
an’t stand to see the pain you’re in, and I’ve missed you.”

Sh
e looked at him and then reached out her hand, her expression never changing. He felt the heaviness of the world resting on his heart. He prayed it wasn’t too late to fix things.

As
miserable as he already was without her, he didn’t know how he was going to get up and breathe every day if he didn’t get her back. He had to convince her.

“C
an you please tell me where we’re going?”

“
You’ll see in just a minute.”

Brett pulled up to the gate
and gave the address. He’d asked Lorna to call, so they’d let him in.

“Who lives here?” she asked curious
ly.

Brett pulled up in the d
riveway. He noticed more details on the home that day. It was massive with stone on the front and had a beautiful porch that wrapped around half of the house. It appeared to be on the largest lot.

He kn
ew so little about it since he’d only spoke to Lorna in the kitchen when he met with her. He had no idea what the backyard looked like or how many bedrooms and baths it had. The entire situation was strange, but he could live with that if Hannah was living with him. He turned the car off and looked over at her.

She had a nervous, puzzled look on her face.

“Are you going to tell me who lives here, so I can prepare myself a little?”

“Sorry, not yet. You have to trust me.”

He grabbed the gift bag
and held her hand all the way to the door. After grabbing a key from under the mat, he turned and smiled at her.

Hannah was utterly confused. She walked into the house after Brett held his arm out, signaling for her to go first. As soon as she noticed it was empty, she spun around to look at him.

“Brett, who owns this home
, and why are we here? No offense, but unless there’s something you haven’t told me, I know you didn’t buy it.”

“
Follow me,” he said, taking her hand and leading her into the large great room. “Hannah, your parents bought you this home, and they gave me the privilege of telling you.”

“Are
you kidding me?” A smile spread across her face.

“They knew it wasn’t going to be good for you to be in that house every
day after what happened, so they thought it was time for you to have your own home.”

“I can’t believe it.
I knew it was possible they’d do it eventually, but I thought they’d wait until I finished college, and I never expected something so extravagant.

Wh
y did they let you show me? I can picture my parents gushing as they show me this place, so I can’t believe they gave up that opportunity.”

She looked at Brett and saw sweat beading up on his forehead.

“Hannah, I’ve really screwed things up between us. I know I made a terrible mistake letting you walk away from me. I should’ve fought harder.

“
I wasn’t trying to find a way out, but I didn’t fight to keep you because I’m terrified that someone will succeed at taking you from me.”

“Brett, that’s not going to happen.”

“Let me finish. After you came home, it seemed so hard for us to be around each other. I think it’s because we were a reminder of what the other had went through that horrific night.

“It was the night I realized how strong a love I have
for you. I was willing to kill to save you, praying to God to spare your life, and take mine instead.” Brett moved closer to her and ran his hands up into her hair, tilting her head up.

“I felt an attraction to
you the first moment I met you, Hannah Ray Mason. One of the reasons I carried you up those stairs that night was because I wanted you with me. I felt a strong need to protect you, drawn to you in a way that over powered any restraint to stay away.

“
This lifestyle is a part of who you are, and I fell in love with you, so I did sign up for this. I told you before. I want all of you.”

She
gazed up at him as tears stung her eyes. “I love you, and I’m sorry. It was cruel of me to say you’d hurt me again. I didn’t want to give you up. I only did it out of guilt.”

“Then I
’m begging you not to give up on us, Hannah. I believe our love is strong enough to heal from this. Please let me show you that things can get better. I love you.” Brett kissed her forehead.

“
You’re right. Our love is strong enough to get past this. I love you so much, Brett.”

He pulled her into his arms
and gently stroked her hair. “I’m not letting you go again, baby. You’re stuck with me forever.”

She gave him an amorou
s kiss, taking her time as she ran her fingers through his soft blonde hair. The feel of his hand traveling up the back of her shirt made her feel warm and safe.

This kiss was different as they
relinquished their fears and reacquainted themselves with each other’s succulent mouths and warm flesh, savoring every new second of their life together. They were lost in each other for several minutes before Brett pulled away.

“Hannah, listen
... there’s something else I have to tell you, and I want you to know I’ll respect your decision no matter what it is.”

“O
K, what is it?”

“
Your parents didn’t actually buy this house for you.”

“What? But you—”

“They bought it for us … to live in together.”

She
let go of him and sat down on the floor, trying to process the surreal news. She knew her parents were beyond grateful for Brett saving her, but she never could’ve imagined this. She felt her heart pounding as she processed all that had happened in a few short months.

“Listen, it’
s hard on my ego knowing I’ll never make enough money to give you a home like this, and you know I’m not one to take handouts, but if you want me here with you, then I’ll move in tomorrow so that I can wake up to your beautiful face every day. I’ll do whatever it takes to be with you. I mean it, Hannah …whatever it takes.”

“I only want to live here if I can
live here with you,” she said, grinning as she jumped to her feet and wrapped her arms around his waist.

Brett pulled her into a tight embrace. “I swear you just made me so happy. I have a gift for you. It’s embarrassing, but I want you to have it, and the fact I purchased this myself should show you how much I love you.

“
Also, if you tell the guys about this gift, then the last tickling episode will pale in comparison to the one you’ll receive,” he said, smirking.

Hannah sat across from him on the floor of the spacious
great room, grinning as she pulled the tissue paper out of the bag. She lifted out the Strawberry Shortcake doll.

“I should have thought of this on m
y own. Of course, my hair color.”

“That’s
not the main reason I call you shortcake.”

“What do you mean?”

“My sister had all of the Strawberry Shortcake dolls when I was around five. I loved how they smelled, so when my sister wasn’t home, I would sneak them out of her room and sniff them,” he said with a chuckle.

He loved seeing Hannah’s
bright green eyes light up again. “When you brought me tea that first day in your yard, I could smell your hair, and I thought it smelled so good and familiar.

“
That night when I held you in my arms on the porch, you buried your head against my neck. I breathed in the scent of your hair again and remembered what it reminded me of. Cradling you that night after meeting you the same day and smelling that sweet strawberry scent of those dolls, a scent I loved so much ... I felt our lives collided for a reason.

“I was just too freaked out over the instant feelings I had for you to know what to do.
I couldn’t get enough of how good you smelled then, and I can’t now.” Brett took hold of both of her hands. “That’s why you’re my shortcake.”

“Aww
, you called me that at the bar. That was so soon. I
knew
you wanted me then.”

Brett soaked in her radiant smile
and all the happiness that had returned to her face. She scooted across to him and sat in his lap on the floor. He held her as she immersed her face against his neck once more.

“That was the sweetest story ever. I lo
ve it, like I love you, and I’ll search for every last bottle of that shampoo, so you can smell it forever.”

“I l
ike the sound of forever, shortcake. I love you.”