Changing Tunes (26 page)

I nod once, acknowledging I hear him as I absently walk back up to my room and grab my bag. He doesn’t come after me, he stays put in his snug little office. I throw my bag over my shoulder yanking my car keys out of my purse, throwing them on the table. I never thought he’d let me keep the car anyway. It’s all about appearances. I don’t fit the ideal appearance anymore, I never really did. I walk outside and pull my cell phone out to call a cab. Just because he’s left me without a car doesn’t mean I’m helpless. I already have a checking account set up that he wasn’t aware of. The one thing I’ve had in my own name since I turned eighteen. I’d slowly been transferring money into it every chance I got. I wasn’t stupid. I was preparing. Did I know when it would happen? No. But I was going to still have something to my name. I wait a total of ten minutes outside before the cab pulls up. It isn’t until the cab driver asks me if I’m okay that I realize I’m still crying. I nod and ask to be taken to the nearest hotel. Fifteen minutes later, I’m dropped off at a Holiday Inn. I walk in and quickly get a room. I lock the door and with phone in hand, lie down on the bed and call Zeke. He’s not mad, just worried. I tell him I need a ride and where I am. He says he’s coming.

My white knight riding on a horse is coming.

I fall asleep thinking dreams really do come true. I have my white knight and he’s on his way to rescue me, and this time, everything is going to be okay.

I wake and decide to shower, noting the time. It won’t be long before Zeke shows up and I’m feeling not so fresh. I hop in the shower and my entire conversation with my father replays in my head. I’m not as heartbroken as I thought I would be. I feel an odd sense of relief—relief at being insanely honest, for once. You would think losing my only family member, even if he was the one to oust me, would feel heartbreaking, but it doesn’t. Don’t get me wrong, it’s sad, but my life isn’t over, and I have friends that are more like my family than my actual family ever was.

I let the water cascade down my body, letting all of the bad wash down the drain. I picture everything I’ve tried so hard to change, and everything bad that’s happened. This is it. This is my new beginning. I have finally taken control. I feel at peace.

I‘m wrapping the towel around me when there’s a knock at the door. I peek through the peephole and see Zeke standing there, looking anxious. I wrap my towel a little tighter and open the door, hiding myself behind it.  
A girl’s got to hang on to a little bit of modesty for crying out loud.

He rushes through the door, closing it behind him, and wraps me in his strong arms, making me feel safe and at home. He is my home.

“God, I was so worried about you.” He pulls back, staring into my eyes. “Don’t ever do that to me again. Please?”

“I needed to do this on my own, but I won’t have to do this again. He’s cut me off, like I knew he would, and it’s okay. I’m fine. I said what I needed to say.” I avoid eye contact as I ask, “So did Mac tell you about Forrester?”

He gently tips my head back and says, “Look at me.”

I do and see only love shining back at me. “You have nothing to be embarrassed of, or ashamed of. You did nothing wrong.”

“I know, but…”

He doesn’t let me finish. “I’ve got to tell you something. Nick and I went to a couple of administrators and made formal complaints against Forrester. You will need to do it, as well, but Nick actually witnessed it happen, and I was witness to your complaints about him.”

I’m shocked beyond words, but also scared. My first thought is what if they don’t believe me. “What did they say when you told them?”

“Basically, they said they were taking this very seriously. Having Nick witness his perverseness on several different occasions certainly helps your situation. We’ll get through this. I swear.” I believe him. With him beside me, I can get through anything.

I lean forward and kiss him thoroughly. He breaks off the kiss entirely too soon and leans his forehead on to mine. “I have to talk to you about something else. Something completely different.”

I’m hearing what he’s saying, but I’m not. I just know right now, this second, I need him, and in me, preferably. I drop my towel. “Talk after, right now I need you.”

I yank his shirt up and over his head, and make quick work of the button on his pants, pushing them all the way down never breaking eye contact. He senses my urgency and lets me take control. It’s liberating, but different at the same time. Touch is involved; his. His touch makes me feel alive. I walk us backwards until we fall onto the bed. He holds his arms out to keep from falling and squishing me. I wrap my arms around his neck and yank his head to me, kissing him with all I have. My tongue enters his mouth and makes a thorough exploration. I suck on his tongue and then bite it gently. He groans into my mouth, my hands trailing down his muscles and down past that sexy trail of hair. I grip him firmly and feel him jerk in my hands. I pump a couple of times and then swirl my finger across his tip, running my hand back down, repeating the movement again.

“Sweetheart, you’re killing me.”

He kisses my neck and uses his fingers to roll and pinch my breast, making me even wetter. “God, I need you now.” I push him and roll him over, straddling him. I lean over the floor and snatch his wallet out of his pants pocket, handing it to him. He grabs a condom out then hands it to me with a playful smile.

I play back. “What, you want me to put it on?”

His smile grows bigger. “You’re so damn sexy when I watch you tear it open with your mouth. And when I watch you roll it over me, it nearly undoes me.”

I do what I’ve done so many other times, but this is different. It’s intimate and special. From now on, I’ll only ever do it for him.

I roll the condom down him slowly, loving seeing the heat in his eyes increase. Knowing I do this to him—there’s no greater power. I lean down, kiss the side of his face and whisper in his ear, “I want you on top. Ride me, baby.”

In one swift move, he flips us so I’m on the bottom and he’s entering me. I wrap my legs around his waist, locking my ankles. Almost immediately we build a steady rhythm. He begins sucking and twirling his tongue around my nipple. I throw my head back as he begins to thrust into me harder, switching to the other nipple; it feels so damn good.

“Faster.” I breathe out. He complies and I feel my insides tighten around him as I begin to tremble. His breathing gets harsher and I know he’s close. Two more thrusts and I’m gone. He latches onto my lips and kisses me, following right behind.

“God, I love you,” he breathes out, several moments later.

“I love you, too.” I smile up at him.

Slowly, he pulls out and walks into the bathroom to discard the condom. He brings back a warm wet washcloth and gently wipes me clean. Something that would’ve been way too intimate had it been anyone other than Zeke. With Zeke, it’s thoughtful and loving. His eyes slowly trail up my body and heat and love pour out of them.

“You’re so damn beautiful. How did I get so lucky?”

My eyes begin to water. “You loved me for me, and accepted all of me. You never judged me, you just took me as I am.”

“You’re damn near perfect.” He says lovingly.

“No, I’m not. Far from it.” I say shaking my head.

Zeke slides into bed, yanking the covers over us. We’re lying face to face. He slowly rubs a finger up and down my cheek and back up to my ear. “No, you’re damn near perfect. You’re it for me, sweetheart.”

A tear makes its way down my face. It isn’t a sad tear this time, but a happy and content tear. He wipes it away and gently kisses my lips.

I fall asleep, wrapped in the arms of my white knight that came to rescue me. Just like in the books my mom used to read to me. I’m pretty sure I fell asleep with a smile across my lips.

I think about the last twenty-four hours—the waiting and the phone call I finally received. I was so damn scared for Ashley. I know she’s strong, I’ve never doubted that. It’s her asinine father I worried about. How much more damage and pain was he willing to inflict on her? Apparently, a hell of a lot more. As a father, I can’t fathom ever turning my child away, no matter how old they are. He has no clue how absolutely perfect and wonderful Ashley is, no damn clue.

I glance down at her sleeping form and hold her even tighter. She’s one of the two best things to happen to me. I feel blessed, and so lucky to have her love. She’s opened up to me and told me things I know she hasn’t told anyone, except maybe Mac. Her trust is something that’s precious and it’s certainly something I’m afraid I’ll lose once she learns my truth.

Deep down, I know today has to be the day I finally tell her about Lara. Bad timing, I know, but I can’t keep this from her anymore. I’ll tell her when we get back. For now, I’ll bask in everything that is Ashley, and make damn sure she knows how much I fucking love her.

I lean over and kiss the tip of her nose then the side of her lips.

“You sure know how to wake a girl in the morning.” She smiles and then cranes her neck to the side.

“Oh you want to be kissed, eh?” I tease. I drag my finger from her cheek and down her neck and watch as she visibly shivers under my touch.

“That’s so hot!”

She looks at my quizzically, her eyebrows scrunching. “What’s hot?”

“The way you visibly shiver when I touch you.”

She purses her lips together. “You can see that, can you?”

“Hell yes, I can, and I fucking love it!”

I lean over and kiss her neck swirling my tongue so close to her ear, making her shiver again before licking my way down her throat. I want to lick every place on her gorgeous body and I want her to feel herself tremble, especially when my tongue is inside her. I want her to remember how she feels in this moment. I want to hear her moan and hear my name purr from her lips.

I relish every moan and every heavy breath that leaves her luscious lips. When she reaches down and grabs my hair, pushing me deeper inside her, I groan. I love what I do to her, that I push her over the edge, until her legs tremble and she can’t hold them any longer, until my name is the last thing she screams.