Consumed (36 page)

I race right up to the concierge. The woman is alarmed by my frantic behavior and I control my breathing, trying to appear less frazzled.

“Richard James. What room is he in?”

I bite my nails while she searches her computer. “Four-three-zero.”

Mason thanks her and I tear up the corridor. I catch two elevators before I manage to find his room. Seth leans against the wall outside. He’s twirling is phone around his fingers and chewing on a toothpick in thought.

“Seth!” I call out to him.

His head snaps up to me and his eyes melt from worry to relief—that is until he looks past me and sees Mason. I wrap my arms around Seth’s neck and pull him into me. His strong arms circle my waist and he plants soft kisses on my neck.

“I was so worried.” He says. “I thought you were catching the bus.”

“Mason drove me... it seemed a little more realistic.” I give him my best ‘be nice’ face and pull away from Seth to enter my dad’s room. Machines beep around him and Mom reads a book on the recliner in the corner.

“Olly? I thought you had work?” Dad wonders as I approach his bed. His voice is a little tired, but other than that he looks okay. Mom puts her book down and jumps out of her seat to hug me. When she pulls me into her arms, the tears flow down my cheeks and I just can't stop them. They’re tears of joy, tears of sadness. I’m so relieved he’s okay, but I still feel guilty. If I hadn’t argued with him maybe this could’ve been avoided.

“I’m so sorry.” I cry.

He shifts in his bed unable to sit up. “This isn’t your fault. I should have listened to the doctor and your mother,
and
you in the first place.”

Mom’s hands rub my shoulders as she tries to soothe me. “It’s not anyone’s fault. We got lucky and when we get home it’s nothing but steamed vegetables and grilled foods for you.”

Dad nods sheepishly.

“If it wasn’t for Seth.” He says. “I don’t know if I’d be here.”

“Seth?”

His eyes flick to the bed, nervously. “He came to my office to give me a ‘no hard feelings’ talk and I don’t know what happened. My jaw started aching and I thought it was because of the beef jerky I was eating, but then there was this crushing sensation in my chest—”

“You don’t need to relive it, honey.” Mom says, leaning over the thing, white rails to kiss him. “It’s up onwards and upwards from here.”

Mason knocks on the door, drawing our attention and steps in. “Uh, Olivia, I have to go back to the office. You don’t have to come. I’ll take care of everything.”

Mom smiles widely at him and I eye her suspiciously. If she so much as— “That is so nice of you, isn’t it Olivia?”

Wow. She’s actually playing matchmaker right now.

“Yes it is,” I reply, almost through clenched teeth. “But I need to work. I’ve taken too much time off I need to pay rent and electricity.”

“If you move back in—” I flash my palm at her and cut her words off. I’m so not going there, not right now.

“I’ll cover it.” Seth offers casually, leaning against the door frame. How someone can so casually offer to support someone is beyond me. It’s a big deal.

“That’s unnecessary.” I say.

“Olivia, I’m not allowing you to come back to work. Now, you still have twelve paid days remaining of your annual leave. I’ll just put it on that.” Mason leans in and presses a kiss to my cheek. My eyes flick nervously from Seth’s face. It wasn’t a sexual gesture, nor do I think he did it on purpose to piss Seth off. He’s just being friendly and supportive, I guess.

“Give me a call when you’re ready.” He exits out the door, but not without earning a very subtle glare from Seth.

His chocolate irises fall back onto me and I give him a tight smile and a small shrug of my shoulders. A pretty female nurse sticks her head into the room. Her long, brown hair cascading over her slim shoulders. “Visiting hours are over.” She tells us. “Only one of you can stay to keep him company.”

I rub my palms over my dress to remove some of the sweat. Now that the initial shock has worn off, I only feel nauseous.

“Well, Seth and I will go, but I’ll come back first thing tomorrow morning. If you need anything—anything at all—call me. Immediately.”

I kiss Mom and Dad, lingering a second longer on Dad’s stubbly cheek.

“I love you both.” I say as I wrap an arm around Seth’s waist. He slings his arm over my shoulder, pulling me into him. I don’t have to look at Mom to know she doesn’t approve, even after Seth basically saved Dad’s life he still isn’t good enough.

A few people scatter the narrow hallway as they say goodbye to their family members. I look up at Seth and his toothpick flicks across the span of his lips as he teases it with his tongue. “Thank you.”

“For what?”

I stop walking and cut in front of him. He pulls the thin, wooden toothpick from his mouth and his eyes focus on my face.

“For going back to the gym to talk to my dad and for saving his life.”

Seth’s eyebrows crinkle slightly, like he’s uncomfortable. “You don’t have to thank me...”

“I do. Why does thanking you make you so uncomfortable?”

His gaze flits to the floor as he sticks the toothpick back into his mouth. After what felt like an eternity of being silent, he lifts his gaze to me, looking even more uncomfortable than before.

“Because I’m not used to it.”

“You’re not used to being thanked?” I brush my finger along his forearm.

“I’m usually the cause of a problem, not the solution.”

I frown. He doesn’t even realize how much he’s helped me. He’s helped me not fall back into the same routines with Blade. He saved me from Brent and improved my relationship with Dad. Before Seth, my dad was a lot more like my mom—always pushing for me to move back home and because of all of that the next words fell from my lips without thought.

“You’re my solution.”

His lips twitch and he removes his toothpick as the tension in his expression melts away. His arms surround my waist, drawing me closer. To see him relaxed and happy sends a strong, tightening feeling through my chest. All I want is for him to be happy and I’ve never wanted something so badly in my life. Seth pulls me into him, resting his head on mine and his hand trails comfortingly up and down my spine. I’m scared to pull away—I don’t want to. I don’t know what’s happening, but it’s unlike anything I’ve ever felt before. The feelings I had for Blade pale in comparison to what I’m feeling now. Love? No—yes—I don’t know. I’m confused. Is love meant to be so sickening? I feel sick—I feel like crying. I feel like crushing Seth in my arms and never letting go. I’m almost certain I’d completely dissolve into nothing without him. I want to run away because I’m absolutely petrified. Seth likes me, I know he does, but what if there’s no future here. I’m not a mind reader, but I’m certain this isn’t what he’d expect of me after barely one day of being together. I can’t scare him away...

***

I’ve been sitting around dad’s room for the last two hours while he sleeps. Mom has brought her nail kit in for something to do and since she’s done her nails twice already, she decided to attack mine. I can’t complain I suppose, they are in need of some serious grooming. I’ve been biting them too much lately.

I miss Seth. After the hospital yesterday Seth and I hung out around his house. His Mom wasn’t home and we didn’t have sex because Darryl put the ‘no sex until after the fight’ restriction on him. Seth was a little eager to break it and just tell Darryl that he didn’t have sex, but I felt bad and told Seth to wait.

“So, your boss is a nice guy.” Mom says casually.

I almost snort. “Yeah, he is.”

She rakes the nail filer over my skin and I wince as its rough edge scratches my skin. “He’s handsome, too.”

I drag in a breath. “Yes, he is.” I used to think Mason was so, so, so handsome and I’d even flush a little when I thought about him, but then Seth showed up and in my opinion, no one holds a candle to his looks, not even blue-eyed, blond haired Mason. Mason is bright and innocent—too much of a gentlemen in most instances. Seth is dark and confident. He doesn’t care for being subtle. He doesn’t care how he looks to other people. It thrills him.

“Have you ever thought about—”

“Don’t go there, Sandra.” Dad interjects. His voice is husky from sleep. “It’s her boss and he’s too old for her.”

“Age doesn’t define a man. He’s successful and handsome. You’re young so children shouldn’t be a problem.”

I pull my hand away from her, insulted. “Seth is young, handsome and successful.”

“But Seth’s looks won’t last long when he’s constantly getting beaten by men bigger than him. He can only be successful for short periods of time in his line of work and it’s not something you want to raise your children around. I mean, how long have you two been fooling around? It’s just fun, right?”

Dad hits the button on his bed and slowly raises himself to a sitting position. “Who cares if it’s just fun or not. Seth is a good kid. He saved my life.”

“Yes, but it was more of a ‘right place at the right time’ kind of thing.”

Are you kidding me? “That doesn’t mean you should be any less grateful.”

Powerless anger rages through me, making my throat curl tightly around my words. My mom says a lot of pointless, hurtful things—all with good intention (or so she claims) but nothing she has ever said has upset me to the point of becoming extremely angry with her, until now. I glance at Dad, he’s shooting daggers at Mom too and I realize this isn’t the time or place to argue with Mom about Seth. If she wants to be snobby and ungrateful, fine. Let her be, but it won’t change my opinion. Ever. I’ve seen underneath Seth’s hard, cocky shell. I’ve seen his soft side. I’ve seen him vulnerable and hurt. There’s more to him than meets the eye. A hell of a lot more.

“Anyway, Dad, when can you go home?”

The pink blush in Dad’s cheeks fade and Mom huffs, hating the topic change. “Hopefully after lunch, I have to wait two weeks before I can go back to work, but after that it should be okay. They’ve encouraged me to do more cardio and eat better foods as well. Boston is definitely off the cards for me now.”

I try to give him an encouraging smile, but even I felt its sympathetic curl. “I’m sorry. I know how much going to Boston meant to you...”

He flicks his hand like it’s no big deal, but I know otherwise. He was so upset in the gym yesterday when Seth and I said he couldn’t go. “It’s alright. At least one of us is going.”

I blink. Oh. He means me. “I’m not going either, Dad.”

“Why not?” He’s just as confused as Seth was when I told him. “Have you and Seth had a fight?”

I swear I hear Mom’s breath catch hopefully.

“No. I have work.”

“And is Seth okay with that?”

I shrug. “He isn’t too happy about it.”

Mom jumps at her chance to enter the conversation. “Those fighter types are very hard headed.” Dad rolls his eyes. “He hasn’t hit you or anything has he?”

“What the hell, Mom? No, he hasn’t hit me. He’d never do that.”

She folds her arms tightly across her blue cardigan and I hear her tap her heel against the hard floor. “They snap easily, that’s all I’m saying.”

“Honey,” Dad says, pulling my attention from Mom’s face. “You should go. You only have a short time before he goes to pro. You can skip as many as you want then, but at least be a part of his beginning.” Dad’s brown eyes flick to his hands nervously and then back to my face. “When you’re in the gym, he’s distracted by you and when you’re not there during training, he becomes preoccupied with his thoughts, stuck in some far off world. As soon as Darryl blows the whistle and training is over he can’t get out the door quick enough.” His words make my insides swell. At least he can see how much Seth cares about me. “He can’t even go
one
fight without calling you to the locker room before he goes on. I don’t think he’s going to be able to be away from you.” He turns his attention to Mom. “If you opened your eyes just a little bit wider, Sandra, you’d see that Seth worships the ground our daughter walks on. He admires her. Initially, I knew he wasn’t the kind of guy I’d want around my daughter, but I can tell through his fighting, his training—everything, that when he cares for something, he’ll give it everything he has. You should be honored that Olivia has someone like him to respect her and to protect her because when we die—and we will die—we should want our daughter to be protected by someone who’d protect her as fiercely as her own parents would... and Seth’s that guy.”

I’ve never respected my dad more than I do in this moment. I know he likes Seth, but I didn’t know that he’d trust him wholly with his only daughter and that means more to me than words can ever describe. I kiss my Dad on the cheek and tear from the hospital room, leaving Mom’s defeated pout behind me. The clatter of my shoes ring in my ear as I sprint down the hallway.

“No running!” A janitor calls from behind me, but I ignore him. If I stop before I get to my car I might unwillingly come to my senses. After I see Seth, I’m going to call Mason and tell him that I want some time off because I want to be with Seth. I want to be there to support him, rain or shine, win or lose. If Mason doesn’t let me...then I’ll quit because life is too short to not have what you want. When you think back on your childhood or your life last week even, you don’t remember the hours you slaved at work or doing things you hate. You remember going outside. You remember being with your friends and loving life. I want to look back on my life and not regret it. If Seth becomes a distant memory I want to be able to honestly say I had the time of my life. Mason can take away my job, but I’ll still be alive.
Alive
. That’s a pretty big opportunity and I’d hate to waste it.