Cover Up (Cover #2) (4 page)

EMILY

The sounds around me made no sense. I didn’t understand any of it. Nonsensical sounds, which I assumed came from people, all merged together. I groaned and struggled to lift my eyelids, but saw nothing but blurry images of weird forms hovering above me. I tried to focus my eyes, but soon the darkness ripped me away from reality, plunging me back into a deep sleep.

“You love me?” I asked Adam while we sat in the back of our restaurant, taking our lunch break.

He stuttered his way into confessing that he had fallen in love with me and I was completely blindsided.

“Please don’t make me say it again. I barely got it out the first time,” he said with his head low, avoiding any eye contact.

He was incredibly adorable in his chefs’ uniform and his perfectly slicked back blond hair. He was the perfect combination of sexy boy next door and bad boy -exactly my type!

Of
course, I felt the same about Adam. I fell for him just weeks after we started dating; but an opportunity like this only came once in a lifetime, so I just couldn’t help but grab it while I could. Who else could say that they had witnessed the ever so confident Adam Lambert be insecure? It was cruel, but I planned to make it up to him all night long!

“I just don’t know what to say
, babe. I mean, we’ve only been together for just a few months, and I don’t want to move too fast,” I whispered, my face completely devoid of any emotion.

His body went completely rigid
. I felt the tension in his hands when he tightened his grip on mine. “I understand sweet girl. I don’t expect you to feel the same. You… you don’t have to say it back…” he trailed off before standing and finally meeting my eyes.

He leaned in to kiss me on the cheek
, instead I grabbed ahold of his face, let go of his hands, and placed each of mine on either side of his cute, sad, face. I felt a little guilty for playing with him, especially since I knew how hard it was for him to open up about his feelings. So, I brought his face closer to mind and kissed him softly.

“I love you too
, Adam.”

The voices came back and I was
confused as to what was real and what was a dream. This time, when the darkness left me, I felt more lucid. I felt something around my neck keeping me still. I heard the beeping of a monitor, which pretty much confirmed that I was in a hospital. I opened my eyes again and focused on the blurs around me. I grumbled when I tried to swallow, and felt the harsh dryness in my throat. Instantly, a flood of blurry objects leapt towards me.

“She’s awake,” I heard someone say
; and although I still couldn’t make out who was who, I was glad to understand anything at all. What the fuck was going on? Why was I in a hospital? Why was this thing around my neck?

“Hello, can
you tell me your name ma’am?” a woman said.

I licked my dr
y, cracked, lips and opened my mouth to answer her. I knew my name, of course, but the sound I heard come out was not what I expected. The voice was small and high pitched, like a child’s, and I couldn’t understand where the sound was coming from.

“Very good
, Ms. Roberts,” the woman responded and I lifted my eyes to look at her and her blurry form came into focus. She was a pretty, redhead with cute little freckles around her cheeks.

“I know things are a little hazy right now
, but you were in an accident and suffered some trauma to your head, which caused a great deal of swelling. After surgery, we had no choice but to put you in a medically induced coma,” she said, lifted my hand, and began checking my pulse.

What the hell?
A coma? My pulse sped up and I panicked. How long have I been out? What year is it? Endless questions circled my mind, as I lay there unable to move, my eyes darting back and forth.

Su
ddenly, I the heart monitor sped up beside me. I turned to look at the door.

“M
s. Roberts, you have to stay as calm as possible,” she urged, trying to keep me still.

My
accelerated breathing made me feel like I was having a heart attack.

Another person rushed to my side
, but I couldn’t bring myself to look up. Instead, I focused on my breathing.
Breathe, Em. Just breathe…

“Dr. Avery, something is wrong. Please do something!” the person urged with concern in his voice.
Who was that?
I wondered, but I felt the familiar tug before I could bring myself to look at him. I was going under again and there wasn’t anything I could do to stop it.

“Adam,” was all I
managed to croak through my arid throat - before returning to complete darkness.

JULIEN

Fucking Adam!

She asked for
HIM
! Not me… When Emily first started coming in and out of consciousness, the doctor asked us to remain calm and quiet so that we didn’t startle Emily while she slowly emerged from the coma. She explained that Emily would be confused at first, and that we were slowly to ease her into acknowledging everyone, since she probably wouldn’t be able to make out much at first.

It wasn’t easy
, standing there when her eyes opened hearing her first words in a week’s time - her name. She sounded so small and innocent, like a child. I wanted desperately to leap to her side the moment she flickered her sensually long lashes, to hold her close to my chest as she came back to
me.

I
truly believed that she heard me when I pled for forgiveness; but her thoughts were obviously on her ex-boyfriend,
Adam
. What the fuck did she see in him? He wasn’t that good looking. In fact, he looked absolutely ridiculous. He was a grown man and yet, each time I saw him - whether it was at his job where he met with Emily, or when he visited the hospital - he looked like a surfer kid playing dress-up in a Chef’s uniform.

I couldn’t sta
y in that room and listen while she asked for him. The smirk on his face when he heard his name made me want to punch him in the face. No, I had to get the hell out of there. I strode passed Diana, who stood by the door probably expecting Emily to tell her to leave, and walked out of the room.

I didn’t go far
though, my stomach churned in heated knots. Emily’s safety was still my only concern, even though I was heartbroken.

It was clear that I had lost her this time for good. I reached the waiting room across the hall and was grateful the dim
ly lit room was empty . I plopped into one of the hard plastic, blue chairs that lined the room’s walls. The poorly decorated room smelled of disinfectant.

The pains in my chest were unbearable as I s
lunk further into the chair, letting my head fall back against the blue and white striped wall. Never had I experienced such anguish until meeting Emily. Had she loved me as I loved her, I would welcome the signs that my heart was actually capable of such emotion, but that was not the case. These pains were without proper reason. They bore no fruit. They were wasted emotions and I was tired of yielding to the vexing feelings that roiled inside of me.

I was Julien Belmont, VP of Belmont International. I didn’t give
away anything to anyone without reaping far more in return. Chasing women was never an issue for me, never something I considered; and here I sat in this damn hospital, longing for a woman who obviously didn’t love me.

“Hey
, shit head! Forget something?” I heard someone say.

I looked up to find Suzie standing
in the doorway. Her arms were crossed and her face etched in nervous awkwardness, though it was apparent she was trying her hardest to seem aloof.

“I just want to be alone,” I grumbled
, leaned my head back against the wall, closed my eyes, and took slow deliberate breaths. There wasn’t anything to talk about. I’d made up my mind - I was done. It was over. I would make sure Emily was doing ok; then walk out of this hospital, out of her life and get mine back on track. I had been doing just fine, before the little vixen ever entered my life, and I would do just fine without her!
Wouldn’t I?

“Ok
, seriously dude, I don’t know you all that well. But, from the conversations we’ve had this past week, I know that you are a good man. And I can also tell that you are forcing yourself to shut down. You need to go back in there and ―” she barked before I interrupted.

“You are right! You
don’t
know me well, at all. I appreciate your advice, but I’m done here. Is Emily ok?” I murmured.

“Why don’t you come see for yourself and stop acting like a fucking baby? So
, she said Adam’s name. Big whoop! Man the hell up, grab ahold of your fucking balls and get your ass in there!” she ordered before storming away.

A
part of me wanted to go back in there and look deep into Emily’s eyes; hold her close to me again. What good would that do? I may not know Emily’s favorite color, but one thing was certain - I loved her! The problem was she ran away from her problems. Anytime things got uncomfortable or she felt slightly threatened, she fled. She proved that repeatedly, never giving me a chance to explain anything, never believing in me; not that I had made it easy for her, but still... What kind of relationship could we have together?

If only she had given me a chance to
explain how terrified I felt about her control over me. This was all so new to me. The women in my past were all just a means to an end, but she…she was special. She captured my soul the moment I laid eyes on her. She woke something deep inside me I never even realized was there. I was a man who valued my ability to maintain a level head in any given situation; her all-consuming power over me made me wary. I panicked.

She
never gave me an opportunity to tell her that I made a mistake. One that I had vowed, the morning I awoke in Charlette’s bed, I would never make again. That night with Charlette confirmed what I already suspected in my heart, that my entire being belonged to Emily. She captured my heart and brought it life. My body saluted her, its master. Her presence commanded its attention; my heart beat a rejoicing anthem at the mere sight of her. My skin burned at each touch. No other woman would ever compare to her.

If she had only cared enough to listen, she wouldn’t have
been hurt and we would be together. Instead, she chose to walk out of my life, not once, not twice but for a third time today.

Were
it anyone else, any other woman, I would have severed all ties at the first betrayal. But she wasn’t any woman… She was my Emily. But today, today I would walk away from her for good.