TROUBLE, A New Adult Romance Novel (The Rebel Series) (41 page)

“Get some rest.
 
Relax.
 
I’ll contact you Monday and keep you posted as I learn anything new.”

“Okay.”
 
I turn to leave and then stop.
 
“About the money …”

“It’s already taken care of.
 
Talk to Colin.”

I nod as I leave her office.
 
Colin is waiting out in the lobby and the sense of relief that fills me as I see him stand to join me is palpable.

“All good?” he asks as we go outside.

“As good as it can be, I guess.”

He holds my hand as he drives.
 
“We’re here for ya.
 
You’re not alone.”

“I know that,” I say, staring out the windshield.
 
“I really do.
 
Thanks.”

My phone rings and startles me out of my mood.
 
At first I’m terrified, thinking Charlie somehow knows what I just did, what I just started.
 
But then I see it’s Charity calling and relax.

“Hello?”

“Hey, Alissa!
 
How are you, girl?”

I can’t help but smile at her cheery tone.
 
“Good.
 
You sound happy.”

“That’s because I just signed all the papers with Barbara and Michael.
 
It’s done!
 
It’s a done deal!
 
It all has to be finalized and stuff after the baby is born, but we have everything in writing now.”

“Awww, congratulations!
 
That’s so cool!
 
Wow, that was fast, too.”
 
My heart feels like it’s floating it’s so light.
 
This totally beats hanging out in Natalie’s office of doom and gloom.

“Yes, they just fast tracked everything as soon as the doofus officially agreed to sign off on his rights. And it’s all because of you!
 
I probably shouldn’t tell you this, but I can’t keep it to myself anymore … Barbara and Michael want us both to be the godparents.
 
Squee!”

I almost can’t swallow.
 
“Really?”
 
My voice is strained.

Colin reaches over and takes my hand.
 
I smile at him so he knows I’m okay.

“Yes, really!
 
Isn’t that so cool?
 
I have to google that godparent thing.
 
I don’t know exactly what it is I’m supposed to do.
 
But I can learn!”
 
She giggles.
 
“Anywho, I’m about to go into class, so I just thought I’d let you know.”

“Class?
 
Isn’t it too early for class?”

She snorts.
 
“It’s Lamaze class.”

“Oh.
 
You’re doing that?”

“Yeah.
 
You should do it too.
 
They teach you breathing stuff.
 
It’s all kind of funny.
 
My poor grandpa is in there doing it with me.
 
Poor guy can’t keep a counting rhythm to save his soul.
 
But I appreciate the support so mum’s the word.”

“Maybe I’ll sign up too.”

“They have a new class starting next week.
 
Better hurry! They fill up fast.
 
Oh, crap.
 
I gotta go.
 
Hugs!”

“Hugs!” I say as the phone disconnects.

“What’s up?” Colin asks.

“Charity did the adoption papers.
 
Now all she needs to do is have the baby and her life is all good.”
 
I’m so jealous.
 
I try not to feel that way, but it’s impossible.

“Just like your life.
 
All good,” he says, glancing over.

“Yeah, right.”
 
I stare out the window, wondering what other surprises God has in store for me.

CHAPTER FORTY-NINE

I SPEND ALL DAY SATURDAY staring at my phone.
 
My dresser has been emptied, cleaned, filled, and emptied again while I moved it, all in an effort to keep my mind off my troubles.
 
Sometimes free time feels like punishment of the worst sort.

A gift from Colin was delivered from Amazon this morning that included sheets and a quilt for the baby’s crib, stuffed toys and a thing-a-ma-jig to attach to the side of it that has animals hanging down and music that plays.
 
That only took me two hours to put up.
 
I’m grateful not only for the gifts but for the distraction.
 
I only wish Colin could be with me, but he has to work this weekend.
 
Bringing me all over the place the past couple weeks has cut into his work schedule; it’s just another thing for me to feel guilty about.

Are the lawyers working on my case?
 
Did they call Charlie yet?
 
Does he know?
 
I peek out from behind the curtains for the hundredth time, almost expecting to see his car pulling up to the front and him striding across the front lawn.
 
Will he have a gun?
 
A baseball bat?
 
An apology?
 
Doubtful. He’ll probably come armed with insults and hateful comments about my personality and morals.

I smile a little thinking about how the idea of that doesn’t send me into quite as much of as panic as it used to.
 
I have Colin now.
 
I have friends who stick with me through thick and thin.
 
Actually, I only know so far that they’ll stick with me through thin times, but I have to assume they’ll be there when my life is turned around too.
 
It already feels like it’s headed in that direction.

Leaning my forehead against the glass, I let my mind wander back to last night.
 
Colin is the gentlest of men.
 
He might beat the pulp out of people who make him angry, but those same hands that are sometimes fists touch me with a feather-lightness.
 
They make me shiver and groan.
 
They warm me and then still themselves to cool me down.

I don’t know if this thing I have for him is bad, but if it is, I guess I’m just going to be a bad person.
 
My parents would be shocked, but why should I care what they think?
 
They abandoned me when I needed them most.
 
Trying to please them is no longer one of my life goals.

I push thoughts of them out of my head.
 
Rubbing my belly, I focus on happier thoughts.
 
A bright new crib, an interview for a job in a few days, a court case that will settle my life once and for all.
 
I made some hard decisions and I’m proud of myself.
 
After almost nine months of hating myself and berating myself for being stupid, naive, worthless, and any number of other terrible things, I can finally look in the mirror and see someone beautiful there.
 
Someone smart.
 
And it’s not a man who did that for me; it was
me
who did it.

I have Colin’s support, but I know now that I can do this
life
thing.
 
I can handle whatever it brings me.
 
The time for pity-parties is over for good and it feels amazing to know that, to make that decision for myself.

I’m about to move away from the window when a car pulls into view.
 
Colin!
 
I’m about to take off running, but my eye goes back to the window.
 
“Holy crud.
 
What’s wrong with his car?” I whisper out loud into the room.
 
Maybe I’m talking to the crib, I don’t know.

I don’t wait to try an analyze his car problem from far away.
 
Instead, I waddle as fast as my penguin legs will take me down the stairs and outside.
 
He’s getting out of the car as I walk up.

“Hey,” he says.
 
He’s not happy.

“Hey.”
 
I look at the dents in his hood and the scratched paint.
 
“What happened?
 
It looks like you drove under a construction site and a ton of bricks dropped on you.”

He doesn’t answer me at first.

I walk up closer to him, cautious because I can see he’s really mad.
 
“Are you okay?
 
Were you hurt?”

He jumps a little when I touch his arm, and he moves away.
 
“Yeah, I’m fine.”

“Colin, talk to me.
 
What happened?”

He runs his fingers through his hair, frustrated.
 
“I think your ex-boyfriend happened to me.”
 
He gestures to the hood.
 
“Or I should say he happened to my car.”

My heart sinks as I take in the damage along with this new information about its origins.
 
“Oh, my god.
 
I’m so sorry, Colin.”

He lets out a long breath and tries to perk himself up. “Don’t worry about it.
 
It’s not your fault.”

“It feels like it is.” I look at him, searching for signs that he no longer wants to be with me.

“Well, it’s not.” He walks closer, puts his arm around me, and guides me towards the house.

“What are we doing now?”

“Thought we’d give that lawyer of yours a call and see if she’s talked to him.”

I hold out my phone.
 
“I’ve been waiting for her to call all day, but I figured she wouldn’t contact me until Monday at the earliest.”

He pauses on the front porch.
 
“If you want to wait, you can wait.”

I shake my head and press the contact for the lawyer, waiting as my phone automatically connects. “I’ll just leave her a message.”
 
I’m standing in the foyer as the ringing starts.

But the message system doesn’t come on. She does.

“Natalie Brustovski.”

“Hi, Natalie.
 
This is Alissa.”

“Alissa, hello.
 
What can I do for you?”

“Sorry to bother you on a Saturday.
 
I thought I was going to leave a message on your voicemail.”
 
I cringe at the idea of having interrupted her weekend.

“I’m working all weekend.
 
What’s up?”

“Well,” I sigh, trying to figure out how to word it, “I think Charlie vandalized my boyfriend’s car.”

“Tell me what happened.”

“I’m going to hand the phone over to Colin. He can tell you more than I can.” I give him the phone and listen in as best I can as we walk into the house.

“Hey, yeah, thanks …
 
Okay … well, last night apparently while I was asleep someone decided to take out my windshield and back window, and left a few righteous dents in the hood.
 
Slashed the tires, too.”

He listens for a few seconds as I look over my shoulder.
 
The glass looks fine to me, as do the tires.

“Nah, I had the car towed this morning and already replaced most of it.
 
I just don’t have time to do the bodywork right away.
 
I’m slammed at work.”

I can’t believe I slept through all of that.
 
I feel terrible that nobody woke me up and asked me to help.
 
I don’t know what I could have done, but I would have tried to do something.

We walk together down the hallway as Colin nods a few times, listening to Natalie’s response.

“Yeah, okay. Got it,” he says.
 
“Thanks. Talk to you later.”

When we reach the kitchen, he hands the phone back to me, so I put it to my ear and sit at the table.

“Hi.
 
It’s me again.”

She jumps right in, going a hundred miles an hour.
 
“Okay, so here’s the deal.
 
I need you to make sure Colin takes pictures of all that damage.
 
I doubt there are any prints on the car, but I’m going to have someone come out and dust for them all the same.
 
Can’t hurt.
 
Also, I don’t want you going anywhere alone.
 
Don’t even stay home alone unless you have a dog and an alarm system that’s hooked into the police department.
 
Do you have a gun?”

My blood runs cold at her last sentence. “What? No, I don’t have a gun.
 
Do you really think I need one?”

“Probably not, but it doesn’t hurt to be prepared.
 
Charlie got served on Friday at his parents’ house.
 
The server stuck around long enough to hear some choice words flying around.
 
His parents are aware of the claims we’ve made.
 
Apparently his father read them aloud in their living room with the windows wide open.”

“Oh no … I forgot Charlie was staying at home for the summer.”
 
My heart fills with dread.
 
I know how much Charlie’s parents rule his entire world.
 
Life, as he knows it, is over.
 
I don’t feel one bit sorry for him, though.
 
This was his doing, not mine.

“His parents know everything.”

“They know everything?
 
That means … what, exactly?”
 
I’m too nervous to sit but too tired to stand.
 
My toes are tapping like I’m practicing for Broadway or something.

“That you were drugged, raped, and impregnated. We said it with more flowery words but you get the idea.
 
Cat’s out of the bag.
 
The district attorney is looking at the evidence we have and wants to speak with you as well.
 
They’re probably going to file criminal charges.”

“Oh, God help me.”

Colin hears my tone and comes over, stands behind me, and puts his hands on my shoulders.
 
He kneads them softly as I listen to the rest of my nightmare unfolding.