“I didn’t see him. I saw a different doctor. I found him on my own when my sight returned.”
“What the hell do you mean, you have a doctor of your own? You are only supposed to deal with Dr. Shepard. You know this!” he shouts, getting more upset than I expected.
“I wanted a second opinion, and Dr. Ross is great. He thinks it’s crucial to my well-being to know what happened all those years ago. He has suggested I try hypnotherapy, and…” My mother gasps and my father’s face drains of color. He looks almost panic-stricken for a moment before complete rage takes over his expression. What on earth?
“You will do no such thing! Do you hear me?”
My mother leans over and touches his arm in alarm. “William, keep your voice down. People are staring.”
I stare back at my father’s enraged face, not believing how upset he is over this. “I don’t understand why you are getting so angry. Dr. Ross thinks this is a good thing for my mental health.”
“The man is clearly an idiot!”
“You don’t even know him.”
“I only work with the best, which is why Dr. Shepard works for me.” I shake my head and am about to interrupt but my father doesn’t let me. “I’m serious, Emily, this nonsense stops right now. You will not see that Doctor again, there will be no hypnotherapy, and you sure as hell will not be seeing that piece of trash again.” I stand up, refusing to listen to this crap for another second. “Sit down now!” The low warning in my father’s voice along with the fury in his expression has a shiver of apprehension running down my spine. I have dealt with his anger before, but never anything like this.
“No, I won’t,” I whisper shakily, trying to hold on to my courage. “I am tired of you dictating every single aspect of my life. I’m tired of never being good enough. From now on I am choosing what is right for myself, not what you think is right for the family name. And until you can respect that then don’t contact me again!” Turning, I rush out of the restaurant before they can stop me. As soon as I get outside I see Andrew waiting for me but I walk past him, not trusting where I will end up if I let him take me.
“Miss Michaels, where are you going?”
Ignoring his question, I quicken my stride and turn the corner. I search for a taxi, but there isn’t one in sight. Worrying about Andrew coming to find me, I rush into one of the shops, and the smell of coffee immediately penetrates my senses. I take in my surroundings and quickly realize I’m in a cafe. Swiping at the tears streaking down my cheeks, I go take a seat by the window and pull out my cell. I speak into the mic, asking for it to call Cece. When I get her answering machine right away I worry her phone is turned off. I try again, only to get the same thing.
“Shit!” I mutter, my panic escalating, wondering how I’ll get home. The country club isn’t close to where I live. I think about calling Rosa but remember her telling me last night that she had a full day planned with friends, and I do not want to ruin it for her. Staring at my phone, I call the only other person I can think of who will help me. My heart pounds wildly as it rings, praying he picks up.
“Jameson.”
“Ryder?” I whisper, sounding as distressed as I feel.
“Emily, what’s wrong?”
“I’m really sorry to bother you, but can you pick me up? I just had a horrible lunch with my parents and I have stranded myself. I don’t know my way home and I tried Cece, but…”
“Where are you?” he asks, cutting me off. I hear scuffling in the background as if he’s already moving.
“By the country club at a coffee shop. Umm,” I look around trying to figure out the name, “hold on.” I walk over to a group of girls sitting at a table not far from me. “Excuse me, could you please tell me the name of this place?”
They look at me in annoyance and I realize my mistake too late. The blonde one picks up the small sign that sits in the center of their table. “Um, how about you read the fucking sign, idiot. ‘That’s A-r-o-m-a’,” she replies slowly, making me feel stupid. They all laugh, finding the situation hilarious.
I walk away and try to speak past the humiliation clogging my throat. “I’m…”
“I fucking know where you are. I’ll be there in less than ten minutes. Don’t move!” he barks furiously, clearly hearing everything that was said, which only makes me feel worse.
I look back at the girls who are still laughing at me and can’t take the humiliation any longer. Rushing outside, I sit on a set of stairs that lead up to a space for lease, the wall giving me a small measure of privacy. As I wait for Ryder I try really hard to reign in my emotion, but the pain becomes suffocating, desperately needing to be released.
“Oh please, Emily, stop feeling sorry for yourself! I am sick and tired of you being nothing but an embarrassment to this family.”
“Um, how about you read the fucking sign, idiot. ‘That’s A-r-o-m-a’.”
Not being able to stop myself, I drop my head in my lap and cry out all the hurt and humiliation I’ve just endured in the past hour. I don’t know how much time has passed before I feel someone lean down in front of me. I immediately know it’s Ryder by the amazing scent that penetrates through my sadness. I try to stop my tears, but now that I have let go I can’t seem to stop.
His strong hands run up my bare arms in a comforting gesture. “Em, look at me.” I shake my head, not wanting him to see how broken I am. I hear him sigh before he pries my arms out from under my face and wraps them around his neck. I hold him close and soak in his comfort, desperately needing his strength. Eventually he leans back, then reaches up and cups either side of my jaw, lifting my gaze to his. The sympathy on his face, when he sees mine, has me crying harder. “Shhh. It’s okay, baby. Please don’t cry,” he murmurs, bringing his lips against my wet cheek. I thread my fingers in his hair as he kisses away my tears. “Are you hurt?”
“Just my feelings,” I whisper truthfully.
His jaw flexes and his eyes spark with fury. Just when he’s about to say something, a female voice penetrates the air. “Well hey there, sexy.”
I hear a bunch of giggles and stiffen in recognition. You have got to be kidding me.
Ryder stands and looks over at the group of girls from the coffee shop in annoyance. They stop short and gape at me when they realize he isn’t alone. I quickly turn my face away, feeling even more embarrassed now that they know they’ve made me cry. I see Ryder out of the corner of my eye look back and forth between us, putting the pieces together.
“Come on, baby.” Bending down, he catches me off guard by picking me up and cradling me in my arms. I bury my face in his neck, feeling mortified that he’s carrying me away, but not enough to let him go because it feels good to be in his arms. It feels safe. “Get the fuck out of my way,” he barks, trying to walk past them to his vehicle. Their quick shuffles sound distant the further we get.
Once we are headed back to my apartment, I rest my head against the passenger window, feeling emotionally exhausted. “Thank you for picking me up. I hope I didn’t interrupt anything important for you,” I whisper a few minutes later, breaking the silence.
“You didn’t interrupt anything, Em, and even if you did it wouldn’t have mattered. I still would have come for you.” I feel a small smile touch my lips, his sincere words bring a small measure of warmth to my heavy heart, but it vanishes quickly when he says: “Are you going to tell me what happened with your parents?”
I think about the original reason my father called me there, but don’t want to hurt his feelings with my parent’s judgment so I decide to skip that part. “I told them I want to try the hypnotherapy.”
“It didn’t go well?” he prompts when I explain no further.
A bitter laugh bubbles up my throat. “That is a major understatement.” I think about my father’s furious expression and shake my head. “My father was so angry, Ryder.”