“I told my father earlier that I wasn’t going.”
“I was hoping I could change your mind.”
I shake my head. “Sorry, but no. I don’t want to be anywhere near my parents tonight.” Or you…
“Come on, Emily, it will be fun. And I promise I will be on my best behavior.” He tries convincing me with the most insincere smile.
“I’m not going, Kyle. Sorry you wasted your time coming here.” I begin to close the door but he slams his hand against it, the loud bang making me flinch.
His blue eyes flicker with impatience. “What the hell is your problem? Why are you fighting this so much?”
“You know what my problem is. We don’t get along, we never have. I am not going out with you just to appease my parents.”
“You aren’t even giving this a fucking chance!”
I realize this is getting us nowhere. “Look, it doesn’t matter. I have already told you I’m not interested in a relationship right now. I have a lot…” I gasp when he grabs me by my arm and pulls me against him. My heart jackhammers at his furious expression.
“You are a fucking liar. I know all about your date last night. Decided to go slumming again, hey, Emily. When are you ever going to fucking learn?”
“Ryder is none of your business!” I seethe through clenched teeth.
“That’s where you’re wrong. It is my business and you’re bringing yourself a lot of trouble if you keep fighting everyone on this. Now my patience is wearing thin when it comes to you. You need to pull the stick out of your ass and accept this.”
“Never! I will never have anything to do with you. Now let go of me!” His grip tightens painfully as I try to break free from his hold. One minute we’re struggling then the next he’s gone and I’m free. I stumble back but catch my balance quickly.
“What the fuck!”
I race back to the door to see Kyle slammed up against the wall, an enraged Ryder pinning him there by his throat. Oh shit!
“What the fuck are you doing here, Prescott?”
Kyle glares back at him but there is no denying the fear in his eyes. “I should be asking you the same question, Jameson. Still don’t know your place after all these years?”
Ryder applies pressure to Kyle’s throat, making him sputter and his face turn the color of a tomato. “And you still don’t know when it’s smart to shut your fucking mouth!”
“Ryder, stop!” People begin poking their heads out of their apartment to see what all the ruckus is about. I rush over and try to do damage control before this gets anymore out of hand. “Ryder, please stop,” I plead. “Someone is going to call the police.”
I start to think he isn’t even hearing me through his rage, but then he flicks me a glance before leaning in closer to Kyle’s now purple face. “If you ever put your hands on her again I will fucking kill you!” he threatens, before pushing himself away. Kyle doubles over with his hands on his knees, inhaling lungfuls of the oxygen he was deprived of.
Ryder pulls me against his side and wraps an arm around my waist. “You all right, Em?”
“Yes, I’m fine,” I respond shakily, not sounding fine at all.
Once Kyle finally catches his breath, he stands and glares at both Ryder and me. The violence in his eyes causes a shiver of fear to run down my spine. “I’m sure your father will be thrilled when I show up at the dinner and tell him you completely disobeyed his order from earlier today,” he says like an immature tattletale.
Ryder goes at him again. “You talk to me, asshole, not her!”
I jump in front of him and put a trembling hand on his chest. “Ryder, just let it go,” I say firmly, before looking back at Kyle. “I told my father today that all decisions are my own and I won’t be forced by any of you to change them. This crap stops here, Kyle. Leave now and don’t ever come back.”
He watches me for a moment then shakes his head. “Don’t say I didn’t warn you, Emily.”
Ryder stiffens and I apply pressure to his chest, making sure he doesn’t go after him again. “You better listen to her warning. Don’t come back here, or next time you won’t be walking away from it.”
Kyle smirks arrogantly and I consider letting Ryder at him again, but thankfully he walks away. I blow out a relieved breath and run a shaky hand through my hair. I glance up at Ryder who seems to be looking more pissed by the second.
“You ready?” his tone is clipped and he doesn’t look at me.
“Yeah, just let me get my purse.” I grab it off my counter then lock the door behind me. Silence surrounds us as I follow him out to the vehicle, his body radiating pure fury the entire time. Is he mad at me?
As soon as we get into his SUV he slams the door so hard that I jump. He grips the steering wheel tightly, his knuckles turning white and his chest heaving with angry breaths. “What the fuck was he doing there, Emily?”
His accusing question pisses me off, but I try to tamp down my anger since I’ve had enough drama for one day. “My father wanted him to take me to a charity dinner tonight. I told him at lunch I wouldn’t go, but clearly he ignored me, like always, and sent Kyle anyway.”
“So that’s what the fight was about today with your father – me, not the hypnotherapy?”
“He called me there because family friends saw us last night at Crustacia. The lunch ended with us in a fight about the hypnotherapy.”
“You shouldn’t have fucking lied to me.”
“I didn’t lie to you. I just left that part out. I…”
He laughs bitterly. “Same fucking thing, Emily. What – didn’t want me to find out that daddy didn’t approve once again?”
Tears begin to blur my eyes at what a dick he’s being. “No, I didn’t want you to know because I didn’t want your feelings hurt, and it didn’t matter what he said because I was making my own decision. Just like I am now and I’ve decided this date is over.”
I go to open the door and get out, but he grabs my arm. “Em, wait, baby, don’t go.”
His soft tone has me looking back at him. “Look, I’m sorry I’m being an asshole. I’m not mad at you. I’m just pissed at the entire situation. Seeing Prescott’s hands on you like that made me fucking insane!”
“I’m okay,” I mumble quietly, sitting back in my seat.
“Does he come often?”
“I’ve had to deal with him a little over the years. Our parents really want us together, but it was never this bad. Not until my sight returned. Now he’s shown up almost every day.”
His teeth grind so hard I’m surprised his jaw doesn’t snap. “You should have told me everything about your father today.”
“I didn’t want my parent’s ignorant opinions to hurt your feelings,” I whisper, feeling guilty that he knows about it even now.
Reaching over, he cups my face. “Their opinions don’t bother me, baby, the only thing that can hurt me is if they hurt you.”
I place my hand over his. “I don’t care what they say about us. I never did.”
We watch one another for a moment, six years ago hanging heavy between us. I wait to see if he will say anything about why he left, but he doesn’t. Instead he kisses me until all the bad fades away and nothing else matters but us. He eventually pulls back then rests his forehead on mine. “We’ll talk about all of it later, Em, but let’s go see a movie first, okay?”
“Okay.”
He gives me another quick kiss before putting the SUV in drive and pulling away. The entire way to the theatre I can’t help but feel nervous for him to tell me what happened all those years ago. I just pray, that whatever it is, it won’t leave any more scars on my heart. Hopefully it will heal it.
A short ten minutes later we walk into the theatre that shares the same street with a bunch of boutiques and antique shops. The sound of popcorn popping and the delicious smell has me craving to buy some. The place is fairly busy, from couples holding hands, to families with small children. My gaze lands on a group of high school girls laughing, looking like they are having a blast with each other. I instantly feel a pang of sadness, knowing that’s something I always missed out on.