Brad sat right in the front. I felt like I was doing the walk of shame as I made my way to the witness stand and got sworn in.
The prosecutor started—the questions were all ones we had rehearsed. My voice wasn't exactly steady but it seemed clear and loud. When the state rested, Brad's attorney started his cross. I had been dreading the cross-examination, since so often in television the victim was put on trial. There were a few shady questions, ones aimed at trying to discredit me, but all in all, it went as expected. I wasn't in the court room for more than twenty minutes before the judge dismissed me.
Walking out of the courtroom, I glanced at Brad, but he didn't look at me. He had his head lowered. Maybe if he had a different father or a mother who had been able to seek help for him, could all of this have been avoided? Mica was right, Brad needed to be held accountable, but there was a part of me that wondered how much of his attitude had been fostered by his father's own attitude and his mother's neglect.
About a week after I testified, Brad was found guilty and sentenced to three to five years. He'd probably be out in a year, but his actions were going to follow him for the rest of his life.
Chapter Fifteen
Dear Mr. Dupree,
My name is Larkspur O'Bannion and I wanted to thank you, first, for the scholarship and the wonderful opportunity to study with you.
I am in awe of your use of color, but your depth perception is even more phenomenal. Some of your works look more like snapshots than something created with paint and brush. That is an area I need to work on. I also read you work in clay and glass and I would love to watch you, since I have very little experience in sculpting work.
Ms. Whitney forwarded my itinerary to me and I will be on your doorstep early evening April 25 th . My fiancé, Sebastian, will be accompanying me and staying for a few weeks to help me get settled before he leaves for an apprenticeship in Concord, MA.
He's looking for work while in Harrington, either restoration work or construction. If you know of anything or could point me in the right direction, that would be most appreciated.
I look forward to meeting you and your family, Mr. Dupree, and getting the chance to learn from you.
Sincerely,
Lark
I didn't expect a return email so quickly, but while I worked on my homework my laptop buzzed with an incoming message.
Lark,
I disagree with your opinion on your perception. Your work is inspired.
My wife, Saffron, owns a house right on Harrington Bay and we’ll put you up there. We live two miles away. She will be contacting you shortly. ; )
I'm not thrilled with you living there alone, though Harrington is very safe, so if there are no objections with you we'd like for Reaper, our German shepherd, to stay with you. He's a great companion and an excellent guard dog.
Regarding your fiancé, my brother Broderick is restoring a house right here in Harrington and he is always looking for more hands. If you forward me Sebastian's email address, I will send it along to Broderick.
My family and I are very much looking forward to meeting you, Lark. Please drive safely and we will see you early evening, April 25.
Logan
I sat there for a few minutes re-reading Logan's message. A knock came at my door. “Come see this,” I said to Bastian as he entered.
He stopped just behind me to read from over my shoulder. “He sounds like a good guy.”
“So, I'll forward your email onto him?”
“Yeah, please.”
I did so before logging off. I had final exams tomorrow and Friday and after, I had a week's break before Bastian and I took off for Maine.
“Are you ready for your exams?”
“Yeah, more ready for the whole week we'll have together after.”
The words had barely passed my lips when Bastian pulled me to my feet and kissed me, full on the mouth. He gripped my hips and pressed me up against him. Reaching for his shirt, I lifted it up to expose his magnificent abs and chest. I tossed the tee behind me and ran my hands over the hard muscles of his stomach.
“No one's home Bastian,” I whispered before brushing my lips over his dragon tattoo.
He growled as he lifted me into his arms. He dropped me onto the bed before he walked to the door and flipped the lock. Seeing him, his hard, muscled body in all of its inked beauty had my heart pounding nearly out of my chest because my mind was already thinking about all the fabulous things this boy was going to do to me. He pounced, covering my body with his own.
“You look a bit wicked, Lark, what are you thinking about?”
“How much I want you inside me.”
Speaking of wicked, the look he gave me in response literally had my toes curling. He said not a word as his touch moved up my stomach, his lips following the trail of his hand. When his mouth settled over mine, I lost all ability for rational thought and just went with instinct.
My tongue ran along his lower lip before I dipped it into his mouth as my hips lifted and I rubbed myself against him. He worked my shirt up over my head and I had just a moment to enjoy the wild look of him before his mouth closed over my breast through the silk of my bra. He popped my other breast free and rolled the nipple between his fingers. His dark head lowered, spreading kisses over my ribs and stomach before he reached for my jeans and pulled them down my body. His tongue dipped below the waistband of my panties as he gripped the silk and drew them from me too.
He stood at the foot of the bed to yank his jeans off and it was a sight I knew I would never grow tired of seeing. I reached for the condom and moved to just in front of him. Steadily, I rolled it onto the hard length of him. He grinned before his arm wrapped around my waist and his mouth covered mine. In the next minute, I was flat on my back and he was settled between my thighs. He pushed into me just as his tongue plunged into my mouth, mirroring the movement of his hips. I felt myself coming apart and wrapped my legs around him, urging him to go deeper. I came hard. A few more thrusts and he came too, my name ripping from his throat as he did.
***
Two days later my exams were over. The moment felt bittersweet, because though I didn't love school, it was sad and strange to be leaving that part of my childhood behind.
Bastian was on an errand, so I was home alone watching a movie when I heard a knock at the door. It took me a minute to process the fact that Aunt Kim stood on the front stoop of the Wrights' home.
“Larkspur, could I come in for a minute?”
My gut said to close and lock the door, but I stepped back and held the door open for her to enter. We settled in the living room and I reached for the remote and paused the movie. It was difficult making eye contact, because frankly she freaked me out. Somehow I managed to ask, “Is there something wrong?”
“I know we have never seen eye-to-eye, but I came here because it means a lot to your uncle that we attempt to get along.”
If by “not seen eye-to-eye,” she meant she'd been a vindictive jealous bitch to me for most of my life then, yes, I could agree with her statement.
She didn't seem to pick up on my annoyance as she continued on, “Your uncle remembers Dylan differently than I. She was my sister and I loved her, but she was a hard person to like. She was very selfish. People adored her because of how she looked, but if they scratched the surface they would have seen her beauty only ran skin deep. Eddie was mine. Dylan knew how I felt about him and she purposely took him from me. I had to watch as the man I loved fell head over heels for my own sister. Can you imagine how painful that was for me? She didn't care how much she was hurting me and as it turned out, her love for him was as fickle as her love for me when she up and left him.”