Billionaire Badboy (12 page)

I watched him get up, I watched him kick me twice in the
ribs, and I watched him leave before the lights began to fade.

“What did you do to him? What did you do to him?” I heard my
mother cry before the memory faded completely.

CHAPTER TWENTY-ONE

Teddy

“Mr. Stoneguard?”

The next flash popped up quickly, but it was only sound. Where
was the picture?

“Mr. Stoneguard, can you hear me?”

Wait… it was that same voice. It was the voice I had heard
when they briefly brought me back to life. The picture began to lighten in
front of me. Blonde hair, high cheekbones, red lipstick… red lipstick?

Yes… the red lipstick. It was Ashley’s mom. Of course. She
was a nurse. I was in the hospital.

I was in a brief state of confusion regarding my current
situation. Was I in the hospital in my memory? Or did they revive me again? I
didn’t feel the room suck out this time, though. Did it always work the same
way? Were there rules when it came to death and dying?

Oh wait, that’s a smell I certainly remembered. It was a
memory. It was only a memory. And Ashley’s mom was holding smelling salts under
my nose.

Being that I heard her before I coded again, it was weird to
think that Ashley’s mom was most likely standing above me in both my
unconscious state and my flash at the same time. Oh life…

Or death?

The picture finally cleared into focus.

“There you are.”

“Where?” I groggily asked.

“You’re right here, silly.” I looked up at the nurse who had
woken me. She looked oddly familiar.

This was before I knew she was Ashley’s mom. Now, five years
later, I knew it was Ashley’s mom, so she was, of course, familiar. But in this
moment, in this flash, she just looked oddly familiar.

“No, I mean, where am I?”

“You’re in the hospital. Apparently you took quite a tumble
down your staircase.”

A tumble down my staircase… I’ve heard that one before.

“Teddy?” My mom rushed into the room, reaching for my hand.

“Hey Mom.”

“Baby, are you okay?”

“Yeah, you know those stairs just come out of nowhere
sometimes.” I squeezed her hand at her reaction.

“I keep telling you to be careful.”

“I know, Mom. Sometimes I just can’t help but run up and
down them.”

She nodded, obviously hurting tremendously from seeing me
this way. Even if she was weak when it came to him, I knew she cared about me.

“Mrs. Stoneguard, I just need to ask Teddy a few medical
questions, if you wouldn’t mind stepping out of the room for a minute.”

“But…”

“Mom, I’m fine.”

“Okay.”

She kissed my cheek and quickly whispered in my ear, “Please
don’t tell her anything. For me.”

I made a sound, letting her know I had understood, and
watched as the pretty nurse escorted my mom out of the room. She closed the
door behind her, grabbed the clipboard, and moved to the machines.

“How long was I out?”

“Not long. I only got you in the bed a few minutes before I
woke you up. Just enough time to hook you up to all these fun tubes.”

“That’s good. I’d hate to lose a full day just because I
slipped.”

“Those must be some stairs.”

“You have no idea.”

“Weird that you managed to only bang up your face and ribs.”

“I’m a very talented tripper.”

“I see that. Broken wrists, fractured femur—ouch--,
fractured ribs, scapula, sternum, ruptured spleen… should I go on?”

“We have a lot of steps in our house.”

She knelt down beside the bed. “Teddy, you’re an adult, so I
legally can’t do anything unless you report a crime.”

“I’ve tried suing the stairs before, but their lawyer is
just better than I am.”

She sarcastically chuckled. “I see where my daughter gets
all of her material.”

“Your daughter?”

“Ha, yes. My daughter. She writes for the town newspaper. She’s
going to be a big time journalist one day.”

“You mean Ashley? Ashley is your daughter?”

There… that’s when I figured it out. And the reason she
looked so familiar was because she looked a hell of a lot like Ashley. It was
kind of creepy. I mentally reminded myself to tell Ashley never to wear red
lipstick. It might freak me out a little too much.

“So you know of her?”

“Please, I need to talk to her.”

“She’s stubborn. She’s not going to stop writing just
because you asked her to.”

“No, it’s not that. I just need to see her.”

“Why don’t you try to get some rest? I think your concussion
is making you a little disoriented.”

I tried to sit up, to reason with her, but my bruised ribs
stopped me.

“Shit, that hurts.” I barked.

“Let me see what I can do about getting you some pain
medication.” She turned to walk out the door, but stopped short. “Ashley, what
are you doing here?”

“Where is he, Mom?”

“Who?”

“Teddy. Where is he?”

“Ashley, this isn’t the best idea.”

“Move.”

Ashley stumbled into the room, followed closely by her
mother. A look of terror came over her eyes as she saw my bruised face. At that
point, I hadn’t even seen what I looked like. But watching it all happen in the
flash, I could. I could see exactly how banged up I really was from those
stairs. I’ll tell you something: it wasn’t good.

“Oh my God. What happened?”

“He fell down the stairs.” Her mother smugly called to her.

“How’d you know I was here?”

“I work at a newspaper. I hear things.”

“So, um…”

I wanted to ask if my father had been to see her, but if he
hadn’t made it there yet, I didn’t want to give her any cause for alarm.

“Well, I didn’t see that one coming. How long have you two
been sleeping together?”

“What? We’re not…” Ashley turned around to her mother.

“Oh, don’t try to fool me. You two look like love sick puppy
dogs right now.”

“Mom…”

“Hey, you’re an adult. I’m not judging. Just make sure you
don’t get between him and whoever used his face as a punching bag. Teddy, if
she ends up in here looking like you, you’re the first one I’m coming after.”

She threw her arms in the air and closed the door behind
her, leaving the two of us alone.

“So your mom works here.”

“My mom works here.”

“She’s… nice.”

“Teddy, what happened?”

“I tripped.”

“You don’t get to lie to me.”

“Your mom doesn’t know what she’s talking about.”

“He came to my office.”

“Shit. No. Fuck. What did he say?”

“In so many words? He recommends I stay away from you, or
else I’ll be taking up permanent residence in Jordan.”

“Ashley…”

“I told him I actually enjoyed Jordan. I have a thing for
camels and the Arabic language.”

“You shouldn’t have done that.”

“Because he beat you?”

“No.”

“But that’s what this is, right? What, did he dislike my
last article that much?”

“He had a P.I. follow us onto the beach.”

“What?”

“He has pictures.”

She briefly let go of my hand and stood.

“Ha. Okay. Okay.” She started pacing at the foot of my bed.

“What?”

“He said he had something on me, but I didn’t think it could
be… wow. I stupidly thought it was that I cheated on a test in fourth grade. That’s
probably the only time I’ve ever broken a rule, so I thought it could only be
that, but no. Wow, well, wow, he’s good.”

“Listen, you should lay low.”

“What does that even mean?”

“Or at least stay away from me.”

“Oh no, no, no, Teddy. We’re standing up to him.”

“I can’t do that, Ash.”

She was still pacing; it was making me nervous. “Well, I
wouldn’t expect you to be able to literally stand up just yet, but he should
know you’re not afraid of him just because he threw a few punches.”

I didn’t respond. I couldn’t. I just stared at her, half
hoping she could read my mind, like she usually did, while the other half hoped
she’d change the subject.

But she didn’t change the subject. She read my mind. Or just
my face.

“Teddy…”

“Just stop, please.”

She grabbed my chart off the bed, reading what her mom had
read only moments before.

“What the hell is this?”

“Put it down, Ashley.”

“No. What is this?”

“It’s nothing.”

“Oh my God. It goes back… fourteen years?”

“You don’t understand.”

“Then enlighten me.”

I was a tough kid. He had a tough job. I didn’t help any
situation. I craved attention. He was busy. He had to provide for his family. He
didn’t have time to deal with me.

The excuses I told myself over the years, the reasons I gave
for his behavior: all of a sudden, they didn’t seem to hold any clout. I had
been telling myself a lie my entire life.

“Well at least now you know why I’m so screwed up, huh?”

Her entire demeanor changed from anger to pity as she made
her way back to my side. “Teddy, don’t say that. You’re not screwed up.”

“I’m so screwed up.”

“Okay, you’re a little screwed up.” She gave me a tiny otter
laugh, which made me laugh even harder.

“Ribs.”

Ashley’s mom, my nurse, came back in the room to give me a
new saline bag. “Ashley, Teddy’s father is here. You may want to clear out.” She
eyed us both as she offered her opinion.

“I’m staying.”

“Well, it’s not like I’ve ever been able to change your mind
otherwise.”

She walked to the door, calling a short ways down the hall. “Mr.
and Mrs. Stoneguard, you can come in now.” As they passed into the room, she
made a snubbed comment under her breath. “You should try to keep him away from
stairs.”

“Will do.” My father nodded with a smile.

But then he saw Ashley. His smile faded.

“Teddy, my boy. What mess did you get yourself into this
time?”

“Oh, you know Dad. Boys will be boys.”

“This isn’t so bad. I’ve seen worse.”

“Me too.”

The heat in my cheeks from my anger only made the bruises
sting. I tried desperately to calm myself down.

“Well, aren’t you going to introduce us to your lady
friend?”

Really? Were we playing this game for Mom?

“I’m Ashley.” She politely walked over to my parents and
shook their hands. She was a better person than I.

“Pleased to meet you, Ashley.” My mom kindly spoke.

“Sorry, my son has never been so great with the manners.” Seemingly
jokingly, my father jabbed me in the ribs. “Right kid?” But he knew what he was
doing.

“Fuck, Dad.” The pain was excruciating.

“Language Teddy. Not in front of your lady friend.”

And now I knew what he was doing. “Ashley, can you please
excuse us?” I pleaded at her with my eyes.

“If it’s all the same to you, I’d like to right stay here.”

“It’s not all the same to me.”

“Well, it’s not to me either.” Her tone lowered with
frustration.

“It seems like someone needs to learn her place.” My father
scowled at her.

I found her eyes and mouthed, “Please.”

Ashley took a deep breath and looked to my mother. “It was
lovely to meet you, Mrs. Stoneguard.”

“You too, dear.”

Then she was gone, and the door was closed.

“What the fuck did you tell her?”

I didn’t want to be reminded of what happened next. Luckily,
neither did my subconscious.

CHAPTER TWENTY-TWO

Teddy

Now, I’m sure you remember when I said that the evening
Ashley and I stayed up all night talking was the start of the best summer of my
life. Then, I just recalled a memory from only two days later when I found
myself in the hospital, my face bashed in.

While those two things don’t seem coincide, there’s a reason
that specific summer reigns supreme. It was all because of her.

Obviously the issues with my father had been plaguing me for
some time, but never before had anyone been there to talk with me about them. My
mother always knew what was going on, but it was one of those things about
which we just kept quiet. I never brought it up, she never brought it up, and
it worked for us both.

But Ashley was a fixer. She solved problems. Although I
highly doubted I’d ever be able to stand up to the man, knowing she was in my
corner cheering me on was enough to keep me sane.

I told her about the first time. I was eight and having a
hard time getting my remote controlled helicopter off the ground. I ran into my
father’s study to ask for his guidance, but he had my nanny sprawled out naked
on the desk in front of him. He made me sit on a chair, facing the corner,
until he was finished. Then, he dismissed my nanny and threw me into the
bookshelf headfirst. But that was just the start. It was another two years of
that before he finally did enough damage to warrant taking me to the hospital. The
older I got, the more he knew I could take. It was like a game to him. He knew
I wouldn’t fight back. He knew there was no way I could ever beat up my own
father.

I was discharged from the hospital the next morning, but
Ashley refused to let me go home. No matter how much I tried to fight it, she
won by promising me that if I stayed with her, she would have to take care of
me. Plus, she promised me sex in her childhood bed. I’m a man, not a saint. I
went home with her.

The flashes were exhausting me. I’m sure in real time, the
entire thing spanned only a few seconds, but if I’ve learned one thing through
this adventure, it’s that there’s a reason no one has yet to invent time
travel. Or if they did, there’s a reason they haven’t told anyone. Living your
life over again weighs on you. No one should have to do it.

Especially when you know that at the end of the reliving,
there’s no possibility of fixing your wrongdoings.

The next flash pulled me from my seat in front of the
projector screen and actually into my body. I guess I was tired of watching. I
had willed myself to feel this memory as if I were really there.

I blinked my eyes open. Pink… so much pink. Really Ashley? Eh,
I guess I could see it. She was pretty cheery behind all that determination.

But what I really saw was her back, her naked back, in front
of me. We were still in bed, and I was just waking up. It felt so real, the way
my fantasy of her that night in my upstairs study had, but this time, it had
really happened. I didn’t have to make up a better version of the truth,
because the truth was so very wonderful.

I slipped my arm around her, resting the crook of my elbow
in the curve of her waist and bending my arm up so I could cradle her breast in
my hand. She moaned at my touch, still half asleep, but conscious enough to
push her backside into me. I was already hard from the pure fact of it being
morning, but her touch set my heart racing.

“You awake?”

“No.”

I jokily thrust against her.

“Come on. Wake up. Play with me.”

By this time, I had been staying with her for almost three
weeks, and this was our morning ritual. I’d wake up, see that she was lying
naked next to me, and immediately want to ravage her.

“I’m still sleeping. You should wake me up.” She half
groaned.

“In that case…”

I jumped up as if I had been awake for hours, and rolled her
so that her back was flat against the mattress.

“You can’t move.”

“I’m not moving.”

I raised her arms above her head, pulling each to opposite
corners of the top of the bed, and I eyed her open, naked body lying before me.
Her eyes were closed, but she had a soft, warming smile lifting her cheeks. I
felt like a child opening presents on Christmas morning. There were so many
possibilities, so much fun to be had.

I tickled my fingers down her arms, starting in the palms of
her hands and then moving across her wrists. I followed her light blue veins
down the inside of her forearm and continued until I rounded the outsides of
her breasts. She jumped at the sensation, but I scolded her to remain still. Her
eyes popped open briefly at my demand, but closed again when I deliberately
cleared my throat.

I circled her nipples with the tips of my fingers,
delighting in their reaction to my touch. She tried to push her chest into my
hands, but I held her down.

“I told you not to move.”

“But…”

“No, no.” I lowered my mouth to her ear. “You listen to me…
or else.”

“Or else what?” She cooed in response.

I flattened my palm against her side and followed her curves
down to her hips. I rolled her gently to her belly, retracted my hand, and then
lightly spanked her. She screamed, but only out of surprise.

“Or else that.”

“Guess I better not move then.” She bit down on her bottom
lip, knowing she was teasing me.

I straddled her how she was, on her belly, and moved my hand
up and down her back. Her skin was so soft and smooth; I wanted to keep
touching her. I began to knead my fingers into her muscles, massaging her head,
her neck, her shoulders, her back, her buttocks. I couldn’t stop feeling her. I
just wanted more.

My erection had grown out of control by this point, and my
thoughts were solely on being inside of her. I moved my knees to her inner
thighs, spreading them out wide. I then stole a pillow from under her head and
repositioned it under her belly, angling her hips up toward me. My finger
slipped inside of her, twirling around to ready her. Another finger had her
moaning, and another yet made her clench around me. I wanted so desperately to
thrust inside of her, but willed myself to hold off just a little longer. Instead,
I pushed her to her knees so her backside was even higher in the air, and
repositioned myself underneath her. I widened my tongue and tasted her. She
cried out quietly at my touch. My hands grasped her hips and pulled her fully
into my mouth. I danced my tongue in and out, in and out. I sucked at her clit,
exciting over her heightened cries. But I couldn’t let her finish: not like
that. Not this time.

So I freed myself from under her and found my way to my spot
behind. My left hand held onto her hip as my right wrapped around her, fondling
her from the front. Then, I gave her all of me.

She tightened and released around my shaft as with each
thrust I pushed further. She begged for more, and I gave her more. My hands
jumped between her hips, her clit, and her breasts, wishing they could hold all
of her at once. When I was certain she was just about to explode, I grabbed a
hold of her hips with both hands and pounded into her. Her screams escalated
out of control, but they only made me drive harder.

Her body clenched around me, and I felt her sink into
oblivion.

When her breathing eased, she flipped over onto her back,
facing me. She let out another sigh of satisfaction before she spoke.

“Did you finish?”

“Not yet.” I smiled.

And she smiled right back. “Good.”

She took my still hard cock in her hand and we locked eyes
as she wrapped her lips around me. She watched me as I watched her consume me. I
gently moved her hair out of her face so our eye contact would never break. It
was so personal, so real, so wholly exhilarating, so...

Had I known how to say the words then, I would’ve told her
how I felt. But I was young, I was afraid, and I had no idea what I was
experiencing. When you don’t know what it is, love is a pretty scary thing.