Coming Back (17 page)

August 2015 (Epilogue)

Christie

I gave Amber a hug as Dean unloaded her bags from the trunk on to the little cart.  She was buzzing with excitement.

“Be careful, sis,” I said, giving her a final squeeze.

“You too,” she replied.

“Let’s just get things straight. 
I’m
the big sister,
you’re
the little sister, so
you
be careful.” I wagged my finger at her threateningly.  “Buy some pepper spray when you land.”

Amber rolled her eyes.  “What are you gonna do?  Bash my head in with a rock?”

Out of the periphery of my vision, I saw Dean do a double take and his jaw dropped about as far as I felt my own doing.

“What?  Too soon?” Amber asked.

I shook my head.  “You’re impossible, Am.”

She shrugged and thanked Dean for unloading her bags as she gave him a goodbye hug too.  Everybody was scared for her going on a trip like this by herself, but she was having none of it.  “How many times do you win an all-expenses paid trip to a tropical island?” she had asked.  Never, that’s how often.  And she was right, but it wasn’t an easy pill for anybody to swallow.

“Catch your pasty selves when I get back,” she said, leaning into the cart and starting it rolling.

“See ya, Amber,” said Dean.

“Bye.”

Dean and I got back into the car and watched her until she was out of sight.  “Do you think she’ll be OK?” I asked.

“It’s the bar staff at her hotel I’m more worried about.”

I laughed as he started the car and we navigated our way out of the airport carpark.  It wasn’t long before we were on the open road and I had my hand out of the window, letting it catch the air and glide around.

It was something I could remember doing as a kid when Mom and Dad would drive us somewhere and when Amber and I weren’t fighting over something in the back seat.  It was simple, innocent fun, something I was trying to take the time to specifically enjoy and appreciate these days, after everything life in general and Kodey Garrod in particular had unleashed on me.

The instant Dean had shown me that picture, all mixed in with other similar-looking people, I knew he’d found the right guy.  Figuring out how a dead man rented a car and drove hundreds of miles in my direction took a little bit longer to unravel.

It turned out that some guys in South Dakota wanted to rob a convenience store.  When some junkie found Kodey’s wallet on the riverbank, he sold it to them for some drug money.  Because one of the would-be robbers bore a passing resemblance to Kodey, they were able to use the cards in the wallet to rent a car for their heist.

They did the deed and drove south-east before ditching the rental outside Glenwood and stealing another car to head north in, where they were caught after a couple of days.  There never was any sign of Kodey.

The river must have swollen in the winter or spring, or some wild animals had something to do with his wallet getting into the water.  Either way, they never found him.

Dean stayed with me through everything just the way he said he would.  I looked over at him and smiled.  He glanced at me and smiled back before returning his full concentration to the road ahead.  He was right about the Feds working with me rather than against me too.

They did blow hard a bit at first, but after a consultation with their superiors, they started concentrating on Kodey Garrod and who he’d been in contact with over the past several years.  One email exchange about a mysterious ‘package’ being delivered led to the recovery of another girl he’d trafficked.

She wanted to meet me, and I feared the worst, but she hugged me like she was holding on for dear life.  She said she heard I killed him and I nodded.  She held me even tighter.  There were other girls too, but it was too late for them, too late even before I escaped.

The paperwork was all done now.  I was officially allowed to move on with my life.

I felt my phone buzzing in my pocket but couldn’t hear the ringtone over the rushing of air through the open windows and struggled to get it out of my pocket before I missed the call.  The name my phone displayed on the screen made me freeze for a second before I cautiously answered it, not knowing how I was going to feel.

“Hello?” I said.

“Hi, Christie.”

I paused, waiting, as clueless as anybody could be about how I was going to react.  Was I going to get wiped out by a surge of grief?  Throw my phone out of the window in anger?

A smile touched my lips when I realized that all I felt was happy to hear the voice of a friend.  “Hi, Nick.”

“Sorry for calling.  I know you said not to-“

“It’s OK, I’ve been thinking about getting in touch for a month or two now.  It’s just… I don’t know, I wasn’t sure how to make it not awkward.  Know what I mean?”

“Yeah,” Nick answered.

“I’m glad you called though.  It’s good to hear your voice.”

“Yours too.  I’ve heard a lot
about
you, of course.  You’re a national hero!  Did you really write a book?”

“No!  No, it was ghost-written,” I laughed.  “It’s coming out early next year, apparently.  It’s a crazy feeling that my name’s going to be on it though.  I saw your cameo in Dark Fox 2, Huge Henchman Number Three!”

“Oh?  Yeah!” Nick laughed. “That was done in post-production.  I choreographed my fight scene.  It seemed to go down pretty well, so I’m getting a few offers here and there for roles where I don’t open my mouth and ruin everything.  It’s getting reasonably steady on the choreography side of things too.”

“That’s great,” I said.

“What about you?  Going to get some more books ghost-written?”

“Nah.  I’ve been taking some courses in counseling.  I kept on getting asked to speak at events for things like survivors of domestic violence, and I met so many women there that needed more help than I could give them, so I decided to… uh… beef up my toolkit on that side of things.  I want to be able to help them.  I’m getting there.”

Dean reached over and patted my leg, and I winked at him.

“I don’t even know how to say how happy I am to hear that, Christie,” said Nick.

“Well, that will do, I guess.  What made you call now?” I asked.

“Um… well… here’s the thing.  I don’t want to sound… uh… callous or anything… but…”

“Go on, spit it out.”

“Well… whatever else has happened, and I know a
lot
has happened…”

“I
said
spit it out,”

“Harper and I are getting married and… um… I really want you to be here for it.  Whatever else has happened… you’re my oldest friend, Christie.  It’d mean the world to me.”

For the second time in only a few minutes, I paused to try to concentrate and get an early clue about how I was going to react.  I stared ahead for a few seconds, unable to do anything about the silence that was growing in awkwardness with every moment.

Your friend is head over heels in love and getting married!  To a movie star!

“Yes!  I’ll be there!” I squealed.  “As long as Dean can come too.”

“Are you kidding?  Of course he can,” said Nick.

“When is it?”

“All will be revealed on the official invitation.  Are you still at your parents’ place?”

“No, I’ve moved in with Dean.” I gave him the address.

“Great.  I can’t wait to see you again.”

“You too.  Congrats, Nick, really.  I’m so happy for you.”

“Thanks.  Listen, I’ve gotta go tell Harper and then do about a million other things.  Can we talk again soon?”

“Sure.  Say… um… say hi to her from me.”

“I will.  Bye.”

“See ya.”

I pressed the button to end the call and shook my head in mild disbelief at the conversation I’d just had as I slipped my phone back into my pocket.

“Where are we going?” asked Dean.

“To Nick and Harper’s wedding.”

“Really?  Cool.  When is it?”

“Not sure yet.”

“You alright with it?” Dean’s eyes flitted in my direction for a moment.

“Look at this face.” I pointed at my smile.  “It’s good news.”

“Cool,” Dean repeated.  “What about now?  Where to now?”

“Anywhere, my man.”

I pulled the lever on the side of my seat and leaned back, kicking my feet up and sticking them out the open window.  I reached over to Dean and laid my hand suggestively high on his upper thigh, giving it a squeeze.  King, sitting quietly in the foot well behind Dean’s seat, snuffled in my ear for a second, and I laughed.

“Anywhere.”

###

Connect with me online for a FREE DOWNLOAD

Thank you for purchasing this ebook, I hope you enjoyed it.  Please take the time to leave honest feedback in the form of a review, I very much care what my readers think and take it into consideration when planning new stories.  If you’d like to drop by my website you can find me at
www.emmasouth.com
and sign up for my
newsletter
for a free and instant download of one or more romance reads.  I’m also on
Facebook
and
Twitter
!

###

If you
did
like this story you may like
these titles
by
Emma South
:

Writing Our Song: A Billionaire Romance (Our Song #1)

For aspiring singer, Beatrice Hampton, the future used to be a sweet thing to look forward to, filled with the kind of joy you could write a song about.  However, after losing her parents while still in high school, she is left crushed, alone, and harboring a bitter resentment towards the wealthier members of society, whom she partially blames for the destruction of her hopes and dreams.  After years of lonely struggle, she can hardly remember the last time she felt happy.

That's when she literally stumbles into billionaire Jeremy Holt and things take another turn for the unexpected.  Seeking only a temporary escape from the cold and grey confines of her life, Beatrice agrees to go with Jeremy on a short trip to New Zealand.  On the surface Jeremy is the exact kind of man she promised herself she would never fall for but, after spending some time with him, she realizes that maybe there's a lot more to the successful young entrepreneur than his money.  Maybe he's the one person that can make her feel alive again.

Beatrice can't deny the spark, the chemistry, between the two of them but her past still haunts her.  To be with Jeremy she must face the stresses of life in the public eye and the guilt of broken promises to herself and her parents.  To be without him is almost too painful to bear.  Will Beatrice and Jeremy get the chance to write the song of their love, or will they each be left with the memory of a beautiful but all too brief time when their lives intertwined?

Breaking Surface: An Our Song Novelette (Our Song #2)

Beatrice Hampton is struggling to adjust to life as the girlfriend of a handsome young billionaire.  It should be easy, but when she lost her parents in her mid-teens, she lost a dearly loved piece of herself too and still can't shake that voice inside her head that tells her that her house of cards is going to come tumbling down at any moment.

This is the story of how she got that special part of herself back.

On a day that began without much promise, Bea's past and future come together unexpectedly.  A beautiful memory from her youth and the love and support of Jeremy Holt give her the courage to rekindle her hopes and dreams.

Remember Our Song: A Billionaire Romance (Our Song #3)

Beatrice Holt seems to have it all. She's got a passionate and loving marriage to the perfect man, billionaire Jeremy Holt, and all the opportunities and financial security that comes with it. However, life wasn't always so wonderful. When a tragic accident results in amnesia, she is effectively transported back to a time when all her emotional wounds are still causing her intense pain. She can't remember how those wounds were healed the first time around, she can't remember her marriage, she can't remember the man behind the money at all. All she sees in Jeremy is the very kind of man she swore she would never fall for.
Can Jeremy find a way to make her fall in love with him all over again and make lightning strike twice? Can he help Beatrice remember their song or has their one chance for happiness slipped through their fingers?

The Last Thing You See: A New Adult Romance

Harper Bayliss is about to pay the full price of fame. That is, if her stalker’s plans work out.

Hollywood’s new favorite starlet is already feeling overwhelmed by the insecurity of her past, a family that controls her every move, and the stresses that come with her job when a brutal attack from a madman takes that stress to a whole new level. But what neither Harper nor her attacker saw coming was the 6’4”, heavily muscled ex-Marine, Nick Martell, throwing himself in harm’s way to save her. After she visits him in the hospital to offer her thanks, she can’t help but be intrigued by the man she finds beneath the bad boy exterior.
Plagued by guilt over his failure to protect the one person that mattered the most, all Nick wants is to find some peace. The tattooed former Marine is scarred, inside and out, but saving Harper Bayliss might be his first step toward redemption. What’s more, her answer to his heartfelt question is about to send them both down a path of scorching passion…and maybe even love.
With the pressures of Harper’s fame and Nick’s guilt working against them, will their feelings be enough to overcome all the obstacles, including the stalker that’s still out there? If he gets his way he’ll show them that, even if they choose each other, you seldom get to choose the last thing you see.