Loving Charley (22 page)

“Char, we were right
outside. When they called your name, I just couldn’t handle it! I
couldn’t watch you relive that again. I know that makes me a
terrible best friend, but I just couldn’t do it,” Piper says,
dropping her head.

“Oh, Pipe! It’s okay!
You’re still my bff, and I understand. You’ve had a lot going on.
It’s okay, I promise,” I say as I get up and hug her. We finish
lunch and make our way back to the courthouse.

I feel confident as I walk
back inside. I just pray that Judge Reeves sees that Cash was
defending me, and that he gets to leave the courthouse when we do
today. I feel as if I’m experiencing déjà vu, but instead of an
asshole from my past, it’s my forever on trial.

When we enter the
courtroom, everything is the same, except for fewer people on the
back row waiting to see if they are chosen for the jury. We don’t
sit on the right side like before; we sit on the left beside Cash’s
parents. His mother has a tissue clenched in her hand and looks
like she’s barely holding herself together. I know this is hard,
but there is something more. I can feel it in my soul.

Looking to Piper and Tessa,
I know they will understand what I’m trying to explain without a
word. Piper shrugs her shoulders, and Tessa, being the sister she
is, doesn’t wait or sugar coat anything as she whispers into my
ear, “Char, you don’t think…”

As I snap my head to look
at her, my eyes widen, and I gasp as my heart sinks. “He’s not!” I
whisper in desperation and then look at Mrs. Montgomery.
Ohmygosh! I can’t believe what I think is about
to happen.
As my breathing hitches,
everyone around me places their hands on me in comfort, and then my
knight in an F250 and Carhartts appears, but today he’s not in an
F250 or Carhartts. He walks in with his head held high in a slim
fit Kenneth Cole jet-black suit. His arms fit the suit perfectly,
and his arm muscles hug to the fabric. His shirt is coral and it
brings out his radiant eyes, and he’s paired it with a matching
tie. As very inappropriate thoughts enter my mind, I realize that
if someone heard them I’d be charged with undressing him in
public.

My breathing slows, and I
focus on the most perfect man in front of me. He’s a man, not a
boy. He’s willing to take life by the horns and deal with the
consequences. He looks right at me and smiles that absolute smile
that warms my soul. I nod and try my best to not think about the
words I’m about to hear him say.

Tessa takes my left hand and Mrs.
Montgomery takes my right. At one on the dime, the bailiff
announces the return of the Honorable Judge Reeves. She comes in
with poise, dominance, and power.

She takes a moment to look
over the docket, and then Cash stands as the charges are read to
him. “Cash Porter Montgomery, you are charged with assault
inflicting serious bodily injury, a class C felony. How do you
plead?”

Standing tall and proud,
Cash answers confidently, “Guilty, your Honor.”

Judge Reeves looks stunned,
and his lawyer snaps his head toward him in shock. The spectators
in the courtroom gasp, I bite my lip to hold back emotion, and Mrs.
Montgomery begins to sob loudly. Mr. Montgomery does his best to
comfort her, but is emotional as well. Cash doesn’t turn to look at
me, but I can feel exactly what he is feeling. This is his way of
being a man. He did something that hurt someone, but he also did it
because it was the honorable thing to do. For that reason, he will
not lie because he is guilty of hurting the guy that hurt his
forever. Rather than cry, I begin to smile. Once again, Cash has
proven to be a man worthy of my love, and today is the ultimate
sacrifice.

Judge Reeves takes a
moment to gather her thoughts. “Mr. Montgomery, you
do
realize that you are
admitting to these charges?”

“Yes, ma’am. I do,” he says
with even more assurance.

“Council, is there anything
that needs to be presented to the court before I make my ruling?”
she asks as she looks at them.

They both reply, “No, your
Honor.”

“Mr. Montgomery, is there
anything you would like to say before I make my decision?” she asks
with pleading eyes toward Cash.

“Yes, ma’am. I’m guilty. I
did it, but if I hadn’t, there is no telling what would have
happened to Charley. Your Honor, she’s my forever… do you have a
forever?” She smiles and nods. “Wouldn’t you do what you
had
to do in order to
protect them? That’s what I did. I know that I deserve to be
punished, but Charley had been the victim for far too
long.”

“Thank you for your
honesty. That doesn’t happen often enough within these walls. We
will take a ten-minute recess.”

As she leaves, Cash turns
to face us. “I’m sorry, y’all, but I had to do what was right. I’m
not like him, and I will not lie. I take full
responsibility.”

Mrs. Montgomery has gotten
her crying under control, and as he goes to hug her, the bailiff
stops him. “Oh, sorry, I didn’t know I couldn’t touch them.” The
bailiff nods, and Cash looks at me. “It’s gonna be okay. I know
that it is; I can feel it.”

Tessa speaks up, “Yeah,
it’s gonna be okay. I think the judge is a good person. She seems
fair.”

Hayden then pipes in as usual, “Yeah,
she’s got some spunk about her, but she seemed to react to
you.”

“React?” Cash questions.

“She smiled when you talked
about your forever. I think she fell in love with Cash Money at
that moment,” Hayden says with a snicker.

“Lord, only Hayden would
make light of this situation, but I wouldn’t have you any other
way,” I tell her and then quickly turn when Judge Reeves re-enters
the courtroom.

We sit and wait for what
feels like an eternity, but when I look at the clock, it has only
been one minute. Holding my breath, I wait for her to speak.
Hurry up! Just spit it out!
She asks for Cash to rise and takes a deep breath while
crossing her hands.

“Mr. Montgomery, this is a
Class C felony. You inflicted pain on another human being
regardless the reason. You have a perfectly clean record, not even
a speeding ticket, but you have to pay the consequences; therefore,
I hereby sentence you…” I close my eyes and hold my breath, waiting
for the harshest words possible. “to twelve months unsupervised
probation. Case adjourned.”

I exhale the breath and
open my eyes, and a wave of emotions hit my body like a tidal wave.
As the tears begin to fall from relief, happiness, and adrenaline,
Tessa pulls me to her. Knowing I can’t get to Cash Money at this
moment, I look at him and fall to pieces in a good way.

At the sound of the gavel
pounding the desk, I jump up and almost leap across the partition
to Cash, but I don’t have to leap far, because he meets me halfway.
Embracing me in his arms, he presses his lips to mine then we hold
each other tight and don’t let go until his mama makes her way to
her baby.

“Mama, I told you it would
be fine. There was no need to worry. I spoke the truth just like
you always taught me, and see where it got me… I’m free,” Cash says
with assurance in his voice.

“Well, not exactly,” his
lawyer adds. Tessa and I give an eye roll, and I turn to face my
friends. They take turns hugging me and then excuse themselves
outside. I stay back with my parents, the Montgomery’s, Tessa, and
Cash. Once his lawyer gives him the ins and outs of what the
probation means, we exit the courtroom. Cash takes my hand in his,
smiles at me with that perfect smile, and we walk toward our
freedom.

Cash and I make a pit stop
at the restroom, and when we are about to leave, we are greeted in
the hallway by Judge Reeves leaving for the day. She looks our way
and smiles.

“Thank you,” I say to
her.

“No, thank you, for having
a man in your life that’s not afraid to stand up for what’s right.
We need more Cash’s in this world,” she says as she exits the
building.

Wrapping my arm around his,
I walk closely with him. “You know she’s right, don’t ya? The world
would be a better place with more Cash Money’s.”

He stops, turns toward me,
and places his index finger under my chin. “Everyone needs their
forever.” He brings his lips to mine in the doorway of the
courthouse. “Especially one that undresses the defendant as he
enters the courtroom.”

“Now, what gives you that
idea?” I smirk.

“Knowing you since the age
of four… that’s how I know, but you know what? I thought it was
hot.”

“I bet you did!” I say as I
pull him through the doors into the bright sunshine and toward the
start of our forever.

Epilogue

“Georgia, I can’t believe
today’s the day! I don’t wanna leave ya!” I tell her as we finish
packing my toiletries.

“I know. Honestly, I don’t
think I’m gonna make it through the summer without ya. You are
comin’ back next year, aren’t ya?” she says with worry in her
voice.

“That’s the plan,” I say
with a smile.

“Good. If not, I’m gonna make a weekly
trip to Grassy Pond for you and a burger from the Burger
Shak.”

We laugh, and I help her
finish packing as well. Around eleven, Dad, Mama, and Tessa pull in
with the truck. I’m beyond excited to see them and can’t wait to be
home, but I hate to leave the Kluft girls.

“Hey!” I say as I meet them all with
hugs. “Cash really didn’t come?” I ask them.

“Afraid so. His dad had to
have him today. They tried everything to get it changed, but they
couldn’t. Cash being Cash couldn’t let his dad do it alone,” my dad
informs me.

With sadness in my voice, I
comment, “I guess I just thought he’d surprise me like he did
before.”

“Guess not!” Tessa states.
Placing my hand on my hips, I give her the sarcastic
really?
look, and she
laughs.

We spend the next hour
loading everything into the truck. By then, all the Kluft girls’
parents have arrived, and it is like one big family reunion. We
joke about crazy things we did this year, what we are going to miss
most about second floor Kluft, and then we are in tears by the time
we finish.

“Y’all wanna grab some
lunch?” I ask them. They all kinda freeze and look to each other
for answers. “Um, are y’all okay?” I ask quizzically.

“Yeah, we just have a long
road ahead of us,” Anna says.

“I guess that’s true; I
forget y’all have farther than me.”

As our parents make their
way back to the cars, we take a few moments to say goodbye. We make
plans to visit Georgia’s beach house and to try to cross the
Mason-Dixon line to see Hayden and Anna. If I do, that will be a
first. We have a final big group hug, and we all are in tears by
the time we go our separate ways.

As I prepare to pull out of
the parking lot, I can’t help but look back into the rearview
mirror. This has been the roughest, yet best, year of my life. I
discovered who I am as a person, what it’s like to stand up for
what is right, set goals and obtain them, and find a support system
that will last a lifetime.

Just as I’m about to
leave, I see Joe running toward the Honda.
How the hell did I forget to tell him bye? Maybe because I
know I’ll see him soon.

Pulling my car to the side, I put it
in park and jump out and walk toward him.

“You weren’t leaving
without telling me bye, were ya?” he asks with
confidence.

“Um… no.” I laugh. “I guess
I’m just thinking about getting home; plus, I know I’ll see you
tomorrow.”

“True. But actually, it
will be next week. I’m driving back home tonight and gonna spend
some time with Gran. Also, my parents want me to meet them to talk
things out.”

“Joe! That’s great! I know
they love you, and no matter what, I do, too!”

“Squirrel, you have a way
with words, don’t ya?” He laughs.

“You know what I mean!
Piper, Cash, my parents, and of course, your Gran and I, all love
you. You need to at least explain what they want to know. Who
knows, it might be the start of
your
forever,” I say with a
smile.

Shrugging his shoulders,
he replies, “Could be.” He gives me a hug and tells Tessa bye
before turning and making his way back to his dorm.
I’m sure gonna miss him, but I’m glad to know
he’s part of my future, too.

Taking a cleansing breath,
I put the Honda in drive, and we make our way toward Grassy Pond.
Tessa and I cut up the entire way home. We get honked at by
truckers and sing to the top of our lungs. I’m so lucky to have a
sister like Tessa. She’s one in a million, and I’ll never take her
for granted.

When we enter Grassy Pond,
the smell of summer lingers in the air as we drive with the windows
down. I get excited the closer we get to the farm. The feeling of
home overwhelms my body, and I start to cry.

“Char, are you okay?” Tessa
asks with concern.

“Yeah, I’m fabulous. I’m
just glad to be home.”