Stolen (14 page)

“Don’t you ever touch me again.” I scream.

“You stay away, do you understand?”

“Kiss my ass.” I snap, and everyone goes silent. Then laughter erupts between the boys. Cassie just stomps her foot
,
but I start laughing too.

“Come on girly, let’s get you both cleaned up.” Bill snickers, helping me inside.

When we get inside Nessie comes rushing out, her eyes widen.

“What happened here?”

“The girls got into a fight.” Bill chuckles.

“Oh dear, is anyone hurt?”

“Em hit Cassie a beauty. Her lip is bleeding.” Blade growls, glaring at me.

“Oh my. Come we will get you both cleaned up.”

Within seconds all the ladies are making a fuss, wiping our faces and cleaning us up. Cassie has a swollen, bloody lip; I have done a good job. My ego swells a little. Blade comes in and stands beside Cassie.

“Is everyone okay?” He asks.

“Yeah they are fine son.” Nessie mumbles.

“Why did you do that Cass?” He whispers.

“I was just letting her know her boundaries, she hit me.”

“Yeah and you pushed her first, you should have left it alone.” He mutters.

I smile, and he turns to stare hard at me. “Don’t you smile.”

I try to wipe the smile off my face, but it creeps back slowly. He grins a little before wiping it away so Cassie won’t see it.

“I want to go home Blade.” Cassie mutters.

“It is my dad’s birthday.”

“I want to go!”

“No, you can wait until after dinner, you started this fight now you live with it.” He snaps, and she sulks after him when he walks out.

“Oh Em.” Nessie whispers, smiling a little.

“Nessie…you aren’t smiling are you?”

“It was a little funny.” She admits, with a curl to her lips.

We both erupt into a fit of laughter.

“Don’t you tell anyone.” She snorts, between laughs.

“Scouts
honor
.”

“You’re a spirited little thing. You keep my boy on his toes, even though he isn’t with you.”

I smile and help her serve. We all sit and eat dinner; everything is so wonderful. Once we are finished Cassie announces she wants to go home.

“I guess I had better go too.” I smile hugging everyone.

“Can I talk to you a second first?” Blade asks when Cassie has gone to the car.

“Sure.”

I follow him outside, and he turns to me.

“Please no more stirring Cassie…”

“Hey. Don’t blame me; she started that.” I protest.

“I suppose but please don’t feed her, just ignore it.”

“Aye aye.” I smirk.

“You are
drunk aren’t
you?”
His
gaze searches mine.

“Not really.”

“You shouldn’t be driving.”

“I am fine.” I laugh.

“No, you stay here, and I will drop Cassie off. Then I am coming to take you home.”

“No, honestly.”

“It is not up for argument, come on.”

Blade takes me back to Bill with strict instructions not to give me any more alcohol or drive my car. I flop onto the couch and wait for him to return. An hour later he does, by then, I am stumbling drunk. Bill had maybe given me one or two more beers…

“Come on, I am taking you home.” Blade snaps, lifting me.

“Sorry son, we fed her a bit too much beer.” Bill laughs.

“No don’t worry, I will get her home, and she will be fine.” He sighs and walks me out to the car.

He puts me in the
passenger
’s
side and straps me in. I pass out until I feel him lifting me out of the car and walking me inside. He puts me on the couch; I open my eyes and stare at him.

“Geez, I can’t leave you like this alone.”

“It’s okay, I am fine.” I slur.

“No you’re not. How about you have a shower?” He suggests.

“Sure.” I laugh, standing and then falling back with a snort.

“Jesus, I will help you come on.”

“You just want to see me naked!”

“Don’t be stupid, I won’t even take your clothes off.” He smiles a little.

“You can’t put me in there with a dress on.”

“Well you can leave your underwear on.”

“You want to see me, admit it?” I tease.

“No I don’t.”

“Do so.”

He helps me into the shower and turns it on. I just curl up on the floor of the bath, letting the water fall all over me. I feel him turn the shower off a few minutes later, and lift me out, wrapping a towel around me. I am so drunk that I turn around and kiss him. He is so beautiful, so fresh and warm. He tastes so amazing. He kisses me a little, before pulling away and letting out a deep groan.

“Don’t do that.” He breathes.

“It was just a little kiss.”

“Yeah and I am married.”

“I am married.” I mimic.

“Don’t be smart, come on.”

He puts me down on the couch and pulls a blanket over my body.

“Why are you helping me?”

“I don’t want to see you trying to do this alone.”

“Can you stay?”

“You know I can’t.”

“Aww, please, I won’t try anything.”

“Right…”

I shuffle closer to him. “I miss you a lot Blade.”

“I know, but you know I can’t be here
angel
.” He whispers, stroking my cheek.

“Why?” I frown.

“You know why, I am married.”

“I know, but I love you.” I moan.

“Sorry…”

“You don’t love me, do you?”
I pout.

“Don’t look like that, I do love you. Just not in the way you want.” He growls, looking away.

“Is that a lie?”

“Maybe but let’s not talk about it.”

“Can I cuddle you? I miss cuddling you Blade.”

“That’s probably not a good idea…”

“Please, I won’t do anything.”

He sighs and pulls me into his arms; my head falls against his chest and I breathe in his scent.

“I truly do miss you Blade. Not just being with you but just having you as a friend.”

“I know, I miss you too.”

“You do?”

“I do.”

We stare at each other for a moment and then he leans in and kisses me, I think he only meant it to be a peck, but it suddenly becomes very passionate. He pushes me down onto the couch and kisses me hard. I feel the excitement rising inside me; I pull away as he moves down to kiss my neck.

“Make love to me.”

He stops, and I feel his body stiffen.

“I can’t, you know I can’t.”

“Please, who will know?”

“That’s beside the point, it’s not right.” He mumbles, lifting himself off me.

“Please I need you. I don’t want you to go.  It hurts too much.” I whimper.

“Please don’t cry, I don’t like seeing you cry.” He groans, wiping a stray tear off my cheek.

“I don’t want you to leave. This has been hell for me; I love you and seeing you with someone else kills me. I will do anything, name it.”

“You can’t do anything, I have to do this.”

“Please.”

“
Angel
, come on. This has to stop, go to bed and sober up.”

“Stop pushing me away.” I snap.

“I’m not, but you’re drunk
,
you don’t know what you’re doing.”

“I know I love you and I know what I want.”

“Well you can’t always have what you want.”

“R
ight. You know what, I am tired,
” I whisper standing up and heading towards my room, wobbling a little. I turn towards him
,
“You know where the door is.”

I wake in the morning, and my head is throbbing, I feel like I have been crushed by a bus. I stand up hobble into the bathroom to have a shower, but it doesn’t help. I make some coffee and nibble on some toast. I rub my head; I can remember last night and I feel like a fool. Poor Blade
,
I really shouldn’t throw myself at him like that. I sulk for a moment and then decide I will go and have a swim. It might cure this horrible hang over I have.

I change into my bathers and walk down
to
the beach. It is dead silent this morning, and the sun sits neatly over the water, the wind is low, making it a perfect day for a swim. I walk down to the water and let the waves splash over my feet. I step in further when I feel a sharp sting in my foot. Suddenly, a searing pain is shot up my leg.

I start screaming, it is like someone has lit my leg on fire. It is excruciating; my foot starts to swell and my heart feels like it is going to fall out of my chest. The intense throbbing as my foot balloons nearly cripples me. I scream and cry as I climb back out of the rocks and drag myself back towards the cabin. I have no i
dea what has happened, when I ge
t inside
,
I drop down onto the floor.

The pain is getting worse; I can hardly breathe. I need help. I crawl over to my phone and dial Blade’s number; I can’t think of anyone else. It rings and rings with no answer. I can hear my own heart thumping in my head; the pain is crippling my body. I dial once more, if he doesn’t answer this time, I am going to call an ambulance. I need help. That much I know.

“Hello.” Finally, he answers.

“Blade?”

“Em are you okay? You sound terrible.”

“Blade, I stood on something in the ocean,” I groan, panting “My foot…I can’t move.”

“Shit. Don’t move
,
I am on my way.” He says hanging up the phone.

I lay in the same spot; I think I am drifting in and out of consciousness. I hear the door swing open, and I see Blade and Nessie come rushing over. Blade lifts me quickly into his arms and Nessie takes a look at my foot.

“We need to get her to the hospital Blade,” She panics, touching my head “She is burning up.”

“Okay let’s go, it’s going to be okay.” Blade whispers.

He doesn’t put me down as Nessie drives to the hospital; he just keeps me in his arms. When we arrive, he rushes me inside as Nessie parks. The doctor comes rushing over.

“What has happened?”

“She stood on something in the ocean, I don’t know what it was
;
she was alone.”

The doctor lifts my foot and sighs.

“A Stone fish. Move and take her into that room; we have to get to her right away.”

I drift in and out of consciousness as the
doctor’s
work on me.

“Is she going to be okay?” Blade asks.

“She will be fine. I have given her some pain killers and something to kill the venom it injected, she is lucky you came along. Them things can cause serious damage.”

Blade lets out a sigh as the doctor disappears from the room.

“Don’t scare me like that again.” He murmurs
,
stroking my hair.

“Sorry.”

“No don’t be, it wasn’t your fault.”

“I tried to ring you, you wouldn’t answer.”

“Sorry mate, I didn’t hear my phone.”

“You always have your phone on.”

“I know, I didn’t think it was important.”

“You were ignoring me?”

“No. I was in the middle of something…” He mutters and my eyes widen.

“You were sleeping with her?”

I feel my fists clenching. He didn’t answer because he was with…her!

“No. Not exactly, look I am sorry okay. I didn’t mean to leave you in pain.”

“Oh is she okay?” Nessie cries, rushing in the room and cutting off our conversation.

“I am okay Nessie. I stood on a stone fish, but I am going to be fine.”

“Oh you scared me.”

“Sorry.”

“Never be sorry, listen love I would love to stay but I have to go for some treatment while I am here, Blade will take you home okay?”

“Sure. Thanks Nessie.”

“Anytime love.” She hugs me tightly before leaving.

We have to wait a few more hours, Blade comes in and out of the room, I am guessing he is getting a few phone calls. When he is finally able to take me home, he makes sure I am inside and settled before standing to leave.

“Thanks again.”

“No worries. Are you going to be okay?” He asks.

“I wish you would stay with me for a while…”

His eyes meet mine, and I can see it pains him.