I'll Never Stop, page 14
“She’s mine.” I interrupted. I wanted to make that clear. “We’re not a thing,” I clarified. “We’re more than that.”
That got an approving nod from both girls.
“The point is that we believe people can change, and from the looks of it, you have,” Sam said. “I remember the guy you were, and from everything Lizzy has told us, you don’t resemble him at all. I just hope he’s not in there somewhere waiting to make an appearance again.”
“That wasn’t me. This is,” I assured her.
“I hope you’re right. I hope people do change. I hope you changed. And I hope you don’t break our girl again,” Anna told me. “Because if you do, it doesn’t matter how hot you are, or how big and strong you are, we’re going to take you down. D-o-w-n, buddy. Into the ground. Six feet under. Peace. Adios. Dasvidanya.” I would have laughed. I wanted to. Damn, did I want to, but Anna looked so serious as she spouted that. The last bit earned an elbow from Sam, so I just nodded instead.
“What?” she asked Sam. “I just want him to understand how serious we are.”
“Oh? And that little bit was so very serious, huh?”
“It was my best ‘bad guy’ act.”
“Work on it, Anna,” Sam told her, and then she turned to me. “The moral of the story is don’t hurt Lizzy. She didn’t deserve it the first time, and she sure as hell won’t deserve it a second. She trusts you. She gave you a chance. And she seems to be thriving, letting go of her lingering insecurities. Those were thanks to you, I might add. But you are reversing the bad, so we’ll let that slide. Just…just don’t hurt her, okay?”
“Never,” I told them. “I fucked up,” I admitted. “I was a shit kid who thought because I had a few things going for me that I owned the world, and everyone else was there for my amusement. It took losing my parents for me to grow the fuck up and realize it was all bullshit. But I did. I’m sorry that Eliza was part of the fallout from before then. I don’t wish that on anyone, and if I could go back and change things, I would, especially with her. She’s…she’s…she’s everything and more. And I’ll spend every day making sure she knows that. And I’ll never stop.”
“Huh,” Anna said, and then elbowed Sam this time. Sam nodded as though she understood. I figured I’d passed their test.
“What?” I asked anyway.
“Nothing, nothing. If you haven’t figured it out yet, I’m sure you will soon,” Anna replied.
“You’ll do,” Sam added.
“Okay, now let’s go back before Eliza realizes we cornered her boy toy and threatened him,” Anna said to Sam.
“As if she didn’t realize it,” Sam said with a snort as they walked off.
Yeah, I was definitely envious. But more than that, I was truly happy that Eliza had people like that in her corner, people who cared about her as Anna and Sam did. And now…she had me too. I just hoped she knew that.
Eliza
YOU CAN TELL a lot about a person by the way they interact with the people you care about. Finn had already passed the parent test. My parents loved him before they knew what he’d done. And even then, I couldn’t say they hated him. They just didn’t like him as much. Of course, after everything went down between us, I told my mom that we were dating.
“Oh thank God,” she said with a sigh of relief.
“What the hell, Mom?” I asked. “You’re supposed to tell me to be careful or that I’m making a big mistake in trusting him.”
“Lizzy, darling. I hate what he did to you, and I hate that I didn’t know about it back then. I hate that I couldn’t be there for you, couldn’t guide you, couldn’t let you shed your pain in my arms. But that was then. He wasn’t my favorite person, of course, after I found out. But I can tell you with one-hundred-percent certainty that the boy is crazy about you.”
“What are you talking about? We just started dating.”
“Dating has nothing to do with feelings, Lizzy. Trust me on this. He cares for you. I could see it that weekend you were here. He looked for you when you weren’t in the room, his eyes lit up when he saw you, and he watched to make sure you had food on your plate or water in your cup. People don’t do that just because. They do that when they care about someone. Whatever sins he committed in the past, that’s where they are. In the past. Do I like them? No. Because they affected my baby girl. They hurt you and changed you. But they also made you stronger. They made you the fierce girl you are now. And besides, I truly believe he’s changed. I tried to tell you that indirectly even then. I’m so happy you finally see it.”
“I don’t know if I buy it,” I admitted. “But let’s say you’re right. Why the dramatic ‘thank God’?”
“Because all every mother wants in life is someone who will take care of their daughter the way I know Finn will with you. The way I know he wants to. And besides, you’ll make such beautiful grandbabies for me.”
“Mom,” I chided.
“Alright, alright, I’ll stop…for now. Just make sure to tell him that I know what’s up, and if he hurts you again, he won’t have a chance to hurt anyone else because I’ll hunt him down and do much worse.”
“I, uh, maybe I won’t say those words exactly,” I told her.
“That’s fine. I’ll tell him myself. He gave me his number.”
“He what?”
“Just in case, Lizzy. But I think this is a great just in case.”
I groaned. We changed the subject, but she asked me about him and us every time we talked after that.
Now, Finn was clearly passing the best friend test.
Despite my excitement and my surprise at seeing my friends in my home, I was aware enough to see they were giving him wary side glances.
They even thought they were slick enough to pull off cornering Finn without my knowing. Too bad I was totally eavesdropping. His words brought a smile to my lips, even more so than the fact my friends were amazing and totally had my back. I definitely got lucky with those two goofballs.
So, what came next? This wasn’t the first time the girls visited me, so they didn’t need a “tour” exactly, but they wanted to see a few spots all over again, namely food places.
“What?” Sam asked after suggesting In-N-Out for dinner. “We don’t have that at home.”
“Oh, good point,” Anna added.
We’d ended up staying in that night, and Finn ran out to grab us In-N-Out. He’d known we wanted some time with just girls before all of us hung out together.
“Dude, he’s freaking hotter in person,” Anna told me the minute he walked out the door.
“He’s hotter than he was in high school,” Sam added.
“I won’t argue with that,” I told them.
“But is he treating you right?” Anna asked.
I took a moment to think back on all the things he’d done, from the thoughtful dates to picking up my dry cleaning for me because I was running late to making McDonald’s hot fudge sundae runs because I wanted something sweet after dinner.
“Yeah,” I answered with a giant smile on my face.
“Oh man, look at that. She’s swooning. I didn’t think that was even a real thing,” Sam pointed out. I so was.
They, of course, knew every detail about us. I shared, and shared, and shared some more. They even knew how phenomenal our sex life was, which earned me a few “lucky bitch” comments.
But they’d heard it all on the phone or through video chats. Seeing me in person was different.
“You love him,” Anna said.
“I…uh…no…I can’t be.” I stuttered.
“Deny it all you want, babe, but the truth is going to hit you in the face one of these days,” Sam said, showing she was on board with Anna’s assumption.
“No…we’re…we’re not there,” I argued.
“If you say so,” Anna said. “Either way, I think I’m convinced you’re truly happy. But now let’s see if he’ll live up to our standards,” Anna told me. “We have all weekend for him to prove to us.”
“He will,” I told them, knowing he would charm the pants off them. Not sure I liked that thought all that much, though. Best friends or not, the only pants coming off around Finn were mine.
Finn came back, and my friends went to town on their food.
“I see they don’t discriminate with their food either,” Finn joked to me.
“We got along for a reason,” I told him.
“Is that why we get along? Or is it other things?” he said with a wink.
“Oh my God, you guys. Cut it out, we’re trying to eat here while you guys do some weird verbal sex thing,” Sam said, causing us all to laugh.
The next thing I knew, the food was done. We ended up sitting in the living room, where my friends shot question after question at Finn. He answered them all.
I tried to stop it several times, feeling bad for him, but he just kept telling me it was all right. “Your friends only know the guy I was and not who I am now. If this will help them figure me out and see that I’m right for you, then I’m okay with it.”
“Well, shit, Finn. You just passed a test we didn’t even know we gave you,” Anna said in response to what he’d said.
“Uh, thanks?”
“Okay, now for the fun stuff. Books or movies?” Sam tossed out. We all answered, which led to a slightly heated but hilarious discussion. The night went on with questions like that, ending with us laughing so hard at the ridiculous reasons we were all coming up with for our answers that we didn’t even notice it was two in the morning.
“I should head home,” Finn told me when we’d decided we needed some sleep.
“No, stay,” I urged.
“I don’t want to impose any more on your time with your friends.”
“Passed another,” Anna said as they walked by us.
“You’re not. Besides, I want them to see the guy I see,” I told him. “We’ll wake up early, make breakfast, and then head out and see all the places they want to…together.”
He smiled at me. “I can’t deny you anything. Alright, let’s go.”
We headed up to bed where all we did that night was cuddle, but it was just as intimate as if we were having sex. Maybe even more so because it wasn’t just a physical connection. It was something more. The way he held me, the way he stroked my back as we drifted off to sleep…it was almost like lov…no, not that. Just “more.”
I woke up to an empty bed but the smell of heaven coming from the kitchen. Finn had gotten up early to cook us all breakfast.
“You keep passing all these tests, Finn,” Sam told him groggily, having followed the smell like I did.
“It wasn’t my goal,” he told us. “I know you guys want to spend as much time together as possible. I just didn’t want you to have to waste time cooking.”
“And another passed test,” Anna added as she plopped down beside me.
After breakfast, we headed out together, stopping by all the stores and view spots, the restaurants, and whatever else the girls wanted to see. Finn tagged along graciously, helping us carry things, opening doors, and joking the entire time.
We spent the evening once again at home, engaged in yet another laughter-filled night.
The next morning was a bit more somber as my friends were heading out.
“We’ll take you,” Finn announced. “Aside from it being the right thing to do, that way you guys can have more time together,” he told them.
“Alright, lover boy,” Sam told him. “You’ve proven everything you said you would. You have my blessing.”
“And mine too,” Anna added. “Just keep doing what you’re doing.”
“I will,” he told her.
“Good. Okay, well, then let’s get ready.”
We dropped them off and headed back home. I was sad to see them go, but happy with their parting words. “People can apparently change, Lizzy,” Sam started. “And Finn is living proof. Gone is the asshole who hurt you, and in his place is someone who makes you shine so bright. I’m happy for you.”
“Thank you,” I told her. “I am too.”
“Sam’s right. Whoever he used to be is long gone. I’m sorry he hurt you, but it’s clear he would do anything not to hurt you now. So, go have some crazy sex to thank him for putting up with us this weekend.”
“Oh, I will,” I told them with a wink.
They were right. Finn wouldn’t hurt me. Not this time. No, this time, he’d do anything not to hurt me.
Finn
“FINN BAHAN,” SOMEONE said behind me.
“Yes?” I asked as I turned around to see two cops approach me. “We’ve received a complaint regarding you. You’ll have to come with us.”
“A complaint?” I asked, truly puzzled. “What’s this about?”
After Anna and Sam left, we went back to Eliza’s place, where she showed me how much she appreciated that her friends had approved of me. Loud too since we were once again alone. We woke up, and Eliza was still riding a high from the weekend with her friends. I was happy to see her that happy. Plus, her joy was infectious. We’d ended up waking up early and going out for breakfast together before we headed to the agency for a meeting.
I usually stood nearby during all her meetings, listening, catching glimpses of things she was up to, but this was just supposed to be a quick meeting with a charity. Dorian wasn’t even present this time.
“Mind if I step out for a few?” I asked before the meeting started. It was the perfect opportunity to do a little extra work since she wasn’t in any danger. And I had to talk to Clark. I’d been keeping up with him this entire time, but I still needed to check in with him. Plus, he wasn’t too happy with me as of late. I’d told him what was happening between Eliza and me. In fact, I’d told him everything shortly after I found out.
Like I said, I didn’t have too many friends, but Clark was one of them. “Let me get this straight,” he said, laughing between each word. “You screwed with Eliza Smith, one of the hottest models out there, when you were a dumb-shit kid, and you didn’t even remember? Oh God, this is too much.”
“Alright, alright, laugh all you want. It’s true, I’m an idiot. And now, I have to make it up to her.”
“Grovel, Finn. If I learned anything in my life is that groveling does wonders.”
“Thanks, I’ll keep that in mind.”
“Just...just make sure this doesn’t mess with your head or fuck things up. You know the goal, right?”
“Of course.”
“Good.”
That wasn’t the last conversation we had. He asked how we were doing each time we talked, and each time, he got more and more worried. According to him, my head wasn’t on straight. I was compromised because of my feelings for Eliza, and maybe I needed to step away from the job.
I kept arguing he was wrong. But maybe…maybe he was right. I wasn’t ready for all this to end, though, and I was afraid that would happen. “I’ve got this,” I kept telling him.
“Everything okay?” Eliza asked after my request.
“Yeah, I just need to talk to my boss, give him an update. Figured you’re safe here, and I could just get it out of the way now.”
“Sounds good. This shouldn’t take too long,” she told me.
“I’ll be outside if you need me, yeah?”
“Yeah,” she said with a nod and headed toward the conference room. I made a detour before I finally made it outside and indeed called Clark. And once again, he wasn’t happy with me.
I was just about to go back inside and look for Eliza, realizing it had been quite a while. She should have come looking for me by now, but I had been distracted by my lacking abilities and my essential scolding by my boss that I didn’t see the time fly by.
That was when I heard my name and found the cops coming toward me.
“I have the right to know what the complaint against me is,” I told them when they came closer without answering me.
“Indecent exposure.”
“I’m sorry, what?” I asked, sputtering at the accusation.
“Sir, you’ll have to come with us to answer some questions,” one of them said. And then just like in all the movies you see, the one who hadn’t spoken yet stepped aside talking to someone on his radio before he turned back to us.
“He’s clear,” he told his friend.
“You sure?” the other cop asked.
“Yeah, Sarge called it in,” he said with a shrug.
It looked like they were about to walk away without so much as telling me everything was all right. I opened my mouth to call out and ask them what the fuck had happened when I got a call. I glanced quickly at the screen to see it was Clark.
Before I even had the chance to say hello, he spoke. “Man, I don’t know if I should laugh or kill you.”
“What the hell is going on?” I asked.
“Your name got flagged, but I called and took care of it.”
“Flagged? What the fuck?” I said out loud.
“Is this some kind of kinky weirdo foreplay shit I need to be aware of?”
“Clark, I’m about to lose my shit. Spit it out.”
“Lucky for you, the perks of our job is having access to shit like finding out your girlfriend called the cops, calling you a crazy stalker who flashed her. I don’t know what kind of role-play you all are doing in the bedroom, but this is taking it a little too far.”
“Wait, wait, wait, back the fuck up. Eliza called me in?”
“That’s what I said,” he told me, his anger showing through his tone.
“Crazy stalker? Flashed her? What the hell is going on?”
“Man, I don’t know what you did to piss her off in the thirty minutes since we spoke, but fucking fix that shit. Now.” He hung up without even saying goodbye. I didn’t blame him. I couldn’t say it or think it enough. What the fuck was going on?
I was going to find answers. And I knew where to start. Too bad I couldn’t find Eliza. And she wasn’t picking up her phone. The longer I searched the building and the surrounding areas, the more worried I got. It didn’t make sense for her to call the cops on me for a bogus crime, especially one that basically was the sole reason I was around her in the first place, to stop said crime. And then to disappear. Something wasn’t right. My mind was going places it shouldn’t, each one with a more frightening outcome than the last.
