My heart speeds up at his words as I look him in the eyes. I was never comfortable looking someone much bigger than me in the eyes out of fear, but right now I need to see how serious he is being. Oh, holy shit, did Ghost just claim me? As he walks further into his house, I don’t have time to take in my surroundings. As he walks into the kitchen and sets me gently on a kitchen barstool, he moves around, and I’m still in shock at his words. “Ghost I...”
He turns around and makes his way over to me, making me crane my neck to look up at him. “You don’t have to say anything, Babydoll. I threw a lot of shit at you, which probably wasn’t the right time, but you needed to know this isn’t just because I feel sorry for you, so get that thought out of your head. You need to take the time to think. But for right now, we need to get you healed first. Then we can worry about everything else, okay? Your only job right now is to get better.” He gently pushes my hair behind my ear, letting his touch linger, sending shivers down my spine. How he knew what I was thinking is beyond me, but he pretty much nailed it with my negative thoughts.
I like the fact that he’s putting my needs above everything else right now. As much as I would love to see how something between the two of us goes, I just don’t have the mental capacity right now, and that wouldn’t be fair to either of us. Something like this shouldn’t be taken lightly. “Healing first, then.” I smile up at him, the first genuine smile in a long while.
He places a gentle kiss on my forehead, pulls back, and winks at me. “Let's get you something to eat so you can get some rest. I know it’s not going to be an easy one tonight as I will have to wake you every few hours with your concussion, so you will be sleeping in my bed tonight so I can watch over you. Are you okay with that?”
Oh my, sleeping in the same bed as Ghost. I don’t even know how I’m going to be able to fall asleep knowing he’s right beside me. But I would be stupid to say otherwise. “Yeah, that’s fine with me.”
He looks me in my eyes to make sure I’m okay, and I don’t know if he actually believes me or not. “Okay, good. Now that it’s settled, I had the prospect drop off a pizza. Is that okay, or can I make you something else?” I watch as he opens the oven and pulls out a pizza box; the smell makes my stomach growl. I don’t even remember the last thing I ate, and I’m actually a little hungry right now.
“No pizza is fine, thank you.” He sets a plate in front of me with a slice as he grabs his own. We eat in comfortable silence as I fight to keep my eyes open. The events of the night are taking their toll on me, and all I want to do is sleep. I take a few more bites before I push the plate away, not being able to stomach much more.
Ghost, anticipating my needs, gets up and has me once again up in his arms. “Come on, Babydoll, let's get you to bed.” Not being able to fight it, I lay my head against his chest and let the strong beat of his heart lull me to sleep.
Four
Scarlett
I try to roll over, but something is holding me down, making me go stiff. A wave of panic washes over me as I replay yesterday's events in my mind, each detail triggering a fresh surge of anxiety. Am I back at home? Whose bed am I in and, more importantly, who's holding me? That’s when I open my eyes to see Ghost’s hand resting on my stomach and everything comes back to me. The last thing I remember is eating with him and falling asleep in his arms as he carried me to bed. A few times during the night, he woke me to check on me; the soft touch of his fingers playing with my hair lulling meback to sleep. Nightmares plagued me all night about what my father did and the fact that he was going to sell me, making me leave one hell for another. Every time I would wake up in a cold sweat, gasping for air, paralyzed by fear. Ghost was there to comfort me, holding me close and assuring me he would protect me from anyone coming after me.
My body feels stiff, and I know I must look like crap because I feel like it, but right now my bladder is screaming at me, so as gently as I can I remove Ghost’s hand from around my waist trying not to wake him. I gingerly get out of bed and stand up. Good lord, even that hurts to do. I don't think there’s a part of my body that’s not hurting right now. I make the slow trek to the bathroom and close the door gently.
I don’t even look at myself in the mirror as I use the bathroom, not wanting to see the damage my dad inflicted on me right now. I do my business and walk to the sink to wash my hands, and that’s when curiosity wins out and I look up. The gasp that leaves my mouth, seeing my bruised and battered face, brings fresh tears to my eyes. Jesus, I look like I went ten rounds in a boxing ring and lost badly. I can only imagine what the rest of my body looks like. I angrily wipe the tears that are falling. I'm so tired of all the crying and all the pain that I feel. For so many years, I took the abuse, thinking I must have done something wrong in my life to deserve such punishments. But now that I'm standing in front of the mirror looking at each and every mark, I know how wrong I had it. I don't deserve this; nobody does, and I should have done something long before this to stop it. It took my father almost killing me to actually be brave enough to take that step to get help. Today, I will rise above everything and not look back. Like the phoenix, I will rise and be reborn. This is day one of the new me.
I look away and see a fresh pile of clothes sitting there with a brand new toothbrush and some towels. Picking up the clothes, I see one ofGhost’s shirts and a pair of my leggings, making me smile. I swear this man thinks of everything. Deciding a hot shower would make my sore muscles feel so much better. I get undressed and step into the shower, which is the biggest shower I’ve ever seen, with two shower heads, one on each side. I turn it as hot as I can stand it and step under the water as it beats down on my tired body. Using the washcloth Ghost left me, I load it up with his body wash and carefully wash my body, mindful of the cuts. Once I’m all clean, I wash my hair, which always takes me forever to do since I’ve always kept it so long. It’s now almost reaching my butt, and I think once I’m all healed, I’m going to finally cut it off, like with everything else, a clean slate. To find myself, the person I’ve always wanted to be. With my newfound bravery and the start of loving myself again. I finish my shower with a smile on my face and step out, grabbing one of the big fluffy towels on the rack.
I dry off and carefully get dressed; the pain wracking my body lets me know I need to take something and soon. I put Ghost’s shirt on me, which could be considered a dress with our size difference. Grabbing the unopened toothbrush, I brush my teeth, feeling slightly better. Cleaning up my mess, I open the door as quietly as I can, seeing an empty space where Ghost was sleeping. I really hope I didn’t wake him up with my shower. I head out the door and take my time on the stairs. Each movement wracks my body with even more pain. By the time I make it to the last step, I’m sweating and panting. Voices coming from the kitchen have made me curious about who could be here so early in the morning.
As I turn the corner, Ghost turns his head in my direction, clocking me right away. He smiles at me, and that’s when I see the other people in the kitchen. Grandma Silvia and Grandpa Owen.
Grandma Silvia covers her mouth in horror seeing the state I’m in and rushes over to me, enveloping me in a hug. Tears threaten to fallfrom the overwhelming love I feel from her. “OMG, Tinkerbell, your poor face. I’m so sorry; why didn’t you tell me? I would have helped you.”
She pulls back, wiping the tears from my face. “I didn’t want to burden anyone with my problems. Honestly, I didn’t think he would go this far. I guess I was wrong.” I whisper as my voice cracks. So much for trying to be strong. I didn’t even last an hour.
“Nonsense. Your family and we take care of each other. Now about work. I don’t want to see you back until you are well and truly rested. Besides, I think your man over there won’t mind taking care of all your needs.” She wiggles her eyebrows up and down, making my face go ten different shades of red. Grandma Silvia is really shameless. I really don’t even know how to rely on someone for help, but by the dead set look in Grandma’s eyes, she’s telling me I don’t have a choice. I sneak a look at Ghost, who’s leaning against the counter with a smirk on his face, and I know he heard what she said.
Also, knowing I don’t have much of a choice, I readily agree. “Okay, Grandma Silvia. I promise to get the rest I need.”
Grandpa Owen walks over and pulls her to his side. They truly are the greatest people in the world. “Alright, Silvia, let the poor girl go back to her color. You've said enough. How are you feeling, Tink?” I can see a darkness swirling in his eyes as he looks over my injuries.
Ghost takes that moment to walk over to my side and helps me into a chair, which is greatly appreciated because standing right now is a chore. “Very sore and tired. I didn't sleep well last night.” Ghost comes back over with a couple of pain pills in his hand and a bottle of water. I give him a smile in thanks, and he sends me a wink, making my face go red again.
Grandpa Owen nods his head in understanding. He used to be the chief of police, so I’m sure he’s seen this before. “That’s what Ithought. We are gonna go and let you get some rest. We brought over breakfast, so make sure you eat something; you're too little.” He winks at me, making me smile. He’s always telling me I don’t eat enough.
Grandma Silvia comes over and hugs me one more time. “Let that nice young man take care of you. He’s one of the good ones; you're safe now. Call me if you need anything, and I mean anything.”
I close my eyes, feeling my throat clog with emotion. “Thank you, Grandma Silvia, I will.”
She walks by and pats Ghost on the arm. I’m pretty sure she cops a feel of his muscles, making me giggle. “Take care of our girl.”
Ghost looks over at me with a look in his eyes that I can’t quite understand. “Always, Grandma Silvia. Always.”
I don’t look away from him, trapped in his stare, making me wonder what he means by always. The front door closing snaps me out of my thoughts, and I quickly look away. Ghost comes over with takeaway containers in his hands. I go to stand up to help because I’m not used to people doing things for me.
He just shakes his head at me. “Nope, you just park your ass on that chair and let me take care of you. Or do you want me to call Grandma Silvia back?” He raises his eyebrow at me with a smirk on his face.
I giggle, shake my head, and gingerly sit back down. “No need to do that.”