Chapter 12

CHAPTER 12

ZANE

S hit. I didn’t think this through. It’s the middle of the night and I stand outside Violet’s door. It’s late, so I’m sure she’s asleep. It pisses me off to no end that Graham isn’t here. I’m sure Violet has seen the news and she’s probably a little freaked out. He should be here with her.

Not wanting to startle her, I’m about to look for a spare key when a light flicks on from somewhere inside, the soft glow illuminating through the glass.

I knock softly and am stunned when my mom answers the door.

“Mom. What are you doing here?”

“I came to sit with Violet until you got home.” She envelops me in a hug as I step into the house. “Glad you’re okay. No injuries?” she asks, looking me over.

“Just a sprained wrist. Sorry I haven’t called. My phone got busted and I haven’t been able to get a new one yet.”

“It’s okay.”

“How is she doing?” I ask, getting to what really matters to me at this point.

“I don’t think she believed me when I told her you were okay. Go on and let her know you’re here; let her see with her own eyes you’re okay. I’m going to get a glass of water.”

Mom steps away from me and I quickly walk down the hallway to Violet’s room. She’s tossing and turning in a fitful sleep. She’s got a cast on her arm and I frown. What the hell happened?

Resting a hand lightly on her hip, I lean down and whisper, “Babe?”

Her eyes fly open. She scrambles onto her knees and launches herself at me. Her hold is so tight on my neck, I worry she’ll cut off my airway. Violet begins to cry and I hold her tight against me.

“I’m fine. I’m right here,” I repeat over and over.

When her cries subside, she leans back to look at me and pat my body down as if trying to feel for more injuries. “You’re okay?” she asks anyway.

“I’m okay.”

Her hand moves and I grab it before she can pinch my side. “I’m here, Violet. No need to pinch me.”

“What happened? Is everyone else okay?”

“Let’s talk tomorrow; I’m beat.”

She nods, but doesn’t move to release me.

“I need you to let me go,” I whisper, causing Violet to shake her head.

“I can’t.”

I kiss her softly and then reach up to remove her hold, which she easily allows. After shedding my shirt and pants, she scoots over so I can crawl in next to her. Violet throws an arm over me and presses her face to my chest as we lie on our sides.

“What happened to your wrist?”

“Fell,” she mumbles.

I kiss the top of her head. “Get some rest.”

Violet quickly falls asleep and I soon follow.

The next day, she’s awfully quiet. Even when my mom asks about the accident, Violet almost seems in another world. A few of the guys were injured like me. The driver unfortunately passed away; he had some sort of medical incident that led to us crashing. The league is giving the entire team a few days to recover, which means hell later because they’re rescheduling our games to make up.

Mom and I are about to head to my house for a bit and to replace my phone.

“Can I talk to you a second before you leave?” Violet asks as my mom walks outside to my car.

“Yeah. You okay?” I ask, running my hand up and down her arm.

Her eyes well with tears. “I…I don’t think I can do this,” she whispers as she motions between us. My hand stops, frozen in place at her words. “I’m utterly relieved you are okay, but?—”

“ No ,” I interrupt with more bite in my tone than I intended. Her eyes widen in surprise. “You don’t get to walk away from us just because you’re scared, Violet. I understand why you want to do that, but no. Abso-fucking-lutely not. I don’t want my mom to wait too long, so I’m gonna run my errands. I fully expect you to be at my house for dinner. We can talk more then. And babe? If you don’t show up, I’ll come over here and get you. Okay?”

She nods. “Okay, Zane,” she whispers.

Cupping her cheek, a small amount of relief flows through me when she leans into my hand. “We’ll talk,” I promise. I’ll hear what she has to say, but my mind won’t change. Violet leans in, lifting onto her toes, and kisses me softly.

“Don’t make your mom wait in the cold.”

“Six o’clock,” I tell her.

Once she nods again, I walk away and join my mom in the car.

“Everything okay?” she asks me. “Will it help if I stay with her?”

I shake my head. “Let’s give her some space.” Though, I doubt she should have it. “She’s scared. She basically lost her parents and then her grandma. She thinks she’s losing her brother because he’s enlisting in the military, and then she got scared when she heard about the accident. She’s more traumatized by it than I am, but she’ll be okay.” I’ll make sure of it.

Mom and I take care of my errands, which includes replacing my phone. I spend most of the day relaxing. It’s been a wild few days.

“Did you meet her brother?” I ask, hoping he wasn’t a dick to my mom if she did.

Mom shakes her head. “He wasn’t there at all and Violet didn’t mention him.” Mom pauses, opens her mouth, and then closes it again.

“What is it?” I ask.

She wrings her hands anxiously. “I like Violet, I do, but at your age are you sure you want to get tied down to her with everything you have going on?”

With a tilt of my head, I ask, “What do I have going on besides work?”

Mom’s shoulders drop. “I’m sorry. Everything with her just seems so messy and complicated.”

I sigh. This is what I get for sharing details about my relationships with my parents. “You don’t understand, Mom. She only has Graham and that’s not much with how he’s been to her. Plus, he’s leaving soon. Even if we haven’t really gotten there yet, she’s my wife . I’m not abandoning her when she needs support and for someone to have her back. I’m surprised you want me to walk away because things are hard.”

“I’m just trying to look out for you.”

“Thanks, but I’m good. She’s the one, Mom. We’ll be fine.”

God, I certainly hope so. I can’t imagine losing Violet and I meant what I said, I won’t let her walk away. Not over fear. I can ease any she has, or at least counter them.

Mom, feeling satisfied that her work here is done, hops back on a plane to return home. When I next look at the clock, it’s half past six. I check my phone and see a text from Violet, sent about ten after.

Don’t send the cavalry. I got distracted with work. Will be there soon.

I order us Japanese to be delivered and hope she likes what I’ve picked for her. It takes another fifteen minutes before there’s a knock on my door, Violet opening it seconds later.

“Sorry I’m late.” She winces as she walks over to me.

“What’s the matter?”

Her cheeks flush, but she shakes her head.

“Violet.”

“I just need to take my shoes off.”

She toes out of her shoes, causing my gaze to drop and me to ask, “What the fuck happened to your feet?” Blood seems to be soaking in various spots on her socks.

“Shit,” she curses as she reaches down to pull them off. Violet ignores me as she wobbles on her heels into my bedroom and then my en-suite bathroom. She looks for and finds the bandaids.

“Violet. What happened?” I snatch the bandaids out of her hand and find gauze and a bandage wrap.

She sighs as she sits on the toilet, allowing me to take over and cover her feet. “When I heard the news report, I dropped my glass and then stepped in the broken pieces. Cut my feet up. My shoes rubbed the cuts and aggravated some of the worst ones.”

I lift my head. “Freaked out a little, huh?” I ask gently.

She holds up her hand with her forefinger and thumb showing a short distance between them. “Only a little.”

“Stay right there,” I order once I finish. I stand and find my bedroom shoes. “Here. Wear these.” Maybe it’ll be better than walking barefoot. The doorbell rings throughout the house. “That’s dinner.”

“You didn’t cook?” she teases with a raised brow.

“Not today.” She follows me, heading to the kitchen to sit at the bar while I grab the food. “Hope you like Japanese. I got a spicy shrimp tempura roll and yakisoba for you, but?—”

“That’s fine. Thanks.”

I watch her carefully while we eat. She appears fine for all intents and purposes, but she’s quiet. She only asks if my mom left already, which I confirm.

After dinner, I settle onto the couch. Violet took a quick trip to the restroom and upon her return, she surprises me by straddling my lap. But something about her demeanor tells me that sex is the last thing on her mind.

“I’m sorry,” she starts with a sigh. “I don’t want to walk away, but I’m overwhelmed and scared and my mind feels like a jumbled freaked-out mess.” She glances down at her hands. “I think…when I heard…my heart broke over thinking I’d lost you. I didn’t even believe your mom when she said you were fine because she hadn’t seen or spoken to you yet, so how could she really know despite what they told her? I just…I feel like a lunatic, Zane. I’m ready to run away.”

Her sad gaze pierces me. If I didn’t already know I wanted to do everything to make her happy and feel secure, that look would’ve done me in. She opens her mouth to say more, but changes her mind and crashes into me. Whether it’s because I’m a horny dick or because maybe this is actually what she needs, I let her lead me wherever she wants to go.

I happily drown myself in her touch, in her body, and in the bliss we create. Eventually, Violet rests her head on my shoulder, our skin slick with sweat.

“You can run if you want.” At my words, Violet sits upright with wild hair and wide eyes. “But,” I continue, “I will chase you. I love you.” She sucks in a sharp breath. “You’re my wife and I’m not going anywhere.”

She leans forward and presses a hard kiss to my mouth. “If we decide to stay married?—”

“When,” I correct.

Violet smiles. “We should get married again. For your mom; she should see her son get married.”

“Done.”

“And we still need a honeymoon.”

“We’ll start planning something soon. Ow!” Violet snuck a pinch in.

“Sorry. Just checking,” she says. She slides off me and instantly I miss the feel of her. “I’m exhausted; wanna come to bed with me?”

She seems in better spirits; who am I to deny her?