Chapter 10

CHAPTER TEN

Ellis couldn’t believe Trip had come to see her. She was a mess, and yet he was here, standing beside her to offer support. She slept but woke up after an hour or so, maybe more. She’d eaten some soup and soft bread, and had been walked around the hall and used the bathroom, then she had gone back to bed for another nap.

When she’d woken up this time, she’d found Trip in the chair, asleep. She studied his face, taking in the longer beard growth and his messed up hair that looked like he’d been pulling on it in frustration.

Her heart squeezed. This man, who had so much going on, had come to the hospital after what had to have been an awful trip just to sit with her. How could she ever repay him?

His eyes blinked open, and he sat up, wiping his face with his big hand. “Hey, you’re awake. I didn’t mean to fall asleep on you.”

“You can sleep. I know you must be tired.”

“I’m fine. I’m worried about you.”

The door opened, and Doctor Taylor stepped in. “Your numbers came back, and it’s good. I feel good letting you go. We’ve set you up with an appointment in a week to recheck and make sure everything is going well. You can go home, but you’ll be on limited activity. I don’t want you pulling anything. If you pass blood or have a lot of pain, please come to the ER. You really need to take things carefully. Do you have stairs where you live?”

“I live on the second floor.”

Trip cleared his throat. “My apartment is on the first floor. She will be staying with me.”

The doctor’s lips twitched. “No stairs for at least three days. Take it easy, get sleep, and watch some movies. Don’t work. Sleep and rest as much as possible.”

“Thank you,” Trip said.

Ellis wished she could do this on her own, but she had to heal so she could close down her shop and move to the new studio. “Thank you, Doctor Taylor. I appreciate everything you’ve done.”

“I enjoy my work, so that’s a plus. I did look up your studio. I recognized your work from when I was traveling in Germany and saw some of the photos you took. At the time, I wasn’t sure where I would end up, so I didn’t buy anything. That always made me sad. There was one shot you took in the Black Forest of Germany. I found it or something very similar on your site. I placed an order today. I’m ridiculously happy about it. Now I can say I know you.”

Shock coursed through Ellis. “Oh, wow. I don’t know what to say.”

“It has been a pleasure to meet you.” Doctor Taylor turned to leave, then spun back. “The nurse will be in to start the ball rolling on checking you out. I’ll see you next week at the office.”

Ellis blinked at the door as the woman left. “I’m shocked she knew my photography and bought one.”

“Your work is good. You shouldn’t be shocked. I saw what you did while we were on our hike. If I took pictures while we were out there, I know they wouldn’t have looked as good. What you did was amazing.”

“I’m sure you could have taken decent photos.”

His chuckle warmed her. “No, you know how to frame the shot to make it look good. You’re good at what you do.”

Taking compliments had always been difficult. When she first started with photography, she saw all her flaws. Trip’s words made her feel good about her abilities. She did have an eye for photography that made people take second and third looks. It wasn’t just that she’d snapped a photo. She had thousands of shots that weren’t remarkable, but she knew when a shot was excellent.

It took a few hours, but she finally had the paperwork for her release. Ginger offered to come get her, but Trip was already there to take her home.

Sitting up and riding in the car exhausted her. When they reached the apartments, she was glad she didn’t have to climb a set of stairs. Trip carried her up the three steps and inside. She made a pit stop in the bathroom, spending a few minutes staring at her reflection. It wasn’t just the medicine she’d taken that made her look awful. Her face was swollen, and the bruises and scrapes looked almost cartoonish. How had this happened?

Sadness filled her. Why would Bennet do this to her? She just wanted to be free of him. Why couldn’t he just take no for an answer?

She napped off and on, finally waking close to eight when her phone rang. It was her father. She braced herself as she answered, trying to sound even. “Hello.”

“Ellis, we’ll be there in the morning.”

The last thing she wanted was for her parents to come to see her. She loved them, but there were issues with things they’d done in the past. There was a reason she hadn’t told them about her new apartment or where it was located. They had the address of her studio, and that was it. “You don’t have to come down here.”

“Nonsense. We’ll be there to take care of you.”

“I’m staying with a friend. I have someone to care for me.”

“You will stay with us.”

The call ended, and she pulled her phone away from her ear, wondering if she’d hung up on her dad by mistake or if he’d ended the call. He liked to have the final say, so he’d probably ended the call so she couldn’t tell him no again. When she’d broken it off with Bennet, her father had been angry and told her to get back with him. She’d refused, and that one act had caused a huge rift. She hadn’t spoken to him in about five months.

She let go a heavy sigh as guilt wove through her. She loved her parents and tried to be nice to them, but it was difficult.

“Everything okay?” Trip asked.

She shrugged. “My dad.” She shook her head, unsure how to explain her parents. “He says they are coming down here to take care of me. I told them that wasn’t necessary, but he insists.”

“Oh.”

She met his gaze. “I don’t want to stay with them. I want to be here with you.”

“Well, when they show up, you can tell them.”

Her lips twisted up to the side. “I never told them where I moved to. They will go to the studio.”

He moved to the couch next to the recliner where she was sitting. “You didn’t tell them your new address?”

She shook her head. “I love them, I really do, but we aren’t really close, and there are trust issues. I think my dad would tell Bennet my new address.”

Trip nodded, and his lips thinned. “I understand. Parents can be difficult.”

She reached out and put her hand on his. “I don’t want to stay with them. I want to be with you.”

He squeezed her shoulder gently. “I’ll keep you safe when we meet with them. We can head over to the store or their hotel tomorrow afternoon. We won’t have them here, and I’ll make sure they don’t follow us when we leave.”

“Thank you.”

It made her sad that there were issues with her relationship with her parents, but she couldn’t forget the past. It hadn’t been awful, but there had been things that made her step away from them.

When she’d backpacked through Europe, her father had threatened to cut her off. She’d been earning enough through her photography and odd jobs that she’d told him she didn’t care. He’d said some rather harsh things and called her some names, and she hadn’t talked to him for a year.

When she’d arrived back in the States, she’d thought about not contacting them, but she’d wanted to see her mother. Things calmed between her father and her, enough so that when he introduced her to Bennet, she’d been open to the relationship. Now, she wished she wouldn’t have given Bennet a chance.

It was weird how much her father wanted her to be with Bennet. She hadn’t had the energy then to figure out why her dad wanted her and Bennet to be together and she didn’t have it now. Eventually she would have to have a conversation with them. For now, she would concentrate on getting better.

Trip wasn’t sure what to say about Ellis’s reactions to her parents coming to San Diego. He understood that sometimes relationships with family could be difficult, but there’d been something more to Ellis’s words. He just couldn’t put his finger on exactly what was bugging him or her.

The next morning, he could feel Ellis’s emotional discomfort. Physically, she was doing better and moving faster. A few times, she shuffled around with one hand out to keep steady, but she also looked more confident in her steps part of the time. It made him angry and sad that she’d been injured.

Close to two that afternoon, her parents texted, wanting to know where to go. She gave them the address for the studio, which they already knew. They seemed upset, but Trip was proud of her for sticking to her decision to not allow them to know where she lived.

They headed to the building where she had her studio, her nervous as heck, him wondering if these people could end up being a part of his life because they were connected to Ellis. Drama sucked, and he tried to operate with minimal drama. Ellis was worth it, or so he thought. Maybe after today, he would change his stance.

He parked at the front of the studio, seeing the closed sign on the front door. “Do you think you’ll open back up?”

She shook her head. “No. The sign directs people to the website. Gloria is helping so much, working extra hours to do shipping. She’s a good person. I’m letting her work when she has time. With her kid in school, it’s mostly from nine until two, but it works for her and for me.”

“That’s awesome.” He was glad she had someone backing her up. It would take her a while to really get back on her feet.

When he helped Ellis out of the car, a shiver ripped through her, and she glanced over her shoulder, nervous energy pouring through her.

He squeezed her hand. “I’m here. I’m not leaving.”

“I don’t want anyone following us. I mean, I know Bennet could have known where I lived because of the tracker, but I’m not sure he does. He’s not good about checking stuff like that, and he might not have even remembered he’d placed a tracker on my car.”

Trip nodded, not wanting to tell her that the tracker could have sent a detailed map to the receiver. He wasn’t sure how that particular model worked because he hadn’t really examined it. Hopefully Bennet would disappear into the background of her life. A part of him wished they could move now, but he still had six months on his lease, and he knew she’d just moved in.

“Let’s get you settled inside. What time are your parents supposed to be here?”

She shrugged. “Well, they should have been here about fifteen minutes ago, but they are habitually twenty to thirty minutes late. So maybe in the next ten minutes.”

“Okay. I’ll keep an eye out for them. I’m going to leave the front door locked.”

“Thank you. That makes me feel better.”

If he ever met this Bennet person, he might explode with anger. The jerk had hurt Ellis horribly, and the only thing he deserved was pain. At least, he thought it was Bennet who’d attacked her. He needed to figure that out. Luckily, he had people helping him with that task.

With Ellis sitting comfortably in the studio, he went out to the front and took stock of her items. A few photographs were no longer hanging on the wall. He guessed someone had bought them, and Gloria had shipped them out.

He was proud of the work Ellis had done, and he didn’t even know her that well. He couldn’t imagine how proud her parents were. If he had a kid as talented as Ellis, he would never shut up about her talent. Now that he was dating her, he had little doubt every person on the naval base would know about her.

A car pulled up outside, and a man with gray hair got out. The passenger door opened slowly, and an older woman stepped out and shut the door. Trip couldn’t believe the man didn’t even offer to help the woman who seemed way too frail for such a heavy door.

Trip moved fast after the initial shock wore off and unlocked the front door and stepped out to take her mother’s arm and help her inside.

“Hello, you must be Ellis’s parents.”

“She’ll make it inside on her own. She’s fine,” the old man snapped as he strode inside, totally ignoring his wife.

“Thank you, dear. I’m Eloise and that is Dean.”

“My name is Trip.”

“Oh, a third.”

“Not quite.” They stepped into the shop, and he heard the old man speaking loudly to Ellis. Anger made his muscles clench, and he wanted to rush Eloise inside, but he couldn’t push her ahead of him.

As his ears stopped buzzing, he heard the words, and he wanted to detach himself from her mother and get between Ellis and her father.

“You’re not staying here. I won’t stand for it!” Dean yelled.

“I’m not coming with you. You and Mom can see that I’m fine.”

“Nonsense. We have room. I don’t know why you didn’t move in with us in the first place. This is no place for a woman to live. You will come home with us, and that’s the end of the story.”

“No.” Ellis didn’t elaborate, and he was so proud of her for standing up for herself.

Eloise let go of his arm, and he moved to the other room to stand beside Ellis. He crossed his arms over his chest, trying not to look intimidating but also not like a pushover.

“Ellis has friends taking care of her.” Trip didn’t care that Dean shot him an angry look. Impressing him wasn’t important. Taking care of Ellis was.

“Who? That fucking whore, Ginger? She’s a twat. She wouldn’t know how to take care of anyone. She’s a fucking drug addict.”

Before he could say anything, Ellis responded. “Leave now.”

Dean’s head whipped toward her. “We drove all the way here to pick you up. Now you’re coming with us. You’ve lost your mind. First, you break up with Bennet, and now this. You’re getting married to Bennet, and all this will stop. You’ll stop with the ridiculous notion you have talent and become a housewife and take care of Bennet like a woman should.”

Trip’s fists squeezed tight as anger rolled through him. Luckily, he was a master at keeping his emotions in check. “What exactly do you mean by if she marries Bennet, everything will stop? Do you know something about his involvement in the violence against Ellis?”

It was obvious Dean wasn’t used to being questioned and didn’t like it. Trip was very offended by the man and his views on Ellis’s talent and what she should be doing with her life.

Dean scoffed like he thought Trip was way beneath him. Trip didn’t care if people thought he was beneath them, he knew his value.

“What’s your name? You have no say in what happens to Ellis.”

“I’m Trip, and yes, I do have a say in what happens to her. You never introduced yourself to me, so what’s your name?” Trip should have just stopped talking, but he wanted to put this man in his place.

“His name is Dean.” Ellis’s voice was flat as she spoke. “Trip and Ginger are the only ones who have a say in where I stay. I’m never marrying Bennet, ever. I think it’s time for you to leave.”

Dean’s face went red, and he looked like he was going to put his hands on Ellis. Trip moved between them, raising his eyebrows as he stared the man down. “It’s time for you to go.”

“This is ridiculous. I’m going to report you to the police. You’ll be sorry you didn’t come home with me and your mother. How do you think she feels about this? You’re going to regret not coming home with us. This is wrong, and the police are going to hear about this.”

Trip almost lost control, but he held it together until Dean and Eloise were outside. Eloise said nothing. He thought it sad that her mother didn’t speak up at all. No question, Eloise was a pawn of that man.

When he turned back to the studio door, Ellis was leaning up against the doorjamb, sadness filling her face. He glanced over his shoulder, making sure her parents’ car was pulling out of the lot.

“And now you know why I don’t spend much time with them and why I put Ginger in charge of my medical decisions if I wasn’t capable.”

“Wow. That’s a whole lot of controlling and manipulating. I don’t even know what to say.”

“Well, it is what it is. I tried to rescue my mom, but she won’t leave him. I’ve asked so many times, and she won’t budge. He has gotten worse over the years. It really got bad when we started going to this one church. It was very cult-like.”

“Which church?”

“The Sacred Village Assembly. It’s non-denominational. I think that’s where they met Bennet’s parents after I moved out.”

“So that’s how you two got together?”

“He introduced me to Bennet. I had my reservations. Then Bennet wasn’t bad, or he didn’t show me his bad side. I feel like I was duped. We were together for more than a year. But things started going south, and I broke up with him when I found out he was cheating. My dad called a few times, trying to talk me into going back to him.”

Trip had a wild thought but didn’t want to get deep into it without proof. He tucked away the idea for later. Once he had time to talk to some of the other guys, maybe he would present his theory to Ellis. One thing for sure, he didn’t trust Ellis’s dad.

“How about we get you home, and you can sleep while I make dinner.”

She nodded. “Thank you. You’re really nice.”

Laughter spilled from his lips. “Some people don’t think so, but I’d never manipulate you into doing anything. Also, your dad is wrong. You’re insanely talented, and I’m so freaking proud of your work. You should make your own decisions about what you want to do. And if you ever disagree with me, I expect you to speak up. You can say it to my face or in front of a group of friends. Any man who can’t be questioned by his partner is no man at all.”

How much kindness had she grown up with? Had her mother always been this way, or had she ever stood up for Ellis? Now wasn’t the time to ask questions, but he stored them away for later. No doubt, he would always support Ellis, even if it meant she left him at home while she traveled the world shooting awesome photographs.