Distraction: The Distraction Trilogy #1 (38 page)

Isaac

I sit and wait for Eloise to finish in the shower. I wanted to join her, but instead I decided to make her lunch and to clean the kitchen afterwards, something I rarely do.

She exits the shower with glistening shoulders and legs, and only a towel wrapped around her body. My mouth waters and my cock aches.

Her smile when she sees the food I’ve spread along the table is contagious. “I’ll just get dressed.” And then she notices the kitchen and quirks a brow at me. “Are you feeling okay?”

I scowl playfully and wait patiently for her to return, which she does minutes later, wearing my lucky shirt and a pair of my boxers. I love seeing her in my clothes. I wish she could wear my shirts all the time. At least then the arseholes she meets while she works will steer clear.

“I’m sorry about last night,” she says softly, peeling back the foil that was keeping her food warm. I’m about to open my mouth and apologise too, but she keeps talking. “And the past few weeks. I know I’ve been neglecting you and that’s really unfair of me.”

Sometimes her maturity shocks even me. I don’t feel like I’m sat here with an eighteen year old woman. “Me too. I shouldn’t have pushed you last night.”

We share a smile and I slide the small gift box across the table towards her. Her eyes narrow with curiosity. “What’s this?”

“It’s an end of your exams celebration gift.” I watch as she opens the dark blue box. Her eyes light up as she pulls the tiny charm from within and holds it up to the light.

“It’s a pen,” she states, her smile never faltering. “I love it.” Her fingers carefully clip it onto her bracelet beside the rest of the charms and then she comes around the table and sits in my lap with her arms around my neck. “I love you.”

“You taste like ketchup,” I state, kissing her briefly, and she slaps my arm and tries to move away. “I still love you though.”

“You just had to ruin the moment,” she snaps, her eyes sparkling with humour. “I’m not feeling very hungry anymore.”

I push my hips upwards. “I am.”

Her smile broadens and her lips come back to mine. “Bedroom?”

We both freeze when the lock clicks on the door. Eloise jumps off my lap, but it’s too late. The door swings open, slamming against the wall.

I stand in front of her, protecting her from the intruder.

“See?” I recognise the female voice to be Susanna’s. “I knew there was something going on.”

“I’m going to fucking kill you!” In a blur of movement Eloise’s dad is lunging for me.

Holy fuck.

Eloise

I scream when my dad tackles Isaac, sending them both crashing into the table. Plates fall and smash on the ground, cutlery going with it.

“Stop!” I shout when my dad lifts his arm and his fist connects with the side of Isaac’s face. “DAD! STOP IT!”

Isaac rolls them over, his face burning with anger. I look away when he plants his own fist in the side of my dad’s head.

I don’t know what to do.

Mr Price Senior bursts into the room, his chest heaving. He grabs Isaac around the neck from behind and throws him backwards.

“Elle, go,” Isaac orders, but I can’t move.

My dad lunges for Isaac again. I’ve never been so terrified in my life.

Susanna stands by the door, her face a mask of smugness. I ignore her and move around the two men as Mr Price does the same.

“Stop fighting!” I yell, but they don’t listen at all.

“You fucking pervert!” My dad bellows, grabbing Isaac by the throat. “That’s my daughter!”

Mr Price grabs my dad in the same choke hold he had his son in not long ago and my dad loses his grip on Isaac’s throat.

I’m not sure what happens next. All I see is Isaac begin to stand, his breath racing and his eyes wild. My dad’s arm lunges, Isaac cries out and falls backwards.

Susanna screams. Mr Price releases my dad and my entire world stops.

My heart stops. My head goes numb. I hear screaming. I think it’s me, but I can’t be sure.

Ambulance… we need an ambulance.

Arms wrap around me from behind as I drop to my knees beside the man I love and place my hands over the bleeding wound on the side of his stomach. Blood, warm and gushing, pushes between my fingers.

I feel like I’m floating. I’m not in my body. I’m seeing this from above.

Isaac’s eyes lose focus and his face pales.

No… no… no.

“Keep pressure,” Mr Price yells and it echoes through my mind over and over as I put all of my weight on the wound. He turns to my dad, who still holds the steak knife in his hand. “Get the fuck out of here.” My dad stands shocked, unmoving, his eyes wide on the scene that has taken place. “GET THE FUCK OUT OF HERE!”

“Isaac,” I cry, my throat dry and aching. His eyes come to mine as the room spins around me, washing away all noise, all colours. There’s nothing but him. Nothing. Then they close, his eyes, they close and my bloody hand slaps his face. “Don’t sleep! Don’t sleep!”

“Come on, Son,” Mr Price shouts, placing a towel over the wound.

We’re moved out of the way, well more like yanked. I don’t struggle; I just stand, much like my dad did before fleeing, watching the scene with tears falling down my face.

Mr Price pulls me into his side and holds me tight as my world falls apart.

The men in neon green uniform talk to Isaac as they work on him, moving him to a stretcher after placing an oxygen mask on his face.

“We’ll follow,” Mr Price tells them and grabs my shoes and coat from by the door. He wraps my coat around my shoulders and zips it as I tuck my feet into my shoes. “Come on, Elle.”

People stare as we race through the hospital, startled by the blood covering my hands and face. We’re directed to the intensive care unit, but ordered by a member of staff to clean ourselves up.

It’s when I see the blood from my face and hands swirl down the drain that I realise what just happened. My body bows with pain and shock as tears stream down my face in a continuous wave. They don’t stop and the trembling worsens.

I wrap my arms around myself and rush back to the hall in search of Mr Price, hoping he already has answers.

Is Isaac okay? Is he alive? He didn’t look alive when they carted him away.

I couldn’t tell if he was breathing; I was too frantic.

Mr Price paces the hall. His eyes come to me, red rimmed and scared. “Do you remember what I told you in the car?”

I nod quickly.

“Do you understand?”

I nod even more quickly. “Is he okay?”

“He’s in surgery.”

The word surgery sends my nerves spiralling. “I’m so sorry.” I wrap my arms around the old man’s waist. “I’m so sorry. I didn’t mean for this to happen. I didn’t… I can’t… I love him.”

He doesn’t speak as he peels me from him and guides me to a nearby seat.

A receptionist for the floor guides us into a waiting room, where we sit in silence. She offers us drinks, but I don’t want anything. I can’t handle anything in my stomach until I know he’s okay.

I cry quietly, wishing it was me that got hurt, not him.

Why would my dad do this? He’s fucking insane!

We wait for what seems years, but in reality is only an hour and a half, before a doctor comes out to greet us. He shakes Mr Price’s hand before looking at both of us. “He’s stable. Luckily the wound wasn’t too deep and it only just grazed his lung.” Oh my god. “It did, however, cut through an artery. He lost quite a lot of blood, but we’ve stitched him back together. He’s in the process of receiving a blood transfusion and I don’t have any doubt that he’ll make a full recovery.”

My eyes close as relief floods through me. I flop into my seat as Mr Price shakes the surgeon’s hand once more and thanks him profusely.

“When can we see him?” I ask, my lip trembling.

“When he’s out of intensive and on a ward, we’ll fetch you. It’ll be a few more hours yet. I’d recommend going home and having a shower.” He turns to Mr Price. “The police will probably want to speak to those present during the… accident.”

“Sure.” He nods, shaking the surgeon’s hand again. “We’ll be available when they need us.”

Mr Price looks at me and holds his phone out for me. “Call somebody to come and get you. Go home.”

I shake my head. “I’m not going anywhere.”

“I think it’s best if you go, Elle. Just remember what I said to you in the car.”

I glare at him. “I’m not going anywhere and you can’t make me.”

“Elle…”

“No,” I snap, shaking my head and wiping the tears from under my eyes. “Isaac wouldn’t leave me and I’m not leaving him.”

His lips thin into a white line, though he remains silent on that matter. “How could you both be so stupid?” This time I remain silent. “I knew… I had a feeling… I saw the way you looked at each other, how you’d react to each other. I’m not blind.” I continue practising silence, but his words affect me more than he knows. “Now look where you are.”

I pull my bare legs to my chest and hold them tight. “He loves me and I love him.”

“And that love has almost killed him and that same love will lose him his damn license.”

He’s not wrong. I bury my eyes in my knees and sit in silence. Right now isn’t the time to argue or to defend our relationship. How can I? Isaac almost died because of me.

Isaac

My eyelids flutter as my eyes adjust to the light. I look around, taking in the beige walls and ceilings within view.

A machine beeps nearby and voices travel from outside of the room.

Warm and delicate fingers trace the palm of my hand. Fuck, my mouth is so dry.

I try to sit up but pain slices through my middle. It aches, burns and stings, but it’s not unbearable.

My memory is a little hazy. I remember dinner, Elle, the charm, but then… I’m not quite sure. Pieces come back to me, but they don’t make sense. Eloise’s dad, a knife, blood, Elle crying and pushing something on my body that hurts like hell.

“Hey.” Eloise’s voice travels through the fog between my ears. I turn my head and look at her. She looks terrible. “I’m so glad you’re awake.”

A hand squeezes my other shoulder. I turn my head that way and take in the sight of my dad. He looks as terrible as Elle does, if not more so. “How are you feeling?”

I blink and try to sit up again, but both he and Elle grab my shoulders. “Not yet,” Elle says softly and runs her fingers through my hair. I move into her touch, closing my eyes as I savour it. “You shouldn’t move yet.”

“What happened?” My voice sounds croaky and rough.

“We’ll talk about that in a minute.” Dad says as Elle holds a straw to my lips. I sip the cold water, which tastes like ash. “Call the nurse.”

Elle nods and presses something on the wall. A low beeping sounds through the room and seconds later the door opens.

A woman in white checks my vitals, asks me numerous questions before allowing me more water and calls for the doctor.

When he leaves, telling me the shit he’s done to my body to fix it, my dad finally has enough time to lay it all on me.

When he tells me that Elle’s dad stabbed me, it all comes back, bringing a migraine with it. Elle presses the button for morphine, which flows through a tube and into my arm. My migraine vanishes and the pain numbs, but so do my thoughts.

“The police will want to speak to you,” my dad says softly. “They’ve already spoken to us. As far as you can remember, you tripped on one of Elle’s shoes and crashed into the table. It was an accident. We were all there having lunch and it happened quickly.”

“But it wasn’t an accident,” I spit, wondering why the fuck he’s defending the man who almost killed me.

“It was an accident, because if it wasn’t an accident, you’ll be held accountable for your affair with a student.”

I let out a growl. “That’s bullshit.”

“This way you get to keep your job, your family isn’t shamed and Eloise doesn’t lose her place at Cambridge. Not only will investigations happen into your relationship, but her coursework handed in to you will be written off as badly graded due to favouritism. She’ll have to retake History and redo her exams, setting her back another year.”

I keep my mouth shut and nod. He’s right. I might not get arrested because of her age, but both of us will be ruined.

“Mr Blackburn won’t say anything because what he’s done will have him put away for a long time.” Elle lets out a whimper. I hear the guilt she feels in that one choked cry and I squeeze her hand to soothe her. This isn’t her fault. What her dad did isn’t her fault. My dad continues. “As for your relationship, after today you’ll stay away from each other. Elle will go home and get ready for her holiday and act as if all is well before moving to Cambridge and you will remain a teacher who doesn’t put his hands on another fucking student.”

My migraine returns as I glare at my father. “That’s my decision to make. That’s Elle’s decision to make.”

“And then all of this lying we’ve done today will have been for nothing.” He hisses, gripping the bed barrier with both hands. “Right now, Isaac, your mother needs you. What you and Elle have probably won’t even last. She’s young and stupid and you’re older and even more fucking stupid. If you continue this charade, you’ll ruin us all. Not just yourself and Elle, but me too. My career will be on the line. Your mother will be sent to a home if I don’t get my pension. Is that what you want?” He doesn’t stop. Even seeing the grief on my face, he doesn’t stop. “If you truly love each other, you’ll wait a few years.” He lets out a disgusted laugh. “I honestly can’t believe I’m having to explain this to my thirty year old son. You should know better.”

He’s right. I should have, but I didn’t.

Elle weeps silently beside me. I know she agrees with my dad too.

“You can stay until end of visiting time, Elle, and then you’ll go home.”

We both look at each other. I lift my hand and wipe the tears from her cheeks with the backs of my fingers. She kisses my palm and closes her eyes. “I’ll go now.”

“No,” I say, gripping her fingers tightly. “Not yet. Stay a little longer.”

When she nods I feel relief flood through me. It doesn’t last though. My exhausted body shuts down before I can stop it.

When I wake up she’s gone and so is my dad. The only people in the room are two officers in uniform waiting to question me.