Evan's Addiction (59 page)

     I turned my head to see Carrie staring at me with concerned eyes.
“Are you feeling okay?”

     Taking a deep breath I let it out with a smile. Years of hiding my
feeling came in handy. “I’m good, why?”

     “You just looked kind of sad. Are you worried about the court appointment
this afternoon?”

     Ford, Evan, and I were scheduled to talk to a judge today about
the incident on campus a few weeks ago, as well as all the crap leading up to
it. These last couple weeks since Ford had been arrested and kicked off campus
had made a huge difference for me around the university. All the guys who had
made a nuisance of themselves before were making a wide berth around me now.

     The last two weeks would be what I considered perfect; no
assholes…Evan in my life…more friends than I could count on one hand…if only I
knew it would last. Unfortunately, fortune and hope were never my friends.

     I shook my head and picked at my rice and vegetable plate. “Evan’s
lawyers say there’s nothing to worry about; Ford is definitely gone from campus
for good, and that with the testimony from all you guys, plus some of Ford’s
friends who flipped because they were scared of being arrested and sued, he
will probably get convicted of slander and sexual stalking.”

     “Those guys who were part of it should have gotten arrested as
well, and not just kicked off campus.” Sam declared angrily. “They were
basically a crew of sexual predators. I here the Fraternity is under some
pretty heavy scrutiny because of everything they did to you. They all had to
know what he was doing; it should just be burned to the ground. Fraking House
of Assholes.” She stabbed at her pasta dish.

     David patted her shoulder reassuringly. “Calm down Sammy Sizzle;
they will get there due.”

     Sam muttered something under her breath continuing to look irate. It
looked like I wasn’t the only one that was high-strung today. Her mom must
still be on her case.

     Eyebrows raised at her overt anger, David turned to me. “What
about Evan? Is he going to be pardoned for smashing Ford’s face in?”

     I sighed. “He says he’s not worried.” But I couldn’t shake the
worry. I didn’t want him going away from this with a record. I didn’t want to
be a bad memory.

     “I can go with you if you want me to…for moral support?” David
offered.

     Carrie and Sam jumped in and said they could too and a real smile
spread across my mouth. “Thank you, but since you would have to sit outside the
chambers your support will be just as affective from here.”

     “We could bring signs reading ‘Down with Ford’ and picket in front
of the court house. It would be fun.” Sam smiled gleefully.

     David looked equally interested in that idea. “We could paste a
picture of Fords head on a poster with a hammer coming down on his head.”

     “Or a guillotine.” Carrie broke in.

     “Wait…wait…wait…” Sam waved her arms, eyes bright. “A guillotine
and his penis.” All three of us grimaced, David especially. Sam frowned. “Too
much?”

     David put his fingers close together. “Just a smidge over the
Lorena Bobbitt line.” 

     They were being so supportive and it lifted my spirits. “If it
somehow doesn’t get settled today, then I will get back to you on all those
super ideas.” I pushed my food away unable to finish it with all the
butterflies in my stomach. “I should head out. I have to go change before Evan
comes to pick me up at one-thirty.”

     They all stood and gave me a hug for good luck. I rode my bike
back to the apartment and after an express shower I exchanged my jeans and
sweatshirt for black dress slacks and a green silky v-neck top. I fixed my hair
into a more restrained bun and added some light make-up. I put on some small
gold hoop earrings and the gold necklace with a green pendant David had given
me last Friday. He said it was for our years of friendship.

     I’d almost choked on the emotion and tears that had wanted to
flood my throat and eyes. David and I had given each other gifts before, but
they’d been for birthdays and Christmas, and mostly revolved around technology
and had been inexpensive because I hadn’t had a lot of money until recently. I’d
told him off once when he’d tried giving me an old laptop early on in our
friendship. He knew I didn’t feel comfortable taking expensive gifts when I
could barely rub two nickels together.

     This time he’d been so adamant about me accepting the necklace,
looking so earnest, that I’d given in. I told him I’d cherish it, and even
hugged him, which had tears filling his eyes. That of course had me chiding him
switching our tears to laughter.

     When Evan saw the necklace he’d frowned like he was displeased about
it, but he hadn’t said anything. The next day when he’d come over he’d brought
me some earrings to match it. I’d stared at them in confused astonishment for a
few moments because I could see they were really expensive, and getting gifts
wasn’t something I was accustomed to, but then reality hit me and I handed them
back telling him I couldn’t accept them.  

     He’d scowled and asked why and I’d told him the earrings were too
expensive a gift to be giving to someone he’d only been going out with for a
month, and that I wouldn’t be uncomfortable taking them. He’d tried using his
negotiating tricks to get me to change my mind but I’d ignored him and wouldn’t
talk to him until he shut up about it. He hadn’t looked happy about it but he
let it go, and that night he’d been extra demanding in bed, wringing four
tortuous orgasms out of me before bellowing and pounding out his own. I thought
the issue had been resolved.   

     It was a few days after that Evan had started to work late.
Coincidence? All I knew was that I didn’t want a pair of earrings to remind me
of what I lost when Evan finally walked away. The shirts he’d given me were already
messing with my head. I knew I was going to have to get rid of those as well
when the split eventually happened. Going to work for Nic was out of the
question too.

     The only way I would survive is if I never saw Evan again and
erased everything of him from my life.

     I stared at my tense features in the mirror. I dreaded Evan
leaving, but waiting for it was giving me an ulcer.

     A knock on the door had me taking a deep breath. Expelling it I
strode to the door plastering on a bogus smile as I opened it. “Hey.”

     Evan immediately wrapped me up in his arms. “Damn, I missed you. How
are you doing?”

     My body melted instinctively into his and I found myself breathing
him in like he’d been gone weeks. My eyes stung with impending tears but I
blinked them away. Had he really missed me or was he being polite and
supportive for what we were about to deal with?

     God, I hated questioning everything.  

     “I’m doing fine, but I’m sure I’ll be better after this is over.”
I wasn’t certain I was referring to this thing with Ford or Evan. “Is Dan okay
that you have to miss more work again?” This was another thing that was raising
my anxiety; cause Evan to miss so much work. First his arrest, then the Dean’s
meeting, and now this.

     My gut was one painful twisted knot from everything that was going
on.  

     Pulling back he leaned down and brushed his lips over my cheek.
“He’s absolutely okay with it. He wants this guy to go down almost as much as
you and I.”

     My pulse thundered crazily as Evan’s lips left a trail of fire
over my skin and I closed my eyes when his mouth settled over mine. I drank
hungrily from him before we separated, breathing heavily.

     “Damn girl, you’re about to make the rocket in my pants go off.” His
hot amber gaze skimmed my face and a half smile pulled up the corner of his
mouth.

     My lips tilted up. I’d missed his one-liners. “Well, I’d better
step back then. I don’t want to catch on fire.” I stepped away to grab my coat.
 

     As I lock the door his hands caressed my hips. “I’ll work on
stoking that fire later.”

     I couldn’t control the quiver that coursed through me. He wasn’t
sounding like he was bored with me.

     Evan drove us downtown to the courthouse and after he parked we
walked together into the building.

     “Just to give you a small heads up…my mother is going to be here
today.”

     I slowed in shock and dread. “Your mother?! Oh god, she probably
hates me for putting you in trouble?”

     His hand squeezed mine as he pulled me forward. “You didn’t put me
in trouble and she doesn’t hate you. She’s proud that I stepped in to help you.
She’s looking forward to meeting you.” He grinned down at me.

     Yeah, right. She might be proud he was being a good son, but she
was going to be eyeing me with extra hard scrutiny thinking…
this girl has
trouble written all over her
.

     And how many other girls had she met? The woman was also probably
thinking;
god, not another one.

     As we walked down the hall I spotted a tall, well dressed,
extremely beautiful woman with a vague resemblance to Evan stand from a bench
and smile at us. I tried really hard to not squeeze Evan’s hand to death. The
closer we got the more gorgeous she became. Her gaze flickered over me in
curiosity but I could see her sole focus was Evan.

     She held out her arms with a smile. “Evan baby, it’s been
forever.”

     Evan released my hand to embrace her. “Mom, let’s try not to throw
around the word ‘baby’ in front of my girlfriend.”

     She smiled at me as she hugged Evan. “I’m sure her parent’s still
think of her as their baby.”

     My smile froze on my lips, and then I jumped in surprise when Evan
let go of his mother abruptly and folded me back in his embrace.

     His mother’s eyebrows rose at his abrupt departure and she eyed us
both. “Did I say something wrong?”

     Evan shook his head. “No mom. It’s just that…” He looked down at
me.

     I took pity on him. “I don’t have parents.”

     Her brows rose higher and then an expression of compassion crossed
her face. “I’m so sorry. I didn’t know.”

     Another face smile adorned my mouth. “How could you, and its
fine.” I hope I didn’t have to go into details because this didn’t seem like the
best place and time to unload my crap past.

     She wrung her hands and seemed to look to Evan for support.

     He reached out and took her hand. “It’s fine, mom. Shaw, this is
my mom, Jasmine. Mom, this is Shaw.” Surprisingly, Evan looked faintly nervous.
What was he nervous about?

     Jasmine and I held out our hands and voiced simultaneously, “Nice
to meet you.”

     Her smile seemed subdued as she studied me…the girl who got her
son into this mess. “Evan told me you were the one to get all that material on
my ex-husband. I thought Evan was smart, but acquiring that information…” She
shook her head in bemusement, but she also looked uncomfortable that I knew her
business. “I have no idea how you got it, but thank you. It was a very sweet
thing to do for someone you don’t know.”

     I hadn’t expected Evan to tell his mom what I did, and I could
tell she wasn’t overjoyed that I knew the intimate details of her marriage. “Uh,
sure. No problem.”

     “So, you and Evan work together, right?” Her head tilted
inquisitively and her eyes flicked up and down my frame. I shifted nervously at
her inspection.

     “No mom,” Evan answered for me. “Shaw was only doing us a favor
that one time.” He smiled at me. “Shaw’s a genius on a computer. She’s friends
and roommates with Carrie, Nic’s girlfriend.”

     My chest warmed at Evan’s compliment. Any praise from him elicited
the same reaction. I was a dry well that soaked them up. It just illustrated
how pathetic and needy I was.

     Jasmine’s gaze flickered from Evan to me. “Two genius’s…” She
murmured.

     My skin went hotter under her scrutiny.

     Thankfully, Evan disrupted her examination. “Our lawyers just came
in so let’s go get this showboat on the river.” He tugged us both down the hall
with him.

     The next second we were face to face with three men aging from
thirty to sixty wearing expensive suits and carrying briefcases. They all gave
Evan a smile of respect. They gave Jasmine huge smiles of admiration. They
smiled at me with what appeared like calculation. They were probably pricing my
clothes, and I could see in their eyes that if it came to throwing me or Evan
under the bus, it would be me.

     I was actually okay with that, but screw them anyway.

     Introductions were made and then they were directing us to follow
them. We took the elevator up to the third floor where we were conducted into a
large room with a huge oval table. At the table sat several other people…among
them Ford.

     I think he was trying to burn me with his eyes, but I stared back
impassively biting back the mocking kiss I wanted to toss his way just to goad
him.

     “Don’t do it.” Evan whispered in my ear.

     I looked up at him in confusion. “Don’t do what?”

     He raised one brow and smirked. “Something is going on in that
head of yours, and while I would love to see you cut him down to size, let’s
not do it here.”

     How in the hell did he know I was thinking of doing something? I
wrinkled my nose at him for being a fuss pot and he grinned and flicked it. I
saw his mom staring at us with wide eyes and I looked away in embarrassment. It
was weird having her watch us.

     Crap, he better not kiss me in front of her.

     We seated ourselves around the table and then all the lawyers
started discussing terms, and charges, and other lawyer shit that was over my
head with the guy at the head of the table in robes. I was asked to give a summary
of my account. It wasn’t my greatest joy replaying everything Ford had done,
but with the testimony of my friends, his friends who’d turned on him in hopes
of not getting charged themselves, the three people who witnessed him grab and
threaten me, as well as the video and audio of Ford’s rant in the police car, the
charges against Ford for assault, slander, and sexual stalking were filed and
processed without a lot of objections. The charges were serious and I was
feeling pretty damn vindicated when his face turned green with shock and dismay
as he was given two years probation.