Forever Black (12 page)

“Ellery,
let’s just eat.”

“We
are going to eat, but my way,” I smiled.

He
sighed and took his set of chopsticks out of the bag. I took the sweet and sour
pork container, inserted by chopsticks and grabbed a piece of pork, “See,
easy.” If looks could kill, I’d be dead just about now.

I
took his chopsticks and placed them properly between his fingers. The feel of
his soft skin sent shivers down my spine. I guided his chopsticks inside the
carton and helped him pull out a piece of pork. He looked at me and smirked.

“See,
it’s not hard with the proper training.”

I
took a piece of beef and held it to his mouth as he took it and smiled. He was
enjoying this new found way of eating Chinese food even though he would never
admit it. He still had some trouble, but managed to get a piece of pork and brought
it to my mouth. He laughed when I grabbed the chopsticks between my teeth and
refused to let go. This moment we were sharing felt so right and comfortable,
and it scared the hell out of me.

When
we finished eating, he took his thumb and gently stroked the area above my cut,
“Does it hurt?” he asked sympathetically.

“Not
anymore,” I answered as I looked down. His touching me like that was killing
me. It stirred up heat in me I never knew existed. Kyle never made me feel the
way Connor does, and I was bothered by that. I should not have these feelings
for him; we’re friends, and that is all we can be. I believe we met for a
reason, but I have yet to find out why.

“What
are you thinking?” he softly asked. I took his hand and removed it from my
head, holding it up to my face as I gently kissed it. I could feel him tighten
as his breathing grew heavier, but I didn’t and wouldn’t let go.

“I
was just thinking about how lucky I am to have a friend like you,” I smiled.

He
smiled and pulled his hand away, “We need to leave early in the morning; we
should get some rest.”

I
got up and started walking upstairs, “Do you want a pain pill?” He yelled from
the kitchen.

“No,
I’m fine,” I responded.” I slipped into my night-shirt and got under the
absurdly warm covers.

I
was looking through my phone when Connor knocked on the door. “Come in.” He
walked in the room wearing dark gray silk pajama bottoms that hung off his
hips. His muscular frame stared at me as my butterflies awoke and the fire
ignited in my blood. He sat down in the chair and reclined it back. “What are
you doing?” I asked.

“Getting
some rest?”

“Here?”

“Yes,
do you have a problem with that?” The only problem I had was trying to keep my
hands off him and having my way with him.

“Yes
I do Mr. Black.”

He
sat up and looked at me, “Why? The doctor said you need to be watched for a
concussion. How am I supposed to do that if I’m in the room down the hall?”

“I’m
fine, and besides you cannot sleep all night in that chair, you’ll be hurting
in the morning, and we have a ten-hour drive to Michigan.”

“Doctors’
orders Miss Lane, so deal with it. You are not getting your way with this one.”

“Now
you’re making me feel bad,” I took in a sharp breath and wanted to crucify
myself for what I was about to say, “At least sleep in the bed.”

His
eyes widened, “I don’t think that is a good idea Ellery.”

“Why
not? We’re friends. Peyton and I sleep in the same bed when we have sleepovers,
and my bed is tiny compared to this one. You have your own side way over there,”
I pointed. “If you don’t then I’m leaving and you know I will.”

“You
are not going anywhere, and I’m not sleeping in that bed.”

I
threw the covers back, got out of bed and started to put on my yoga pants.
Connor jumped up from the chair and grabbed my arm, “Stop it Ellery, you need
your rest.” His voice was angry, and his face was irritated.

 He
took in a long sharp breath, “Fine, I’ll sleep in the bed, just please get back
in it and leave those pants on.” I smiled at him and climbed back into bed. He
walked to the other side, climbed in and turned the other way, “You are the
most stubborn and defiant person I have ever known Ellery Lane.”

I
smiled as I closed my eyes, “So, I’ve been told Mr. Black, goodnight.”

Even
though, I could not see him, I could feel him smile, “Goodnight Ellery.”

I
awoke the next morning, and I was alone. I got up and headed to the bathroom
when I heard yelling coming from downstairs. I stepped a little closer to the
top of the step when I heard Connor’s raised voice. “That’s too bad Ashlyn; I
have to go out-of-town for a few days on business. No, I cannot, I don’t have time.
Don’t you dare come over here; I’m leaving. I’ll call you as soon as I get
back. I know it’s been a while, but I can’t help that; I’ve been busy. No, she
has nothing to do with it, I’ve been working. Ashlyn, I promise we’ll get
together as soon as I get back. I’m going to send an envelope over with Denny;
I’ll talk to you soon.”

My
stomach felt sick, and my heart ached after I heard that conversation. I leaned
my head against the wall and felt the sting of tears fill my eyes. My inner
voice started to yell, “Stop it Elle, just stop it, he’s your friend. You knew
from the beginning it could never be more than friendship. You knew what you
were getting into, and I warned you.” I looked up at the ceiling to stop the
tears from falling.

I
heard footsteps coming up the stairs, so I ran into the bathroom and started
the shower. There was a knock at the door.

“Elle,
make sure the water isn’t too hot,” Connor said.

“No
worries, it’s not.”

I
stood in the shower and let the warm water fall on me. I was going to have to
put an end or distance to this friendship when I got back from Michigan. I
silently cried as I buried my face in the water, drowning my sorrows. I turned
the shower off and stepped out; I wrapped a towel around me and noticed I
didn’t bring any clothes except my night-shirt that was lying on the floor wet.
I opened the door and jumped when I saw Connor leaning against the wall across
from where I was standing.

“Shit,
you fucking scared me Connor.” Not to mention the fact that I was half-naked in
front of him and the towel was barely covering my ass.

He
looked at me with a hunger in his eyes as he blushed. “I’m sorry; I just wanted
to make sure you didn’t take too hot of a shower. I didn’t want you getting
dizzy and passing out again. You do have a habit of not listening to anybody.”

I
rolled my eyes and headed to the bedroom, “Ouch.”

“See,
I told you not to roll your eyes at me, and you didn’t listen.”

I
smiled as I shut the door and got dressed. When I came out he was downstairs in
the kitchen. He set a cup of coffee on the counter and a plate with scrambled
eggs, bacon, toast and potatoes. “Did you make all this?”

“I
sure did, you sound surprised?”

I
took a bite of the eggs, “To be honest I am, I didn’t think you knew how to
cook.”

He
sat down next to me at the island and started eating. “How hard is it to cook
eggs? Plus I can cook a little,” he smiled.

I
wanted to bring up the conversation I heard earlier, but we were heading out in
a while, and I didn’t want to upset him.

“So,
did I harm you in any way last night?” I asked.

He
looked at me and frowned. “No, in fact, you put your arms around me, started
rubbing my chest and calling me Peyton, I was quite turned on.”

My
mouth dropped until he smiled and I knew he was joking. I went to smack him as
he laughed and grabbed my wrists, holding them rubbing my scars and looking
straight into my eyes. The atmosphere was no longer playful as it turned serious.

“My
scars really bug you don’t they?”

He
let go of my hands and stood up, taking his plate to the dishwasher, “They
sadden me, that’s all.”

“Why
Connor, I didn’t even know you when this happened. Why would my scars sadden
you so much?”

He
kept his back turned to me, “It saddens me that someone could think so little
of their life to want to do such a thing.”

That
comment hurt me deep down to my core, and I wanted to break down and cry. He
stood staring out the window with his hands on the counter.

“I
told you why I did it, and it wasn’t because I thought so little of my life. I
did it to lessen the pain for my father, and how dare you Connor Black.”

Too
late, the tears started falling; I left the kitchen. He came after me and
grabbed me pulling me into him as he held me.

“I’m
sorry, I didn’t mean it, I swear I didn’t. I just get sad when I see them
because it reminds me of what you went through.” His voice was sincere, and I
could tell he regretted saying what he did.

I
looked up at him, “It’s ok, let’s just forget about it and head out.”

He
gently wiped my tears and put his forehead on mine, “I’m an insensitive
bastard.” He sounded wounded and broken. Those words were from pain, and I
wanted to know what happened in his life to make him this way.

I
put my hand on his firm chest, “You’re in luck; I am quite fond of insensitive
bastards.”

He
smiled and kissed me on the head, “Let’s go.”

We
took the elevator to the garage and set out on our road trip to Michigan.

The
Range Rover was comfortable and I had an easy time settling in my seat with my iPod
in hand. I looked over at Connor; his seat was slightly leaned back. He had one
hand on the steering wheel, and his other arm was resting on the console in the
middle. The way he drove was sexy, and I could not help staring at him. Everything
this man did was sexy even when he tried to control me.

He
looked over at me. “Why are you staring at me?”

“I
was just wondering about Connor Black, that’s all.”

He
sighed and looked back at the road. I looked out the window and put my
headphones in. I pressed play and started singing as we merged on the U S 1-9.
Connor tapped me on the arm. I took out my headphones and looked at him.

“Are
you going to ignore me the whole way there?” He asked.

“Are
you going to tell me a little bit about Connor Black?” I smiled in a cocky way.

He
sighed and shook his head. I could tell I was pissing him off, so I put my
headphones back in. He yanked the headphone out of my ear, “Hey, what the hell
Connor?”

He
laughed, “Take those things out you stubborn girl and I’ll talk.”

I
knew I’d win; I always do, but if it got to be too much for him, I would tell
him to stop. 

“My
sister’s name is Cassidy, and I had a twin brother Collin.”

I
gasped as my eyes widened, “How the hell could you not tell me you were a
twin?”

He
sighed and took a hold of my hand, “Are you going to ask a million questions or
are you going to let me finish?”

I
twisted my face contemplating what to say, “Ok, I promise not to ask any
questions at all, go ahead.”

“Are
you sure?” He seriously asked.

I
shook my head and made the zip my lip motion across my mouth. He smiled and
continued; “Collin died when he was 7 years old from a virus that attacked his
heart.” I swallowed hard. I wanted to throw my arms around him and comfort him
because I knew how hard this was for him to tell me.

“My
mom and dad had a hard time with his death and their way of dealing with it was
to get pregnant with my sister. When Cassidy was eighteen, she got pregnant
from some guy who tossed her to the side when he found out. You asked me why my
company is involved with the autism charity; it is because my sister’s 5 year
old son, my nephew is autistic.”

I
put my hand on his leg, “I’m sorry Connor, you don’t have to say anymore.”

My
sympathy ran deep for him, and my stomach was in knots for behaving the way I
did and forcing him to tell me about his family.

He
put his hand on top of mine and glanced at me, “It’s ok; I want to tell you.”

“My
father built Black Enterprises from the ground up and started grooming me when
I was around thirteen. I worked hard, learned fast, went to Harvard and 2 years
ago he retired. He handed over his company to me, and in those 2 years I
doubled the company’s profits. So now you know about my family.”

“What
about past relationships?”

I
knew that was crossing the line with him, but I was hoping he would feel
comfortable enough to tell me since he was telling me about his family.

He
pressed his lips together and took in a deep breath, “I do not talk about my
past relationships, there’s no point, what’s past is past and why revisit it. I
don’t have a girlfriend, nor do I want one.”

His
comment hurt deep down; just hearing him say he didn’t want a girlfriend was
heartbreaking. It’s for the best though, because I could never be his
girlfriend and he could never be my boyfriend. I figure if I keep telling
myself that, I’d actually convince myself.