Not Alone (11 page)

And kiss me he did. It started off slow but when I became an active participant, massaging my tongue with his, it quickly heated up. I felt him grab my hip with one hand while the other one slowly started to delve under my shirt. I tensed up, not feeling confident in the way my body looked or felt. He must have felt my unease because he broke the kiss and said, “Sweetheart, I told you that you are beautiful, all of you. Get out of your head and just let this happen. Let me make you feel good.”

That did the trick, because at his words, I felt the heat pool in my belly. His hand reached further up my shirt until he was cupping my breast. I instantly arched my back and let out a long moan. It had seriously been too long since someone had touched me that way, and I wanted more. Grady broke the kiss as he whipped my shirt off over my head. I grabbed ahold of his shoulders and moved to where I was straddling him. My knee was going to hurt tomorrow, but the way I was feeling…,

I. Did. Not. Care.

I pulled him back towards my lips as he proceeded to unhook the clasps on my bra. He dragged my bra down my arms and threw it alongside my discarded shirt.  He then took my breast in his mouth while his hand cupped the other. I started moving back and forth on his lap, creating a friction that was soon going to make me lose control. I could tell he liked it because I felt my new favorite part of his anatomy press against me. I threw my head back on another moan as I started moving faster. Back and forth, I kept up a steady pace. He had since moved on to my other breast, repeatedly nibbling, licking, and sucking on it.

“Oh Grady, don’t stop, please don’t stop,” I nearly screamed, as I was almost there. Then I heard my phone ring in the background. Instantly I froze. “Ignore it,” Grady said while each of us sat there panting, trying to catch our breaths.

“I have to answer it. It could be Tucker.”

I pulled myself from his lap as I went to my purse. I dug out my phone, which had since stopped ringing, flicked through my missed calls and see it was the bar.

Great.

Dad.

I looked over at Grady as I redialed the bar, his elbows were on his knees and he was holding his head in his hands. If this call was what I thought it was, my dad would have hell to pay.

“
Finnegan’s Bar
, this is Tessa.”

“Tess, its Em.” I went to grab my shirt and placed it over my exposed breasts, since I was not comfortable with my nudity, especially in front of Grady.

“Em I’m sorry to have to call you. I know you are on your date, but your dad is here again and he’s gone as far as to harassing the customers.”

“Alright, I’m on my way,” I said with a resigned sigh. Ending the call, I looked up at Grady. “It’s dad. I have to go get him from the bar, then I’ll have to go get Tucker afterwards.”

He looked pissed, but if he was he didn’t say anything, more than, “I’ll go with you, to help out. Just give me a minute to, uh, sort this out.” He said to me as he pointed down to the bulge in his pants.

He walked to the bathroom as I clasped my bra and put my shirt back on. I was going to kick my dad’s ass. He had now been reduced to a cock blocker. UGH! I grabbed my purse and made my way out to my van.

I got seated inside and I flipped down the overhead mirror and noticed that my hair was mussed and my lips were swollen. This just made me all the more pissed off at my dad.

Grady opened the door and folded himself into my passenger seat. He, for one, looked no worse for wear. I started my car, backed out of his driveway, and went in the direction of the bar.

We spent the ride in silence, and this time it seemed very uncomfortable. I didn’t know what to say to Grady. I had no clue if he was mad at me because I had to bail my dad out again.       My dad had used up all of his ‘Get Out of Jail’ free cards, but that didn’t matter to him. He thought that it was okay to get drunk then have someone interrupt my life to go sort him out.

Sometimes I really got tired of being the good daughter or the good person all the time. Why did everyone rely on me? I really needed Grady in my life. He seemed to want to be an equal partner in this. He would give, not just take.

Arriving at the bar, Grady went to open his door and I placed my hand on his arm to stop him. “Grady, wait. I’m sorry that this happened. I’m sorry my dad is such a mess that he can’t manage his alcohol problem.”

“Baby, come here,” he said as he pulled me in for a hug. “You have nothing to apologize for. It’s your dad who should be apologizing, and he needs to learn to get his shit together.”

Chapter Nineteen

Emmalynne

Yesterday could have been a better day. After my dad interrupted my little make-out session, my first one in well over eight years, Grady and I went to pick him up from the bar. To say he came willfully was wishful thinking, nope not my dad. He was very rowdy and very rude. It embarrassed me to think that this was what my life had been reduced to: fetching my drunk father from the bar.

Every. Single. Weekend.

Grady helped me get, my then passed out, father settled into my guestroom. He didn’t say much, but I could tell he was perturbed.

Afterwards, I took Grady home and after a giving a brief eyeful to the neighbors, I went to pick up my son from his grandparent’s house.

Tucker was beyond thrilled to tell me all about his weekend and his new friend Drew. He didn’t even give me any problems when it was bedtime because he was ready to see Drew the next day, since they would both be attending the same school.

Now it was Monday morning, I’d already dropped Tucker off at school and I was now putting the finishing touches on my pumpkin cheesecake for the store. I made five of them because they always go over so well. Since Toby and I decorated the storefront window yesterday,I thought it’d be a perfect way to bring in the fall.

I heard my guestroom door open. Tucker didn’t even know that my father was here, he would’ve asked endless questions and I didn’t need to expose Tucker to that. Out shuffled my father and he looked like shit. Rumpled clothing, what little hair he had was stuck straight up in every direction, and what looked to be dried drool on the side of his mouth, served him right.

“Morning daddy,” I all but screamed, making him wince. “Nice to see you’ve joined us among the land of the living.”

“Water,” he croaked out.

“I’ll get you water and Tylenol. Then you and I are going to have a little chat before I take you by to get your car and go to work.”

He gave me his
don’t start with me
glare, and it doesn’t faze me, because I’d already started. He put me in this position and I can’t just stand around doing nothing anymore.

I gather his hangover provisions, and myself a cup of coffee, and make my way to my kitchen table. I pulled out a chair for my father, pointed to it, and simply said, “sit.”

“Pumpkin,-“ he tried to say but I cut him off.

“Nope,” I said as I put my hand up in a stopping motion. Then I clasped both hands around my coffee mug to try and stop them from trembling. This had to be done but in reality I was scared as hell. I’d never talked back to my father, never even smarted off to him as a teenager, but I guess there was a first for everything.

“This is my time to talk, and all you need to do is listen. I am sick and tired of having to drop everything to come haul your drunken ass out of the bar. Yesterday I was on a second date with an amazing man, in which I was interrupted, because I had to come fetch you, yet again, because you were harassing customers. One of my first dates in a million years with a guy who actually likes me and thinks I’m worthy, and I get interrupted to deal with someone else’s shit, again. Never again, nuh uh, no way. Next time I’ll let them have Sheriff Mitchell come out and deal with your ass. That’ll make great news: Ex-Sheriff gets arrested for harassment in
Finnegan’s
Bar.”

By that point my dad looks stunned, with his mouth hanging open. That was something he never expected to come from me, the good girl, but I was nowhere near finished. I crossed my arms over my chest and continued.

“I know this is harsh but, my son thinks the world of you, you are a superhero in his eyes. He lives for your stories of catching the bad guys and being the law. Do you want to disappoint him as well?”

This was the last thing I ever thought I would have to do to my dad, and it was breaking my heart to have this conversation at all. “I’m sorry to have to do this but, until you decide to clean yourself up and become sober, Tucker nor myself will be coming around anymore. I can’t trust you enough to leave Tuck in your care and expect you to stay sober. Now grab your shoes so I can take you to the bar. I gotta get to the store.” All I really wanted to do was stay at home and wallow in my misery. But just like with what happened Friday with Corbin, I had to be strong. I had no time for a breakdown, even though I was barely hanging on by a thread.

Driving my father to the bar, he didn’t utter a single word or even spare a glance my way. I felt awful for what I had to do, but I didn’t want him to end up passed out in his own vomit, or worse.

The parking lot at
Finnegan’s
was completely empty, except for my father’s old, dusty pickup truck. Before he got out, I needed to say one more thing to him and I knew it was going to hit home. “I already had to endure losing one parent too young, I don’t want the same thing to happen to you. Get help then, call me when you have.” And with that, he slammed the door to my van and was gone.

Wasting no time, I made my way to the store. Rose had already opened and, bless her heart, was performing all the daily morning duties.

“Good morning Rose. I’m going to be in my office for a bit. If anyone calls, please take a message.” I didn’t even wait for her reply before I set down the pumpkin cheesecakes on the counter and closed myself in my office.

---~~~---

A few hours had passed and both Toby and Tessa had been blowing up my phone with their constant calls and text messages.

The only call I did take was from Sheriff Mitchell. His call didn’t brighten my day either. They still hadn’t located Corbin Montgomery, and if he knew what was good for him, he’d have moved to Mexico.

I finally got into doing some work, paying bills and ordering new inventory, when I heard a knock on the door.

“Rose, I said I didn’t want to be bothered.”

But it was Grady who sauntered in.

“Hey sweetheart,” he said as I rushed up and ran to him squeezing him tight. “What’s the matter baby? I came by to give you a kiss and to see that smile before I headed back to the bar, and yet I find you barricaded in your office under a mountain of paperwork.” He tilted my chin up and took notice of my puffy eyes from where I’d been silently crying off and on all morning.

He gave a little kiss to each cheek under my glasses. Then sat down on one of the giant overstuffed chairs in my office and pulled me down on top of him.

Chapter Twenty

Grady

I was sitting in Emmalynne’s office with her curled up tightly on my lap. Normally I wouldn’t complain about it but since I could tell she was hanging on by a thread, it worried me. She was so strong- willed and independent that she was keeping it buried deep inside. I hoped that one day she would trust me enough to open herself up fully to me and let me carry some of her worry. It had only been a little bit of time, and we still hadn’t been intimate. Regardless, I knew she was the one.

A few minutes passed and she finally spoke. “I talked to my dad this morning and pretty much cut him out of me and Tuck’s life until he cleans up his act. Then, to top it all off, Sheriff Mitchell called and said that they still haven’t found Corbin yet, but they aren’t giving up on the search.”

Hearing that they hadn’t located that fucker made me immediately tense up. She may not like it, but I was going to be keeping a close eye on her. I started lazily rubbing her back, to consciously let her know that I was there for her.

I knew something went down with her father this morning. I came out of the bar as soon as she was leaving and had my own little chat with Sam Johnston. I could tell he wasn’t the least bit happy, but he was really fuming when I told him that if he stepped one foot into
Finnegan’s
again, I would take matters into my own hands and personally escort him off of the premises, whether one of the security guys were there or not.

I continued to sit there silently while rubbing her back. I could tell that she needed this time to reflect, and I just wanted to show her that I was there for her.

Her cellphone started vibrating on her desk and I tried to make a move to get up and grab it. She immediately held me tighter and whispered, “Just leave it. I’m sure it’s Toby or Tessa trying to get through again. They’ve only called eleventy billion times already today.”

Several moments later, Rose burst into the office, a look of utter panic written all over her face. “Emmalynne, the school just called. Tucker was injured on the playground, and they’ve taken him to the hospital. They’re thinking it’s a broken arm.”

“What the FUCK?!” she bounced up off of me and rushed to get her purse. I saw that my foul mouth was starting to rub off on her. She began frantically digging through that damn bag, trying to find her keys.

“Emmy come on, let me drive. My truck is parked right at the curb, and I have my keys already.”

She took my hand and dragged me out the door, while yelling back to Rose, “Call Miles and see if he can work today. I’m sorry I have to leave!”

“Em, don’t worry about the store. Just go be with Tucker, but please call and give me an update!” Rose yelled back.

I broke I don’t know how many traffic laws, trying to get to the hospital as quickly as I could. I just wanted Emmalynne to be with Tucker as soon as possible. All the while she was biting her nails in my passenger seat, trying to keep herself in control. I was silently freaking out for her, so I could only imagine how she felt and he wasn’t even my kid. I dropped her off at the entrance to the Emergency Room and I took off, trying to find a parking spot.