Take Me Out (19 page)

Chapter 21

More Than a Loss

(Bentley)

A week had gone by since Charlotte’s doctor’s appointment. The horrible memory of the doctor telling us that our baby was dead was still fresh in my head. The only thing I’d been able to do was take care of her. She needed me.

I moved back into the penthouse from the hotel room. For the better part of a week, I played nursemaid to her all week as a revolving door of visitors came through to check on her. The first two days she refused to see anyone but her mother. She wouldn’t even permit Dr. Windsor to come into her room. Normally when something happened her father or Trey were the first she would run to, but this time was different. Her mother laid in bed with her all day after we returned home from the doctor’s office.

I gave them their space and occasionally checked on them. I always found Charlotte the same, either asleep in her mother’s lap, or crying on her shoulder. That was one of the longest days of my life. I hated seeing her so hurt. It killed me.

“Hey...” Drew said as he walked in the front door of the apartment with a vase full of flowers. I sat on the couch watching some crappy crime-drama on TV. “Hey Bro” I replied as I stood to stretch my legs.

“How’s Charlotte doing? Shay said she withdrew for the semester.” He was right. She couldn’t go back to class yet, not after all we’d been through. I didn’t blame her either; she needed some time to herself.

“She’s okay, starting to get a little bit better, finally. She goes back to the doctor for a follow-up tomorrow.” I walked towards the kitchen and opened the fridge retrieving a Pepsi.

“How are
you
doing Bentley?” Drew hit a nerve. I’d been so busy taking care of Charlie, I never thought about my own feelings. “Well, I’m okay I guess. I’m here. I’m upset and broken. I lost a baby. How are you supposed to be doing after something like that?” It was an honest question. I didn’t even know how to handle or process the situation. It was something I had never dealt with, or even witnessed growing up.

“You deal with it however you need to dude, I don’t know. Just know that you have a lot of people who care about the both of you.” He started down the hallway with the flowers and gently knocked on Charlie’s bedroom door. I could hear her mumble something and he walked in.

I stayed in the living room to give them some time to talk. I nodded off on the couch but was roused by my cell phone. I didn’t recognize the phone number.

“Bentley Young,” I answered.

“Mr. Young, this is Detective Blackmore with the Boston Police Department,” he answered.   “Yes, what can I help you with?”

“We’ve made an arrest in both of your arson cases. We have Mr. Landon Williams in custody. When we arrested him he had several pictures of you as well as Miss Windsor in his possession. It appears he’d been following you both for some time. It looks as though this all dates back to May.”

My heart stopped. Arrested? Landon?
That little sack of shit. He did this all along?

“Thank you for the information, Detective. I’m sure my girlfriend will feel more comfortable knowing this has all finally come to an end.” I ended the call and headed straight for Charlie. I knew this was something which would be able to help her feel some kind of relief.

I knocked on the door and cautiously opened it. Drew was sitting on the edge of Charlie’s bed with a small black velvet box in his hand which had a diamond ring in the center. I slowly slid through the door as I heard Charlie share some advice with him.

“Wait for a few months Drew or she’ll bolt. She moved in with you, it’s a big step for her. Hold onto it and maybe keep it for Christmas.” She smiled as she patted him on the back. “She’ll be over the moon, I promise. Just wait a little bit longer.” It was the happiest I had seen Charlie in a week. The idea of her adopted sister being in love and having a happily-ever-after made her glow.

I sat down on the bed next to her and put my arm around her. I could instantly feel her body start to relax. “I have a little bit of news for you.” I said quietly.

“What?” She replied while stretching and swinging her legs off the side of the bed.

“The police have made an arrest. They charged Landon with both of the fires. He was stalking us for months, since sometime in May. But you’re finally safe now,” I squeezed her hand.

“Wow. I don’t even... Wow. I can’t believe it.” I could see the relief in her face. The fires had been such a source of stress for months for both of us. She had refused to leave the house because of it. She got up and made her way to the bathroom slowly. “Excuse me boys” she said with a sweet smile and disappeared behind the door.

“So you went to Charlotte instead of me for advice. Seriously, dude?” I teased Drew. I was always his go-to when it came to advice on women and now he was going to my
girl
. Was she even my girl anymore? I would have to remedy that.

“She knows Shay better than anyone. You know that Bentley. Don’t give me any shit.” He laughed and gave me a big slap on the back. The wheels in my head started turning. If I couldn’t figure out if Charlotte was really even my girlfriend anymore, I would have to do something to make our relationship official once again. She was my world and even though we had endured so much together, I would never leave her side. “Ya know, I was thinking... I got a couple chores to run downtown. You wanna join me?” I asked Drew as Charlie strolled out of the bedroom.

She was starting to finally feel a little better. The medication and its effects had really taken a physical toll on her, but the doctor had warned us about it. She was starting to get color back in her face, the cramps weren’t as painful and she was able to walk around without grabbing her stomach in pain. I knew I could leave her for a couple of hours and she would be okay.

“I’m going to run some errands with Drew. We need some things around the apartment, including food. Do you want anything special?” I asked Charlie. She smiled. “Fruit. Fresh sliced fruit. I’ve been dying for some.”

“It’s yours! We’ll be back in a few hours. Will you be okay?” She nodded and we headed for the door. “If you need anything, just call me okay?”

I was a man on a mission. “Drew, your only responsibility is to get us tickets to Fenway. The same seats we had the night I met Charlotte, the row behind where she sat as well. I want both rows for the next possible game. Can you handle that?”

“What are you going to do Bentley?” Drew questioned, just looking at me like I lost my mind.

“What I should have done months ago.”

Chapter 22

Return of the Monster

(Charlotte)

Jake climbed into my bed and slid under the covers with me. It felt like an eternity since I’d seen him, between a budding new relationship and school he’d been busy. Shay called him to drop the news about all that had happened and why I disappeared from all the classes we shared this semester. An hour later he was here with all my favorites; Cherry Garcia, Wavy Lays and Cream Soda.

“You going to be okay?” He didn’t want to be talking about any of it. Clearly he was uncomfortable, but most people had been tip-toeing around me lately. It was getting annoying.

“I’m fine. It’s been almost two weeks and each new day is easier than the last. Bentley has been great. I think this brought us a little closer together actually.” Saying it out loud made it real. I had walked away from him so easily and he walked right back into my life and fixed everything in a matter of weeks. Not only had he been everything I needed through the loss of our child, but it was him who helped repair the relationship between my mother and me.

“So what about you and Molly?” I was intensely curious as to the status of his relationship. I hadn’t even asked since the night we met for dinner at Beer Works.
Granted, I had been a little busy.

“Well, it’s complicated.” He was in pain. He wore his emotions openly. Love, hurt, heartbreak, he was completely tormented by everything that had gone on. He bit his bottom lip and continued, “I really like her, like forever kind of like. But you know as well as I do, I could never have a happily ever after with a woman. She’s enough for me now, but what about a year down the road? Or ten? It just won’t work.”

I knew he was right. He could never find true happiness while he was trying to pretend he wasn’t gay. It would just need to be something he worked out on his own, because only he could.

“No matter what you decide Jake, I’ll be right here to support you. Man, woman, whatever... you aren’t going to lose any of your real friends if you finally decide to come out.” His eyes went soft and he crawled over to give me a hug. We lingered all cuddled up in bed and watched a round of Maury Povich paternity tests for a good laugh. I couldn’t describe how much I had missed Jake. Bringing drama or not, I couldn’t live without him in my life.

“So, we’re all going to Fenway tomorrow night huh?” Bentley had made plans for a bunch of us to go to the Red Sox game. I hadn’t been since early in the summer. I’d been too paranoid of large crowds before they caught Landon. I’d be lying if I said I wasn’t excited. The baseball season was coming to an end-- beer, chowder and foam fingers would be gone until the spring. I needed at least one more game.

“Yeah, I can’t wait. I really need it after all that’s gone on. I’m going to be okay, but a baseball game is exactly what I need.”

Jake soon left for class. He promised to come again the next day.

Bentley would be home in a few hours, he had class and a meeting and I had a surprise up my sleeve. I had been such a mope around the house. I wanted to do something nice for him. He had taken such good care of me, making sure I wanted for nothing.

We hadn’t been out much, but I knew one thing he was dying for. A good meal that didn’t come in a plastic container delivered to the front door. Thanks to his grocery store binge last week there was enough food to feed an army, so I could certainly whip something delicious up.

But first, I needed a good shower. Frumpy was a look I wasn’t up for wearing anymore. I went into the bathroom, memories of our times in there flooding back. Even without him physically there with me, the warmth of this presence flushed over my body. I turned on the shower and cued up my iPod to play a little Bob Marley, my favorite relaxing playlist.
Is This Love
came on and I couldn’t help but smile. Slowly but surely my happiness was coming back, mostly thanks to Bentley.

I rushed through my shower so I could get dinner started. When I got to the kitchen I opened the fridge to see what I could pull out and make. Chicken, cheese, lettuce. Check. Pasta, sauce, breadcrumbs. Check. Chicken Parmesan and a nice salad. That would hit the spot. Nice and filling.

While I got everything started, I pulled out a nice tablecloth my grandmother had given me years ago and covered our dining room table with it. It looked great, but something was missing. I scurried down the hallway to my bedroom and found the framed picture Bentley had given me of us at Fenway the first night we met. Walking back out to the dining room I placed it on the table and grabbed some candles and lit each until the table glittered.

I didn’t think the scene could be more perfect.

The smell of chicken parmesan filled the apartment and my mouth watered. I heard keys jingling in the lock and I knew Bentley was back. I quickly ran around the corner into the hallway so he couldn’t see me. Just as the door opened I could hear him. “What in the... wow,” he muttered taking steps further into the kitchen. “Charlie?” He yelled through the apartment as I rounded the corner with a smile on my face. “Yes?”

“What’s all this?” He asked me with a big smile on his face.

“Well, we’ve kind of been living on takeout for a while. It’s getting gross, so I made us dinner. You’ve taken such good care of me these past two weeks, I couldn’t ask for any better. Thank you.” I put my arms around his torso and squeezed him tight.

“I love you Charlotte,” he whispered in my ear as he placed a small kiss on my cheek.

The day of the baseball game was upon us and I couldn’t be any more excited. The entire day had gone by extremely slow. It really was the worst when you had something exciting to do late in the day and everything just dragged out. Seven hours felt like
seventeen
. As the time for departure came closer, I dressed and got ready. When I met Bentley in the living room, he reared back and looked at me.

“Is that the same shirt you were wearing the night we met?” he asked. I couldn’t believe he would actually notice something so simple.

“Yes, and the same jeans too, but the hoodie is a new addition. I thought it would probably be pretty chilly out there tonight.” The nights had been getting colder and still not being one hundred percent better I didn’t want to take any chances of getting sick on top of everything else.

“You all set to go Charlie? The car is waiting downstairs, we don’t want to be late.” No way I was going to be late for the game. I’d been waiting too long for it. I grabbed my cell phone off the counter and made my way to the door. “You got the keys? I don’t want to take my bag with me tonight.”

“Yeah, let’s go,” Bentley rushed me out the door and down to the lobby of our building. A black car sat waiting at the curb. Bentley put his hand on the small of my back, guiding me towards the waiting car which eventually dropped us off on Yawkey Way. The lively party outside the gates of Fenway Park set the mood for the night. A lesson I’d learned over the past couple months was to live life without regret, because one never knew when it would be taken from them. I resolved to never regret again.

“Let’s get some beers and find our seats,” Bentley suggested. We hit up the beer line and wove in and out of the crowd waiting at different stands. We started down the tunnel heading for the third baseline, the same place Bentley had kissed me for the first time. Butterflies took over my stomach as he stopped me in the same place. “I just wanted to do something really quick,” he said while leaning in for a kiss. It was more passionate than we had shared in some time, easily since the morning before we found out our baby had died. But we had never lost our connection, we never could.

“Onward to our seats,” I insisted heading down the tunnel towards the field. “By the way, where the hell are we sitting? Give me the tickets.”

As soon as the tunnel dumped us out into the stands, I looked up to see Shay, Drew, Jake, a bunch of our friends from school and my entire family. Everyone who had been with us the night I met Bentley minus Jake’s big-boobed blonde. Instead a gorgeous man sat next to him holding tightly onto his hand. “You got the same seats?” I choked out looking at the huge grin on Bentley’s face. It wasn’t a coincidence, he had gone out of his way to make this game special for me.

We made our way down the row to find our seats. This time around, we sat together where he and Drew had been seated back in May. I turned around to see all the smiling faces of the ones I loved. “I love you guys... but seriously, who else was in on this?”

Everyone laughed. “I believe Christian got these tickets,” Trey said with a wink. I was so thankful Bentley had taken the time to talk to Christian about everything when he’d come to visit me while I was laid up in bed. Knowing Christian went out of his way for these specific tickets warmed my heart. “For me Christian?” I climbed over the seats and scooted down the row towards him.

“Anything for you kiddo,” he replied as I gave him a big hug.

The game went on with several rounds of beer, lots of jokes and the Red Sox leading over the Yankees by the seventh-inning stretch. Thinking back to months earlier when Bentley serenaded me made me beam. So much had happened since May.

The Fenway announcer became louder through the crowd, ‘If I could have everyone’s attention please. Tonight, we’re going to do things a little differently at Fenway Park.” I wasn’t paying much attention because almost every game they had something “different” going on. “In May of this year, a man and woman caught the attention of the guests in the third baseline seats.” Everyone in the section started looking around.

“Up on the scoreboard you can take a look for yourselves.” Shay shrieked and I turned to look at her. “Don’t look at me! Charlie, look at the scoreboard!”

I turned to look and there was a picture of Bentley down on his knee serenading me. The same photo he put into a frame and gave to me. “Tonight before we sing the traditional
Sweet Caroline
here at Fenway, this man would like to have your attention once again.”

Bentley stood up and a man with a camera ran up the stairs and focused on him. All I could do was stare at him like a deer stuck in the headlights of an oncoming truck.

“Charlotte Ann Windsor, you’ve made me the happiest man on Earth these past couple of months. From the moment I laid my eyes on you, right here,” he waved to the seats we were sitting in. “you’ve become my world. I can’t think about spending the rest of my life without you. Please say you’ll be mine forever. Will you marry me?”

With that, he pulled out a turquoise Tiffany & Co. box from his pocket and opened it. My heart was doing somersaults in my chest. I laughed and cried all at once. I took Bentley’s hand locking eyes with him. He already knew my answer.

“Yes Bentley, I’ll marry you!”

I jumped into his arms and our lips crashed together as the entire stadium erupted into applause, whistles and screams. The scoreboard flashed “
She said Yes!”
He quickly pulled the ring from its snug position in the box and slid it onto my left hand.

I couldn’t stop laughing and smiling. I don’t think I could have smiled any bigger. I wondered how he could have pulled this off without me noticing. Everyone surrounded us offered congratulations and hugs while the opening cords of
Sweet Caroline
started playing in the background.

Bentley took me in his arms and started singing the words, still looking deep into the windows of my soul. “Where it began, I can’t begin to knowin’.” As he crooned the words of the song which brought us together so many months earlier, life genuinely fell into place. We had come full circle, but in reality this was just the beginning of our life together.