Embracing the Unexpected (16 page)

“Do what together?” She let go of his hand.

“You’re smart, successful, and beautiful, and maybe I didn’t
tell you that enough when we were together, but I mean it. You know me and I
can change. Would you consider going to dinner with me? We could sort this all
out the way we should have a year ago. We could talk about a future.”

“A future for who?”

“Don’t be difficult.” He laughed. “We’ve spent enough time
away from one another. I miss you, and I want you back.”

“Did your campaign manger write this speech for you?” Ava
couldn’t believe the audacity of this man.

“What? No.” He tried to take her hand again but she pulled
away. “Don’t do that. I’m trying to make things right between us. Can’t you
give me the chance to do that?”

“You’re here because you need a public companion to make you
look good. You’re not here to apologize because you feel bad about what
happened. You’re here for you. You haven’t changed at all. You are your number
one concern. You always have been.”

“I won’t lie.” He leaned against the railing of the porch.
“It would be amazing if you would stand by me through this. You’re exactly the
kind of woman I need, but I do miss you. I’ve thought about you for months.
I’ve tried to forget you, but I can’t.”

“I can’t forget you either, but I’m trying and I’ve made so
much progress.”

“Have dinner with me. I’ll make you remember why it was
good. I can do better.”

She shook her head. “It’s over, and I don’t want to have
dinner with you. I don’t want to do anything with you. It doesn’t work between
us.”

“You don’t mean that.”

“I do. I’ve never been surer of anything before. Now, if
you’ll excuse me, I have to go.” Her heart was racing and she was feeling
nauseous. She wanted to get away from him.

“Ava, give me another chance.”

“No,” she said more firmly than she had ever spoken to him
before. It felt good to tell him exactly how she felt. “You need to go now.”

Just as she was about to turn, he grabbed her arm and pulled
her closer to him.

“I’m not leaving until you agree to have dinner with me. You
owe that to us.”

And there he was. She knew
that
Mike would surface as
soon as she did something he didn’t like. Ava looked over Mike’s shoulder and
saw Jace getting out of his car. She was relieved it wasn’t Parker.

Mike released her arm and turned to see Jace approaching the
porch. “Who is that?” he asked.

“A friend.”

“A boyfriend?” Mike looked uncomfortable. “Are you in a
relationship?”

“No,” Ava said as Jace walked up the steps. “Jace, you made
it.”

“Hi.” Jace looked at Mike and then back at Ava. “Am I interrupting?”

“No,” Ava said. “Mike was just leaving.”

“Not until you agree,” he reminded her.

“Mike?” Jace asked.

“Yes, Jace, this is Mike.” Ava gave Jace a small smile,
hoping he wouldn’t make a big deal about this. He knew every last detail of her
relationship with Mike. “Mike, this is Dr. Jace Cross, my therapist and
friend.”

“Therapist?” Mike looked worried.

“Nice to meet you.” Jace extended his hand.

“Likewise, Dr. Cross.” Mike shook his hand. “I’ve never
heard of a therapist making house calls.”

“Jace is here for dinner,” Ava said.

“Do you always eat with your patients?” Mike asked.

Jace smiled. “Just the special ones. Ava, are you ready to
go inside?”

“Actually, Dr. Cross,” Mike said, “we’re in the middle of
something. Perhaps you could come back later?”

“I don’t think so,” Jace said as he looked at Ava. She knew
he was evaluating her and making sure she was okay.

“Mike, I have plans tonight, so you need to go. Please don’t
contact me anymore. I’m not interested in what you have to offer.”

Ava knew Mike wasn’t going to give up so easily, but now
that Jace was there he’d be more likely to leave and try to persuade her later.
She’d worry about that when the time came. Right now, she just wanted him out
of there.

“It was nice meeting you, Mike,” Jace said. “I hope you’ll
respect Ava’s wishes and leave her alone.”

“Look, Doc, whatever she told you about me was probably
blown way out of proportion. She has a tendency to exaggerate the truth, so I’d
watch her. Ava, I’ll call you tomorrow.”

Ava shook her head, because he was as condescending and smug
as ever. She looked over his shoulder and saw Parker pull into the garage. This
was going to go from bad to worse. She could feel it.

“Oh, no,” she whispered. Parker was going to lose it when he
saw Mike.

“Relax,” Jace said as he placed his hand on her shoulder. “I
won’t let him do anything.”

Mike turned and watched as Parker headed straight for them.
Ava tried to swallow back the bile in her throat. Parker had sworn on more than
one occasion that he’d never let Mike hurt her again.

“Yes, Mom,” Parker said as he turned into his driveway. He’d
listened to his mother talk his whole drive home from the office. Sometimes he
wished he didn’t have a Bluetooth. “We’re doing brunch with Jace’s family on Sunday
and Lisa is joining us.”

Both families were ecstatic Parker was moving into Jace’s
house. Parker was worried his mother was secretly planning a shower to
celebrate the occasion. He wouldn’t put it past her.

“Okay, see you soon,” his mom said. “Love you.”

“Love you too,” Parker said as he pulled into the garage. He
noticed Jace was already there, but he didn’t recognize the silver Lexus in the
driveway. Maybe Ava had invited her friend Jack to join them for dinner.

He walked out of the garage and over to the porch where Ava
and Jace were. As he got closer, he became enraged at what he saw.

What the hell was
he
doing here?

Parker’s fists were clenched at his sides as his strides
toward the steps became longer. He loathed the man standing on his front porch,
and he couldn’t believe he’d have the audacity to come to his house. His eyes
connected with Jace’s and as soon as he looked into them he felt calmer.

“Parker,” Ava said. “He was just leaving.”

Parker nodded as he walked up the steps and stood in front
of Ava and Jace. He knew he was an imposing figure, especially when he stood up
straight. At just over six feet he usually towered over most.

“Parker,” Mike said. “I’m not here to cause a problem.”

“Then you should leave,” Parker said. “I’m pretty certain
Ava doesn’t want you here.”

Mike looked at Ava. “Can we please finish this
conversation?”

“She’s not interested,” Parker said. “Not today or any other
day, so if you’d leave my property, I’d appreciate it.”

“Are you her boyfriend now?” Mike asked. “You always wanted
to be that, didn’t you? But she never gave you that kind of response. That’s
why you never liked me.”

“No, that wasn’t why,” Parker said. “I never liked you
because you abused her and degraded her every chance you got.”

“We’re going inside now,” Ava said.

“This isn’t over, Ava,” Mike said. “You know you would’ve
agreed to meet with me if these two weren’t interfering.”

Parker stepped toward Mike. “This is over. I’ve asked you to
leave, so now you’re trespassing. Don’t contact her again.”

“Or what?” Mike got in Parker’s face. “Are you going to
assault me again?”

“Parker, don’t,” Ava said as Jace stepped around her and
stood directly behind Parker. “Mike, please leave.”

“Your boyfriend is smart enough to know he’ll get more than
six weeks of anger management if he takes another swing at me.” Mike stared
directly at Parker. “That was ridiculous. You deserved much more after what you
did to me. Must be nice to know people.”

“After what I did to you?” Parker clenched his fists again.
He couldn’t stop thinking about what Ava looked like that night she showed up
at his house. She was bloodied, swollen, and bruised. Her hair was tangled, and
she couldn’t get a full breath because her ribs were cracked. “What about Ava?
What about all the things you did to her?”

“He’s provoking you,” Jace said. “Don’t let him.”

“You deserved more than what you got for breaking into my
home and attacking me in my own bed.” Mike shook his head. “You bought your way
out of that one.”

“I pled guilty to assault,” Parker said. “It was worth it.”

“She’s not worth it.” Mike nodded at Ava.”She’s just like
all the others. She’ll bleed you dry and then cry when she doesn’t want you to
touch her anymore.”

“Screw you.” Parker lunged at him, but Jace grabbed his arm
and pulled him back.

“You need to calm down.” Jace took Parker’s hand and gently
squeezed it. He stared into his eyes and silently pleaded with him to stop
this. “You won’t be able to get off with a class this time.”

Mike glanced down at Parker and Jace’s joined hands and
laughed. “Are you kidding me?”

“Shut up, Mike,” Ava said.

“I let a fag beat me up?”

Jace let go of Parker’s hand and before Parker could stop
him, he punched Mike in the face, sending him tumbling down the porch steps and
to the ground.

“Jace?” Parker yelled as he pulled him back onto the porch.
“Are you out of your mind?” Parker never expected Jace to lose his cool that
way. It wasn’t in his nature.

Ava put her hand over her mouth and looked down at Mike as
he shook off the fall and stood up.

“All you had to do was agree to see me. You always managed
to fuck things up,” he spat at her. “This is your fault, and now your friends
are going to pay for it.”

“Ava,” Parker said as he came to stand beside her. “Don’t
listen to him. He was trespassing, and I’ll call a judge and get a restraining
order for you.”

“A restraining order against me?” Mike said. “I’ll have one
against the doctor over here before I pull out of this driveway. It’s a good thing
you’re a lawyer because your boyfriend is going to need one.” Mike rubbed his
jaw.

“Not again,” Ava screamed. “I won’t let you do this again.”

“Ava,” Jace said. “You don’t need to worry about me.”

“He’s not getting away with this again.” She glared at Mike.
“You’re going to forget what happened here today, do you understand?”

“I don’t think so.” He snickered. “This is priceless.”

“If you don’t and you press charges against Jace, I’m going
to every newspaper and tabloid I can find and I’m coming forward about what you
did to me.”

“You wouldn’t,” Mike said. “You don’t have the backbone for
that. You’re too fragile. I know who you really are, remember?”

“Think again,” she said. “I’m not that girl anymore. Don’t
push me. I swear to you, everyone in this town, including your father and
campaign manager, will know exactly who you are when I go public. Not only will
I tell them all about our two year relationship from hell, but I’ll allow my
hospital records to be released so everyone can see what kind of animal you
really are.”

“It’s your word against mine,” Mike said.

“I can back up her story,” Parker said. “It never made sense
that I broke in and assaulted you for no reason. Now I can tell the truth and
people will see who you really are.”

“Not only are you a woman beater, but you’re a homophobe,”
Jace said. “Not the best characteristics for a man running for a political
office. Is it? I’m sure I can find a few news outlets that would love for me to
analyze your character.”

“If you leave now,” Ava said, “and we don’t hear from you
ever again, I won’t file a restraining order against you and I’ll keep my mouth
shut. If you go after Jace or Parker, I promise you I will make your run for
the House, Senate, Governor or President a living nightmare. Your dirty little
secrets will follow you everywhere. I may not be able to prove everything, but
you know all I have to do is mention the word abuse or—” Ava closed her eyes
and took a deep breath. “—rape, and it’ll be over for you before it even
starts.”

Mike stared at Ava for a few minutes with a sick expression
on his face. He looked shocked that she would even bring that up. “Fine,” he
said. “You won’t hear from me anymore. You all deserve one another. You’re all
nuts. I don’t expect to deal with you.”

“Good,” Parker said. “You stay away from us, and you won’t
hear a word from any of us.”

“You’ll sabotage your political career all on your own,”
Jace said. “I’m quite certain of that. I have a feeling Ava isn’t the only
woman out there with a story about you.”

“Whatever.” Mike shook his head at Ava one last time before
heading to his car.

As soon as he sped out of the driveway, Ava collapsed
against Parker’s chest. She shook against him as he held her tight. “It’s okay,
baby,” he said. “I’m never going to let him hurt you.”

“Bring her inside,” Jace said. “I’ll get her some water and
talk to her.”

Parker picked her up and carried her into the house. He held
her tight against him.

“Parker, that’s not necessary,” she said. “Put me down.”

Parker ignored her and carried her to the living room,
placing her on the couch. “Are you okay?” He sat down next to her and kissed
the top of her head. “I’m so proud of you.”

“I’m fine, just a little shaken, but I’m good.”

Jace handed her a glass of water. “Parker’s right,” he said.
“I’m extremely proud of the way you stood up to him. You managed to vocalize
something today that a few months ago you couldn’t even accept.”

“I can leave you two alone,” Parker said. “If you want to
talk to Jace.” He knew Ava probably needed to talk about what had happened, and
Jace was the one who could help her now. He was so good at it.

Ava drank her water and then shook her head. “I’m okay.
Strangely, I feel good. I needed to see him and stand up to him.”

Parker watched as Jace studied Ava. “You didn’t back down.
You’ve come along way, but we still need to discuss what happened.”