“Is that what she tells you?”
“It’s what I know. We’re in love, that’s why she’s here. She came to visit.”
“Son, people visit at homes, not in parking lots. Haven’t you been listening to Reverend Monroe’s sermons?”
“Yes – and if you were listening too, you’d know Hadley’s been at church with me and my mom, so my dad is mistaken. So what if I’m not in my bed. I haven’t left Brookfield.”
“Save your story for your dad.” The officer steps forward and grabs my arm.
“Don’t touch her.” Ryan pushes his arm off me and moves me behind him. He stands in front of me, guarding me. His shoulders are shaking. I reach out and rest my hand on his back, hoping to calm him down, but things just turned from bad to worse.
Officer Daniels stares down Ryan, his face taking on a menacing look. I cower even though Ryan is shielding me. Officer Daniels takes a step forward, his hand on his gun. Ryan stands his ground, not moving. I don’t know how he’s so calm. The only thing I know is that we are in some serious trouble.
“I’m going to forget you touched me because of your relationship with the Rosses, but you need to move out of the way so I can arrest Miss Carter.”
“Arrest her for what?” Ryan scoffs.
“Harboring a runaway.”
“I didn’t run away! I’m here because I want to be here.”
“That’s for a judge to decide, now step away.”
“No!”
Officer Daniels draws his gun and points it at Ryan. I clench his sweatshirt in my fists, tightly. My knees are about to give out. This can’t be happening. This is a dream. I’m going to wake up any moment now and be back in my hotel where Cole is watching over me, babysitting me, because I can’t take care of myself. Ian is right. I’m trouble.
“Ryan, I’ll go with him.”
“You didn’t do anything wrong,” he says, turning around to face me. I know it’s never good to turn your back on a gun or an officer trying to arrest somebody, but he did. He cups my cheeks and presses his lips to mine.
Another car pulls into the parking lot, the blue lights flashing, alerting the homes around the area that something is going on. When the other officer steps out, the first thing I notice is the handcuffs dangling from his fingers. I close my eyes and lean my head against Ryan’s chest. Everything I thought could go wrong with us is nothing compared to what’s about to happen.
“I love you,” he whispers against my forehead. I fist his sweatshirt, hanging on to him. They descend on us at the same time, a calculated move that I’m sure they practice repeatedly. Officer Daniels grabs Ryan and pulls him away from me. I scream for Ryan as the other officer steps behind me, wrenching my arms back. He’s holding my arms tight, squeezing them until I lose feeling in my fingertips. He pushes me to the trunk of my car and slams my head down on the hood, kicking my feet out wide. Through my tears I see Ryan in a similar pose, both of us being handcuffed.
When the officer pulls me up, I see blood coming from Ryan’s mouth. He looks at me, I mouth ‘I love you’ before I’m pushed into the backseat. The door slams and radio is blaring with police code that I don’t understand. The cops meet and compare notes; the one who arrested me is looking back at his car and laughing. He pulls out his phone and types something before putting it back in his pocket. My luck, he just tweeted that he’s arrested me. This is not how our time together is supposed to be.
The officer gets in and puts his car into gear. He’s talking but I’m not answering. I know enough now to know that I need to keep my mouth shut. I’m in enough trouble. I don’t need my mouth getting me into anymore.
I close my eyes and lean my head back and allow the tears to escape. There’s no stopping them once they start. I cry for the day I met Ryan and changed his life, because obviously I’ve done nothing but damage him. I cry for what’s going to happen to him and how he’s going to feel when I break his heart. I have to do what’s right for him, even though it’s going to kill me. I can’t offer him anything but drama. If it’s not pictures, it will be an interview question taken out of context. It will be a promotional event where a reporter reads more into a hug. Nothing I say can prepare him for my life. It was stupid of me to think we could be a normal couple, that I could be a normal person. I’m nothing but a cancer to him and I need to leave him alone before I damage him for good.
Ian was right…
CHAPTER 29
Ryan
What just happened?
I don’t even know. One minute we’re talking about going to my house and now I’m in the back of a police car, in handcuffs, with a busted lip. I don’t understand how everything turned sour so fast. We weren’t doing anything but talking.
My dad… since when does he check in on me? I could stay up all night and watch the door and he’d never come in, so why now? My mom wouldn’t tell him I’ve been sneaking out. At least I don’t think she would.
I can’t believe Officer Daniels touched Hadley like that. When he did, it was like all the anger I’ve been feeling about those pictures came to surface. I wanted to pound his face in, but something told me to hold back. This rage… this anger… it’s nothing I’ve ever felt before, and I hate it.
My dad is standing outside the police station when we pull up. I’m sure he didn’t expect this, but I don’t care right now. I want him to leave me alone. I wish I had the balls to tell him that I hate my life here and that I want out. That I don’t like the way he treats my mother. I don’t want to work in the mill. That I wish he were more of a dad, the kind that took time to teach me how to throw a baseball or toss a football. That he encouraged me to be more than he was.
Another officer opens the backdoor and pulls me out by my arm. My dad steps forward and touches my lip. I jerk my head away. Not only do I not want him touching me, but my lip hurts.