Worth the Wait Read online

  “You are a young woman in your twenties and you want me to believe he forced you. You gave it willingly and you liked it. That’s why you are no longer welcome here.”

  “How dare you,” I lunge forward again, a surge of adrenaline pounds through me, but I’m still held in place by Josh’s forearm. “I’m here for Olivia. I need to know he’s not hurt her, the way he hurt me.” My mom turns and staggers into the living room. “Get out,” she throws her arm in the arm, shouting back over her shoulder.

  “You heard her. Get the fuck out of our house,” Jared’s hand lands heavily on my shoulder as he tries to force toward the door. I recoil, every ounce of strength I had fades into nothing. My legs are weak and my body is limp as he starts to drag me, his nails digging into the skin on my shoulders.

  “Get your hands off of her,” Josh roars, his hand grips Jared’s wrist. “Don’t you dare lay a fucking finger on her,” he warns, his voice low but menacing. I manage to slip out of his grip and somehow find the strength to dart toward the stairs.

  I manage to get past him, racing up the staircase faster than I ever thought possible. She has to be here. I know she’s here somewhere. I call out her name over and over, not too loud, but loud enough for her to hear me.

  “Livvy,” I call out, knocking on her door. I already checked the bathroom and Mom’s room. But this door. This one is locked. I turn my head pressing my ear against the dark wooden door. I bang again, but my attention is drawn to the heavy footsteps as the thudding increases.

  “Get away from the fucking door,” he growls at me, coming at me with a clenched fist and gritted teeth.

  I ignore him and continue to hit my flat palm against the door. “Why is it locked, Jared? Why can’t I get into Liv’s room?” His hand grabs my wrist tightly.

  I glare at him hard; he needs to know I’m not messing about here. “Get out of my house, Quinn. No one wants you here. Not me, not your mother. So get your skinny, pathetic ass outta here,” he yells, tugging at my arm.

  “Not until I’ve seen Livvy,” I demand, thrusting my free hand toward the door. “Open the goddamn door. Now!” I roar, my voice echoing through the hallway. I look past Jared to see Josh stood at the top of the stairs, his hand dabbing his lip. I see the small trickle of blood and I’m hit by an overwhelming sense of guilt. Josh is hurt and it’s all my fault. I should never have brought him here. It was selfish of me to want him with me. I narrow in on him, my eyes full of concern.

  “Josh,” I call over to him. “Are you okay, what happened?”

  “I’m okay,” he responds with a quick smile. An unexpected arm lands heavy on my back, pushing me away from the door.

  “Time to go,” Jared instructs, pushing my closer and closer to the staircase, despite my attempts to stop my feet moving. He’s just too strong.

  “Get your hands off her now,” Josh jumps between the two of us. “Now! You better open the goddamn door, or so help me god, I will break it down.” Josh and Jared stand face to face, their noses practically touching.

  Jared reaches forward grabbing a handful of Josh’s shirt. “I said get out,” he growls and I race over, trying to separate the two of them. Josh pushes out his hands at full stretch, sending Jared flying, his ass landing on the bare floorboards with a bang. The atmosphere tightens as I realize this is the moment. This is our chance to get in there.

  “Josh,” I exclaim, “quick,” I point over to Olivia’s bedroom door, “Can you get it open?”

  He swiftly nods, turning and rattling the handle. “It’s no use.” He growls, stepping back and glancing between me and Jared laid on the floor.

  “My back,” Jared cries out. “I can’t move, you motherfuckers.” He continues to writhe and groan on the floor; my mother’s voice starts to call at the bottom of the stairs.

  “Please, Josh,” I whisper. “You gotta get me in there.” I plead with him, and is eyes narrow in on me.

  “What’s going on up there?” the vile voice of my mother calls, the usual slur of her words is just as bad as ever.

  “Stand back,” Josh holds out his arm, guiding me back a little. He cocks his leg, kicking at the door with full force. He kicks once, twice, then the door flies open.

  “No, you don’t,” Jared warns as he desperately tries to push himself up, only to fail miserably as he drops back against the floor with a thud. “Angela,” he calls to Mom, but I don’t stop to wait for the fallout. I dart inside the room, my eyes landing on Liv the second I step foot inside. Her arms are tied to the top of her bedframe and her legs are bound together. My heart drops into the bottom of my stomach. I cry out, racing over to her to get her out of the binds that are tying her to the bed.

  “It’s okay, baby. I got you. I’m here now.” Tears stream over my face as I rip the tape from her mouth. I can hear commotion outside the room and I turn my attention to my mom trying to get past Josh.

  “Quickly,” I tell her, reaching up and unfastening each tie, then finally removing the rope around her ankles. I pull her into me where I feel her head move against my chest as she silently sobs.

  “I got you now. I’m here,” I soothe, rubbing my hand over the side of her head. “We got to get outta here. Stay with me. Don’t let go of my hand.” I tell her and she nods, wiping away the tears that have fallen over her face. I grab her hand, holding it tightly, never wanting to let go. Making our way over to the door, Josh places his hands on my mother’s shoulders, forcing her to step back.

  “W-w-what do you think you’re doing?” she stutters, her body swaying as she tries to stand in front of me.

  I position Liv behind me, her arms wrap tightly around my waist. I look to the side to see Josh stood with me, and I know I have to say something. Anything that will get us out of here.

  “I’m taking Liv with me,” I say, looking her in the eye, fighting back the nerves threatening to break through. But I won’t let them. I have to be strong. Not for me. But for her.

  She starts to laugh hysterically, clutching her stomach dramatically.

  “I’m not joking around,” I say loudly, breaking her from her act of insanity.

  “And why would I let you walk out of here with MY daughter?” She scowls at me, her lips pursed as her dark eyes stare at me.

  “Because, if you don’t, I will call the police and tell them exactly how I just found your daughter, and tell them exactly what you and that piece of trash have put me through for years.” I breathe deeply, the rush of words takes my breath.

  “They’ll never believe you,” she dismisses, stepping forward and trying to reach behind me. I hold out my arm.

  “No,” I roar, “I’m taking her and making sure you two never, ever lay a finger on her again. And I have a witness,” I jolt my head to the side where Josh is stood. “He will verify the whole thing. You don’t stand a chance of lying your way outta this one.”

  “Just take her. I don’t care anyway,” she mutters, walking over to Jared and ignoring us as she crouches down beside him. “You stupid bitch!” he yells at her, grabbing a handful of her hair and dragging her face toward his. I grab hold of Olivia, pulling her into me as we bolt down the stairs and out of the house. My heart pounds like crazy and I’m just glad to be out of there. I clutch onto Olivia as we make our way into the car. I slide her into the backseat and follow after her, pulling the door closed behind me and releasing a huge, pent up breath.

  “Are you okay?” I ask, pressing one hand either side of her face. “He didn’t do anything to you, did he?” I search her innocent eyes, hoping for the answers. Praying I got there in time.

  “Mom was so angry,” she sniffles, taking a deep breath before continuing. “I just wanted to go to school. Mom was so drunk she tried to stop me. When I argued back with her, she slapped me across the face and then tied me to the bed. Told me she wanted to teach me a lesson.” The tears stream down her face, and I pull her into my chest, holding her there tightly.

  “I’m ready when you are,” Josh’s head appears b
etween the seats.

  “Oh, sure,” I flash him a smile, reaching behind Olivia for the seatbelt. “Let’s get our belts on and get away from this place. Forever,” I say with a whisper.

  Josh

  The short journey back to my apartment, I listen in as Quinn talks with Olivia. On the outside, I’m calm and cool because adding my anger to the situation would be liking adding fuel to the fire. But on the inside I’m seething, fighting back the desire to turn around and rip those two pieces of shit to pieces.

  I pull into the underground parking, cutting the engine and dashing out of the car to help Quinn. My heart pounds and aches at the same time for her. I know now why she’d been so secretive, why she worried so much about her sister. How could they? How could they hurt either of these girls? I swallow down the huge lump in my throat as I open the door and try and clear my mind of the raging thoughts in my head.

  “Hey,” I say with the biggest smile I can muster. Quinn smiles back a little like she’s trying too hard to tell me she’s okay. Like the pretense is just too much. “You okay?” I ask, my voice barely a whisper.

  “I’m good,” she says stepping out of the car, falling into my arms. “I couldn’t have done that without you. Thank you, from the bottom of my heart,” she mumbles, clutching onto me like her life depends on it.

  “I just wish I could have done more,” I stroke the side of her head. She pulls back, looking up at me with wide eyes.

  “More?” she gulps, “What else could you have possibly done?”

  “I should have made him pay. Done more to stop him from hurting you.”

  She shakes her head vehemently. But something tells me now isn’t the right time. Behind Quinn, a sparkle of something catches my attention. I can’t help but to look past her at the ice blue eyes staring up at me. Right now, I need to let this little girl know everything is okay.

  “So Olivia,” I call out enthusiastically, “You ready to see your new room?” I ask, releasing my hold on Quinn and kneeling down at the side of the car. “I can’t promise it will be your color, but we can work on getting it just right for you.”

  “I don’t care what my room looks like,” she says with her lips downturned and hands clenched in front of her. I sense her nerves and can only imagine how this little girl feels right now. Her eyes shift from side to side and I notice how they have become glazed with a glassy layer of tears. As she flutters her lashes, blinking lightly, tears drip from her eyelids and slid down her cheeks. She bites her lip tightly in an attempt to hide any sound that wants to escape from her mouth; my heart sinks. It’s painful to see her like this. I watch as she blinks back tears, taking in deep, steady breaths.

  “Come on,” I offer my hand to her. “Let me show you.” She pauses, staring at me, the uncertainty is clear to see on her face. “How about a piggy back ride?” I offer, swiveling on the spot until my back is positioned at the end of the seat. I look up at Quinn who nervously plays with her bottom lip. I feel the gentle touch of a hand on my shoulder as I reach up and cover it with mine.

  “I got ya, Livvy,” I say, holding onto her tightly as I slowly step up from my crouched position. Her muffled tears turn into excited squeals as I swirl and jump like some kind of crazy guy, all in an attempt to distract her.

  “Don’t let me go,” she stutters through her laughter.

  “I won’t, I promise,” I say with a huff of laughter.

  “You know, Josh,” She pauses.

  “What?”

  “I can see why my sister likes you.”

  “Understandable, right? Good looking, charming, funny, what’s not to like?”

  Her laughter echoes through the underground parking lot. “Well, I’m not sure about all that. But you are very kind,” she leans her head forward, peering at me over my shoulder. Glancing to the side, I see her looking at me. I cock a brow and give her a sideways smile.

  “I try, Olivia. But you know what?”

  “What?”

  “I do all this because of the way your sister makes me feel. But shhh… don’t tell her that, okay? It’s just our little secret,” I tilt my head giving her a little wink and her mouth opens, forming an O shape. Her eyes fixed on me, a blank expression on her face.

  “I don’t get it,” she whispers with a little shake of her head. “Is it the love word? Are you scared to say it?”

  “Me? Scared? Never,” I brush her off. “You wanna press the button for the elevator?” I ask, lowering her down to the floor.

  “Hey, you two. Did you forget about me?” Quinn asks with her eyes wide as she jogs toward us.

  “We were just talking about you,” Olivia says with a pout.

  “We were not,” I quickly step in, giving Olivia a mock pout.

  “You were… you were just saying about how you’re scared to say the love word.” Olivia signals for Quinn to come closer. She steps in front of her, bending down a little as Olivia covers her mouth as she tries to whisper, but fails miserably.

  “I think Josh loves you!” she exclaims, the excitement ringing through her tone. Quinn’s eyes flit to me then back to Olivia.

  “I think he does too,” she says pushing her tongue against her cheek. “Feeling’s mutual. Just don’t tell him, okay?”

  “Okay,” she says with a nod, skipping forward and pressing the button for the elevator. I hold my hand out to the side and Quinn takes my hand in hers. I pull her closer to me as we stand waiting for the elevator to arrive.

  “Are you sure about this?” she asks, her voice gruff with emotion. “It’s one thing putting me up, but now my sister too. I feel like this is too much.” She sighs heavily. “I’m not sure how long it will be until I have enough for my own place, Josh. We might be here for weeks. Are you sure you’re okay with this?”

  I press my index finger against her lips, turning her until we are face to face. “Quinn,” I breathe, “I’m in love with you. When will you realize I’m not doing this out of pity, but out of love? I want you with me, and if that means having your super cute, super intelligent sister here too, then fine. I’m good with that. More than good,” I all but screech.

  She slowly raises her hand, weaving her fingers through my hair. “Meeting you is the best thing that has ever happened to me. With everything that was revealed about me today, when you found out why I’m so messed up in here,” she points to the side of her head, “I was sure you’d run for the hills.”

  “Never,” I gasp, “No running. Not even if I wanted to, baby.”

  Olivia clears her throat. I glance over at her, stood inside the elevator, waiting for us. “Come on, you two!” she says excitedly, breaking us from our embrace. Linking hands, we walk inside the elevator, making our way to the top floor.

  Josh

  The next few months is nothing short of amazing. Quinn is perfect. Beyond perfect. She juggles University studies with working at the bar and looking after her sister. The way she is with her makes my heart skip a beat. Damn pussy that I am, I can’t help how good it is seeing her with the kids. There is no doubt that being a teacher is the right job for her.

  I sit opposite her, sipping on my fresh coffee and part of me can’t believe how lucky I got.

  “Josh,” she exclaims. “I can’t stop my damn hands from shaking,” Quinn says and I can see the panic in her eyes.

  “You’ll be fine, baby. You got this.”

  “I’m so nervous,” she blows out an unsteady breath. “What if I don’t pass this test?”

  “You will,” I reassure her, leaning forward and kissing the back of her hand lightly. “You were made for teaching. There is no way you will fail.”

  “I wish I had your confidence,” she stands up, shaking her hands loosely in front of her. “I’m just going to check on Liv, see if she’s ready for school.” She turns walking hastily toward the open staircase.

  A sudden knock on the door causes Quinn to stop dead in her tracks, pausing on the first step. She glances back over to me, then back at the door.
r />   “I wonder who this could be,” she mutters making her way to the door. “Mrs. Larson,” she gasps with surprise. “It’s lovely to see you again,” she says, stepping to the side allowing Mom to enter. I jump down from the stool, making my way over.

  “Mom,” I smile, pulling her into my embrace.

  “I can’t stop,” she rushes out, “I just wanted to come wish you luck, Quinn.”

  “Thank you, Mrs. Larson,” she answers. “It’s very kind of you to stop by.”

  “Actually… there is something else,” she pulls her lips between her teeth. “I have an opening at Edge Hill, and by all accounts you were a big hit with the kids. You come highly recommended by many of my staff members. Pass your state test and the job is yours, of course, if you want it.”

  “What… really?” Quinn gasps in utter disbelief. “You want to offer me a job for next semester.”

  “Absolutely,” she says resting her hand on the top of Quinn’s arm. “You deserve the opportunity. I’ve seen how good you are, and that quality you have is something you just can’t teach. You’ve either got a love for teaching or you haven’t. And girl, you got it in bucket loads.”

  “I…I…I don’t know what to say,” she stutters, the shock of the offer effecting her speech.

  “Go nail that state test,” Mom replies, running her hand gently across the top of her arm. “Now, I can’t stop, I have a school to run,” she winks before stepping closer and offering me her cheek. I lean in, placing a light kiss there.

  “Thanks Ma.”

  “You call me later, let me know how it goes, okay?” she points her finger between us as she makes her way through the door.

  “I can’t believe this,” Quinn holds her palms tightly against her cheeks as she stares at me in disbelief. “Did you make this happen?” she narrows her stare on me suspiciously.