Page 26 of Haven Bound
We leave our phones, clothing, and any jewelry in the small lockers and head into the lounge area. The room is filled with comfortable seating, light snacks, and glass beverage dispensers that are filled with various fruit-infused waters.
Hailey and I don’t even get a chance to sit down before massage therapists, Savvy and Isla I presume, come into the room and instruct us to follow them to our respective rooms.
Despite the insanity of today, I don’t think I’ve ever felt as relaxed as I do right now. Hailey and I are both sitting up against the headboard ofthe king-size bed that hardly even makes a dent in the size of her designated hotel suite. We're debating whether we should order food from the Elysian’s restaurant downstairs or if we should order something greasy through one of the many food delivery apps. To be honest, I’m not even sure why she bothered to buy a house when she has a permanent suite that’s kept ready for her whenever she needs it. According to Hails, living here would take away the vacation feel. Which I guess I understand. I wouldn’t want to live where I work, either.
“As much as I love the food here, I’m really craving something comforting, like…”
“Burgers and fries,” she finishes my sentence, which is somewhat of a regular occurrence considering we’ve been friends since middle school. A good greasy burger and crisp salty fries are always my go-to comfort food when I’ve had a rough day or been through something stressful, which today absolutely was.
I still can’t believe that Jason went as far as trying to follow me home because I have no doubt that he planned on doing more after sitting outside of the bakery all day. Those last months we were together, he made it so incredibly clear that he didn’t want me anymore. He did everything within his power to tear me down and make sure my self-confidence was completely shot.
He’d make comments about things I would do or say and that quickly turned into him critiquing my body and telling me that he thought I needed to lose weight, to spend less time at Buttersweet, and more time in the gym. He’d find me on the couch reading and tell me to get up and go for a walk instead. I’d order a soda or a raspberry iced tea when we’d go out to eat, and he’d tell me to order water instead.
Little things that over time turned into huge things I could no longer ignore. He never physically laid his hands on me—not until that night outside of the club—but he’d yell and scream at me until my back was pressed against the wall. Then he would swing his fist, making me think he was going to hit me, but his fist would collide with the wall a few inches away instead.
My stomach churns with the memories. I force them away as Hailey chimes, “Food’s ordered!” and tosses her phone down onto the nightstand on her side of the bed.
Thirty minutes later, there’s a knock at the door that Hailey gets up to answer. I’m too relaxed to bother getting up. I’d likely be asleep if my stomach wasn’t growling incessantly. “That better be what I think it is!” I holler from my spot on the bed, the suite entry door out of view from here.
Austin and Ethan stroll into the room, each holding up delicious offerings that have my mouth watering from the smell alone. In Austin’s hands are a few white paper bags from my favorite fast-food burger joint along with a small duffle bag thrown over his shoulder. Ethan holds up two cardboard drink carriers, one of which I'm hoping isn't soda.
I would do just about anything for a Neapolitan shake right now. The chocolate, vanilla, and strawberry flavors are swirled together to taste like heaven, just like the ice cream.
Ethan makes a point to flip the security latch over the door, ensuring that even with a keycard, nobody would be able to enter the room without authorization. Our eyes meet, and he gives me a quick nod, a soft smile spreading across his face. He knows how much I struggle to feelsafe sleeping in new places, and I appreciate the added layer of security. No matter how minuscule it may be.
Austin sets the bags down on the suite’s entry table and then shifts the duffle bag from his shoulder and into his hands. He scoffs with frustration as Ethan slips around him and beats him to the side of the bed where I’m still sitting propped up against the headboard.
“Hey, Chels. We heard you were in need of some comfort food,” Ethan says, setting the drink carriers on the nightstand next to me. He leans down to wrap his arms around my shoulders, pulling me into a tight hug.
“You heard right,” I say softly as I return his hug.
Ethan steps aside to grab two of the shakes, handing one over to Hailey as he moves out of the way for Austin. He drops the small duffle bag he was carrying onto the edge of the bed and then reaches for my hand, helping me to slide off the bed and stand in front of him.
“You’re okay?” he asks, his thumb and forefinger guiding my chin up so my eyes meet his. His deep blue gaze is so filled with concern that I have to fight back the tears stinging my eyes. Blinking them away, I nod. He pulls me into his chest, his arms wrapping around my waist as he holds me close to his body.
I can’t help but sink into him, inhaling his citrus and sandalwood scent and letting it completely calm me. The world could be a raging fire around us, and I'd still feel safe in his arms. Austin’s grip tightens around me as though he can’t pull me close enough, and I feel his breath shudder beside my ear.
“Alright, alright! Who’s hungry?” Ethan’s voice invades my relaxing moment against Austin’s chest, and I can hear him grabbing the paper bags left on the suite entry table.
Austin drops his arms from around my waist as my stomach growls loudly in answer to Ethan’s question, and we all break out into laughter.
21
Chelsea
The suite is bathedin soft sunlight when I wake the next morning, my mind in a sleepy haze. Dragging my body up slowly to sit with my back pressed against the headboard, I blink several times in an attempt to clear away the mental fog.
Hailey is sitting up in bed beside me, her laptop propped up on top of a pillow in her lap as her fingers fly across the keyboard. “What time is it?” I ask, my voice coming out in a raspy whisper.
“Almost ten a.m. I didn’t want to wake you,” she replies, finishing up whatever she was typing and then setting the laptop down on the nightstand on her side of the bed. “How are you feeling?” I’m not sure that I even know how to answer that question. Truthfully, so many emotions are flooding through that it’s impossible to choose which one to cling to.
I feel fucking ridiculous for even getting myself into this situation in the first place, for ever thinking that Jason was a good man and wouldn’t ever do anything to harm me. I feel terrible for getting my friends involved and dragging them into this mess alongside me. I feel scared to return to the bakery which is maybe the most heartbreaking feeling that I’m currently facing. Buttersweet is supposed to be my paradise, and Jason is ruining that for me with each passing day.
But I also feel loved and cared for by the way Hailey, Austin, and Ethan have all shown up for me. That feeling in itself brings on a slew of different emotions that I probably should be protecting my heart from.
I shouldn’t be feeling love or any emotion even close to that for Austin. Not with the way he left without warning all those years ago and still hasn’t told me why. I want to ask him, but I’m terrified of his answer. Because… What if the answer is that I never meant anything to him, that everything that happened between us was all in my head, or was just a way for him to pass the time? That’s something that I don’t think I would ever recover from.
“I don’t really know how I’m feeling, Hails,” I tell her. Except that’s not exactly true. I’m just feeling far too many things all at once and it would be way too much to unload this early in the morning, or maybe ever.
