Page 3 of Look My Way
“Are you okay?”
“Yeah.” I smile softly. “I am now. How about you?”
“I . . . yeah,” he says shyly, clutching his hand to his chest.
“Those are some amazing cat reflexes you got there.”
He laughs awkwardly, straightening the thick frames on his face. “I played a lot of sports growing up. That could be it.”
“Yeah, must be.” I’m not used to having someone come to my rescue and it’s a strange feeling.
“I’m Lex.” He slowly stands up and offers me his hand.
“Thank you for saving my life, Lex. That was a close one. I’m Zavier.” I wrap my fingers around his and he yanks me to my feet with my help. He’s as frail as he looks, nearly tumbling back from my weight.
Others rush our way with worried expressions, and an ambulance sounds in the background.
“I’m so sorry, man,” the driver says. “I didn’t see you. I promise.”
“You should have paid better attention, then,” I scold. “This is a parking lot. Not a damn racetrack.” I rub my sore arm. I must have scraped it during the fall.
The guy throws his hands up in defeat, backing away. “You’re right. I really am sorry.”
“You should be,” a woman standing on the sidewalk says.
I turn around to thank my hero again, but he’s gone. He was a witness to a crime and vanished before the cops could arrive. Is he in trouble or something? Maybe it was too much for him. Whatever the reason is, I’m left more curious than before. I’m so used to not caring for most people I meet, but there was something about him that made it easier to breathe when he was here. The air is getting thick and suffocating again with all these people asking me questions. So much that I wish he was around for me to inhale again.
Two
Liam
I don’t know what possessed me to give the stranger a wrong name, but it came flying out before I could stop it. Lex is a character in my stories. A better version of me. He’s everything I wish I could be. Strong, carefree, and beautiful. My illness, along with other disasters life has thrown my way, has prevented me from being those things before I could even have the chance to be.
I go from one bad situation only to enter another, and today, giving my real name felt like too much of a risk. Daniel would know I left the house again if he ended up being one of the cops at the scene. He says it’s not good for me . . . that I need rest. His overly strict rules are only there to help me. To help us. It’s what he keeps telling me, but I’m not sure I believe it anymore. My phone buzzes as I enter our house, and it’s my editor.
Rick: I need that manuscript in one week. The publisher won’t allow anymore push backs.
Me: I know, and you’ll have it. I’ve been sick. I told you that.
Rick: Then maybe this isn’t the job for you. Perhaps you should leave the spot open for someone who can handle it.
My hand squeezes around my phone. I’ve asked to work with a different editor many times, but I was told Rick is already too familiar with my writing for me to switch, and I’m two books into a series. Supposedly no one has the time right now to read over the first book or take on another author. Everyone’s up to their elbows in manuscripts. There’s always some reason.
Sighing, I start to write back and then delete it. There’s no point in responding. It never gets me anywhere. The only thing that will is finishing my book. Feeling worn down and exhausted from my trip out, I walk to the kitchen to fix myself a cup of coffee. The front door opens and closes, drowning out the liquid trickling into the glass mug.
“Daniel?” I call out, examining my appearance in the glass of the cabinets. Dirt splotches scatter across my cheeks and my hair is mussed, going in every direction. I quickly run my fingers through the thin strands to flatten them, and I rub the dirt from my face with my shirt.
Heavy footsteps trail behind me, Daniel’s boots clacking against the tile and his keys jiggling from his belt. “Hey, baby. Finish working for the day or just getting started?”
“Just getting started. Woke up late and had lunch. Now I’m grabbing some caffeine for an extra boost.”
Wrapping my fingers around the mug, I stay facing the cabinets in case I missed anything that would give away that I’d left the house. I’d wanted to enjoy a different environment for once, while I went over my outline, and boy did I get way more than I bargained for. I leaped in front of a damn car today to save a man I didn’t even know. He was as shocked as I was when he looked at me with those wide brown eyes, and the pink scars running from his cheek to his mouth added to his good looks rather than taking away from them. How does someone even getan injury like that? He must walk in front of a lot of cars without looking.
I shake away the thoughts and tense when Daniel lays a hand on my shoulder. “I’ll let you get to it, then. I only came by to see if you were feeling better from yesterday.” He presses a kiss to my cheek, his warm lips no longer having the same effect they once had. I’ve tried to leave before but he always finds me and drags me back, reminding me how much I need him. My insurance will run out soon, and that’s why I said yes when he asked me to marry him. I’m also afraid of being alone. Who else would want someone like me?
“I’m doing much better. How’s work?” I finally turn around to face him, my heart pounding in my chest as he stares at me intensely, like he’s dissecting me from the outside. He’s always looking for something to disapprove of lately. I don’t know if it’s the stress of the job or because he’s saving his good side for someone else now. I see the way his partner looks at him, as someone who’s had a taste before and can’t wait for another.
Why he bothers keeping me around is beyond me. I think he gets off on controlling me, on being the stronger one, on being needed. I once confused it for him wanting to take care of me, so I leaned into it. Into his welcoming arms that recently feel like chains around me, cold and weighing me down.
