Fall Back Skyward (Fall Back #1)(102)
Laughing, I step out of the car.
“Would you like to hangout over the weekend?” I sign.
“I have a deadline to finish a project that’s due next week. How about the next one?” he asks, a hopeful look on his face.
“Sounds great.” I can’t wait to spend more time with my little brother. After requesting him to take my luggage to my parents’ house, I walk up the little path flanked with daffodils toward the front door. I stop and turn around, searching in the dark for the little apartment I will be moving into in just a couple of days. I inhale deeply and spin around slowly to face the door again and ring the bell.
s
My body tenses as the sound of the doorbell ringing ricochets inside the house. Taking a deep breath, I wipe my clammy hands down my dress and walk to the door.
Cole is here. It’s finally time to finish this. He might hate me after all is said and done.
When I open the door, Cole is standing in front of me, with one hand shoved inside the pocket of his pants, while the other rests on the nape of his neck. He raises his eyes from the ground to meet mine. His expression instantly softens, then darkens as his gaze roams down my body, staying a little longer around my boobs and mouth. In that tiny slip of time, my heart beats rapidly in my chest and warmth spreads all over my body, finally settling between my legs. He clears his throat and then tugs the beanie from his head.
God, I’ve missed that look.
“Hi.”
“Hey,” I manage to cough out the words and step aside to let him in. After locking the door, I push off it, brush past him and walk into the living room. His body is like a warm shield as he trails behind me. I stop in front of the sofa, clasp my hands together, and face him.
“Where are the girls?” he asks.
“At your parents’ house. I thought it would be easier for us to talk without distraction.”
He nods, his intense gray eyes never leaving mine.
God, I’m so nervous. “Can I get you anything to drink?”
“No, thank you.”
Right. I motion for him to sit down and then I sit on the farthest corner of the couch. Being close to him puts me off kilter and I need all my thoughts in a neat little pile for this conversation.
He drags his fingers through his short hair, glances at the couch to the side and lowers his tall frame on it before he stares up at me expectantly.
I clear my throat and bite the inside of my cheek. “I need you to understand something first. Whatever I did nine years ago, I did it to protect you. I didn’t set out to hurt you.”
He leans forward, matching my pose but doesn’t say anything. Damn it. I don’t know what he’s thinking right now.
I have no idea where to start, so when I open my mouth words just flow out. “You asked me not to visit you in prison. I couldn’t do that. I had to look for a way to see you. I went back to Mr. Taylor—the warden at the prison—and asked if there was a way he could help me. He informed that it was against the rules and he didn’t promise me anything. But I held hope and prayed that he would find a way. Somehow. During those months, Mr. Taylor and Grandma became very close. He was like a son to her. I think he filled the void in her that my dad couldn’t. During that time, Mr. Taylor’s mom passed away and he stopped visiting Grandma for a while. The only thing that kept me going was your letters, taking care of my sisters and my mom, and school. The college work load was getting too much and the therapy sessions were more intense. I wanted to be better before your release from prison.
“I didn’t hear from Mr. Taylor until a couple months before your release. I was helping Grandma finish up an urgent delivery one Saturday afternoon when he walked into the shop. After chatting for a while he asked me to be in his office on Monday at ten o’clock in the morning. That was two months before your release, but I didn’t care. The opportunity to see you was there, right in front of me. Two months to see you again was a long time.”
I pull up my legs on the couch, wrap my arm around my knees and rest my chin on top of them, angling my face so Cole can see my mouth. And then I start to tell him how our lives drastically changed nine years ago.
BY MONDAY MORNING, THOUGH, I’M a complete nervous wreck. I’m excited and anxious to see Cole. He will probably be angry when he sees me. How could he ask me the impossible, to stay away from him? I can understand he didn’t want me to see him behind bars, all beaten up by the thugs sent by my father. I couldn’t let him push me away and I was determined to do what I could to see him. My heart was his heart and nothing was going to change that.
I make sure my clothing complies with the dress code--not too fitting or provocative. I’m wearing a simple knee-length, black dress with sleeves that stop slightly above my elbows. I finish the look with my blue Keds with little light blue and yellow hearts on them. Satisfied, I leave the house. After texting Megs to let her know that I’m on the way to visit Cole, I get inside the Old Station Wagon and drive away.
I arrive at the correctional facility with just about thirty minutes to spare. After reporting to the reception area and letting them know I have an appointment with the Warden, one of the guards asks me to follow him down a hallway and to the north side where the offices are located. He deposits me in front of a receptionist with white hair, blue eyes, and a grandmotherly smile. But I know that behind that smile, there’s a tough woman. You can’t work in a place like this without being some sort of ninja or something.