Delayed Penalty (Crossing the Line, #1)(69)

Evan broke down when he told me. I could see that now, but I was also grateful that it was him, the voice I needed, telling me the truth even though it broke him.

Barely a breath away, for a moment, he lived inside my heart and saw my soul, and I didn't have to tell him. He knew.

"Ask me," he urged in a passionate whisper, dipping his face low so that it was level with my own. "Ask me why I did it."

"Why?"

"Because whatever it was that made me walk down that alley drew me in, and I'm never letting go." He paused, then imploring me with his eyes to trust him, believe him, and understand him. This wasn't something he could walk away from.

"Don't let go. I need you," I said, feeling like given the circumstances, he needed to know that.

He froze, his eyes wide, his mouth slack. When I smiled, he came back around.

"Say it again," he demanded, his voice low and full of emotion.

I swallowed once, needing my voice to be clear and strong. "Don't let go. I need you." Tears fell down my cheeks only to be rubbed away by his thumbs.

I would have said more, I wanted to say more, but his lips crashed to mine instead, and I lost myself in emotion. For so long I didn't want to rely on anyone anymore out of fear that they'd be taken away from me. But with Evan, I had no choice. He was there, giving his heart, begging me to love him. Something about him and that boyish grin and big heart made me fall, when I had no business falling for anyone, let alone a guy like Evan. But I did, and I didn't regret it.

Evan had to get stitched up and needed a splint put on his hand so I stepped out. Suddenly, looking at Callie, I was flooded with the memory of her telling me about a hockey player she hooked up with being rough and her ending up with a black eye. Now it made sense.

"Callie..." Tears streamed down her red cheeks, knowing what I was going to ask. "Was Dave the guy who knocked you around?"

Callie nodded, unable to speak. My heart hurt for her, letting guys treat her like that and not saying anything. Callie didn't sleep around to be a slut, though it appeared that way. She just liked hockey boys. There was nothing wrong with that. Just because she slept with a few different ones at a time, she never committed and played the ice. But to be hurt by one, physically, wasn't something she should allow. Callie was wise enough to understand that, and she stuck up for herself in some ways, but she also didn't say anything about Dave because she thought she could handle it. I know that if she knew Dave was the guy who attacked me, she would have spoken up.

"I'm sorry." My arms cradled around her, trying to ease her pain. Callie was my best friend, and I didn't want her crying over this. Dave didn't deserve her tears.

"I'm sorry that I didn't say anything," she began, trying to brush her tears aside. She straightened her posture, squaring her shoulders. "If I would have known that Dave was the same guy who…well, I would have said something a long time ago. I feel so…angry that I didn't say anything. I…I could have…I never realized, until now, how badly I could have been hurt. He almost killed you, Ami, he could have if it wasn't for Evan, and knowing that…" Callie shook her head, tears flowing more freely to the point she could barely speak. "I hate him, and I'm ashamed at myself at how careless I was, how easily I blew it off."

"You didn't know."

I never knew Callie would be so affected by what happened to me, just the same as Evan was, but anytime something happened to someone else, it wasn't always easy to look at yourself and ask, "Could this have happened to me?" The thought never usually crossed your mind until it was too late.





The ride back to the hotel was quiet. Evan didn't really talk, and I didn't force any conversation. What would I have said anyway? If I tried to speak, my voice shook and tears threatened to fall, so I stayed quiet.

Evan's hand, the one not in a splint, rested on my knee as we rode in the town car with Callie, Leo, and Remy, none of us saying a word. Remy and Leo had their own battle wounds from various fights throughout the night, as well.

Leo kept looking at Callie, who stared out the window, lost in her own thoughts.

Evan's knee bounced lightly, an indication of the nerves he had. I glanced over at him, questioning, but he simply gave me a weak smile, his hand squeezing my hand lightly.

When we pulled into the drive, Leo and Remy got out and went separate directions with Callie in tow, Leo's arm wrapped around her. Evan and I went the other way to our condo. Nothing was said by anyone. I think we were all kind of in shock over what had happened, and I didn't think they knew what to say.

Back in our room, that was when I lost it. My lip was between my teeth, my arms cradled around me, as I stared at Evan moving through the room looking for water.

It was coming—my break down. I knew it would eventually hit. As I watched him, I wanted to know what he was thinking, what he was feeling, and what this meant for us now.

Maybe he was nervous about what would really happen to Dave now. Or maybe he was upset that it happened on the ice, a place where he was comfortable was now a place that would hold a bad memory for him.

Maybe the drama of everything I brought with me was just another burden he didn't need: a girl that was too much trouble for a guy with all that responsibility.

"Stop," he demanded softly, turning to face me. He stepped forward, his thumb brushing over my bottom lip when I released it.