Chapter 13: Chapter 13

ANDIE

Andie felt disgusted with herself for giving in to Eli. But she knew she couldn’t let him stay in the driveway all night, and she just wanted him to leave her alone too.

She was glad she hadn’t fully kissed him back on the porch swing. But the way he was with Lucy tonight made that ice barrier crack a sliver. However, she couldn’t let that happen.

Lily would always have her Uncle Eli, but she and Lucy were not meant to have him. The girls finally weren’t around.

As she watched the ranch grow smaller and smaller in the rearview mirror, the tears began to fall. He would make one very special woman happy, and it would never be her.

There was nothing special about her. Just a single mom who put everything into the bakery. Yeah, nothing special.

The tears continued to fall from the pain of losing Candice, and the heartbreak from the devilishly handsome Eli Cameron, again. The stress of keeping everything together all came out in tears.

She wanted to scream, punch something, and ask why and who. The way things were going, the truth may never be known.

She finally made it to town and her road. She drove past the bakery and jumped when she thought she saw something. She stopped and stared at the shop as the sun barely shone any light on it.

Then, she headed to her driveway when nothing else seemed to move. But something grated against her skin as she exited the car and rushed to her front door.

She pulled her phone out of her pocket. Her fingers and body trembled as she scrolled to Eli’s number, which didn’t take long since she hadn’t many people in her phone.

She entered the house and quickly locked the door, but she still felt unsafe.

“Andie?” Eli’s voice calmed her a little bit.

“Eli, I think someone’s at the bakery. I thought I saw something move as I drove by, but I can’t be sure, and the feeling is back,” she hurriedly said into her phone as she tried to get the things she needed.

“All right, just calm down, okay? I’m on my way. Call the cops, Andie, please?”

“What about the girls? I don’t want them near if something is really going on. I’ll call the cops too.” She let out a little scream when she heard two muffled pops.

“Andie, what?”

“I don’t know. I thought I heard two popping sounds.”

“Where are you?”

“In the house.”

“Okay, listen to me. Get everything you need, but don’t turn any lights on. That way, they don’t know you’re there. Stay in the house until I get there. I’ll handle the girls, and then I’ll be there. Just call 911, please?”

“O-o-okay.”

“Andie, I’m serious. Wait for me in the house.”

They ended the call, and she dialed 911 while she did what Eli had instructed. This wasn’t good at all.

ELI

As soon as Eli got off the phone, he called Dale. “Dale, I need you and Belle to get here to the ranch. Something’s wrong at the bakery, and I have Lil and Lucy.”

“Okay, boss. We’re on our way. We’ll be there in like five.”

Eli hung up. Ten minutes before he could get to Andie, and that time would kill him. He began to pace as he sent Andie a text.

She didn’t text him back. Fear was swimming through his veins, along with anger. He should have gone with her. Why didn’t he?

Dale and Belle finally showed up.

“The girls are in the playpen in the living room. There’s a little bit of baby food, snacks, and a little formula left. I’ll be back as soon as I can. Thank you!”

He rushed to his truck and tore out of the driveway. All he wanted was to get to Andie. Fast.

Fear gripped him harder when he pulled up to the bakery. The main light was on, and the huge window looked as if it had been busted out. He rushed to the house and walked in.

He couldn’t find Andie anywhere.

He knew where she was right away. The bakery.

ANDIE

Andie had only wanted to get away. She started gathering everything she needed to put into her car until she heard the sound of items breaking and glass smashing from the bakery.

Someone was destroying what she had worked so hard for.

She rushed over and saw the huge window shattered. The logo of the two cupcakes and “Andie’s Sweets” was gone, but slivers were still hanging from the frame.

She heard more smashing and rushed into the shop. “Hey, stop it!” she yelled when she saw the black-clothed person destroying everything.

Tables were overturned, some completely broken away from their stands, and the cases were shattered. Glass was everywhere, and chairs were smashed. Everything she had worked for, gone.

The black-clothed person came at her and grabbed her tightly. She tried to stumble away from the person, but they yanked her forward and wrapped their hand around her throat.

She shouldn’t have come in here.

She pulled her hand back and slammed it into his nose. The guy’s head snapped back, but he threw her down on the floor.

Her arm landed in the shattered glass, and the person climbed on top of her. Her arm stung from the glass digging in. The man began to put more pressure on her throat, cutting her airway off.

She kicked and tried to get the man off of her. She was swiftly losing her ability to breathe. Her vision blurred, and everything was starting to fade.

“You owe me, bitch. Get money from the rich uncle of that girl you’re taking care of. Then I’ll leave you alone,” his raspy voice gritted out.

She tried to claw at his hands on her throat but had no strength. Her hands dropped away as her vision faded even more.

Then blackness.

ELI

Eli rushed into the bakery and saw the dark-clothed man on top of Andie. Adrenaline washed over him, and he tackled the guy, attempting to get him off of Andie.

He took a punch to the face, and the man twisted out from under him and took off out the back as the cops pulled up.

Red and blue lights flashed against the darkness outside as Eli crawled to Andie. Tears pricked the back of his eyes as he saw her lying there limp and barely breathing.

“Andie, wake up, please?” he begged her.

ANDIE

Andie heard the voice she was becoming used to. “Eli,” she rasped out.

“I’m here, Andie, right here.” She felt his hand brush her hair away from her face. “I’m

here.”

“The girls?” she mumbled.

“They’re home, sweetheart. Are you okay?” he rubbed his thumb against her cheek.

She went to move but winced. “Throat hurts. My arm too.”

She heard two pairs of feet pounding into the bakery. She didn’t want to open her eyes, and she clutched Eli’s arm that was closest to her.

“Dean, Carl, we need an ambulance. She’s bleeding and was unconscious for a little bit,” Eli ordered. “Andie, what happened? Talk to me, baby.”

“He—he was trashing the place, told him to stop, he attacked me, told me to get money from Lil’s rich uncle, that I owed him.”

Eli slowly lifted her into his arms and held her close, gently rubbing her head and keeping her hair out of her face.

She turned her face into his chest. “I’m sorry, Eli.”

“Shh, you’re okay,” he whispered against her ear.

“Eli, as soon as the ambulance gets here and they check her over, you can take her home.”

“Thanks, Carl.” Eli held her a little tighter.

She heard the sirens coming down the road, and she turned into Eli more. Her arm felt so wet, and the blood was starting to settle in her nose. The pain was dull but still there.

Her throat was hurting too. She just wanted to go home, but she wasn’t going to feel safe there.

“Are you sure the girls are okay?” she mumbled.

“Yeah, baby, they are. Hey, the ambulance is here. C’mon let’s get you taken care of, then I’ll get you home.” He pulled her into his arms more and stood, taking her to the ambulance.

He didn’t let her go even as the paramedics pulled the glass shards from her arm. She winced at each dig of the tweezers.

They checked her throat, her breathing, bandaged her arm, then sent them on their way.

Eli carried her to his truck and gently placed her on the seat.

“I-I need to get my things,” she tried to get out of the truck.

“No, sit there. I’ll get everything. Where is it?”

“My car,” she moaned as she leaned her head back against the headrest. She felt so weak. She just wanted to sleep. She slowly took in the sight of the front of her beloved bakery.

Tears began to fall from her eyes. Everything was gone. She let out a shaky sob as the tears fell. She was scared and angry. It would be a long road to replace everything.

She should be grateful she was alive, and she was for the sake of her babies. But how much more could she handle?

The crying came harder and faster as Eli got into the truck.

“Oh, Andie. Come here, baby,” he whispered and moved a little closer, putting his arms around her and pulling her into him. “We’ll fix it, baby.”

She shook her head slightly.

“Shh, don’t worry about anything right now, baby. Let’s just get you safe again, for now. We’ll tackle everything else later on.”

She nodded, and instead of pulling away, he moved them both closer to the steering wheel. He sat in the driver’s seat, and she was in the middle seat.

He turned the truck on, shifted gears, then wrapped his arm around her shoulders and pulled her closer to him. He made a U-turn and headed back to the ranch.

She closed her eyes as the truck rocked gently. She didn’t even know how she felt. It was just nonexistent. She would never have dreamed any of tonight would have happened, but it had.

ELI

Eli gently rubbed her arm as he drove home, his intense gaze periodically darting to the rearview mirror. Let someone come after her or the girls. He’d shoot first and ask questions later.

He wasn’t messing around anymore. He’d keep all three of them safe. No matter what. He finally pulled up to the house. He took his arm from around Andie, shifted the truck into park, then cut the engine.

He got out, grabbed the bag he had put in the back seat, then looked back at Andie. “Come here, darlin’,” he coaxed.

She scooted over to the driver’s seat, and he gathered her into his arms and carried her toward the house.

As he walked in, he was met by Dale and Belle.

“Oh my god!” Belle screeched out a little.

Eli looked at himself and Andie and sighed. They both were covered with Andie’s blood. “It’s okay, Belle. We’re fine for the most part.”

“What the hell happened?” Dale pulled Belle against him protectively.

“She went to get things from home, and the bakery was being ransacked. She tried to stop it, but they attacked her.”

“Oh my god, that’s terrible,” Belle quietly cried out.

Andie turned her head into Eli’s chest, trying to hide from them.

“Where are the girls?” Eli asked, looking down at Andie.

“Asleep. They were getting so tired. Lil’s in her crib, and we got the Pack ‘n Play set up for Lucy,” Belle answered.

“Thank you, guys, so much for everything.” Eli began to head down the hallway to one of the other bedrooms.

“Eli, does she want any help getting cleaned up?” Belle called, taking a step toward them when he turned to face Belle and Dale.

He looked down at Andie. “Darlin’, do you want any help?” All he got out of her was a shoulder shrug. She was so defeated right now.

He kissed her forehead. “It’s up to you. She can help you, you can do it yourself, or I can help you.”

“I can do it,” she mumbled.

He shook his head at her stubbornness. “It’s okay, Belle. She wants to do it herself. If she needs some help tomorrow, will you be free?”

“Yes, of course. Dale also talked to me about watching the girls. I’ll do it if that’s what you want me to do. I’d enjoy it very much. Those two are so adorable.” Belle smiled a small smile.

“Thanks. I’ll let you know what’s going on.” He walked into the bedroom and sat Andie down on the bed.

He heard the front door open and close. “Baby, I have to go set the alarm and get all the baby things put away in the fridge that need to be in there. Then I will be right back, I promise.”

He gently kissed the top of her head. She was so shut down that it wasn’t going to be easy to get her out of this.

He headed to the front door, locked it, and armed the security alarm. He then went to the kitchen to put the snacks, formula, and baby food away.

He knew how much the bakery meant to her, and it would never be the same. Candice had helped her decorate and design it.

Everything she’d worked hard for was stripped from her now, and her best friend couldn’t even help her put it back together.

He knew that’s why she had shaken her head at him earlier when he said they would get it fixed. And they would. That was his promise to her. Nothing was taking her dream away from her.

He hoped the cops would find the man who had broken in and quickly. He was starting to think it was Lucy’s dad, but he just wasn’t sure. He wondered if he was even still locked up.

He made a phone call as he headed to quickly check on the girls. “Murphy, you still got Daryl locked up, right?”

“Yeah, for now, he’s never broken the order before, so I don’t know how long I can hold him.

“But we are looking into everything, and we’re also going to do everything we can to find out who ruined Andie’s Sweets. I promise. Where did you take her?”

“To the ranch, for now. She’s safer here, and the girls were already here, so it made sense. I don’t care what it takes, Murphy. Find out who did this.

“I am letting you know now that if it comes down to her life or the girls’ lives, I will fire first.”

“All right, Eli, we’ll try. Just keep your eyes peeled.”

He ended the call and headed to the bedroom he had put Andie in. He broke into a run when he heard the scream. It sounded so ear-shattering and pain-stricken.

He rushed into the bedroom and saw Andie pulling things off the bed one by one and throwing them across the room, screaming.

He rushed up to her and wrapped his arms around her from behind as she continued to yell and cry.

He held her tightly, slowly sank to the floor, and pulled her back against him. He turned her into him a little. “Just let it out, Andie. I know. It’s okay.”

He rocked her back and forth as she continued to cry and buried her face into his shirt, clinging to it. He rubbed her back softly and just held her while she finally broke.

It was gut-wrenching. He almost wanted to cry for her. He never thought she would break, and now she was, and there wasn’t anything he could do about it but let her.

She kept mumbling into his chest and cursing and yelling, the sobs shaking her whole body.

She didn’t deserve this to happen, but he would let her lose it in the way she needed to since the day she’d identified Candice and Caleb.

His mom knew it would happen, and here he was, involved and there for her. He held her tighter as she clung to him more.

“It’s okay, baby, just let it all go,” he whispered as they sat on the gray carpet, and he continued to rock her.

They needed to get cleaned up, though.

“Darlin’, come on. We’ve got to get you cleaned up. Did you bring a change of clothes and everything?” he whispered into her ear as the sobs finally subsided.

She nodded her head, and that was it.

He sighed and lifted her onto the now-stripped bed beside the bag and got her clothes out. He saw she didn’t have any body wash or shampoo.

“I have stuff you can use for a shower. I just have to run downstairs to get it,” he whispered.

She grabbed his arm tightly, but when he locked eyes with her, she quickly let go and curled up into herself on the bed.

He let out a sigh and kissed her cheek. “I’ll be right back.” He hurried downstairs, got some of his things for her, and returned.

He then scooped her up slowly and went to the hallway bathroom. He sat her down on the countertop and started the water. “Are you sure you’re going to be able to do this by yourself?”

She shrugged, and he closed his eyes and bit the inside of his cheek. This was going to be so rough on her. He just needed to give her time. She’d come back around.

He turned the water on, left to check on the girls again, then grabbed the monitor and brought it into the bathroom with them. He tested the water, and it felt warm enough.

“It’s ready, Andie.”

“Okay,” she whispered, but just sat there on the counter.

He was going to regret this. He hung his head a little as he took his Stetson off and walked in front of her. His eyes landed on the bruises around her throat, and his fingers slowly trailed them.

“How bad does it hurt?” he whispered.

She looked up at him. “I’m fine, Eli. It doesn’t hurt too bad, I guess.”

He stepped closer and pulled her down off the counter. Then he began to slowly take her tank top off, giving her enough time to say no, but it never came.

He unbuttoned her jeans, and the next thing he knew, she was undoing his buttoned-down gray shirt. He swallowed hard, and her slim fingers brushed against his hot, hardened skin.

He locked eyes with her as she pushed his shirt off, and it fell to the floor.

“Andie,” he warned.

“Please?” she whispered.

He grimaced a little.

He had no idea what was going on inside that spectacular brain right then, and he didn’t want her to regret anything in the morning, but he also had the feeling she really needed help by how she winced when she moved her arm.

He finished pushing her jeans off her after he stripped her of her shoes and kicked off his worn boots. “Turn around,” he whispered. She did, and he began to unclasp her lacy black bra.

Their eyes met in the mirror. Her eyes were so round with fear. She looked so fragile. He had never seen her like this in the two years he had known her.

His eyes flicked to her now-free breasts. They looked so beautiful and tempting. He felt his body reacting already, and he hadn’t even touched her nor she him, for the most part.

The slightest touch from her and his body would be inflamed to attention with an ache and burn he knew only she could quench.

His hands moved to take her lacy panties off as well, and his hands cupped her ass gently. Then he ran them up her back to her shoulders and squeezed them.

His lips found the curve between her neck and shoulder. He pressed very soft kisses there, and she turned and looked up at him.

He moved back from her, not sure what she wanted. He found out quickly as she undid his jeans and pushed both those and his boxers down. She pulled him toward the shower, and she got in.

He had to keep his wits about him. He couldn’t do this with her after what had happened. She was so vulnerable. It would only be him washing her and nothing else. It had to be that way.

He grabbed the body wash and shampoo before he stepped into the shower as well, and he watched as the water flowed down her body.

She was so tempting. But he wanted to do this the right way. He had to figure out where he stood in his life if he was going to be able to give her any kind of life.

He slowly washed her body and her hair, then rinsed her off, being careful of the bandage wrapped around her deep cuts from the glass.

He stepped back. “Why don’t you get out and get dried off? If you need help getting dressed, I will help you as soon as I am done in here.”

She nodded as his eyes raked over her glistening body. It hurt so bad that he couldn’t do anything about the tightening of his member as they switched places, and her soft body brushed against his hard one.

He bit his lip hard, trying to let her exit the shower without pulling her back and having his way with her. He rushed to get washed up and stepped out of the shower.

He watched her dry off, and if it was even possible, he felt himself strain even more. He took a deep breath, trying to muster some kind of control over himself.

As soon as he was dried off, he wrapped the towel around his waist, and she had hers wrapped around her. He took her back to the bedroom, where he got everything cleaned up.

He helped her dress in another tank top and a pair of shorts. His arousal was making a very prominent tent against the towel he had on.

“If you need anything tonight, call me, Andie. I’m going to head downstairs. Get some rest, baby.” He kissed her cheek gently and then covered her up with the blanket as she lay down.

He hoped she would be okay by herself. He was so worried about her but knew he had to keep his distance until he figured out what he wanted.

She let him leave without a fight. Her tiny body looked so defeated. He wanted to pulverize the man who had hurt her, and he hoped he’d get his chance to beat the guy.

ANDIE

Andie watched Eli leave. She didn’t know what had come over her in the bathroom or what she had been begging for, but she was glad he didn’t do anything.

She wouldn’t have had the stamina or ounce of dignity to stop him tonight.

She let out a shaky sob, and the tears began to form again as she curled up into the firm pillow and pulled the gray cover tightly around herself.

All she really wanted was to be held, but this was something else she was going to have to handle on her own. She didn’t need help to get the bakery fixed. She could do it herself.

She’d call her insurance agent tomorrow and start to get things replaced as soon as possible.

She would have to clean it up tomorrow, but she didn’t know how she would feel okay doing it herself.

But she had to. And she hoped Eli would let her clean it up and get that woman to watch the girls like she’d offered because there was no way she was taking the girls into town for a while.

And if Eli trusted her, then she supposed she could trust the woman too.

She slowly cried herself to sleep, not knowing what else to do. She had finally been pushed to her breaking point, and he’d seen it.

This wasn’t how things were supposed to go, and now he would never even dream of being with her after that breakdown.