Chapter 7

Ava

I wake up with a stiff back and an aching arm. I am in bed with Noah since he refused to leave me after we finished watching TV. I smile when I remembered him saying that he was taking his job seriously and that he would take care of me throughout the night.

With a bit of difficulty. I manage to move him without waking him up. It was around eight and I needed to prepare breakfast before he woke up.

After doing my morning routine, I went downstairs. I stood outside the kitchen for a while wondering how I was going to manage making breakfast with one arm.

As I moved to get the ingredients needed for pancakes, memories of yesterday flooded my mind. Everything that happened seemed so surreal that part of me wonder if it had happened. If it wasn’t for the fact that my shoulder was bandaged and my arm was in sling, I would have thought it was all a bad dream.

When I woke up in the hospital after I fainted I panicked. It took both the doctor and nurse to calm me down and reassure me that everything was okay. She told me that the bullet was lodged in my shoulder but it hadn’t done any serious damage. I was lucky because according to them if it had hit lower then it would have struck my heart.

They removed the bullet, cleaned the wound, stitched me up and then put my arm in the sling. I was given antibiotics and pain meds. They instructed me to keep my arm elevated till my next appointment.

As I cooked the pancakes, I thought about the man that tried to save me. I made a mental note to find out who he is so I could thank him. He was the only one that looked out for me when my family couldn’t care less if I was safe or not.

My thoughts are interrupted when a knock sounds on my door, making me wonder who it was.

I highly doubted there was anyone I wanted to see right now. The events of yesterday soured my feelings towards the people I once considered family.

I walk to the door and gently open it. I’m surprised to find the man from yesterday standing on my doorstep. The first thing I notice is his blue eyes. They were the bluest eyes I’ve ever seen.

I hadn’t noticed this yesterday. Probably because I was in shock and in pain, but the man was really good looking. He was at least six feet tall, muscular but not in a body builder type of way, a strong jaw and a flawless complexion. His dark brown hair was tousled in a sexy way and his confidence demanded attention.

“Hey” I croaked out sounding like a smoker.

He smiled at me and I was struck by how beautiful it was. “Hey, can I come in?”

“Yeah, sure” I said stepping out of the way.

He gets in and I close the door behind him. I watch him as he studies my house.

“Nice home” he says in a deep voice.

“Thank you” I mumbled. “I made some pancakes, would you like some?”

He nods his head and I lead him to the kitchen. Before I can go back to making breakfast, he stops me, making me turn to face him.

“We haven’t been formally introduced, I’m Ethan” he gently grabs my hand, turns it around and kisses it.

For some reason I feel flushed. I wasn’t used to this kind of attention and charm from men. I was the one that was always looked over. The boring and unattractive sister.

“I-I’m Ava” I stammered.

“I already know that, beautiful” he says giving me a wink while taking a seat at the kitchen island.

I give an awkward laugh because I didn’t know how to behave. He oozed masculine energy and it was directed at me. I’ve never been in such as spot before. It was so disconcerting.

“So Ethan, with no last name…what were you doing at my father’s burial?” I asked while placing a cup of coffee before serving him a plate of pancakes.

I take my own plate and cup and sit next to him. He chuckles as he looks at me.

“A threat had been reported and given your father was dead because of that threat, the chief wanted us on the look at incase the same people tried anything with the mourning family” he says right before he takes a bite.

“So you’re an officer? I’ve never seen you before and I know almost everyone.”

“Yes I’m an officer…I just moved here a couple of months back. I’ve been swamped with work so I haven’t had much time to mingle” he replies after swallowing.

I smile at him. “Well you can consider me one of your friends…I was wondering how to find you just this morning actually.”

“What for?”

“To thank you for saving my life. I don’t remember everything but I remember you putting pressure on the wound and shouting for an ambulance”

I also remember the way that he rushed towards me. I actually believe that if he hadn’t pushed me out of the way, the bullet would have hit my heart. So I owed him my life.

“I was just doing my job, besides it’s not every day you get to have a beautiful woman in your arms even though she faints at the sight of her own blood” he teases giving me another dashing smile.

Blood rushes to my cheeks. I laugh, trying to hide my embarrassment. By the way he behaves I just know he’s a charmer. It’s obvious with his smiles and winks. He’s also a breath of fresh air. Something I haven’t had in my life in quite a while.

“And what brought you to my doorstep and how did you know where I live?”

“I’m an officer remember? It was easy to find you. As to why I’m here, I wanted to make sure you were okay. I wasn’t able to stay with you yesterday because I was called in to give a report. I went back to the hospital and was told you had been discharged. I didn’t think it would be appropriate coming to your house at night”

I’m struck to be honest. This stranger had shown more care and compassion to me than anyone else around me has ever shown me my entire life. With the exception of Noah of course. I didn’t know what to do with that because I wasn’t used to it.

“Thank you” I say slowly emotions clogging my throat.

He gazes at me strangely but I ignore the look and change the subject.

From there we talk and eat. It was weird that I was completely comfortable around him, though he was a stranger. I couldn’t remember being this relaxed around anyone but Noah.

Around forty minutes later he leaves. We exchange numbers but I’m doubtful he’ll ever call or text even though I had a wonderful time. I was just not the type of woman men text back or look for their company a second time.

I was just cleaning our plates when there was another knock. Noah had yet to wake up and I was in no rush to wake him.

“Did you forget something?” I asked opening the door.

My emotions shut down when I realize that it was Rowan and not Ethan. Seeing his face just brought a rush of pain. Remembering how he abandoned me to save his precious Emma brought a bitter taste to my mouth.

There was no denying that I meant nothing to him. Yesterday just showed me the extent of his disregard and hate towards me. I push the hurt and pain away. Locking them together with the love I had for him in the deepest and darkest parts of my soul.

Rowan was dead to me and I didn’t have to love a dead man.