Page 134 of More Than Pen Pals

The sound of her voice leaves my lungs unable to function.

“Hello? Ash? Is that you?”

“Yes,” I breathe. “It’s me. Can I come to you?”

“Yes, please.” I can hear the tears in her voice. “I need you.”

I hang up the phone and sob for the first time in my life.

* * *

On my way to Leslie’s, I want to drive twice the speed limit, but I realize having an accident or getting stopped by the police will hinder my rush. Randall didn’t tell Mom what Dad said to Leslie—if he even knew—so my stomach is still in knots as I wonder what horrors Dad might have inflicted upon her.

Miraculously, I find a parking spot on Leslie’s street. I race to the building and through the outside door. Shannon stands on the other side of the interior door, a backpack slung over his shoulder. He opens it for me, orders, “Take good care of her,” and then exits the building when I rush past him.

I stop outside Leslie’s door and take a deep breath. Then I knock softly. The door swings open immediately, revealing the most beautiful woman in the world, even with her messy hair and bloodshot, tear-filled eyes. I kick the door closed behind me and engulf her in my arms. We rock back and forth in silence, my lips resting on top of her head, her cheek nestled against my heart.

When her erratic breathing evens out, I ask, “Can that chair hold up under the both of us?” There’s no way I trust myself to go to her bed, but I’m not letting go of her.

She nods against me, and then I scoop her up into my arms, stride over to the chair, and settle down into it with her sitting sideways on my lap. The chair creaks, but it doesn’t give way.

Leslie puts a hand on my cheek and looks into my eyes. “I love you.”

“I wanted to say it first,” I protest, but then I cover her hand with my own and add, “I love you more. Leslie, I never knew I could love anyone like this. In a few short weeks, you’ve become the most essential part of my world, even during the times we couldn’t be together.” I move her hand from my cheek to my mouth and kiss her palm. “I think about you every second of every day, and I never want to stop.”

I shift her hand to press against my chest, slide my other hand behind her neck, and remove all distance between our lips. Unlike our previous kisses, this one is slow and gentle, though no less passionate. I can feel Leslie’s love for me in the way her mouth and tongue move against mine.

An indeterminate amount of time later, I get her settled back into a comfortable position on my lap with my arms encircling her. “You want to tell me what my father said to you last night?”

“I don’t want to tell you, because it’s awful, but I will.”

My hold tightens around her. It’ll be a miracle if I don’t end up in jail because of what I’m considering doing to my dad.

“He told me if I didn’t kick you and Randall off the Diego Sanchez project and promise to never speak to you again, he would fire you both, disinherit you, and boot you out of your home.”

I don’t trust myself to speak for several seconds. When I finally do, it’s a curse.

“Ash,” Leslie chastises me, “don’t let him change who you are.”

I shake my head. “I’ve never been angrier in my life.”

She places her hand over my racing heart. “I understand. But you’re going to need to let it go.”

“I’m not sure I can.”

It’s one thing for him to make those threats against me. It’s quite another for him to make them to the woman I love. I take deep breaths in a futile attempt to dispel the rage unfurling inside me.

“I’m asking you to try—for me,” she says with a soft kiss to my lips. “Forus.I’m not asking you to forgive him right now, but please don’t let your anger over what he did overshadow what’s happening between you and me. We deserve more than that. Weneedmore than that, especially after these past few weeks.”

She’s right. “I promise I’ll do my best to let it go, but I need you to tell me everything so I’ll know exactly what we’re dealing with. Is that all he said to you?”

Leslie turns her head away, which gives me her answer.

“What else did he say?” I ask in as steady a tone as I can muster while turning her face back toward mine.

“He said if I don’t do what he says, he’ll end my career in Chicago.”

I growl in response. Her fingers flex against my chest and I cover her hand with mine again. She flips her hand over and laces our fingers together.

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