Page 15 of Meet Me in the Vines
I push the top button, prompting the thick velvet blackout curtains to open. As the morning sun peeks in, I squint my eyesand let out a loud yawn. Rolling over, I swipe my phone from the nightstand and check my notifications.
Kellan
Good morning. Be at the office by 8:30 am. I need you to sort out some files that came in late last night.
I swing my legs over the side of the bed and do some quick stretches, bending my neck from side to side, taking in the city skyline.
This view never gets old. You’d think six years of the same view might lose some magic, but it’s the glint on the Chrysler Building that gets me out of bed most days. That’s the New York I dreamed about as a girl in Oakwood Valley. I’m just not sure it really exists anymore.
Kellan owns the entire top floor of this penthouse, giving us three hundred and sixty degree views, forty floors up above the city. It’s the buildings outside of these walls that make this penthouse to die for—I certainly don’t feel at home inside of them.
Once upon a time, Ihadfelt it was my home, I suppose. It was my sophomore year when Kellan laid his charm and devilishly handsome looks on me. I was nineteen, my heart still wounded and vulnerable from the events of the previous summer. Kellan was an adjunct at just twenty-two, commanding a lecture hall on hospitality with his quick wit and unfailing confidence. How could I not be smitten?
He strode with confidence toward me after the keynote, instantly flushing my cheeks with heat. I was drawn to the attractive curve of his lips as he spoke, his voice smooth like aged whiskey. I lapped up every delicious word he’d say, hypnotized by him. Consumed by him.
His wealth and power were mesmerizing; I couldn’t fathom the level of importance his family held within New York’s elite. He was next in line to take over after his hotel-magnate father and stood to inherit a wealth unlike anything I’ve ever seen. Coming from wine country, I thought I knew rich—but not this level of rich. This was like, never ever worry about your life ever again rich.
I wondered then if I could ever form my own legacy. My dream of opening my bed-and-breakfast shrank with every year passed, working the mundane role of Kellan’s personal assistant. Scheduling, emails, meetings. More meetings. More work that smothered the fire of my dream, now a distant memory.
A deep exhale escapes me as I walk into the shower, letting the hot water pelt my body. I wince when it hits my shoulder and gaze down to see a deep bruise. My fingers brush across the lesion softly, as they’ve done numerous times. I survey the rest of my body wherever my eyes can land, noticing trails of dark blues and purples along my shoulders, neck, and arms.
The first time it happened, the shock overtook my entire body, paralyzing my senses. The sharp sting of a strong hand across my face. I immediately reach up and brush my cheek in response to the memory. Feel that sting enough times, you learn to comply. You learn to be obedient—no matter how hard you shake the iron bars you’re trapped behind, wailing for help.
A single tear slips from the corner of my eye, merging with the water as I let the stream of the showerhead rain over my face. Flashes of Kellan gripping my shoulder with force boom behind my eyelids, shoving me against the wall for being defiant.
“When I say get me off, I mean now. Not when you decide, but when I do.”
It isn’t until I’m gasping for air that I realize I’ve water-boarded myself beneath the showerhead, forcing me to escape the flashback from the other night.
I pant with fervor as the emotions build within my chest. To calm myself, I pump a generous amount of teak-scented soap into a loofah and lather myself in small, circular motions. My eyes close, and I allow the familiar scent to send me back in time, escaping to a much warmer memory. Ocean-blue eyes appear, and I feel safe to drown in them.
My face is buried in the nape of his neck. We run into the night, moonbeams glowing off his glorious skin. I breathe him in, instantly high off his smell. My hair is wild, my spirit is free. My smile is so big they pinch the apples of my cheeks. His laugh weaves in and out of my ears, the soundtrack to my life. His touch ignites a burning flame within me, and his kiss only stokes it further. I feel him all around me.
“Almost there. Hold on tight!”
I’m trying to hold on. I really am.
My phone vibrates on the bathroom counter, startling my eyes open. I let the remaining tears fall, quietly slipping away from my revery. I steel myself for another day ahead.
Don’t make him angry today, Audrey.
I step out and dry myself off, wrapping the towel around my body. My wet hair sticks to my shoulders as I look in the mirror, not recognizing the girl staring back.
Her strawberry blonde hair is now covered with semi-permanent brown hair dye because that’s what he wants. Her green eyes are sunken and dark, no longer bright and beaming. Bruises pepper her skin from a man who claims to love her. She’s lost her spirit, her strength. She’s lost herself.
“How the fuck are you going to get out of this, Audrey?” I whisper to her in the mirror, my eyes red on the edges.
I stare down at my phone with Kellan’s name lit up on the screen. It taunts me, posing as a daily reminder of how fucked up everything is. Yet, I pick up the phone anyway, opening the text thread with Kellan.
Kellan
Are you awake? I’m missing you this morning. Please don’t stay mad at me.
I sigh, running a hand through my wet hair. Anger brews from the pit of my stomach, almost to the point of nausea. My thumbs tremble, furiously tapping into the keyboard, unable to stop the emotions spilling onto the screen.
Audrey
I’m fucking angry with you. You hurt me! Why? Why do you do this to me?
