| He opened the door slowly, her pained expression breaking his heart. A single tear slipped down her cheek, and he caught her as she crumpled to the ground. She cried against him, her tears mixing with his own. Her sobs ravished her body, shaking him as well. She beat her fists against his chest, bruising him, but he didn’t care. He just wanted to be there for her, comforting her in this tragic loss. “Why?” she screamed at him. “Why?” she asked, continuing to beat her fists against his chest. His arms went around her tighter, pulling her close against him. He shushed her, kissing her head, telling her everything would be all right. Mark woke with a start, arms flailing. One elbow caught Scott in the nose, and his hand went to his face. Mark’s dark eyes darted around the room wildly, sweat beading on his forehead, his shirt clinging to him. He sighed, finally relaxing back into his chair, remembering where he was. Scott was still holding his nose, now completely confused. Mark glanced over at him. “What the hell was that for, Tremonti?” Scott asked. “Sorry, man,” Mark muttered under his breath. “I thought you’d outgrown nightmares, Mark,” Scott said with an evil wiggle of his eyebrows. Mark shot him a look and stood, wiping his sweaty hands on his jeans as he walked around the back room of the tour bus. Scottie stood. “You had another dream?” Mark nodded slowly, avoiding the three pairs of eyes now focused on him. Brett looked completely lost. He looked up at Scott for an answer. Stapp just shook his head, his eyes promising to fill him in later. Scottie shook his head, a somewhat pained expression in his eyes. Stapp stood, motioning for Brett to join him. They left the room. “I thought you were over her, man,” Scottie said quietly. Mark shook his head. “I’ve never gotten over her.” His voice was barely above a whisper. Scottie managed a small smile, putting a hand on Mark’s shoulder to comfort him. “Want to talk about it?” “No,” Mark said firmly, standing and exiting the room. Scottie sighed as he watched his friend storm out of the room. *** Lynn sighed, leaning back in her chair. In a burst of rage, she threw the book across the room. It landed with a loud crash against the wall, finally settling into a heap on the floor. She took off her silver-rimmed glasses, sighing as she set them on her desk, rubbing her eyes. There was a knock at the door before it opened slowly. James poked his head in, and she smiled up at him. “What’s the matter with you now?” James asked, cautiously sitting in the chair across from her. “I didn’t like that one,” she said with a frustrated sigh. “This case is going absolutely nowhere, and it’s really pissing me off.” He chuckled. She sent him a look. He laughed even harder. “What the hell is wrong with you?” she snapped, obviously agitated. His laughter ceased suddenly, his face serious. He held his hands up in surrender. He stood slowly, heading for the door. Once safely sheltered by the door, he poked his head back into Lynn’s office. “You’ve been really bitchy lately. What’s wrong, darlin?” She rested her head on her hands, a heavy sigh escaping her. “Nothing, James. I’m sorry.” He shook his head, returning to his seat on the other side of her desk. “You’re not getting rid of me that easily,” he said. “Something is obviously bothering you, and, since you’re my friend – and boss, I might add – I want to know what I can do to help.” Her head rose, and her eyes met his. “You can help me move into my new house,” she said, a twinkle in her eye. “That’s not the problem with you, but, yes, I will help you. Now will you tell me what’s bothering you?” She stood, retrieving the book she had thrown across the room just a few moments earlier. “No, really – I was just worried about how I was going to move all my stuff by myself,” she said, trying to convince herself as well. “That’s all.” He stood as well, grudgingly agreeing. “Well, I’ll meet you at your apartment around seven, after I have dinner with my girlfriend, and then I’ll bring a couple of my friends to help you get all moved in,” he said. “Sounds like a plan,” she replied, settling back into her position behind the desk. She pulled another law book from the shelf behind her and started researching again, quietly slipping her shoes off under her desk. She glanced up as she heard the door click shut, and sighed, burying her face in her hands, her black hair falling forward, covering her face. She sniffled, then wiped her silent tears from her cheeks, and forced herself to concentrate on the book before her. Her thoughts kept drifting back to his face, and the moment he last held her. Finally, she gave up with a sigh, turning out the light and locking the door as she left. *** “Yeah, just put it over there,” Lynn said, wiping the sweat from her forehead. She smiled her thanks to James’ friend, admiring his backside as he bent over to place the box on the floor. She smiled, breathing in the scent of her new house, which overlooked a lake in Tallahassee, Florida. “We’ve gotta get going, James,” Blake said, rubbing his back. James nodded. “Okay, man. I think I’ll stay here and help Lynn get all settled in.” He reached out and shook Blake and Mike’s hands. “Thanks, man.” They nodded, and Lynn smiled again. They closed the door behind them as James plopped onto Lynn’s black leather couch. “Nice choice, Lynn,” he said with a smile. “Thanks.” She stretched, letting out a contented sigh. “I’m going to go through some boxes they put in the attic. Care to join me?” He stood with a groan, nodding vigorously. She laughed at him, leading him to the attic. Once upstairs, she settled herself in front of a box marked ‘pictures,’ sighing as she realized the chore she had staring in her face. It would take a while to get all moved in, but it was worth it. She ripped the tape off the box and opened it, reaching in to go through the pictures. James sat down next to her, wincing as his knee popped. He watched her flip through the pictures wordlessly. Her features darkened, her eyes saddening, and she stopped, staring at the picture in her hand. “Lynn?” James placed a gentle hand on her arm. She was jolted back to reality, and tossed the picture aside. “Are you okay?” She nodded slowly. He reached across her lap, picking up the picture she had hidden behind her. It was of her and a man, obviously Italian. They looked so happy, and he waved it in front of her. He looked oddly familiar. “Who’s this?” he asked, not caring if she thought he was being nosey. “Oh,” she said, not even looking up. “It’s nobody.” She snatched the picture from his fingers and tossed it into a nearby garbage can. James’ eyebrow rose. “Lynn…” She looked up at him. “What’s that all about? Who is that?” She sighed, putting down the pictures she had just picked up. “My ex-boyfriend,” she said, her voice barely above a whisper. “What happened?” he pressed. He wasn’t trying to be a pain – he just wanted to know how this man had caused her so much pain. Her eyes glazed over as her thoughts returned to the past. “I ran away from him,” she stopped there, not wanting to go any further. “How’d you meet him?” She sighed. “I met him in college, a few years after he moved here from Detroit.” She paused, rubbing her forehead constantly. “Go on,” he encouraged. “I was a sophomore, and he was a junior.” She smiled at the memory. “He came up to me between classes and asked me if I had a light. He ran off with my lighter, and I didn’t get it back for two more years.” She laughed slightly. “He had seen me a few times, and wanted to meet me, so his friends forced him to talk to me. He was so nervous. We started dating, and it got pretty serious really fast. I remember…” she trailed off, and James noticed a tear running down her face. Her voice quivered. “I remember the day after I graduated, when I told him I was going off to law school. He was so hurt that I was leaving. He offered to come with me, but I wouldn’t let him. I didn’t want a serious relationship – I was scared that I’d get hurt, so I ran away. But I didn’t tell him that. I don’t think he ever figured it out. He just said he’d miss me, and call me whenever he could, and then…” She sniffled. “And then he kissed me and let me go. He wanted me to do what was best for me.” She wiped a tear away with another sniffle. “He was there when my dad…” Her voice was so small as she trailed off. James’s face was solemn, and he was listening intently. “He just held me – told me everything was going to be okay.” She stood suddenly. “He loved me so much, and I just ran away.” *** “Mark loved her so much, and she just ran away,” Stapp said quietly. Brett nodded, concern filling his face. “So why is he so concerned about this all of a sudden?” he asked. “Her father killed himself eight years ago this week.” Brett’s eyes shot up and met Stapp’s. “That would explain it,” he mumbled. Stapp nodded, resting his head on his hands. “After a while she never answered the phone, or returned his calls. Finally, her phone line was disconnected, and he realized she didn’t want him anymore.” “Why didn’t she just break up with him?” Scott shrugged. |