Finding His Sun

Chapter Eight

When she met Mason almost a year ago, he swept her off her feet. He had everything and he wanted to give it to her. He made her feel special. He would drop anything to be with her. He would look at her with his blue eyes and she would melt. He was charming. He was everything she thought she wanted. It was her mistake. It always was...

Her head was pounding with every heartbeat. She woke up in panic, not knowing where she was. Her thoughts consumed her. How could this happen… Adam laid by her bedside on a little couch. She looked around the room. The items were not fancy, but the size of the room alone was astounding. She assumed she was in a king-sized bed as well with warm green cotton sheets. She could lay there forever. She looked over. He looked… peaceful. She watched him sleep. Something about his presence calmed her. She fell asleep watching him, she fell asleep wondering.

Adam woke up feeling drained and worried and his body ached. He was on the couch? Oh right. All the events from the night before came flooding back like a crime scene, the images sent heat waves through his blood. He sat up and saw her sleeping in his bed, in his clothes and he could not help but smile. She seemed content. Even with the markings of disaster and heartbreak she was able to find solace.

The sun was just rising and even though it was Sunday the guys would be wondering where he was. He got up to leave, but why did the act of leaving Erin make him feel lonely? He had known her forever, and yes, he was infatuated but he had never had these thoughts before. He wanted to hold her in his arms and take the pain away. He knew he couldn’t, but he wanted to.

He quietly left his room and headed towards the kitchen. He heard the usual voices of men throwing one insult after the other. When he reached the kitchen, everyone fell silent. Why? When Ben, the oldest of the bunch stepped forward.

“I think it’s about time my boy got some tail!!” he said with a big smile and the rest burst with laughter.

Adam’s face went immediately flushed with embarrassment at the thought. He shook his head and went for the coffee. He wasn’t a big catch, but he had his fair share of girls throughout the years, he just had too many responsibilities to keep them around. Most girls annoyed him or cheated on him, so he just stopped trying. No one understood how much work went into running a ranch.

“So, we aren’t going to get any details, Hoss?”

He looked back but he knew he had said it. Cookie. He wasn’t old but he certainly wasn’t young. His big belly hung over his pants and he was missing two teeth. He always cooked for the crew and there he got his name. Adam’s nickname was Hoss because he was the biggest guy even though he was the youngest on the ranch. He didn’t mind it. 

Adam looked at all the men with their eager eyes and drank his coffee nonchalantly. There were about ten crew members who stayed on the ranch grounds in the bunkhouse. He normally slept there but given last night's events he thought best to go to his own room in the house. How was he supposed to tell the guys about this? Was it impulse? Should he keep it a secret? He realized who he was talking to, these guys could read him like a book. No use in lying.

He recounted the events of last night, and they reacted just as he thought. Some had jaws on the floor, and some had their jaws clenched. Ben and Jake looked as if they were going to commit murder. While Levi, Sam and Callum were discussing where to bury the body. Cookie of course was asking for her favorite meal. Adam’s head was spinning with emotions, he needed to be talked off a ledge not pushed to do something he’d regret. 

Ben looked at him with worried eyes. “Do I need to get the doc, son?” 

“No, I think she’ll be okay. And she would hate if she knew I’d told people…” 

They all stay there waiting for him to speak. 

“Well what the s**t are we waiting for?? Let’s go get that son of a b***h!” Callum yelled and jumped up getting his hat. In seconds all the men were gathering their stuff to head out, with anger in their eyes.  

Adam jumped in front of them at the doorway. 

“No! I need to focus on her! I’m not even sure what happened or who exactly did it! I have to think things through before I jump in headfirst guys!” Adam said louder than he wanted. 

They all shuffled back their seats clearly frustrated. 

“We just want to help” interjected Neal. 

Neal was the newest member. Only a year or two older than Adam but Adam’s father took Neal in after he had a bout with drug addiction. He didn’t talk much but you could see in his eyes he was loyal to a fault. He knew he’d even be loyal to a stranger like Erin, all these guys would. 

“I know you do. But I have to be able to figure out everything before I do something I’ll regret. I almost called y’all to bail me out last night.” Adam sank in the nearest chair. Confused about what to do next. He wanted to help Erin but didn’t know how. He was getting ahead of himself. One step. Let’s get her better then… 

“Well we should at least meet her and make sure her injuries are okay?” Ben stated more than asked. 

Adam shrugged. It wasn’t a bad idea, but he didn’t want to overwhelm Erin. He wanted to make her feel comfortable and supported… he didn’t know why but that was important to him. 

They discussed things on the ranch while Cookie prepared breakfast. They had only a few things to do today, like get a few stray cattle and move some hay. It should be easy to relax and take care of Erin. The thought of taking care of her brought a small smile to his face. She had agreed to stay until she got better right? She was so stubborn, and he was so mad he couldn’t remember. 

Cookie was finally done with the biscuits, gravy and fruit. He said, “Girls like fruit but always a sucker for a biscuit”. Cookie was fond of giving advice on girls having never been married. Most of the time his advice never made much sense, but Adam liked hearing it.

Adam started to head up to his room when all the guys started following. He turned around to chastise and not wanting to overwhelm Erin. But Sam spoke first. 

“We will stay back; we just want to see what state she’s in”. 

Adam groaned and rolled his eyes in agreeance. And they followed giddily. He slowly opened the door to see Erin still sleeping. He opened it more so the guys could peak in. They all gathered and dared to say a word. You could feel the anger as their eyes set on her bruises and even dried blood. Adam winced too. There were two huge black and blue bruises over her eyes with a cut that bled throughout the night. Her throat was bruised and showed the disgusting act of what Mason had done. His long shirt and comforter covered the bruises up her arms and down her legs, some looked new, others… who knows. 

They started to mumble amongst themselves of what to do to a guy who would do such a thing. And Adam went to set her breakfast dish on the bed side table. 

Erin stirred in her sleep but suddenly felt she wasn’t alone. She heard a tiny murmur of voices that woke her suddenly. She tried to sit up but her abdomen forbade it. She slowly opened her eyes scared of what she might see. Then she realized she saw multiple men in the doorway of the big room. And Adam? It looked like he was scolding them. What was going on? 

One of the men spotted she was awake and brought it to Adam’s attention. All of a sudden Adam was right there comforting her. His strong and tough hands came to her, one on her head the other on her hand. She’d never felt more… intimate? She looked over and could see worry on his eyes while asking if she was okay. 

She nodded. “It... only hurts…some” she strained through a painful throat. Why was her throat hurting?

She brought her hand to reach her throat, but Adam’s touch stopped her. Sparks once again raced through her arms at his touch. He looked in her eyes and she felt a flutter.

“Hey, don’t try to move or talk too much. Do you want some water?” 

She nodded. And looked over at the men staring at her. Her heart felt pressure and was trapped in a state of confusion. She looked at Adam with a curious frown. 

Adam smiled and knew she must be confused as to why ten cowboys were all starting at her. 

“These are some of my friends. They wanted to make sure you were okay” he said with the most comforting smile. “Do you remember what happened?” 

She remembered with more clarity than she wanted to admit. Tears welled up in her eyes. She knew what these men had to be thinking. She was weak. She was broken and disgusting. 

Adam noticed the tears rolling down her face. He looked worriedly at the men then back at Erin. He gently wiped her tears as she let him. His heart broke. What could he do to fix this? 

“I remember it. I’m sorry if I caused any of y’all trouble. I can call someone to pick me up”. 

“Darlin,” the oldest of the group of men walked forward while taking his black cowboy hat off to show his silver hair. “We would be more than happy for you to stay here with us until you feel better. We even have food for ya!” He pointed to the tray next to Adam. It looked like fresh biscuits and gravy with her favorite fruit… black berries. She couldn’t help but smile at these strange men. They all returned the smile eager for her to talk again. 

“Hey guys Um… why don’t we give Erin some space?” Adam said with a protective tone. 

The sound of her name from Adam’s mouth lightened a fire inside her body once again. She wanted to hear him say her name over and over, like she would never get tired of hearing it. 

All the men slowly retreated while slightly bowing their hats as if she were royalty. As they left it was just her and Adam. The space between them seemed overwhelming, and she hated it. 

“Thank you for everything. I hate for you to see me like this” Why did she say that? It’s not like he needed to see her any other way? Why did she care what he thought? 

“Don’t apologize for something you didn’t do. I saw a lady who needed help, so I helped”. 

Lady? “Well thank you anyways… I don’t know how I’ll repay you” she said with more embarrassment in her tone than she had intended. 

“I’m sure we’ll figure something out,” he said with a wink and that attractive side smile. 

Erin looked at him stunned… but for some reason excitement filled her. 

“Enjoy your breakfast. I have some clothes from my sister in the bathroom. Just come on down when you’re ready. Call if you need help” and just like that he was gone. 

Erin sat in the silence and wondered why she was upset with his absence?