Stone’s Hearts

Chapter 3

Jaden gives no emotion away as he helps me hop in to the back of his truck. It is even taller than it looks from far away. Me only being 5’3 makes it a little difficult climbing up, but he assists me resting his hand under my elbow to help give me support. Even the smallest touch sending sparks through my body. Once inside I situate myself. He pulls the seatbelt from the wall of the truck, handing it to me to buckle. Weird, he kind of has a bossy vibe to him. I take the seatbelt and buckle up, he shuts my door and gets in to the driver seat of the truck. 

“Kaycee this is Dillion, he’s my...” He trails off before quickly continuing “He’s my employee.” He said as if he isn’t sure that is the correct term to call him. 

I see them exchanging a glance before Dillon turns in his seat, reaching back to shake my hand. Wow he is a good looking guy, definitely not as handsome as Jaden, but he is up there. His baby blue eyes melting, I am sure every girls heart. He is very buff, like working out wasn’t just a hobby. Which briefly made me question what Jaden does for a living. My thoughts are interrupted.

“Hi” He extends his hand excitingly. 

“Nice to meet you.” I return the gesture and shake his hand, it's firm yet his warm soft hands make it more gentle, he doesn’t make my heart drop like Jaden, but he is fun to look at I will admit. 

Oh my gosh why am I thinking all this? Realizing I am lost in my own little bubble of hot guys in my head. My face turns bright red. Oh no I hope he doesn’t think I am turning red because of him. Though it wasn’t, not because of him. I finally pull my hand away.

“Nice to meet you too, Kay—cee.” He says my name a little more pronounced. 

He smiles, turning back in his seat. I see Jaden through the rearview mirror give him a quick annoyed look before he puts his truck in gear and takes off down the empty road. 

I sit here staring out the window wondering what I just got myself in to. We have been driving for about 45 minutes. I start to get anxiety. How far are we going? I don’t want to be even further from Blake. 

“Do you need to use the bathroom?” Jaden asked.

His voice sounding a little rough yet strong. He is intimidating. Reminding me I do need to use the bathroom, really bad for that matter.

“Actually yes, I really need to go” I said quickly. 

I hope he doesn’t think I mean number two; I just need to pee. My cheeks turn a little pink. I think he knows why, I see his lips turn to a smirk in the rearview mirror. Gosh he is so cute! My stomach gets butterflies. 

“Okay there is a little town not too far up.” He said, this time with a little more gentleness to his voice. 

“Okay that’s perfect.” I said. 

I wonder how much further. If we are stopping does that mean we still have a ways to go? Ughhh. I want to ask him, but also something tells me I don’t want to make him mad. Why would me asking him make him mad? I mean don’t I have a right to know where I am going and how much further? It all sounds much better in my head. Somehow I knew demanding these answers out loud wouldn’t go the way they did in my head. So here I am staying silent. Wishing he would speak up maybe give me some insight, but no he stays silent. Every once in a while I catch him glancing back at me and our eyes lock for a few seconds before he pulls his attention back to the road. Although my nerves grow more intense the longer we drive his gradual glances give me some comfort, I guess maybe knowing he remembers I am back here? Who knows, I’ll take all the comfort I can get right now. 

Ten minutes later we pull up to a little diner. The sun almost completely hidden by the mountains. The clock on the dash reads 7:41pm. It has been a little over four hours since I ran away. Dad would surly know I am gone. Blake gosh I hope he is okay, sending a silent prayer before getting out of the truck. Jaden opens my door putting his hand out for me to grab for balance. I grab it and my eyes shoot to his I feel that spark again. Wow he makes me feel flustered. I hop out of the truck. Saying thank you for helping me. He says nothing back, gesturing his hand toward the diner for me to walk ahead of him. I do as he silently asked and walk toward the diner. Dillion was sleeping in the truck, Jaden didn’t bother waking him. Hope he doesn’t have to go to the bathroom. Maybe that means we won’t be driving much further. My hopes go up a little with that thought. 

The car ride is silent. No radio, just the sound of Dillion softly snoring and the occasional car passing in the opposite direction.

“How old are you?” He asked so softly I wasn’t sure if I actually heard him speak. 

He clears his throat and looks at me through the rearview mirror. Confirming he did speak. 

“19”. I said looking in the mirror. 

He brings his attention back to the road. I thought I saw his jaw clench, but the light is too dim. Either way I don’t think that is the answer he was looking for. We drove for 40 more minutes in silence before Dillion finally wakes up. Grumply I hear him mumble about needing to “piss”. Jaden tells him we stopped but he was passed out. He also assures him we are almost there.

Finally!

Within 5 minutes we are driving up a long driveway that climbs a small hill. The driveway itself is several feet long. We pull up in front of a huge house. Although it is dark out, the house is very lit from the outside. It’s features very modern and dark; a medium shade of gray, not too dark not too light, the trimming is black? Or maybe charcoal gray? Lots of bushes, trees, and greenery. It's beautiful.

“Alright man, I'm just going to run in to take a quick leak and I am out.” Dillion said. 

Hopping out of the truck. Jaden tosses him the keys and he runs toward the front door. Jaden gets out next, immediately opening my door and offering his hand. I take it, looking for any reason to touch him again. He gestures to the house. Hesitantly I start walking, not really wanting to be the first one to walk in his house. He isn't far behind me so I continue forward. Dillon left the door open. Walking in I notice right away how open and spacey it is. Nothing like the tiny two bedroom house me, my dad, and brother live in. This room is the size of it and more. Straight ahead is a bar with three barstools that face a large window looking out to probably the back yard. It being dark I can’t see out even though the blinds are open. To the right before the kitchen is a large living room. Huge cushiony leather couches took up a lot of the room, with a coffee table in the middle; the biggest TV I have ever seen comes down from the ceiling like a projector? What the heck. This is so fancy, I am never going to fit in here. Continuing to look around to the left is a long wide hallway that has two doors on the right wall and three on the left wall. At the end of the hallway is a set of double doors. It looks like the hallway turns into a T shape at the end. More rooms? Sheesh he wasn’t kidding. Starting to feel nervous Jaden must have sensed it.

“I know it’s a lot to take in right now, but you’ll fit right in.” He said reassuringly. 

How does he know I am worried about not fitting in? 

“Mario is our chef. He comes in the morning and at night. He sometimes will prep some meals for a few days, but always comes on the weekends or when we request a meal. He has already prepared dinner for tonight so lets eat.” 

He said that last part more as a demand, but I am starving so I don’t question it. Following him past the bar to the left is two swinging doors. Like the ones in restaurants. He pushes them open holding them open for me to walk through. As I do, I am welcomed by a huge island with burners for the stove on one side. Lights shining down over it, pots and pans hanging above it on a dark metal rack in the middle of the kitchen. The sink is to the right on a wall with a window. A large stainless steel fridge on the wall closest to my right. The kitchen is beautiful. I didn't realize I stopped walking until Jaden walks right in to me. 

“Sorry.” He said in a low raspy voice that gives me goose bumps. 

Gosh he is so handsome, I can't stop thinking it. He brushes past me to the fridge, pulling out two plates and uncovering them, he places one in the microwave. He gestures for me to sit down. On the other side of the island is the dining room. Not far from the kitchen. I kind of like it, it gives a homey effect even with all this lavishness. I sit at the table with 6 chairs, but could easily seat more. 

“Do you want a drink? Glass of wine? Or something?” He asked almost sounding nervous. 

“Just some water would be great.” I replied. 

He says nothing as he gets a glass from the cabinet and fills it with water. He walks to the table locking eyes with me. The closer he gets I can smell his amazing musky woodsy scent. My heart drops in to my stomach. What is happening? He places the water on the table never breaking eye contact. I turn slightly toward him my knee partially sticking out, he brushes against it causing my breath to catch. I see the corners of his mouth turn up slightly in to a grin. Knowing he is having an affect on me. I hate it, I do not want him to have this affect on me. I have too much going on to be worrying about him! Though I can not look away, what finally broke our eye contact is the beeping of the microwave. Looking like he doesn't want to turn around, he finally does. Coming back with two plates, he places one in front of me. It’s steaming and smells delicious. Chicken alfredo with garlic bread lays on the plate in front of me. I don’t know when the last time I had food that looks this good. The only food we ate was things Blake made but seeing as we hardly ever had groceries, he did his best.

“Eat. You look exhausted, you need the nourishment.” He said no emotion in his tone. 

His eyes look a little worried. He looks down at his food and starts to eat as did I. It tastes amazing, I can’t stop smiling as I scarf the food down. I look up noticing he stopped eating and is looking at me. 

“What?” I said. Feeling insecure.

“I like watching you eat.” He said.

I expected him to look embarrassed or act like he didn’t mean to say that but he doesn’t. He just stares in to my eyes causing that pressure to build in my lower stomach again. Not knowing what to say or do. I awkwardly continue eating. He thankfully did the same. He finished his food. I am almost done with mine, savoring every bite. He broke the silence.

“How old is your brother” He asked.

“22.” I replied immediately.

 He closed his eyes rubbing his hands over his face. 

“What’s his full name. Your dads name, and your address.” He demands in a calm tone, but there is power behind it. 

I told him all the information he asked for. He assured me we would go stake out the house until my dad left and we would swoop in to get Blake tomorrow. I am feeling a bit more hopeful knowing I am getting Blake help. 

“Let me show you your room and stuff. I’ll give you a tour of the house tomorrow.” He said.

He leads me down the huge hallway to the first door on the right wall. Opening the door to a large bathroom that has a foggy glass shower in the far right corner. To the left of the shower was a huge bathtub with what looks like jets built in to the walls of the tub. The toilet is on the right wall as well, the sink on the wall closest to me. It is dimly lit not too much color; it's nice much bigger than mine and Blake’s bedroom at home. Shutting the light off, Jaden walks to the door directly across from the bathroom. Opening the door and switching on the light. 

“This is your room.” He said.

It is perfect! Plain, clean, and fresh. Just what I need. A fresh start. A queen size bed with a large headboard sits in the middle of the room. A comfy looking chair sits in the right corner. There is a desk, with a chair and a bookshelf that sits next to it, and a large window covered by thick dark curtains. The kind where you wouldn’t know if it is night or day out.

“This is perfect, thank you so much.” I said gratefully.

Tears threating to fill my eyes. So grateful I have somewhere to sleep. That I have food in my stomach. When just a few hours ago my life was in complete pieces. Not having any idea what the future held for me. Now I feel some peace and I am going to enjoy it while I can. He walks further in the room. Opening the second drawer to a dresser that is on the left wall he points in the drawer. 

“I had my assistant pick out some clothes for you. Pajamas are in here and any other clothes. It’s all yours.” He said opening his hands to the room. 

I feel my face warm. When did he have time to have his assistant buy me clothes?

“You didn’t have todo all that.” I said.

 Feeling uncomfortable with all his generosity. 

“Kaycee, if you are going to work for me, I need you to have clothes to do so.” He said then adding “Pajamas being one of them.” He points to the drawer again that is half open. "Unless of course, you don't wear pajamas..." He said with a smirk on his face.

 I blush. Still feeling unsure, I give in what other choice do I have right now? 

“I do! T-thank you” I stuttered. 

Stuttering again? Wow smooth Kace. He looks a little relieved once I give in. 

“Great. Well I’ll leave you to it then.” He said and starts walking toward the door. 

He turns around facing me again.

“Help yourself to what ever you need. My room is the set of double doors at the end of the hall, if you need anything that’s where I’ll be.” He said the last sentence a little breathless. Waiting a few seconds before continuing. “My best friend Derek lives here as well. His room is the door across the living room.” 

I didn’t notice a door over there, but it isn’t surprising.

“I really appreciate everything. Please let me know when it’s time to get my brother, I’ll be ready in no time.” I said with a little worry in my voice.

“Of course.” He said before turning back around and shutting the door behind him.

Staring at the closed door. Finally alone with my own thoughts. I turn toward the bed hop in it’s amazing fluffiness, as soon as my head hits the pillow I crash. The days events taking a toll on me from emotional to physical, I am exhausted.