A Soldier's Roots Read online

  Brads hands fly to his crotch, and he falls to his knees groaning. I’m free. I turn as fast as I can and run inside, slamming my door behind me, and turning the locks as I go. I finally take a breath I didn’t know I was holding and slid to the floor right there against the front door. I start to cry a little from fear and a little from the nasty words he was spewing at me.

  What the heck just happened? If my family finds out about this Brad will be a dead man. What am I going to do?

  On shaking legs, I stand and walk to my room, listening to Brad yell at my door for me to open. I don’t even bother to change; I just crawl under my blankets and try to close my eyes. Eventually, Brad leaves, and I fall asleep, I will deal with this mess tomorrow.

  Chapter 3

  Wyatt

  This week is dragging ass, and I’m just ready for it to be over. After Lucas set the owner of this place straight, we have been able to get shit done. I’m hoping to have everything wrapped up by the end of the week. I told Lucas me and some of the guys would start helping fix Elena’s family ranch up.

  The place was left to sit for seven years, so it just needs superficial work done. Nothing too major. If we all pitch in we can have it done before Christmas, and they can move in before the wedding.

  It’s crazy my best friend is marrying the love of his life. If we could all be so lucky.

  I work hard all through the day, trying to wear myself out. If I’m whipped by the time I get home, there is no time to think. Just shower and pass out.

  I don’t need to think about Sarah and how she looked yesterday. How her long blond hair was pulled back in a ponytail, showing those beautiful green eyes. Those perfect lips, pouting and just asking to be devoured. Her small frame that begs to be worshiped.

  I feel myself growing hard, and I need to tone it the fuck down. I can’t be walking around the job site with a hard-on.

  So, I buried myself in my work the rest of the day. Before I sent everyone home, I check that the tools are put up, and the job site is clean and ready to end the day. After checking over things, I head out for my cabin.

  I worked myself until my body hurts, and my eyes are heavy.

  The road home is clear and the drive quiet. This is usually the time that I find myself lost in my past. Thinking how nothing will hollow a man out faster than completing a mission, cause after that you still got to live.

  Pulling down the dirt road to the cabin, I see something dart out of the woods. Slamming on my brake’s my tires lock up and slide in the dirt. When the truck finally comes to a stop, I look around to see what it was. I don’t see anything and wonder if I didn’t stop fast enough.

  I start to open the door to my truck, so I can see what's going on. That’s when I see it. That little fucking mutt from the lake. That little bastard stole mine and Lucas’s catch that day. Lucas just sat back and laughed as I took off after him.

  Instead of getting out I just roll down my window.

  “What the fuck do you want?” I ask the scraggly little mess looking at me. The dog just turns his head from side to side.

  I put the truck back in drive, wondering how this dog tracked me down. The lake is a good thirty-minute drive from my cabin.

  Pulling up next to the house I see the dog trotting down the drive after me, like he owns the place. The last thing I need is this little shit hanging around and causing trouble.

  Grabbing my shit out of my truck I head into the house, taking a quick shower then starting dinner. Another night with the same routine.

  Walking over to the front window I see the little dog sitting on my porch staring at the front door. I shake my head and walk back to the kitchen to finish cooking my dinner.

  After I’m all set, I flip on the T.V. and kick back with my steak, potatoes, and roasted veggies. I start to take the first bite, and I pause. Why do I feel bad for leaving that mutt outside? I shouldn't give two shits about that damn dog. But I stand up and go to the door anyway.

  The mangy looking dog is still sitting there looking at the front door. I look at him for a minute trying to figure out what kind of dog he is. He almost looks like a cross between a Blue Heeler and an Irish Terrier. Mostly gray with black spots here and there; his hair looks coarse and wiry. Looking rough and dirty, like he has spent most his life in the wild. He’s not a small dog, so I’m guessing he’s a couple years old.

  I shake my head and open the front door.

  “Alright Mutt, I don’t know why I’m doing this. But I will let you come in. You shit in my house or start chewing on my stuff, and you’re out, got it?” Great now I’m talking to a fucking dog like he knows what I’m saying.

  The mutt barks once and walks past my legs. He walks over to the couch, and the first thought I have is he’s going to snatch my steak and run. To my surprise, he sits down on the floor by the arm and doesn’t move. Huh?

  Picking up the plate I walk into the kitchen and start looking for some food to feed him. I don’t have anything cooked beside my dinner, and I can’t believe I’m even about to do this. I walk back into the living room with a bowl of water and two plates.

  I put our plates in front of us and go back to watching TV. The dog doesn’t move.

  “Go on, eat,” I tell him, and he digs in. “Well, I'll be damned.” I didn’t see that coming. This dog is better trained then I thought.

  Once dinner is done I decide to bathe him. He smells like he rolled in something dead, and if he's staying in here, he’s not stinking up the place.

  He takes a bath with no problem at all. By the time I’m finished cleaning up I’m ready to hit the hay. I climb in bed and see Mutt lay down right beside me on the floor. A smile tugs at my lips and I shake my head at the turn the night has taken. Guess I own a fucking dog now. I should probably make a vet appointment and get him up to date on his shot.

  The next morning, I get ready for work and think about where to put Mutt. I guess I could set him up outside in the shed. After putting some water and rice I boiled out there, I just leave the shed door open and let him out. If he stays, he stays; if he leaves I guess he had better places to be.

  I’ll grab some shit for Mutt on the way home tonight.

  I’m halfway through the work day when my phone goes off. I figure its Lucas calling about the wedding shower, that I still need a gift for. But I’m shocked when I see her name pop up across my phone. Sarah only calls if it’s about Lucas. I answer quickly.

  “Hello?”

  “Um, Wyatt? It’s Sarah.” She sounds like she's a little scared.

  “Princess, what's wrong?” The old nickname I gave her when we were kids slips right off my tongue. But I don’t care. Something is wrong.

  “I need you to come to the high school. I couldn’t get ahold of your mom; I’m assuming she’s at work.” I hear her take a deep breath and I want her to just spit it out.

  “Why do I need to come to the high school, Sarah?”

  “There was an incident here. Lex is okay, but we need you to come down here while the police talk to her.” What the fuck?

  “Sarah why the fuck is my sister talking to the cops?” My heart is racing, and my head is spinning with shit that might have happened.

  “Wyatt, I think it is best if we talk in person. As her counselor and as your friend I asked them to wait until Lex had someone here.”

  “Shit, I’m on my way.” I hear her tell me to drive safe, but I’m hanging up and running to my truck.

  I barely have enough sense to tell Steve I have a family emergency. I shoot Lucas a quick text telling him basically the same thing and that I left Steve in charge. I try to call Mama a couple times, but it goes straight to voicemail. She must have shut it off when she started her shift.

  Fuck!

  Whipping into the school parking lot, I slam the truck in park and bolt for the front doors. There are a couple cop cars here, and for a small town like Eureka, that’s almost half our police force.

  I’m walking as fast as I can down the hall, and
I see Sarah standing outside the office door. If I weren’t going out of my mind with worry about Lex, I would take the time to appreciate how sexy Sarah looks.

  She has on a tight skirt that goes to her knees, a tight white button up blouse, black heels, hair in a bun, and sexy as fuck black frame glasses. Sexy librarian be damned, give me sexy school counselor any day.

  Sarah automatically puts her hands up when I approach her.

  “Wyatt, I need you to stay calm and listen to what I say. Please do not blow up and don’t make Lexington’s day any worse.”

  “Spit it out woman, what the hell happened?” She sighs and opens the door to her office. I see Lex sitting in her chair with a blanket wrapped around her, and she looks like she has been crying.

  “Fuck!” I whisper before I walk in.

  Chapter 4

  Sarah

  “Sarah, sweetheart. There’s another delivery here for you.” I look up to see Mrs. Holt standing in my doorway, holding another vase of flowers.

  When is this going to stop?

  “Thanks, Mrs. Holt, just sit them there.” I point to the table next to the door with two other vases of flowers.

  “Sarah, what have I told you? Call me Katie.” Mrs. Holt is the secretary; she has been running this school since I was a little girl.

  “Sorry, Mrs. … I mean Katie. Old habit,” I say and smile her way.

  “Dear, this is the third bouquet of flowers you’ve gotten in two days. Is everything okay?” Mrs. Holt asks as she arranges the flowers on the table.

  “Yes, just more “I’m sorry” flowers.”

  “Nothing says I messed up like three dozen roses.” She winks and walks out of my office.

  I have been trying so hard not to stress about Brad and what happened. I hadn’t answered any of his call, or the door when he showed up at my house last night. It’s hard to wrap my head around what happened. I have never seen him like that, he’s always so charming and laid back.

  Two nights ago, he was accusing me of being with someone else. All because I haven’t slept with him. Yes, we have been dating for a month, but I’m just not ready. Every time we get close to taking that next step, I panic.

  That should be a huge sign, right?

  Today is the same. My phone has been going crazy all day, with texts and calls. I had to shut my phone off just, so I could get some work done. With prom coming up the school is putting together a video and speech about drinking on prom night and the practice of safe sex.

  I remember my prom. All my classmates had their night planned out. First the dance, then the after party where they would all get wasted and lose their virginity if they hadn’t already. I had no part of it.

  When lunch comes around, I decided to check my phone. I have fifteen missed calls and a dozen text messages.

  Brad: Babe, answer the phone.

  Brad: Sarah, just let me explain. Did you get my flowers?

  What’s there to explain, except maybe that he's lost his dang mind.

  Brad: Babe, I have been frustrated with work and just wanted to spend time with you. When you weren't at home I thought the worst, I’m sorry. Have dinner with me and let me make it up to you?

  I read the last text and slide my phone back in the desk.

  It’s a little after lunch when I decided I need to stretch my legs. Sitting at that desk all day can be hard on my back and butt.

  I haven’t been at this school very long, before this I was a counselor for our elementary school. When the principal offered me a permanent job at the high school, I jumped on it. The counselor that held this position before me had just recently retired.

  This town is small, and I know most of the teachers and staff here, but I don’t make friends so easy. I keep to myself, and most think that I’m stuck up. It’s just hard for me to open up to people. I keep my personal life to myself, and I don’t go to the teacher's lounge. Mostly, I stay in my office unless I'm needed otherwise.

  As I turn the corner that leads to the gym I hear a girl shout ‘No!’ I pause for a second then I hear what sounds like a scuffle. Mr. Chase opens his classroom door to see what's going on. He must hear it too. We both take off running to the gym. When we arrive, I’m stunned at what we find.

  Lexington is on the ground with her shirt ripped and one student is pummeling another. One of the boys looks like he isn’t even fighting back anymore. The other has fury in his eyes like he doesn’t want to stop.

  I run over to Lexington while Mr. Chase is pulling the boys apart, trying to restrain the boy assaulting the other student that's on the ground. The kid is large for a high school student, bigger than most adult men I know.

  The second I get to Lex she throws her arms around me and starts to sob. I have no idea what happened, but I have a pretty good idea. A knot of dread forms in my stomach. I continued to stroke Lexington’s hair and softly whisper that I’m here and she is okay.

  I look over her shoulder and the big guys face is red with anger, and he is breathing like a bull ready to destroy everything in his path. He looks over at Lex sobbing in my arms, and I see his shoulders fall, and his eyes soften.

  “Lexie, sweetheart?” His voice is rough and gravely but filled with concern.

  Lex looks up at the boy and whips her eyes. She continues shaking in my arms, and my heart is breaking for her. I have never seen Lex so scared in my life.

  “Everything will be okay, sweetheart,” the boy says with calmness now in his voice.

  Lex gives a slight nod and turns back to me, laying her head on my shoulder and holding on for dear life.

  “Don’t let Wyatt go to jail.” I’m confused by Lexington's words at first, but then it hits me. Wyatt is going to murder someone when he finds out.

  I help her stand, and we make our way back to my office. Everything happens so fast. The security guard has called the Sheriff and an ambulance. I get a blanket for Lex and some water. The police want her to give a statement, and I know she is eighteen, but I feel like her mom should be here.

  I try to call Donna a few times but don’t get an answer.

  “She’s at work,” Lex says. “Go ahead and call him.” She knows this is not going to go well.

  Making that call to Wyatt went about as good as it could. I didn’t want to tell him what happened over the phone, and honestly, I didn’t know the whole story. I’m standing outside of the office preparing to intercept Wyatt.

  He comes storming through the doors like a death omen. His face is contorted in fury, his fists are clenched. Even with all that my body still hums at the sight of him. It doesn’t help that the second he sees me his eyes are all over me. I can feel it like a caress to my skin.

  I have to shake off this lust and get my hormones under control. I put my hands up at his fast approach and try to calm the storm in his eyes. Wyatt's sister and mom mean everything to him.

  “Wyatt, I need you to stay calm and listen to what I say. Please do not blow up and don’t make Lexington’s day any worse.” From the look, he gives me, that won't happen.

  “Spit it out woman, what the hell happened?” I just shake my head and open the door. As I walk in Wyatt follows behind me, and I hear him curse.

  He brushes past me and rushes over to Lex. She stands and wraps her arms around her big brother. I walk in and close my office door to give them some privacy from all the eyes and ears outside my office. Lex starts to cry again, and Wyatt tries to soothe her.

  “Smalls, you have to tell me what’s going on. You’re scaring the shit out of me,” Wyatt says.

  We all sit and wait for Lex to tell us exactly what happened. She's still going to have to give a statement to the Sheriff because there was an assault.

  Lex tells me and Wyatt everything step by step. She tells us how she's in charge of the prom committee and went to the gym to make sure everything was ready for next week.

  “That’s when Scott came in,” she says looking at me.

  “Scott, the kid getting beat up or the one doing
the beating?” I ask.

  Wyatt raises a brow in my direction and Lex smiles. “The one getting the beating,” she says.

  She goes on to tell us how he’s been asking her to go to prom with him all month and she has politely declined.

  “I guess Scott doesn’t like to be told no,” she states, looking down at her hands. “He started calling me a cock tease and said he was going to show me what I get for telling him no.” Lex starts shaking, and she's not the only one. Wyatt looks like he's going to lose it at any second.

  Her voice cracks as she tells us the rest. “H... he tried to force himself on me. I was fighting and asking him to stop,” her breath shudders and Lex starts crying again.

  Wyatt is on his feet and pacing the room. “I’m gonna fucking kill him!” he shouts.

  Me and Lex both hunch our shoulders at the volume of his voice. Wyatt is still spewing and pacing when I ask about the other boy. Wyatt stops dead in his tracks.

  “What other boy? There were two?” I see the vein in his neck start to bulge. I am honestly worried about these boy’s lives.

  “Wyatt try to stay calm,” I whisper.

  “Princess, this is as calm as I’m going to get. Smalls, what other boy?” Wyatt asks Lex.

  I let his name for me slide because I know he's on edge right now. But I really wish he would stop calling me that.

  “Dean is the other boy. I’ve never talked to him before. We have a couple classes together, but he keeps to himself,” Lexington tells us. “I’m not sure what really happened. I just know one-minute Scott is ripping at my clothes, and then Dean has him by the throat throttling him.” The corner of her lip twitches with a small smile.

  “Lex, you know you are going to have to talk to the Sheriff and give him your statement.”

  Lex nods her head and looks over at Wyatt. He's still pacing and murmuring under his breath. His jeans fit so perfect showing off thick thighs. His huge arms reach up and interlock behind his head. When he looks up at the ceiling his shirt stretches and rides up just enough to see the ‘v’ that leads down into his jeans.