Shattered Rose (Winsor Series) - By T L Gray Page 0,64

apologetically as I answered.

“Sure. Is everything ok?” He sounded tired.

“I was wondering if you could do me a favor. We were at this party, and Issy had way too much to drink. We’re still forty-five minutes from her mom’s house and I have no idea how to get there. We’re out in the middle of nowhere and my cell isn’t picking up any data. Could you look it up online for me and just get me to a main highway somewhere?” I could feel myself rambling as I tried to justify texting him in the middle of the night.

“Of course. Are you ok? You sound upset.” He was concerned and it registered through the phone. “You haven’t been drinking, have you?”

“No, I’m fine. Just a little spooked,” I answered and then gave him her dad’s address as the start point and then her mom’s. Parker looked it up and carefully guided me to the highway where Issy’s written directions could take over. As soon as I turned on the well-lit road, I could feel the tension start to ease. Dark woods and two girls alone at night was not a good combination.

“Parker, thank you so much. I should be good from here,” I said, not wanting to keep him any longer than I already had.

“Why don’t you stay on the line with me until you get there. I wont be able to sleep until I know you are safe, anyway,” he admitted, and my heart melted.

“Ok, that would be nice. So how did the game end up?”

“It was a disaster. We lost twenty-one to seven, which meant we had dish duty for the entire day. I think my hands are going to be permanently wrinkled. What about you? How did Thanksgiving go with Issy’s family?”

“Honestly, it was a total nightmare!” I exclaimed laughing, finally able to step out the situation and see the humor in it all. I went on to tell him every detail of the day, leaving out the parts about Jake, of course. He seemed as stunned as I was at the extreme dysfunction of Issy’s home life. As always, talking with Parker made every situation seem manageable. We laughed together on the phone, making jokes about Anna and the taste level of their house. We took turns trying to guess the prices of some of the items I described, with Parker even looking up a few of them on line. It was exactly what I needed, and the drive went by so fast, I was almost disappointed when I pulled in Diana’s driveway.

“Well, I’m here. Safe and sound, thanks to you,” I said appreciatively.

“Good. Now I can go to sleep and dream of large purple couches.” We laughed some more and then he got serious saying, “All joking aside, I’m really glad you called me. I will always be here for you, any time…you know that, right?”

“I’m starting to. Thanks again.”

We said our goodbyes, and I went around to the back door to try and wake Issy up. She wouldn’t budge, just batted my hand away when I tried to shake her. I knew I couldn’t leave her in the car, but was at a loss as to how I could get her into her house.

“I’ve got it from here,” I heard Jake say over my shoulder and I almost screamed from being so startled.

“Sorry,” he said laughing. “I didn’t mean to scare you.”

My heart finally started to settle as I watched him carry her to her room. I locked up the house and walked to my bedroom, setting my purse and sweater on the bed. I could feel the tension consuming me and ran my fingers through my hair, closing my eyes as I tried to get myself to relax after being under so much stress today.

I opened my eyes again when I heard a light tap on the door. I looked over and Jake was leaning against the frame watching me. He was rugged and more handsome then I had ever seen him. He was wearing a gray tank and black boxers, which only accentuated his strong, chiseled body. His perfectly manicured hair was messed up and kept falling in front of his eyes. I tried not to stare, but he looked emotionally exposed and that was always when I was at my most vulnerable with him.

“Rough night?” he asked softly.

“You could say that.” I turned away and began taking my shoes off. I didn’t want to talk to him, feeling the way I