Taking Shots (Assassins) (31 page)

Shea was trying so hard to breathe, and not blow up Elli’s mom, he counted to three before looking at her, “I apologize if this comes out rude Olivia, but what the hell is wrong with you people? That woman is the most amazing person I have ever met, there is no weight issue, she’s beautiful, and her career, I mean, do you even know she is one of the most prestigious photographers in Nashville? Why are you guys doing that to her?” He shook his head, “You guys have issues.” Shea stepped out from the table looking down at Lauren and Adina, “It was nice meeting you, ladies. Everyone else, I could have went on without watching you tear Elli to pieces, let me say this, you’re lucky you are her family.” With that, he walked away, when he got to the front room, Michael was walking back towards him.

“
She’s calling a cab apparently,” was all her father said as he passed by, Shea was pretty sure Elli’s family was about to get it from Mr. Fisher. They needed it that was for damn sure.

“
It was nice meeting you, sir,” Shea said turning to look at Elli’s fathers back.

“
You, too, Shea, now please go get my baby.” Shea nodded as he turned and walked out of the big doors to see Elli pacing by his car. He walked down the steps and when he got close enough to where she heard him coming, she looked up, her big green eyes full of tears as some started to fall over, rolling down her cheeks. His chest clenched at the site and he had to look away.

“
I’m calling a cab, so you can leave.”

“
Elli, get in the truck,” he said, going around the truck, and opening the door. She looked at him, then back down at the floor.

“
You’re mad,” she stated

“
Yup, pissed as fuck, so don’t test me, get in the truck.”

Shea thought she was gonna fight him on it, but she didn’t. She got into the truck and he slammed the door before going around and getting in his self. They drove off the property and nothing was said until they hit the interstate.

“
I mean, do I even know you Elli?” Shea asked, the tears were falling fast and Elli didn’t even look over at him, “You never told me your family is rich or that your uncle is Bryan fucking Fisher, my boss. You didn’t think you should have told me that?”

“
It never came up.”

“
Apparently, nothing came up! Elli your uncle is my boss; don’t you think I needed to know that?” When she didn’t say anything he kept going “What if he trades me when he finds out, what if we broke up and he got pissed and fired me, then blacklisted me! What then! Don’t you think these are things I need to know!”

“
I’m sorry, Shea, I should have told you about my uncle, but Uncle Bryan isn’t like that.”

“
I don’t care; it is still something I need to know, Elli!” She wiped her face, looking at her skirt that had little spots from her tears, “Broadway Elli? Really?!”

“
It was a long time ago.”

“
I mean, I didn’t even know you sang for a living, and you were sick? It’s as if you kept a part of your life from me, hid it from me. I’ve told you everything, I mean damn, it’s as if I don’t know you and in one night I meet the family from hell and find out a bunch of shit about you.”

All Elli could do was nod as she cried, “I can’t believe this, it just blows my mind, but the kicker Elli,” he didn’t say anything until she looked over, she saw nothing but hurt and angry in his eyes as he said “You were engaged, you were fucking engaged, which means you lied to me, because I asked if there was someone important, but you lied and said no.”

“
He wasn’t important Shea, he was a convenience.”

“
Did you have sex with him?”

“
Yes, but-”

“
He was important then, you said yes when he put a ring on your finger.”

“
But I broke it off cause I didn’t love him.”

“
But you said yes, so he meant something at the time!” he yelled, scaring the piss out of her, she looked back down at her hands, and nothing was said the rest of the way to her house. When he pulled into her driveway and didn’t get out, Elli started crying harder.

“
I should have known something was up when you wouldn’t even let me in your house, wow, Elli, wow. If you didn’t want me to know who you are, then why did you let it go this far? Why did you even bring me around your parents when you knew they would throw all your shit out? I mean shit Elli, damn.”

Elli didn’t look at him; she just reached for the handle and got out, shutting the door behind her. She didn’t even look back when she heard him whip his truck out of her driveway; she just walked up the step as sobs ripped out of her. When she unlocked the door and went in, Adler started barking but then went silent as she went through the house, bawling as she ripped her clothes off. When she got to her bathroom, she filled the bathtub up before crawling in it, dipping down so the water was to her chin as she cried.

He was totally right, she set herself up for this, she ruined their relationship, and he had no choice but to break up with her.

She was a liar.

She thought she had prepared herself for what was bound to happen.

Nope, what a stupid idiot she was.

Shea was pissed, pissed because Elli lied, pissed because her family is a bunch of idiots minus her father, and pissed because he wasn’t sure, but he was pretty sure he just broke up with her. He drove down the road, digging his phone out of his pocket to call Grace, she answered on the third ring.

“
Oh no, it went bad.”

“
Bad isn’t even going to cover the fucking mess I just left.”

“
Oh no, Shea, where’s Elli?”

“
I fucking left her at her house and I think I fucking broke up with her.”

Grace took in a quick intake of breath then said, “Shea, calm down, pull over.”

Shea did what she asked, shutting the car off and letting his face fall to the steering wheel. His eyes shut as he replayed the way Elli looked as she cried her heart out in his front seat. He actually felt like crying and he never wanted to cry!

“
Now tell me what happen.”

So he did, he told her everything, about Elli’s so called family, her sister, brothers, her so called mother. Shea made sure to say nothing but good things about Michael, since he was a really nice guy. He also told her about the stuff he had learned, and Grace being Grace just sat there listening even after he was done, she didn’t say anything, and Shea knew she was processing what he had said.

“
Okay, so you’re mad because she hid stuff from you, right?”

“
Yes, she was on Broadway, Grace, she apparently can sing, then she was sick and that’s how she gained all kinds of weight, apparently, and then she was engaged, Grace. She told me there was no one worth talking about in her fucking past! Not to mention her uncle is my damn boss.”

“
Okay, I get the being pissed about the Uncle thing, that’s huge, but she never really talked about her family, and now you see why, and I agree with you being mad about the engagement, but did you give her a chance to explain?”

“
No, she didn’t even try, she just cried.”

“
Shea, come on, she was just torn apart by her family in front of you, how do you think she feels?”

Shea sat for a moment, Grace was right; he slammed his hand into his steering wheel. “I should go back.”

“
You should go back, because I’m telling you, she isn’t going to chase after you, she knows she did wrong. Plus, she doesn’t even think she’s good enough for you. I’m telling you, God, Shea, this is a mess, and you’re going regret not going back if you don’t.”

For the hundredth, millionth time, Grace was right.

When Shea pulled into Elli’s driveway, he noticed her house was dark. He glanced down at the clock; it was only nine, and he knew Elli wasn’t asleep. He got out of the truck, taking off his jacket and undoing his tie before shutting them inside his truck and walking up the drive. He was undoing the top buttons of his shirt when he noticed the buckets of fall color flowers that aligned her walk way. Elli must have just put them out because they weren’t here last time he was here. He bent down, picking a purple one, and continued up the walk way. Adler was sitting in the window watching and started barking when Shea reached the porch, but no lights came on.

Shea was worried for about two seconds before the door open and Adler came running out, leaving Elli standing in a bright purple robe that had the team logo on her breast, and a 6 above it. Her hair was wet, going down her shoulders, and her face was splotchy. She had obviously been crying. She looked everywhere but at him as she stood in the doorway.

Shea didn’t know what to say, so he just stuck his hand out, offering her the flower. She looked at it, and then up at him as a huge tear rolled down her cheek. She reached her hand out taking the flower, than pushed the door open, before calling Adler.

“
Come on, Adler,” The dog came running up the stairs at speeds Shea was sure a forty pound pug shouldn’t be going and Elli turned to look at him. “Are you coming in?”

Shea nodded as he walked past her, waiting in the foyer for her to close the door and hit the lights. When she did, his eyes adjusted and went wide when he saw his self looking back at him. His jersey that he had signed was hanging right beside an action shot of him shooting a puck. He looked around the room, taking in all the pictures of him and the rest of his teammates. There were pictures of them playing, celebrating and then the best one, the one of him with the cup above his head, tears going down his cheeks as he kissed the cup.

“
God, Elli, this picture is amazing; I need a copy of it.”

“
Sure.”

“
Make that two, my mom would want one, too,” he said with a grin as he turned to look at her. She looked down, nervously messing with the tie at her waist.

“
Alright,” she swallowed and looked up at him, “This is why I didn’t want you to come in my house, I thought you would think I am a crazy stalker fan.” He chuckled, looking around the room.

“
Baby, I’ve seen worst, this is awesome, I love it.” She smiled weakly and started for the hall.

“
Do you want the tour?”

He nodded as he followed her through the hall. The left wall was of the kids and the right was a time line of Harper and Elli. “I didn’t know you and Harper had known each other since childhood.”

“
Yeah, since we were five.”

“
Wow,” was all he said as they reached the end of the hall that went into a large beautiful yellow living room. She had black couches with glass tables with big black vases full of yellow flowers on them. Her walls were line with black and white photos of Adler, then random things like a butterfly, a tree, and a brick wall that had a heart drawn on it. When Shea turned to the south wall and saw a TV that was as big as his, he just grinned, it had to be for the away games. Under the TV was picture of the kids along with others of her friends, he guessed, but none of her family, well, except her dad.

He turned to see her waiting by a open door that’s frame was painted black, it looked so good with the yellow, “This is the kitchen and dining room,” she said as he peeked his head into the purple kitchen, he could see that the dining room was a soft purple, more a lavender with a big white vases of lavender on a large black table.

“
You’re color scheme is bright.”

“
Yeah,” she said as she walked past him to the other side of the living room, he followed her down a hall as she opened doors, showing him her office, done in pink, the bathroom, done in a very soft green, and the playroom for the kids, done in red. Then came her bedroom.

Elli’s bed sat about five feet off the ground, the headboard consisted of four huge squares, two baby pink squares and two hot pink ones. The bedding was a mixture of all kinds of pink swirls, and she had to have about nine hundred pillows. Frilly little lamps hung from the ceiling and glass night stand sat beside the bed. One stand had a big bouquet of sweet peas, while the other had a pink alarm clock, along with her pink iHome, which was playing Adele, if he was correct, and a photo frame. When he got closer, he saw it was a picture of him looking as if he was about to kill someone.

“
Out of all the pictures you can put beside you bed, the one you chose is the one of me mean mugging someone?”

Elli laughed, picking the frame up, “This was at one of the playoff games last season. I can’t remember who was in front of me, but you looked up at him with this look and I got this shot right before you plastered him into the glass in front of me. When I printed it out and put it beside my bed, Harper asked why. I told her it was for you to scare all my bad dreams away” She let out an empty laugh, “Stupid, huh? Wanna run?”

He smiled, taking the picture out of her hand, putting it back on the night stand before wrapping his arms around her waist, “I’m not going anywhere,” He pressed his forehead against hers, “I’m sorry Elli for freaking out on you”

“
You had every right,” she whispered. He watched as a tear fell over her cheek. The sight of it made it hard for him to swallow. “I’m so sorry Shea. I mean all of it, I should have told you a long time ago, but I was so embarrassed of my failures.”

“
But, baby, with me you shouldn’t be, your past has made you who you are and I adore you, everything about you.”