Saving You (Love in June Springs Book 1)

Saving You -15-

           

Chapter 15

                Declan let out a breath. At least she was talking now. The past hour he'd felt like there was a barrier between her and the world, with him trying as hard as he could to break through to no avail.

"Not much," he admitted, studying her. She didn't look mad at him for not saying anything sooner, so he continued. "When you confirmed you were moving back, Martin showed us a photo of Ian Larson and told us if we saw him he was to be detained immediately because you had a restraining order against his obsessed ass. He said it was unlikely he'd be carrying but we should be cautious anyway. I didn't ask for more and he didn't give us the story."

"You told him about the flowers though, didn't you?"

"Yes. Martin said they were something he used to give you, but I didn't know that at the time. I only told him because they set off every instinct I have and, knowing you have a restraining order out against anyone, figured he should know."

Katelyn nodded, reaching out for the soup bowl and cupping it in her hands. "That's fair," she sighed.

He thought she'd say something else, but she didn't. She sipped the soup, blowing on it softly to cool it a little.

Okay, back to quiet time.

Declan had done some counseling classes when he'd first joined the academy, but he hadn't needed them since and he had no idea how to reach Katelyn when she was like this.

He just watched her instead. She was too pale, eyes too faded and without the usual sparkle that he'd been learning to read. She wasn't shaking, but the calm stillness was almost worse. She'd shut down completely, blocking out everything she couldn't deal with.

He wondered if this was how she'd been when everything had started, if she'd been sat on someone else's couch looking like she was lost in her own mind.

He realized she was still in her work scrubs, but he wasn't comfortable leaving her alone longer than a couple of minutes to find her something else and she hadn't bought up wanting to change again.

He lost track of the time, but she finally set the bowl back down on the coffee table.

"I met him when I was a freshman in college," Katelyn said, quietly. Her voice seemed loud in the silence of the moment. "He was older, and when we talked I finally felt like someone understood me. Guys my age were so ready to just party and get drunk, and I wasn't against it but I needed someone who sometimes wanted to just stay home and watch a movie. He did that. He was everything I'd wanted, and I loved that he never treated me like a kid just because I was younger," she huffed. Stupidly, Declan found himself vaguely hoping he was fitting that better than Ian ever had. The thought was fleeting, and he pushed it aside just as fast. This was not the time to think about their situation, not even close.

"So, we started dating. I wasn't in love with him, but I knew I could get there in time. So, three months in, I lost my virginity to him."

Declan had another brief thought, this time that he was pissed the asshole had ever been that intimate with her. Again, he found himself shoving the thought to the back of his mind.

"Yeah, it gets worse. Literally five minutes after, he stood up and said 'thanks for that. This has been fun, but it's over now'. And then he walked out." Katelyn scoffed, her eyes flaring up with a past anger.

Declan's mouth fell open. "He did what?"

"Believe me, I felt the same way. I was furious. And I was hurt. I was friends with Laney at that point, she was my first college roommate and the first real friend I'd ever had. She came home a couple of hours after Ian left and helped me realize he wasn't worth the pain. That was kind of our defining moment, really. By the end of the night, I knew it was for the best and though my pride had taken a hit, I hadn't been in love with him and I'd move on." For the first time this evening, a genuine grin took over. Declan had never seen a more beautiful sight. "I got my revenge, sort of. A few days later I was at a party and ran into his best friend. The guy, James, was kind of a dick. He knew me and Ian had broken up and started hitting on me. I knew Ian was at that party, so I made damn sure when James snuck me to one of the bedrooms in the house Ian found out exactly where I'd been and with who."