Chapter Twenty Three

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“So, how’s things going with Taryn?” Dale asked Kevin for what seemed to be the millionth time in the last three months. They’d gotten back to his house and had gone ahead down to the club while the girls had gone up to their rooms for a moment. It was actually Taryn who had made the excuse of needing to freshen up, and Ashlyn had followed her in another attempt go get her to talk. Like Ashlyn, Dale saw past Taryn’s excuse. He knew that for whatever reason, she was putting distance between Kevin and herself again.

Kevin was silent for a moment, his head down before he looked over at Dale. “Wonderful!” He replied enthusiastically, but Dale saw that the tone of his voice didn’t match the expression in his eyes.

“That’s good.” Dale said as he turned and went over to the cooler to get some beers. He liked Taryn, and not just because she was Ashlyn’s best friend. He truly liked her, but what he didn’t like was what she was doing to Kevin. He wished he knew what was going on because right now he really did not understand what she was doing. “I was just wondering because she seems…” Kevin stopped him before he could finish.

“Nah, she’s just been really busy with work and everything. And now she’s looking into moving her shop into a bigger building so looking for the perfect spot takes up a lot of her free time and has her preoccupied.” Kevin gave Dale the latest excuse that Taryn had told him when she’d canceled the trip before this one to see him. He didn’t realize that lately he’d been making just as many excuses for Taryn as she’d been giving him. He also didn’t realize until a little later that she’d easily been able to get away from this trip, thinking that he wasn’t going to be there.

Dale was about to comment when Taryn and Ashlyn came down the stairs into the club. He smiled sexily at Ashlyn as he walked over to her and handed her a beer. His eyes met hers, silently questioning. Ashlyn gave him a short shake of her head in reply.

Walking over to one of the couches, the sat down, watching as Kevin went over to Taryn, also handing her a beer as he leaned forward and kissed her, which she immediately pulled back from.

“Thanks baby.” Taryn said, smiling at him as she brought the bottle to her lips and took a long drink. Then turning, she went and sat down in a chair where Kevin would not be able to sit next to her, even though there was another sofa that she could have sat on.

Kevin looked at her for a moment, his shoulders slightly dropped when she wouldn’t look at him, her attention seemingly focused on something else. Sighing inwardly, he turned and walked over to the stereo. “How about some music?” He asked everyone.

“Sure!” Dale and Ashlyn replied at the same time.

“Yeah, why don’t you put some Fuel in?” Taryn questioned, the sarcasm in her voice not missed. Dale and Ashlyn winced as they watched Kevin visibly tense up. He took in a deep breath, slowly letting it out before he turned and looked at Taryn.

“We need to talk.” He stated as he walked over and gently took hold of her arm, pulling her from her seat and leading her out the doors to the backyard where they’d have some privacy.

“What the hell is going on, Taryn?” He demanded once the doors were closed behind them and before she had a chance to say anything.

“I don’t know what you’re talking about.” Taryn replied, a look of confusion on her face. She was about to say more, but Kevin beat her to it.

“I’m talking about the Fuel jab just now, the little comments that you’ve made before this one, the distance you’re always putting between you and I, the canceled trips...” Kevin told her, stating only a few things that were bothering him about their relationship. “If I’m not mistaken, I get the feeling that you’d rather me not be with you!” He nearly yelled before he took a step back, running his hand over his face as he tried to get a reign on his temper.

Taryn was silent for a moment, then she lifted her eyes, looking into his. “I’m sorry about what I just said. You know how I get when I get a few beers in me.” She said, gesturing to the bottle that she still held in her hand. She bit her lip as she hesitantly stepped up to him, wrapping her arms around him, resting her head against his chest. She smiled when she felt him relax a little bit. She tipped her head back, looking up at him.

“Everything is fine, Kevin. You know that. I’m sorry that I’ve had to cancel those trips, but I’ve been jam packed with clients lately. And trying to find a new location for the shop…I’ve explained all of this to you. But we’re here now…together. Don’t ruin this time together with fighting, okay?”

Kevin looked away and was quiet for several moments before he turned his eyes down to hers and his arms circled her body, pulling her closer against him. “Okay.” He answered, his voice gruff. He dropped his head as she stood up on her toes, meeting her half-way in a kiss that quickly intensified until both of them were lost.

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Chapter Twenty Four

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Taryn and Kevin both walked back inside, and Taryn smiled sheepishly at Dale and Ashlyn. “I’m sorry for the way I’ve just acted. It was horrible of me, and I don’t know why I said it.”

Dale looked over at Kevin, who nodded, signaling for him to let it go. Dale finally smiled. “Don’t worry about it, Taryn. I’m just glad everything is alright.” He said, hoping the tension in the room would ease. But it didn’t seem to be.

Taryn sighed with relief, but it was short lived the instant her eyes met Ashlyn’s. She bit her lip, knowing what was about to come. It took a lot to piss Ashlyn off, but when you did, you didn’t stand a chance.

Ashlyn glared at her friend, trying like hell to pull a reign in on her temper, but it was beyond her own control. She had been trying and trying to get Taryn to open up to her, but she kept denying anything was wrong. And Ashlyn had let it go, so she kind of felt like this whole thing was partially her fault as well.

She felt her temper rise even farther when she looked over at Kevin, still able to see the hurt and confusion in his eyes, but he was trying to cover it up. Couldn’t Taryn see what she was doing? If she couldn’t, she was about too.

Ashlyn shook her head when Dale accepted Taryn’s apology. It was going to take a hell of a lot more than some lame excuse to calm her down. She also knew right this minute probably wasn’t the time, but she was tired of putting it off, and refused too any longer.

Taryn shifted uncomfortably from one foot to the other under the weight of Ashlyn’s stare. She only hoped Ashlyn would stay calm enough for the rest of the night. She knew she was in for it when they were alone.

“Uh, Ash-” she started, but flinched when Ashlyn immediately cut her off.

“Save it.” She snapped. Taryn’s shoulders slumped, ‘So much for staying calm’, she thought to herself.

Ashlyn pointed over towards the stairs. “Upstairs.” She demanded. Taryn looked around, taking in both Kevin and Dale’s rather shocked expressions.

“Ash, now really isn’t the time.” Taryn said softly, sending her friend a pleading look, although she knew deep down she didn’t deserve it.

“I didn’t ask, nor do I care.” Ashlyn retorted. “Now.” She said through clenched teeth, leaving no room for argument. She turned and followed Taryn up the stairs. Once they were up there and in the guestroom, Ashlyn let her have it.

“What the fuck is going on with you, and don’t you dare tell me nothing! I’m sick of hearing it. The way you’ve been treating Kevin is appalling, and he doesn’t deserve this, from anyone, most especially you! You keep this shit up and you will loose him forever.” Ashlyn blasted her. Taryn blinked rapidly, trying desperately to fight the tears she felt threatening. She knew everything Ashlyn was saying was right.

“You’ve been putting him off, keeping him at a distance…and when you are with him, you’re not really there. Then this snide little comment…so I ask again, what is going on?” Ashlyn asked, crossing her arms over her chest, breathing hard from anger.

Taryn finally exploded from all the emotions going on inside her. “I don’t know!” she nearly yelled, allowing the tears to fall. “I don’t know what is going on inside of me. I hate how I’ve been treating him, I know it’s wrong. And I keep telling myself it’s got to end, and I think that I’m fine, but then I get around him and it all comes out!”

“What does?” Ashlyn asked, softening just a little. “What is causing all this?” Her eyes widened when she saw the way Taryn’s shoulders slumped. “Oh my god, don’t tell me this is all over him not telling you about being in Fuel. It is, isn’t it?”

When Taryn nodded miserably Ashlyn sighed heavily. “Girl, you’ve got to let it go. Or let him go, one or the other. You can’t keep holding onto this anger and stay with Kevin. If you can’t get over him not telling you the truth, then you’ve got to set him free, for his good and your own. What you are doing now is tearing both of you apart, and it’s not fair.”

“I don’t want to let him go.” Taryn cried.

“Then you’ve got to move past this.” Ashlyn said, stepping forward.

“I don’t know how.” Taryn whispered, finally finding the root of her emotional turmoil. “I keep waiting to catch him in another lie.”

Ashlyn shook her head. “Then you need to talk to him. I know for a fact you two have yet to really talk about what happened. With the earthquake and everything else, you just let it slip through the cracks, and look what that’s been doing to you. You’ve got to sit down, tell Kevin exactly how you feel. Work it out together, that’s what couples do. Because if you don’t, I guarantee you Taryn, you and Kevin won’t be a couple much longer.”

***

After the girls disappeared up the steps, Dale turned to Kevin. “You okay, man?” he asked. He was still a little shocked over Taryn’s actions as of late, and only hoped someone could get through to her.

Kevin shook his head, slumping down on the couch. “This can’t go on, Dale.” He said quietly. “I can’t do this. I’ve been holding on to this relationship, thinking things are going to get better and that there is something worth fighting for, but now I don’t think so.”

“What do you mean?” Dale asked, almost afraid to hear his answer. He could perfectly understand where Kevin was coming from, but he hated the thought of things ending between Kevin and Taryn. They really were perfect together…well when Taryn wasn’t acting all crazy.

“You know what I mean. I seriously think I’m going to just end things. I don’t want too, believe me, but it’s obvious even though she says different, that Taryn’s heart is not in this relationship. And what kind of relationship is it? She doesn’t want to spend time with me…she cancels on me time and time again, she ‘forgets’ to return my calls, but then again she has no problem coming out here for the race when she doesn’t think I’m going to be there.” Kevin explained, feeling his blood starting to boil as he went down the list.

Dale shook his head, realizing his friend was right. “And now she’s lashing out. I can’t do this anymore. I want to be with her, but only if she wants to be with me, and it doesn’t feel that way. I’m better off alone than going through this.” Kevin got up and started pacing.

“I don’t know what to tell you.” Dale said, searching for the words. “I hate to see things end between the two of you, but you’ve got to do what you’ve got to do.”

“It’s just this isn’t a relationship, Dale. At least not the kind of relationship I want. At least with the girls that were caught up in who I was still wanted me. I don’t feel like Taryn even wants me at all. And I’m not living like this, not even for her.”

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Chapter Twenty Five

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After Ashlyn left and went back downstairs, Taryn stayed behind in the guestroom, going over everything in her head. She knew that Ashlyn was very right about everything that she’d said…especially that she and Kevin needed to talk about all of this. She sighed heavily, a fresh wave of tears hitting her. She knew that Kevin would be there at any minute. When she’d left, Ashlyn had asked her if she should send Kevin up so that they could talk. She’d said yes, but now she wasn’t so sure that she was ready for this.

Her head snapped up and she tried desperately to dry the tears that were still fresh on her cheeks when she heard the knock on the door. She took a deep breath and slowly let it out in an effort to calm her nerves. She knew that this was going to rough. She was going to have to talk about her feelings and she wasn’t used to doing that.

“Come in.” She called, her voice choking. She stood up as the door opened and Kevin came in. Her breath caught when she looked at him and saw the intense pain in his eyes, making her feel even worse for the way that she’d been treating him the past three months.

“Hey.” Taryn said softly, breaking the silence as Kevin came a bit further into the room and closed the door behind him. He stood silently by the door.

Taryn again felt tears stinging her eyes as she was hit with the full realization of just how bad she’d hurt him. Maybe it would be best if she did just let him go. She didn’t want to hurt him anymore. As much as she’d been hurt in the past, what if she couldn’t ever fully get over him lying to her? What if she couldn’t ever fully trust him? It wouldn’t work…she wouldn’t keep hurting him.

Suddenly feeling weak, Taryn sat down again and lowered her head, trying to figure out where to begin. She figured the beginning was the best place as any. “Um, first and foremost,” She started hesitantly, lifting her eyes to Kevin’s. “I want to sincerely apologize for the way that I’ve treated you. It was completely inappropriate and you did not deserve it. I don’t know…” She stopped abruptly and shook her head before continuing. “No, I do know why I did it. I thought that I was over it, but I…” This time she was stopped by Kevin’s voice.

“Over what?” He asked, although he was positive that her answer wouldn’t make a difference. He’d already made the decision concerning their ‘relationship’ and he planned to stick to it.

Taryn bit her lip as she looked down at her hands and then back into his eyes. “That you lied to me.” She said so quietly that Kevin had to lean forward to hear her.

Kevin stood there in shock for a few moments as he absorbed what he’d just been told. His shoulders fell as he slumped back against the door, all of the anger leaving him in a rush. All of this…it was all his own fault.

“Oh God, Taryn…I’m so sorry. I…” He stopped when Taryn held her hand up to silence him.

“No, it’s not your fault. Its me…all me. I thought that I could get over it and I really tried. But I’ve been lied to so many times in the past that I’m just not sure that I can get past it.” Taryn told him then paused for a moment to get her thoughts in order before going on. “When I met you, you were the best thing had had happened to me…ever. Then when I found out that I’d been lied to…by you, it hurt bad…worse than all of my past hurts combined. It was like a slap in the face.” She stopped again, wiping the tears that begun spilling down her cheeks once again.

“I know that you’re sorry, truly I do. And believe me, I do understand why you did it. I just can’t get past the fact that you lied to me. I thought that you were different from the other guys. Hell, I know you are…I just can’t convince my mind what I know in my heart. Everyday it’s going to gnaw away at me…everyday I’ll be waiting for the next lie. I don’t know if I’ll ever be able to fully trust you again.” She finished and took a moment to prepare to say what she had to tell him next.

“Which is why I think that it would be best for both of us, if we didn’t take this relationship any further.”

Kevin stared at her, his eyes wide with disbelief at what she’d just told him. Sure, he’d been fully ready to end things with her, but that was before he really knew that was going on. He felt horrible that all of this was because he’d lied to her. He should have known…should have seen it. All of this heartbreak…his fault. “No, now that everything is out in the open, we can work this out, Taryn.” He pleaded desperately. He did not want to lose her.

Taryn shook her head. “I don’t want…I CAN’T keep hurting you, Kevin. And at this point in time, that is exactly what I’d continue to do if we stayed together.” She told him, seeing the devastation and heart break in his eyes. “I’m sorry, Kevin, I tried. I really did.” Then with that said, she ran from the room, knowing that she was close to losing it and needed to be alone.

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Chapter Twenty Six

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“Have you found Mystique?” Dale asked. Mystique had been missing for the past day, and with any other cat it wouldn’t be a cause of concern, but with Mystique it was very unusual. She would go out in the morning and once in the evening but only for about five minutes each time. For the most part she was an indoor cat. So needless to say, Ashlyn was more than concerned.

“No.” she sighed, running a hand through her hair. “I’ve called the local shelters and vet’s offices, but no one has seen her.”

“I’m sure she just found herself a studly tom-cat to run around with. She’ll be back soon.” Dale told her, hoping to ease the worry he heard in her voice.

“Yeah, well when she does, she is grounded!” Ashlyn exclaimed.

“So, how is Kevin doing, really?” Ashlyn asked into the phone, propping it on her shoulder as she folded laundry. She needed to change the subject; also she was concerned about Kevin. It had been three weeks since that weekend in North Carolina. Kevin had left just after Taryn ended things, and although Taryn had stayed for the race, she really wasn’t into it.

In all honestly she wasn’t into much of anything anymore. She just went through the motions of ever day life, almost as if on autopilot. Ashlyn could clearly see how it was eating Taryn up inside, but she was too stubborn to call Kevin.

Dale sighed into the phone. “He’s dealing, I guess. He really doesn’t talk about it much, tries to put on a brave face, but I can see through it.”

Kevin was devastated, not only about things ending and losing Taryn, but also because he knew it was his fault for lying too her. It was now something he couldn’t forgive himself for.

“And how is Taryn?” Dale asked, although he pretty much knew from their previous conversations. Thankfully through all this, Ashlyn and Dale had been able to keep their relationship separate from what was going on…or not going on, between Taryn and Kevin.

“The same. She’s pretty much buried herself in work, I hardly ever see her anymore. And when I do, she’s miserable.” Ashlyn sighed, feeling horrible for her friends. She wished there was something she could do to help, but knew this was something she had no control over, it was strictly between Kevin and Taryn…the two most stubborn people in the world, in her opinion.

She looked up when the doorbell rang. “Dale, can you hang on? Someone is at the door.”

“Actually I gotta get going, myself. I’m supposed to be in a meeting right now and am just about a half hour late.” He laughed, knowing he was going to hear it from his teammates. “I’ll call you later, okay?”

“Sounds good. I’ll talk to you then.” She said before hanging up and heading towards the front door. She opened the door and found a medium sized package laying on her front step. She leaned down and picked it up, wondering whom on earth it could be from. It was just a brown box with no address, neither hers nor a return address, which meant whom ever sent it had to deliver it themselves. She stood up and looked around, but saw nothing. She shrugged and walked back inside, pushing the door shut with her foot as she went.

She set the box on the counter and opened the drawer for some scissors. She pulled back the flaps, and instantly jumped back with a scream. She started shaking, any and all color in her face draining as she tentatively took a step forward, praying her first glimpse had been wrong. She was unable to prevent the strangled moan that escaped her when she saw inside again.

A wave of dizziness swept over her, and she grabbed onto the counter, trying to steady herself. But when she looked over to the box again, she was unable to stop it. And for the first time in her life, she fainted.

***

“Ash? You here?” Taryn called as she let herself in the front door. Both she and Ashlyn had each other’s keys, so getting in wasn’t a problem. She frowned when she didn’t get an answer. Ashlyn was supposed to meet her at the shop, then they were going out to dinner, but after waiting for a half-hour, Taryn decided to find out what was up. It wasn’t like Ashlyn to stand her up, or not call…especially when it was her idea to go out..

Taryn sighed, knowing it was Ashlyn’s way to try to cheer her up, but nothing was going to work. She was too miserable, and it was her own damn doing. God she missed Kevin. More than she ever thought possible.

She was pulled from her thoughts when she heard what sounded like a whimper coming from the kitchen.

“Ash, are you in there?” she asked as she walked through the house. She halted when she entered the kitchen and found her friend curled up in a ball in the corner, covering her face and shaking uncontrollably.

“Oh my god, Ashlyn!” Taryn exclaimed as she rushed to her friend’s side. She did a quick check and didn’t see any blood so she didn’t think Ashlyn had hurt herself…at least not that she could tell. “What’s going on, are you okay?” she demanded.

Not raising her head, Ashlyn moved her head from side to side. Taryn sat back and looked around the kitchen. Nothing seemed out of place. What on earth could have caused this kind of reaction. She looked back at her friend.

“Ash, I can’t help you if you don’t tell me what is going on. What is it?” Taryn asked softly, as she reached out to run her hand over her friend’s bent head. She was surprised to find her own hand trembling slightly. Something had freaked out Ashlyn…and in the process she was getting a little scared herself.

Ashlyn raised her head and pointed over to the counter across the room. It took Taryn a minute to register this, for she was so shocked at Ashlyn’s haggard appearance. None of the color was back in her face, her eyes were wide and bloodshot from crying, and her face was streaked with tears.

“Over there.” She croaked out, shuddering then burying her head again.

Taryn stood up and it was then she noticed the box sitting on the counter. She approached it slowly, having no idea what it could be, but bracing herself since whatever it was had this horrible effect on Ashlyn.

She gasped, staggering back herself after taking a quick look in, her eyes wide with disbelief and fear. She felt the nausea rising in her throat, but fought against it. She shook her head and looked one last and final time, making sure she saw correctly.

And she had. There lying in the box was the mangled body of Mystique.

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Chapter Twenty Seven

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Dale smiled, seeing Ashlyn’s number on the screen as he checked his caller ID when his phone rang. “Hey baby.” He greeted, his voice husky. His smile faded at the silence that came from the other end of the line. “Ash?”

“Dale, its Taryn.” She finally said after a few moments.

Dale’s brow creased with worry at the serious tone of Taryn’s voice. “What’s going on, Taryn? Is Ashlyn okay?” He gripped his phone tight, waiting for her answer. He didn’t know what he would do if something had happened to Ashlyn.

Taryn bit her lip as she glanced over at Ashlyn, who was sitting on the couch, still visibly shaken as she talked to the police. Even she was still having a hard time keeping herself together. She knew that she would forever be haunted by what she’d seen. She couldn’t even begin to imagine how Ashlyn felt. “Dale, Ash is okay, but…” Taryn trailed off, not sure she could actually put words to what had happened.

“But what? Tell me, Taryn!” He nearly yelled into the phone, demanding to know what was going on.

“Um…Mystique is dead.” She told him so quietly that he had to strain to hear her.

“What?” Dale asked, the shock clearly evident in his voice. “What the hell happened?” He exploded and then immediately apologized for yelling. But damnit, he loved that cat like his own.

“It’s bad, Dale.”

“What happened?” Dale asked, his voice toned down this time.

“You know earlier when Ash was talking to you and the doorbell rang?” Taryn paused and then continued when Dale acknowledged that he knew what she was talking about. “Well, when she opened the door, there was a box there, but there wasn’t anyone there. There wasn’t a return address…or even her address on the box. But she took it inside and opened it anyway, thinking that maybe it was something that work had sent over, but…” Taryn was abruptly stopped by Dale’s voice.

“Oh dear God…” He breathed, not having to be told anymore.

“Do you know who did it or anything? Does Ash have any idea?” He asked, swearing that they would get to the bottom of this.

“No, she doesn’t have any idea. Neither do I. They’re going to dust the box for prints and they’re going to check the cat for further evidence, but the cops say that its probably just some random thing done by some bored kids or something.” Taryn told him all that she knew.

“The hell! Even bored kids don’t do that! We WILL find out who did this!” Dale fumed then took a moment to calm himself down again. “Okay, ask Ash to call me when she is finished with the police.” He said, getting ready to end the call.

“I will.” Taryn promised. “Bye Dale.”

“Taryn, wait.” Dale stopped her from hanging up.

“Yes?”

“Thank you for calling.” He said sincerely.

“You’re welcome Dale. Bye.” Taryn replied and then ended the call.

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Chapter Twenty Eight

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“Thanks again for coming so quickly,” Taryn called out before closing the door behind the officers, who just left, taking the horrid box with them. She sighed as she turned and walked back in the room where Ashlyn was still on the couch. Aside from answering questions she was asked, she was very quiet.

“Ash, do you want me to get you anything?” Taryn asked, sitting down next to her, hating how helpless she felt. She would do anything to ease what her friend was feeling.

Ashlyn shook her head no, a lone tear slipping down her cheek. “I just can’t believe it.” She whispered.

Taryn put her arm around her. “I know. I can’t imagine how anyone could be so cruel!” Taryn cried, allowing her own tears to come. Mystique had been a one of a kind. Although she was particular on whom she liked, she had loved Taryn, and Taryn had loved the cat as if she were her own.

“My little Mystique…” Ashlyn cut off, then finally burst into tears, burying her head in Taryn’s shoulder allowing the tears to flow. Together they both mourned the horrible death of the beloved animal.

***

“Do you want to come stay over to my place tonight?” Taryn asked, knowing that Ashlyn didn’t need to be alone. It wasn’t just that her cat was now dead. Animals died all the time…it was in the manner that Mystique died and how it was delivered to Ashlyn.

Ashlyn shook her head. “No, the police are supposed to call here if they find anything and I want to be available.” She said, her voice dead. She looked up and over at Taryn, her eyes pleading. “Would you mind staying here with me?” she implored, not wanting to be alone. She knew she wouldn’t be getting much sleep, that image forever embedded in her mind.

“Of course I will.” Taryn said immediately, having already planned on doing that when Ashlyn declined her own offer. “Instead of running home, do you mind if I borrow some clothes?” she asked.

“Help yourself.” Ashlyn answered.

“Okay, I’m going to take a quick shower, then you should, it might help you feel a little better.” Taryn suggested. Ashlyn nodded. Before Taryn disappeared down the hall she turned back. “Oh, don’t forget to call Dale. He’s worried.”

A ghost of a smile formed on Ashlyn’s lips, knowing the only thing that was going to make her feel even slightly better was him. “I will.” She promised, reaching over for the phone as Taryn turned and went to Ashlyn’s room where she could raid her closet.

“Hey, baby, are you alright?” Dale asked the minute his phone rang. He wasn’t worried about it not being Ashlyn on the line this time, he knew instinctively it was her.

“No.” she answered honestly, then took a deep shaky breath. “I just don’t understand. Why would someone do this?” she cried, searching anywhere for answer, although she knew no one else had any more answers to her questions than she did.

“I don’t know, honey, but we will get to the bottom of this, I promise.” He swore. He could feel her pain. He could only imagine if something like that had happened to Bud. He shuddered at the thought.

“I’m flying out there, tomorrow.” He said, causing Ashlyn to finally smile.

“Really?” she asked.

“Of course, I’m not going to let you go through this alone.” He knew it wouldn’t be a problem to get away, as long as he was back in time for the race. He’d already called his step mother, who owned DEI, the company his father started and he raced for, and she had cleared his schedule for him.

“Thank you.” She whispered. “I’d love for you to be here, although I’m not alone. Taryn has been wonderful, although she saw too so I’m sure she’s just as shaken up as I am. But she’s staying here tonight with me.”

“Good, I was hoping she would, or that you would go stay with her.” He didn’t want her being alone any more than she wanted to be. He just wished he could be there now, but it wasn’t possible.

“I really hate to cut this short, but I’ve got to get back. I’m trying to get everything wrapped up so I can get out of here first thing in the morning.” He told her. “I can call you back later.”

She knew with the time difference it would be late for him and wanted him to get some sleep. “No that’s okay. Get some sleep and I’ll talk to you in the morning. I just want to curl up in my bed and try to forget all this.” She answered.

“Okay, I’ll call you first thing alright?” he asked, his heart breaking at the sadness he heard in her voice.

“Okay.” She replied.

“Ash, it will be alright, I promise.” He’d find a way to make it ‘alright’.

“Just knowing you’re coming out here makes it better.” She told him. “I miss you.” She did every moment she was away from him, but now she needed him more than ever.

“I miss you too, baby.”

***

“Hey Kevin.” Dale greeted as soon as his friend picked up the phone.

“Dale! What’s up? I was just finishing packing to come see you.” Kevin greeted. He hadn’t been to see Dale in weeks, not feeling like being around people, and he was just getting to the point where the walls were caving in on him, and he was drowning in his own self pity. He needed out, and Dale was providing the perfect escape.

“I’m sorry, Kevin, but I need to cancel. I’m flying out to California in the morning to be with Ashlyn. Mystique is dead.” He said.

“Oh no, was she sick?” Kevin asked, not remembering anything mentioned about the cat. He immediately knew there was more to the story by the way Dale sighed heavily. “What? What is it?”

Dale proceeded to relay the story of how Mystique died and was found. “Oh my god, that’s horrible!” Kevin exclaimed, feeling terrible for Ashlyn. “How is she?”

“She’s shaken up, understandably. So is Taryn, who is staying with Ash right now. Like I said, I’m heading out there first thing in the morning, so I can be with Ashlyn, and hopefully find out who the hell did this!” Dale stated angrily.

“Do you want me to come with you?” Kevin offered. He knew that meant seeing Taryn, and even though he dreaded it, he felt he needed it too. That and he wanted to be there for Ashlyn. In the time he and Taryn had split, Ashlyn had called him quite a few times, and seen him when they were all with Dale, and she had proven herself to be a true friend. Although her loyalty would always lie with Taryn, she was still able to separate herself from that and be there for Kevin as well.

“Would you mind?” Dale asked, not wanting to put Kevin in an awkward situation.

“No of course not. Sure it will be rough seeing Taryn, but I can’t continue to be friends with you and Ashlyn and expect to never see Taryn again. I want to be there for Ashlyn, just like you.” Kevin stated, his mind made up. “Look I’m gonna call the airport now, and catch a flight to North Carolina. I’ll meet you at your house and then we’ll leave together in the morning for California.”

“Thank you Kevin.” Dale breathed a sigh of relief. He had no problem going out there alone, he was just worried about his own temper if he did find the person who did this. He knew Kevin would help keep him calm.

“Anytime, Dale.”

***

Taryn rolled over and opened her eyes, rubbing them, trying to figure out what had woken her. It had taken her hours to finally fall asleep, so she wasn’t real thrilled about being disturbed. She sat up in bed, looking around. Something wasn’t right, but she couldn’t figure out what. That was when she smelled it. Smoke!

She got up and walked over to her bedroom door, opened it and immediately started coughing. The hallway was filled with smoke.

“ASHLYN!” she yelled, stumbling as she started down the hallway towards her friend’s room. Thankfully she didn’t see any flames, which could only mean the fire wasn’t in this part of the house, yet. “ASH, WAKE UP!”

She threw open the door and ran over to her sleeping friend. It took a minute, but Ashlyn finally came awake coughing from the thick black cloud filling the room.

“What the hell?” Ashlyn demanded, blinking rapidly, her eyes beginning to water just as Taryn’s were.

“We need to get out of here now! The house is on fire!” Taryn exclaimed, going over to the window. Ashlyn didn’t even have time to really register the news, she just jumped up and immediately began looking for Mystique.

Taryn paused. “What are you doing?”

“Where’s Mystique, we need to get her out!” Ashlyn cried, then it hit her. Her shoulders slumped. “Oh, never mind.” She said quietly before rushing over to the window.

“It won’t move!” Taryn yelled, pushing with all her might.

“What?” Ashlyn exclaimed. “That’s impossible!” She too started pushing, and even together they could not get the window open. “Forget it, it’s not moving. We need to get out the front door.”

Taryn shook her head. “I don’t think so, I believe that’s where the fire is!”

“Well we need to do something and quick, because the fire is going to be back here before long!” Ashlyn exclaimed, nearing on panic.

Taryn took a deep breath, or as deep as she could without gagging on the smoke. “Okay, give me something heavy and I’ll break the window.” Ashlyn immediately went across the room and grabbed the cast iron lamp that sat by her bed.

She stood back as Taryn covered her eyes before hitting it hard against the window, effectively shattering the window in the process. Ashlyn grabbed two pairs of shoes, tossing one pair to Taryn.

“Put these on quick, there’s glass all over the floor.” She demanded. Then, one by one, they climbed out the window. They both got a few cuts on their arms and legs, but other than that, they were fine, aside from inhaling a lot of smoke.

They made it around to the front of the house just as the fire trucks pulled up. They were immediately taken a safe distance away and sat on the ground, each given oxygen just for precaution. Together, they watched in stunned silence as Ashlyn’s house burned to the ground, despite the firefighters’ efforts to save it.

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

Chapter Twenty Nine

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

“Taryn, would you mind picking Dale up at the airport? I am beat.” Ashlyn asked tiredly the next morning. After taking a hot bath at Taryn’s house, where she was now staying, she was left weak and physically exhausted. After once again talking to the police, she’d spent the next few hours before sunrise on the phone with Dale, filling him in on the fire. She knew that Taryn had only gotten a few hours of sleep herself, but she also knew that Taryn functioned much better on little sleep than she did.

Taryn looked over at her friend, her heart going out to her. She was still scared to death every time she thought about the fire. She couldn’t possible imagine how Ashlyn felt losing her beloved cat, her house, and everything in it all in one day. At least they’d been able to get out without serious injury. Apart from some cuts, their throats being sore, and a lingering cough from the smoke. They were fine. They’d been damn lucky.

“Of course I can.” Taryn replied as she sat down across her friend. “What time does his flight come in?”

“11:32am” Ashlyn answered, struggling to keep her eyes open. “Meet him by the baggage pick-up.”

Taryn glanced up at the clock, seeing that she would have to leave in about forty five minutes to get there in time with traffic and everything. “That’s not a problem at all.” Taryn told her as she stood up and held her hand out to her friend. “Come on, you should go get some sleep and before you know it, Dale will be here.”

“Thank you, Taryn.” Ashlyn said as she began making her way down the hallway to the spare room.

“Anytime.” Taryn called after her, watching until she disappeared inside the room. Then she went to take a quick shower and get read to get going.

*****

Taryn chewed her lip anxiously as she waited for Dale’s flight to get in. As she was driving to the airport, she realized that she’d left Ashlyn alone at her house. Normally that wouldn’t be a problem, but in light of recent events, things weren’t quite normal anymore. It was quite apparent now that Mystique’s death had been not been random, neither had the fire.

Taryn’s head snapped up when it was announced that Dale’s flight had just landed. She got up from where she’d been seated and walked over to the baggage carousel to meet him. She looked around for him, although she knew that he probably wasn’t even off the plane yet. She waited, pacing anxiously, worrying about Ashlyn.

She spun around when she heard a voice behind her say her name and she knew that it was Dale. She was not prepared for who was with him. She stared at him for a moment, her eyes wide with genuine shock. Then she snapped out of the fog that had temporarily taken over her brain and looked at Dale.

“Ashlyn asked me to pick you up. She’s just exhausted.” Taryn explained why she was there and not Ashlyn. She glanced at Kevin, feeling his eyes on her. “Hello Kevin.” She greeted quietly.

“Hello Taryn.” Kevin replied back just as softly. He had known that he would see her sometime during this trip, but he hadn’t thought that it would be so soon.

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

Chapter Thirty

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

The ride home was very quiet, except for Dale asking questions concerning the fire. They passed the remains of Ashlyn’s house on the way to Taryn’s and both men winced, their tempers flaring at the sight before them. If the women hadn’t gotten out through the window…

They pulled up in Taryn’s yard and Dale immediately jumped out and rushed into the house, needing to be with Ashlyn. He knew neither she nor Taryn would lie to him about her being all right, but it was something he needed to see with his own eyes.

Unfortunately, it also left Taryn and Kevin standing outside the car by themselves. Taryn fiddled with the keys in her hand, then glanced over at Kevin, quickly looking away when she found his eyes on her.

“Uh, come on in.” she offered, leading the way to the door. When they walked in, Dale and Ashlyn were coming down the hall.

Kevin went over to her and gave her a hug, telling her how glad he was she was all right, and that he was sorry for Mystique and her house. She nodded.

“Thank you for coming.” She said softly, leaning against Dale. She was still dead tired. After lying down, she’d slept a little, but had been awoken by nightmares of the fire. In her dream, she had gotten out but Taryn hadn’t.

“Come on, you need to sit down.” Dale told her, guiding her over towards the couch. “Do you need anything?” he asked.

She smiled and shook her head, reaching out for his hand, pulling him down next to her. “Just you.” She replied, curling up in his embrace, feeling a hell of a lot better.

“Have you heard anything from the police?” Taryn asked, standing just outside the living room. The situation was hard enough as it was, but now with Kevin being there it was almost unbearable.

“Yeah, they called right before you guys came in. A detective is on his way over, I think has some information.” Ashlyn answered, stifling a yawn.

Everyone fell quiet, not really knowing what to do or say. Taryn sighed and turned and went to her bedroom. She needed to get out of the house. She picked up her phone and called her work voice mail, just wanting to check in.

“Hi, this is Rusty Donavan. I’m in town on vacation and decided to get a little ink work done. I asked around and heard from many people you are the best of the best. I know it’s last minute, but I was hoping to get in today. Could you please call me back and let me know?”

Taryn listened to the rest of the message, copying down the number. It was just what she was looking for. The perfect excuse to get out of the house for a little while. She called the man back and they agreed to meet at her shop in a half hour.

She quickly changed her clothes and headed back out to the living room, wanting to get there before her new client, so she could have everything set up. “I’m going to the shop. I have a client meeting me there.” She announced when she walked back in. She kept her eyes averted from Kevin’s direction at all times.

Ashlyn looked surprised. “I thought you were closed today.” She said.

Taryn shrugged. “I am, but I just got a call from someone who is here on vacation and wants to get in today. I need to get out of the house for a little while, and it won’t take me long. I’ll be back as soon as I’m done.” She promised, knowing Ashlyn would be fine with both Dale and Kevin there with her. If it were just she and Ashlyn, she wouldn’t have even considered going in.

Ashlyn nodded, realizing the real reason for Taryn’s sudden need to go to work. “Okay, be careful.” She told her.

Taryn smiled and nodded. “I will, and if the police need to talk to me again, tell them to come by the shop, or I can stop by the station.”

Ashlyn nodded, and after saying quick good-byes, Taryn left, breathing a small sigh of relief as she went.

***

“Thank you for taking the time to meet with me, Ms. McBride. Hopefully you’ll be able to provide us with some answers that will help us to catch whoever did this.” Detective Lister said as he sat down. “I promise not to take up too much of your time.”

Ashlyn shook her head, sitting back down, Dale and Kevin on both sides of her, making her feel safer than she had in awhile. “It’s fine.” She told him.

“First, we need to know why you nailed your window shut.” He asked, looking down at his notes, then at her. Both Dale and Kevin turned to her as well, taking in her shocked expression.

“Excuse me?” she asked, confused.

“We were able to recover the remains of your bedroom window. We remembered you and Ms. Shelton mentioning that you couldn’t open the window and having to break the glass to get out of the house. What we recovered we were able to piece back together and found that the window was nailed shut, from the outside.” He explained, knowing just by the look on her face that she had nothing to do with it. Which also meant that the fire was indeed intentional.

“I’ve never nailed any window shut.” She exclaimed. “Why would I? This is California, many nights I sleep with the window open! That’s why I was so surprised when Taryn couldn’t get it open. I’d just opened it myself the night before!”

Dale grabbed her hand, holding on to it, feeling the panic rolling off her in waves. He took a deep steadying breath himself. Someone had tried to kill her. He was having a very hard time keeping quiet. But he knew he had to keep his own emotions in check for right now.

“I had doubted that you did do it, but I needed to see your reaction. This changes things a bit. This means that the fire, and what happened to your cat was intentional. Can you think of anyone that would want to cause you harm?” The detective asked.

Ashlyn shook her head. “No, and I’ve gone over it time and time again in my head. I get along with everyone at work, even my old job. I don’t have any enemies, or even anyone I’ve pissed off!”

“How will you find this bastard?” Dale demanded, unable to hold his tongue any longer.

The detective closed his book. “We’re working on that Mr. Earnhardt. We’ve got men working around the clock, testing everything from the crime scene.”

“And what happens if they don’t find anything?” Kevin asked, speaking up for the first time.

The detective paused, trying to find the best way to put his next statement. “It is quite possible we won’t find the evidence we need to pin point someone. We are going to do everything we can I promise you that. But even for right now, whoever has done this is still running around free, able to strike again at any time.” At his words, Ashlyn paled and shrunk back in the couch.

“I think it’s best if you find somewhere to stay, somewhere safe until we can get all this cleared up.” He told her seriously.

“She’s coming to North Carolina.” Dale stated. Ashlyn gave him a small smile in gratitude and the detective nodded.

“That’s probably the best idea. As far away from here as possible until things settle down.”

“No, she’s moving permanently to North Carolina. She’s not coming back here.” Dale clarified, this time earning a shocked look from both Ashlyn and Kevin. Dale squeezed her hand. “We’ll talk about it later, honey.”

Before Ashlyn could say anything, the detective, who was smiling knowingly stood up. “I think that’s all I need for right now. I’ll be in touch, and of course if you think of anything or need anything, please give me a call. Oh and let me know when you are leaving town, that way we will know you’re safe.”

Kevin got up and walked the detective out. Meanwhile Ashlyn turned and looked at Dale.

“Permanently?” she echoed. He grinned sheepishly at her and nodded.

“It’s something I’ve been thinking about for awhile, even before all this. I hate the fact that you’re so far away from me. We hardly get to see each other, and I want to be with you all the time. If you’re not comfortable with moving in with me, then we can find you a place close by.” He told her, giving her the option.

She bit her lip, thinking things over. She wasn’t sure she was ready to make that kind of decision. For one, it was a huge move for someone who until meeting Dale had never really even traveled that much. Now to move to North Carolina? Could she do it? Was she emotionally ready to make that kind of decision with everything that was going on.

She looked up and into his eyes, and what she saw there made her decision for her. She didn’t need to think about it, nor try and rationalize it. She knew her decision.

“If I move to North Carolina…” she started but he interrupted her.

“When. When you move.” He grinned. She shook her head and laughed.

“Okay, when I move to North Carolina, I want to be with you. I don’t want to live some where else.” She told him, with absolute certainty. Dale let out the breath he didn’t even realize he’d been holding.

He leaned forward and gently kissed her, pulling back before it could get too intense. “You won’t regret this, I promise. I swear to you, I’ll keep you safe, and make you the happiest woman alive.”

She grinned and hugged him close. “I know you will, Dale. You already do.”

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

Chapter Thirty One

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

"Thank you so much for taking me at such short notice." Rusty Donavon said as he sat down in the chair, pulling up his sleeve, ready for the ink work on the spot he'd already picked out.

Taryn smiled at him. "It's not a problem at all." She replied, getting to work. She kept glancing at him from beneath her eyelashes. He looked strangely familiar. It had hit her the second she saw him. She knew him from somewhere, but for the life of her could not figure out where.

"So, where are you from?" she asked, making conversation, and also hoping some of his answers would provide some clarity on how she knew him.

"I'm from Florida." He answered. "Just here on vacation."

“Dang, if I lived in Florida, I don’t think I’d go elsewhere for a vacation.” Taryn commented. She’d been to Florida a couple times for Tattoo Conventions and she loved it. Not that she hated California…well, except for earthquakes.

The man smiled. “Well, I think if I lived in California, I’d never leave. Talk about paradise.”

Taryn laughed a little humorlessly. “Yeah, if you can handle the earthquakes.”

“Oh yeah, I remember there was quite a bad one here not long ago.”

“Taryn nodded. “Yeah, there was.” She replied softly, thinking to herself that it was the day that everything had quite literally gone to hell.

“So you must be a big fan of racing then?” Taryn asked, changing the subject as she began the outline of his tattoo, which coincidentally was Dale’s signature #8. A few months ago she wouldn’t have known what or whom the 8 represented, but now she knew well.

“Yeah, I am.” The man smiled sheepishly. “My favorite driver is Dale Earnhardt Jr. You know him?” He asked, anticipating her answer.

Taryn kept her eyes down. “I know who he is, but no, I don’t know him personally.” She lied. Then sat back and looked up when she felt him tense up.

“Sorry…that stung a little bit there.” He said, gesturing to his arm when she looked at him questionably.

“Okay to continue?”

“Please.” He answered and then he continued talking as she got back to work.

“Yeah, Dale Jr. is an awesome driver. But he’s so much more than that. I have a special connection with him.”

Taryn lifted her head again and looked at him, her eyebrow lifted in surprise and a bit of disbelief. “Oh? How is that?” She questioned as she put her head down and worked more on his tattoo. She wished that she could remember where she’d seen this guy before. It was becoming rather frustrating!

“Well, he lost his father and I lost mine around the same time. I know how he feels, I know what he’s going through.” He explained his ‘connection’ with Dale.

Taryn glanced up at him, giving him a funny look that he missed and she quickly erased it off her face before he did see it. “I’m sorry about your father.” She said quietly, not telling him about losing her own father. She was a little afraid that if she did, he’d feel connected to her too.

“Thanks. It was hard at first, but Dale has really been there for me through all of this. I don’t know if could have made it through without him.”

Taryn opened her mouth to comment, but he spoke again before she could get any words out.

“He’s got a new girlfriend now. Takes up a lot…all of his time. Have you seen her? There was a picture of them in one of the entertainment magazines. Beautiful woman.” He kept talking, not realizing that Taryn had stopped working on his tattoo and was staring at him, shocked by the turn this conversation had taken.

“And I heard on the news this morning that she and her friend were involved in a fire. And this friend of hers, I understand used to date the drummer from Fuel. But yeah, they were in a fire.”

Taryn quickly got back to work on his tattoo when he stopped talking. “I hope they weren’t hurt.” She said, wondering if he had any idea who he was talking to.

“No, they thankfully got out alright.” He said, unable to hide the hint of animosity in his voice. “But the police have no idea who did it. It’s highly unlikely that they’ll ever find out.”

Taryn lifted her head again and looked him in the eye. “Hmm…well, I hope that if they do find the bastard that did it, I hope that they hang him to the wall by his balls.” She told him before she could stop herself. She quickly focused her attention back on his tattoo and worked on finishing it as an uncomfortable silence fell between them.

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

Chapter Thirty Two

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

“So how was work?” Ashlyn asked, hanging out in the kitchen with Taryn, helping her cook dinner, as the guys were relaxing in the living room.

“It was…strange.” Taryn replied as she stirred the spaghetti sauce. Normally neither she nor Ashlyn would skimp out on dinner, but tonight neither of them felt much in the mood for cooking, so they were just making something quick and easy.

“Strange?” Ashlyn asked. “What do you mean?”

“Well, the tattoo he wanted was Dale’s #8, so we got talking about racing. And then he just turned weird. Says he has this ‘connection’ with Dale.” Taryn tried to explain.

“Who has a connection with me?” Dale asked, hearing the tail end of the conversation and he and Kevin walked into the kitchen.

“Taryn’s client.” Ashlyn grinned.

Dale simply shrugged. “Oh.” He answered without any feeling. It wasn’t something he hadn’t heard before. Anymore, he didn’t pay it any mind.

“Taryn says he was strange.” Ashlyn provided more information.

“Strange how?” Kevin asked, looking directly at Taryn, who wouldn’t meet his eyes. It was the first he’d spoken directly to her since she got home.

“I don’t know how to explain it, it was just weird.” Taryn exclaimed, feeling very cornered at the moment with everyone looking at her. She was beginning to regret even bringing it up!

Then she remembered. “Oh wait. He was asking a lot of questions about you though.” She said to Ashlyn. “It just struck me as funny, but I let it go, cuz after that he dropped the whole subject completely and seemed normal.”

“Me? What on earth would he want to know about me?” Ashlyn asked, feeling a twinge of fear trickle down her spine.

“Okay, I’m going to give you all a complete summary.” Taryn sat down, allowing Ashlyn to take over stirring the sauce. “He came in and said Dale was his favorite driver and asked if I knew him. I said no, telling him I’d heard of you, but didn’t know you. He then said you two have a special connection, because his father died around the same time as yours. He said if it weren’t for you that he might not have gotten through it. Then he mentioned the fact that you had a new girlfriend,” she paused and looked at Ashlyn. “He said he saw a picture of the two of you together in some magazine or something. He acted almost…I don’t know, jealous or angry. Said you were taking up all his time or something like that.”

Dale and Kevin looked at each other, silently communicating. “That is strange.” Ashlyn commented, turning back to the sauce.

“Guess you just have some weird fans.” Taryn teased Dale as she got up and headed over to the refrigerator.

“Kinda like that guy we met at the club in North Carolina, huh?” Ashlyn asked over her shoulder, sending a joking grin Dale’s way. They all turned when Taryn gasped, stopping in her tracks.

“That’s it!” she exclaimed. “I knew that guy looked familiar and I’d seen him somewhere before, but I couldn’t remember where! It was him, the same guy from the club!”

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

Chapter Thirty Three

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

“Can we talk?” Ashlyn asked Taryn after they finished cleaning up from dinner, even though all of the food had gone untouched, none of them feeling like eating. After Taryn had remembered about the guy at her shop being the same as the one at the club in North Carolina, they’d called Detective Lister. He came right over and took their statements about what had happened at the club and Taryn’s experience with him at her shop. She also gave the detective a detailed description and the name that he’d given her. He left, promising to let them know as soon as he found anything out.

“Um, sure.” Taryn answered as she put the last of the dishes away. She glanced at Ashlyn, being able to tell by the tone of her voice that it was something serious. “What’s up?” She asked as she sat down across from Ashlyn at the table.

“Ashlyn looked at Taryn and was hit with the sudden realization that she was going to be thousands of miles away from her best friend…permanently. She felt tears sting her eyes, but she quickly blinked them away.

“Dale asked me to come to North Carolina with him.” She stated. “Actually I’m moving there.”

Taryn was unprepared for the wave of sadness that washed over her at hearing Ashlyn’s words. It was so intense that it nearly took her breath away, but she quickly shook it off for the time being and smiled at Ashlyn. “I think that that’s the best place for you to be.” She said sincerely. “When are you going?”

“Tomorrow night. Dale has to get back and I’m going with him.” She told Taryn.

Taryn sat back in her chair, the shock evident. She was silent for a moment as she allowed all of this to sink in. “Well, I’m going to miss you, but like I said, it’s the best place for you to be.” She said as she stood up and walked over to Ashlyn, giving her a hug.

“Well, I suppose we better go see what the guys are up to.” Ashlyn said, changing the subject as she stood up also. She went to the refrigerator and got two more beers for Kevin and Dale. She knew as well as Taryn that if they talked about this much more, they’d both be in tears in seconds.

“Um…go ahead. I’ll be right there.” Taryn said as she busied herself wiping off the counter top.

Ashlyn was about to protest, but stopped when she realized that her news was a lot for Taryn to grasp and she probably just needed a few minutes alone. That and the fact that Kevin was in the other room made Taryn reluctant to leave the kitchen.

“Okay. Don’t stay in here too long.” Ashlyn said, giving her a smile.

Taryn returned her smile. “I won’t.”

***

Did you tell her?” Dale asked as Ashlyn came into the living room and sat down beside him.

“Yes.” Ashlyn answered as she snuggled even closer to him.

“She okay?” Dale questioned, noticing that Taryn hadn’t come out with Ashlyn. He knew that that probably had a lot to do with Kevin’s presence to.

“Yeah, she’s understandably upset, but she’s okay with it. She thinks that it’s the best place for me to be too.” Ashlyn explained.

The three of them talked for the next half-hour, each of them glancing periodically toward the kitchen until Taryn finally came out, looking completely exhausted.

“I think I’m going to call it a day. The three hours of sleep that I got last night is starting to catch up with me.” She told them and then addressed Kevin directly. “Kevin, the sofa pulls out. There are extra blankets, pillows, and sheets in the hall closet. Use whatever you need.” She knew that Dale would sleep with Ashlyn so she wasn’t worried about him.

“Good night everyone.” She told them and then turned and went to her room. She was asleep as soon as her head hit the pillow.

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

Chapter Thirty Four

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

“Come on, Dale, we’re gonna be late!” Ashlyn complained, standing out in the foyer, her hands on her hips while she and Kevin waited impatiently for Dale. He hurried down the stairs and stood there with his arms out.

“Does this look okay?” he asked, looking from his girlfriend to best friend, waiting for their opinion. Kevin looked away Ashlyn and grinned, causing her to fight not to laugh. It was the fourth different outfit he’d come down in, but nothing seemed to be good enough.

He wanted to look perfect, which they could both understand, since they were getting ready to go to the Dale Earnhardt Concert Tribute. It was something Dale Jr. and Teresa had started a year or so back, it was held in the infield of Daytona International Speedway, the very place Dale Earnhardt has lost his life. There were a number of bands scheduled to play before crowds of thousands, and Dale himself was to make an appearance and it was also to be televised, which was why he was so currently worried about his appearance.

Ashlyn grinned at him. “Honey, you look just as good as you did the last three times. It’s perfect, now come on before we’re late!” Dale looked down at himself and shrugged, not happy with his clothes but decided it would have to do.

“You’re worse than a woman.” Kevin teased, earning the classic ‘Earnhardt’ glare from Dale.

“Blow me.” Dale muttered, grabbing his keys.

“I would think that Ashlyn would be taking care of that.” Kevin shot back, earning a smack upside the head from Ashlyn.

“Alright you two, enough with the lover’s spat. Let’s go!” Ashlyn told them heading towards the door, leaving them sputtering behind her.

“You know, it’s a shame that Taryn couldn’t make it this weekend.” Dale said as they drove to the track. Ashlyn nodded as she looked out the window.

“I’ve noticed her visits are getting farther and farther in between.” She answered sadly. It had been four months since Ashlyn had moved to North Carolina. Taryn at first came out to visit, or meet them at a track, every chance she got. But then it started dwindling off, and in fact so had the phone calls. It had been nearly two weeks since she and Ashlyn had last talked. Although Ashlyn loved being with Dale, and wouldn’t trade it for the world, she was desperately missing her best friend, and the bond that used to be there.

Kevin and Taryn hadn’t seen each other since he’d been out to California when Ashlyn’s house burned down. Neither spoke of the other, it was almost like they had completely forgotten each other.

After figuring out who the ‘fan’ was and connecting him as Ashlyn’s ‘stalker’, the police had caught the guy. He was questioned and although his alibi checked out, he was ordered to stay away from both Dale and Ashlyn. Although at first they were both on edge, looking around ever corner, eventually they both relaxed, and were able to enjoy living together, and look towards the future of where their relationship was going.

Kevin had no doubt that Dale was just waiting for the right time. They’d already discussed him asking Ashlyn to marry him, and even had the ring. Kevin was just as excited about it as Dale, and kept urging him to hurry up and do it, but Dale insisted that he wanted things ‘perfect’. But Kevin also knew there was no way Dale would be able to wait much longer.

They arrived at the track and were immediately escorted backstage, where the bands were setting up. Kevin couldn’t help but shake his head and grin, looking around. God he missed this. In fact, Fuel had been scheduled to play, but the instant Dale had seen them on the list, he had called them, spoke directly to Carl and told him not to bother.

“Excuse me, Dale?”

They all turned and found one of Dale’s crew members, and friend who was helping the concert run smoothly, walking up to him. “This was just sent for you.” He handed him a piece of paper and left.

Dale looked at it and turned to Kevin and Ashlyn. “I’ve got to go meet Teresa for a few minutes. She wants to go over some last minute changes. I’ll be right back. If I don’t get back in time, good luck tonight.” He grinned before disappearing around the corner.

Kevin looked down at Ashlyn confused. “Good luck? Why on earth would he wish me good luck?” he asked. She shrugged trying to look innocent, yet at the same time as confused as Kevin, although she knew full well what was about to happen.

“I have no idea Kevin.” She replied, averting her eyes, knowing he’d see she was lying if she met his.

“Ashlyn.” He said warningly, not buying her ‘innocent’ act. She turned away and pretended not to hear him as she went to talk to some people she knew. He was hot on her heels and about to question her farther when Teresa Earnhardt came around the corner and immediately went over to Ashlyn, giving her a hug. The two women got along beautifully, and Teresa found she couldn’t wait until Ashlyn was a permanent part of the family.

“Hey, Kevin!” Before he turned around, he saw both Ashlyn and Teresa grinning from ear to ear as they looked over Kevin’s shoulder, and he knew immediately Dale had set something up.

He turned around and grinned when he saw Ben Burnley, the lead vocalist of Breaking Benjamin coming towards him. They shook hands as they greeted each other. “How you doing, man? It’s been a long time.” Ben smiled. They had gotten to know each other when Kevin was with Fuel.

“I’m doing good actually.” Kevin replied. “How have you been? This is a surprise, I didn’t know you guys were playing here tonight.”

“Last minute thing. Dale called me personally and all but begged us to come out. And you know the Earnhardts, you just can’t say no to them! So here we are. Listen, one reason we kinda held off on coming out here is because we don’t have a drummer. Well, Dale swore he had the perfect solution, and I’m ashamed to admit that I didn’t think of it myself. How would you like to play with us tonight?” Ben asked hopefully. Kevin was genuinely shocked. One that Dale would have gone out on a limb for him like that, and two that it was so sudden.

It was an opportunity he wasn’t about to let pass him by.

“Of course!” he exclaimed, excited like a kid at Christmas. “I’d love too, thank you!”

“No thank you, you’re saving us here! And you never know, could turn into something long term.” Ben grinned.

Ashlyn and Teresa watched as the two men talked. “Looks good so far.” Teresa stated, hoping everything worked out for Kevin. She really liked him.

“It sure does…Dale’s a genius!” Ashlyn exclaimed, then suddenly turned to Teresa. “I thought you were meeting with him.”

“With Dale? No, why would I?” she asked.

“But he got a note from you saying you wanted to meet with him about some last minute changes. He just went to meet you.” Ashlyn exclaimed, looking around for Dale.

“I have no idea what you’re talking about. There are no last minute changes, and I certainly didn’t send him a note!” Teresa stated. Ashlyn nodded.

“I’m going to go look for him. Tell Kevin I’ll be back in a few minutes.” She said before hurrying in the direction she had last seen Dale.

***

“Teresa?” Dale called as he walked in the room that was supposed to be set up as he stepmother’s office for the night. It was dark and it was obvious she wasn’t there. He was just about to turn and walk out when the door slammed shut behind him. He spun around, but couldn’t see anything for the darkness.

“Who’s there?” he demanded.

“Did you really think I could just stay away from you?” The voice sent chills down Dale’s spine. He knew instinctively who it was.

“It’s time we had a talk, Dale.” He said his name almost viciously.

“You must be Rusty, if that’s really your name.” Dale spat.

“Oh it is. And I’m your biggest fan. We’re meant to be together.” The man stated, obviously not playing with a full deck.

Dale laughed harshly. “’Meant to be together’? You really are a sick fucker!”

“Now, now, no calling names.” The deranged fan scolded. “So, where’s your girlfriend?” he asked, unable to keep the anger from his voice.

Dale took a step forward, although he still couldn’t really tell where the man was. “You stay the fuck away from her!” he growled.

“You didn’t heed my warnings.” The man stated. “The cat…the fire, it was all supposed to scare her away from you. But instead, you come running in like her knight in shining armor and move the bitch in with you! Bad move. Now I’ll have to take care of her permanently.” He said, his voice almost taking a sad note to it. “Pity too, she really is a pretty little thing.”

“I swear to God, if you lay one hand on her…” Dale started but was interrupted.

“You have no say in it. You see, I can get to her anytime I want. Do anything I want, and there’s not a damn thing you can do about it. I’ve been watching her a lot lately…and had plenty of opportunity. But I only thought it was fair, out of my feelings for you to give you the chance to set things right.” He said.

“What the fuck are you talking about?” Dale demanded, growing angrier and angrier by the second.

“I’m talking about letting her go. You have the power to save her. Just set her free. She’s taking up too much of your time and attention. She’s even affecting your racing! You’re father wouldn’t stand for it, and neither will I!” He yelled.

“You know nothing about my father, how dare you talk about him!” Dale yelled back.

“Shhh, listen, someone’s coming. And if all goes to plan, it will be the lovely Ashlyn coming to look for you. You have a decision to make, Earnhardt. Better make it quick.” He said as the door to the room opened.

Dale felt fear flow through him, and knew he didn’t have enough time to warn her. He was sure Rusty had positioned himself near the door and would be on top of Ashlyn before the warning left his mouth. He had to think of something…and fast. There was no way he was going to allow this bastard hurt her, in any way.

“Dale? Are you in here?” Ashlyn asked as she stepped into the dark room.

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

Chapter Thirty Five

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

Before Dale could even open his mouth to warn Ashlyn, she screamed as Rusty grabbed her and slammed her against the wall behind them. Even though the breath was knocked out of her, she immediately began struggling to get away.

“Don’t…fucking move!” Rusty spat as he tightened his grip on her. “If you want to live, stay still!” He demanded as he viscously backhanded her to further emphasize his point.

“Ashlyn!” Dale yelled her name as his feet finally became uncemented and he rushed forward, even though he could see basically nothing in front of him. He stopped dead in his tracks when he heard the sound of a gun being cocked. Rusty looked in Dale’s direction.

“Last chance, Dale.” Rusty reminded him. “Remember, it’s all up to you. You own the power.” Then with that said, he threw Ashlyn down to the ground and fled the room.

Dale immediately, but carefully made his way over to where he thought Ashlyn had fallen. He dropped to his hands and knees, searching, and found her a few feet away. He drew her into his arms, talking softly to her as she trembled against him.

***

Kevin was a bundle of excitement when he and the rest of Breaking Benjamin came off stage after a stellar performance. The crown had gone wild when they heard Kevin would be playing with them, and it really began to sink in to Kevin just how much he missed this and wanted it back.

“Man, that was awesome!” Ben stated as he came up to Kevin. “Has to be one of our best performances. You did an amazing job. I’m gonna talk to the guys, but I seriously don’t see them having a problem with this…I know I’d definitely love to have you as our new drummer.”

Kevin’s eyes were shinning. “Ben, I’d love too!”

“I’ll talk to then tonight, and give you a call, okay?” he promised. Kevin nodded but before anymore could be said there was a lot of commotion backstage and security took off running. Kevin looked around wondering what was going on when Teresa came up to him, looking frantic and worried.

“I’m sorry to interrupt,” she started looking at Ben before turning her full attention to Kevin. “I think you’re gonna wanna come with me.”

“Go ahead, I’ll talk to you later Kevin.” Ben said before Kevin turned and moved quickly through the backstage area with Teresa.

“What’s going on?” he demanded.

Teresa took a deep breath. “Something has happened with Dale and Ashlyn.”

Kevin paused in his steps before regaining his momentum. “Shit.” He muttered. “Are they alright?”

“I haven’t seen them yet, but from what I’ve heard Ashlyn was attacked. She’s okay, battered and bruised, but otherwise fine. Shaken up of course, and so is Dale.” Teresa said, her own anger nearly overflowing at the man causing her stepson and his girlfriend his much pain.

“Was it…” Kevin trailed off at Teresa’s nod. “God damnit!” he swore, wishing he could get his own hands on the man.

“He got away.” Teresa said softly as they came around the corner and walked into the room where security was with Dale and Ashlyn. Teresa immediately rushed over to Ashlyn, pulling her gently away from Dale, who wasn’t willing to relinquish his hold on her too easily. But Teresa knew Dale needed some time. She knew him well enough to see he was about to loose it, and also knew right now the only person who could calm him down, aside from Ashlyn who was too shaken up herself to help, was Kevin.

“Come on, Ash, we’ll go get you cleaned up. I’ll bring her right back.” She promised Dale when she saw he was about to protest. “Don’t worry, I’ll take security with me.”

She winced when she looked closer at Ashlyn and saw the bruises and blood on her mouth, lip and cheek. Together, along with three security guys, they walked towards the ladies restroom.

Dale put his head in his hands, taking in a deep ragged breath. Kevin moved over next to him, sitting down on the desk Dale was also leaning on. “Hey, man, you alright?” Kevin asked softly.

Dale lifted his head, glaring at his friend. “Do I fucking look alright? Does Ashlyn?” he snapped, lashing out at the first person he could.

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

Chapter Thirty Six

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

Dale looked away as he ran his hand over his face in an effort to get a reign on his temper. None of this was Kevin’s fault and he didn’t deserve to be lashed out at like he’d just done. He looked back at Kevin.

“I’m sorry, man. I-” Dale was cut off before he could continue.

“Don’t worry about it, Dale. Trust me, if I were in your shoes, I’d be feeling the same way.” Kevin told him as he laid his hand on Dale’s shoulder for a moment.

“What happened?” Kevin asked softly after a moment. He winced as Dale’s whole body went rigid again. He knew after seeing Ashlyn that it was bad, but the guilt, pain, and anger that jumped into Dale’s eyes was alarming. He sat back, growing angrier by the second as he listened to everything that Dale told him.

“I have to let her go, Kevin.” Dale stated quietly as he finished telling Kevin what had happened. “For her own safety. Until this guy is caught and behind bars, she’s not safe with me.”

Kevin looked at Dale, his eyes filled with shock. “Dale, there’s got to be some other way. If you do this, you’re just letting that sick bastard win!” He tried to reason, but he could see that he wasn’t going to get anywhere. Dale had made up his mind.

Dale looked at Kevin, his eyes hard. “No, there IS no other way!” He growled, his hands balled into tight fists. “Damnit, do you think I want to do this? Hell no! You weren’t there, Kevin. You have no idea how really twisted this fuckstain is! And he’s not playing games. Ash was lucky with the fire and this time. Next time she may not be.”

Kevin sat there shocked speechless. He honestly did not know what to say. The thing he did know was that he’d be there for both Dale and Ashlyn no matter what.

*****

Dale stood outside the door of his home knowing he had to do what he was about to do, but not sure that he could. After things had calmed down a bit and they finished with the police, Teresa had offered for Dale and Ashlyn to go home, but although, Ashlyn wanted to leave, she insisted that Dale stay until the tribute concert was over. So Teresa, along with a few of the security guards had escorted Ashlyn home and would stay there until he arrived back there. And now he was there and he wasn’t sure that he was ready to go in.

He was jarred out of his thoughts when the door was thrown open and Ashlyn was suddenly standing before him. “Dale.” She whispered his name as she threw her arms around him and clung to him, needing him at that moment as much as she needed air to breath.

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

Chapter Thirty Seven

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

Taryn sighed when her doorbell rang. She had just laid down, ready get some sleep. She’d had a long day at the shop, which was how most of her days were since Ashlyn left. She spent all her time at the shop, only coming home to sleep.

“Who the hell could that be?” she muttered to herself as she made her way through her house, flipping on lights as she went. She flung open the door, and her mouth fell open at what she found there.

“Oh my god, Ashlyn!” she gasped as she pulled her friend inside. Ashlyn didn’t say anything, just kept her head down as they moved into the living room and sat down.

“What are you doing here? What’s wrong?” Taryn demanded, sitting next to her. She gasped again when Ashlyn raised her head and Taryn was able to see the marks on her face for the first time.

“What the hell!!!” Taryn yelled, anger like she had never felt before flowing through her. “Who did this to you? Oh my god if it was Dale…” she trailed off thinking of how she would kill him with her own hands. Deep down she knew in her heart he would never ever hurt Ashlyn like this, but someone had and she was too angry and shocked to think clearly at the moment.

Ashlyn shook her head. “It wasn’t Dale.” She whispered, tears immediately filling her eyes and trailing down her cheeks. She’d kept the pain and sadness inside for too long and the damn was about to break.

“Ash,” Taryn said calmly. “What’s going on.”

“Dale’s fan showed up at the concert.” Ashlyn explained, then proceeded to tell her everything that had happened.

“That bastard!” Taryn spat, her eyes flashing angrily. “Well, I’m glad you’re here, but why aren’t you with Dale? Is he here as well?”

Ashlyn looked away, staring at nothing as she answered. “No, and he won’t be.”

“Huh?” Taryn asked, thoroughly confused. It was not like Dale to just let Ashlyn go off on her own, especially after something like this.

“It’s over.”

“What’s over?” Taryn questioned.

Ashlyn took a ragged breath. “Me and Dale.”

“WHAT?!?!” Taryn shrieked, jumping up off the couch. She took a deep breath and sat back down. “I’m sorry. But what?” she asked softer this time.

“Apparently this guy Rusty told Dale that the only way to keep me safe was to stay away from me. So, Dale ended things. He says I’m not safe with him, and he can’t stand the thought of something else happening to me. So, even though he loves me, we’re through.” Ashlyn said with no emotion, looking down at her hands.

“Oh Ash.” Taryn felt her own eyes filling with tears at the pain her best friend must be going through. “I’m so sorry.”

She couldn’t be mad at Dale. Taryn knew she would do the same thing if it had been put on her. Dale wanted to keep Ashlyn safe, and in doing so he was making the ultimate sacrifice. But she hated how it was tearing Ashlyn apart inside.

Ashlyn nodded, then looked at Taryn with haunted eyes. “I tried to talk him out of it, but it was no use. He doesn’t understand that I would rather be with him and take that risk than be without him!”

Taryn shook her head. “I think he does understand that. But he loves you so much he’s willing to let you go to keep you safe.”

Ashlyn shrugged and Taryn could see there was no getting through to her right now, not that she could blame her. Ashlyn’s lower lip began to tremble. “I don’t have anywhere to go.” She whispered sadly. “My home is gone, Dale is gone…” she trailed off as more tears fell.

“You always have a home. Right here. Everything is here you could possibly need. No matter what, I’ll always be here.” Taryn promised. Ashlyn threw her arms around her best friend and finally allowed herself to let go of the tears as she began to sob broken-heartedly.

***

Taryn walked through the front door, a little surprised to find Ashlyn sitting there. She had been back in California for a week, and was burying herself in her work, just as Taryn had done. Normally she didn’t get home until after Taryn, which was why it was a little strange now.

“What are you doing home?” Taryn asked, sitting down at the table across from Ashlyn. It broke Taryn’s heart every time she looked into Ashlyn’s eyes. They were empty. She definitely wasn’t the same Ashlyn as before. Taryn knew all too well how she felt.

“I’ve come up with an idea.” Ashlyn said. “And I want to see what you think of it.”

“Okay.” Taryn motioned for her to go on.

“I want to move.” Ashlyn announced. “I want, no need to get away from here. There are too many memories, both good and bad. I used to love living in California, now, I detest it. I hate being here. I want to start fresh somewhere else. I don’t really feel like I can truly get past all this staying here.”

Taryn was a little surprise, but at the same time not. It was something she had thought about herself on more than one occasion. “So what do you have in mind?”

Ashlyn grinned and slid some papers across the table. “I’ve been looking at some different places. And I think I’ve found the perfect place.”

Taryn looked down at the papers, reading everything over. Ashlyn had certainly been busy researching. The house she had found was stunning, and even found a place for Taryn to open a new shop, just right next door to the house. It didn’t take any time at all for Taryn to make a decision. Especially with the location Ashlyn had picked out.

Taryn looked up, a broad smile, the first one in months, spreading across her face. “It’s perfect! When do we move?”

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

Chapter Thirty Eight

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

“Oh, it is so beautiful here.” Taryn breathed as she and Ashlyn got out of their cars after pulling up in front of their new house and took in their surroundings for the first time.

Ashlyn smiled genuinely. “I think I can get used to calling this place ‘home’.” She said before opening the trunk of her car and getting out a few of the boxes that they’d brought along with them. The moving truck with the rest of their belongings would be arriving shortly.

“Shall we go in?” Taryn asked, dying to see the inside of the house in person. She had a huge smile on her face and she was nearly jumping up and down with excitement. The pictures had been gorgeous, but from what she could already see, they didn’t even come close to doing it justice.

“Grab a few of these boxes and let’s go.” Ashlyn replied as she set down her boxes and dug her set of house keys out of her pocket. Then she picked up her boxes again and began making her way towards the door.

After getting inside, the girls set their boxes down and looked around, both of them silent, their eyes wide. Immediately inside the door was an impressive foyer. To the left was a wide, open staircase that lead upstairs and to the right was the great room. Three of the walls were floor to ceiling windows and there was a huge circular fireplace right in the center of the room. There were high, vaulted ceiling and hardwood floors. Everything was built in log cabin fashion as was the rest of the house and the outside. It was absolutely breathtaking.

They slowly made their way through the rest of the house, both of them oohing and aahing in each room. “Oh, this is where I’m going to spending all of my free time.” Taryn commented as they opened the door to the one of two master suites. Much like the rest of the house, the room was impressive. She quickly rushed over to the door, which she thought had to be one of the baths, but she nearly fell over when she found herself stepping into the largest walk in closet she’d over seen in her life. It was the size of the bedroom she’d had back in California!

“There so better be one of these in my room!” Ashlyn exclaimed as she also stepped inside the closet, her eyes nearly popping out as she looked around. It was even bigger than the closet she’d had a Dale’s house. She giggled as Taryn rushed past her, intent on finding the bath. She hadn’t felt this happy in the six weeks since Dale had broken things off between them and she had to admit that it felt damn good. She could tell by the light shining in Taryn’s eyes that she felt the same way.

***

"Dale?" Kevin paused, waiting for his friend to answer him, but he seemed to be lost in space. "Dale?" he repeated again, this time a little louder, gaining the other man's attention.

"What?" Dale asked, sitting back on the couch in his motor home. They were at another racetrack, which one Dale really didn't care. Nothing seemed to matter much to him anymore. Nothing at all.

"I asked what you wanted to do tonight." Kevin told him, shaking his head at his friend. It was really tough trying to keep Dale's spirits up...actually it was near impossible. But one thing Kevin had to admit, it did kind of keep his mind off his own misery and loneliness.

"Nothing." Dale answered, pulling his hat down so the brim was covering his eyes. Kevin sighed. He should be used to it, it was the same answer he got from Dale anymore.

"Have you talked to her?" Kevin finally asked, getting a little more reaction from the man sitting across from him. He tried to steer away from the subject of Ashlyn, but nothing else seemed to be snapping Dale out of this funk.

Dale shook his head. "I've tried a couple times to call her, but her cell phone is no longer in service, and Taryn's number has been disconnected." He replied miserably. He was at his wit’s end. He knew it was his fault, he had told her it was better that they cut off all contact with each other, he didn't want to give Rusty any kind of excuse to go after her again.

But after a month, he hadn't been able to stand it anymore. Hell most people hadn't been able to stand him anymore. Teresa finally sat him down and told him to call her. He'd gotten through the first couple times, leaving Ashlyn voice mails, which she'd never returned. But he wasn't one to give up, but when he'd tried again he'd discovered her phone was disconnected and Taryn's as well.

He'd told her to cut things off completely, and that's exactly what she'd done...and shattered his heart a little more in the process.

"I don't know what to do." Dale said, his head in his hands. The police also weren't any closer to finding the bastard who had caused all this hell.

Kevin shook his head. “Dale, you know I’ve always been nothing but honest with you, and that’s not going to change. You may not like what I’m about to say, but tough shit, you need to hear it.”

Dale looked at him warily, knowing he most likely would not want to hear it. But he stayed where he was and allowed Kevin to continue.

“I know you thought you were doing the only thing you could when you broke things off with Ashlyn. But you also have to realize that was the lowest point of her life. She’d just lost her house, her cat, made a huge move across country. Yes I’m sure this Rusty guy scared the shit out of her, but I didn’t hear her complain once that it was your fault or blame you in any way. She wanted to be with you, plain and simple. You told her to leave. Yes you had your reasons, and I understand them. And I’m sure deep down Ashlyn does as well. Had the roles been reversed, she most likely would have done the same thing. But that doesn’t ease the pain any more. She had to pack up, move back home to a place that had nothing but bad memories for her. And now she’s cut off any kind of communication completely. What else was she supposed to do?” Kevin asked, speaking as gently as he could.

Dale lowered his head, his shoulders slumping. “I don’t know. This wasn’t supposed to be permanent. It was only temporary until I knew she was safe.”

“So you thought this was only going to last a week or two, then everything go back to normal and Ashlyn come running back? That’s selfish Dale. I’m sorry, but it is. I know you didn’t mean to, or want to, but face it you broke Ashlyn’s heart. And what’s worse it was on top of a time when she needed you most. Maybe had it only lasted a week, she would have come back. But as time goes on, she’s going to get more and more angry and bitter. You know what I’m saying is true.” Kevin said.

Dale nodded, although he didn’t want to believe it. “I know.” He sighed then continued. “I just hoped she would understand. I never wanted to hurt her…hell I wanted the opposite. Christ, Kevin you know I was about to ask her to marry me, do you really think I wanted to end things?” he implored.

“Of course not.”

“Then why would she think that I wanted to do this? She has to realize this had been the hardest damn thing I have ever had to do!” Dale demanded.

Kevin took a deep breath. “I don’t think that she thinks you wanted to end things, and like I said deep down I’m sure she does understand. But she’s not thinking like that right now. Right now she is focused on the hurt.”

Dale closed his eyes and laid his head back. “I guess you’re right. So what do I do?”

“You leave her be for right now.” Kevin held his hand up halting Dale’s protest he could see coming when Dale’s head snapped up. “Let me finish.”

“You ended things to keep her safe. As far as that’s concerned nothing has changed. Rusty is still out there, therefore she still is not safe. You can’t string her along by calling, allowing her to think things have changed when they haven’t. The police are still looking for Rusty, they won’t give up. Just leave things the way they are for right now, although I know it’s hard. But just keep remembering you’re doing this for her. Then once he’s caught, find her, tell her exactly how you feel, and go from there.” Kevin suggested.

Dale was quiet for a few moments, and Kevin wondered if he’d even heard a word he’d just said. Finally he responded. “You’re right. I know you are. I just hate not knowing what is going on with her…not knowing where she is. I just want her to know I still love her, that never changed. And I want her to know I’m thinking about her.”

“She does, Dale. She does.”

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

Chapter Thirty Nine

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

Dale put his head down and was silent for a few moments as he let Kevin’s last words sink in. Then he looked up again and met Kevin’s eyes, easily seeing his friend’s own misery.

“So, what about Taryn?” He asked for the first time in a while. He’d been so wrapped up in his own misery that he’d began to overlook his friend’s. He watched Kevin’s eyes darken with pain before he quickly hid it.

“What about Taryn?” Kevin questioned back. “It’s over. End of story.” He immediately tried to end the conversation, not wanting to talk about it.

“Well, have you talked to her since-” Dale persisted but was quickly cut off.

“No!” Kevin growled, his temper quickly surfacing, but it was the only way that he knew how to deal with the guilt and heartache that he felt. He looked away for a moment and took a deep breath to calm himself. “I did try a couple of times, but I always hung up before she would answer. If I got her voice mail, I never left any messages…I just wanted to hear her voice. And even if I wanted to try and call her now, like you said earlier, her phone is disconnected. Her cell also isn’t in service, and she’s sold her shop.” He knew that because he’d called there once and had gotten the new owner. “It’s like she and Ash have dropped off the earth.” He finished, shaking his head sadly.

*****

"Taryn!" Ashlyn called as she came through the door from work. "I'm home!" After setting her things down, she went into the den where she would usually find Taryn doing al of her business work after getting home from the shop. She was surprised to find the room empty.

"Taryn?" Ashlyn yelled up the stairs. Still getting no answer, she went into the kitchen. She could smell something cooking so Taryn had to be in there.

"Hey, why didn't you answ-" Ashlyn began as she stepped into the kitchen, but stopped abruptly when she realized that she was talking to herself. She frowned as she looked around, her eyes finally falling on the note left on the table. She picked it up and read.

Ash,

Dinner is in the oven for you.
I won't be home until later tonight.
I have a date.

Love ya,
Taryn

ps...don't wait up! ;>

"A date?" Ashlyn whispered to herself, having to admit that she was shocked. She knew that Taryn was still miserable about Kevin, but maybe she was ready to start getting over him. She was happy for her friend. And as much as she liked Kevin and thought that he and Taryn were meant to be together, she wanted Taryn to be happy. Maybe this guy would do that.

*****

“Hey, I thought I told you not to wait up.” Taryn teased as she came in from her date and found Ashlyn in the living room watching TV.

Ashlyn looked over at Taryn and smiled slightly. “I didn’t. But when I woke up at 2am and you still weren’t home, I couldn’t get back to sleep.” She said as Taryn came in the room and sat down.

Taryn glanced at the clock, shocked to see that it was nearly 4am. “I’m sorry Ash. I didn’t realize it was so late.” She paused and then groaned. “Oh gawd, I am gonna be so dead at work in the morning.”

Ashlyn shook her head. “You and me both, girl. I think I’m gonna call in sick…I’ve got a few sick days coming to me.” She said and then smiled. “So? Come on, give me the details!” All night she’d been curious about Taryn’s date, which was probably the biggest reason why she couldn’t get back to sleep.

Taryn let out a sigh that had a hint of dreaminess to it, which again surprised Ashlyn. “His name is Logan Reed. He had an appointment today and while I was doing his tattoo, he asked me out. At first I was going to decline, but then I said yes. I’m so glad I did, Ash.” Taryn paused, a huge smile on her face. “You should see him, Ash. He is gorgeous! He’s about 6’4”, he’s got dark hair, and dark eyes, and he’s very muscular. And he’s very nice and courteous.”

“Wow, sounds like he’s just about…perfect.” Ashlyn laughed. “What’s he do?”

Taryn lowered her eyes, her cheeks turning ten shades of red. “He’s a stripper.” She replied very softly.

“What?” Ashlyn asked again, having not heard what Taryn said.

“He’s a stripper.” Taryn said a little louder and giggled when she saw Ashlyn’s eyes widen in surprise. “He works at that new club over on Excelsior Avenue. He does bartending there too. That’s where I was tonight and tomorrow night I’m seeing him again too. Hey, we’re going to the club again, you wanna come along…keep me company while he’s working? Besides you and I haven’t been out in ages. You need to get out, Ash. I know you’d have fun.”

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

Chapter Forty

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

“See, aren’t you glad you came with me tonight?” Taryn asked as they sat in a corner booth, close to the stage. Ashlyn nodded as she sipped her drink.

“I have to admit I am. I’m still anxious to meet Logan though.” Ashlyn grinned. Once they arrived at the club they were escorted right away to the perfect table that had been set up and reserved for them. But the infamous Logan had yet to make an appearance.

Before Taryn could reply, the lights dimmed and the music changed. They both focused on the stage, and Ashlyn’s mouth fell open in shock when a very sexy man took the stage and started dancing provocatively to the music.

“Wow.” Ashlyn breathed.

Taryn felt her whole body going warm. “That’s Logan.” She said softly.

Ashlyn gasped and looked at her friend. “That’s Logan? Holy shit girl!” she exclaimed then turned her attention back to the stage. She couldn’t help but look away when the last of Logan’s attire came off. Normally she wouldn’t mind looking just like any other female, but knowing that Taryn was seeing this guy, she didn’t feel comfortable eyeing his ‘package’.

“Wasn’t he wonderful?” Taryn sighed happily once he was off stage.

“I’ll say. Whew.” Ashlyn fanned herself. She might not have seen all there was to see, but what she had seen had been more than enough.

“Good evening ladies.” Both women turned and Taryn stood up to greet Logan, who leaned down and gave her a kiss on her cheek. “I’m glad you made it.” He said huskily.

He turned and smiled down at Ashlyn, holding out his hand. “And you must be Ashlyn. Taryn has told me so much about you, it’s a pleasure to meet you.” He said, kissing the back of her hand when she went to shake his.

“Uh, likewise.” Ashlyn responded a little dazed. She glanced at Taryn who grinned broadly at her.

“I’ll be right back. I’m going to grab another drink.” Taryn said, seeing an opening at the bar. “Do you want anything?” she asked Ashlyn, knowing that since Logan was working he wasn’t allowed to drink.

Ashlyn shook her head. “No thank you, I’m fine.” She replied. She and Logan watched Taryn disappear in the crowd, then he slid in the booth next to her, a little too close for her liking.

“You know, Taryn told me you were beautiful, but I never imagined you being quite so stunning.” He said seductively, leaning in closer.

Ashlyn blinked at him. “Huh?”

He smiled as he laid his hand on her arm. “I’m simply paying you a compliment.”

She blushed and pulled her arm out of his reach. “Thank you.” She muttered, feeling rather uncomfortable. She decided to change the subject. “So you met Taryn at the shop?”

He nodded. “Yes, I just went on a whim and am I ever glad I did.”

“Yes, Taryn is wonderful.” Ashlyn provided. There was something about this guy that was rubbing her the wrong way, and she didn’t mean the way he’d been touching her arm.

Again he leaned closer, his voice dropping lower. “Taryn told me what happened. I’m sorry for your pain. If you ask me, Dale Earnhardt Jr. is a fool. If you were mine, I would have kept you with me and protected you with ever last breath in my body.”

Ashlyn was stunned. “Excuse me?” she asked, her voice quivering just a little. She could not believe that Taryn had shared her private pain with a complete stranger! “Taryn told you?”

He shrugged. “Well, not all the details, but I remember reading about what happened in a magazine. I thought he was crazy then…but even more so now after meeting you face to face.”

Ashlyn felt her temper rising. She knew Taryn wasn’t to blame. There had indeed been a huge long article about her and Dale’s relationship in one of the top selling magazines right after they had broken up. She knew without asking that Dale had nothing to do with it, and was willing to bet that it had all been Rusty’s doing.

Ashlyn’s eyes turned cold and her posture stiffened. She’d had it. This was the final straw. Not only was this guy creeping her out, he was hitting on her when he was seeing her best friend! It was official, all men were bastards!

She quickly slid around away from him and out of the booth. She glared down at him. “If you’ll excuse me, I don’t feel much like being here any longer. Good bye.” She snapped before turning and walking away. She hadn’t gotten very far when Taryn stopped her.

“Hey, where are you going?” Taryn asked. Ashlyn turned and looked at her friend, ready to blast her for her poor choice in men when she paused and took a good look. Taryn’s eyes were shining again like they hadn’t since ending things with Kevin. It had taken her so long to get past him, Ashlyn couldn’t bring herself to bring Taryn’s happiness crashing down.

Besides, it was quite possible Ashlyn was overreacting. Maybe it was just Logan’s demeanor. Maybe he didn’t even mean to come off like he was flirting. Ashlyn decided to let it go…for now.

“I’m really tired, and have a splitting headache. Besides, Logan is nearly done for the night, right?” she asked, continuing after Taryn nodded. “You should spend more time alone with him. I’m going home and get some sleep.”

Taryn thought she could see something in her friend’s eyes, but she wasn’t sure. “Are you sure that’s it?” she asked.

Ashlyn nodded with a smile, hoping it didn’t look as forced as it felt. “I’m positive. I did have fun, and we’ll have to do it again sometime, just not tonight. I’m beat.”

“Okay, if you’re sure.” Taryn said hesitantly.

“I am. Have fun and be careful. I’ll see ya back home.” Ashlyn said before one last smile and then leaving.

Taryn watched her leave, then jumped a little when strong arms wrapped around her waist. She giggled as he started nuzzling her neck.

“Is everything okay?” he asked. She turned in his arms and smiled up at him.

“Everything is perfect.” She replied.

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

Chapter Forty One

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

Taryn moaned softly as she slowly felt herself being awakened. She yawned and stretched before rolling over on her side, her eyes fluttering open. “Mmm, good morning.” She greeted Logan, who was smiling down at her.

“It sure is.” Logan replied, his voice husky as he leaned forward and kissed her. When Taryn moved to pull back, he tightened his hold on her, pulling her closer against him before he rolled her over on her back and covered her body with his. Only then did he break the kiss and pull back only enough to look into her eyes.

“I have a surprise for your birthday so don’t plan anything that weekend.” He told her, speaking of the day that was coming up in three weeks.

Taryn smiled as gently brushed her lips over his. In the six months that they’d been together, he was always surprising her with flowers, weekends away, and gifts. Her smile faded though as she remembered. “Does it have to be that weekend? Ashlyn already said that she wanted to take me out.”

Anger immediately jumped into Logan’s eyes, but just as quickly it was gone. “Yes, it does have to be that weekend.” He paused and then sighed heavily. “I wanted it to be a surprise, but I guess I’ll have to tell you so you can see why it has to be that weekend.”

Taryn shook her head. “No…No, I’ll reschedule with Ashlyn, okay?” She waited for him to answer. “Okay?” She asked again.

“Okay.” Logan answered as he lowered his lips to hers again. They quickly became lost in each other only to be abruptly interrupted when Taryn’s cell phone began ringing.

“Ignore it.” Logan whispered gruffly against her skin as he nuzzled her neck.

“I should get it. It’s Ash.” She said, knowing that it was Ashlyn because she and Logan were the only people that had her cell number. She reached for her phone, which was on the nightstand beside the bed, but Logan grabbed her hand before she could pick it up.

“Ignore it.” Logan said once more, more forcefully. “If it’s important she’ll leave a message or call back.” He told her, holding her arms captive over her head as he lowered his head again to tease the sensitive spot at the bottom of her neck.

“Well, I hadn’t really planned on staying here last night so I suppose she’s just worried that I didn’t come home.” Taryn said as she felt herself melting under his touch once again.

“What, is she your mother or something? Pretty soon she’ll be setting your curfew too?” Logan said, a hint of sarcasm in his voice. He smiled softly when he saw the hurt and confusion in her eyes. “Aw, you know that I’m just teasing, baby.” He looked down into her eyes as he tucked a lock of hair behind her ear. “I’m sorry.” He paused for a moment and then continued.

“But make sure that you tell her from now on that she can pretty much expect you to be staying here all of the time, okay?”

Logan smiled when Taryn nodded in agreement after a moment. “I love you, Tar.”

“I love you too.” She told him, tipping her head back to accept his kiss as his lips came down on hers.

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

Chapter Forty Two

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

Ashlyn walked through the front door with a sigh. She looked around the empty house and shook her head. “Might as well get used to it. Hell, I should be by now.” She said out loud. Taryn all but lived with Logan as it was.

Taryn was currently away for the weekend with Logan. And although she had known Ashlyn had something planned for her birthday, she had asked Ashlyn to reschedule. Ashlyn shook her head, taking a deep breath.

She could understand and was happy that Taryn had found someone who made her shine again…she just wished it were anyone but Logan. She and Logan could not stand one another. They tried getting along for Taryn’s sake, but that all ended when one day about a month after they started dating, he was over to the house and again hitting on Ashlyn. She’d finally blasted him and told him exactly what she thought of him, and that he didn’t deserve someone as wonderful as Taryn.

Since then they had hardly spoken more than three words to each other, and she was seeing less and less of Taryn, since she was always with Logan. She was lost in thought and didn’t hear anyone come in.

“Ash?” Taryn said, causing Ashlyn to jump nearly out of her skin.

“Shit Taryn!” Ashlyn exclaimed, her hand over her heart as she tried to calm her breathing. “You scared me! What are you doing back already?” she asked.

Taryn was beaming. In fact, Ashlyn had never seen her like this. Her eyes narrowed. “What’s going on?”

“I’m getting married!” Taryn nearly screamed in excitement as she held up her hand, showing off her brand new engagement ring. It was, in a word, gorgeous. Just like the man who had given it to her.

Ashlyn’s mouth fell open. She wanted so badly to be happy for her best friend, but she could only fake it…badly. She knew Logan was not the man for Taryn…not even close!

“Oh, wow, that’s great.” Ashlyn said, giving her friend a hug, hoping she had managed to muster up enough enthusiasm.

“There’s so much to do! So much to plan!” Taryn nearly jumped around the living room.

Ashlyn laughed. “You’ve got time! Calm down.”

Taryn giggled and shook her head. “That’s just it, I don’t have time. We want to get married in two weeks!”

“Two weeks????” Ashlyn exclaimed. “Why on earth so soon?”

Taryn shrugged. “It was Logan’s idea. He doesn’t want to wait, and quite frankly, neither do I.”

Ashlyn couldn’t hold back anymore. “Are you sure this is what you want? You’ve always talked about how you wanted your dream wedding to go. Enough time to plan everything out perfectly, down to every last detail. With the wedding in two weeks, you’re not going to have time to get anything planned out!”

Taryn’s shoulders slumped as she stared at her friend. “Logan was right.” She muttered.

Ashlyn tilted her head. “Right about?”

“You. He said you wouldn’t understand about our wanting to get married and not wait. He even said you’d try to talk me out of it.” Taryn pouted.

“I’m not trying to talk you out of it!” Ashlyn exclaimed, feeling her own anger beginning to rise. Damn but she hated Logan. “I’m just trying to understand what the sudden rush and urge to get married is. What is Logan afraid you’ll change your mind if you wait?” she asked sarcastically.

Taryn’s own eyes narrowed. “It’s nothing like that!” she snapped, her good mood vanishing. “We are in love and we don’t want to wait. I wouldn’t expect you to understand.”

Ashlyn froze. “What the hell is that supposed to mean?” she demanded, her hands on her hips as the two best friends faced off.

Taryn sighed. “Nothing.” She mumbled. “I didn’t mean anything by it.”

“Yeah right.” Ashlyn snapped back.

“You know, you’re supposed to be happy for me.” Taryn shouted.

Ashlyn had had it. “I would be if you were marrying the right man!”

Taryn went stiff. “Now what the hell is that supposed to mean?”

“You think about it, and you’ll figure it out.” Ashlyn said.

“Forget it, I don’t need this. This is the happiest time of my life, and I’m not going to let anyone bring me down. Not even you. I’ll talk to you later.” Taryn said angrily before turning and walking out of the house.

Ashlyn watched her leave, torn between going after her and apologizing, and staying where she was. She decided to stay. She knew that Taryn was about to make the biggest mistake of her life if she married Logan. She couldn’t just stand back and let her best friend do this. But how to stop her?

Suddenly an idea hit. With a small smile, she walked over to the phone and picked it up, quickly dialing the number she knew by heart but hadn’t dialed in a long time.

***

“Great race today, man.” Kevin told Dale as they arrived back at Dale’s house. Dale nodded.

“Thanks.” He said.

They both paused at the door when a police car pulled up the drive. Kevin looked at Dale and grinned. “Awww, what did you do?” he teased. Dale shrugged.

“I don’t think I’ve done anything. Guess we’ll find out though.” He said.

“Good evening.” The officer called as he walked towards the two men. “Mr. Earnhardt, I’m here to let you know that we’ve apprehended Rusty Donavan. He was at the race today, and making a lot of noise and commotion. He tried to get down trackside with no pass and was caught. It didn’t take security long to figure out who he was. He’s in custody now, and with all the evidence against him, your testimony and Ms. McBride’s, we should be able to put this man away for a long time.”

Dale felt relief like he’d never known flowing through him. “Thank you. Thank you so much!”

Kevin was also relieved for his friend. He also hoped this meant Dale and Ashlyn could work things out. Ever since Ashlyn left, Dale simply hadn’t been the same person.

“Excuse me.” Kevin said softly as he turned away, grabbing his cell phone off his hip. “Hello?” he answered.

“Kevin?” a female voice, that sounded very familiar said.

“Yes, who is this?” he asked.

“It’s Ashlyn.” She said. Kevin’s eyes went wide and he looked over at Dale, but he was still talking to the officer.

“Ashlyn! My god, where are you? How have you been?” Kevin demanded, keeping his voice low so he wouldn’t be overheard.

“I’ve been…okay.” She answered although he didn’t miss the hesitation. “Um, this is going to sound strange, but is there anyway you could meet me?”

“Of course I can!” Kevin exclaimed. He not only missed her for Dale, but for himself as well. They had become really good friends, and when she had just basically disappeared, Dale wasn’t the only one to loose her.

He paused a moment then asked the question that had been on his mind for a long time. “How’s Taryn?”

Ashlyn sighed into the phone. “That’s kind of what I need to talk to you about. I don’t want to get into it over the phone, but I definitely need to see you.”

Kevin again looked over at Dale. “Um, I’ll be back home tomorrow. I’m in North Carolina right now.” He didn’t need to say more, she knew what he was getting at.

“Oh. Well, if you want you can come here.” She suggested. “I have more than enough room for you.”

“What about Taryn?” he asked, gripping the phone tighter.

“She won’t be here.” Ashlyn said elusively.

“So where is ‘here’?” he asked. Again he heard the pause and added, “I won’t say anything to anyone if you don’t want me too.” He promised, knowing what was holding her back.

“I’d appreciate that Kevin. We’re in Colorado Springs, Colorado.” She finally answered.

“Wow, really? Beautiful country.” He said.

“That was one of the reasons for moving here. Listen, I’ll buy you your ticket and everything.” She offered.

“No that won’t be necessary. I’ll be there tomorrow afternoon.” He told her.

“I’ll pick you up at the airport.” She promised. “You now have my number if you need me, call.” She said, knowing her number would have come up on his cell phone. “And Kevin, thank you. You don’t know how much this means to me.”

“Anytime, Ashlyn. Anytime.” He said before hanging up. He turned back around and found Dale looking at him closely.

“Who was that?” Dale questioned. Kevin sighed, knowing he couldn’t keep this from his friend.

“It was Ashlyn.”

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

Chapter Forty Three

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

Dale swayed slightly at the mention of Ashlyn’s name, but then he quickly snapped out of his daze, his eyes narrowed at he glared at Kevin. “Is she okay? Where is she? What did she say? And most of all, WHY didn’t you let me talk to her?” Dale demanded, firing off with one question right after the other.

Kevin raked his fingers through his hair, knowing full well the frustration that Dale was feeling. He felt bad that he really couldn’t answer any of his friend’s questions. “She’s…okay.” Kevin told Dale, not forgetting the hesitation in Ashlyn’s voice when he’d asked her. “I can’t tell you where she is…she asked me not to tell anyone.” Kevin stopped, seeing the anger jump into Dale’s eyes.

Kevin held his hands up defensively. “Dale I’m sorry, I wish that I could tell you, but I can’t. She doesn’t want anyone else to know. Don’t push me on this. I promised her that I wouldn’t tell, and I will keep that promise.”

Dale took in a deep breath and slowly let it out before he lifted his head and looked at Kevin again. He knew that his friend was right. It just hurt so damn bad that Ashlyn didn’t want him to know where she was. “Fine, what did she say then?” He asked, resigning himself to the fact that he may not be able to be answered this question either.

Kevin hesitated for a moment, but then decided that it was okay to share this with Dale. “She wants me to go there. Apparently something is up with Taryn. It seems pretty serious by the sound of her voice.” He told Dale, hoping that whatever was going on wasn’t too bad and that he was just reading too much into what he’d heard in Ashlyn’s voice.

“You’re going to see Ashlyn?” Dale questioned, having not heard anything else Kevin had said after he’d told him that he was going to visit Ashlyn. “If nothing else, will you please at least tell her for me that Donovan has been caught and please ask her to call me.” Dale pleaded, nearly getting down on his knees to make Kevin see how much this meant to him.

Kevin again hesitated, not really wanting to get in the middle, but also wanting to be there for Dale. “Okay, I will tell her that Donovan has been caught.” He paused for a moment. “And yes, I’ll ask her to call you, but don’t be too disappointed if you don’t hear from her, Dale.” Kevin knew that saying that was harsh, but it was reality, and most often that was exactly what reality was.

Dale nodded slightly, knowing that he had no other choice but to accept that.

*****

Kevin almost immediately spotted Ashlyn after his flight had landed and he got off the plane. He rushed up to her, pulling her into a hug, fully realizing how good it was too see her.

“Thank you for coming.” Ashlyn said to him after the hug ended and they began walking out to her car.

Kevin smiled down at her. “Like I told you yesterday, anytime. But what’s going on?” He asked the question that had been heavy on his mind since he’d talked to her the day before. It had to be something pretty serious for her to ask him to there.

Ashlyn sighed as she dug her car keys out of her purse and unlocked the doors and trunk so that Kevin could put his bag in there. “We’ll talk about it when we get back to the house. I’ll probably get us in a wreck if I start talking about it while we’re driving.” She told him. Laughing humorlessly.

“So how have you been?” Ashlyn asked as they drove toward the house. She had to admit that she really missed Kevin and wished that she’d called him sooner…not necessarily for Taryn, but for herself. She missed his friendship.

Kevin smiled. “I’m doing pretty good.” He answered. “I’ve become a permanent member of Breaking Benjamin and I’m loving it. I really missed it. We’re about to go into the studio and then we’re gonna hit the road.” Kevin’s eyes shined as he talked about one of the things that he loved doing the most. And in all honesty, it was the only thing keeping him sane most days.

“Wow!” Kevin said in awe when they pulled up to the house. “This is breathtaking! No wonder you moved here.”

Ashlyn couldn’t help but smile in pride of her house. She had been able to pretty much pay for the entire thing with what she got for her house in California, insurance wise.

“Thank you. The second I saw the picture, I knew I had to have it.” She said. “Come on in, I’ll give you the grand tour.”

After looking over the house and admiring each room, they sat down in the living room, each with a cold beer. “Okay, Ashlyn. You’ve stalled long enough. What’s going on?” Kevin asked, unable to wait any longer. He knew he wasn’t going to like this by the way she dropped her eyes.

“Well, this might come as a bit of a surprise to you, and I wish I could soften the blow, but I don’t know how. So here it is…Taryn’s getting married.”

It was like a scene from a movie with not a sound being made except the crickets outside. She could see the hurt, denial, betrayal…everything in his eyes.

“W-what?” Kevin managed to choke out. He’d never expected this. Never in a million years. He didn’t know what to say, do, think or feel.

Ashlyn sighed and got up from her chair to sit next to him on the couch. “I’m sorry to just blurt it out like that, it was thoughtless of me. But for the past six months she’s been seeing this guy. Personally, I hate him.”

Kevin managed a small, weak smile at her words. “He’s horrible, Kevin! Nothing like she should be with. He reminds me of the assholes she used to date. He’s…creepy!” she cried. “I don’t know what to do! I’ve tried talking to her about it, which as you can guess didn’t go over very well.”

Kevin was still silent. He was at a loss. Ashlyn looked at him. “I know things ended between you two, but I also felt, and still do feel that you two belong together. You made a mistake not telling her the truth, I think if she were to really try, she could forget it and move on…with you. But now she’s so wrapped up in Logan she can’t see straight.” She said viscously, her dislike for the man clear.

“Logan?” Kevin echoed. She nodded wrinkling her nose.

“Yeah that’s him. He’s an ass!”

Kevin shook his head trying to get his barrings. “Um, what does he do?”

Ashlyn bit the inside of her lip. “Um, he’s a stripper.” She said. Kevin’s eyes widened.

“A stripper? Taryn is marrying a stripper?” he questioned. She nodded.

“Yes, but it’s so much more than that.” She said. Kevin could easily see she was troubled by something.

“What is it?” he asked.

“He and I don’t get a long, I guess that’s quite obvious. But the first night I met him, he just came on very, uh, strong. I thought maybe it was my imagination and left. But anytime after that, whenever Taryn was out of the room, he was making a move. Finally I quit biting my tongue and let him have it. Since then, we never talk, and it’s like he’s trying and succeeding in turning Taryn against me. I never see her anymore, she’s all but living with him.”

“As you know last weekend was her birthday. I’d had something planned for two months, and she knew it. Well, Logan decided to take her away for the weekend, so my plans didn’t mean shit. Fine, whatever. She gets back and is sporting this brand new engagement ring…and tells me they are getting married in two weeks. Two weeks, Kevin!” she cried, feeling like she was going to lose her mind.

“What the hell is she thinking?” Ashlyn demanded.

Kevin took a deep breath. It sounded like Ashlyn had legitimate concerns, but could he really do anything about it?

“Ashlyn, I don’t know how to say this. But Taryn has moved on with her life. There is nothing I can do. Do I want her getting married, to anyone else? Hell no. But it’s not my place to step in and talk to her.” He said sadly, knowing he was speaking the truth. “And you know as well as I do, she wouldn’t want to hear anything I have to say.”

“But-” Kevin cut her off.

“No, Ashlyn. Taryn has made her decision, she made it long before meeting this Logan guy. I have to respect that and wish her all the happiness in the world.” Kevin said bravely, although deep down his heart was shattering into a million pieces.

Ashlyn stood up and looked down at him. “You’re wrong, Kevin. I think you are exactly what she needs. She’s just with Logan because she believes there is no chance with you. Talk to her, tell her how you feel. Show her she doesn’t have to settle for anyone else.” She all but pleaded.

Kevin shook his head again and stood up. “I’m sorry, Ashlyn. There is nothing I can, nor will do.”

Ashlyn’s shoulders dropped in disappointment. “I understand.” She mumbled. “I’m sorry to bring you out here for nothing.” It had been a long shot, she knew that. But she’d had to try. For both Kevin and Taryn.

Kevin put on a brave face. “It wasn’t for nothing. I got to see you. Now why don’t you let me take you out to dinner?”

She smiled and nodded. “Okay.”

“I’m going to go change real quick.” Kevin said but paused before leaving the room. “You know, speaking of talking to people and telling others how they feel…you should call Dale.”

Her head snapped up and he could instantly see the fire in her eyes, but continued before she was able to say anything. “Donavan has been caught and in police custody. Dale wanted you to know that. He also would desperately like you to call him. I didn’t tell him where you are or give him you number. It’s you’re choice, Ashlyn.”

He took his cell phone and set it down on the coffee table, even giving her the option of calling Dale from his cell phone. He gave her one last look before turning and heading down the hallway. He was almost to the guest room when he realized he could barely swallow for the lump in his throat, and his eyes were burning with unshed tears.

“Taryn.” He whispered as one lonely tear fell.

Part Three of Shaken
2004/2005 K&K Productions

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