Page 41 of Eye of the Hurricane (Weathering Doves Harbor #2)

Katherine

I text Audra letting her know I’m here before I knock on her door to avoid scaring her. At least not any more than she already is.

She turns the knob and lets me in. She’s in a pair of shorts and what looks to be one of Roman’s hoodies.

Her face is red and blotchy, cheeks are soaked in tears.

None of that surprises me though, I knew what I would be walking into.

What does surprise me is that when I walk in the room, she throws her arms around me.

“Thank you for coming,” she cries. I hug her back. “I’m really glad you’re here.” She releases me.

“Will you tell me about it?” I ask, turning and locking the front door behind us. “I only know pieces,” I remind her. She sniffles and nods.

I follow her into the living room where she curls into a ball in the corner of the couch. I take the seat directly next to her in case she decides she wants a shoulder to cry on, literally .

She walks me through the entire story, beginning to end. She tells me about how they met, how great things were to start, the first time he said something cruel to her, how first it was a shove, then a slap. She’s sobbing, and I’m crying with her.

She tells me how she finally left him and went to Ares’ house but only Roman was home, that he was following her, that Ares beat his ass at that bonfire I didn’t go to, and finally that they moved here and have been living in peace. Until tonight.

She shows me the letter.

Audra,

You’re naive to think there is anywhere you could go that I would not find you. I don’t want to hurt you, I’m not writing you to threaten you or your new boyfriend. I want you back. I have every intention of making that happen. By any means necessary.

Tyler

The last line makes my stomach turn.

“You’ve reported this, right? Like all of this?” I ask. She drops her head, facing the ground. Shit. “If you haven’t it’s okay, I just meant… You know you can right?”

“No, I can’t. His family has money. He’s essentially untouchable by the system,” she sighs. It’s not often I have a reason to bring up my family’s money. I usually go out of my way to hide it. Now seems like one of those rare times I can pull the rich family card for good .

“We’ll see about that,” I scoff. “Do you trust me?” I ask. She gives me a slow and reluctant nod.

“Come on,” I tell her, standing from the couch. She stands, following me to the door. We lock up behind us. I sit down in the car and dial my father’s phone number.

“Dad, I need a huge favor,” I say as soon as he picks up.

“What is it, Katherine?”

“I have a friend, she’s got this ex-boyfriend, he’s really given her a lot of trouble. She can’t get a restraining order because of his family’s status. Is there someone you can talk to?” I ask.

“Sorry honey, I don’t have any connections like that in Charleston anymore.”

“We’re in Doves Harbor,” I tell him.

“Oh, well I may be able to help then. Are you heading to the police station now?” he asks.

“Yes, We’re in the car now.”

“And you’re certain this isn’t some couples fight? He really has hurt her?”

“Yes, I’ve seen the proof myself.” It’s a quarter of a lie but it’s for the better.

“Don’t go in until I text you, okay?”

“Okay. Thank you, I love you.”

“I love you, Katherine.”

Audra looks at me with wide eyes.

“You should see how far out the boys are, this might take a little while,” I suggest.

“They’re about two hours out.”

We wait in the dark parking lot of the police station, watching cars go by while I wait on the text from my father. I’m in awe of the strength Audra has managed through all of this .

“Do you want to tell Roman where we are?” I ask.

“No, I want to make sure it all works out first,” she says. I can’t blame her for that. I would likely do the same.

Dad

Go ahead. They’re expecting you two.

Katherine

Thank you so much.

Dad

Anytime.

I show the message to Audra and she takes a deep breath, holding it, then blowing it out slowly.

“Okay, let’s do it,” she says, opening the car door. I follow her up the steps and inside the police station.

There’s a receptionist at the front desk but that’s not who greets us. A tall officer with a dark complexion and dimples for days does.

“Katherine and Audrey?” he asks.

“Her name is Audra, but yes sir,” I correct. She gives me a nudge with wide eyes telling me to be nice. “I just thought it might matter for paperwork,” I add.

“My apologies. I heard from your dad. Can we talk in my office?” he asks.

“Yes sir,” she says, following him back through a dimly lit hallway. I keep a close distance between us. We sit across from him at his desk.

“Because your father is a friend of the Mayor, we’re going to handle this a bit differently. The process will be quite a bit quicker. We ask you keep that quiet.”

“Yes sir,” we both say .

I sit with her under the dark fluorescent light of his office while she fills out paperwork. Every time she looks over to me I give her a reassuring smile. The process is long but not nearly as long as it could be.

When we finally walk out of the police station it’s pouring rain, the street lights glistening in the water. It’s fully dark out at this point and the boys should be back anytime. We’ve both got a load of text messages from them trying to get ahold of us while we were in there.

Audra shoots them a message letting them know we’re okay. When we pull into her driveway Roman’s Jeep pulls in behind us before we even get the chance to get in the house.

The Jeep is barely parked before Roman is out of the car and wrapping his arms around Audra. As soon as he does, she melts into him with a sob. He strokes her hair, shushing her.

Ares is by my side the second he’s out of the car. He pulls me into his chest.

“Where did you guys go?” he asks, mouth pressed to the top of my head.

“I’ll let Audra tell you,” I whisper back to him. Beck is standing awkwardly against the Jeep watching the four of us.

“Let’s go in,” I suggest. Everyone must agree because there’s no argument, we all head inside. Everyone grabs a seat in the living room. Audra is snuggled up into Roman’s side and I’m tucked into Ares’. Beck is on the recliner next to us.

“Where were you guys?” Ares asks, this time aiming the question at Audra. Her eyes flick toward me and I give her a nod of encouragement.

“I filed a restraining order tonight,” she blurts. Every face in the room beams with pride .

“I’m so fucking proud of you,” Roman says, wrapping her tightly in his arms. Ares stands and walks over, tears in his eyes. Seeing him have such a strong reaction to this says so much about him as a man.

“Come on, asshole, my turn,” Ares says. Roman finally lets Audra loose from his embrace and she stands just to be pulled into another. “Are you okay? I’m so proud of you, Audi. What made you change your mind?” he asks.

Right as she goes to speak, Beck is standing next to her and Ares. He clears his throat loudly, making a point to get their attention. Through tears she laughs, slipping from Ares’ arms to hug Beck.

“I remember that night you came to the shop. I know this wasn’t easy. I’m proud of you too,” Beck says. Finally, she stands on her own, wiping her eyes with the sleeves of Roman’s hoodie.

“I really couldn’t have done it without Katherine. She called in a favor with her dad who knows the Mayor. Once I knew that there was a real chance they would do something, I was on board.”

“It was no big deal,” I assure her.

“She drove me there, held my hand in the station, and held me while I cried about it. It’s a big deal to me.”

We all spend a half hour hashing out all of the details and reminding Audra how big it was that she did it. Everyone is all smiles by the end of it. Everyone decided that we should just all sleep over here since it’s late. So we picked a movie and Audra is putting it on now.

“Can I talk to you for a minute?” Roman whispers to me, nodding his head toward the kitchen. I nod. Logically I know it’s not the case but this kind of feels like I’m about to get yelled at by my dad .

“What’s up?” I ask once we’re fully away from the living room. He tugs me forward into a tight hug.

“I can’t thank you enough. I don’t know what you said to make her agree to do it but seriously, thank you,” he gushes, letting me go,

“Really, no need to thank me. I didn’t say much. It was just the favor from my dad.”

“We’ve been trying for a long time to get her to do that. I don’t care how you did it. I owe you one. Actually, I owe you a million,” he says with a laugh.

“You don’t owe me anything. I’m glad she’s safe.”

“I do owe you, but I tell you what; I’ll let him pay my favors,” he says with a shit-eating grin, looking behind me. I turn my head and there stands Ares.

“My turn, beat it,” he says to Roman. I swat at his arm.

“Be nice!” I scold. They both just laugh and Roman leaves the room.

“What did Ro want?” he asks.

“I would think the same thing you’re here for,” I tell him, assuming he’s here to thank me too. He does a dramatic gasp and throws his hand over his mouth.

“Roman was trying to fuck you in his kitchen?” he exclaims, amusement in his tone. I whack his arm again.

“Shut up.” I laugh.

“I want to thank you,” he says, stepping into my space. I look up at him. His eyes are dancing with… something. Something I can’t pinpoint. Something I can’t name.

“There’s nothing to thank me for, really.” He brings a hand down, tucking my hair behind my ear. His hand slides down my arm and wraps around my hand, interlocking our fingers .

Once again he’s managed to make a moment feel like we’re the only two people in the world.

“Yes, there is. You came here without question to make sure she was okay. Which is all that we asked of you. But instead of just that, you somehow convinced her to file the restraining order. Audra and Ravyn are the closest thing I’ve got to sisters.

I will never be able to thank you enough.

” As he’s talking his eye contact with me is unwavering.

I feel as though his eyes are burning into mine.

I might melt into a puddle right in front of him.

He leans forward and kisses me once before pulling back and scanning his eyes across mine. “I love you,” he blurts out.

There’s a full minute of tense silence. I don’t know which one of us looks more surprised that he said it. I can see the entirety of the whites in his eyes. My pulse is hammering in my ears. Every cell in my body is screaming at me to run.

This is all so new to me. I feel like we’re sprinting into this. I just told him that I finally have the time for this. We haven’t even decided what this is.

I haven’t said anything. If I’m going to do the right thing and not run I have to say something. Anything will do. Just spit something out, Katherine.

“Thank you,” I reply. It’s a stupid response, I know that it is. I don’t know what the hell else to say though.

I expect him to look offended, maybe even be offended. I don’t expect him to crack a smile at my words.

“I have to be really honest, you took that so much better than I thought you would,” he says with a relieved sigh. There’s an overwhelming feeling of being known.

“I’m sorry it’s just new—I don’t know what to say. This is new to me,” I explain.

“I know. You don’t have to say it. I didn’t even really mean to say it—not that I don’t mean it—shit.

I just know you’re not in a position to hear it yet.

” He stops, taking a breath and collecting himself.

“We’re on your time, Kat. No rush, no pressure,” he assures me.

I want to say he’s such a patient man. He isn’t though, he just happens to have infinite patience for me.