Page 27

Axell

I woke up early this morning feeling refreshed and well rested for the first time in weeks.

I think talking to Sadie was a good idea.

I hadn’t been sure when I first saw her name and picture on my screen, but missing her was wearing me down.

I had yet to listen to her voicemails or read the emails and texts but in a last-minute decision I had answered the call.

Her voice poured over me like a warm blanket.

I knew in that moment that we’d figure out a way to work this out.

Sadie was a vital part to my life and I wasn’t willing to let her go so I had to figure out a way to move on.

I had walked around the house for the past week trying to figure out what to do.

I always stopped in the extra bedroom. Then a couple of days ago it hit me.

That could be Drake’s room. That epiphany was short lived because another thought followed.

What if Sadie didn’t come back? I wasn’t her first priority anymore and I shouldn’t be.

Her son should come first, but did that mean she would stay in South Carolina?

Would she uproot Drake and come back here? There were so many questions.

I didn’t get much sleep that night. My mind wondered between what Sadie would do now and what I should do?

Should I pack up after Jovi graduated and move to South Carolina to be with Sadie?

I mean, I could do that. Jovi was joining the Marines.

Bowie, Jagger, and Ace were all married now and could take care of themselves.

I also knew they’d take care of the businesses for me considering they did own part of them as well.

Once Jovi graduated, I didn’t have to stay in L.A.

, so if Sadie didn’t want to come back, we could still make it work.

It’d be a big change for me since I’d never lived anywhere but L.A.

Hell, I had never even considered living anywhere but L.A.

but this place couldn’t be home without Sadie.

Actually, no place could be home without her which also meant that any place could be home with her.

As long as she was there, I could manage. I’d figure out the rest.

Maybe, that’s why I answered the phone last night.

I had finally figured out our biggest hurdle.

However, hearing her voice reminded me of the pain I felt when she told me about her past. Suddenly, my solutions didn’t seem so easy.

I knew we’d get through this, but it was obviously going to take some more time.

Then my question had slipped out and I could tell by the tone of her voice that she thought my question was ridiculous.

Oddly, enough I found that even more reassuring.

Although, I felt we were finally on the right path and moving forward again I felt horrible about Sadie having to be in South Carolina dealing with her mother’s declining health by herself.

I knew she had Drake, but he was still a kid and she had mentioned that their relationship was still awkward.

I really felt like she could use someone there to help her through this.

Sadie was strong, I had always thought so but after hearing about her past she was even stronger than I gave her credit for.

I was more than willing to go down there for a week or two to be with her, but I didn’t want to rush us and mess things up.

I made my way to the kitchen to fix breakfast for Jovi and I.

I had been slacking in Sadie’s absence. Jovi wasn’t going to know what to do when he got up and had something other than toaster waffles.

As I’m cooking it dawns on me, Seth. Seth could go out and help Sadie.

I know that he wasn’t close to his mother, but he loved Sadie.

Jovi appeared in the kitchen doorway and the look of disbelief gave me a good laugh.

We ate breakfast then he left for school.

I decided to stop by the gym and squeeze in a work out.

My muscles were starting to get stiff from not being used as much but first I was going to make a stop at the beach to see Seth.

As I pull up to the beach, I spot Seth’s truck easily enough.

I get out and make my way down to the sand to wait for him.

I watch as he takes on wave after wave. He really was good enough to go pro if he wanted to.

It’s kind of a shame he isn’t. I tried to surf a few times but it’s a lot harder than I thought it would be.

I did okay but not well enough for me to keep trying.

Nope, I was a James boy through and through and we did better on dry land, under the hood of a car.

Seth finally paddles into shore as he leaves the water, he notices me. He seems a little shocked to see me to be honest. He makes his way over to me. “Hey man, how are you?” he asks.

“I’m good and you? You did great out there,” I tell him motioning back towards the water.

“Thanks man. So, what brings you my way?” Seth asks.

I scratch at the stubble of my jaw. “Well, I talked to Sadie last night and she just seems super stressed. I was considering going out there, but we are just now figuring out how to move forward. I don’t want to rush us into something and make our situation worse,” I explain.

Seth dries his hair with a towel. “I’m glad you guys are talking and trying to figure out everything. I’m really glad that she finally told you. You don’t know how badly it was weighing on her.”

“That’s another story that we may not want to discuss.”

Seth raises his eyebrows in question. “Well, now we have to talk about this. Let’s go grab some breakfast.”

“I already ate but I’ll go with you. Maybe, you can give me a new perspective.” I hop in my car and follow Seth out of the parking lot towards his pick of places to eat.

“You’re missing out,” Seth tells me as he orders. Once we sit down at a table, he levels me with a stare. “Look, Sadie would have told you sooner if she would have figured out a way. The guilt and regret weighed down on her.”

I rub my hands over my face. “Seth, I’m not saying it didn’t bother her, but I don’t know how I’m supposed to feel about it.

She lied to me for years. I was supposed to be the one person that she could rely on, that she could tell me anything, but she obviously didn’t feel like she could, and I don’t know how I feel about that. ”

Seth shakes his head. “I don’t think you realize how bad off she was, Axell.”

“What do you mean?” I ask

“After everything that Josh put her through it messed her up. You figure she was still a kid basically. She was pregnant, beaten and uprooting her whole life to get away from him. On top of that Shelly, our mother, moved here to the smallest ass town that on the planet knowing she’d be ridiculed for her situation.

Moving to Aynor only worsened things for her.

After she had Drake it became evident that she was suffering from postpartum.

She didn’t want anything to do with Drake, she’d stay in bed in a dark room all day, barely eating or drinking anything.

Shelly decided it was best to try and check her into a facility.

Once she was in there, they diagnosed her with post-partum and a form of Post-Traumatic Stress Disorder.

While she was in the facility Shelly convinced her that it would be best to sign the right to Drake over to her.

Of course, in her mental state she agreed, and I don’t disagree that it was best at the time, but Shelly used it against her.

Before she was released Shelly reached out to my dad after over a decade and told him that he needed to take Sadie.

Of course, our dad was more than glad to.

He had looked for them for the first couple of years then finally gave up hope.

Although, we didn’t expect for her to be in the shape she was.

I was worried about her coming here to L.A.

, then she met you and that worried me more.

I knew your reputation and given her history, well you can’t blame me for expecting the worst. You proved me wrong though.

You fixed the broken in her and you brought light back into her eyes. You were really good for her.”

I let Seth’s words sink in. “She mentioned the postpartum, but she didn’t tell me the rest.”

“Of course, she didn’t, it wasn’t her proudest time. She wasn’t Sadie then. You know she tried to get him back,” Seth comments quietly.

“Drake?” I ask.

Seth nods slowly. “Remember when she went back to Aynor after graduating from nursing school?” Seth asks, and I nod in response.

“She went to talk so Shelly about getting her rights back. She was in a spot where she could take care of Drake now, both mentally and financially. Of course, Shelly wouldn’t let that happen and Sadie being the nice person she is, she left him there because Shelly convinced her it was unfair. ”

“I wish I would have known that years ago. I would have helped her fight.”

“I know you would have, and I think she knows that as well. At that point though she was so afraid that you would see her differently. She couldn’t bring herself to do it. I’m not saying what she did was right, but she felt it was the only way at the time,” Seth explains.

I nod, and we sit a few minutes in silence before Seth says he’s going to head home to get some sleep.

I need to get to the shop. Tillman’s car will be done today but Seth’s words weigh heavy on me, so heavy that I don’t even hear the music blaring in my car.

Each day it’s become easier and easier to understand and accept Sadie’s decision which means that each day we are moving forward.

****

I call Tillman right before we close down the shop. “Hey man, I see you’re back to your cell phone.”

“Yeah, couldn’t stay away forever. Anyways, the car is done,” I tell him.

Tillman let’s out a whistle. “I’ll be damned. You still at the shop.”

“Yeah, I’m closing up but if you want to come and check it out, I’ll head over to JamesTown and get some food until you get here,” I reply.

“Okay, sounds good. I’ll be there shortly.”

I finish closing the shop up then use the door that connects the two buildings to get to JamesTown. I’m just finishing up my food when Tillman takes a seat across from me. I push what’s left of my cheese fries over to him. “These damn things are addictive.”

“I know,” I tell him. “How have you been?”

He nods while he continues eating the fries. “Good, just been busy racing. Making a hell of a killing here lately. We’re down racers so I’m racing almost every night.”

“That’s good for you though,” I comment.

He nods his head again. “Yeah, so let’s go see this car?”

We get up from the table, I clear and clean the table before leading Tillman through the hallway that connects the buildings. I turn on the lights and his car comes into view. He lets out a low whistle of appreciation. “Damn, that looks good. I hope she purrs as good as she looks.”

I laugh while approaching the car. “Oh, she does.”

Tillman opens the door of the car and slides in.

I hand him the keys and he starts the engine.

It roars to life and the smile on his face makes it all worth it.

“Damn, this is perfect.” I smile then walk around to open the garage door.

He backs the car out, rolling down the window he hollers out, “Get in!” Once I’m in the car Tillman’s excitement is contagious.

He pulls out of the parking lot and takes off down the street.

Luckily, there’s not much traffic so we fly down the road.

Tillman drives with ease. He’s like me. Speed and racing come easily to us.

Flying down a road at heart stopping speeds is second nature.

“Do you like the car?” I ask.

“Hell yeah, I love the damn thing,” he tells me.

Eventually, we circle back around to the shop. We both get out of the car and Tillman hands me a check. “Thanks. I really had a fun time working on this car.”

“I’m glad we were able to catch back up. I know you don’t race anymore, and I respect that decision but it’s nice to know we can still be friends,” he tells me.

“Of course. Man, if it wasn’t for you, I probably never would have gotten Sadie back.”

Tillman shakes his head. “Yeah, but then you wouldn’t be in your current situation which hasn’t been the easiest on you.”

I shrug in response. “True but I love Sadie and I’m starting to understand her decisions back then. This situation hasn’t been the easiest, but I still don’t regret my decision to choose her.”

Tillman smirks at me. “Good, I was hoping you’d say something like that. I’m glad to see where you’ve ended up in life. I’m proud of you.”

I laugh. “You’re sounding like an old man right now and you’re what just a couple of years older than me?”

He shrugs then laughs. “Go get your girl…again.” Tillman winks at me as he gets back in his car.

I watch as he leaves, and an idea starts to form.

I head back into the shop and power my computer back up.

Searching flights, I see that there is a flight in a couple of hours.

Eagerly I book the flight, close the shop back up and jog to my car.

I’ll have just enough time to get home throw some stuff in a bag and haul ass to the airport.

I might just make it in time for the flight but I’m going to have to let the speed demon loose.