The Hate Vow: A Dark Enemies to Lovers Romance Read online

  Staring at the clock on the wall, I watch the handle going around. Each tick taunting me, reminding me of how much time I’ve wasted… how much time I’m wasting right now. Sitting here in this room with a woman who destroyed my life and who is possibly growing a baby inside of her… our baby.

  I watch her get undressed from the corner of my eye. Her almost inaudible grunts telling me she is struggling to do it on her own. Knowing that she won’t ask for it, I get up and help her. I try not to look at her body, I don’t want to see her beaten like this. It makes me physically sick, especially thinking about the possibility of her being pregnant. If she is… I will hunt that fucker down and end him. Hell, I might do it anyway.

  Once she is in her hospital gown, I sit back down on the chair, waiting another eternity for the doc to show up. The entire time, we barely look at each other, both avoiding eye contact as much as we can, each for different reasons.

  When the door finally opens, and the doctor walks in, my heart is slamming against my ribcage furiously.

  “Hey there,” she greets us both. The nurse who was here earlier, entering the room behind her. “I’m Doctor Bayley. Amy filled me in. So, you fell down the stairs, huh?”

  “Yes.” Penny nods, but the doctor frowns at her. Giving her a look as if to say, I don’t believe a word you’re saying. She taps her pen on the clipboard she is holding, waiting for a moment to give Penny a chance to talk.

  When Penny doesn’t say anything, she finally lets it go. “Okay… your pregnancy test came back negative, so we will do some x-rays next to make sure you didn’t break anything when you fell.”

  I might have been annoyed by her snarky remark if it wasn’t for the fact she said the test was negative. A wave of relief washes over me. My heart rate slows down almost immediately, leaving an unfamiliar and unexpected dull ache in my chest. It’s almost like there is a tiny, disappointed part of me.

  Confused and irritated, I shove that feeling down in the darkest corner of my mind and concentrate on what else the doctor is saying.

  “I’m going to examine you. For that, I need you to take this off. Are you okay with him being in the room?” The doctor asks, and I almost roll my eyes at her. Penny nods, but the doctor keeps pushing. “I can make him leave if that makes you more comfortable.”

  “No,” Penny speaks up this time. “I want him to stay.” Her words slam into me and settle deep in my chest. Not because I’m surprised by her saying them, but because of the way she says them. There is an undeniable desperation in them. Like she doesn’t just want me to stay, she needs me to stay.

  I swallow hard, my throat suddenly feels tight.

  “Okay, he can stay,” the nurse says, and she and the doctor help Penny out of the hospital gown.

  “So, tell me what hurts the most right now?”

  “My side… my ribs, I guess,” Penny says, pointing to her right side.

  “I’m going to feel around here. Let me know if it gets too painful, okay?”

  Penny’s soft whimpers fill the otherwise silent room, and when I can’t take it any longer, I finally look over there. She is sitting up on the bed, the nurse holding her up while the doc examines her. There are bruises all over her face, arm, and shoulder, but the worst one covers her ribs.

  Another rush of anger surges through me, and I decide then that I will hunt Thomas down. He needs to learn a lesson.

  “Amy is going to take you over to radiology, and when I get those x-rays, we’ll go from there.” The doctor writes something down on her clipboard before handing it to the nurse and leaving the room.

  Amy unhooks the IV from the pole and attaches it to the bed when there is another knock on the door. A few seconds later, it opens, and a gray-haired man appears.

  “Sorry to interrupt. I’m Charles with the financial department,” he introduces himself and walks into the room. “Miss Jenkins?”

  “Yeah,” Penny croaks, before clearing her throat, “that’s me.”

  “I’m about to take her to radiology. Can’t this wait, Charles?” Amy interrupts, and I don’t miss the tone of annoyance in her words.

  “This will only take a minute. Hospital policy,” he explains. “Miss Jenkins, when you filled out the take in form, you stated you have no health insurance. How would you like to pay for your visit and treatment today?”

  “I… I don’t know,” Penny answers, flustered and embarrassed.

  “We offer payment plans. You could put some money down today and pay the rest in installments. If you can’t pay anything, we could only treat anything that’s life-threatening–”

  “We’ll pay for it today,” I cut his rambling off.

  Fishing out my wallet, I find my credit card I rarely use and hand it to him. Most of our business is done with cash, but I have a nice cushion sitting in a bank account.

  He takes the card without question and slides it through an attachment of the laptop he is carrying. “The visit and basic checkup are $250. Any other testing and treatment, like x-rays, will be charged separately.”

  “That’s fine,” I tell him. He hands me back my card and makes me sign on a small digital pad.

  He leaves just as Amy rolls out Penny, but not before both of them glance over at me.

  “Thank you,” Penny says quietly, and the nurse gives me an actual smile. A far cry from the death stares I have been getting so far.

  The door shuts behind them, leaving me to my thoughts.

  Penny has been back from the x-rays for almost an hour, and we are still waiting on the test results. At least they’ve given her some pain meds through her IV now. She seems a little out of it but also calm, her breathing steady, and when she reaches to get some water, she doesn’t flinch or grimace in pain.

  “Thank you, again,” Penny whispers, breaking the seemingly endless silence between us. “I’ll pay you back. However you want… if that’s still okay. I mean, if you still want this.”

  She says this, but I’m sure what she really meant was me.

  Do I still want her?

  The truth is, I don’t really know…

  Before I can come up with an answer, the doctor finally walks into the room, folder and clipboard in hand.

  “Sorry for the wait, guys. We are slammed today,” she excuses. “I just had time to look over your x-rays.” She walks up to stand next to Penny’s bed.

  “Is everything okay?” Penny asks.

  “Well… there is some stuff we need to talk about and go over. The good news is, there is only a hairline fracture on one of your ribs, this time.” She pauses for a moment to get out one of the x-rays. “But I found ribs that were broken at one point and healed now.”

  Penny stays quiet, not wanting to tell the doctor anything. Instead, she just listens to the list of all her injuries. Luckily, most seem minor compared to what could have been if I hadn’t intervened. Still, she has so many bruises she is going to be in a lot of pain for a while.

  “I’m going to let you go home, but you need to take it easy. Your rib will heal on its own, but you need to rest… and be safe,” she says, emphasizing the last word.

  “I am safe,” Penny whispers, looking down at her hands.

  15

  Penny

  For a long time, I just lie on the couch, looking into the darkness and trying to forget the pain in my body.

  Now that we are back at the house, and I have nothing but the silence to keep me company, I’m faced with everything that has happened in the last twenty-four hours.

  He came for me.

  Ryder came for me. He got me out of there and took me home, even after realizing that it was Tommy. I have the urge to go to his room and talk to him, explain why I stayed with Tommy and why I lied all those years ago. I want to thank him and apologize for everything I did to him… but I don’t. Partly because I don’t think it would matter to him, and partly because I’m simply scared. What of exactly, I don’t know. I’m just scared.

  Closing my eyes, I try to go to slee
p, but the pain keeps me from finding any rest at all. Now that the medicine from the IV has worn off, the pain riddles through every fiber of my body. I don’t think there is a part of me that is not sore right now.

  To make matters worse, my throat is dry like a desert, my stomach aches for food, and my bladder screams for release. I need to get up, even if every inch I move hurts. If I don’t eat and drink, my recovery will take even longer.

  Gripping the back of the couch, I use my arm to pull myself up in an effort to keep my torso straight and not use my abs. I grind my teeth together and groan in pain as I hoist myself up into a sitting position. After taking a short breather, I push myself to stand up all the way. With my head spinning and my knees weak, I walk into the kitchen, switch on the light, and grab a glass from the cabinet.

  Turning on the faucet, I fill the glass with water and drink almost the entire glass. I turn to set the glass on the counter, my movement a little too sudden, and a sharp pain shoots through my side. My fingers tremble, and the slick glass slides out of my hand, shattering onto the floor into a million pieces. Shit. Shit. Shit.

  Automatically, I bend down to pick up the mess I just made, only to be stopped by my own body as pain shoots through me. A sob rips from my throat, and I have to hold on to the counter just to hold myself up.

  The bedroom door swings open, and Ryder’s large body fills the frame. “What the fuck are you doing?”

  “I… just wanted… to get… some water,” I explain in between sobs.

  “Don’t fucking move,” he growls and walks over to where I’m standing. Careful not to step on any glass shards, he comes as close as he can get and holds his hand out to me. “Come on,” he orders roughly, and I take his hand.

  Unlike his harsh voice, his touch is gentle as he takes my hand and helps me step over the glass. He assists me back to the couch, motioning for me to lie back down.

  “I need to use the bathroom,” I whisper. Ryder sighs, but to my surprise yet again, he doesn’t give me a snarky remark. Instead, he guides me to the bathroom, going slow, so I can take smaller steps. When I’m in front of the toilet, he even helps me pull down my yoga pants. If it was anybody else, I would probably be embarrassed, but since Ryder’s seen me naked and up-close many times, I don’t even blush.

  “Use the bathroom. I’ll be back in a few minutes. Don’t try to get up by yourself,” he orders and leaves the room.

  I do my business and stay seated on the toilet, waiting for him to come back. After a short while, he does just that, holding a glass of water in his hand.

  “Take this,” he says, showing me his free hand. A large white pill is in the center of his palm, and I grab it without question. I put it on my tongue and take a sip of the water he hands me. I don’t understand why he is being so nice and caring, but I’m not about to complain.

  He helps me up and gets me dressed before taking my arm and walking me to his bedroom. I’m confused, but don’t complain when he heads for his bed. Slowly, and with Ryder’s support, I lower myself onto the soft mattress.

  “Thank you,” I say quietly when I’m situated comfortably. He doesn’t say anything back, only grunts and walks off. Even though I can’t see him from where I am, I listen to him move into the kitchen and open the fridge, gather some stuff, and prepare some food. I briefly think about asking him if I could have something to eat but decide against pushing my luck. He has done more for me today than I ever expected from him, more than I deserve. I won’t ask him for anything else, even if I am starving.

  A few minutes later, Ryder reappears in front of me, setting a plate and a water bottle on the nightstand.

  “Eat, drink, and then go to sleep,” he growls before spinning around and leaving again.

  The bedroom door shuts behind him, and I instantly miss his presence in the room. The space feels colder, emptier without him in here. I’ve been suppressing the idea of seeking Ryder’s company, the idea of enjoying his touch, and letting him protect me. After today, those thoughts and feelings are harder to ignore.

  He came for me, helped me, protected me, took me to the hospital, and even cared for me here. Now, I only need to figure out his motives. Does he really care, or is he just doing this because I owe him, and he wants me to work off the money?

  My mind is reeling with unanswered questions as I take tiny bites of the sandwich he made me. Each morsel lands heavy in my empty stomach. About halfway through, I notice a strange feeling creeping up on me. My mind goes a bit fuzzy, and my limbs grow heavier, less mobile. The pain in my body seems to lighten, the throbbing in my head dulls, and the sharp sting in my ribcage lessens.

  I figured the pill he gave me was some kind of pain or sleeping medicine, but I didn’t expect it to work this well. Whatever he gave me has the pain almost gone within a few minutes. Pushing the rest of the sandwich aside, I slump back onto the cushions and close my eyes, my mind drifting off almost immediately. All physical and mental pain vanishes for the moment as the drug courses through my body and gives me welcome relief.

  16

  Ryder

  Penny sleeps through me going on a run, taking a shower, and eating breakfast. I let her, knowing she needs the rest.

  Being the good Samaritan, I even scramble her an egg while I’m at it. Putting it on a plate, I set it on the nightstand along with another Percocet and a glass of apple juice.

  I tell myself that the only reason I’m doing this for her is because I don’t want her to break more shit. I try not to think about the reality. How I feel about taking care of her like this. I don’t understand why I do, I just know that it feels kind of good. I like her needing me, depending on me.

  I like this way too much, but I hate that it’s with her. Why couldn’t it be someone else who makes me feel this way? Anyone else…

  A pained groan drags me out of my thoughts.

  She blinks her eyes open and looks up at me, confused and disoriented. Glancing around, she realizes where she is, but the confusion never leaves her features.

  “I’m going to help you sit up, so you can eat.”

  She nods slightly, and I slide my arm under her body and lift her up, scooting her to the headboard. I hand her the medicine and juice, watching her take it without hesitation.

  When I hand her the eggs, she eats right away. I walk around the bed and carefully sit down next to her, not wanting to leave her.

  “Where did you sleep?” she asks between the tiny bites she’s taking.

  “On the couch,” I admit, watching her eyes go wide in shock. “I didn’t want to move and hurt you by accident.”

  “Why are you being so good to me?”

  “I don’t know,” I answer honestly. I don’t know why I feel this need to protect her, take care of her, and keep her with me. All I know is that I do.

  “Why did you borrow the money from the club?”

  “I didn’t. I mean, I did, but I didn’t know.”

  “What’s that supposed to mean?”

  “Tommy wouldn’t let me leave the house, but sometimes he would bring people over. His friends. They all knew, of course, but no one ever offered to help me until one night. His friend, Ryan, told me he could help me leave. I thought Tommy had told him to say that, like it was a test or something, but I was willing to risk it. So, I agreed.”

  I stay silent as she continues, “A few days later, when Tommy was at work, Ryan came and got me. He kicked in the door and made me go with him. I didn’t know where we were going. If I was safe or had simply traded my jailer. He parked the car in some back alley, and we met a guy, one of your guys. Ryan told him I wanted to borrow five grand.”

  You’ve got to be shitting me.

  “Before I knew what was going on, the guys gave him a stack of money,” she continues. “Ryan took it and shoved it in his pocket. He told me that this was his payment for getting me out. Then he got into his car and left.”

  Immediately, I imagine all the ways I’m going to hurt him. The need to avenge, to so
mehow make things right for Penny, overcomes me.

  I’ve got a name, know who he hangs around with. It will be easy to track him down. I will make him pay, and I will enjoy doing it.

  As I predicted, it wasn’t hard to find him.

  I waited until Penny passed out again before I called Maddox and had him help me track this Ryan guy down. As soon as he sent me an address, I left, leaving Mojo to protect Penny.

  It’s dark when I pull up to his house, the light coming from the windows telling me he is home. I cut the engine and get out of my truck.

  When I walk around the house and look in through the window, I can’t believe my luck. Thomas is there as well. Half lying on the couch, an X-Box controller in his hand. Ryan is sitting next to him.

  Great, I’ve got myself a two for one special.

  Sneaking around the back of the house, I draw my gun. The back door looks easy enough to kick in, but before I do that, I grab the door handle and try to see if it’s unlocked. I turn the knob and push the door open.

  Idiots.

  With a smile on my face, I stroll into his house undetected, closing the door quietly behind me. I follow the voices coming from the living room until I stand in the door with my gun raised.

  The two dumbasses are so into their game that they don’t even see me standing a few feet away.

  “Sorry to interrupt your party.” I grin.

  Both Thomas and Ryan jump up from the couch, shock and fear written all over their faces. Ryan reaches for something behind him, but I’m faster. I pull the trigger, and the bullet hits him in the shoulder.

  He groans and falls back onto the couch, clutching the spot I just shot him.

  Before Thomas can make a move, I lower my gun and pull the trigger again, hitting him in his right knee.