Chapter 17

Once the others were cleared, we went in my apartment. I couldn't stop thanking the guys. They really saved my life. They risked their own lives to save my own.

"Really, we would do it again." Nick told me as we went in the apartment. I looked around at the mess there was and I sighed.

"You gonna be okay?" Aaron asked me. He had a bloddied lip and a bump on his head. It seemed like Nick was the only one who was really unscathed.

"Yeah, I will be." I told him. I then picked the broken lamp and I set it back on the coffee table. Then I turned it on. It was still working.

"I think that you should come live with one of us." Nick suggested to me. I looked at him and I saw that they were all agreeing with him.

"I couldn't do that to any of you. Besides, I am fine here." I told them. I then went in the kitchen and I picked up my necklaces.

"Lea, we know that you can't live alone. Even now that he is away and out of the picture." Billy said to me.

"That was only one time!" I told them as I gave up on the necklaces. I put them on the counter. Once Aaron came up to my place and he saw that I was sleeping on the floor in the living room. I had some alcohol with me and I knew that they weren't proud of me for doing that.

"Lea, please." Zak said as he walked in the kitchen. I saw that really got hit hard. It was already swelling. Nick, Billy, and Aaron followed soon after him.

"Zak, you are swelling. Let me get something for that." I told him as I went to the fridge. I opened it and I started to look for a steak.

"Damn it, listen to me." Zak said as he slammed the fridge. I sighed and looked at him. If Gage had done that, I probably would have been on the floor. But there was something about Zak that was sift about him.

"What is it?" I asked him. I was obviously annoyed at him. He brushed his nose and looked at the others.

"Zak, I am waiting." I told him. I wanted him to say what ever it was, right now. I didn't care if the others were here.

"Lea, I thought that I was about to loose you. I can't loose you. You mean too much to me. I really love you. I know that I don't say it enough, but I really do. I don't like knowing that you are in a different house, much less a different bed." He told me. I could see that all of this was coming from his heart.

"Well what do you want me to do about it? I live here and you live at your place." I said to him in a frustrated tone.

"I want you to live with me. I don't care if anyone finds out. I want you to be safe. You and I both know that you should live with someone." He said. I closed my eyes and took a deep breath in. My leg was hurting, since I was standing on it.

"I think that you should move in with Zak. You know that he will be there for you. Besides, the two of you match perfectly together." Billy said from the other side of kitchen. I looked at hhim and the others.

"Just come with us. We are going back to his place. We can come back and pack your stuff in the morning." Zak said to me. I didn't see why I couldn't go with them. I nodded my head and I took Zak's hand. We then walked out of the building.

The five us then went to Zak's house. When we got there, Nick and Billy's families were still there. I was able to say hello to all of them. They all greeted me with a hug. I was surprised at this. Luckily, I spent most of the time sitting down.

When we got in, evveryone fussed with all of the guys. I watched as Billy was looked over by his wife. He kept telling her taht he was fine. She kissed his cheek and went to check on Aaron then. Nick went to his wife and she looked at him and looked at his arms for anything. There wasn't a mark on him. Then he grabbed her face and kissed her. I smiled when I watched that. Billy's wife then came across Zak and started to worry over him. That was when I decided that I needed to sit.

I was able to talk to their wives and they seemed to be really nice to me. Aaron and Zak played with the kids and Nick and Bliit would join them once in a while. Aaron was like a kid to all of them. I was glad that they were all willing to let me in their lives.

When we got on the conversation of Zak, Billy's wife seemed to know exactly what was going on. It seemed like everyone thought that we would work well together. I admitted that I hated the way that Zak investigated. I was just glad to have a family.

"Hey, where do you want to sleep?" Zak asked me as he came to the couch. It had been about two hours since everyone left. I was sitting on the couch with Gracie.

"I think that I will take that room, if it is okay with you of course." I told him. He smiled at me and sat next to me.

"What ever you want is fine with me." He told me. He then wrapped his arm around my shoulders. I leaned into him and rested my head on his shoulder.

"Are you okay?" He then asked me. I looked at him and smiled.

"I am. Thanks for coming to my rescue." I told him. He chuckled and kissed me. I kissed him back sweetly. He then put his hand at the base of my neck.

"I'm sorry." He told me as he broke the kiss. I sighed and shifted so that I could kiss him better. Once we were kissing again, he treated me like he was going to break me. I didn't want that. I wanted to feel how strong he was. I wanted to feel his muscles hold me tight.

"Zak please. I am not going to break." I told him as he started to kiss down my neck. I shivered as he started to suck on my pulse.

"Are you sure? I just don't want to hurt you." He told me. I then stoppped him and grabbed his face so that he was looking at me. 

"You aren't going to hurt me." I told him. I then moved my hips against his. This got me a moan. He then grabbed me by my lowere wasit and pulled me close to him. I could feel him panting on my neck.

"You asked for it." He said to me. Then he lifted himself and me off of the couch. He walked us to his room and he tossed me on the bed. I smiled at him as he took his shirt off.

He got on the bed and started to kiss me again. This time it was more desperate. Like he wanted me and nothing else. Air was no longer something that we needed. He ripped my shirt off of me and I gasped as I laid back on the bed. It wasn't long before my bra was on the floor. I moaned and arched my back as he started to suck my breasts.

I could feel his member getting bigger as he did this to me. I then started to mess with his pants. He panted and looked at me. His eyes were dialted and there was something else in his eyes. He then looked at my body and took off my pants. The bandage stayed on as he ripped them off. 

"Are you sure?" He asked me as he looked at the bandage. I was surprised that a bandage was able to bring him out of this thoughtlessness he had just been in. 

"Yes, Zak." I whispered as I sat up and unbuttoned his own pants. He took them off along with his underwear. He then fliped me over so that I was on my stomach. 

"You are mine tonight." He whispered in my ear which sent chills down my spine. I gasped as he then rubbed it against my core. He then entered me. I then started to feel the pleasure. 

As he thrusted in me, I couldn't do much. His touch was sending me all over the place. He was right when he said that he was in control. He later flipped me over so that I was on my back. Then he thrusted into me hard. Out chests were together while he did this. I knew that I was scratching his back up, but neither of us cared. As I unraveled under him, I repeated his name and kissed him. Then I saw a bunch of white spots as I came with him. He collapsed on me and it was okay.

"Lea, are you okay?" Zak asked me. I smiled at him as I ran my fingers through his hair.

"Yeah, I am now." I told him. He chuckled and rolled off of me. I looked at him and smiled at his face. He was just alying there and staring at me.

"What are you looking at?" I asked him. Him looking at me was making me a little worried. He then moved a strand of hair out of my face.

"I was just looking at how beautiful you are." He told me. I then started to blush.

"Well thank you." I told him. I then got out of the bed and put on my pants and his shirt. Then I went to the bathroom. The bandage was still on my leg, surprisingly. I stood in hte mirror and looked at it.

"Are you sure that you are okay?" Zak asked me as he came in the bathroom. He was wearing some basketball shorts and no shirt. I sighed as I looked at it.

"What did he do?" Zak asked me as he wrapped his arms around my wasit and kissed my shoulder.

"I saw it and I am really sorry." I whispered. I was looking at his reflection and he looked up at me.

"Why? What does it say?" He asked again. I was starting to become really ashamed. I had seen it in the ambulance. That was when I could feel my heart shatter.

"Zak, I love you." I told him. I knew that he was getting really concerned by this point. He turned me around so that I was looking at him.

"Why are you saying this? I don't blame you for anything that he has done to you." He told me. I shook my head and grabbed his face.

"Zak, I just don't want you to think that I love him." I told him. He leaned into my hands.

"I won't ever think of that." He told me. I smiled at him and kissed his forehead. When I let go of him, I took a step back. He looked at me as I started to take the bandage off.

I took it off slowly. I didn't want to see it again. But at the same time, I needed to. I needed to make sure that it was what I thought that it said. I also needed to change the bandage. I gasped as the tape pulled on my sensitive skin. The gauze stayed on the cut. I figured that would be from the medicine that they put over it.

I looked at Zak one more time, before I took the gauze off of it. He looked at me and I thought that he was about to cry. I gasped as the air hit the wound. I put the gauze on the counter then I looked at it. I was right. It was exactly as I remembered it.

"Lea, I am so sorry." Zak said as he looked at it. I felt tears come to my eyes as I stared at the four large letters. They were about 4 inches in height and I could tell that it was going to leave a nasty scar. The four letters were the worst thing that he could ever write on me. They spelt, "GAGE".

"I need a minute." I told Zak. I wanted him to get out of the room so that I could cry. He didn't move, though. He grabbed me and pulled me into a hug. I then started to cry.

"Lea, it will be okay." Zak told me. I couldn't stop crying, though. I was sobbing uncontrolably. I couldn't believe that someone would do that to me. He was a monster. I just stood there and held on to Zak. I needed that much.

"Let's go to the bed." He told me. I sniffled and looked at him.

"I have to bandage it up." I told him. He smiled at me and wiped the tears off of my face.

"I'll do that." He whispered to me. He then had me sit on the counter as he got the first aid kit. I watched him pull out all of the supplies. Then he started to dress the wound.

He was so gentle as he did so. He didn't want to hurt me. Zak cut out the right sizes and put the cream on just right. when he put it on my leg. I gapsed and he looked up at me to see if I was okay. Then he taped it to me leg. It was comforting to know that someone cared. 

Once it was bandaged, Zak picked me up and carried me to the bed. he laid me down like I was a glass doll that would break at any moment. He then got in next to me and I grabbed me. I held on to him as if he was the only thing that was keeping me alive. He really was.

As I woke up the next morning to see that I was alone in the bed. I looked around for Zak, but he wasn't in the room. I sighed and looked at Gracie. She was laying on the bed with me. I then started to pet her.

"Where did your daddy go?" I asked her. She looked at me and moved closer to me. I smiled at her and kissed her nose.

I then heard him outside. I got out of the bed and limped to the backdoor. He was sitting at the table and talking on the phone. I walked out and went to greet him. He smiled at me as I sat in the chair across from him.

"Alright. I'll talk to you later, Aaron." Zak said. He smiled at me then hung up the phone.

"What did Aaron want?" I asked Zak. He smiled at me and leaned in close to me.

"He wanted to know how you were and if he could come over. I told him that he could. You can hang in my room while he is here, if you want." He told me. I smiled at him and leaned closer to him.

"I am not going to hide from Aaron. You and I both know that he would come hunting for me." I told him. Zak laughed and kissed me. I kissed him back.

"Do you want to get some of your stuff?" He asked me. I nodded my head and the two of us gout up and we went to his car.

I was able to convince him that I would drive my car to his place. He agreed reluctantly. He then took me to my apartment. I told him to get some clothes and I collected all of my journals. I placed them all back in the little back pack that I had kept them in. He didn't seem to wonder what I had in there.

I was able to drive my car back to his place. Somehow, when I asked Zak to get some of my clothes, he thought that I meant all of them, so he put tham all in my car. I knew that he was just trying to be helpful.

When we go back to his place, Aaron was already there. He helped Zak and I take the clothes in. I kept telling Aaron that Zak packed the clothing. He seemed to believe me when he saw Zak blush about it.

Aaron spent the day with us. He asked once in a while about my wound. I told him that it was okay. I told him what it said. He seemed to be really angry about that. He got over it though. He told me that people were already finding out about what happened.

I read the news and I saw that it didn't really tell much. It was basically a break in and the guys were there. I was glad that there wasn't much that was being reported. Aaron told me that people would want to know more. I understood that they would have to tell people that they were okay. Zak came up with a story and Aaron and I agreed to it. It was basically just that the guys were at my place for some equipment and someone broke in. I thought that it was a good thing to tell people.