Keeping Denver

I wake with a pounding in my head, and groan. ‘Fuck.’ Cracking one eye open, I realize I’m not in my bed. Instead, I’m face down on the living room floor with an empty bottle of Jack sitting next to my face. What the fuck happened last night? Rolling to my back, I stare up at the ceiling trying to gain clarity. It doesn’t take long for the memories of yesterday’s events to come rushing back, and close my eyes, as the vision of Denver’s face stricken with fear and hurt flashes through the forefront of my brain. Bile rises in my throat. Picking myself up off the floor, I dash down the hall to the bathroom, lifting the lid of the toilet, where I proceed to empty the contents of my stomach. Shit. How much did I drink?

Stumbling to the sink, I wash my face, brush my teeth, and take in my reflection. ‘What the fuck are you doing, asshole.’ Bile threatens to rise in my throat once again when the gravity of my situation punches me in the gut. I’ve made the worst mistake of my life. Tamping down the urge to retch, I fly out of the bathroom and into the bedroom. Opening the closet door, I grab the first pair of shoes in reach and shove my feet into them. Looking up, my eyes land on the side of the closet filled with Denver’s clothes. ‘Shit!’ Denver is probably sitting in a cell right now scared out of her mind, and it’s all my fault. Jogging out of the bedroom and down the hall, I stop at the kitchen island long enough to snatch my phone and the keys. The moment I fling the door open, I run into Spencer, standing there with his fist raised.

‘Good morning, fuckface.’ His demeanor hints at his current mood.

‘I don’t have time for your shit. What do you want, Spencer?’

‘Oh? And might I ask where you are rushing off too? It’s certainly not to get your woman out of jail where she spent the night. I already took care of that earlier this morning, dumbass.’ Spencer breezes pass me, bumping my shoulder along the way. ‘Although,’ he continues, ‘I don’t think you could call her your girlfriend anymore. Not since you tossed her aside like trash.’

My fists clench at my sides. ‘You want to tell me what you’re going on about and where MY woman is?’

‘Well, after I posted Denver’s bail this morning,’ Spencer walks into my kitchen, opens the refrigerator door, and grabs a protein shake. ‘And not because you need to know, but because I’m kind of feeling sorry for your hungover ass right now.’ Spencer opens the drink in his hand, then downs half of it before continuing, ‘I took her to Frances and Richard’s house, because unlike you, the rest of us didn’t turn our backs on her.’ He chucks the empty bottle in the trash can.

Anger has me rushing my best friend. I fist his shirt, getting in his face. ‘I made a fucking mistake.’ I push his back against the wall. ‘Joslyn ambushed me on the sidewalk outside my office yesterday. She started spewing bullshit about how I don’t know Denver and how I’m too gullible when it comes to damsels in distress. She fucking got inside my head and put me in a piss mood. Then I walk in on Kelly accusing Denver of stealing. A second later, the police were there, finding not only Kelly’s wallet but Frances’ necklace in Denver’s purse? The evidence was right there.’ I shake my head. ‘Then, all the shit Joslyn had said came rushing back. I started doubting us and how quickly I fell for her. For a split second, I wondered if Joslyn was right,’ I yell, shoving my friend once more.

Spencer breaks from my hold and pushes me, causing me to stumble back. ‘You fucked up, and you need to own that shit. You turned your back on Denver. I can’t believe you let that bitch Joslyn get in your head. You fought your feelings for Denver since the first day you laid eyes on her, and then, when you finally have her, you pull some shit like this.’ Spencer stalks away. ‘Did you even take a minute to hear her out? To get her side of the story? You’re a lawyer for Christ’s sake, Callan. Yet you tossed her aside as if she were nothing. As if the past few weeks meant jack shit.’

‘You don’t have to tell me this, Spencer. I’m aware of how bad I fucked up.’ Stepping into my personal space, Spencer levels me with a look I have only seen a handful of times from him.

‘I don’t think you do know, Callan. You weren’t the one who saw the loss of hope in her eyes when I picked her up from the police station. And you sure as fuck wasn’t the one wiping away Denver’s tears as she sat on the bathroom floor asking why the man she is in love with doesn’t feel the same way.’

My heart sinks deeper and deeper with every word Spencer speaks. ‘Tell me what I’m supposed to do, man.’ I pull at my hair. ‘I need to get her back. I have to make her forgive me.’

Spencer shrugs. ‘I don’t know, Callan. It’s not about you. It’s about Denver. All I can tell you is that she’s heartbroken and doesn’t want to see you. Frances and I convinced her to stay over at her place for a while since she doesn’t have a home.’

‘She has a home,’ I growl.

‘Not according to her—a job either.’ Spencer gets a smug look on his face. ‘However, I remedied that situation. Denver now works for me.’

‘What the fuck, Spencer. What are you trying to play here?’

‘I’m not playing at shit. You have some fucking nerve asking me that. What I’m doing is helping a friend. Not only am I helping Denver, but I’m doing this for you, jackass.’

‘How is having my woman work for you helping me?’

‘Denver doesn’t want anything to do with you. Her exact words were, I want to move on. Having Denver working for me keeps her close while your ass figures out how you’re going to win her back. If you can.’ Spencer laughs, and it rubs me the wrong way. The truth fucking stings. Drawing in a calming breath, I listen as he continues. ‘You have a hell of a lot of groveling to do, Callan.’

Sighing, I run my hand through my hair. ‘Fuck, Spencer. I’ll do whatever it takes. I’ll fight every day until she’s back home where she belongs.’

Spencer claps me on the back, and nods. ‘I have faith you will, man. Denver loves you. She said so herself. You just better pray it’s enough.’ Having eaten the well-deserved ass-chewing Spencer just dished out, and knowing Denver is no longer in jail, I slump into the stool at the counter and run my hand down my face.

‘Now, with that out of the way, I came over to let you know Kelly was picked up by the police and charged with making a false claim.’

At Spencer’s statement, my head snaps up. ‘What?’

‘Yep. It turns out her and Joslyn were cohorts. They devised a plan to get Denver out of the picture.’

‘Son of a bitch.’ I stand and start pacing.

‘How did you figure out it was them?’

‘I didn’t. Frances did.’ Spencer folds his arms across his chest.

‘Frances?’

‘Yeah, man. You remember last week when Frances left work early for an appointment?’ I think for a moment, then nod. ‘Well, she said she forgot to grab that file you needed. Frances said Kelly was all too eager to drop the file off for her.’ As Spencer continues to talk all the puzzle pieces begin to fall into place. ‘She said Kelly asked to use the restroom while she was there. This part is Frances’s theory. She believes it gave Kelly ample opportunity to swipe the necklace. So, armed with what information I had, I made a pit stop at Kelly’s apartment before coming here.’ Spencer swaggers across the room. ‘And me being the badass motherfucking lawyer I am, Kelly caved in less than five minutes. She confessed everything; threw Joslyn under the bus by saying it was all her idea.’

I give Spencer a pointed look. ‘But it was Kelly who took the necklace from Frances’s house and planted the jewelry along with her wallet in Denver’s purse.’

‘Women, man,’ Spencer shrugs. ‘It’s all she said from this point on.’

He’s right. No matter how much Joslyn deserves some kind of repercussion, the law won’t do anything about it. But, I don’t need the law to serve justice. I have connections, and people like to talk. By the time word gets around, and they find out what she did, Joslyn’s modeling career will be over. So will her chances at landing a prospective husband and climbing the social ladder.

Once I realize Spencer is through putting me through the wringer, I try calling Denver’s cell. It rings two times before going to voicemail. Fuck.

Not giving up, I call Frances’ house, and prepare myself for another ass chewing. I expect Frances to answer, but instead, I get Richard. ‘Well, son. You screwed the pooch on this one.’

I sigh. ‘Yeah. But I refuse to give up. I’m going to take a guess and say Frances is pissed at me too?’

‘You guessed, right. To tell you the truth, so am I.’

‘I know. I’ve let a lot of people down. The only thing I can do now is to fix what I have broken. How’s she doing, Richard?’

‘She’s hanging in there. That woman has been through more than she deserves. Denver is a strong woman, Callan. She’ll get through this.’ His words do nothing to lessen the ache in my chest.

‘I appreciate you all letting her stay there.’

‘Not doing it for you. We’re doing it for her.’ Richard clears his throat. ‘I haven’t known her long, but I know enough to realize she’s something special.’

‘She’s everything and more,’ I confess, more to myself than him.

‘If that’s genuinely how you feel, son, then you have to let the past go. Your father was a shitty man. He not only abandoned your mother, but he left you too. You think you’ve moved on from what happened when you were a boy, Callan, but you haven’t.’ A heavy sigh comes through the phone. ‘I’ve noticed how you hold people at arm’s length. Besides me, Frances, and Spencer, you don’t allow people to get close enough to let them in. Until Denver came along. Even then, you fought it. I knew the day you brought her to dinner, she was the one for you—the woman who was finally able to break through those steel walls of yours. Your mistake was letting your insecurities and fears overrule your heart. You went into your relationship with Denver with an expiration date hanging over your head.’ Richard falls quiet for a moment, and I know he’s thinking. ‘She fell head over heels for you, and from my observations, gave all of herself to you, and you held back.’

This time when he becomes silent, he does so giving me time to think, and let his words sink in. They do. His truth hits home. I didn’t give Denver everything I had. I held back.

‘I hit the nail on the head, didn’t I?’ Richard breaks the silence.

I swallow past the huge lump of guilt and remorse stuck in my throat. ‘Yes,’ my voice sounding gruff.

‘That woman has been through hell and back her entire life. She has not had one person in her whole time on this earth that she could put her trust in and count on other than herself. She has lived her life not having anyone to lean on, to stand up for her, or to love her. Yet she was still able to give all of herself to you and love you. Denver trusted you with something she has never given to another person…’ I know what he is about to say. ‘Her heart.’ It cuts like a knife, straight into my soul. ‘What did you do with the gift she gave you?’

My chest tightens as I fight to give my answer. ‘I broke it.’

‘You broke it. She didn’t use her past as an excuse not to open up and allow herself to love. The betrayal Denver feels is not just the fact that you didn’t believe her when she was being accused of something she didn’t do; it’s the fact you didn’t return the same kind of trust and love she has for you.’

‘I do love her, Richard. I love her more than anything.’

‘Well, Son. I guess it’s time to get off your ass and prove it.’ Then the line goes dead.

I sit and stew on his words. Everything he said is true. I went into my relationship with Denver believing it would eventually end. Realizing I forgot all about Spencer, I stand. Noticing he’s not in the same room as myself, I go in search of him, only to find a yellow sticky note on my front door.

Call me if you need to talk, or help pulling your head out of your ass.

Catch you later.

At this moment, there is only one thing I’m sure of; I’m not letting my woman go without a fight. I’m going to earn Denver’s trust and win back her heart.