Saved By the Man by Vanessa Lynn Gilbert (rm book recommendations txt) 📕

convinced her it was a good idea. My silver blue eyes where plain as always and I looked flushed out. I growled in frustration at my appearance and said, “God, why the hell do I even try.” I looked inside my desk drawer and searched for my makeup bag. I wasn’t going to go out into the big welcome back party looking as if I was tired and sick…which I was.
I found my black and red skull design makeup bag and pulled out my black eyeliner, my black eye shadow, and my mascara. I had green colored mascara, blue mascara, red mascara, and boring black mascara. I love black but sometimes you have to change it up a bit. I put on the red mascara and the rest of the makeup I pulled out. After my hair was fixed and I looked more like me I walked out. I don’t really care if I look good in front of the family but I didn’t want to look bad in front of Erik.
As soon as I stepped out I ran into Erik. “Ops, sorry Erik,” I said. Erik looked down at me and sighed. “Erik what’s the matter.” Erik flipped out his new touch phone and showed me a text he got. It read, “If you want to see your baby sister again you’ll make Zoe Molson drop the charges against Carter Jerson. If you bring the police into this then you can say night night to your sister.” I looked up at Erik and saw a single tear fall down his face. “Hey, don’t cry…don’t cry.” I said. Erik looked up at me and said, “What am I gonna do? I love my sister so much…I can’t even…,” I stopped him before he got to over worked.
“Erik, don’t worry I’ll drop the charges…as long as it means your sister stays alive.” Erik looked at me with serious eyes and said, “No…you can’t drop the charges then he sees that with the helping of kidnapping one of our family members then he gets whatever he wants from us…he can get you.” A shiver ran up and down my back. I was scared for Erik’s sister’s life but the thought of Carter being able to not only have me but to do whatever he wanted…gave me more than the shivers…it gave me the creeps. I stared at Erik for a long second then I said, “I don’t care your sister’s life is more important.” Erik looked at me.
His eyes said thank you but his body language said Hell no. Before Erik and I walked down the stair case and enjoyed the fact that I was alive I had to make the call telling my lawyer that I was going to drop the charges. I picked up the black and grey home phone and dialed my lawyer’s number. Usually I didn’t fear much but right now…at this second I was terrified. Erik looked at me and asked, “Are you sure?” I looked up at him. I had so much I wanted to say. I wanted to say that I wasn’t sure I was only sure that I wanted his sister alive, I wanted to say that I wanted to be his, and that as much as I hate to see that sick bastard and the Piranhas get away but I can’t handle having Erik’s sister’s death be all my fault.
“Yes, I’m sure.” As I picked the phone up and pushed my finger to the first number of Maria’s, my lawyer’s, number Erik’s phone chipped alive. “Who is it?” I asked Erik. Erik looked at me and I could tell just by the look on his face that it wasn’t someone he wanted to talk to. “It’s the leader of the Piranhas.” Erik said. I looked at Erik confusion and much more writing all over my face. “Why would they want to talk to you?” I asked. Erik looked down and said, “It says that they don’t trust you or me enough to make the call so either we have to meet your lawyer in person or write her a letter.” I looked at him and said, “That’s impossible. She doesn’t have the time to meet in person and she didn’t give me her address.” Erik snapped his head up and I could see the doomed, trapped, and helpless feeling he had in his eyes. I hated to see him like that, so helpless.
“Erik, don’t worry I’ll try to get a hold of her.” I said trying to ease his worry. “Zoe I’ve never felt so helpless I usually can handle this kind of stuff. What am I going to do?” Erik asked. Not only did Erik feel helpless but I felt helpless to. This was a situation I can’t handle. I know the consequences of my decision and I know what happens if I can’t get a hold of my lawyer. It seemed not only was I in the middle of a situation that I can’t handle and could never possible understand but I also was in the middle of a family situation that more or less involved the police that we could not call or count on. I sighed thinking over how complicated this situation is.
Erik’s sister taken hostage, Carter part of the Piranhas, and of course if I do drop the charges he can still threaten Erik’s sister’s life to get to me. Thinking about it makes me feel nauseas and more than that I’m sure Erik was thinking about it. His sad depressing face was slowly but progressively turning into a face I knew him to wear when he saw me and Carter holding hands, hugging, or even kissing. A face he wore when he saved me from Carter. He looked at me with his serious eyes and said, “Forget it. My sister may be on the line but…I won’t let him touch, look, or even think about you.” If he said this and no one’s life was in danger I would have either kissed him or would have blushed and said thanks…defiantly would have blushed. Erik looked at me with his intense eyes and smile.
“You’re blushing.” Erik stated with a smile. I quickly touched my cheek. He was right…I am blushing. I quickly dropped my head to avoid eye contact and tried to find a way out of this embarrassing scene. “Zoe, what’s a matter?” I heard a familiar small voice say. I looked behind me and there stood Makayla, my 5 year old cousin. “Oh, nothing Makayla,” I said. I looked back and Erik. He looked at Makayla and smiled. She giggled then ran off. Erik always had this affect on girls. When we first met and he smiled at me I always got butterflies and blushed…I still do that. Erik’s smile got even bigger. “I love how I can do that.” “I don’t understand how you can do that.” I said. Erik looked at me and said, “Well, it all depends on this.” He brought both of his hands up and down the upper part of his body and said, “If this isn’t in good shape then no girl laughs.”
I laughed hating his charms by the minute. Erik was always a flirt that’s was why I never really went after him (not that I could have him). If he and I did date I’m sure he’d still flirt with all of our friends and I would be kind of jealous and over protective. I stared at Erik for a long time then I looked around. We were in my mother’s room. My mom’s favorite color is green so she decided to decorate her room as if she were in the rainforest so it was mostly green. Her bed was, in my opinion, the leaves and vines of the trees so we got a green comforter with vines and leaves decorated on it. Her carpet was the same as the rest of the house, brown, her walls where a light green and she had a curtain that was a very light green. She has two white doors, one leading to her closet and the other to her bathroom. Erik looked around and asked, “What?” “Nothing just…you know taking in where we are.”
He smiled and laughed. “Do you always do that,” He asked. If I was going to lie I’d say nope not at all. “Yea kinda,” I said embarrassed by that fact. Erik smiled and said, “That’s cute.” I looked up at him and smiled. He thought it was cute. He thought it was cute, I kept saying over and over in my head louder and more excited every time I rethought it. I smiled then lost the happy feeling when I remembered that some one’s life was on the line. Erik’s hand gentle touched my cheek and he said, “If you stop smiling I’ll break down.” Oh my god, he…he…I…there is no words just that he’s touching me and it seemed more…boyfriend than friend.
Erik’s hand was cold against my skin but I don’t care. Erik and I stayed like this for a minute or two until Erik leaned in close. My heart jumped up to my throat and the butterflies were back. Erik stopped moving closer and just stared into my eyes as if worried that I didn’t want him to. I wanted to move closer but I was frozen in shock and happiness…happiness that he was this close to kissing me. I took a deep breath of his musky scent and just held it. I would never ever be able to get this close again…ever. I looked into his eyes and then leaned in.
I was gonna take a chance, hope that this is what he wanted. I stopped and just stayed afraid to move any further forward. A sudden knock made us both jump and pull away. My Cousin Amber stood in the door way staring at me and Erik. “Oh, sorry am I…interrupting anything.” Amber asked starring at Erik. Amber was maybe two or three inches taller than me, she has brown layered shoulder length hair, and she was tan. Amber wasn’t the type of person to flirt with another family member’s boyfriend…but then again she would flirt with some one’s crush. Amber had on a red violet short dress that went to the middle of her thigh, 2 ½ inch high heel red shoes, and she was wearing the kind of makeup I wear. Erik looked Amber up and down then said, “Uh, no…no you didn’t interrupt us.”
I sighed. One perfect moment, one blessed second and it crumpled to pieces thanks to Amber. Erik and Amber walked out laughing and I stood alone. Maybe he really just thinks of me as a friend. Maybe I should just forget about him and save his sister. The one thing I did expect from him was to ignore Amber for a moment and concentrate on the fact that his sister may die...but hey what do I expect from a guy. I looked down at his phone and sighed. The phone rang the usual chime. “Zoe, are you gonna drop the charges?” It read. I starred at it for a few seconds contemplating the facts and the consequences.
If I didn’t then Erik’s sister would die but Carter would be in juvenile…I think. If I did then Erik’s sister would be alive but Carter could kidnap