Her Broken Wings - FINALLY Completed

Chapter 20

Getting thrown flat on my back was not how I imagined starting off Christmas. I let out a loud groan. That was definitely going to leave a bruise.

"Sorry sprite, but that was terrible," Shawn teased, as he looked down at me.

"Well, it's not my fault I have a terrible teacher," I muttered sarcastically.

Shawn held a hand to his chest. "Ouch, that hurt."

Shawn offered me a hand and lifted me off the training mats. It had been a week and a half since he had began my 'training', and I was convinced that I would never get the hang of it. It's not that I wasn't trying. I was, really. But some days it seemed like I was more likely to injure myself than anything else. Shawn remained annoyingly optimistic, though I couldn't for the life of me understand why.

We'd become close over the past two weeks. Despite his grueling torture in the gym, he was actually a pretty fun guy to hang around. The first week had been rocky but we'd settled into a kind of mutual friendship. He really was a nice guy. Funny, charismatic, loyal, and not a complete asshole. Now, why couldn't I have fallen for a guy like that? But as much as Shawn appealed to me, he didn't make my pulse skip or my chest ache with longing. No, there was only one guy who could do that to me, and he had sent me away.

The one downside to having Shawn around was how much he made me ache for Zoey. Our phone calls had become shorter, though we still talked every day. It was partly my doing. Every time I heard her voice over the phone I wanted to fall apart and tell her about everything that had been happening these past few weeks. But I couldn't. Shawn and I both agreed that getting other people involved in the situation was a bad idea. I just hoped that this issue would be solved sooner rather than later.

I no longer felt like I was being watched. Though that could have just been because Shawn was almost constantly at my side. Sometimes when we went into town I would catch a glimpse of one of his men hanging around and keeping watch. It was a small relief, but it helped to stifle my fear.

I let out huge sigh as I took a brief shower in the changing rooms. One of the main reasons I hated exercising was because of all of the sweat. Once I felt marginally clean again, I toweled off and swiftly changed into a pair of sweatpants and a camisole.

I met Shawn outside at the truck. He was already in the driver's seat so I hopped into passenger's seat on his right.

"You look like a wet puppy." Shawn sent me a smirk as he started the car.

"But a very cute wet puppy," I said with a grin.

"Now, now, don't be getting all high and mighty on me. Last time I checked, 'wet dog' was not a compliment."

I laughed. "At least I don't smell like I got into a fight with a skunk."

Shawn wrinkled his nose and sent me an appalled look. "I do not stink."

"Actually, you kind of do. Mind if a roll down a window?" I smirked as I reached for the button on the door and let fresh air seep into the car.

"When did you become so mean?"

I grinned. "I had a good role model."

Shawn rolled his eyes to the ceiling, "Oh man, I've created a monster."

I sighed dramatically but didn't contradict him. Looking out the window, I remembered that I needed to make a stop in town. "Hey Shawn, can we stop at the toy store. I need to pick up Ari's christmas present."

"Another one? Haven't you gotten him four gifts already?"

A sad smile flitted across my face. "I have to make up for all the years I missed."