Chapter 12: Protecting Love
Chapter 12:
Sheridan told him everything she heard 'him' say on the wharf. She
told him how she heard him call her a spoiled princess, how she was
right where she wanted her, that he was only using her. Luis just
stood
there not believing what he was hearing.
"What the hell are you talking about Sheridan? Is this why you
slapped me, left Harmony and put your life in danger, just to spite me
Sheridan?" he ground out, mad as hell.
"Don't act as if you don't know what I'm talking about. I've told
you the truth now you tell me the truth." She yelled, barely holding
back tears.
"I don't know what your talking about. How could you ever think
that I would say those things about you?"
"I don't think, I know!" She yelled. "I heard you with my own ears,
I saw you with my own eyes. There's no denying it, so stop trying."
Luis was immobilized by her words. She ran past him and into her room
and crawled on the bed curling herself into a ball and letting the
tears
flow.
The time went by and Sheridan stopped her crying somewhat. She got
up from he bed and looked at herself in the the mirror. Her tears were
running down her face, mixing with her makeup, her eyes were bloodshot
and her hands were shaking. She was reliving the whole painful ordeal
over, wondering how he could lie to her about it. She became angry the
more she thought about it. Her anger seemed to empower her. She wiped
the tears off her face but they continued to flow. She spun around
from
the mirror when she heard Luis at her door."
"Sheridan open the door." Luis said demandingly.
"No! Leave me the hell alone!" She said just as demandingly.
"Sheridan please open the door."
"I don't want to talk to you right now, just leave me alone."
"Sheridan if you don't open this door I'll kick it down."
"Yeah right Luis, just go away." She heard it get silent so she
figured Luis left, suddenly there was a loud boom. She now saw Luis
and
her door, which was barely hanging on the hinges. She stared at him in
shock, his face held anger but his eyes held hurt.
"We need to talk." He saw her make a motion for the bathroom door
but he quickly grabbed her. "Now." he stared her down.
"Look Luis, I need some time." She said as tears flowed down her
face. He stepped closer and wiped her tears away with his thumb. They
stared into each others eyes, it was a look of longing. He caressed
her
face softly never breaking their look.
"Do you really think that I could say those things about you?" He
didn't wait for an answer. "I know in your heart you know that I would
never hurt you, it's killing me that you don't believe me." He said as
his eyes were starting to water over with his tears.
"My heart wants to believe you, but my head, I can't ignore what I
saw and heard. It's killing me that I can't believe you when I want
to,
God I want to, but I can't let myself be hurt." Luis stepped away from
her at hearing this.
"I know you know it wasn't me who said those things, you just won't
listen to your heart." He said.
"I need some time Luis, just give me some space, please." She
requested as the tears continued to flow.
"Fine." He said abruptly and left. Sheridan's knees gave way and
she fell to the floor, unable to stop the tears.
Luis walked into the living room. He sat down trying to hold back
the tears but it was a losing battle and he gave. He let his tears
flow
freely as he buried his face in his hands. Just then his mother walked
in.
"Luis I came to talk to you and Sheridan." She said turning around
to look at him. "Hijo, what's wrong?" She asked as she noticed the
tears
falling from his face, even as he had his face buried in his hands.
Luis was not going to hide his pain from his mother because it was
impossible. He removed his hands from his face, Pilar saw all the pain
in her his eyes. She went to him and wrapped him in a big hug, while
he
cried on her shoulder.
"Luis what wrong?" Pilar asked pulling back and looking at her son.
"It's Sheridan, she doesn't trust me. Mama I don't get it, I love
her with all my heart, I would die for her and she doesn't even trust
me. I don't even think she loves me despite what she has said."
Pilar was rather surprised at his confession of his feelings, she
knew her son was in love with Sheridan, she also knew that he wouldn't
admit it anytime soon to himself or anyone else. The confession truly
surprised her because Luis wasn't one to talk about his feelings.
"Don't talk like that hijo. I've seen the way she looks at you, she
does love you. Sheridan just has a hard time trusting people, it's not
easy for her. The men she used to date only saw her name and her money
and they use her."
"I'm not like that mama, she actually said she heard me say that I
was going to use her. I've never even thought such things about her or
anyone else." At the mention of that Pilar remembered why she had come
over.
"Hijo, wait here while I go talk to Sheridan. I have something to
tell the both of you." With that she disappeared down the hall.
Pilar was set to knock on the door but then she saw it hanging on
its hinges. She knew Luis did it. She looked in the room and saw
Sheridan sitting down on the floor with her knees pulled close to her
body crying.
"oh Sheridan." She said kneeling down in front of Sheridan.
"Pilar?" She asked raising her head. She couldn't stop crying, not
that she wanted to. She wanted to get it all out, but it seemed there
was no end to them. She had never cried so much in her life, it seemed
as if her heart had turned on a faucet and the handle was stuck. Pilar
sat down beside her and took her in her arms. Pilar moved Sheridan so
that her head was lying in her lap, just when she was a little girl.
"have you talked to Luis?" Sheridan asked quietly.
"Yes, he's hurting, he doesn't understand." At hearing this she
began to cry harder. Pilar quieted her down but she didn't stop
crying.
"I don't mean to hurt him Pilar."
"I know you don't Sheridan."
"I love him Pilar, so much. I never thought I could love someone
so
much, but I do. I never thought I'd even find someone. The look in
his
eyes when I said I couldn't trust him, it felt like something was
cutting at my heart. I just can't trust him with my heart, not after
the words on the wharf."
"Sheridan come with me." Pilar pulled Sheridan up and wiped her
tears away. She led her to the living room by her hand. Pilar felt
that Sheridan and Luis needed to know what her family did.
Sheridan followed Pilar out into the living room and froze in the
doorway. She saw Luis standing, looking out the window. He turned
around and saw Sheridan, she looked like she was glued to the very spot
at where she stood. He held out his hand and she moved across the room
towards him taking hold of his hand.
Pilar watched, it was clear the love they had for each other, she
knew they could have a happy life together but first they would have to
get through her family.
"Luis and Sheridan you may want to sit down, what I have to tell
you
is going to upset you."
"What could you possibly say to upset me Pilar?" Sheridan asked.
"Yeah mama what is it?"
"It's about what Sheridan heard on the wharf."
To Be Continued...
