Kennedy's Redemption (The Protectors 3)

“Ken!” Coop hollered from the house when he saw her.

“Hey, Coop.” She smiled at him.

He came running outside, stopping short when he was about to hug her. Hesitating. She felt lower than dirt in that moment. Coop and Dane were like big brothers; she’d known them since she was eight or nine. The fact that Coop didn’t think he could hug her because of how she was when they were rescued stung more than her brother’s words.

At her nod he came forward and gave her a brief one-armed hug before pulling back, asking, “You good?”

“Yeah, Coop. I think I will be,” she told him honestly.

“Are you guys staying?” Dane asked, looking to Linc and Creed.

“Sunshine?” Creed asked her.

“It looks like you guys were leaving…” She let the question hang.

“We are… We were. It’s nothing important; I want to see you,” Emily told her, her eyes pleading with them to stay.

“Then we’ll stay.” Kenny smiled at them all.

·?•? ?•?·

“Where did you go?” Emily asked her while the guys were all out back grilling burgers for lunch.

“Italy. A small village called Porto Venere. It’s so pretty there. Peaceful,” she told her.

“Did, uhh… Did it help?” The worry in her friend’s voice made it easy for Kennedy to answer.

“It really did. I could breathe there. No one was demanding anything of me. I admit it was hard for a while because I wanted away from everyone, but I missed you all so much, ya know?” she asked, staring into the yard and thinking about her time in Italy. How much it really did help her to heal.

“I didn’t mean for it to touch you, Kenny,” Emily whispered sadly drawing her attention away from the window.

“It wasn’t your fault, Em.” Grabbing her hand, Kennedy tried to imprint her resolve onto her by touch. She never believed it was her fault and it was time she told her.

“Not once did I blame you, Em. For a long time I held it on my own shoulders; I took the blame. Because if I hadn’t wrangled you into going shopping with me then none of it would have happened.” When Emily tried to interrupt her, probably to dissuade her of it and take the blame back, she shook her head telling her, “I distracted your guards by being a brat. I know this, and they would tell you the same. I should have taken their warnings more seriously but I didn’t and I paid the price. We both did.”

“No, we didn’t, Kennedy. You did. They didn’t do to me what they did to you. I wish I could have taken it for you. That I was left with the scars instead.” Tears ran down her face.

Kennedy looked back out to where the guys were, watching them talk. They pretended to be busy but every few seconds one or more of them would look in on them. It was annoying but it soothed some of the stress threatening to bubble inside of her from talking about what happened again.

“I think…” she cleared her throat as tears clogged it. “I think we both need to forgive ourselves now, Emily.” Meeting her eyes again, she hoped she saw that she held no blame for her. “We’ve been through hell and managed to come out on the other side better than we were before, and really, look at the amazing men we’ve got because of it.” She smiled at Linc and Creed as they came in the sliding door with hands full of food.

“You’re right,” Emily whispered, smiling as Coop and Dane came in.

“You girls ready to eat?” Coop asked.

Nodding their heads, they smiled and giggled as the men tripped over themselves to make sure they had everything they needed.

·?•? ?•?·

“You’re really something else, Sunshine,” Linc told Kennedy that evening after they’d spent the day with Dane, Coop, and Emily relaxing and talking about their lives over the last four months. Kennedy opened up more about her favorite parts of Italy. She told Emily of her plans to go back to school and open an art rehab class. They’d all been impressed. Hell, he and Creed were beaming with pride for their woman.

“Why’s that, Linc?” she asked as they walked through the front door.

“Honestly?” She nodded. “I was terrified it was gonna be a day full of tears. I hate seeing you in tears,” he admitted.

“Oh,” was all she said, leaving him to wonder if he was going to pay for that comment.

When she started to head upstairs, Creed called out to her. “Where you going, Sunshine? It’s early still.”