Shannon was ready to leave the hospital and Kevin was there to pick her up, she did not know what he had planned. She thought that he was going to take her home to her parent's house, yet he had something else in mind.
"Hey babe." He said cheerfully.
"Hey." She said kissing him on the cheek.
"Ready to go?" he asked.
"Sure am." She replied. "I need to put this nightmare behind me."
"Good, because I have just the thing." He said.
"Oh Kev, I just want to go home and relax." She sighed.
"You will get a chance to relax and talk, we will work on this together. I know my dad told you some things that need to be explained and I need to be with you so I can help you with what that asshole did to you." He explained.
"Alright where are we going?" she asked.
"Well I got us a cabin for the weekend, I have a trunk full of supplies, Jack's mom and dad rented it for us, gave me the money for the supplies and the car rental." He explained further. "They wanted to help us."
"We will have to go back to my parents house so I can pack a few things." She said.
"Your mother took care of all of that." He said. "C'mon let's get going."
"Well lead the way." Was all she could say? The two of them walked out of the hospital holding hands, Kevin parked as close as he could so they did not have to walk far. He opened the door of the car and the two of them were off on the road. It would be a two hour job to the cabin; Shannon rolled the window down and leaned back in the passenger seat. Kevin waited until they were about fifteen minutes into the drive before he began talking to Shannon about what had happened. At first she was very quiet and he thought she would not talk to him the rest of the drive. Finally she spoke and he hoped that what his father had done to her did not cause irreparable damage to their relationship.
"So what is going to happen to your father?" she asked with no hint of emotion in her voice.
"According to the D.A. he will be tried as a sex offender and even though this is the first time he has done anything like this the D.A. will push for the maximum penalty. It depends on the judge in the case, she may give him prison with the maximum sentence or prison with some mental treatment." He explained.
"I'm sorry Kevin I hope they lock him away for a longtime." She said.
"Don't be sorry, for what he did to you I hope they do lock him away." He said. "He hurt someone I love very much."
"Kevin I love you too" she said. "But I need to know, did you have sex with his girlfriend?"
"Yes I did." He said. "We had sex twice before you and I started dating."
"I see." She said. "Why did you have sex with her?"
"I'm just a dumb guy who could not control his hormones." He said. "Maybe subconsciously I thought I was doing to him what he did to my mother."
"So do you really love me or are you a dumb guy with his hormones going wild?" she asked.
Kevin could feel the stare that was fixated on him as he drove down the road; his stomach began to feel like it was twisting in knots. Even though it was eighty degrees outside he felt a cold chill run up and down his spine. He knew the answer to that question, yet he knew as well if it did not sound convincing to her all could be lost to their relationship.
"Shannon I have never been in love once in my entire eighteen years of life, I met you and I fell head over heels in love with you. Your long red hair, the glow of your skin, the softness of your touch, those emerald green eyes that can be as warm as the sun or as cold as ice. I cannot get enough of you; I only want to be with from the time I get up to the time I go to bed. If I had to give up baseball and everything else in the world just to be with you I would do so in a minute. I love you Shannon O'Malley, more than I could ever put into words." He finished his speech and took a deep breath holding it in until he heard her response. Her eyes no longer felt cold when she gazed upon him, they now felt warm and he could see tear well up in them. She reached over and put her hand behind his head and gently scratched in with her long nails.
"I love you Kevin Welch, I love with all of my heart." She replied.
"I'm so sorry he hurt you and I'm sorry I did what I did." He said starting to sob himself.
"Kevin if we are going to get through this we need to put it in the past so we can move forward. When we get to the cabin we will go forward and try to forget the what happened." She said.
The two of them rode quietly the rest of the way to the cabin; Kevin drove down the old dirt road that led them to it. They both got out of the car, Kevin told Shannon to go in and relax while he unloaded the car. She went inside to find it to be very nice and rustic on the inside, the cabin was what could be three rooms The living room and kitchen were one big room with a large fireplace; they had a large couch and a chair for furniture in the living room. The kitchen had a table, stove and refrigerator, the walls had wildlife painting and actual wildlife hanging on them. Kevin brought the groceries in and then he brought in the two suitcases, Shannon went ahead and put the groceries away. Kevin went back outside and found the stack of firewood behind the cabin; he gathered up some and brought it inside.
"I will get a fire going." He announced.
"Good I will start dinner." She replied.
"Oh shoot I forgot to get the cooler." He said running back out the door.
When he returned he set the cooler down on the table, Shannon opened it and was surprised to find salad fixings, milk and some fresh vegetables. Kevin was full of all kinds of surprises today, she went ahead and put some things in the refrigerator and then got out a couple of pans to cook dinner. Kevin got the fire started in the fire place and then he went to the kitchen, he wrapped his arms around Shannon. He planted soft warm kisses on her neck while she was peeling carrots.
"You go ahead and get the vegetables, potatoes and salad going; I will cook up a little chicken dish my mother taught me to make."
"Sound good my love." She replied.
