Free Brooke & Ben: Before Fate Interrupted by Kaitlyn Cross

the tension-filled quiet blanketing the dining room.
Brooke chewed faster so she could finish and excuse herself but it was no use.
She wasn’t hungry and her mom’s famous pot roast tasted more like rubber given
the circumstances. Her jaw grinded on the same piece of meat for what seemed
like an eternity, getting nowhere fast. She could feel her mother’s eyes on her
but refused to make contact. One day she would have to look her in the eye
again, but not today.
    A knife
clattered loudly to a plate. “If I ever see this guy, I’ll kill him.” Will
grinded his teeth harder than need be from the head of the table. “No one takes
advantage of my baby girl and lives to tell about it!”
    “Can we just
keep this between us? Please?” Brooke pleaded, dabbing at a tear forming in the
corner of her eye. “I really don’t want the whole world knowing about this.”
    Will pounded the
table with his fist, rattling the dishware. “That tattooed sonofabitch!”
    “Stop,” Laura
warned, glaring at Will and then turning to Brooke. “All we’re saying, honey,
is this isn’t like you.”
    “I know it’s not
like me, mom!” Brooke threw her napkin onto her plate of barely touched food.
“The guy lied to me and said he was single! I was just trying to take care of
my sick friend and the next thing I know, I’m…” Her voice turned weak. “I think
he drugged me.”
    Will balled his
napkin into his fist and pounded the table again. The plates and glasses jumped
along with everyone else. “He probably did!”
    A deep seeded
frown stole across Laura’s face. “Will you stop doing that?” She turned to
Brooke. “Did you leave your drink unattended?”
    “No. Well, I’m
not sure, but…”
    Laura turned to
Will. “We should call the police.”
    “No, mom, I just
want to forget the whole thing ever happened and move on.” She blinked a tear
down her cheek, her eyes blurring everything into fuzzy blocks. “It was such a
horrible night and I should’ve never put myself in that position and now Mandy
will probably never talk to me again.”
    Laura patted
Brooke’s leg as Will pulled his cell phone from his jeans.
    “What’re you
doing, dad?”
    “Calling the
police to report this piece of shit.”
    “No, dad,
don’t!” Brooke blurted. “I don’t want to have to relive it again and I don’t
know for sure what happened. I just know that he tricked me into doing
something I didn’t want to do.”
    Will stared at her,
thumbs hovering over the cell’s screen, face a burning shade of red.
    Tears left glistening
tracks down Brooke’s face. “Please, dad. I don’t want anyone else to know about
any of this. I’m already mortified.”
    Laura squeezed
her hand. “Everything is going to be okay. Things will get better. They always
do.”
    “If I ever see
this guy I will break his face!”
    Laura shot Will
an icy glare. “Stop. You are just making things worse.”
    He angrily
pocketed the phone, picked up his fork and began pushing his food around his
plate. “I’m sorry.”
    “No, I’m the one
who’s sorry, daddy.”
    He looked up.
“Brooke, you’ve always been wise beyond your years and even you will sometimes
get yourself into sticky situations. But this isn’t your fault.”
    Brooke grimaced
with the analogy and got up from the table. “I should get going.”
    Laura looked up.
“Where are you going?”
    “To meet Tasha,”
she replied, sliding her chair in and grabbing her plate and glass. “Have fun
with the trick-or-treaters tonight.” Brooke kissed her father on the cheek.
“Try not to make anyone pee their pants this year.”
    “Won’t do,” he
replied, wiping his mouth. “Hey, do you really need to go out so late?”
    “It’s not that
late.” She dropped her dishes off in the sink and looked to her mom. “Girl talk
stuff.”
    Laura flashed a
knowing smile and then cut into her food.
    “That’s what
phones are for, Brooke,” Will said.
    “It’s not the
same.”
    He