“You know exactly what I mean, Dream. You didn’t duck behind the dumpster when the car flew through the lot, you were already hiding. I saw the whole thing. Tell me what’s really going on,” I pushed. I told myself that I just needed to make sure she wouldn’t bring any danger to my doorstep for Star, but a large part of me wanted to protect her just as much.
She let out a deep breath, and her shoulders fell as she shook her head. “I think it’s my ex, Nick. He’s probably looking for me.”
“Probably?” “He said he’d always come after me and he has in the past, okay. I thought I’d lost him this time, but now I’m not so sure. I’ve been getting strange calls. I got one the other night at your house, and so I thought it was best I left.” She let out a sound of frustration. “Look, if you think it’s best that I stop tutoring Star, then I’ll understand.”
“He’s the one who gave you the bruises on your arm, isn’t he?”
“Yeah, which is why I’m on the run.”
My jaw popped as I bit back my anger. I hated men who roughed up women, as it brought back bad memories from my childhood.”
“Did you recognize him in the car?” I needed to know if she’d actually seen the bastard.
“It could have been him. He’s good at disguising himself. He’s an undercover cop with Chicago PD.”
“That piece of shit wears a fucking uniform?” I shook my head and gripped the wheel tight. There was nothing worse than someone abusing their authority.
“Yeah, he’s got a lot of friends, and I know that’s how he’s finding me. It’s not the first time he’s made me go home.”
“You’re not going back with him. I don’t care who his friends are.”
“You have Star to think about. You don’t need me to worry about too.” She sat up in her seat as we pulled into my long drive where you could see my cabin in the distance. “Is Star home?”
“She’s with the neighbor who lives down the road about a half mile.”
She nodded and looked out the window again. My drive was a few hundred feet from the main road and surrounded by woods on both sides. My house sat in a clearing half way up the hill on a leveled off piece of land. It was nice and secluded, which was why I liked it. Now, however, I could see how nervous it was making Dream.
I looked over at her and placed my hand on top of hers, the feeling of my skin touching hers, sending a jolt of electricity straight to my cock.
“Why don’t you come inside?”
CHAPTER 10 – DREAM
As he took the bags out of the seat between us, I grabbed the to-go pie and my handbag and got out of the truck. His house was more secluded than most, and despite my morning excitement, I felt safe there with him.
“Let me help you,” I said, as he juggled the three bags and wrangled his keys into the door.
“I got it, thanks.” He pushed the door open, and I went inside the small cabin and noticed right away how quiet the place was. I followed him to the kitchen and helped him unload his bags, and he quickly moved around me, putting the things away.
“So tell me more about your situation.” He took the pie, which I’d placed on the table, and grabbed a fork from the drawer.
“There’s really not a whole lot to tell. I had a good life in Chicago, and then I didn’t.”
“Was he abusive before you married him?”
“God, no. We got married just after I finished college and with my new husband and degree, I thought I was in for the perfect life.” I thought back to those first days and how naïve I’d been.
“When did you realize that it wasn’t?” He pressed on as he filled his fork with a huge slice of apple and then he popped it in his mouth.
“One night, he went on a bad call, and when he came home, I was still up waiting for him. I asked him where he’d been. I just wanted to know what kind of excitement had gone down. He used to come in and tell me all about the stories and things he’d seen. But that night, something set him off. He accused me of insinuating that he was cheating instead of being at work, and it got way out of control. I tried to explain what I meant, and he thought I was calling him stupid. He got loud and angry. I wasn’t raised to take any shit, so I popped off something in my defense, and that was that. The next thing I knew, he had me by the hair and dragged me across the floor.”