“We’re so glad you’re here, Taylor Long,” he said with a gorgeous smile. Albeit gorgeous, I still felt slightly creeped out as I watched the doors close between us.
I found my room easily and was relieved to see my bags sitting in front of the door. It was good to know Matt didn’t have a key to my room. Yet.
I drug my bag inside and took in the room that would be my home for the next six months. There was a large bed with a fluffy white comforter. The closet was open to my left, small but sufficient for the amount of clothes I had been able to bring with me—not much of my wardrobe met the dress-code guidelines that Divided Paths hoped to enforce.
I was relieved to see that I had my own bathroom, even if it was only a small shower, a toilet, and a sink with barely enough room to put my toiletries. I hadn’t had to share a bathroom since high school cheer camp, and a sex rehabilitation center was the last place I’d wanted to relive those type of memories.
I was completely unpacked within half an hour. I wanted to take a nap, but my mind wouldn’t allow it. Instead, I replayed the last few hours in my head. Ana and the guy from the elevator had both been very welcoming, almost as if they were happy to see me. Like they had been awaiting my arrival specifically. I wondered if they treated all the new comers like that? I was lying on my back with one arm across my eyes when I realized something: I’d never told the guy in the elevator my name. And did he just ride the elevator with me for fun? He was coming down to the first floor but stayed inside when he saw that I was going up. Chill bumps spread over my skin as I replayed him telling me he was glad I’d come to Divided Paths. And that creepy smile. What was that about?
I shook my head and blamed it on my lack of sleep over the last few days. I took out my phone and sent a text to Macie, letting her know that I’d made it safely and that I missed her. I wanted to tell her about the weird vibe I was getting from everyone I’d met thus far, but I decided not to worry her.
I’d just hit send when someone knocked on my door. I opened it slowly at first, but once I confirmed it wasn’t anyone to be afraid of, I opened it all the way.
“Hi, there. I’m Taryn. I heard you were new to us here at Divided Paths and wanted to introduce myself.” A tall, dark skinned woman with black hair and legs as long as mine stood in my doorway with her hand outstretched toward me.
“Hi,” I said as I gently shook her hand. “I’m Taylor.”
“We’re so glad you’re here, Taylor,” she said, sweetly.
“Yeah, everyone keeps telling me that,” I muttered.
She giggled. “The newness will wear off soon enough and you’ll see everyone’s true colors. I’d soak up the over-the-top kindness while it lasts. Are you hungry? I was about to head down to the café.”
My phone vibrated in my hand and I looked down to see that my message had failed to send. I tried to send it one more time then slid my phone into my back pocket and stepped into the hallway to join her.
“Right. So, what kind of food are you craving tonight?” she asked while we waited for the elevator.
“Uh, do we have many choices here?”
“Of course. The restaurant downstairs has almost anything you could ever want. And if they don’t, Matt will order take out for us.”
“Wow, that’s not what I was expecting,” I told her.
“What were you expecting?”
“Uh, ham and cheese sandwiches served with water and stale potato chips?” I shrugged.
“Sweetheart, this is rehab. Not prison,” she chuckled as she said it. The building was definitely nicer than a prison, but I was willing to bet the rules would be similar.
The café downstairs was more crowded than it had been earlier. I followed Taryn to a table and sat down across from her. An older woman with grey hair and glasses brought us waters to drink and asked to take our order. I looked around for a menu of some sort. The woman must have noticed because she put her hand on top of mine to get my attention. “We serve a little bit of everything here, honey. Why don’t you just tell me what you like, and we will go from there?”
“Chinese?” I asked.
“Absolutely. How about some orange chicken with wonton soup?”
“That sounds delicious,” I told her with a smile.
The waitress nodded and turned to take the orders at a table next to us. I continued to smile as I listened to her chat with a couple of women. The way you could tell that she was smiling by the sound of her voice reminded me of my grandmother. She’d passed away the summer before I met Macie. I’d always told Macie that my grandma sent her to me. To be my saving grace. I believed that now more than ever.
“Maybe this place won’t be as bad as I imagined it would be,” I said to Taryn.
“I’m happy to hear you say that. I’ve been here for five months and I’ve been nothing but pleasantly surprised at how much I like it here.” I couldn’t help but notice that her smile seemed a bit forced. Then again, I barely knew her or her smiles.
“Five months? Does that mean you’ll be leaving soon?”
“Leaving? Why would I want to leave?” she asked, confused.
“Uh, I was under the impression this was a six-month program. Are you staying for a year or something?” I asked with a raised brow, equally confused.
“Oh. Er—uh—I’m planning on staying as long as it takes,” she stammered. She gave a sharp nod of her head as she said it. Like she’d just successfully cleared up all the confusion.
“Okay,” I said slowly as I faked a smile.
The rest of our conversation was light. I found out that Taryn was from Chicago and had two younger brothers. I told her I envied her for having siblings, and she said that she envied me for not having any. The food was delicious, and I was relieved to know I wouldn’t be living off stale potato chips for six months.
“Attention all. I need everyone to make their way to the Gathering Room as soon as possible. Thank you,” a woman’s voice boomed over a loud speaker.
“Who was that?” I asked Taryn.
“That was Mariah. She’s one of the counselors here. You’ll love her,” she said with certainty. I eyed her warily as she stood from our table and held her hand out for me.
“Trust me,” she said simply.
I nodded. We walked hand in hand to a large room with at least sixty chairs in it. All of them were facing the front of the room like a classroom-type setting.
“Oh, Taylor, I’m glad you’re here. I forgot to collect your cellphone earlier,” Ana said as she approached Taryn and me. She glanced at our locked hands and glared at Taryn, who in turn let go of my hand instantly as if it had caught fire.
“When do I get it back?” I asked, hesitantly.
“You’ll get email privileges every Friday until Matt deems you ready to have access to your phone again.”
“Fantastic,” I mumbled as I handed my phone over indefinitely. I wished I’d thought about sending Sam a text when I’d sent Macie one, but it was probably for the best that I hadn’t.
“Taryn, I think Brent was saving a seat for you. Just for you,” Ana said before walking to a seat in the front row.
“Er, I’ll catch up with you later,” Taryn said quickly. She walked away without waiting for me to respond. I saw her take a seat next to the guy from the elevator.
“Brent, Taryn, and Ana,” I whispered to myself as I considered their unknown agendas.
I turned around abruptly and smacked into a small but firm chest.
“Easy there,” Matt said as he gently gripped my shoulders to steady me.
“Sorry. I was just trying to get a seat in the back,” I said, embarrassed.
“Of course.” He smiled before releasing me and stepped aside for me to pass.
Mariah started the meeting off by congratulating everyone on a great week of improvement. She mentioned some schedule changes and that the location of her office was going to be moved to the second floor. I tried to focus on everything she was saying, but I was so on edge from al
l the weird encounters I’d had that my mind was wandering. I knew I had to stop by the front desk and get my weekly schedule before heading to my room. And I knew that the medication cart would be to the left of the elevators for those of us that needed to pick up meds before bed. Everything else was a blur that I hoped wasn’t important. I noticed that Mariah had narrowed her eyes in my direction several times, which made me think she knew I wasn’t paying attention to her. She struck me as the type of woman who demanded everyone’s attention at all times. I had a feeling we wouldn’t be getting along well.
When everyone started filing out of the Gathering Room, I took it as my cue to follow. I realized how tired I was when I heard a few girls telling each other goodnight as they waited for the elevator to open.
“I’ll grab your schedule for you,” Ana said as she placed a cool hand on my shoulder. I wanted to shrink away from her touch, but I remained still aside from giving her slight nod.
“Here you go. The details for your life from now on are all inside this envelope.” She smiled sweetly as I grabbed the envelope with one eyebrow raised.
“From now on?” I asked in attempt to clarify.
“Oh—uh—I meant, for the remainder of your stay here, of course” she said in a rush as she backed away and turned toward the Gathering Room.
“What is wrong with these people?” I grumbled under my breath as I waited for the elevator.
My weekly schedule consisted of daily sessions with a counselor, and I was pleased to see that I’d been assigned to Matt instead of Mariah. I was also supposed to participate in outdoor meditation three times a week. I was okay with that one, too. The hot weather here was a nice change from Seattle. It seemed like I’d have plenty of spare time for some major self-reflection as well.
I fell asleep quickly that night with thoughts of Sam flirting through my mind.
Sam
“Your place looks great, Sam. I love this yard,” Macie said as she looked out the window. I sipped my beer as I looked out at my fenced yard. It was larger than every other yard in my neighborhood, but it was still small compared to the yards I’d seen in Florida. Apparently, people in Seattle weren’t into large outdoor gatherings. Not that the weather permitted anything outdoor very often.
“I think I’m going to get a dog. Take advantage of the good-sized yard, you know?”
“See, babe! Sam gets a dog!” Jasper said in a whiney voice.
“Sam lives on his own and doesn’t have to approve his pets with anyone, Jasper. Sam may be willing to clean up piss, poop, and hair daily, but I will never be willing to do those things,” Macie said with a smirk.
“Don’t you love having Pookah there?” he asked with his best puppy dog eyes.
“If Taylor wouldn’t kill me, I’d drop Pookah off at the closest Wal-mart and hope for the best,” she quipped, and I laughed.
“I’m going to wear her down eventually,” Jasper muttered, and I laughed harder.
Jasper and Macie had been trying to occupy the majority of my spare time since Taylor went to Arizona a week ago. Macie had planned a dinner for the three of us. She’d said it would be a good time for her and J to see my new place, but I knew she just wanted to check up on me. A year ago, I would have been annoyed by her kindness. Now, I appreciated it more than I’d ever thought I would. Jasper had been the closest thing I’d had to family for years. Within the last year, Macie had wormed her way into the same category as him. It was difficult not to love her and her take-no-shit attitude. The fact that my best friend was head over heels for her just sealed the deal.
“So, aside from getting a dog, what else will you do to occupy your time? Have you considered getting a job? I know you don’t need one, but it would help you meet new people and maybe make some more friends,” Macie said without making eye contact with me.
“Not that we mind being your only friends,” Jasper clarified.
“I appreciate that, J. I’ve been looking at some ads online; just haven’t found anything that’s piqued my interest just yet,” I shrugged. “I know that I need to get a job. And a dog. And to start living as normal of a life as possible. I’m going to make sure my shit is together before Taylor comes back. I can promise you that.”
Macie nodded, seeming happy with my answer.
“Have you heard from her yet?” I asked quietly, embarrassed by how much I missed her after only a week. And when she wasn’t mine to miss in the first place.
“Not since the day she got there. I called the place yesterday, though, and the woman I spoke to said she should be getting email privileges soon, but that doesn’t mean she will use them. I’m worried that if she’s miserable there, she will blame me. If that’s the case, she might not speak to me anytime soon. I’m sure Megan told her I was the one that suggested Divided Paths. I can’t imagine how embarrassed she was when Megan confronted her. That probably wasn’t the best way to go about it, but I couldn’t get through to her by myself.”
“Babe, don’t think like that. Taylor knows you only wanted to help her. You were being a good friend,” Jasper said as he put his arm around her.
“He’s right, Mace. She’s lucky to have you in her life,” I agreed.
***
I assumed the club looked a lot different at noon on a Sunday than it would have if I’d been there twelve hours prior. I’d filled out the application online to work as a bouncer at one of the most popular nightclubs in Seattle. I figured working at Allister would be the closest thing to a normal job I’d actually like at this point in my life. At least alcohol was always near, and I’d get to engage in the occasional fight. I just had to convince the owner, Vince Tatum, that I was the best man for the job.
I sat on a stool at the bar as I waited for Vince to come downstairs and meet me. The bartender, Jay, had let me in and told me Vince would be a few minutes late because he was finishing up a call in his office.
“Thirsty?” Jay asked as he slid a bottle of water to me.
“Thanks,” I said with a nod.
I looked around the club as I tried to see what kind of atmosphere I’d be working in if I got the job. The bar made a full circle in the middle of the club. There were small tables spread throughout the room, allowing enough space for a small dance floor. There was a hallway to the left behind the bar, which I assumed led to the bathrooms and possibly the stairs that would then lead to Vince’s office.
“How long have you worked here?” I asked Jay as he cut up some lemons.
“Three months. I go to the Academy during the day. This just helps pay the bills,” he shrugged.
“What academy?”
“The Police Academy. I want to be a detective, eventually,” he explained.
“I see. And what do you make of Vince?”
“Aside from him always being on his own time, he seems like a decent guy to me. I’ve never had any problems here.”
“I hope it remains that way,” a man said as he came from the hallway behind the bar; Vince, I assumed.
“Sam, right?” he asked as he held out his hand for me to shake.
“Yes, sir,” I said as I gripped his hand firmly.
“Vince Tatum, owner of Allister and seeker of bouncer,” he smirked. He was probably in his late fifties and looked like he could have been a bouncer himself in his twenties.
“Well, I’d say I’m the guy for you, but I’ve never been an actual bouncer before. However, I’ve had to forcibly remove people from time to time, and that’s a piece of cake.” I crossed my arms, purposefully showcasing my large biceps.
“I can see why that wouldn’t be a difficult task for you. Come up to my office and we will chat about your application.”
He turned back toward the hallway without another word. I glanced at Jay and he gave me a thumbs up before I followed Vince.
“So, what makes ya want to be a bouncer?” he asked as he sat behind his desk and gestured to the chair across from him.
“Honestly, I don’t want to be a bouncer. But I don
’t want to sit at home for another damn minute. I figure I’m intimidating enough to be a pretty good bouncer, I like the hours, and I won’t have to wear a tie.”
“I see. And if I were to ask if you’ve ever been in trouble with the law?”
“I’d say, they have to catch me first,” I smirked.
Vince threw his head back and let out a belly laugh.
“The job is yours, son.” I inwardly cringed at the term of endearment but forced a smile as I stood to shake his hand.
“Show up tomorrow night by five and I’ll show you the ropes.”
“I’ll be here,” I said with a nod.
I sent a text to Jasper as soon as I got into my truck, letting him know I’d gotten the job. I knew he’d tell Macie, and I hoped she’d tell Taylor if she spoke to her before I did. I hoped Taylor would be impressed by the fact that I was making an effort to change for her. If only she were willing to change for me.
Somewhere along the way, Taylor had started to doubt her feelings for me. I don’t know what happened: one day we were sailing right along and the next she was telling me she couldn’t be with me anymore. Even after we’d split up she’d call me almost daily and I’d end up in her bed a few times a week, but recently I’d attempted to stop letting that happen. I couldn’t be a booty call to the woman I loved. So I decided I’d be more. I had to be more for her.
I stopped by the gym on my way home and cranked out some cardio. I preferred lifting over cardio, but when I needed to clear my head lifting just didn’t cut it. I jogged on the treadmill as I debated whether or not I should email Taylor first so when she did get computer privileges she’d see that I wanted to hear from her and to know that she was okay. By the end of my run, I’d decided against it. I didn’t want to push her if I wasn’t who she really wanted right now.
Taylor
“How are you adjusting?” Matt asked. He always opened our private sessions with that question.
“I’m fine,” I answered with the same thing I’d said for the last three weeks.
Want Me (Protector Series Book 3) Page 3