I slowly climbed into my car and shut the door as softly as possible. I could fall apart and slam stuff later. I couldn’t crumble in front of witnesses. With my pitiful heart aching in my chest, I backed out of my driveway and slowly put my car into drive. In my head, I was wondering if anyone had ever written a children’s book about Daddy moving in with his three gymnast girlfriends. In my heart, I was wondering if they’d ever written a book about Mommy starting back at go with nothing but a blank board in front of her.
Chapter 1
Sonnie
“Well, Sonnie, maybe you should consider it.” Patricia Henry, my almost always well-meaning mother, spoke to me in the gentlest voice I’d ever heard her use. She knew good and well that she was walking on thin ice. Proceeding at her own risk, some would say.
My head threatened to explode. I wanted to scream at the woman who’d birthed me and demand a DNA test. The June Cleaver wannabe had finally sipped too much of the juice and someone was going to have to knock some sense into her. Since I was an only child, it looked like it was going to have to be me.
“Mom. Are you suggesting I take back my slimy ex after he cheated on me with half of the cast of Girls Gone Wild and boasted about it online? I get it; you don’t believe in divorce. Well, I don’t believe in self-torture. Taking Jake back would be like sticking a knife in my side, just a little bit, every single day.” I realized I was raising my voice and tried to get my emotions in check. “The only thing I’m considering is pressing charges against him for annoying the hell out of me.”
“Language, Sonnie. I didn’t raise a trucker.”
I sighed. Patricia, Patty-To-My-Friends, didn’t believe in divorce, cursing, short skirts, jeans, colored eyeshadow, or carbs. She was a lot to handle. “Mom, focus. You were suggesting that I take back Jake and I was correcting you.”
“I’m sorry, Sonnie. I just don’t think you should let something like this bring you down to a level that your father and I raised you to be above.”
I almost laughed. If she only knew. I was way past sinking down to a level; I was mayor of the bottom. I was looking up at whatever level she thought cursing was. “I’m not taking him back. He can beg and plead all he wants. It’s not happening. And to even pretend that he wants me back for anything other than money is a joke. He’s just desperate for a paycheck.”
I stepped around a pile of leaves on the sidewalk and nodded to the neighbor who was bent over the hood of his truck, trying to fix it. He grunted in return and that was the extent of our neighborly interactions. There were no neighborhood wives’ meetings to make identical décor that I was inadequate at. I was pretty sure I’d be better at it than the man, whose name I hadn’t even learned, but I wasn’t about to try to challenge him.
I made my way up my cracked driveway and noted that in front of my plain door there was a vase of flowers. My blood pressure climbed and I thought of all the words I wanted to say. Anger and frustration bubbled up in me until I thought my head would just crack open and spill out all the things I’d been trying to hold in.
“He left flowers again.”
Mom cooed into the phone. “Aw, honey. That’s so sweet. He’s obviously really trying to win you back. Not every man would try so hard.”
“Not every man would have the audacity to crawl back after what he did, either. This isn’t romantic, Mom. I’ve asked him to stop doing this and he keeps at it. This isn’t okay.”
“Sonnie, you’re being dramatic. It’s just a man trying to show you attention. I wish your father would send me flowers like that.”
I sucked in a huge breath of air, tainted by whatever cheap flowers Jake had sent, and blew it out slowly. My mother was driving me crazy. I picked up the vase and carried it back towards my trashcan. “Gotta go, Mom.”
She started to say something else, but I hung up. I couldn’t handle another moment of her sticking up for Jake. She didn’t get it.
My neighbor looked up from his truck again. “Got a problem?”
I tossed the flowers into the trash and shook my head. “Not anymore.”
Strolling back to my front door, I shoved it open and went inside. I went straight to my bathroom and took a cold shower to cool off from my jog around town. When I got out, I smelled better and I wasn’t as angry.
I stretched out across my bed and let myself air-dry while checking my messages. I had a book due in two weeks, another chapter of my first adult-themed book to send to my publisher in a week, and a meeting with my lawyer in two days. The divorce was close to being finalized. Thank God.
Things hadn’t worked out the way Jake had thought they would. Tired of our marriage, he’d gotten careless about his cheating. After I caught him, he lashed out at me. He sent me messages bragging about how many times he’d cheated on me, and all on my dime. He told me that he didn’t give a damn about me and he was ready for the divorce to be finalized because he thought I’d be paying him alimony. After all, I’d made most of my money during our marriage.
The judge didn’t agree with Jake. The judge thought Jake was an absolute douchebag. He said I’d done more than my share of taking care of Jake during the last several years and he was setting me free.
As soon as Jake heard that, the flowers had started coming. Jake started calling and messaging me, telling me how sorry he was. Suddenly, I was the bee’s knees and he was addicted to my honey. Only, I was more likely to grow a stinger and sting him than I was to ever take him back. He didn’t know me. I wasn’t someone who gave second chances. Not when the first chance had blown up so miserably.
I was done crying over Jake Stovall. If anyone seriously thought I would take him back, they were insane. I’d learned my lesson and I was better for it.
A knock sounded from downstairs and I groaned. I wanted to be as lazy as possible. I had writing to do that night and I was hoping to get in a nap beforehand. Cringing at the interruption, I stood up and grabbed a robe before heading down to get the door.
I cracked it and looked out at Jake, standing on my welcome mat with a sheepish smile on his face. Scowling, I tried to push the door closed, but he shoved his foot in the opening.
“Don’t. Come on, Sonnie. Talk to me.” He tried his best to sound sincere and genuine, but it just didn’t translate.
“Jake, move your foot.” I put my body against the door and pressed with all my weight, not caring if I crushed his toes. “I’m not doing this.”
He held firm and shook his head. “I’m your husband. You have to talk to me.”
“Soon-to-be ex. Very soon. This is turning into harassment, Jake. You have to leave me alone.”
“You’re being dramatic, Sonnie. Just let me in and we’ll talk. You’ll see that this all was a mistake. Just talk to me, though.” His concerned look was cracking and I could see the frustration and anger bubbling just under the surface.
“Go away. Leave, or I’ll call the cops.”
He slammed his hand into the door, effectively shoving me back a few inches. Before he could move or say anything else, however, my neighbor ambled up my driveway.
“Everything okay?”
I was still shocked from the force of the door pushing me backwards, but I recovered quickly. “My ex was just leaving.”
Jake glared at me for a second before backing away. “We’ll talk later, Sonnie.”
My neighbor stood there, his large arms crossed over his chest, watching as Jake moved down the driveway and climbed into his car. As soon as he was out of sight, the neighbor turned to me and nodded again before strolling off, back to his yard to finish with his truck, I assumed.
I shut the door and locked it before leaning against it. I realized that my heart was pounding and my breathing was more erratic than it should’ve been for what I was doing. I’d never been scared of Jake before, but in that moment, he’d scared the hell out of me.
I didn’t understand how he thought us reconciling was a possibility. After everything he’d done, I’d have to be an absolute nut to
take him back. It either showed how little he thought of me, or how much he thought of himself. Maybe I should’ve seen what a catch he still was and begged him to come back to me and spend my money. Not.
It scared me to be pursued in the way that he was pursuing me, but I didn’t think he’d take it too far. He was probably just getting desperate. He was probably close to having to get a job.
The thought made me feel better and I entertained myself with the idea of him in horrible jobs as I headed to the kitchen to find something to eat. My nap wasn’t going to happen.
My phone rang and I knew by the ringtone that it was my agent. I answered the phone while shoving a bite of sandwich into my mouth.
“Nice to hear from you, too. You do realize you canceled a meeting with me today—right?” Kellie Jane did an amazing job of putting an eye roll in her voice over the phone. “I was going to make jello shots and finally make my move on you.”
I shoved a chip into my mouth and chewed loudly. “I’m sorry. You must have me confused with the bleach-blonde variety you seem to love so much.”
“And if I remember correctly, you were of that variety not too long ago.”
I groaned. “Don’t remind me. That’s just one more part of that life that I’m trying to forget.”
“Something wrong? Normally I have to pester you about a deadline for you to sound so annoyed.”
“Jake sent more flowers. And then, like that wasn’t enough, he showed up.” I dropped my sandwich and sighed. “He’s really pissing me off.”
Kellie’s voice lost the teasing edge as she grew serious. “You okay?”
“Yeah… Yeah, I’m fine. He’s just getting worse. He tried to force his way into the house today. My neighbor showed up and Jake left, but it was weird.” As I said it, I hated the way it sounded. I wasn’t scared of Jake. Not really. He was just being a jerk. I ignored the fact that I’d actually been scared earlier. “It wasn’t anything serious, though.”
“He tried to force his way into the house? What the fuck, Sonnie? That’s serious.”
I tossed my sandwich in the trash and headed back upstairs to get dressed. “It’s not serious. He’s just being a snake. You know Jake. Always pushing to get what he wants. He’ll realize that I’m not caving for him, though.”
“It’s obviously bothering you, though.”
It was. I didn’t know that there was anything I could do, however. “If it gets worse, I’ll figure out what to do from there.”
“There’s a security firm in town. We could contact them and set something up for you.”
I laughed. “Kellie, I don’t need security. I’m a writer. A children’s book writer, at that. And Jake is a dick, but not dangerous. Security is for people with stalkers or stuff like that.”
She sighed. “Fine. You’re missing out, though. Have you seen some of those men walking around town? Holy shit, they’re beautiful.”
I’d seen some of them. Tall, dark, dangerous. Who protected women from them? Just seeing them made me feel out of sorts. And inadequate. Mother Goose didn’t mix with the big bad wolves. Not to live to tell it, anyway.
“I’ll take that as a confirmation. Seriously, Sonnie. Say the word and I’ll call them for you. They’re not my type, but I can still appreciate beauty. I’ll come and hang around to keep an eye on things.”
“You’re ridiculous.” I stretched out across the bed again and stared at my ceiling. “It’s fine, though. I don’t need security, even beautiful security. I do, however, need to get to work.”
“Fine. Call me if anything changes. Don’t forget that we have lunch tomorrow, too.”
“I won’t.”
We said our goodbyes and hung up. I tried to keep the happy feeling that came with talking to my agent/best friend, but the feeling of Jake shoving the door into me crept into my conscious and I couldn’t help but shiver.
Chapter 2
Cooper
What I wanted to do was stay in for the day and sleep. I’d been up the past few nights, off and on, listening to a neighbor down the street argue with his wife. I knew the couple and didn’t think it would ever turn violent, but there was never any telling with people. What I’d learned since leaving the SEALs was that civilians could be just as deadly as the war criminals I’d faced overseas.
So, night after night, I sat up and listened to make sure nothing happened. It was driving me crazy. I didn’t want to get involved in their shit, but they were wearing me down.
I was working full-time at Black Dog Security and couldn’t afford to go into work at less than one hundred percent. We didn’t have any huge cases at the moment, but even one moment of inattentiveness in a smaller case could get someone hurt.
It was my day off. It didn’t look like that was going to mean anything, though. My ex-wife, Lilah, called bright and early to inform me that I needed to keep Macey, our daughter, for the day. I would’ve been more than excited to hang out with her for the day, but Macey had a birthday party to attend at a children’s restaurant in the next town over.
My hands tightened into fists as I thought about the party. I hadn’t been out for long. Less than six months. Civilian life still gave me a hard time and Lilah knew it. Simple tasks that normal people wouldn’t have any issues with tripped me up. The idea of sitting with other parents in a place built to overstimulate children made my skin itch.
I hated to think poorly of Lilah, but she’d proven over time that she’d do anything she could to punish me for whatever disservice she felt I’d done to her. It added to my frustration to think that it was a setup to push me, to think that she was using Macey to hurt me.
Knowing what was ahead of me sent me out on my daily run earlier than usual. I ran through town, down Main Street and up Porter. Instead of my normal three-mile run, I doubled it and pushed my body by running harder than I would’ve usually.
The sleepy little town probably seemed like a little slice of heaven to most people. Ambrose, Arkansas sat in the long shadows of Smith Town. Smith Town, with its traffic, city life, and higher crime rates was close enough that Ambrosians could make the trip for shopping, but far enough that Ambrose could feel like a bubble.
It was a little too silent for me. Without the whistle of the wind through mountains, the constant grit of sand in the desert, or the crashing of waves against a beach, I was stuck straining nonstop to hear something. Sometimes, it was so quiet at night that all those ghosts of war raised their voices to keep me company. I’d woken up more than once to the sound of imagined gunshots.
It was where the security firm was, though. Black Dog Security was a family business. Maybe not by blood, but in spirit. My SEAL brothers and I started it and ran it. We’d ended up in Ambrose because it was where our late captain had been from, where another of our brothers was from.
I guessed it was as good a place as any to adjust back to civilian life after so many years in service.
My run took me past all the little mom-and-pop stores that made Ambrose so special. I nodded to people as I made my way around them and cursed the tensing in my body. It was still like every person I passed could pull a knife out of their pocket to stab me. It was exhausting. The only place I ever felt completely at ease was at Black Dog. With my brothers around me, it felt normal and safe. Even then, it was only when we weren’t working.
I made it back home in time to shower and dress in my normal uniform of black BDU pants, a simple black T-shirt, and black boots before Lilah pulled into my driveway with Macey. I opened my front door before they could get out of the car and walked down to help Macey out.
She looked a lot like Lilah, just without the calculating stare. Blond hair hung stick-straight from her head, almost down to her waist. Her heart-shaped face held large brown eyes with a button nose and a huge smile. Another difference from her mother. She was also tiny. At six, she was smaller than all the other kids her age, but everyone assured me that it was normal.
In a sweater, leggings, and boots, she flew out o
f the car and into my arms. With surprising strength for a kid her size, she locked her arms around my neck and held on tight.
“Daddy!” Her sweet voice was music to my ears and I couldn’t get enough of it.
I hugged her to my chest and stood up, lifting her as I went. “Hey, baby. I hear you have a birthday party to go to today.”
“Yeah! For Kathy. She’s my friend from school. Her mom’s having her party at Chucky Cheese. It’s going to be so much fun! They have games and pizza!” Her excitement carried into her movements and she wiggled against me with all the energy of an atom bomb.
“It’s at two. Don’t be late. You’ll have to stop and get Kathy a gift, too. I didn’t have time.” Lilah strode around the car with her heels clicking against the concrete. “The party ends at five. I’ll be done with what I’m doing at three, so you can just bring her home after.”
I locked my jaw in place to avoid scowling at her or saying anything rude and just nodded.
“Don’t be late. We’re going to meet my boyfriend for dinner tonight.”
I nodded again and smiled down at Macey. “Where should we get Kathy’s gift from?”
“There’s a boutique in Smith that has upscale toys. Get something from there. I can’t remember the name, but it’s the one on Frank.” Lilah pressed a kiss to Macey’s cheek and smoothed out her hair. “Be good, sweetie. Don’t let her get dirty before the party, Cooper.”
I just kept my mouth shut and carried Macey up to the porch. We watched together as Lilah spun out of my driveway and sped off. I could feel my blood pressure going back down the farther away she got.
Black Dog Security- Complete 5-Part Series Page 2