Kiplyn realized they were in her driveway and couldn’t believe how fast they had gotten there. Patrick was removing her helmet and helping her from the bike. “I’m sorry to be such a nuisance. I am exhausted and can’t seem to concentrate at the moment,” she said, slightly embarrassed. “It’s quite alright, I don’t mind helping,” Patrick said explained. They walked slowly up to my door, where she realized it was ajar. Patrick must have realized it a split second before her, because his arm was wrapped around her and he was pulling her away from the door. He was dialing a number on his phone, and speaking in hushed tones into his phone, never releasing his grip from Kiplyn’s waist.
A few minutes later, a squad car was pulling into my driveway behind Patrick’s bike. She came face to face with the same officer from the day before. “What seems to be the issue this time, Ms. Kavanaugh,” he said sternly. She looked at him in shock and disbelief. She didn’t understand why he sounded so gruff. This was his job after all. “Well, I think that someone has been in my house. The door was open slightly when I got home,” she explained to Officer Uptight. “Are you certain that you locked up properly before you left for the day?” he asked. “Officer Adams, is it?” Patrick asked, looking at his name tag, “why exactly are you treating her this way?” Officer Adams sighed, “I apologize Ms. Kavanaugh, that was not my intention. It has been quite busy today, and you seem to be quite popular. I am curious if you have any idea who would be doing this?” Kiplyn shook her head, not knowing what to really say. She had no idea who would do this to me, or why for that matter.
“Do you have somewhere to stay for tonight, Ms. Kavanaugh? We need to finish up here and it could take a couple more hours. And honestly, you look absolutely exhausted,” Officer Adams asked. “She can stay with me,” Patrick said before she had the chance to answer. Kiplyn looked at Patrick as if he had grown a third head, because he has to be crazy to think that she would go home with him. I hardly know him! I couldn’t believe he would suggest something like that. She thought. “I can just call Shauna,” she suggested.
Looking down at her watch, she realized it was nearly 4a.m. and couldn’t bother her that early in the morning. That would just be rude. She also knew she had to get up in an hour or so for work, and had to be in class in a couple hours. There was no point in disrupting her schedule. She realized she could hang out at the café or something. “You know I have to be at class in a couple hours, I can just hang out at the café until it is time to go to class,” she suggested. Both Patrick and Officer Adams now looked at her like she had grown a third head. “I don’t like the idea of you being unsupervised, sweetheart. We don’t know who is doing this. Just come back to my house, I will stay on the couch and you can take the bed. Hell, I will cook breakfast for you! I just want to be able to know you are safe, please!” Patrick all but begged. She couldn’t bring myself to deny him, so she relented, “Alright. It’s only for a little while. I will try to stay out of your way and not be more of a nuisance that I already have been.”
Before she knew what was going on, Patrick was ushering her toward his bike and placing the helmet on her head. They were speeding down the road and toward his place before she could completely comprehend the events of the evening. She just couldn’t figure out who would do this. She also couldn’t comprehend why she felt so safe with Patrick. What was it about this man?
They pulled up into a long driveway facing a rustic-looking ranch-style house. It was a light grey with white trim. Kiplyn slowly climbed off of the bike and just stood staring at the sprawling layout of the house. If she were to guess it had to be a custom build. It was the biggest ranch-style house she had ever seen. The landscaping was immaculate; not too much and not too little. She could tell that Patrick loved his home and put a lot of thought into everything surrounding it.
“Let’s get you in bed, sweetheart,” Patrick said, leading her toward the front door. Upon entering the house, she instantly felt at ease. There was a homey feeling being radiated throughout the home. Kiplyn thought for sure that once she was here, she would feel anxious and out of place, but it was just the opposite. She felt at home, that thought scared her to death! At that thought, her feet froze in their spot. She couldn’t get them to move at all. She felt rooted in place! Patrick came up behind her, “You alright?” he asked. Kiplyn nodded but wasn’t sure what exactly to say. How do you explain to someone that you are instantly at ease in their home when you have only known them for like five minutes?
Patrick led her down the hall and into his bedroom. It was totally a guy’s bedroom. A huge bed in the center of the room against the far wall with nightstands on both sides. A dresser against the right wall, and a huge closet along the left. Patrick walked over to his dresser and pulled open the second drawer, quickly removing a t-shirt and handing it to her. “It will probably be a little big, but you will at least be comfortable. The bathroom is right through there,” he said pointing toward a door she hadn’t noticed before next to the dresser.
As she walked into the bathroom, she couldn’t believe the size. There was a separate soaking tub and shower. There was a double sink and vanity, along with a sitting area inside the shower. Definitely another custom build! This man enjoyed top of the line things, that is for sure. Kiplyn quickly changed out of her work clothes and into the t-shirt he gave her. She would worry about clothes for school later when she actually had to worry about it. Right now, all she wanted was some sleep.
As she entered the bedroom, she realized that he had pulled the comforter back. He was coming out of his closet with fresh clothes on, as well. “I hope the bed will be comfortable enough for you. If you need anything, I will be in the living room,” Patrick explained, heading toward the door. “Thank you for everything, Patrick,” she said, suddenly feeling terribly shy. “You don’t have to thank me. Just get some rest, sweetheart,” Patrick said quietly, closing the door behind his exit.
CHAPTER 3
Kiplyn woke up to the smell of bacon and coffee. She found a pile of neatly folded clothes on the nightstand next to the bed. Assuming they were for her, she decided to put them on. She hoped she wasn’t being too presumptuous about the clothes. Kiplyn found her way toward the kitchen after getting dressed. She felt like she held her breath the entire way, not knowing what to expect.
“Good morning, sweetheart. How did you sleep?” Patrick asked as she entered the kitchen. “Um, I slept really good actually,” she said, not meeting his gaze. Patrick placed a plate of food in front of her on the counter, “Sit and eat.” Kiplyn quietly sat down and stared at the huge plate of food he put in front of her. There was no way she could eat all the food, and she hated wasting food, well hated wasting anything for that matter. How do I tell him? “If I gave you too much, I could give it to the dog, stop stressing,” he said, as if reading her mind. “How did you know?” She asked, finally looking him in the eye. Patrick chuckled, “You are very expressive,” he explained.
Patrick walked over to a door, that she would assume lead outside to a backyard. A huge dog came barreling through the door. When I say huge, I am talking small horse huge! The dog stopped on a dime in front of her, just looking up at her. I think he is waiting for me to make the first move, but that isn’t going to happen. Sensing she wasn’t going to move, the dog gently laid his head on her knee and just stared up at her. “He is so cute!” she finally said, looking over toward Patrick, who was standing on the other side of the counter with his mouth hanging open. She finally carefully reached out and started gently petting the dog’s head. “What’s his name?” she asked. “His name is Bear,” Patrick said, finally chuckling at the dog’s antics.
After several minutes of silence, Patrick finally spoke. “You would never know that he is a trained guard dog! He is supposed to not just roll over and love on anyone who comes in the house. Not that many people come in,” he explained, seeming slightly annoyed. Kiplyn instantly stopped petting Bear, not wanting to upset Patrick. She didn’t quite understand what he was try
ing to explain, but the dog seemed to want her attention. “You can pet him; you just need to be careful. He is very well trained, not that you can tell at the moment. He is acting like a big softy,” Patrick said, placing a glass of orange juice in front of her.
“What time is it?” she asked. “It’s 9a.m.,” Patrick explained. I was so late for class! I was going to get so behind. “Why didn’t you wake me?!” she asked, a little too harsh. “I’m sorry, I am not trying to be rude, it’s just that I don’t want to fall behind. I am at a very important part of my education and I can’t afford to mess it up.” Patrick silently nodded, waiting for her tirade to end before daring to comment. “Well, if you must know Shauna called to check on you. I explained the situation, and she said she would talk to your advisor and get it handled,” he explained calmly, watching to see if she would accept his answer. Kiplyn sat silently for several seconds thinking about what he had just said. I guess if Shauna was taking care of it, then I wouldn’t stress too much, besides, she was telling my advisor, so things wouldn’t be too terrible tomorrow. It would only be one day; I could catch up fairly quick! “Oh ok, well thank you for talking to her and explaining the situation,” she said. Then it clicked! “Hey! That means you answered my phone!” she screeched, causing the dog to look up at her. Patrick started walking toward her, the dog growled, so Patrick stopped instantly. “Well, shit! Yes, I answered your phone, she called several times. I thought it might be important about the fifth time she called, so I answered. Now can you please tell Bear that you are alright, so I can come closer,” he said nonchalantly. Kiplyn was slightly confused at his request, after all this was his dog.
Looking down at the dog, “I’m ok, Bear. I promise.” Bear watched her for a few seconds, gauging her reaction, and deciding that she was indeed alright, because he huffed and laid on the floor at her feet. Patrick chuckled at the dog’s reaction and stepped closer. “I am sorry if I upset you, that was not my intention. I just knew you needed your sleep and I wanted you to be able to get some.” Kiplyn couldn’t bring herself to stay mad at him, he was only trying to help, and he had done a lot of that recently. “It’s ok, I just tend to be very….um…. serious about my education,” she said, totally flustered. “Finish up your food. If you are done, just give the rest to Bear, he will love you even more than he already seems to,” Patrick said.
Kiplyn ate silently for a few minutes before sharing it with Bear. She had no appetite, and couldn’t make herself eat anymore, at least not without getting sick. She didn’t want to do that either. So, she leaned down and placed the plate in front of Bear. He wasted no time clearing the plate completely.
“So, am I making you late for work?” she asked Patrick. Patrick shook his head, “No, I took the day off today. I will take you when you are ready to handle whatever needs to be done in regard to your house. Whether it be picking up reports, getting locks changed, whatever you need.” Kiplyn couldn’t believe what she was hearing. “That isn’t necessary. I can handle all that myself, if you could take me to get my car,” she explained, not wanting to be more of a bother than she already had been to him. Patrick looked at her for a minute before saying what he was obviously thinking. “Well your car isn’t finished yet. I called to check on it since I wasn’t there today. I don’t mind driving you around. I will let you know as soon as your car is ready,” he said calmly, his eyes never leaving hers. “I guess I didn’t think about that,” she said with a small chuckle.
A few minutes later they were headed toward the station to pick up a copy of the report and see if they found anything. As Patrick parked his bike, she slowly climbed off and handed him the helmet. “You alright, sweetheart?” Patrick asked. “Yeah, just a little overwhelmed at the entire situation,” she said taking a deep breath. She slowly began walking toward the entrance of the station. She felt the warmth of Patrick’s hand at the small of my back, seeming to ease her anxiety. As they entered the station, all eyes seemed to turn toward them. They stopped at the first desk they found. “My name is Kiplyn Kavanaugh, and I was here to get a report about the break-in on my house early this morning,” she politely explained. The female officer turned quickly around and walked into an office at the back of the room. She came out a few minutes later with Officer Adams in tow. “I didn’t expect to see you this early, Ms. Kavanaugh,” he said with a small smile. “I just wanted to get the information that I needed so I could get the locks changed and alarm installed,” she explained. Officer Adams nodded his head in understanding and handed her a copy of the written report. There was a one-page statement and the other three pages were copies of pictures that were taken of damage.
Kiplyn stood there in silence as she read the report and looked at the pictures of the damage. There was absolutely no way she could afford to fix all the damage; she knew she wasn’t going to get her security deposit back. Tears streamed down her cheeks as she reread the report for the third time. Patrick wrapped his arm around her waist and pulled her into him, instantly making her feel a little better.
“Who would do this?” she asked, looking up at Patrick. “I don’t know, sweetheart,” he said. “I was wondering if you had recently broken up with anyone?” asked Officer Adams. She looked up at him slightly confused, “The words spray painted on your walls are normally used in that type of situation,” he explained. She flipped through the pages and noticed what he was referring to. The words “whore” and “slut” were spray painted on her bedroom wall. “No, I haven’t had any boyfriends at all, I have been focused on school,” she explained. Patrick and Officer Adams both looked surprised at her response. “Are you serious?” Patrick asked in disbelief. She laughed at his facial expression, “Yes, I told you before I take my education seriously.”
It was close to eleven by the time they got out of the police station. They pulled into the diner that had become like a third home. “I thought you might need some caffeine,” Patrick said as he turned off the bike. She smiled at him as she climbed off the bike, handing him the helmet. They walked into the diner and sat down at the first available table. “Thank you for everything, but especially the coffee,” she said giggling.
“What can I get you besides coffee, Kiplyn,” the waitress asked as she sauntered over to the table. “Just coffee,” she said with a smile. She looked over at Patrick, “What can I get you Mr. McDonnell?” Patrick smiled, “just coffee today.” She turned around and headed to get the coffee. A few minutes later they were sitting with their cups of coffee and all the sugar and cream they could ask for.
“I thought you would be in class today, not hanging out in some diner. You told me your education was important to you,” Mr. Williams said as he came to a stop at our table. Kiplyn looked up in surprise, “excuse me?” “You should be in class, not sitting here in some diner. Let me take you to school,” he said sternly, leaning over to grab her upper arm. “You need to take your hands off of her now!” Patrick said coldly. “I am trying to help her, which is NOT your concern. Don’t you have a car to fix so she can continue her education without taking public transportation,” Mr. Williams said snidely. Kiplyn pulled her arm away from him and scooted further into the booth. “I took a personal day, Mr. Williams. I thought that Shauna called you and explained,” she asked. He nodded, “she did, but it is extremely important that you don’t miss any days, Kiplyn. You are a very sweet girl and I don’t want to see you throw away your education over a silly indiscretion,” he said looking over to Patrick. “Missing one day is not going to hurt too badly, I will do extra time in the library over the weekend to catch up. Now if you will excuse me, I am just about to head home to get some homework done,” she explained, politely excusing him. She was finished with this discussion. How dare he dictate what I need to do! Finally getting the hint, Mr. Williams turned and stalked out of the diner.
“Was that the guy from the bar the other night?” Patrick asked irritated. she nodded, “Yes, he is my academic advisor. He tends to be over-zealous at times.” Patrick stood and
held his hand out to me, “Want to go for a ride?” he asked with a grin. She couldn’t form words when he looked at her that way, so all she did was nod and smile. I probably look like some sort of loon, but I don’t care.
They sped down the road and finally stopped at the mechanic shop. She climbed off and followed Patrick into the office. Patrick had his arm around her waist and pulled her close to him. “Well hello again, beautiful,” Donovan said as they entered the office. He handed her the car keys and another small ring of keys. Kiplyn looked at him very confused. “These are your new house keys,” Donovan explained simply. She looked from him to Patrick, unsure what to say. “Trick told me that you needed your locks changed, so I ran over and did it for you real fast,” Donovan explained. “How much do I owe you?” she asked. Donovan laughed, “Nothing, beautiful. I was happy to help.” She looked at Patrick, still unsure how to react or what to say. Patrick tightened his grip on my waist, “You alright, sweetheart?” She felt myself melt into him before she could stop herself. She leaned against his shoulder for just a second before straightening back up, but still didn’t pull herself totally away. “Yeah, just didn’t expect to be receiving new keys. That’s all,” she explained.
“How much do I owe you for the car?” she asked. Donovan laughed again, “nothing, darlin’. It’s been taken care of.” Kiplyn stood there in shock, that couldn’t have been cheap. “Um, I don’t really know what to say. I have never had this happen before, it’s all just very overwhelming,” she said again. Patrick lead her slowly out of the office and toward her car. Not only had they replaced the damaged tire, they had replaced all the tires. Holy cow! Patrick took her keys from her and opened the driver’s side door. He sat her down and handed her the keys. “I’m going to follow you home and make sure you get there safely,” Patrick said, leaving no room for argument.
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