by Dara Girard
"You don't have to worry about us. Now you can have your own life see some guys of your own."
Greta bit her lip. "Actually I am seeing someone."
"Really? You are? What's his name?"
"Vance."
Marlene wiggled in her seat like a little girl. "I’d love to meet him."
"After the house is fixed, I'll have you over."
"I can't wait."
Greta sighed unable to shift a sense of unease. She loved her sister and didn't want her mother interfering with her progress. "If anything happens, call me."
"I always do."
"I'm proud of you. I'm proud of what you've done and I won't let Mom spoil it."
"She won't. My future is bright." Marlene grabbed Greta’s hand. "You never gave up on me. You know I love you."
"Love you too."
***
It took Vance three minutes to know that Greta was going to hurt herself. She was a disaster on a bicycle. Greta had gone out and bought herself a bike. And, although she was determined, she couldn't keep her balance. When she fell off and landed on her face Vance rushed over to her, certain she'd want to quit. Instead, she wiped her glasses and smiled at him. "I almost got it that time, right?"
He loved her determined spirit and knew he wouldn't leave until she could ride. "Yes. You're doing great." After several tries, and bruises, Greta began to get the hang of things. She continued to improve and soon she was riding like a she'd been doing so for years. "Let's go to the Tidal Basin."
"Are you sure?"
"Yes."
They packed their bikes and headed for the perfect spot then biked around. Once again, Vance picked up a picnic-to-go from his favorite deli. After at least thirty minutes of riding, Greta indicated she needed to take a break.
They lay on the grass and looked up at the sky. "This is one of the best days of my life," Greta said. She rested on her elbow and looked at him. "Who would have thought I'd have my first time with you? I'm now just one of your many conquests."
He shook his head. "No, you conquered me first."
"I did?"
His eyes met hers. "Yes."
She stroked his chest. "I'm a woman of many talents."
He lifted her hand and kissed it. "Yes."
She smiled then looked away and her shoulders drooped.
"What is it?"
She glanced up at a bird soaring through the sky. "I'm so happy."
"And that's a bad thing?"
Her gaze fell to his face. "I'm worried about my sister. My mom is living with her right now and I don't like it, but I can't take her back."
"You don't have to."
Greta sat up and hugged her knees. "I don't know. Marlene needs support and my mother is a taker."
He stroked her back. "But your sister knows she can come to you, right? I'm sure if it gets to be too much you'll know and then we'll handle it then. What?" he asked when Greta began to grin.
She kissed his chin. "I like when you say 'we'."
He bent down to kiss her mouth. "I'll say it a lot more," he breathed.
She held him back. "You haven't told me what you're going to do about my house yet."
"I've already started."
Greta widened her eyes. "You have? Why didn't you tell me?"
He grinned and quickly kissed her. "I wanted to get that reaction."
"How are you doing?"
"I'm using some friends I know and members of my own team."
"But the cost--"
He winked. "Taken care of."
She rubbed her hands together. "Can I go see?"
"It's your house. Right now, it's a mess and I've taken out some of your furniture, like your couch, to get repaired, but when we're through you won't be able to tell anything happened."
"I’ll go see after work tomorrow."
They finished up their picnic, then spent the rest of the afternoon, into early evening, resting in each other’s arms. They couldn't get enough of each other. As the sun began to set, they drove over to see the Court of Neptune Fountain. It was beautiful at night. It was an impressive fountain consisting of a 50-foot wide semicircular granite basin set in a retaining wall, with a set of stairs on either side. Inside the wall, there are three large niches. A 12-foot sculpture of Neptune, king of the sea sits in the middle, and on either side were images of his mythical sons.
“This is beautiful.”
“I told you so. Don’t you love how it’s illuminated at night?”
“Very romantic.”
“I used to take Brianna to a fountain where she loved throwing coins in the pool,” she said feeling wistful. She had played a major role in raising her niece, but now that Brianna lived with Marlene, they hadn’t been as close as before. She missed her.
“So what did you do when you threw your coins in the pool?” Vance came up behind her and snuggled her close.
“I’d make a wish.”
“Did they come true?”
“All of them.” Except one.
“Lucky girl.” He said pulling her close. Greta held him close. She liked when he held her, for some reason she felt safe. Safe from the world. Safe from her mother. Safe from her many fears.
***
The next day Greta arrived at her house and parked on the street. Several worker trucks and vans lined her driveway. She wasn’t used to seeing so many people in her place. Not just people, men. But she knew she could trust them. Vance knew them and they were helping her. She introduced herself to one guy who said he was working on the electrical. Then a tall guy came up to her and introduced himself as Clyde. Dust was everywhere, and while she was sure they were doing a good job, things still looked pretty messy.
She turned down the hallway, stepping over a stack of wood planks she figured were to be used to replace the damage in her living room. She opened the door to her bedroom and saw a man inside. He quickly closed a drawer.
"What are you doing in here?"
"Nothing." He pushed past her.
But she wasn't going to let him leave until she got some answers.
Chapter Thirteen
Vance pulled up to Greta's house, glad to see that things were on schedule. He walked past a window to get to the back door then stopped at the sound of raised voices. He looked through the window and saw Greta looking up at one of the workers who was shouting down at her. Shouting? One of his workers was shouting at a client? Let alone his woman? Vance gripped his hands into fists, he was about to rip out the window when he saw the man grab Greta by the arms and shove her against the wall with such force her glasses fell off.
Vance raced inside. For the first time he saw how small and vulnerable she was.
Vance grabbed the man by the neck and shoved him towards the door. "Outside."
The man stumbled towards the door. "She's crazy."
Vance went over to Greta who'd put her glasses back on. "Are you okay?"
"Yes."
"What's going on here?"
Greta kept her voice level. "He was in my bedroom, stealing."
The man pointed at her. "I wasn't. There's nothing here to steal you paranoid bitch."
Vance spun to him. "I said 'outside.'"
"But--"
Vance sent the worker a look, silently begging him to give him a reason to knock his teeth out. The man thought better of it; he turned and left.
"I'm sorry about this," he said, barely able to keep the tremor of rage out of his voice. "I'll deal with him." He left before she could say anything. He found the worker leaning against his truck. He straightened when he saw Vance. "She's just making up stories because she's a lonely woman."
"What's your name?"
"They call me RJ."
"Got ID?"
The man shook his head.
"Let me see your wallet."
"I told you--"
"Stop talking, just show me your wallet."
The man handed it over and Vance looked inside. He had no identification like a drivers lice
nse, debit card, credit card or the like. He'd have to take his word that his name was RJ. "Empty out your pockets."
RJ widened his eyes, outraged. "You believe her?"
"Now."
He threw up his hands. "I don't need this kind of grief. I quit."
Vance grabbed the collar of his shirt and shoved him against the car. "You'll quit when I say you can. Now empty out your pockets or I'll strip you naked right here and do it for you."
The man took a swing at him and Vance punched him in the gut doubling him over. He took the opportunity to dig in his pockets and pulled out a ring. He swore. He grabbed him by the face. "What's this?"
"It's my girlfriend's."
He dug further into his other pocket. "The necklace too?"
"Yea."
Vance felt sick. How could Greta trust him now when he'd introduced a thief into her home? A thief who'd assaulted her. He punched him again. And again. And again.
"Stop it!"
He turned and saw Greta staring at him in shock. He shoved the worker away. "You're finished here."
RJ turned and ran.
He could barely look at her. He held out the ring and necklace. "Here."
"Vance--"
She was going to fire him. He'd broken her trust and he didn't blame her for being disappointed with him. He knew he deserved her anger but he didn't want to hear it just yet. "Excuse me, there's something I have to do." He got into his car and drove off. He was running and he knew it. He was being a coward and he was being unfair to her. He pulled his car over to the side and parked. He shook the steering wheel and pounded it with his fist, imagining it was his brother's face and RJ’s face and anything trying to force him to fail. He then took a deep breath and turned around.
***
Greta leaned against her house and wiped away tears. She didn't blame Vance for leaving. She was bad luck. He must think she was nothing, but trouble. She hated him seeing her weak and pathetic. She rested her head against the house and closed her eyes. She wished she'd been strong enough to fight the thief. Just like the last man who'd tried to rape her sister, this man didn't fear her.
"I'm sorry."
Greta opened her eyes and stared at Vance surprised.
"If you want to press charges I understand."
"That could ruin your business. Your reputation--"
"That's not your problem."
"Yes, it is. I couldn't do that to you."
"But it's my fault. I shouldn't have let it happen."
"No, it's mine." She gestured to the two of them. "I hate this."
He reached for her. "Tera, please--"
Greta stepped back and shook her head. "No, I do." She tapped her chest. "I'm a capable woman. I'm strong. I'm smart. I had my life together. You should have seen it. I wished you'd seen me then and not now. Because now, almost every time you see me there's some sort of crisis. I'm either getting mugged and robbed or getting my house destroyed. I don't want to be a burden to you. I know how burdens can wear you down. I love my mom and my sister, but it was exhausting always looking out for her and taking care to keep my mother out of one scrape or another. Maybe the women in my family are just bad news, including me."
Vance grabbed her shoulders and searched her face. "You're wrong. You're not a burden. I want to take care of you and protect." He let her go and glanced away. "I'm just not doing a good job."
"You shouldn't have to take care of me."
"Why not? That's what a relationship is. You take care of me and I take care of you."
"But I haven't done anything for you."
He stared at her amazed. "You're not serious."
"Yes, I am. Okay, so I got someone to eye your car while you fixed your tire. That's it."
"I'm here because of you."
"I know. That's the problem."
Vance shook his head. "No, you don't understand. I started my own business because of you. You gave me the courage to try. You like me, just me, despite my past. I've made mistakes, but you don't hold them against me. I want you in my life as you are. Okay?" When she continued to stare at him he grinned. "This is the part where you nod and agree with me."
"I'll try."
"I'll take that." He hugged her. "Are you sure you're okay?"
"Yes."
"I know all the men who are here, so you shouldn't have any more troubles, but if you do--"
"I'll grab them by the collar, throw them out, and beat their face to a pulp like you did."
A reluctant grin touched his mouth. "I admit I lost my temper."
"That's not good for business. Next time, be a bit more civilized."
"He struck first."
"I know, but one punch would have subdued him."
"True."
"You said you were going to do something."
"Yes, talk to my brother."
***
His brother, Kojo had turned an extra bedroom in his house into an office. Vance wasn't ready to rent office space yet until they had enough work to cover the basic expenses. He lived there with his wife, Kara and their baby. He rang the door bell and his brother answered. "Give me a reason not to wring your neck."
"Shh..Kara's putting the baby down for a nap."
"Right now I don't care."
"Come on." He led Vance to his office and closed the door.
"I gave you the job of hiring and overseeing our temporary workers," Vance said as his brother walked to his desk.
"Yes. I did."
"I just found one assaulting and stealing from a client." Vance kept his voice low, his gaze hard.
Kojo slowly sank into his chair, his eyes wide. "What?"
"Where are you getting these workers?
"What do you mean?"
Vance struggled for patience. "His name is RJ. Who is he?”
Kojo’s shoulders sagged."I was afraid of this."
"Afraid of what?"
"I was just trying to give him a chance."
Vance's voice hardened. "To do what?"
"Get back on his feet. He'd been in jail. You know how hard it is for guys like that to get work. He told me--"
"He'd been in jail?" Vance asked, flexing his fingers.
He nodded.
"For what?"
"It doesn't matter."
Vance slammed his hand on his desk. "For what?"
His brother jumped and shrunk back. "Assault with a deadly weapon."
"And you thought it was a good idea to hire him to go into a single woman's home under our seal of approval?"
"He seemed okay," Kojo said, in a small voice.
At that moment, Kara opened the door. "What’s all the shouting about?"
"Your husband’s an idiot."
"Vance that's not nice."
"Nice? I could get sued." He glared at Kojo. "Your problem is that you're too soft and trusting, just like Dad." He was angry at his brother, but he was also angry at himself. He should have protected her. The police bust had already violated her and he'd made her a victim again. This never would have happened with Cordell. Maybe Cordell was right. He didn't have it.
"I'm sorry."
"You think that will fix anything?"
"Stop shouting at him!" Kara said running over to Kojo and wrapping her arms around him. "What else do you expect him to do?"
The sight of Kara rushing to his brother's side enraged Vance even more. His mother did the same protective gesture. His brother was always coddled. Always taken care of and he was always the villain. The big, bad, evil older brother. He held out his hands. "You're right. This won't work. You're free of me."
Kojo jumped from his seat. "No, I don't want that. I want to work with you. Come on, Van."
Vance knew he had to give him another chance, if only because his mother wouldn't let him hear the end of it, if he fired him. He stormed out.
***
Greta knew the moment she saw Vance that evening that the meeting with his brother hadn't gone well. He wasn't a man to hide his emotions. At
first his anger with the temporary worker had frightened her a little, but she knew he'd never turn it on her.
"Want me to put some food on?" she asked.
"I'm not hungry."
He sank into a chair. "My brother and I are like oil and water. He just doesn't get it. But it's my fault. I'm the one who's too harsh. I'm the one who's too unyielding because he's perfect. He's always done the right thing. He's got a family. He's got a college degree. So, no matter what he does, he's forgiven. But me? If I chew the wrong way, it's a criminal offensive. I mean he hired a criminal, for god’s sake, to work in my company. You have every right to blame me for what happened. It is my fault. I'm supposed to keep you safe. "
"Look, mistakes happen."
"I can't afford those kinds of mistakes."
"You're right. So what's going to happen?"
"You saw what I did. I sent him away."
"No, to your brother."
"Nothing. Nothing ever does."
Greta reached out and touched his hand. "And that’s what angers you the most, doesn't it?"
Vance nodded.
"Okay, this is what I want you to do. I want an apology."
"I can't apologize enough."
"No, I don't want your apology. Your brother needs to face the consequence of his action. You're shielding him. You're upset, but what's to stop him from doing it again? He needs to understand what his actions did to me."
Vance held her hand. "It won't work."
"At least let me try. Call him and set up an appointment for me."
"You don't need an appointment. I'll just drive you--"
Greta shook her head. "I don't want you there. It has to be between me and your brother." She held up her hand. "That's the way it has to be."
Vance sighed then picked up his phone and dialed.
***
The moment Greta saw Kojo she knew he was a soft mark. He had the bright naiveté of a toddler. She knew a guy with a tender heart like him, was easy to manipulate But that trait wouldn't serve him well in business. He was tall, like his brother, but he had none of his bravado. She could see why Vance was frustrated with him. They were total opposites. Greta followed Kojo into his home office and took a seat.