by Tia Siren
I let out a long sigh. My parents had been begging me to leave Isaac the past two years, and I had tried, but he would never take no for an answer. He would refuse to accept the breakup, and somehow we always ended up back together.
The last straw had been when he took a baseball bat to my car while I was trying to leave his house. I had broken up with him a month before but he wouldn’t leave me alone, so I stopped by his house, hoping I could talk to him and help him understand we should be friends and nothing more. The man had freaked out, picked up a bat, and tried to hit me. I raced out of his house and jumped in my car. He shattered every window while I sat inside and screamed, paralyzed by fear. A neighbor had gotten the bat away from him, but the damage had been done.
I then knew Isaac was capable of serious violence and finally agreed to let my parents ship me away.
Hannah and I walked back outside to begin unloading the U-Haul. Thankfully, I didn’t have a lot, and Hannah’s boyfriend, Jake, would be showing up soon with his friend to take care of the big stuff. My parents had bought me a washer and dryer, which was supposed to be delivered later today. We only had to worry about the boxes.
Hannah opened the back of the truck. I stepped inside and looked at the various boxes.
“Excuse me.” The deep male voice startled me, making me jump a few inches.
I spun around, half expecting to see Isaac, but I saw something much different—or rather, someone. I was staring down at a tall, dark, and handsome man with piercing blue eyes.
“Hi,” I said, walking down the ramp and extending my hand. “I’m Scarlett Morgan. Do you live around here?”
“Next door. How long are you going to have this truck parked in the street?” he asked.
I glanced over my shoulder, looked at the meager contents, and shrugged. “I don’t know. Not long. I don’t have that much stuff.”
He looked past me into the truck. “Moving trucks can’t be parked on the street longer than four hours.”
I nodded. “Okay, well, I don’t think it will take me that long.”
Hannah came over and stood beside me. She was checking the guy out. He was gorgeous. Unfortunately, he wasn’t exactly nice. He was acting like a jerk, as if he owned the damn road.
“Fine,” he said, turning around and heading down the sidewalk before turning in to the house right next door to mine.
“Wow. He isn’t going to win any Mr. Congeniality awards,” Hannah commented.
“No kidding. I hope he wasn’t the welcoming committee. We better get this thing unloaded. I would hate to have grouchy pants call the cops on me and have the truck towed away. I don’t know why he cares. It isn’t like people can’t still get by,” I grumbled.
Hannah laughed. “It’s probably a giant stick up his ass. Hopefully he gets that removed soon.”
I laughed along with her before we got busy carrying boxes inside my new house. Jake and his buddy, Cody, showed up and made short work of moving in my couch, table, and chairs, and then my bedroom set. It took us less than two hours to get the truck unloaded.
“We better get this thing out of here before the butthead neighbor sounds the alarm,” I said, looking at the truck. “I’ll follow you to the return place.”
Jake did the driving while Hannah rode with me.
“Is that—?” I asked, my voice high pitched as I saw a car that looked exactly like Isaac’s.
Hannah stared at it. “Nope. Not him. He doesn’t know where you are. You’re safe,” she assured me.
I nodded, hoping she was right. We stopped by the store, picked up some pizzas and beer for the guys, and headed back to the house to begin the tedious job of unpacking. Hannah and the guys were going to stay the night, which I was grateful for. I was nervous and a little afraid to be alone in the new house. Isaac was a loose cannon. I never knew when he was going to show up or what kind of mood he’d be in. My parents had rented the house and even put the utilities in their name, but I was convinced he would find me. I was supposed to go and get a PO box instead of having anything delivered to the house.
“It’s going to be fine,” Hannah assured me as we walked into the new house together. “He’s not going to find you, and he will eventually move on to a new victim.”
“That’s sad,” I said, suddenly feeling guilty for putting another woman through my recent suffering.
“Until the police lock the guy up, he’s going to keep getting away with this. I’m sorry, but I’m glad it isn’t going to be you. I can’t take the stress and worry another day, and I know your parents can’t. They’re terrified he’s going to kill you. You’re doing this for them as much as yourself. I’ll visit every weekend,” she promised.
“Thank you, Hannah. I’ll be fine. Just need to get into a new groove and it’ll all be fine. I’m excited to be living in music city,” I said with enthusiasm that was only a little fake.
Chapter Two
Cameron
I felt a little guilty for acting like such a dick to the new neighbor. I hadn’t meant to come off so rude; it was just who I was. My job as a cop had hardened me against people. I tended to be wary of everyone, even pretty women with curves for days.
I’d been surprised to see my new neighbor was a young woman. I hoped she wasn’t a partier. I’d have to shut that down in a hurry. If she wanted a party pad, my neighborhood was not the right place. I knew what the people who owned that property were charging for rent. She was probably one of those spoiled trust fund kids. Why in the world she would choose to live in a family home in a quiet neighborhood was beyond me.
I walked inside my own house and peeked out the window. The two ladies were talking and looking my way. I grinned. I had probably made quite the first impression. That was a good thing. When they thought about throwing a party, they were going to remember their grumpy neighbor and think twice.
“Ella!” I called out, waiting for my little girl to appear and hoping like hell she was dressed.
“I’m right here, Daddy,” she said, coming out of the kitchen.
“Oh, I didn’t see you. You’re dressed!” I said with surprise.
She grinned and nodded. “Yep. I’m ready to go.”
I looked her over, smoothed her hair down with my hand, and decided she was ready for school. The school thing had been a struggle the first couple weeks, but we had finally found our groove.
“All right. Let me grab my stuff and we’re out of here.”
She was standing on the front stoop and looking at the moving truck parked in the street.
“Look at the big truck, Daddy,” she said with excitement.
“I see the truck,” I grumbled. “That truck better be gone by the time Grandma brings you home.”
“Can I go in the truck?” she asked.
“No. We have to go to school.”
She walked to my truck, and I opened the cab’s back door and boosted her inside. Ella buckled the seat belt over her booster. I checked it like always before closing the door.
I saw the neighbor eyeing me and considered offering an apology but didn’t. I wanted them to think I was an asshole. It was the best way to keep people from bothering me and my daughter.
I parked my truck and went around to unbuckle Ella. “Grandma is picking you up from school today, okay?” I reminded her.
She was a smart, advanced five-year-old, but like any kid, she needed to be told something several times before it sank in.
“I know, Dad. I’ll wait for Grandma, and I won’t go with anyone else.”
I smiled and smoothed down her thick dark hair. It tended to have a mind of its own. It was naturally curly, a trait she had inherited from her mother, and not easy to tame.
“Good girl. I’ll see you tonight, pumpkin,” I said and immediately winced.
“Dad! I told you I’m not your pumpkin. I’m a big girl now.”
I nodded. “I’m sorry. I forgot. I’ll do better,” I promised.
She turned and headed inside the school. I wat
ched her, making sure she got in the right line for her classroom. Her teacher saw me and gave me a small wave. The teacher was young and pretty enough, but she was married. I didn’t go inside the school. I knew her teacher would try to talk to me again about Ella’s progress and would want to set up another meeting. I wasn’t ready for that. The teacher was convinced it would be in Ella’s best interest if she skipped ahead to the first grade. I didn’t want to do that. She was already growing up too fast.
I got to work a few minutes before my shift. Noah was already there, checking the bulletin board.
“Damn, I thought you were going to miss the briefing. Chief has something big going down. We all have to be in there,” he said, adjusting his belt.
“What’s going on?” I asked, heading toward the briefing room.
Noah shrugged. “Something about a meth lab operation.”
I groaned. “There are too many of those things. We’re not on that detail, are we?”
“I don’t think so.”
We took seats in the back of the room and waited for the chief to give the update. It was as Noah thought. Fortunately, he and I were on patrol duty and were not going to be a part of the task force going in to shut the place down. Five or six years ago, I would have begged to be a part of it. I couldn’t put my life at high risk these days, though. I was a single father to a little girl who needed me. Being a cop was risky enough.
When the briefing was over, Noah and I walked out to the patrol car together.
“I’ll drive,” I told him, preferring to be the one behind the wheel. It was a control thing. Noah never seemed to mind.
“How’s Ella?” Noah asked.
“Good. Too smart for her own good, though.”
He laughed. “They all are. Or so I’ve heard.”
“How’s the latest what’s-her-name?” I teased.
He groaned. “She’s history. She wanted her own drawer at my place. What the hell is that about? We were seeing other a month and she thinks she’s moving in.”
I chuckled and shook my head. “You’re thirty-one. Don’t you think you might want to settle down at some point?”
He made a face. “No! You’re thirty-two and single.”
“I wasn’t always single,” I said solemnly.
Noah got serious. “She’s been gone three years, Cameron. It’s time you start living your life again. Becca wouldn’t want you to be single forever.”
“I’ve been living just fine.”
He laughed. “You’ve been having one-night stands. I don’t know how you can lecture me when you do the same thing.”
“I have the occasional night off from work and fatherhood. I’m not a monk. I need to get laid, but I don’t need to be dragging a bunch of different women around my kid.”
“You could try to get to know one of those women,” he pointed out.
I didn’t answer him. It was a conversation we’d had many times before. Noah could never understand. I’d been married and thought I would grow old with Becca. She had been ripped out of my life too soon. I hated cancer, absolutely fucking hated it. It was a horrible disease.
“Looks like we got a couple kids skipping school. Should we check it out?” I asked, changing the subject.
Noah chuckled. “Why not? Let’s teach them a little lesson.”
I pulled behind the car while Noah ran the plates. I could see the driver looking in his rearview mirror, watching me. He was scared. That meant he was doing something wrong.
I hit the lights and pulled the kid over. It didn’t take long to figure out the driver and his buddy were cutting class in favor of getting McDonald’s for breakfast. We couldn’t give them a ticket but warned them they better get back to school.
Noah pouted when we got back in the car. “That was too easy.”
I shrugged. “Easy is good. Easy is safe.”
“Easy is boring,” Noah replied.
“Boring means I go home to my little girl every night.”
“Remember when we first joined the Corps?” he mused.
I laughed. “Yes. We were young and stupid and couldn’t wait to get deployed.”
“We had to get deployed or we would never get that respect.”
I shook my head. “My poor mother. She was terrified when she found out we were headed to the Middle East.”
“I brought you back in one piece.”
I scoffed. “I think it was the other way around.”
It was the same familiar jesting we always did. Noah had been my best friend since middle school. We joined the Marines together right out of high school and somehow managed to get stationed at the same base. After eight years of serving our country, we both agreed it was time to return to the civilian world. That had lasted a couple months before we decided we could still serve as police officers.
I’d gotten married almost immediately after I’d gotten home. Becca and I had first gotten together in high school, then parted ways. On one of my leaves, we had started up our relationship again. I’d never thought she would die at the ripe age of twenty-nine. It was so unfair.
“Woah!” Noah said at the same time I punched the gas to jump behind a car that had blown through a stop sign and was hauling ass.
“Call it in,” I ordered.
The culture in the city had changed. I never knew when it was going to be a simple traffic stop or when I was going to be the next cop being shot at.
“They’re pulling over,” Noah said, stating the obvious.
It ended up being a simple speeding ticket. The woman tried to flirt her way out of the ticket, but that wasn’t my style. If I pulled you over for breaking the law, it was going to be a ticket. I liked black and white. I didn’t like the gray in between. Noah called me a hard-ass. I probably was. I liked to think I was enforcing the rules that would prevent a family from going through the same loss I had experienced. It wasn’t personal. It was my job, and I was out there every day doing it. I wasn’t out there trying to make friends.
“Let’s grab lunch,” Noah said halfway through our shift.
“Fine, but no more greasy tacos. I can hear my arteries clogging when you make me eat those,” I complained.
Noah laughed. “They may be greasy, but they’re so good.”
“How about burgers and fries?” I suggested.
He made a strangled noise. “How is that any better than greasy tacos?”
I grinned. “Because I want a burger and I don’t want a taco.”
He burst into laughter. “Then just say that. Don’t knock my tacos.”
I drove us to a burger joint. We grabbed our lunch, scarfed it down, and got right back on the streets.
“I haven’t heard any chatter about the meth house,” I commented.
Noah shrugged. “I guess that’s a good thing. Means everyone is safe. It was probably a bust. They’re going to have to sit on the place. I just hope we don’t get stuck on the stakeout. I’ll happily go along for the takedown, but I will die from boredom if we have to watch people come and go for twelve hours.”
It wasn’t exactly my idea of a good time either. We did what we were asked, though. I hadn’t made any attempts to move up the ranks yet, but I wanted to eventually. I couldn’t be a beat cop forever. Once I got Ella settled into a groove at school, that was my goal. Until then, I needed the flexibility of a set shift and not being on call.
We got through our shift with nothing too exciting happening. That was always a good day.
“See you tomorrow,” I said to Noah.
“Want to go out and grab a drink?” he asked.
I shook my head. “Nope. I promised Ella I would be home tonight to have dinner with her.”
Noah smiled. “You have a dinner date.”
“I do, with the prettiest girl in Tennessee.”
Noah laughed. “I will give you that one. Later, Cameron.”
We parted ways, and I drove to my mother’s to pick up Ella. Then we would have a nice quiet Friday night at home. I wonde
red if my neighbor had moved the truck. I hoped she wasn’t planning on celebrating her new house with a party. I would be putting an end to that in a hurry.
Chapter Three
Scarlett
I couldn’t believe how much stuff I had. By the time we had carried in all the furniture and boxes and then unpacked everything last night, we’d been exhausted. I was thrilled they’d all stayed the night. It had helped dispel the loneliness that came from being in a new home in a new city. Once they all left, I knew it was going to hit me pretty hard. I wanted to put that off for as long as possible.
“I’m so sore,” Hannah complained as she stood next me in front of the large mirror in the master bathroom.
I laughed. “Me too. Dancing is going to be interesting tonight. We’ll just tell everyone we’re stiff from a brutal round of yoga at the gym.”
I finished my makeup with a slick of light pink gloss on my lips.
“You look gorgeous! I’m so glad I already have a boyfriend. Your eyes look stunning with that green top. It really brings out the green,” she said.
“Thank you. It feels weird to be going out. I haven’t been out in forever—at least without Isaac or worrying he would show up at the club and make a scene.”
I tried to fight back the nerves. I was excited to be going out. This was me celebrating my new life and the freedom that came with it.
“Remember, don’t leave with anyone. Guys are going to be crawling all over your hot little ass. Tell them to get lost. You’re there to have fun, not snag another psychotic boyfriend. You need some time alone without a man,” she lectured.
I rolled my eyes. “Yes, Mother.”
“I’m serious. Me, Jake, and Cody are going to be watching you like a hawk,” she warned.
“Thank you. I know you’re doing this for me,” I whispered. “I appreciate you guys hanging out for a few days.”
She wrapped her arms around me and hugged me. “I’m so glad you’re okay. I can’t tell you how afraid I was. I was so worried he was going to do something terrible.”