“I thought you had a place to stay.” He glared at me and I thought he was almost angry.
“I did…” I shrugged my shoulders. “But, my past was too much for her family to handle. They threw me out.”
“Well you can’t stay here. This place is filled with real criminals, Amy.” He put his hands on his hips.
“Then I guess I’m among my people.” I pulled the blanket around me. “In the end we get what we deserve, don’t we? My penance must not be completely paid.”
“Don’t be so fucking dramatic. Come on…” He yanked me up by my arm.
“What the hell? Leave me alone!” I said angrily.
“Shut up, you’re coming home with me.” Before I really knew what was happening, he was marching me to his car.
My mind tried to process what was happening as he sat me in the front seat and slid into the driver’s seat. Was the man who had been my downfall actually saving me from the brink of despair? It felt so strange being in the front seat of the very same patrol car that hauled me away the day I was arrested. At least, I assumed it was. I didn’t get much of a chance to investigate the nooks and crannies when I was stuffed in the backseat. I realized as the car bounced us along that I was very tired. Sleep used to come so easy, but it had become a luxury since I was arrested. The few decent nights I got in Mrs. Randolph’s apartment were hardly enough to refresh me. I was fairly certain that my current arrangement was going to be little more than temporary, but I at least had a feeling I would be safe.
“We’re here…” Detective Crane nudged me and I realized I had dozed off on the way.
“Huh? Oh…” I blinked the sleep away and stared at the walls of his carport.
“How about some coffee?” He asked as he opened the door and walked around to open mine.
“Sure, that would be great.” I let him take me by the hand and help me out of his patrol car.
He led me inside and started a pot of coffee, lighting up a cigarette as soon as it was gurgling. I looked around his house, amazed by the attention to detail. It was clear it hadn’t had a woman’s touch in a while, but there was evidence it was once immaculately designed. I paused by his fireplace and looked at a picture of his wedding day. His wife was drop dead gorgeous, and he was incredibly handsome when he was younger. He hadn’t lost that with age, although his wife’s condition was evident in some of the later pictures. I looked at pictures of them with his daughter, and it chronicled her life. She got older, developing into a radiant beauty like his wife, he got older, and his wife deteriorated away. When I got to the last one, which was just him and his daughter, I felt an incredible twinge of sadness. In pictures, their family was perfect, but in reality, it had been ended so tragically.
“You can stay in my daughter’s room.” He walked in and placed a warm cup in my hands.
“Thank you, are you sure she won’t mind?” I sat down in one of the chairs by the fireplace.
“No, she rarely visits and when she does, she usually wants to sleep in the guest room. I don’t think she likes to remember the little girl she used to be.” He placed a few logs on the fireplace and stuffed newspaper between them, lighting it up.
“She was lucky…” I said aimlessly and let the hot coffee warm me up from the inside while the fire warmed the room.
“You wouldn’t convince her of that.” He sat down in the chair across from me and lit another cigarette as he sipped his coffee.
“I know I was hesitant to come here, but thank you. I don’t think I could have spent another night in that shelter.” I still felt sleepy, despite having some coffee coursing through my veins.
“Unfortunately, I’ve seen it a hundred times. That life won’t lead you anywhere good, and I think you do have some good in you, despite what you were doing when we first met.” He inhaled and exhaled quickly, then sipped his coffee again.
I sat there and confessed all of my sins, not holding anything back. It was the first time I had ever opened up to anyone, and it felt nice to have an opportunity to talk about it. He was a good listener, occasionally chiming in about how he would have handled situations I handled badly. It was pretty clear that I had no real guidance in my life, and the horrible situations I had created for myself had been my own doing. A lifetime of horrible things poured out of me until I couldn’t hold back the tears any longer. He filled my coffee cup up again and sat back down while I continued. I realized as I got the point in my story where I was heading back to the shelter that hours had passed. I was a blubbering, sobbing mess, but he didn’t chastise or insult me for any of my choice. He simply listened and nodded most of the time. When I was done, he walked over and held out his hand.
“You’ve endured a lot of pain, Amy.” He helped me up and pulled me close, hugging me tightly. “I’m sorry life has been so cruel.”
He hugged me and caressed my hair as the tears continued to fall. By the time my tears dried, I was fairly exhausted. He took me upstairs to his daughter’s room, which looked like someone had vomited the contents of a high school girl’s life all over it. He said anything I wanted was mine, and I was free to stay as long as I liked. All I really wanted was a hot shower, so he showed me to the bathroom and walked back downstairs. I cleaned myself up and dug through his daughter’s closet. Her clothes were a fairly good fit, although they were a bit tight around my chest and my lower torso. I found a sweatshirt and a pair of yoga pants I could stuff myself into and dried my hair before returning downstairs. I walked into the living room at sat down. He casually looked over, and then did a double take, tilting his head to side with a smile.
“What?” I asked. My brow arched together in confusion.
“You clean up very well, Amy. You’re gorgeous.” He nodded with a smirk.
“Gorgeous doesn’t pay the bills, at least not in a way I would ever want to pay them.” I tucked my feet underneath me and let the fire dry what was left of the dampness from my shower.
“I’m glad you haven’t gone down that road, but trust me, you would have if you got desperate enough. The streets do bad things to people, regardless of how pretty or courageous they think they are.” His words sounded like wise ones, even if I felt like I would have never sold myself, no matter how bad it got.
“I hope it never comes to that…” I said as I stared into the fire.
“It won’t. I’m tired and I have to work tomorrow. There is food in the fridge, and you can help yourself to anything you need. I should be home around five.” He stood up and stretched.
“Thank you…” I looked up at him and smiled.
“You don’t have to thank me. I’m here to serve and protect.” He gave me a half-handed salute and walked upstairs to his bedroom chuckling to himself.
Sleep was incredible. The bed he provided was the best one I had ever laid down in. I sank into it and as the seconds ticked by, it seemed to swallow me up. The blankets were heavy and practically cocooned me. I felt safe knowing that only a couple of doors down was a man trained to kill if even as much as a peep was heard in his house. When morning came, I realized I had slept until nearly eight o’clock and the sun was peeking in through the curtains. His car was gone, so I showered again and made myself some breakfast. Despite his invitation to make myself at home, I was afraid to touch anything in his house. I finally relented to watching television upstairs in my room, and organized it a little bit. I tried to imagine what life must have been like for his daughter growing up in that house. It had to be a whole lot better than the one I had. When he came home, I practically ran downstairs to see him, just happy to have some human company.
“Did you have a good day at work? Catch any bad guys—or bad girls?” I smirked as he opened the fridge and grabbed a beer.
“Nah, it was a slow day.” He walked into the living room and sat down in his chair, immediately lighting a cigarette. “Did you manage to keep yourself entertained without stealing anything?”
“Yes…” I gave him a pout with my lips. “I’m not some harde
ned criminal, you know.”
“I know, I’m just teasing you.” He sipped his beer and smiled.
“I’ll start looking for a job tomorrow. I just needed a day of downtime.” I said as I nursed a cup of tea.
“I wanted to talk to you about that.” He turned his attention to me. “How do you feel about going to college?”
“College?” I raised my eyebrows. “I can’t afford college, I can’t even afford the shirt on my back—literally.”
“There are scholarships and loans. Believe me; where there is a will, there is a way.” He leaned over and tapped a laptop sitting beside his chair. “Why don’t you do a little research tomorrow?”
“Okay, I’ll think about it, but my top priority is finding a job. I appreciate you letting me stay here, but I don’t want to impose any longer than I have to.” I sipped my tea again.
“You’re not imposing on me. What do you think you’re imposing on exactly?” He lifted his beer and looked at me with a questioning stare.
“I mean…” I looked around the room. “Your life? Your home?”
“I work all day and I come home to an empty house. There isn’t much to impose on.” He shrugged.
“No girlfriend?” I asked candidly.
“This keeps them away usually.” He twisted his wedding band around his finger. “I just haven’t been able to take it off quite yet.”
“You haven’t been with anyone since she passed?” I raised my eyebrows.
“Well, I didn’t say that. I mean, there hasn’t been anything meaningful—wait, how did we go from talking about you to talking about me?” He tilted his head and narrowed his eyes at me.
“Okay, I get it. I’ll look at some options for college tomorrow. I still don’t plan to stay here any longer than I have to.” I nodded to myself.
“How about this…” He took a drag off of his cigarette and then turned his attention back towards me. “You get enrolled in school first, and then look for a job. Once you’re rolling in money and you can’t figure out what to do with it, you can kick me a little bit for rent and utilities.”
“So, we’d be roommates?” I looked up and pondered the idea.
“Exactly. Then it wouldn’t be charity, and you wouldn’t feel like you have to run away as soon as possible.” He sipped his beer again.
“I’m okay with that.” I shook my head up and down in confirmation before standing up and walking towards the kitchen.
“One thing though.” He reached out and grabbed my arm as I walked by.
“Yeah?” I looked down at him as he gave me a serious look.
“While you’re here, I expect you to do what I say and stay on the right side of the law. You may not be my daughter, but if you don’t, I won’t hesitate to put you over my knee.” He folded his eyebrows into a stern look.
“Seriously?” I blinked a few times.
“I joke about a lot of things, but I’m dead serious about that.” He squeezed my arm tighter. “Do you understand?”
“Yes sir…” I nodded furiously and felt a lump in my throat.
“Okay then.” He released his grasp and stood up. “I don’t mind taking care of you, and I don’t mind letting you live here. I could definitely use the company, but I’m not going to put up with foolishness.”
“No foolishness—got it.” I walked into the kitchen and poured another cup of tea.
***
I lay awake in bed after the lights were out thinking about what he said. His kindness and generosity was fairly overwhelming, but his threat lingered in my mind. I wondered if I could really go to college and live a normal life. I certainly had no intentions of breaking the law again, and I definitely thought I was mature enough to avoid giving him a reason to make good on his threat to put me over his knee, but knowing that was an option made me feel a little uncomfortable. I had never been spanked before, although I knew I had likely deserved it on numerous occasions. I had to wonder if that was what helped his daughter develop into a woman with a future instead of ending up like me. Growing up without a father had often left me wondering what it would have been like to have one. Detective Crane had already been more like one than anyone I had ever met before. I finally rolled over and closed my eyes. The comfort of the bed and the feeling of safety let me drift off to sleep fairly easily once they were closed.
“How to get a student loan...” I said out loud as I typed the words into Google.
There was a lot of information and most of it was fairly confusing. I finally found my way to the government website and read up on the eligibility requirements. They were fairly forgiving, even for someone with a criminal record. After deciding that I could qualify, I started looking at school options. I realized as I searched that I didn’t even know where I was. I assumed we hadn’t traveled far, but I had slept most of the way. I went to the kitchen and found his mail in order to get my new address and figured out which was one was close. The next issue was transportation. I mapped out public transit routes and figured out there was a stop less than a mile from his house. My mother’s car had been repossessed while I was in jail, but I was sure I could walk less than a mile to the bus stop. I started looking around the school website and noticed they offered a hybrid program which let students take most of their classes online—that was actually perfect.
“I could do my homework from anywhere…” I said with a smile. “Even if I got my own place…”
I filled out my application for school and for my loans. There was a test I had to take in order to get in, so I bookmarked the page and started researching the test. I was surprised by the amount of knowledge I retained about computers, despite only using one at school. After reviewing a few of the books, I opened up the computer’s history to bookmark a few of them to discuss with him. I chuckled and then gasped when I realized the history contained quite a bit of porn. Apparently, Detective Crane did keep himself entertained when he came home to an empty house—very entertained. I scanned through a few of the videos, which were fairly tame, and then closed the laptop. It was nearly time for him to get home, so I pillaged the fridge until I had enough stuff to make dinner. I had just gotten the food on the table when I heard his car in the driveway.
“Welcome home, roomie.” I popped a beer and handed it to him as he walked in the door.
“Thanks…” He looked past me at the table. “Wow, dinner…”
“Just a thank you for everything you’ve done for me.” I walked over and sat down.
“It smells great. I didn’t even realize I had enough to make a meal in there.” He pulled his chair out and took his seat as he motioned to the fridge.
“We might need to consider a trip to the grocery store.” I chuckled a little bit as I fixed myself a plate.
“Okay, we can go tomorrow.” He looked at his bottle. “I think I’m running out of beer anyway.”
“Yes, I think you might be.” I smiled and nodded. “So, I did what you suggested. I looked at some school options today.”
“Good, do you need any help with the loan applications?” He stabbed his fork into some spaghetti and twirled it.
“I think I have that part figured out, but I may need a loan. I have to pass an entry exam, and there are some books that can help. Unfortunately, I can’t afford them without the loans, and I can’t get the loans without being enrolled.” I knew I was asking a lot. I studied his face for a reaction.
“That’s fine.” He nodded in agreement. “I know where you live, after all.”
“Yes, I suppose you do. The other thing I was considering is going to school online. Benton State College has a hybrid program.” I rolled my fork around a meatball and continued to study his expression.
“That is a little ahead of my time, but I hear a lot of kids are doing it now. Supposedly, it requires a lot of dedication.” He leveled his gaze at me. “Are you sure you can handle it?”
“Definitely!” I responded enthusiastically. “I actually like the idea of being able to do things on
my own time. It’ll also help with finding a job since I won’t have to worry about working around a certain schedule.”
“That sounds good to me.” He inspected his garlic bread and then bit into it.
“Thank you so much for helping me.” I sighed and felt tears welling up in my eyes driven by his generosity. “I honestly didn’t think I would ever be excited about the prospect of going back to school.”
“I’m impressed, Amy. You’ve really jumped into this with both feet. You can use my old laptop anytime you need it. I barely use it anyway.” He washed a piece of garlic bread down with a sip of beer.
“Really?” I thought back to the porn I saw on it. “Are you sure?”
“Yeah.” He waved me off. “I can always get another one. There are plenty of sales with the holidays coming up.”
“Thank you!” I jumped up and hugged him, which caused him to nearly choke on his food for a second.
Over the course of the next few weeks, I spent my days studying while he was at work, and when test day finally came, I blew it out of the water. I was never a good student, so actually studying and seeing the end result was new to me. The loan applications went through and I was officially enrolled a few days later. My first classes were fairly simple and didn’t seem like they would require very much work. With the hard part out of the way, I started looking for a job. That part turned out to be rather difficult with my criminal case popping up on every background check I agreed to. A lot of potential employers were enthusiastic after the interview, but didn’t call me back once they got the results. Those that did quickly told me it was the reason I wasn’t accepted. I knew I still had some options, so I tried to stay focused. Orientation required me to go to the campus for a full Saturday, and when I got home, I found Detective Crane nursing a bottle of beer and a cigarette as he flipped channels on the television.
Saving Little Amy (An Age Play Romance) Page 3