All I Ever Wanted

by Francis Ray

  “I’d say you have some celebrating of your own to do,” Naomi said. “That’s wonderful.”

  “We kind of think so.” Maria shoved the thin leather strap over her slim shoulder. “Dan and the other two girls are picking me up on the way to the game.”

  “Have fun, and tell Paula I said good luck.”

  A car horn interrupted what Maria had been about to say. “That man. He used to drive my mama crazy honking that horn instead of coming in for me. He does it now just to get a rise out of me.”

  Since Naomi had seen Maria and Dan together, she wasn’t concerned. He outweighed Maria by eighty pounds and was a good foot taller, and he treated her like spun glass. “He likes to tease you.”

  Maria shook her dark head of hair as the horn sounded again. “Sixty-two and he still acts like a kid at times.”

  Naomi couldn’t ever remember Gordon being anxious for her. Impatient and annoyed, yes, but never anxious. “You go on. I’ll take it from here.”

  “Things have been quiet,” Maria reported, heading for the front door. “You’re closing at six.”

  “Yes, this will be my first time.” Before, she hadn’t wanted the responsibility of closing or being out late. Baby steps, Catherine called them. Placing her handbag in the cabinet, Naomi took the seat Maria had vacated. “You better get out of here before Dan comes to get you.”

  “I’m going. Bye.”

  “Bye,” Naomi said, watching the heavy door swing shut. Uneasiness momentarily swept through her. She was alone. If she needed help, there would be no one. Stop it, she mentally chastised herself. She was safe, the door locked, the glass in the front door unbreakable, the alarm system the best available, camera on the front and back doors. She didn’t even have to pick up the phone. All she had to do was push the button Rio had installed and an alarm would go straight to the police office.

  She’d asked Mrs. Grayson how she’d managed to have that installed and she’d just smiled. Naomi imagined with a billionaire son-in-law, wealthy relatives, famous in-laws, influential friends, and protective children, most people didn’t say no to Ruth Grayson.

  She looked sweet, but on a couple of occasions when an unruly boyfriend or husband had tried to coerce a woman into leaving the center, Ruth had stepped into the conversation.

  Their harsh words and threats hadn’t fazed her. She hadn’t used her connections or her sons—who would have torn the men apart—just her unflinching courage and desire to help others. The men had backed down even before the police car had pulled up. Not long after, so had Luke and Brandon. Her other children had been out of town or Naomi was sure they would have shown up as well. Ruth Grayson was a phenomenal woman. Naomi would settle for waking up without fear. One day she’d get there.

  Entering her password, she brought up the log for the day and entered her name. The Women’s League wanted accurate records. Unfortunately, they might be needed in legal cases. Naomi’s hands flexed as she recalled the woman in the coma. She hadn’t been a client of the Women’s League.

  Naomi had overheard women at her job and in line at the checkout counter at the grocery store saying that they didn’t see why the woman hadn’t left. Some even blamed her for the abuse. They had no idea how you could be beat down, cowed. They took their safety and the love of a good man, their ability to stand up for themselves, for granted. They didn’t see it as a blessing like Naomi did.

  She looked over the calls for the day in case anyone called again and wanted additional information. From experience, Naomi knew that making the call was the first and most difficult step of admitting you were abused and needed help. Women could come into the office for assistance daily. Although there wasn’t a place to stay, the league could provide hotel accommodation, if necessary.

  Working there for the past month, Naomi had learned that she wasn’t the only one who’d had a knock on the door and received the gift of new clothes, and, more important, the gift of self-worth when you felt you couldn’t make it a day, an hour longer. She wanted to help others who found themselves alone and feeling hopeless as she had.

  The buzzer sounded. She looked up to see Sierra holding a stuffed plastic garment bag with the name of a local department store. Two men stood a few steps behind her. Each held a large handled shopping bag in his hands.

  Naomi hit the buzzer to unlock the door and rushed around the desk to help. One of the men reached around Sierra to open the door.

  “Thanks, Aaron.” Sierra stepped inside. “Hi, Naomi.”

  “Hi, Sierra,” Naomi greeted. “Let me have that.”

  “Got it, thanks.” Laughing, Sierra glanced over her shoulders at the two men who had quietly entered behind her. “You might want to help Paul and Aaron.”

  Naomi might have hesitated, but the men stepped around Sierra and extended the bags in their hands. She took the ones from the man nearer to her. The others were set down beside her. Once the bags were relinquished, the men smoothly stepped back behind Sierra, their motions in sync, their faces pleasant but unsmiling.

  “I found a fantastic sale and couldn’t resist,” Sierra said.

  “Thank you.” It was well known Sierra loved clothes and shopping. The clothes closet in the league was often the beneficiary of her enjoyment. Her yellow spiked heels matched the beautiful lemon dress that stopped a couple of inches above her knees.

  Still bubbling, she glanced behind her at the two men. “We had a good time, didn’t we?”

  They simply stared at her. Laughing, Sierra turned back to Naomi. Leaning over, she whispered, “They’re my shadows. I can take care of myself, but it makes Blade feel better. Rio heard me mention shopping and chickened out.”

  Bodyguards, Naomi realized. Blade wanted his wife safe and made sure of it. The door swung shut behind one of the men before Naomi realized he’d moved.

  “I’ll help you put everything up.” Sierra reached for the other two bags. The remaining man stepped around Sierra for the bags, startling Naomi. She gasped and stumbled back. The man froze.

  Naomi didn’t know what to say. She felt heat flush her cheeks. There had been no threat to her.

  “I got it, Aaron,” Sierra said easily. “Naomi, you lead the way.”

  Naomi turned, then swung back to the silent, watchful man. She would not hurt someone’s feelings because she was learning to live without fear. “It’s not you.”

  “No problem, Mrs. Reese.”

  Surprise widened her eyes that he knew her name; then she realized that they had to know the family’s close associates to be effective.

  Sierra must have noticed her surprise. “They even know my hairstylist, although she tried to flirt with them.”

  Naomi understood Sierra was trying to make her feel better and lighten the mood. While grateful, Naomi wished for the day people didn’t have to be cautious or make excuses for her. She wanted a normal life for her and Kayla. She’d already decided that didn’t include a man. “This way.”

  The “clothes closet” was a room with revolving racks of women’s and children’s clothes from floor to ceiling, with full-length mirrors and private dressing rooms. No one saw the sense of leaving with clothes that didn’t fit. Naomi reached into her bag to find toiletries. She began placing them in the designated bins. Out of the corner of her eyes, she saw Sierra on the short ladder, hanging up the clothes she’d purchased.

  “That’s a pretty dress.”

  “I thought so.” Sierra smiled and pulled out the full hem of the white sundress with pink piping. “The saleslady must have thought I was crazy to buy the same dress in three sizes, but it was too cute to pass up. A new outfit can make the day brighter.”

  Naomi wasn’t surprised Sierra understood. She might be wealthy but, like her family and in-laws, she wasn’t stuck up or pretentious. She understood that hard times could make people feel worthless and make them give up hope. Naomi was proud that she was able to give back just a little of what had been given to her.

  Perhaps she could do even mo
re. Her hand closed tightly around the bottle of shampoo. “If—if you need help with the fund-raising for Mrs. Grayson’s music department, I’d like to help.”

  Amazed delight swept across Sierra’s beautiful heart-shaped face. “Thank you, Naomi. Blade’s event director is flying down next week for a fact-finding and planning meeting. I’ll let you know.”

  Nodding, the tension easing out of her, Naomi went back to emptying the bags. She hadn’t been rejected or made to feel as if she were worthless. She hadn’t let fear rule her. She just had to keep reminding herself that she had something to offer. She almost smiled. She couldn’t wait to tell Richard.

  Finished, they folded the empty paper shopping bags and put them in the stack. They saved the bags for women to carry away their items.

  “Thanks again for the donations,” Naomi said.

  “I had fun,” Sierra said. “I have to admit, there’s also a couple of outfits in the car for me. Besides Blade, clothes and food are my two weaknesses.”

  Once it might have been hard for Naomi to imagine a woman smiling about a man being her weakness, but she’d been around the Graysons and their spouses long enough to realize that loving the right man was a good thing. The trouble was finding him.

  Watching the younger woman, who had such a zest for life and was in such a good mood, Naomi thought it was the perfect time to bring up her request. “Sierra, if you don’t mind, could you please recommend a Realtor?”

  One perfectly arched brow lifted regally. Sierra folded her arms and simply stared at Naomi. Her easygoing demeanor and smile were gone.

  Naomi swallowed and rushed to explain. “Richard said to ask you, but I can’t afford the homes you list. I didn’t know when you helped me find an apartment that you handled only upscale properties, and now you’re married to a billionaire.”

  “And you think that changed me?”

  “No.” Naomi quickly shook her head. She always messed things up, just like her ex said she did. “You’re always nice to me and Kayla.”

  Sierra’s arms unfolded, her face softening. Reaching out, she gently touched Naomi’s arm in comfort. “Then you don’t want to hurt my feelings, do you?”

  “No. You’ve been wonderful to me. Your whole family has.” Half the things in her kitchen and home were housewarming gifts from Richard and the Graysons. It wasn’t just the gifts that they gave her, it was their friendship and acceptance that counted for so much more.

  “Good, then I’m your Realtor. I need to go to the car, but I’ll be back.” Sierra headed for the front of the building.

  Naomi followed Sierra out to the reception area. She saw Aaron open the door just before Sierra rushed through. A man emerged from the driver’s side of the black Lincoln parked at the curb and opened the back door. Bending to reach inside, she emerged with something in her hand and hurried back. Aaron opened the door again and followed her inside. Naomi saw that Sierra had an iPad, her slim manicured fingers moving quickly over the screen.

  “Why don’t we step into one of the counseling offices? Aaron can watch the front, if that’s all right with you.” Sierra lifted her head and waited for an answer.

  She was giving Naomi a choice and privacy. She understood Naomi’s need to have both. Richard had been right about choosing Sierra. “All right.”

  This time it was Naomi who followed Sierra into one of the offices, but neither sat in one of the comfortable chairs. “What kind of house are you looking for? What neighborhood?”

  “Something I can afford, with a yard for Kayla to have a swing, maybe a puppy later on.”

  Sierra’s fingers paused over the keyboard. She looked up. “What about what you want?”

  “To be safe,” Naomi answered before she thought and wanted to tuck her head in shame, but Sierra’s gaze was already on the screen as she resumed typing.

  “Then we’ll look in those neighborhoods where you will be. To ensure your safety even more once you have your house, I’ll ask Rio to put in a security system.”

  As much as she liked the idea, she knew she couldn’t afford the type of system Rio would probably install. “That will cost a lot of money. Maybe I can get something cheaper.” At Sierra’s raised brow, Naomi quickly amended her words. “Less expensive.”

  “Amounts to the same thing.” Sierra continued talking when Naomi opened her mouth. “I wouldn’t be surprised if Rio already has the equipment. You’ll just need an alarm company to monitor it.”

  “Won’t they want to install their own equipment?” Naomi asked.

  Sierra flashed a quick grin. “You’d be surprised by the things people do when Rio asks them.”

  Naomi didn’t doubt her for a second. Rio was a formidable man. Then there was Sierra’s husband, and her older brother Luke. She certainly wouldn’t like saying no to any of them.

  “Now, back to basics,” Sierra said. “What price range? How much can you afford to put down?”

  Naomi swallowed, barely kept from fidgeting. “Six thousand down. I’m not sure what price range. It can be small. We just need two bedrooms.”

  Sierra nodded and entered more data into the iPad. “You’ll want the payments in line with your apartment rent. You haven’t paid utility bills so you’ll have to factor that into monthly expenses. Yard upkeep. Incidentals.”

  Cold fear knotted Naomi’s stomach. “Maybe I should stay in the apartment.”

  Sierra’s head came up, her gaze curious instead of accusatory. “Did you have a house before?”

  Before. Naomi barely kept from looking away in embarrassment and shame. Before meant before she came to Santa Fe after running from her ex-husband with little more than the clothes on her and Kayla’s backs. “No.”

  “First-time homeownership is always daunting, but you have to be sure it’s what you want. You won’t be able to call the apartment manager if the plumbing backs up or the central air goes out,” Sierra told her.

  With each statement, Naomi’s eyes widened. She hadn’t thought of all those possibilities.

  “Luckily for us, I know honest repairmen. But more important, before you sign any contract, the house will be thoroughly inspected. I also know a home warranty company that won’t rip you off. And I imagine Richard will want to take a look before you purchase.”

  Naomi felt her face flush, but she also felt relief that she had Richard. “He said he wanted to help.”

  “Thought so.” Sierra closed the leather case over the top of the iPad. “I’ll start working on it tomorrow. I have your phone number. I’ll be in touch.” She started from the room.

  “Sierra?”

  “Yes?” She glanced back over her shoulder, her long black hair swinging down her slim back.

  “Thank you.”

  “Thank you. I love finding just the right house for a client. Since you’re a friend, it will be that much more enjoyable.” Sierra started for the front again. “I better go before we have company. If it wouldn’t upset Blade, I’d ditch them.”

  “You can’t do that. Some men don’t respect women.”

  Sierra stopped and placed her hand on Naomi’s trembling arm. “I won’t.”

  In trying to help protect Sierra, Naomi had revealed too much, but she didn’t feel the humiliation she once might have. Sierra didn’t think less of her, and she was tired of thinking less of herself. “I won’t keep you.”

  “We’ll talk later this week.” Sierra stepped into the reception area. “Aaron, please call Paul from the back and let’s go.”

  “Already done when I heard your heels.”

  Sierra lifted a perfectly ached brow. “Why didn’t you call him the first time?”

  “You wore the same excited expression on your face when you were searching for clothes,” he said easily. “You were on a mission. You weren’t leaving.”

  “I’ll have to remember that.”

  “Thought you would. I’ll wait outside.”

  “They seem very efficient,” Naomi murmured.

  “They have to be
to get Blade and Rio’s okay,” Sierra confided. “Good-bye, Naomi.”

  “Good-bye.” Naomi followed Sierra to the door. Aaron opened the back door to the shiny Lincoln. The windows were tinted so she couldn’t see inside. On the front passenger side stood Paul. Closing Sierra’s door, Aaron went around to the other side. Both men got inside at the same time. The car pulled smoothly away from the curb.

  Naomi stared after the car. Sierra had found a man who valued her and wanted her safe. She was a lucky woman. For a second Naomi thought of Richard, then pushed him from her mind. He was just a friend and that was the way it was going to remain. The last thing she needed or wanted was a man ordering her around and messing up her and Kayla’s lives again.

  Once was more than enough.

  * * *

  As the day lengthened, Naomi expected a call from Mrs. Grayson or Richard to check on her. Until today she’d always had the early-afternoon shift. That way Ruth or Catherine could keep Kayla for a couple of hours. She’d never closed the building by herself. As the clock moved closer to six, she finally accepted that they weren’t going to call. Initially she wasn’t sure how she felt about that, then she decided it showed they had confidence in her to handle whatever came up.

  And she had. There had been calls seeking information about the league as well as call-backs, as she’d thought.

  Although the calls had brought back painful memories of her abusive marriage, they also gave her a greater insight into what the caller was going through or how to be of assistance to a relative who wanted to help a family member in an abusive relationship who wasn’t ready to leave her abuser. For her there had been no relative, no one she could turn to … until she came to Santa Fe.

  When the antique clock on the wall read five fifty-eight, Naomi pulled her purse from the cabinet and powered down the computer. Exactly at 6:00 PM, she set the alarm, left on the lamp on the front desk to signify that help was always available, and walked out the door.

  The air was crisp and clean. As the evening lengthened, the temperature would drop, but by then Naomi would be home, getting her and Kayla ready for school and work tomorrow. Walking to her car, she looked around as the defense course had taught her, checked the backseat, and unlocked the door. As Luke had said during the course he’d taught the workers and clients of the league, it was better to be careful than a victim.