by V, Krissy
Shit. Did I really just say that?
He laughs, and the booming sound reverberates around the pool. “So, you think I’m handsome?”
“Well, of course. Who wouldn’t? I mean, come on. When was the last time you looked at yourself in the mirror?”
“That was about ten seconds before I came in here to see you.”
It’s my turn to laugh.
He buys two coffees and a bottle of water for Jaden, and when he sits down, he says, “So, equally gorgeous person, what can I help you with?”
I blush. He keeps making me blush. “Is there a school around here? I need to get Jaden into a school for the year.”
He sits back and smiles. “Yes. There’s one in Ending. You need to speak to the principal and get him registered. It’s quite a small school but there shouldn’t be any problems getting him in. I can take you down there if you want.” He takes a sip of his coffee and looks at me above his cup.
“Great. I can’t inconvenience you though. I’m sure you’re very busy being a police officer.”
He sits and looks at me. The longer he looks, the pinker my cheeks get. He’s really intense, but I can’t bear to look away.
“Let me tell you something,” he says, putting his cup back down on the table. “You are never an inconvenience. I would like to take you…” I’m convinced he just licked his lips. “Take you to the school. I know the principal so that might make it easier for you. Would about four o’clock this afternoon be okay? The other kids will have left by then and she’ll be doing her administration work.”
“That would be amazing. Thank you so much, Carter. I really appreciate it. Let me cook you dinner tonight to say thank you,” I say before I have chance to back out of it.
He looks surprised and then smiles. “I would love that. Thank you. I finish work at six, so I can come over around half past.”
“Perfect. Anything you don’t like to eat?”
“No. I like everything,” he says, smiling.
God, he is such a tease. If he keeps looking at me like that, I think I’m going to self-combust. This man does things to me that no man has ever done, even Luis. I shiver when I think of him. How can I even think of those two men in the same thought?
“Are you okay?” Carter asks, bringing me back to Earth.
“Yes, sorry. I just zoned out there for a minute thinking about what to cook.”
“Don’t go to too much trouble. I’m just happy to be asked over.” His smile is so genuine I just want to crawl onto his lap and lean against him. What the hell is happening to me?
I can’t get close to anyone. Not now. Not here. We’re leaving in a year.
I smile at him and shiver. I tell myself it’s because I’m cold, but I know it’s the thought of later on. I like him and I like his company. He’s funny and flirtatious and I like it.
“I think I need to go and get dressed. It’s getting cold sitting here in a wet towel.” I stand up and the knot on the towel drops open.
I scrabble for it quickly and grab it before it drops to the floor. After fastening it again, I look at Carter, and from his face, I know he saw the marks. “Erm, I’m going. I’ll see you later, right?” I look up at him and hope he doesn’t say anything about them.
He stretches his arm out to grab me and then stops. I see pity in his eyes. I don’t want him to feel sorry for me.
“If you still want to.” I feel vulnerable right now.
“Of course I still want dinner. You don’t have to talk about it. I just want to spend some time with you, that’s all.” He smiles at me and I nod. “Great. See you later.” He leans over and kisses my cheek, and redness flushes the whole of my face again.
I feel like I’m a fifteen-year-old girl having her first crush. What the fuck is wrong with me? I watch him walk away as he shouts goodbye to Jaden.
“Come on then, Jaden. Let’s go home. I’m hungry,” I say, walking towards the changing rooms.
While we’re changing, I look in the mirror. I hate what I see looking back at me. I hope I’ve left the broken, abused woman behind.
Chapter Four
CARTER
What the fuck were those marks on her body? I don’t know how I didn’t lose my temper. I just want to kill the person who did that to her. Who would do that sort of thing to that wonderful woman? I’m so glad I remembered not to reach out and touch her; she would have lost her shit.
She looks like she’s been tortured, but not anywhere that would show. To my eye, that means it was a specific form of torture, by a lover and abuser. When I get into the car, I sit there and thump the dash. “Argh!”
Something makes me want to protect Kenzie, makes me want to find out what happened to her, but I already know she won’t offer the information and, by God, I’m not pushing her.
I ring Claudia, the principal of Endings Elementary School, to make an appointment for four o’clock, and then I go back to work. Brice, the handyman in Happy Endings Resort claims he’s been robbed of some of his tools. He was out at Pam the hairdresser’s trailer doing some work for her, and when he went back to his van, his drill had been taken. This is unusual as we very rarely have crime in either Ending or the Happy Endings Resort.
After having a look around his van and around Pam’s trailer, we don’t find any clues. I fill in an incident report just in case this is the start of a spate of crime. I’ll go and see Ross later to check on the list of newcomers to the resort, just to give everyone a double check. We aren’t particularly strict on checking references or anything for those who are only staying a short time as they have to pay in advance, but that can also mean that we let anyone in.
“Hey, Ross,” I say, walking into his cabin. “I’m looking for a list of everyone who moved in here in the last week, please. Including short termers.”
“No problem. I’ll get that for you. What’s going on?” he asks as he goes to his filing cabinet.
I sit down in one of the spare chairs. “Brice had some tools stolen from his van this morning.”
“Really? I don’t remember the last time we had a theft here. What did they take?” Ross asks, still hunting for the files.
“They took a drill and a hammer. Those are tools they could use for breaking in somewhere.”
“You’ll have to be extra vigilant then, Carter.”
“I know.” I sigh.
Ross brings the files over. “Here they are. There’s some tourists and some new residents. I’ll make you a cup of coffee while you check them out.”
There are ten files to look over. “Thanks, Ross,” I say as he goes to make a coffee.
I put the files into three piles. People on vacation, short term stays, and permanent stays. Kenzie’s file goes into the short term stays as she’s only staying a year.
My gut instinct tells me it’s not a long termer or short termer as they wouldn’t be stupid enough to do anything if they’re staying for a while. There are five files in the vacation pile, so I start with them.
Drinking my coffee, I check the files. There’s nothing that stands out. I get background checks on a couple of them, but nothing seems out of the ordinary. Scratching my head, I move onto the short term pile.
There are only three files in this pile and Kenzie’s is one of them. I leave hers until last. There’s not one that stands out as suspicious in those files either. Opening Kenzie’s file, I hesitate. It feels like I’m spying on her. I lean back in my chair and then look at her details. They’re the same as the ones I saw the other night, but there is no next of kin or forwarding numbers or anything. My senses start twitching. I ring a friend and organise an in-depth background check on her. There are too many questions that need answering in my mind.
Moving onto the new long termers, there are only two files. Nothing worth looking at. Everything seems to check out and no convictions.
“Did you find anything?” Ross asks.
“No, nothing that stands out. We just need to make sure we do checks on new people
arriving. I’m going to ramp up the patrols around the resort. If anything, it might be a deterrent to anyone thinking of stealing anything.”
I put all the files back together and hand them back to Ross. “Right, I’m going to take a drive around and then head back to the station. If there’s anything suspicious just give me a call.”
Ross takes the files and nods. “See you later, Carter.”
I jump into the car and take a slow drive around the resort. There’s hardly anyone around and nothing looks out of the ordinary. There’s a couple of lads down by the lake having fun trying to get into a boat. I stop by them and watch them for a short time.
They look so carefree, and it takes me back to when I was younger. Smiling, I drive away and slow down again when I go by Kenzie’s cabin. She isn’t outside this time so I drive on by, excited that I’ll be seeing her shortly.
Back at the station, I file the report of Brice’s missing tools and I’m just ready to leave when I get an email with Kenzie’s background check. It can wait. I’ll check it out later; I don’t want to be late.
I pull up outside her cabin and Kenzie and Jaden are waiting for me out on the porch.
Jaden waves at me before running to get into the car. “I love being inside a police car! This is so cool,” he says, looking around.
“I always wanted to go in a police car, but didn’t want to get into trouble so waited until I joined the police force.”
“I hardly remember the last time…” he starts to say.
“Jaden!” Kenzie shouts as she puts her seat belt on in the front of the car. She’s turned her body to look at him and her hand absently touches mine. I get a shock running through me. This woman is going to set me on fire.
“Sorry,” Jaden says, looking down to his lap. “I forgot.”
Kenzie turns back to look at me. “Thank you for bringing us to the school. We appreciate it.”
“No problem at all. I’m getting hungry and can’t wait for the food you’re going to make for me later,” I say, smiling at her.
She laughs and any tension has gone.
The meeting goes well with the principal of the school and she has said that Jaden can start on Monday. There’s a bus that collects the other children from the resort and transports them down to the school.
After dropping Kenzie and Jaden home, I go back to the station to finish off my work before getting ready to go to them for dinner.
Opening my emails, I see the background check. The mouse is hovering over the open button. It seems weird doing a background check on the woman I want to date more than anything in this world. It’s like a question on Cards of Humanity. I decide not to open it; it wouldn’t be right.
I feel so guilty for having ordered it, but I can’t bring myself to delete it either. I turn off the computer and go home to get changed.
I know what I want to happen tonight. I want to show Kenzie that I want her and I hope she wants me too.
Chapter Five
KENZIE
What will I wear? Shall I change or leave on what I had on all day? What’s wrong with me? I decide to change into some tight black jeans and a purple top that hides all my scars but shows off my arms and my chest.
“Kenzie, is dinner nearly ready? I’m starving,” Jaden asks as I’m just doing my last twirl in front of the mirror. Happy with what I see, I walk out to the kitchen.
“Yes, baby. It’s ready. We just need to wait for Carter to get here.”
I open the oven door to check on the lasagna and baked potatoes; the smell is delicious. As I stand up, there’s a knock on the door and Jaden runs towards it.
“Stop, Jaden. You don’t know who it is!” I shout as his hand is about to touch the handle to open the door.
He stops abruptly. “Sorry, Kenzie. I’m just so excited to see Carter that I forgot again.”
I go up to him and crouch down. “It’s okay. We just have to be careful. Look through the peephole if I’m not here, or check out the window. Just don’t open the door when you don’t know who’s there.”
He nods and I lift him so he can look out the peephole.
“It’s Carter!” he says, smiling.
I let him down so he can open the door and Carter looks at us strangely. “Took you a long time to open the door. Everything okay?”
“Yes. I was just teaching Jaden about checking through the peephole before opening the door.”
“Yes,” he says, crouching down to Jaden’s level. “It’s very important you don’t just open the door. Even though nothing bad happens here, you still have to be careful.”
We move out of the way to let Carter farther in to the cabin. “Something smells nice,” he says, leaning down to kiss my cheek.
“Yeah. Dinner is nearly ready,” I say, blushing.
“I wasn’t talking about the food,” he whispers in my ear. I feel his words caressing my body and making me feel warm inside.
I blush. “Thank you. You don’t smell so bad yourself.”
He laughs and stands back upright.
“Take your seats all the way in the dining room over there,” I say jokingly, pointing at the table at the other end of the room.
The two of them make their way over and I start bringing the food over to them.
“Let me do that,” Carter says, attempting to stand.
“No, you’re a guest here. Sit back down.” I push his shoulder to make him sit back down.
He looks up at me and smiles. I bring the dinner over to the table.
“This food is delicious. Kenzie, you’re a great cook.”
“Thanks. I haven’t cooked for a while, but I love it. “
“Why haven’t you been cooking? Don’t you need to eat to survive?”
I laugh. “My circumstances were different and I had someone to cook for me, but I’m happy I’m going to be able to cook for myself and Jaden.”
“And me too, I hope?”
“Yes, you too.”
When we’ve finished eating, Carter helps me to clear the dishes and wash them. We sit on the couch and watch TV until it’s time for Jaden to go to bed. After putting him in his room and kissing him goodnight, I close his door and make my way back over to Carter.
I would be lying if I said I’m not nervous, because I am. I’ve not been close to a man other than Luis. Then, my nerves were for a different reason. I don’t want to think about him, not now or ever again.
Sitting next to Carter on the couch, I smile at him. “How was your day, other than taking me to the school?”
“I had a good day. We’ve had a couple of thefts in the last few days. That’s something that never happens around here so I looked into it.”
“Did you find out who stole the things?”
“No, but I’m on their tail now. Don’t worry. Everyone is safe around here. I’ll look after you, I promise.”
He reaches his arm out around my shoulder and pulls me so I’m leaning against him. “I know you will.”
We stay like that for a long time. I can feel myself drifting off. The next thing I know, I feel arms around my back and under my legs. I start fighting, kicking and screaming. “Get off me! Stop! Please! No!”
“Kenzie, it’s me, Carter.” He puts me back on the couch just as my eyes open. I scoot backwards into the corner of the couch, pull my knees up against my chest, and wrap my arms around my legs.
“Are you okay, Kenzie?” he asks gently.
“Sorry, Carter. Sorry.”
I can’t look at him. I’m too embarrassed.
“It’s okay. You’re safe when you’re with me, you know? If you need to talk about anything, then I’m here for you. I was just lifting you to put you to bed because you’ve been asleep for the last hour.”
“I’m awake now. I’m sorry.”
“Stop saying you’re sorry. Do I need to increase security outside of here? Do you think something might happen to you?”
I start crying. He doesn’t know how close he is to the truth. “It
was just a nightmare. I’ll be fine. Do you want a cup of coffee or something?”
“No, I don’t. I want you to tell me you’re going to be okay and that you’re not scared of anything.”
I turn my face away from his. “I’m fine.”
He laughs. “When a woman tells you she’s fine, she really isn’t.”
“I’ll be okay. I promise. I just dreamt about some things I don’t want to remember.”
“Does it have anything to do with your scars?” He speaks quietly, and I almost think I’ve misheard him.
“Did you see them the other day? Shit.”
“Of course I did. Hell, Kenzie. What the fuck happened?”
“I don’t want to talk about it. Not yet, anyway. I might be able to talk about it one day. When I know you better.”
“You mean when you can trust me?”
I nod my head, because saying it out loud would be hurtful.
“I don’t want to go yet, Kenzie. I want to wait here until you’re comfortable being on your own. I’ll check outside and make sure before I leave that everything is secure. Will that make you feel better?”
“Yes. Thanks, Carter.”
“It’s the least I can do after you cooked me a delicious dinner.”
He stands and walks outside to look around then comes inside again and checks the windows. “Everything looks good. I’ll head off, and if you need me you know how to get hold of me. I’ll come around tomorrow when I’m doing my rounds just to check on you.”
I’m sad that he’s going home, but I need to have some time to myself to pull myself together.
I follow him to the door, and as he’s about to step outside, he turns and kisses me on the lips. Just a quick peck, but it’s a promise of more to come. “I know you’re not ready for more yet, Kenzie, but that’s just to prove to you that I want you and want you to let me in. See you tomorrow.”
I touch my lips and feel them buzzing with his touch.
I watch him walk down the steps and he waves as he walks down the street. Looking left and right before stepping back inside, I close the door and lock it, bolting it before turning the lights off and going to bed.
