Sheltered Love

by Mj Williamz

  She was tempted to call Grey every day, but knew the sound of her voice would be too painful and recognized it wouldn’t do any good. She only wished she knew what she could do to convince her to come back to her, short of selling the bar. She’d actually entertained that thought on occasion, but it was her life and losing it would be almost as painful as losing Grey. And she couldn’t take that kind of pain again.

  Boone was enjoying a beer after the lunch rush one day when Tanner came in, already weaving as he walked.

  “Tanner, you know we can’t serve you if you’re drunk,” Boone said.

  “Fuck you. I don’t need to drink at your dive. There are plenty of places where I’m welcome.”

  “Then why are you here?”

  “I wanted to tell you. Someone saw Phoebe the other day. Apparently, she’s working for some accountant. I’ve got his card at home. I’m gonna go by there and tell her it’s time for her to get her crazy ass home. No wife of mine is going to be working.”

  “It’s been a long time, Tanner. Maybe you should just let her go.”

  “Bullshit. She’s mine. She’s coming home with me.”

  “Where’s your pride, bro? She left you. Let her go.”

  “Whose side are you on? That bitch is gonna learn not to leave me again!”

  “Oh, aren’t you a big man, picking on a woman.”

  “What? What do you know? She needs to learn her lesson.”

  “For what? For leaving a drunken bastard of a husband?”

  “Watch your language, or I’ll give you some of the same.”

  “Oh, I’m scared,” Boone said. “You sound so tough, threatening your big sister.”

  “You should be scared. You’re too big for your britches sometimes. Someone needs to take you down a notch.”

  “Tanner, get out of here. Get out of my bar now!”

  “I’m leaving. I’ve got more important things to worry about than you anyway.”

  Boone watched him leave. She gave him five minutes before she jumped in her truck and drove to Serene Pathway.

  “Is Grey here?” she asked Cecelia as she burst through the office door.

  “She’s with someone right now.”

  “How much longer? I need to talk to her. It’s critical.”

  “She should be out in about ten minutes. Have a seat. Is there anything I can help you with?”

  “It’s about Phoebe. She’s in danger.”

  “Okay. Let’s wait for Grey, then.”

  Grey walked in ten minutes later and paused in the door when she saw Boone, who immediately stood.

  “I’m sorry to barge in on you like this,” Boone said, her heart racing at the sight of Grey. “But it’s important.”

  “What’s going on?” Grey asked calmly.

  “Tanner came by the bar. One of his friends saw Phoebe at work. Tanner plans to go by the accountant’s office. What do we do?”

  “Well, we filed a restraining order against him before she started the job, so if he shows up, he’ll be arrested.”

  “He didn’t mention any restraining order to me.”

  “Of course not,” Grey said.

  “Are we sure it was served?”

  “Yes, it was.”

  “Okay, then…” She ran a hand through her hair. “He plans to take her back and teach her a lesson for leaving him. I’m scared for her.”

  “I’ll call the accountant’s office and alert them.”

  “Can I pick up Phoebe from there now? Can I bring her here?”

  “Sure.” Grey handed Boone the accountant’s card with his address on it. “Do you know where this is?”

  “I can find it. I’ll get her and be back here.”

  Boone hurried out of the office and plugged the address into her phone. She sped off down the road, following the voice giving her directions. She arrived at the accountant’s office and asked for Phoebe.

  “Are you from Grey’s place?” the woman at the front desk asked.

  “I am.”

  “We were expecting you. Let me go get her.”

  Phoebe came out, eyes wide with fear. She latched on to Boone.

  “Thank you for coming.”

  “Of course, Phoebe. I want to keep you safe. Let’s get out of here now.”

  They drove back to Serene Pathway, with Boone keeping an eye on her rearview mirror the whole time, terrified Tanner would somehow follow them. They arrived back at the shelter without incident.

  Phoebe moved into Grey’s embrace.

  “Why does he have to be that way?” Phoebe cried. “I want to be safe. I want to move on. I don’t want to live my life in fear anymore.”

  “I’m sorry, Phoebs,” Boone said. “But I couldn’t take a chance the way he was talking.”

  “I appreciate it. I guess I’m lucky he’s such a loudmouth sometimes, huh?”

  “Well, there is that.”

  “What about my car?” Phoebe asked. “It’s still there.”

  “We’ll go get it,” Grey said.

  Boone was startled by Grey’s statement. The idea of riding back with Grey both thrilled her and terrified her. It would be sheer torture to have her that close for that long.

  “Sure we will. You want to go now before he gets there and sees it?” Boone asked.

  “Yes. We should.”

  Boone and Grey walked to the truck in an uncomfortable silence.

  “Thank you for coming to tell us,” Grey said when they were in the truck.

  “Of course. He was threatening me today, too. I wasn’t taking any chances.”

  Grey turned in her seat to face Boone.

  “He threatened you?”

  “Yep. Said I needed to be taken down a peg or two, or words to that effect.”

  “Do you think you’re safe? Are you worried? He knows where you live.”

  “I’m not worried. He wouldn’t hurt me. Or he’d die trying, I’ll tell you that.”

  Grey laughed. The soft sound melted Boone.

  “You don’t think I mean it?” She sounded gruffer than she’d intended.

  “I’m sure you do,” Grey said. “I’m sure you do.”

  They arrived at the accounting office, and Boone was both happy and sad as Grey stepped out of the truck. She paused with the door open.

  “Are you going back to the shelter?” Grey asked.

  “I am.”

  “Okay. I’ll see you there.”

  Boone found Phoebe in her room, curled into a ball on her bed. She sat next to her and placed her hand on her shoulder.

  “It’s going to be okay, Phoebe.”

  “You don’t know that.” Phoebe’s voice was muffled by her pillow.

  “I do. Neither Grey nor I would ever let anything happen to you.”

  Phoebe rolled over, her face splotchy from crying.

  “But don’t you see? I can’t stay here forever. I need to be able to live my own life. And it felt so good to have a job and to feel like freedom was in my future. Now I’m back to square one.”

  “No. No, you’re not. When you came here you were scared of your own shadow. You’ve grown leaps and bounds. And you’ve tasted freedom. And we’ll make sure you get it always. And soon.”

  “Yes, we will,” Grey said from the door. She walked in and sat in a chair next to them. “This is a temporary setback. And it’s only a precaution.”

  “How can he still ruin my life? I’ve moved on. Why can’t he?”

  “He’s a sick man,” Grey said.

  “I should have had him arrested in the beginning,” Phoebe said. “But he would have just come out angrier than he already is. I was hoping he’d have a new girlfriend by now and have forgotten about me.”

  “He’s not that type,” Grey said. “He’s going to hold on to the hope of getting you back. We’ve talked about this.”

  “But I still hoped.”

  “That’s only natural,” Boone said, unsure of her place in the conversation, but not wanting Phoebe to feel wrong to want t
o believe the best.

  “Hope is what keeps us all going,” Grey said.

  Boone wanted to ask if she could ever hope for Grey to come to her senses and come back to her, but knew it wasn’t the time or place. Still, the way Grey looked at her, she couldn’t help but wonder if she still cared. If her hope was going to ever pay off.

  Feeling uncomfortable, she stood.

  “I should probably get going.”

  “No!” Phoebe grabbed her hand and pulled her back down. “Stay.”

  “Yes, Boone. You’re welcome to stay. There’s no reason to run off. Why not have dinner here tonight?”

  “Will you be staying?” Boone asked.

  “Would you rather I didn’t?”

  “No, I’d be happy if you did.”

  “Then I will. It’ll be a nice treat for me.”

  Boone wasn’t sure if she was referring to the fact that Boone would be there or just having dinner with her residents, but she didn’t care. She was just happy to have more time with Grey.

  “If you’ll excuse me, I’ve got some work to wrap up,” Grey said.

  Grey felt lighthearted as she left the room. She still had strong feelings for Boone. She didn’t know how wise it was to agree to dinner. She’d said okay without really considering things. Being with Boone would be wonderful, but also torturous. She reminded herself that it was her idea to end things with Boone and she had to live with that decision.

  She was in her office when a reminder popped up on her phone. Dinner with Sarah. She had completely forgotten about planning on meeting her for dinner. While she wanted to work with her about internships, she would rather keep things professional, and meeting her for dinner wasn’t professional. And now she had a valid reason to cancel. She dialed the number on the card Sarah had given her.

  “Hello?” The soft voice on the other end almost made Grey feel guilty. Almost.

  “Hi, is this Sarah?”

  “It is.”

  “Hi, Sarah. This is Grey Dawson. From Serene Pathway?”

  “Oh, yes. Hello, Grey. What can I do for you?”

  “I hate to do this, but we’ve had a crisis here and I’m not going to be able to make dinner tonight.”

  “I’m sorry to hear that. I hope everything is okay?”

  “It will be. I just need to be here right now.”

  “I understand. Can I get a rain check?”

  “Sure. I’ll call you and we’ll set something up.”

  Grey hung up, feeling relieved. She truly wasn’t ready to date and didn’t know why she’d agreed to it in the first place.

  She went to work charting her notes on the residents she’d counseled that day. She pulled up Phoebe’s chart and entered in the events of the day. She reread what she’d written and felt her anger at Tanner coming back. She needed to step back and remain professional. Would she feel this intensity if it was someone besides Boone’s sister-in-law? She vowed to help Phoebe get back on her feet as soon as possible. The sooner she was out, the sooner Boone would be out of her life. Maybe then, Grey would be able to forget about her and move on.

  For the moment, though, Grey was almost giddy at the idea of spending the evening with Boone. She finished her work and went to the kitchen to let them know she and Boone would be there for dinner. She ignored the questioning looks from some of the women and made her way back to Phoebe’s room. Her heart skipped a beat at how handsome Boone looked, sitting there talking to Phoebe. She had to clear her throat to speak.

  “You two ready for some dinner?”

  Boone stood and Grey fought to keep from moving into her arms. She didn’t know what was wrong with her. She was beginning to doubt if ending things had been the right thing to do.

  “I’m not really hungry,” Phoebe said.

  “It will be good for you to eat something,” Boone said.

  “She’s right,” Grey said. “Come with us. You just need to eat a little.”

  Phoebe joined them and they walked to the dining room. Dinner was a chicken casserole with a salad and rolls. Phoebe served herself little portions of everything while Boone served up a healthy plateful.

  Grey missed cooking for someone who appreciated food as much as Boone did. She told herself to snap out of it as she served her own plate.

  The feeling around the table was tense, the conversation sparse.

  “So, why don’t you all tell us about your day?” Grey said.

  A few women spoke up, but most stayed quiet. Grey didn’t know if it was her presence or Boone’s or just the activities of the day, but clearly the women were uncomfortable. She wondered if she could slyly let Boone know they should leave.

  She needn’t have worried. Boone quickly finished her dinner and stood.

  “I hate to eat and run, but I need to get home. Thank you all for your hospitality.” She hugged Phoebe. “I’ll see you tomorrow.”

  “I’ll be here.”

  “I’ll walk you out,” Grey said.

  They got to Boone’s truck, and Grey was at a loss for words.

  “I’ll see you tomorrow, huh?” Boone said.

  “Sure thing. Thanks for everything today, Boone.”

  “No problem. I wasn’t going to let anything happen to Phoebe.”

  “Well, I appreciate it.”

  “What’s going to happen now?” Boone asked.

  “What do you mean?” Grey’s imagination ran wild.

  “I mean how long does Phoebe have to be off work? Can she go back there? Or will she need to find another job? And how do we keep this from happening in the future?”

  Grey fought not to let her disappointment show. Of course Boone was talking about Phoebe.

  “She’ll just take a few days off. Hopefully, Tanner will show up and they can tell him she doesn’t work there. That’s all we can hope for. If you see him, you can ask him so we’ll have some idea of where he is in his plans.”

  “I will. I’ll find out if he’s been there or not.”

  “Thanks, Boone.”

  They stood there awkwardly, Grey searching for something else to say and Boone not saying anything.

  “Well, I guess I should get going,” Boone finally said.

  “Yeah. I’ll probably be heading home soon, too.”

  “Thanks again for dinner,” Boone said. “Though I don’t think the others appreciated my presence much.”

  “That was a little uncomfortable, wasn’t it?”

  “I just think they like their routines and didn’t appreciate an interloper.”

  “It could have been me, too. I can’t tell you the last time I had dinner here.”

  “Or it could have been us.”

  “I suppose there is that,” Grey said.

  “Oh, well. Whatever it was, it won’t happen again. I won’t stay for dinner again.”

  “I think it helped Phoebe, though.”

  “I hope so. But she’ll be better tomorrow. And the day after. She’ll be independent again soon.”

  “Yes, she will.”

  “Okay, well, I guess I’m going to head out. I’ll see you tomorrow.”

  Grey watched Boone climb into her truck and stood in the driveway long after her truck was out of view.

  CHAPTER THIRTEEN

  Boone was anxious all morning the next day. On one hand, she really wanted to see Tanner. On the other, he was the last person she wanted to see. She made it through the lunch rush and grabbed a beer. She sat at the bar and pondered what to expect at Serene Pathway that afternoon. She had really enjoyed her time with Grey the day before. She felt like Grey had enjoyed it, too. Especially at the end. Maybe it was her imagination, but she really didn’t think Grey had wanted to say good-bye. She wondered if she should ask Grey to get back together, but told herself no, that was up to Grey. And Boone couldn’t take the rejection if Grey said no.

  She was about to leave when she saw Tanner’s truck pull up. She calmed her stomach and willed herself to act nice.

  Tanner walked in and sat nex
t to her.

  “What’s up, sis?”

  “Not much. How you doin’ today?”

  “I’m doin’ good. How come you’re so nice today?”

  “I’m always nice,” Boone said.

  “You were a raging bitch last time I was here.”

  “You pissed me off.”

  “Whatever. Can I buy you a beer?” Tanner said.

  “Sure, why not?”

  The bartender brought them each a beer. Boone sipped hers and fought not to sound too interested when she finally got the nerve to broach the subject.

  “So, did you find Phoebe?” she asked.

  “No. Turns out she doesn’t work there. My friend was wrong.”

  “That seems like a cruel thing to do. Tell you he saw her when he wasn’t sure.” She wanted to fish for as much information as she could without being too obvious.

  “Well, he’s an idiot. I don’t know why I believed him.”

  “So, you ready to let her go now? Admit she’s gone and not coming back?”

  “Hell, no. She’s still my wife. I’ll find her. And I still think you know something.”

  “What could I know?”

  “You tell me. I mean, I saw her car here then it was gone and you say you didn’t see her. I don’t believe you. I’ll never believe you.”

  “Well, I don’t know what to say. We’ve gone over this a million times. I didn’t see her and I have no idea where she is. I just think it would be healthier for you if you moved on.”

  “You and all your healthy bullshit. You wouldn’t let some bitch just walk out of your life, would you?”

  “First of all, I wouldn’t be with someone I considered a bitch.” Boone felt her anger beginning to flare again.

  “You would if she just left you.”

  “I’d hope not.”

  “You’re so fucking pious.”

  “And you wonder why I get mad at you.”

  “You think you’re so much better than I am. And you’re not. We’re both from the same parents. I’m not some scummy low-class citizen while you hang with the upper middle class. We’re the same. You just think too highly of yourself.”

  “Tanner, why do you bother? Why do you come here? If you hate me so much, why do you come to my bar? Why do you buy me beers? It doesn’t make any sense.”