Chapter 20
The alarm clock woke her from a deep sleep full of troubled dreams. It’d been some time since she had nightmares, and found it hard to remember them, but this last one increased her anxiety and pulled at the never-ending nagging feeling of not actually being safe from John.
Shoving the covers off, she climbed out of bed and made her way to the bathroom. Feeling like she was hit by a ton of bricks, she splashed cool water on her face and turned the shower faucet on. She’d been wanting to take a hot shower since last night before calling it a night, but sleep had been more important.
Her reflection in the mirror hadn’t surprised her this morning. She had been prepared to see the damage. Similar to the many times before, she knew what to expect. Usually, it wasn’t much makeup couldn’t cover up. Today, it was a bit different. The left cheek was still tender and swollen, and the bruise was bright purple mixed with blotches of dark blue and black.
Pulling back the shower curtain, she stepped into the tub. The hot water rained down on her sensitive skin, making her cringe at first, but within a minute, she was relaxed and thankful for the steaming heat pressing against her skin.
Cat hollered up the stairs, announcing she had breakfast ready when Jenna climbed out of the shower. Drying off, she lightly dabbed her face, paying close attention not to hit the tender spots and make the pain worse.
“I’ll be right down,” she called out, wondering how much sense it made to eat breakfast before opening the diner. She hardly ever ate breakfast in the mornings before her shift. She had always pulled a piece of toast from the back along with a muffin if the hunger pangs distracted her.
Brushing through the last of the snarls, she flung her wet towel down over the railing of the shower and flipped the light off. Smelling the grease from the bacon caused her stomach to flop, but it didn’t stop the hunger pangs raging through her stomach.
“This looks amazing,” she said, pulling out a chair at the table and sliding into the spot Cat had set for her. “And coffee too?”
Cat treated her great. She couldn’t ask for a better friend. The first time Cat had suspected something was going on in Jenna’s home, Jenna didn’t feel safe saying something. It had taken all this time to trust others, without spilling too much. She hated putting Cat in the middle of this, but Cat had insisted everything was perfectly fine. There was no such thing as imposing or putting someone in a bad situation if they wanted to be there.
Cat’s words had been so true. Not just for Cat’s sake, or anyone else’s who offered to help, but for Jenna’s perspective on her whole life. The only person to blame for being in this awful situation was herself. She had put herself in this spot and often found herself to blame for not seeing the signs of abuse earlier in the relationship, for not leaving sooner, for sticking around and letting him beat on her. It had taken her so long to see through the bullshit lies and the abuse. It had taken her even longer to come up with the perfect plan to leave, but it still had plenty of flaws and wasn’t a fail-safe plan.
“What’re you thinking about over there?” Cat asked, pulling Jenna out of her thoughts. She was definitely in a funk this morning after those awful nightmares last night. “Drink a bit more coffee. It’s going to be a long day.”
She reached for her coffee and stirred the creamer in. She could never drink coffee without the creamer. She needed her drinks sweet—not just her coffee either. Jenna couldn’t remember the last time she went out on the town. The last time she was able to drink, John had controlled what she had ordered, what she ate, and how much she drank. Another red flag that happened early on in their relationship, long before their engagement.
“I’m guessing there’ll be a few customers upset about not having their breakfast ready and waiting yesterday morning,” Cat said, offering a slight chuckle at the thought.
“I’m sorry, Cat. I should have gone somewhere else,” she said, thinking about other places she had to go, and came up empty-handed. “I didn’t want for any of this to happen, especially a stop to your business.”
Cat waved off her apologies. “Don’t worry about it. The place hasn’t seen the closed sign in quite a while, and to be honest, I’m not regretting a day off.”
The wink she offered Jenna in reassurance didn’t settle Jenna’s nagging thoughts. She still hated the fact she had disturbed others’ lives with her own chaos.
Running out the door with a little more than an hour to open the diner, they climbed into Cat’s car. This time, they thought it through. If he came into the diner looking for Jenna, at least her car wouldn’t be outside and she would be able to hide in the back room—a spot they had decided on earlier this morning over breakfast.
Both hoping for the best, they pulled in and parked at the back of the diner. They would enter through the back door and get breakfast frying before unlocking the front for their early risers—something Cat never had to worry about. This town had been friendly enough to unlock the doors hours before opening time without batting an eye. Not now. Not without knowing if John was out of jail.
Jenna wondered if the deputy would notify her of John’s release, or maybe they didn’t take his threats seriously enough.
“You want to start the eggs? I’ll start the hash browns and pancakes,” Cat called out over her shoulder, reaching for the pancake mix before dumping the contents of the package in the large, industrial-sized mixer on the counter. “We’ll make it up to them for missing yesterday,” she said, offering a sly wink and a sweet smile.
Her best friend, years older than her, had been an added bonus of working here. Of course, Cat was the boss, but it didn’t change anything between them. Cat had laid out the rules long before their friendship kicked off, and because of that, they’d never had any problems understanding each other’s boundaries and it made them closer as friends.
A knock echoed against the glass in the front of the diner. Jenna’s heart picked up pace as she looked at Cat with a terrified expression plastered on her face. Cat wiped her powder-covered hands on her apron and nodded to Jenna. A silent instruction to take cover in the hiding spot they had talked about. “I’ll take care of this. You go hide,” Cat said, pointing Jenna in the direction of the large cabinet in the back of the room hidden by the shelving filled with bowls and other dishes stacked high. Turning back to face Jenna, who was trying her hardest to calm down enough to get positioned, Cat said, “And don’t come out until I tell you. I mean it.”
Jenna nodded and pulled the door closed just as Cat left the back room. Another rap on the glass echoed throughout the silence, competing with the beating of her heart in her eardrums. She prayed it wasn’t John.
Chapter 21
It had been Todd’s idea to head to the diner earlier than usual. He had mentioned it last night before dropping him off at his place. Ian agreed it was a good idea. That way, no matter what happened, Ian and Todd would both be there in case she and Cat needed them. Not that they hoped John would show up, but they’d be ready. To be honest, Ian was ready to roll and knock some lights out. He silently dared John to show up today, or any day. The guy would know sooner or later he wasn’t going anywhere. He’d also have to realize he wasn’t wanted around here anymore. Jenna wanted nothing to do with him, hence the leaving. Some dudes didn’t quite grasp a breakup. John being one of them.
Seeing movement in the diner, following a few raps on the glass window, Ian waited for Jenna or Cat to let them in. The curtain flung back and a look of relief washed over Cat’s face. She hollered over her shoulder to let Jenna know the coast was clear while she opened the door to let them in. “You scared the shit out of us!” she said, swatting at Ian while ushering them in and locking the door behind them. “Couldn’t have called first?”
Ian rubbed the back of his neck. Avoiding eye contact with an upset Cat, he said, “I’m sorry. We just figured we’d stop in early and hang out just in case. It didn’t cross our minds to call in advance with our plan.”
Cat fanned
her face with a menu and offered them a cup of coffee. “Don’t worry about it.”
Jenna walked out of the back room, with the same look of relief Cat had when first seeing them, but unlike Cat, she didn’t say anything. Instead, she stood still, leaning against the doorway between the back room and the dining area.
Ian could tell she was avoiding him. She looked everywhere but at him. He tried several times to get her attention, catch her eyes with his, but failed. For whatever reason, she wasn’t happy he was there. Was he supposed to leave her alone after last night? He couldn’t remember her telling him to leave and never come back. Well, he supposed she had once or twice before, but not recently, so those times didn’t count.
He pulled up a chair next to the high top counter and took a drink of his coffee, never once allowing his eyes to venture far from Jenna. “Good morning,” he said, still trying hard to get her to move or say something, anything. When she didn’t say anything, he bit his tongue. Frustration took the place of worry. She must be mad at him for whatever reason. He had no clue.
Shrugging it off, he turned his attention back to the tar black coffee in his cup and took another long drink. He’d be here whether she was pissed off or not. He wasn’t going anywhere.
Chapter 22
Seeing him walk into the diner had stopped her heart from bounding out of her chest. What replaced the adrenaline was now solace and concern. If John happened to come in, he would see Ian and it would make matters worse. For the simple fact of the matter, the whole situation got worse when John began accusing her of screwing the “new guy” in town. Their arguments had been set on fire in a rage of emotion—mainly John’s jealousy and envy of all things her and Ian because she had never held back from telling him anything about her past. She had looked to John for comfort in the heartbreak, which she had received at first. Soon, he had turned what he knew against her and beat her down physically and emotionally because of his own insecurities and weaknesses.
But Ian didn’t understand. He didn’t have to. It wasn’t his life on the line. Not that she would wish her messed up life on anyone. She just wished he’d listen to her. When she told him she was fine, she meant it. Yeah, it was hard for someone not in a situation like hers to understand and wrap their head around it, but she’d been living this life of hers for the last year and she knew what she needed and didn’t need. She surely didn’t need the man she had once loved to come to her rescue. Especially since he was once the cause of pain in her life too. Talk about a pot calling a kettle black, huh?
His eyes wouldn’t leave hers. No matter how many times she looked away, refusing to meet his stare with her eyes. Frustration creased his brow as he shoveled in his breakfast. She had Cat to thank for letting them in, because now they would never leave.
Stealing a glance when he wasn’t looking, she couldn’t deny the love she still had for him. Like a magnet, her attraction to him was undeniable too. She had wanted nothing more than for them to work out their differences and have a life of love and passion.
“Are you going to talk or just stand there and stare?”
His voice called her back to reality, shooing away her thoughts of what their future had looked like back when they had been so in love.
Jerking her eyes up, they met his, instant connection being made. She watched a smile pull at his lips. He knew her weakness had always been avoiding him. He knew how to break her from her own world—lost in thought—and bring her back to the here and now with him in it.
“No?”
Shrugging, she wasn’t sure what to say. She really had nothing to offer. After all, she didn’t feel much like talking. She was exhausted and anxious, walking on egg shells and waiting for the other shoe to drop. Which could happen any time now.
“Come on, have a seat and drink some coffee with me,” he said, pushing out a chair next to him as he patted the fluffed cushion. “You don’t have to talk if you don’t really want to.”
With that offer, she couldn’t refuse any longer. She wouldn’t talk. She would sit and drink coffee, with creamer of course, and stare off into her own thoughts while he sat next to her.
Climbing up, she slid onto the vacant seat and offered a smile. The least she could do. The last thing she wanted to be was a coldhearted bitch. That wasn’t her type at all. She knew it and he knew it as well.
“You come here often?” he asked, offering a wink as he tipped his cup to the bridge of his nose and gulped down the remainder of coffee.
It was just the two of them at the counter. Todd had ventured away to talk to Cat, leaving them well enough alone. Something so simple seemed to be set up between the two of them.
“Is that your only pick-up line?” she asked, cracking the silence between them. “I mean, if it is, I’m sorry, but you need something more…”
“More what? Up to date? Modern?” Tipping his head back, he let out a deep laugh and focused back on her. “It worked the first time I met you, didn’t it?”
She couldn’t help laughing out loud remembering the first time he had ever used that line on her. It had been obvious he had gotten advice from his older brother in the dating area. “Yeah, that was when? Kindergarten?”
He grabbed his hand and clutched his chest. A flashback of his tight muscles underneath that shirt came to her mind. “Ouch. Wounded.”
She shoved him playfully and laughed even harder. “Please, not even close.”
“It wasn’t kindergarten, by the way,” he said, correcting her with a laugh. “It was third grade. Miss Wren’s class. Remember? The same year I gained the courage to ask you to come out to my treehouse?”
Oh, now she remembered. Those were the days. They had been so young. The start of their friendship that had soon turned into something more.
Smiling at the memories, she raised her cup to her lips. What she wouldn’t give to go back to those days. The days of simple and free. A love so young, nothing could have stopped them.
“Remember how I raced you there?”
Nodding, she set her cup down. “You were always faster than me.”
“Well, that time I had a reason to be,” he said, a light chuckle following his words as he tapped the side of his cup. Only after she offered him a puzzled look, he said, “I had intentions of getting there before you did so I could toss that boys only sign out of sight.”
Laughing, she remembered his desperation, but it had backfired on him once they reached his hideout. “Remember how upset your friends were when you showed up with me? A girl!”
A smirk pulled at the curve of his lips and she couldn’t help but notice the dimple she had once loved seeing. “Yeah, I remember. They were mad for some time after that.”
“But”—she pointed out—“they warmed up to me once they realized I wasn’t no girly girl with cooties.”
It had been no secret she had been a tomboy. Her dad had a shop down the road and she had ventured in after school sometimes to help out. She wasn’t like the other girls in her class. She liked to get her hands dirty and learn things. Not only because it made her happy, but it gave her time with her dad she would have otherwise never gotten. He was a workaholic and hardly ever paid attention to her unless it had something to do with the shop and her helping out. She hadn’t minded. She was still a daddy’s girl as far as others were concerned. The perfect bond between father and daughter. Her mother knew, though, and their talks to this day reflected on said relationship between Jenna and her father. He was a rough man, even to this day. Not one to show or do well with emotion, he only had so much to offer.
“I remember having to fight them off of you a few times.” His words cut through her thoughts, bringing her back to their conversation.
“Nah, you’re joking, right?”
“No, I’m dead serious.” He finished off the last of his second refill and set the cup aside, out of reach. “Which part don’t you believe? Me fighting or them wanting what I had?”
Him fighting hadn’t been anything new. There
had been several fist fights she’d heard of where his name had come up.
“See, the only problem back then was I never realized what I had. That it was the best thing I’d ever have for the rest of my life.”
As if on cue, the thumping on glass sounded behind them, causing them both to turn. Only when Jenna realized who it was, she had no choice but to run to the back room. Her heart thrummed against her ribs as she climbed into the oversized cabinet and closed the door.
Breathing heavy, she closed her eyes and said a prayer. Not just for herself, but for all of them. There was no doubt in her mind how serious this already intense situation had climbed above life-threatening. John’s crazy topped anything she’d ever witnessed before. Even in the movies, when everything was over exaggerated in order to increase the number of viewers, they didn’t come close in comparison to John’s rage.
Hearing shouts of anger, both from John and Ian, she held her breath, steadying herself as she leaned against the inside wall of the cabinet.
Cat whispered to her through the crack, “He’s fighting with Ian. You just stay put. I’m going back out there so he stays outta here.”
Before she had a chance to say a word, she heard Cat shuffle off. Sitting alone in the darkness, counting minutes felt like hours, shouting voices ricocheted against the silence surrounding her and the beating of drums in her ears.
This was it. The time had finally come when she would have no other choice but go back to him. In order to keep Ian out of harm’s way, she needed to protect him and do what she felt right.
Climbing out of the cabinet, she squeezed through the opening and made her way to the door. She needed to sneak out there and distract John before Ian did something even crazier. She couldn’t have Ian risk jail time or worse yet—his life—just to save hers. It wasn’t going to happen.
Shaking off the fear, she put on a game face and shoved through the door, outing herself before Cat had a chance to shove her back behind closed doors. She pointed at John, fear tumbled with anxiety as his eyes landed on her. Maybe she hadn’t thought through this enough. Not at all. She wasn’t ready for this. Shrinking back against his glare, the emptiness in his eyes prominent against the glare of the mid-morning sun, she hesitated before making her next move. Ian turned, following John’s eyes, meeting hers with disbelief and panic. She knew she shouldn’t have come out from hiding, but she couldn’t help it. The cops would be here in no time and she knew how this would go down. Both John and Ian would be hauled off to jail, but Ian would suffer more because John was good at getting out of things. No doubt, a lawyer from upstate New York wouldn’t face anything more severe than a slap on the wrist and let go—obviously since he was standing in the diner now.
Saving Jenna Page 10
