When he walked toward me like he’d just won some victory over me. I threw the coffee cup that had been knocked off the table during our struggle. I almost fist pumped the air when it hit the asshole square in the head.
Richard placed a hand up to his hairline and gasped in disbelief when it came away with blood. He made an inhumane growling noise and lunged at me. Crying out I pulled my body to the left just as he reached for me and instead he slammed into the wall where I had been sitting. Half crawling- half scooting, I kept moving until I was around the table and saw my cell phone sitting under some papers that had fallen to the floor. I used all my strength to hurl my body towards it, one hand reached out, and I felt the cold plastic in my hand just as a huge body landed on top of me, and I lost the air in my lungs for the second time today.
“You fucking bitch, you're making it all so fucking complicated, so fucking painful,” he shouted his eyes narrowing on me like a madman.
Not having any idea what the hell he was screaming about, I decided that lunatics didn’t have to make sense and began attempting to buck him off while dodging his wild blows toward my face.
When he finally caught me with a loud slap across my face, I froze. My whole face felt like it was on fire and I fought to keep the darkness that was creeping around my field of vision from taking over.
No, No, No, you will not faint Alison! You are stronger than this! He will rape you or worse, you will not give him the satisfaction!
Unfortunately, the dizziness in my head and the pain in my hip where he was straddling me was proving to be a huge test to the resolve of my pep talk. It wasn’t until he put his sadistically smiling face so close to mine that I could feel his breath that I started pulling out of the fog I had been in.
“You will re-marry me, we will live here, and you will be grateful that I fuck you…in the dark of course because I’m only human after all,” he hissed as I looked up at him in anger.
He thought I was going to marry him? He actually thought I would be thankful that he was willing to have sex with me in the dark? The FUCKING dark? Maybe I was just tired of being treated as less than a person, perhaps it was the manhandling, or maybe I just hated this man with every fiber of my being, but I looked right into his eyes, and as he leaned down to press his thin lips to mine I reared back and head butted him with all I had.
I wasn’t sure if the crack I heard was his head or mine but I immediately felt him lean back off my body, allowing me to inhale much-needed oxygen into my lungs. Seeing him come back at me with a bloody nose and raised fist, I pulled my hands over my face out of pure instinct. Just before his fist connected with my covered face, I heard a primal roar and then felt Richard be physically lifted off my body.
Confused, I shot up and through my throbbing head tried to focus on the scene before me. Richard went flying against the back wall near the fireplace. He hit it so hard that the family pictures I had of my parents fell to the ground around him. A large, broad back with muscles on top of muscles covered by a tightly worn green t-shirt blocked my view of Richard’s slumped body.
“John?” I whispered in a voice I didn’t even recognize as mine. The broad-shouldered giant turned, and my neighbor’s concerned eyes met my slightly out of focus gaze.
“John?” I said again, I don’t know why I did that. Maybe I was confused that my neighbor from next door was suddenly in my living room, or maybe it was the fact that my pounding head was making me think slow.
John owned the property that butted up next to mine. He had served in the Navy and was a former SEAL, my father had liked him right away. However, John didn’t live on the huge hundred acre property adjacent to mine full time, he’d built a beautiful log cabin there and would come stay for weeks, sometimes only a few days when he had some downtime from his job. I never asked what he did for a living, and he never offered the information, but I know he’d come to his cabin with bandages that looked like they were covering bullet wounds, on at least three occasions over the last six years.
It was an easy friendship with John. He didn’t bring up the day of my parent's death, despite being the one that had found me, and I didn’t ask why he had bullet wounds and head injuries. I knew his call sign was Ghost, no last name of course, but he would come over and help Trevor with a lot of the repairs when he was staying at his cabin. A regular boy scout, John would always come and check on me during a severe storm or visit with the animals. I had figured that the animals and the busy work were like therapy for him. I don’t know what kind of work he did but I was sure it was dangerous, he never spoke to me about his problems, and mostly it was coffee and a silent side by side working relationship. That suited me fine since I usually screwed up conversations with people I didn’t know by saying something stupid or insulting. With John, I could be with him all day and say little, and we were both fine with it.
However, the John that was standing in my small living room, staring at me like he thought I was going to break was not the calm neighbor I was used to seeing. This was not part of our unspoken arrangement, it was far too much of my personal issues, and I had no idea what John would do next.
He turned once to look towards Richard and then walked over to where I was sitting awkwardly on the floor and crouched down so we were eye level. He lifted one large hand to brush the hair that was sticking to my face, and I flinched away before I could stop myself.
John froze, and I saw his eyes narrow as Richard began groaning from his spot on the floor. Hard green eyes the color of a jade necklace that my mother had brought me from a trip to China that she had taken, slid toward the wall behind him and then back to me. As soon as his gaze hit me, it immediately softened. Embarrassed, in pain and trembling, I couldn’t get any words past me lips.
Without warning, John grunted and scooped me up off the floor and carried me outside to the bench on the old wooden porch that my father had built. The wood planks groaned under John’s heavy boots, and I tried not to gasp when he gently set me down on the white, wicker bench and stripped off his green t-shirt. He held it out for me to take, but all I could do was stare. He had the widest chest I had ever seen. My eyes drank in the sight of his very, tight, muscled body and I frowned when I saw the numerous scars and a few wounds that were still healing. Whatever John did for a living put him in harm's way, and often. A few of the scars I was ogling were obviously bullet wounds and some of the more linear ones had the earmark of a serrated knife wound.
As if he could guess my distracted state, he smiled and then sighed as he put his tee shirt over my heads and guided my heavy feeling arms into the holes in the shirt. It was then I realized what he was doing.
“Oh my God.” I shrieked when I looked down and saw that the only thing covering my naked chest was John’s warm tee shirt. The shirt was so large it would probably hang to my knees when I stood. Jesus, Ali! There’s no way he missed all the scarring! You just sat there bare-chested while the man held out a shirt to cover yourself, you dolt!
“I’m..I’m sorry,” I stammered not wanting to meet is gaze. I could only pray that John wouldn’t ask about the scars that I all but pushed in his face. I knew he had seen them, he had been there they day I had gotten them. However, the shame was just too much to take.
I heard him kneel down again, and two long fingers brought my chin around to meet his concerned expression.
“You don’t have to apologize, Alison, you didn’t do anything wrong. Did he hurt you anywhere other than what I can see?” he asked softly. For a huge man, he had the kindest touch. His sweet, dimpled smile reminded me of someone, I just couldn’t get my frazzled brain to remember who.
“Um, no..not really,” I muttered as I sat there absolutely mortified that my neighbor had walked in on my ex-husband, straddling me while I lay there bleeding and half naked. Good lord, what must he think?
Giving me a lopsided smile that made his hard, chiseled features soften to the point of stunningly handsome and still somewhat familiar somehow, he touched my f
isted hand. “Not that I wanted to pry or anything, but Pepper came running to the cabin. She yelled at me to come help you, that Trevor had gone to down for more animal feed, and you were going to die if I didn’t move my ass,” he explained as I sat there open-mouthed.
“Pepper? She came to…” My question was cut off by the loud roar of a pissed off grizzly bear who was running toward me at a frighteningly fast pace, followed by my niece who was waving a large stick.
Even though Baloo had been friendly with John the times that he had visited, I wasn’t sure what he would do in his agitated state. Jumping up, I forgot my bad leg was still weak and would have face planted if John hadn’t banded a large arm around my waist and held me up.
“Baloo stop!” I ordered putting one hand up to show him the signal for stop. I made sure that my tone held no doubt that I was ordering him to halt where he was.
Skidding to a stop, the giant bear pushed out a breathy snort but still sat back on his butt. His eyes told me he was agitated, and I had no doubt that Pepper had said that Richard was here. With his bear sense of smell, Baloo always knew when Richard was on the property, and it always made Baloo extremely agitated.
Baloo let out another roar, and I went to move toward him but was pulled back against John’s chest faster than I could blink. Stop it, Al! You’re the only one that can control this situation, stop being a wuss and take care of business.
“John you need to let me go slowly and back away without making eye contact with Baloo,” I instructed while nodding my head to Pepper who was already backing away from Baloo and dropping the large stick she’d been carrying. I’d have a talk with her about letting Baloo out of his habitat later. For now, I was relieved that Pepper was listening. I tilted my head back so that I could see John’s face. He was looking at me like I’d lost my mind. Sadly, I got that face a lot from people.
“It’s okay John, he won’t hurt me, but he can smell Richard, and he can sense the tension,” I explained calmly patting the python sized arm that was wrapped around me just below my breasts. I could feel his indecision. I knew he was the kind of guy that probably rushed in to save people and the idea of letting me limp towards a thousand pound, pissed off Kodiak grizzly bear, probably didn’t sit well.
“I don’t like this Ali, not at all. I have a gun in my waistband and as much as I like Baloo, if he does anything that even looks like he might hurt you, I’m pulling rank and taking him out,” he whispered in my ear while loosening his grip on my waist.
I tilted my head back again to let him know that Baloo hated the sight of guns, he was deathly afraid of them because the man who had owned him had terrorized him with one. Just as I was about to speak the goliath behind me tightened his grip again making me squeak in surprise as my feet lifted from the porch.
“Non-negotiable Ali, don’t even try,” he warned. It was a side of John that I had never seen. Normally, John was quiet and reserved. I had only heard him laugh on a few occasions, the whole time I had known him. Yet, something in his Alpha male voice made be take his threat to shoot Baloo seriously. I nodded grudgingly never taking my eyes off my poor, Baloo.
As soon as John removed his arm from my waist, I hobbled forward slowly. I watched out of the corner of my eye as Pepper circled around to the porch, climbed the railing and took a stance next to John. Making a note to give Pepper kudos later for remembering what she had been taught, I concentrated on my thousand pound issue at hand.
“Hey buddy, it’s okay. I’m okay. He can’t hurt you, okay?” I knew people would call me crazy for conversing with an animal. Most people believed that animals were all instinct with no sense of reasoning. However, my mother had taught me that her experience had shown her that animals had the ability to reason more that humans thought they did, despite their strong instincts.
I held out my shaking hand and waited for Baloo to nudge it with his nose. Of course, instead of touching my hand he butted his massive head into my middle, and I fell backward onto my ass with a loud curse. Hearing the distinct sound of a gun being cocked I scrambled to my knees and shouted at John, “No, no, put it away John, he’s trying to protect me.” I yelled hoping that John moved the gun in his hand back out of Baloo’s line of vision. If Baloo lost it, I wasn’t sure anything short of elephant tranquilizers would stop him. Not that I’d have time to run to my locked cabinet and get any because by the time I’d even reach the porch Baloo could be on John and tearing him limb from muscular limb.
As I feared, Baloo caught site of the gun in John’s hand, and he raised up on his hind legs bringing him to his full ten foot plus height and roared so loud my ears rang. Then the ground shook as he slammed back to the ground on all paws, poised over my body ready to fight anyone he felt threatened me. Shit, who needs a guard dog when I have an attack bear at the ready!
“John put it away! Now!” I commanded, this time letting a small squeak of fear enter my voice. I would’ve collapsed with relief when I saw John put the gun back into the waistband behind his back if I didn’t have to figure out a way to get Baloo to calm down before he accidently stepped on me in his bid to keep me safe.
“Ali, I don’t like this, but I’m not taking a shot at Baloo while he’s standing over you, tell me what do,” John shouted never taking his eyes off the agitated bear.
I sighed and tried to ignore the thumping in my head and the tightness in my leg. “You need to back into the house with Pepper and close the door, make sure Richard does not come out here!” I told him as pulled myself to a semi-crouching position under a panting Baloo.
John shook his head and pulled Pepper behind him, his body so large that he completely blocked her from my sight.
“Nope, can’t do it, Ali, your dad would kick my ass from the grave if I left his baby girl in the dirt about to be trampled by a damn bear!” John shouted as he took a slow step back toward the open door of the house, just enough to get Pepper inside.
Finally fed up with all the testosterone I had been dealing with today, I shoved my dark hair out of my face and shouted, “Listen up G.I. Joe, my head hurts, my leg feels like it’s going to give out and ten minutes before you arrived my ex-husband tore off my top! So, now I have to add flashing my tits to my next door neighbor to my list of shitty things that have happened! So, no offense but I am the animal expert here, Baloo is trying to protect me and would never knowingly cause me harm. So, I am asking you in the most polite way I can, to politely Back. The. Fuck. Off.” I growled as I put one hand on Baloo’s belly trying to comfort him with my touch.
John opened his mouth to protest then turned toward the house, he threw one hard look towards me before stomping inside and slamming the door. I have to say I wasn’t surprised when the curtains to the window were yanked down, and a very pissed off ex-Navy SEAL was staring at me.
Putting my energy back on Baloo, I began to use my voice to calmly tell him I was okay. I could only hope he didn’t pick up on the fact that my body was trembling as it began to crash from the adrenaline. After a full five minutes of posturing over my crouched body, Baloo moved to my left and flopped on his belly with his big head and snout lying on the dirt.
Without hesitation I walked toward him, watching for any signs that my Baloo was not present. Confident that it was my Baloo bear staring back at me, I threw my arms around his thick neck and smiled into his rough brown fur. He smelled like dirt and sweat, but I didn’t care and giggled when he nuzzled my neck with his wet nose.
“Thanks, boy! I knew you wouldn’t hurt me. I’m sorry you got upset, but I’m okay,” I told him as I scratched behind his large ears.
“Okay fella, you gotta help me stand because I don’t think I can make it, then we gotta get you back in your pen, all right? I’ll have Trevor make you some of that Salmon mash you love so much when he gets back from town,” I whispered softly. I watched his ears perk up at the mention of his favorite dish and took a second to thank my mother for bringing me my Baloo.
Without instruction, Baloo lifted
his head from the ground, and I held on as he climbed back to all fours. Letting me lean on his strong back for support, he walked slowly to the porch and stood quietly as the door opened and John stepped back out onto the porch.
“If I hadn’t seen it with my own eyes, I wouldn’t have believed it,” John told me shaking his head like he was still trying to sort out what he was seeing.
“Baloo is family, we take care of each other, he was just trying to cover my body with his to protect me. Once I calmed him down, and he could think clearly he was able to manage his instinct to destroy anything that he deemed a threat and help me over to the porch because honestly, I think my body is about to crash,” I said smiling as I rubbed Baloo’s large neck.
John put a large hand toward Baloo and seemed genuinely surprised that Baloo licked and then nudged his palm with his nose instead of biting it off. “That’s incredible.”
I smiled at John and winked at Pepper as she emerged from the house to stand next to John on the porch.
“Nah, that’s an animal. Animals are never cruel for fun or kill for sport, they have instincts for survival but unlike people, they don’t have hidden agendas. Looks like he likes you, John,” I chuckled as John scratched Baloo’s ear, a favorite spot of his.
“Damn amazing Ali, but what do we do with the asshole sleeping against the wall in your living room?” John’s expression changed from wonder to concern as his eyes roamed my dirty face that was probably streaked with tears and blood from the gash on my head.
“I say we let Baloo eat him,” Pepper announced suddenly as she gave Baloo and honey stick. I gave Pepper a harsh glare. That was her standard answer to dealing with Richard. I had no doubt that if Baloo ever got his paws on Richard, he would kill him. As much as Baloo would love that, I knew that a bear that kills a human would never be allowed to live. So, Pepper needed to understand that Baloo could never be released from his habitat when Richard was present.
No Refunds No Exchanges: A Hudson Family Series- Book 4- Matt and Ali Page 13
