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It takes her a while to answer, but she runs a finger near Thor’s snout. “I don’t know, to be honest. It feels unreal like I’m detached from what happened. As if I’m just a spectator watching that happen to someone else.”
Piper breaks away and turns to pin me with an embarrassed look. “I did something stupid, too, so I’m not totally without fault. Brent came to apologize and asked me to withdraw my HR complaint about what happened last Friday. I said no. He gave me a sob story about his bills and his brother’s college fees. I told him he should’ve thought of that before harassing me.”
“Which part of that is your fault?”
“The confrontation. You know me. I’m not exactly the type to mince words, so I did the opposite of how I behaved on Friday. Instead of shutting up and freezing, I gave him a piece of my mind. I lost it because he had the nerve to call me mean and a bitch and lay the blame on me even when I never said or did anything to make him think I was remotely attracted to him. He blamed me, and it pissed me off. I didn’t stop to think we were alone on the floor. There are CCTVs, sure, and there’s Ben, the security guard, but Brent could’ve still hurt me.”
“Piper, none of this is your fault. None. Not what happened on Friday, not Brent’s reaction to your complaint, and definitely not the truth you flung to his face. He has problems, not you. Please be kind to yourself. You’ve endured enough.”
She rests her head on my chest while I run my fingers through her hair. I sigh and tell her, “My only issue is the fact that you didn’t call me before the guard. When I felt my phone vibrate, I was already running to you. Although to be fair, you must’ve thought I was at home and the office security was the nearest. I mean, you had no idea I wanted to surprise you by picking you up.”
“That’s exactly what I thought.” She splays her hand on my stomach and sighs. “Thank you, Parker, for arriving on time. It seems you have this habit of showing up exactly when I need you.”
I smile and plant a kiss on her forehead. “Me and Thor.”
“You and Thor,” she agrees and pets Thor’s head. He only grunts and closes his eyes.
God, I can still taste the fear on my tongue. I’ve never been so scared in my life. I knew Brent’s type. I could’ve bashed his head to the floor and still managed to sleep soundly tonight.
That fucker deserved it.
Thor wiggles from Piper’s lap and drops to the floor. Piper just folds her knees and snuggles closer to me, eyes closed, ignoring the cup of coffee, and breathing going steady.
It’s time to calm myself down because I’m still running the scenes in my head. I need to stop. She’s here with me. She’s safe. No one’s hurting her.
Besides, if there’s one thing I learned tonight, it’s the fact that I cannot live without her. I’d rather chop off my limb than spend another day without Piper by my side.
With that, an idea blooms in my head, casting a shadow over my worries and earlier dread.
This idea makes me smile.
I just need to make it official.
6
PIPER
“Of course, Mrs. Wells.”
Our beautiful landlady, who says she’s 75 when she looks like she’s still in her early 60s, blushes and taps Parker’s bicep. “How many times do I have to tell you? Call me Olivia.”
Parker throws her his most charming smile. “I mean Olivia. I’ll let you know when I’m headed to the farmers market.”
“You don’t have to do that, you know.”
“I know I don’t have to, but I want to. Least I can do for the best landlady I’ve ever had.”
“Oh, hush.” Blush creeps on her face and neck, and she shyly rests both palms on her cheeks. “Go on, now. Your girlfriend is waiting for you.”
I wave at her awkwardly, and she waves back. Parker puts his ball cap back on and walks toward me, Thor at his side.
Looking behind him to check, I slide my arms through his and stand on my toes to whisper in his ear. “Parker, were you flirting with our landlady?”
He staggers back, his eyebrows almost reaching his hairline. “No! I was just being nice.”
Tapping my foot, I point an accusing finger at him and rest my other hand on my hip. “Is that why she let you keep Thor and refused my Fifi?”
Parker shoves his hands in his back pocket and gives me a smug smirk. “Maybe. Maybe not. Sometimes, Piper, it helps if you ask someone nicely and not demand things from them. Also helps if you’re as irresistible as me.”
