“No, please!” Duke’s ears perked up, and he watched her intently. “I don't want anyone to know.” Tears were in her eyes in an instant. I knew we needed a report taken, but I still felt bad for upsetting her. She covered her face with her hands, and she started to sniffle again.
“Hey, I’m so sorry I upset you.” She took her hands off her face and looked at me. I opened my arms and she walked towards me without a second thought. She leaned her head on my shoulder and wrapped her arms around me. She seemed comfortable, so I slowly wrapped my arms around her as well, giving her time to pull away if she wanted to, but she only hugged me harder.
We stood there for a few minutes, just listening to each other breathe. I moved one hand up to the base of her head and ran my fingers through her hair. The fact that she didn’t tense up or pull away made my heart ache in the best way. Her trust in me had grown since she’d returned to town. In some ways, our relationship felt like it had when we were in high school.
“Rae.” What I was about to say wasn’t going to be easy but she needed to hear it, and I was going to be there for her through it all. “This guy may have been the one at your window that morning. We can't confirm it, but he's obviously stalking you, because...” I didn’t want to say it, but I knew I had to.
She leaned back and looked at me. Our faces were so close I could easily lean forward a couple inches and kiss her if I wanted to. Gosh, I wanted to. I wanted to make her forget, for even a moment, about how she felt at the hands of anyone else besides me.
“Rae, Ethanhasbeen here before. I am so sorry. I didn’t know it was him since I had never seen him before.” She looked at me with shock, and her hands gripped my shirt on my back. “The delivery driver that dropped off the packages while I was putting up the cameras, it was him. I had a weird feeling about him, but figured I was just being protective over my girl, and...I’m sorry. I didn’t know.”
Shoot. I accidentally let “my girl” slip this time. I didn’t want to seem possessive and controlling. I also didn’t want her to feel awkward if the feelings weren't mutual.
As if she could hear the words I was thinking, she laid her head back on my shoulder and let out a sigh. I held her in my arms the same way as before.
“I don't want the cops to know about—” her voice trailed off. Her shaking hands still gripped the back of my shirt. I wished I could do something to help. “I feel so ashamed.”
“About what he did to you? Sunshine, you fought as hard as you could. You went through something no one should ever have to, and you got away. That’s nothing to be ashamed of.” My voice stayed quiet because I knew I had to be careful with what I said. One thing I also knew, though was that she was strong. This situation was like walking on a tightrope.
“Rae, do you trust me?” I kissed the top of her head.
She nodded, pressing harder into me than she had before, like I was a lifeline.
“Let me tell my people. I trust them with my life, and I would trust them with yours. I'll tell them you don't want anyone to know, and you're not ready to press charges. But Rae, we need a report on this guy with at a minimum the information we have in case something else happens.”
A long moment passed before Rae responded. She nodded against my shoulder before pulling away. “Gosh, I don’t know how I even have any tears left to cry.” She chuckled lightly as she wiped her cheeks. “I should probably continue packing, though.” She looked at me with a shy grin. I wanted to tell her to please stay with me a little longer, but I also didn’t want to push it with how fast she learned to trust again.
Reluctantly, I left the room to make the call.
If there was one highlightto this happening at all, it was that the package came today while my crew was on duty. They left and took the frame with the note into evidence. I stayed by Rae’s side the entire time. She was so strong when telling the needed parts of her story, regardless of my presence. The only reason I left Rae was to speak with my Sergeant separately, and I made sure she was comfortable with Santana and Duke before I left. I told my Sergeant I may need a few shifts off if the crew could swing it, but I’d let him know how things are going after the first rotation. With the knowledge of what was going on, he said he completely understood.
I then made a call to Rae's supervisor-to-be, explained the situation, without going into details, and bought Rae an extra week at minimum.
The front room of her house only had three people in it, other than her and me, but the way her eyes searched for me while I was not right next to her broke my heart and made me hurry back to her. I hated those years we were apart after she left for college. I didn’t want to spend more time away from her than I had to.
Now that we were alonetogether again, the house was quiet. Nervous energy buzzed between us as she continued to pack. I could tell she was nervous about leaving, and more than likely, nervous about staying with me.
I needed to keep her mind off the reason for the nerves she felt, so I told her the only information I had that she didn’t know. “Alright, I have time off for at least a rotation or two, maybe more if needed. I also bought you an extra week before you start work, at minimum. Sage was so understanding even though she knows nothing. She told me you could start tomorrow, in a month, or even part time if you wanted, but she wants you to be the one to fill the spot when you're ready.” Rae rubbed the back of her neck and her face twisted as I spoke.Shoot. She looks even more nervous than before.
“Caleb, I don't want to inconvenience anybody with this. Also—” She looked at the floor.
“Also...?”
Her face turned red and she shifted nervously in her spot, not making eye contact with me. “I need money. Ethan and I split the bills, like our rent. I had my money in my own bank account, but I wasn't able to change my information fast enough for my online accounts before he got to it. I accidentally left my laptop there, so I’m guessing he was able to log in and transfer funds or something. I had been able to stash a bit of cash away before I ran, but since I've not been working, I only have a little bit left after buying clothes for work.” The words spilled out of her rapid fire.
Memories of the beautiful woman standing in front of me as a teen started to flood my mind. Rae had always been about earning money and making every penny count. In high school she groomed people’s pets, helped walk their dogs, and even got a job at the animal shelter for a few months after graduation before she left for college. Her parents had given her money when she needed it, but if there was something she wanted, she worked for it. Another thing that bastard took from her. I hated him even more now.
“You don't need any money, Sunshine. Whatever you need or want while you're with me, we'll get it. Whatever it is.”
“Caleb, I don't want to mooch off of you.”
“How about this? How about you help me around the farm? I need a chicken whisperer and someone to help ride the horses, too. Plus, this guy—” I pointed at Duke who was at Rae's feet “—I can only give him treats and ear scratches so often.”
Rae giggled which was music to my ears. I reached out my hand and at first she hesitated, but then she gave me her hand. She’d been through so much, so the rollercoaster of whether she could trust someone or not made sense. I pulled her close, slowly, giving her a chance to pull away at any point, but she didn’t.
“I've got you, Rae. No matter what,” I told her as I looked deep into her eyes. “I've got you.”
