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"Kendrick went on another one of his rampages this morning," I said, ducking out of the way of her touch.
"Oh, Jessica, I so wish you had taken my advice all those years ago. Regardless, you need to get out of there."
"Yes, I know. The good news is I think I may have found a way to be able to leave."
"Oh, yeah?"
"Yes! Thanks to this little gem that arrived this morning, I now have a place to go, a place Kendrick won't know about," I said, pulling the letter from my back pocket and handing it to Kate for her to read.
She opened it and read the letter twice, and then looked at me and smiled. "Amazing!"
"Yes, it's almost like a dream come true. The only thing is that I don't know how I will get there. I mean, you know the short leash Kendrick keeps me on. There is no way he will let me go willingly, and I can't exactly run. He’ll find me."
Kate sat there sipping on her coffee, looking off into the distance as I told her more about the place I had inherited. As I rambled on she finally met my eyes, a smile coming to her lips.
"What if I told you I would take you to New York?"
"Kate, I can't ask you to put yourself in harm's way."
"Harm's way? Girl, I am not afraid of Kendrick. Besides, doesn't he have a trip coming up?"
"Yes, don't remind me. Four or five weeks this time, and I know he’s shacking up with another woman," I bit out.
"So let him shack up. We’ll leave in the late-morning after Kendrick has left for the airport. He'll be gonefor four weeks at least. By the time he gets home, we will be long gone. I have a photo shoot out there anyway."
"I don't know, Kate. What if I'm wrong about the other women and he ends up wanting me to go with him?"
"Fake the flu. He won't want you around when you're sick, that much I know."
I let out a laugh. "Yeah, you're right."
"All right, so it's settled. Write that letter, contact that lawyer, and let's go. It will be one big, tremendous adventure."
* * *
Later that afternoon, I sat in Kendrick's office, behind his oversized oak desk, with a piece of paper and pen in front of me. I took my time writing out the letter I intended to send to this Hunter Malone. I re-read the words I had written and then signed the papers he had sent. I took the sealed envelope and went into the kitchen to grab the cookie jar from the cupboard. I grabbed a few dollars from my savings and slid it back into the cupboard.
Kendrick would be home in forty minutes, and I needed to get this letter sent before he returned. I rushed down to the post office, paid for the registered letter, and then made my way back to our condo where I spent the next hour getting dinner ready. I wanted nothing out of place or for Kendrick to suspect anything at all.
We ate in silence. Kendrick had come home in an awful foul mood, and after we had eaten, he sat in the dining room going over his travel details. I was in the kitchen listening to him bark out orders over the phone while I cleaned everything up. I had just put the last of the dishes into the dishwasher when I felt his arms slide around my waist.
"So, I leave tomorrow morning. I was thinking perhaps you could join me."
I closed my eyes. "Perhaps," I lied. He hadn't wanted to travelwith me in years. I swore he was doingthis on purpose.
"What if Itold you I just booked your flight?" he asked, kissing my neck.
I swallowed hard. Kate had been right. I should have known he would pull this. "Great," I murmured.
"What do you say we crawl into bed?" he whispered into my ear, his lips grazing along the skin of my neck.
One thing I had learned over the years was never to turn Kendrick away. If I did, it would just lead to another fight, and it was another argument I already knew he wouldn't let me win. Without hesitation, I put the cloth I held in my hand down and allowed Kendrick to lead me to the bedroom.
I woke to the sound of Kendrick smashing things around in the bathroom as he got ready for his day. I rolled onto my back and flung my arm over my eyes. The bathroom door opened, and he marched into the bedroom and growled my name. "Jessica, get up, we'll be late. The car will be here in ten minutes."
I curled into a tight ball and held onto my stomach, moaning in fake pain.
"What is with you? Come on and get up."
