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I took a deep breath to stop myself from crying. ‘I … someone took my purse. I don’t have any cash or my cell,’ I sniffed.
‘Stay right where you are. I’ll be there as soon as I can,’ he said and then ended the call before I could tell him that all I needed was a car. The last thing I wanted was him storming in here and shouting at me for leaving the house without a bodyguard. God, what if he spanked me right in the middle of this restaurant for disobeying him?
‘Is someone coming for you, honey?’ the waitress asked, and I realized I was still holding onto her phone.
‘Yes. Thank you,’ I said as I handed it back to her. ‘Am I okay to stay here until he gets here?’
‘Of course. You want a coffee while you wait? On the house?’
‘That’s really kind of you,’ I said as a fat tear rolled down my cheek.
She leaned down and squeezed my hand. ‘Not a problem, honey.’
I looked up expectantly every time the diner door opened, looking for either my attacker or Alejandro. Less than half an hour later, Alejandro walked through the doors. He looked so fierce that I almost wanted the ground to open up and swallow me whole. He was going to be furious with me for sneaking out of the house.
His eyes scanned the room quickly until he caught my eye and came storming across the diner. He slid into the booth opposite me. I assumed there must be a mark on my face because he reached out his hand and touched it gently.
‘Who the fuck did that to you?’ he snarled.
‘Some guy. He’s the ex-boyfriend of one of the girls at the shelter.’
‘The same guy who took your purse?’
I nodded.
He sat back in his seat and took a deep breath. I saw the rage in his body. His hands were clenched into fists.
‘I’m sorry,’ I said. ‘I didn’t mean for this to happen.’
‘How many times have I warned you about leaving the house without protection, Alana? Sometimes, it feels like you want to get yourself killed. Do you?’ he scowled at me.
‘Of course not.’
He shook his head and I saw him wrestling with his emotions. ‘Half of me wants to put you over my knee right here in this diner and spank your ass so hard you won’t be able to sit down for a month.’
‘And what about your other half?’ I asked.
‘The other half is just glad you’re safe,’ he said with a sigh as he looked around the diner. ‘Let’s get out of here. You can explain yourself in the car.’
He stood up and I stood too, feeling like a runaway teenager who was about to get a telling off from my father. Then he reached for my hand and squeezed it and I felt a rush of love for him that completely blindsided me.
He looked at the empty coffee cup on the table. ‘Who bought you the coffee?’ he asked. ‘And whose cell phone did you use?’
‘Marlene, the waitress at the cash register there,’ I said as I pointed her out.
Alejandro nodded and rubbed a hand over his jaw. ‘Come on, let’s go,’ he said as he took my hand and led me through the diner. We passed Marlene on the way and Alejandro stopped her.
‘Marlene,’ he said with his charming, killer smile. ‘I really appreciate you helping my wife out this afternoon. You have my deepest gratitude.’
‘It was my pleasure, honey,’ she said with a smile.
Alejandro nodded and then took something from his pocket and handed it to her. ‘Well, thank you,’ he said and then we walked out of the diner.
‘Thank you, Sir,’ Marlene shouted after us.
‘What did you give her?’ I asked him.
‘Just a couple of hundred bucks,’ he said with a shrug.
