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This was the part of my life there was a good chance she’d come to resent. “Now that you and I are together, there are going to be... certain precautions, I’m going to need you to understand that have to be taken.”
She turned inward to face me. “What kind of precautions?”
“Well, for starters, I need to know where you are at all times. I can’t have you sneaking off on me, even if I’m asleep.”
She seemed to think about the reasoning for my demand for a few beats. “Ok. I guess I understand why you’d need to know where I am. What about when I’m at school? I still have another semester left.”
“I would really love it if you could switch to homeschool, but if you can’t, or don’t want to, I can make some arrangements to make sure you stay safe.” She’d told me she knew her life would change, but I don’t think she really took under consideration the magnitude of just how much.
“And what about my job at the Café?”
“Working is not something you’ll need to do.”
“But I like my job. Plus, why would I continue going to school if I didn’t plan on finding a job after graduation?” She paused for a moment, looking down at our joined hands. “Look Creed, I understand you have a lot of money...”
Her words cut off abruptly as if she wasn’t sure about what she wanted to say exactly. “I do have a lot of money, Clarice. More money than I’ll probably ever be able to spend in a lifetime.”
“And that’s great... for you. But I don’t want to just be absorbed into your life, only being your girlfriend. I want myownpart of life thatI’mallowed to live and make my own money. I want to be able to still be me while being in a relationship with you. Do you understand what I’m trying to say?”
I nodded my head. I knew, Clarice, was not the type of woman who would just allow a man to lead her around by the hand, showering him with nothing but agreements. It’s probably the thing that drew me to her from the very first night I met her when I overheard her telling Torin off for calling her a bitch.
“I love that you don’t just want to be my arm candy.” Turning my body into her, I pulled her face closer. “I knew from the first night I met you that you were no pushover, Clarice. Not with the way you told Torin off for calling you a bitch... something I still need to make sure he apologizes to you for.” We both laughed. “Look, I want you to be happy and to be yourself. I want you to do all the things you want to do, but I also want you to stay safe, and that’s where your cooperation is important.”
“So, what exactly happens then? Do I get a bodyguard that will be with me 24/7 or something now?”
“Not exactly. I’m just going to have someone with you when I’m not able to be. He won’t be in your way or stand out like a sore thumb, he’ll just be part of the crowd in the Café, or a student in your class. He won’t be by your side all day like a typical bodyguard would be. He’ll just be around, so if anything goes down, he’s there to step in.”
She went into deep thought, and I started to wonder if she was worrying that her life would become a gilded cage, she would never escape.
Chapter
Twenty-Six
Clarice
This by far had tobe the craziest conversation I’d ever had in my life. Just over a month ago I was an extreme introvert that never went out, only sat home reading books about fictional characters living an exciting life. Now I was dating aBosswho had more money than God. Did things to me sexually I’d never known I desired. And now he was asking me to be a part of his life. A life that would change mine in ways I probably couldn’t even begin to conceive. This would be the defining moment in my life when I’d need to choose which way to go at the split in the road. One path was paved with a familiarity of the life I used to live. One filled with safety and a consistency; I’d be comfortable with. The other, an unmarked path into a dark, heavily wooded forest with no way to see what lie up ahead of me. There was a good possibility, I’d find someone else later on in life if I chose not to be with Creed, but it would never be what I have with him.
