Keep Me Safe (8 page)

It was beautiful outside and the mosquitos didn’t seem to be bad at all. Beth lit the fire pit and we all got comfortable in front of the fire. Beth looked back over at me. “I hope I didn’t scare you off talking about Parker. I give him a hard time, but he hasn’t been a serial dater for a long time. He’s been in a really good mood this last week, and I’m willing to bet it has something to do with you. I’ve been waiting for him to find someone to settle down with, and I’d be thrilled if you guys got together.”

I felt a flood of relief wash over me. She couldn’t have picked a better time to tell me that. “Thanks Beth. I really do like him. I haven’t been divorced that long, but I hope Parker feels the same way I do. He’s pretty incredible.”

She raised her glass in the air. “To Sadie and Parker. May you both realize you’re awesome and deserve each other’s happiness!”

“Hear hear!” Everyone said in unison with their glasses raised.

“You’ve already managed to go on one date without sleeping with him, so he must be hooked!” I shook my head as she laughed and we all went back to making small talk. After a bit, I tipped back the rest of my margarita and realized most of us needed a refill.

I stood up and grabbed the nearly empty pitcher. “You guys want more? I’ll go make some.” Everyone said yes, so I took off towards the kitchen. I got the strawberries back out of the freezer and put all of the ingredients in the blender. I turned it on and stood there staring into space before I realized the margaritas were already done. I snapped back to reality and turned the blender off when I felt someone press into my back and put their hands on either side of me on the counter.

“Too busy thinking about me to pay attention to that?” I recognized Parker’s voice and could almost feel the smile on his face. I didn’t turn around, just poured the liquefied margarita mix into the pitcher. Feeling him pressed up against me made my heart race and my body feel like it was going to take over and jump on him right here.

“No, I was thinking about this hot guy in the movie I just saw.” I let out a quiet giggle and I knew my face was turning red.

“That’s too bad. You smell
really
good right now. I don’t really want to move.”

I turned around so we were facing each other and he pulled his hands off the counter. “Yeah, so I’ve heard. I got your note.”

“What note?”

“The note you left on my car. Don’t be coy. I thought it was really sweet.”

His expression changed immediately. “I didn’t leave a note on your car. What did it say?”

I froze. I couldn’t make myself move or breathe. I felt like I was being smothered and felt all the blood drain from my face. Parker’s face turned concerned in an instant, but then I heard someone speak behind him.

“Uncle Parker, it’s your turn! Hurry up!” Tyler was leaning from around the corner of the game room. Parker looked over his shoulder but didn’t turn away from me.

“Alright bud, I’ll be right there!” He looked back at me and the concern hadn’t left his face. “What did it say?”

“Nothing…nothing much,” I stuttered. “Just something like ‘I miss you – your eyes, smile, how you smell’…something like that. It must’ve been put on my car by mistake.”

“Oh, I guess. Not that I don’t think you smell really good, because you do.” I forced a smile so he didn’t see me freaking out. “I better get back in there before he takes my turn for me. He got a new Xbox game and he’s kicking my ass. We’re not done talking about this though.” He grabbed a beer and a Sprite out of the fridge before going back towards the game room. He winked at me before he disappeared into the room.

I stood there leaning against the counter for a minute trying to convince myself that the note was a mistake. But I knew it wasn’t. I knew it was from Brent. He used to leave notes on my car when we first started dating. He used to tell me how much he loved my perfume and I changed to a different one as soon as I left him. I didn’t need the reminder. I grabbed the pitcher of margaritas and went back outside.

“We thought you got lost!” Rachel said holding up her empty glass. “Fill me up, would you?”

“Oh yeah, sure.” I walked around the circle and refilled everyone’s glasses. I sat down and pretended to listen to their conversation but truth be told, I couldn’t focus on a single thing they were saying. I felt like I was going to throw up, but I realized someone was calling my name.

“Sadie? Are you okay?” Beth was trying to get my attention.

“Oh, yeah…I just have a really bad headache all of a sudden.” I rubbed my hand across my forehead to make my story seem believable. I sat there for a few more minutes trying to contribute to the conversation, but it wasn’t happening. “Sorry to cut it short guys, but I’m not feeling too well. I think I’m going to go home.”

“Aww, alright. I’m sorry you have to go home so soon. We had so much fun. I hope you feel better soon. Do you want me to walk you out?” Beth asked as she started to stand up.

“No, don’t worry about it. I’ll be fine.” I smiled and waved. “Thanks again for inviting me! I had so much fun. Bye guys.” I grabbed my purse from the kitchen and walked as fast as I possibly could back through the house and out the front door. I walked into my house and threw my purse and keys down on the entryway table. I kicked my flip flops off and went upstairs, landing heavily on my bed. I grabbed one of the pillows and clutched it between my arms as tight as I could possibly manage. Why was he doing this to me? The note and the phone call; it couldn’t be a coincidence. I buried my face into the top of the pillow and started to cry.

Eight

“Sadie? Wake up.” I jolted awake and thought I saw Parker sitting next to me on my bed, shaking me slightly to wake me up. I panicked and scooted all the way to the other side of the bed, my eyes barely focusing on the person sitting there. A quick look around reminded me that I ran up here after bolting out of Beth’s house. It made sense why my eyes didn’t adjust right away; I managed to cry myself to sleep not too long ago.

“Hey, it’s okay! It’s just me. I didn’t mean to scare you.” He’s lucky I didn’t kick him or something in my embarrassing attempt to move away from him.

“Hey, uh, what are you doing here?” I scooted back towards the middle of the bed.

“I went out to the patio to see if I could walk you home, but Beth said you left in a hurry. So when I texted you and knocked on the door, you didn’t answer. I got worried. You left your back door unlocked so I came in. You really need to keep your doors locked.”

“Oh, I’m sorry. I left my phone downstairs with my purse. I’m a heavy sleeper; I barely even hear the doorbell if it rings.”

“Are you okay? What’s going on?” He took the pillow that had slid out of my arms and threw it to the end of the bed. He leaned over my waist and propped himself up on one arm.

“I’m fine. I just have a migraine that hit me all of a sudden.” I tucked my bangs behind my ears and attempted to rub underneath my eyes, praying they weren’t streaked with mascara.

“Bullshit. You almost flung yourself right off the bed and your eyes are red; you were crying. What’s wrong?” I sat there debating whether or not I should tell him. I sniffled and knew I had to tell him something. He was looking at me with so much emotion and worry in his eyes, I knew he deserved to know, but I didn’t think I had the nerve to tell him. I met his troubled gaze, his eyes were pleading with me. “You’re scaring me right now. Would you say something, please?”

He took me by the hand and helped me sit up. I crossed my legs at the ankles and he put his hand on my knee. “Nothing, I’m fine. I’m just really not feeling well.”

There was a reason my parents didn’t know about Brent. It was easier to let him hit me and move on than to create a huge deal out of it. Getting my parents or friends involved would have involved the police, which probably would have caused him to have more anger towards me, anyway. My plan to leave them out of it worked well because here I was; on my own, safe, and divorced from Brent.
Well, had been.

“I can see you don’t feel well, but I don’t think it’s from a headache. Talk to me; I hate seeing you like this.” I could tell he wasn’t going to let it go.

I took a deep breath. “I’m not really sure what’s going on. The note on my car…I think it’s from my ex-husband. I don’t really have any proof of that; I just have a gut feeling.”

“Oh, is he not over you or wants you back or something?”

I felt my eyes start to sting from the unshed tears coming on at the painful memories that entered my mind. “I’m sure he wants me back…but I don’t even know how he found me. I don’t know how he found out where I live. I’ve made it a habit to make sure no one is following me when I’m driving.”

“Oh. So why don’t you tell him to get lost?”

I guess this was it. I had to tell him. I didn’t even know how to start this story.

“He’s the reason our divorce went through so fast, Parker. I have a restraining order against him. He’s not supposed to come anywhere near me.”

Parker’s eyes widened at my words, so he moved closer to me and leaned back over my hips.

“Why do you think it was him and not someone else who put it there by accident?”

“He used to leave notes on my car in college. He always told me how great I smelled; how much he loved my perfume. Between that and the phone call…”

“What phone call?” he cut me off, his voice harsh.

“Last Saturday after I got home from the barbeque, there was a voicemail on my answering machine, but no one said anything. It just sounded like breathing. No one ever calls my house phone; they always call my cell phone. So it was just strange.”

“Why didn’t you tell me? Have you told anyone?”

“No. The only person who knows anything about him is my coworker Stephannie. I didn’t think the phone call was enough to bring it up. It could just be a coincidence.”

He leaned down slightly so he was eye to eye with me. “You don’t really believe that though, do you? You’re terrified.”

He was right, I was. With the tears I tried so desperately to hold in, one managed to escape and fall down my right cheek.

“He scares the shit out of me. He’s not a nice person. I didn’t even go to any divorce hearings. I let my attorney handle them.”

Parker brought his left hand to my face and wiped the tear away with his thumb. “What’s his name?” His face had gone from concern to anger.

“It’s not worth it Parker. I don’t know that it’s him, so taking it to the police is pointless.”

“What’s his name, Sadie?” I just looked at him and didn’t say anything. “You do remember I’m a police officer, right? It will take me all of two seconds to find out once I get to my computer.” He softly brushed my cheek with the back of his hand. “But I’m hoping you trust me enough to tell me.”

“Brent. Brent Ramsey,” I said almost as a whisper. If Parker wanted to look into it, that was up to him. He knew more than me, what was and wasn’t possible regarding Brent. He knew whether he could be in trouble for contacting me or not, but I doubted he could find any more than the last set of officers who heard my last story about Brent.

“Do you still have the note?” I nodded my head and reached into my pocket for the little yellow piece of paper. An hour ago that note made me giddy and stupidly happy, but now it was terrifying me. I handed it to him and he slid it into his back pocket.

“I have a feeling the answer will piss me off, but why do you have a restraining order against him?” He closed his eyes like he was preparing himself for my response.

My stomach forming knots, I took a deep breath. “He was abusive. Hitting me made him feel better I guess,” I shrugged. Parker winced like someone had punched him in the stomach.

He stood up from the bed, rubbing the back of his neck while he paced back and forth. “That son of a bitch, you never told anyone what he did to you? Why didn’t you have his sorry ass arrested?”

I sat on the edge of the bed with my hands on either side of me, “I knew calling the police would just make it worse, piss him off more. It didn’t start until we got married. By that point, people thought he was such a wonderful guy, part of me thought no one would ever believe me.”

“So why did you stay?”

“I knew once I left, there was no turning back. He told me a couple times that something bad would happen if I left him. I had to do it the smart way so that I wouldn’t need anything from him and I could cut him off completely. I found an attorney and she told me what I needed to do so then I got all the paperwork in order. I stashed enough money away to move out on my own without any problems and just waited until the right time.” I decided to leave out the information about the night that made my choice for me.

He walked over to the side of the bed quickly and knelt down in front of me. He took my hands in his tightly and looked up into my eyes. “I’m so sorry. No one deserves that. That bastard better hope I never find him.”

We sat there with our eyes locked, seeing the pain that each of us was silently carrying. He got up and sat next to me on the bed and pulled me to him. When I leaned into his chest, we rested back against the headboard together and I couldn’t stop myself from sobbing anymore. I buried my face into his chest and let the tears fall freely.

Parker held me until my crying stopped and my breathing returned to normal. I finally sat up without taking my hands off his chest. “Would you do something for me?”

“Anything – what is it?”

“Will you stay with me tonight? I mean…I’m scared to be by myself, but I don’t want to give you the wrong idea. You don’t have to stay all night if you don’t want to. I would just feel a lot safer if you were here while I fell asleep.”

“I’ll stay as long as you need me to. I’ll do whatever you need.” I lay back down on his chest and he ran his fingers through my hair. I felt him kiss me on the top of my head.

After going into the bathroom and changing into pajamas, I grabbed an extra pillow out of my closet for Parker. I pulled back my covers and got into bed. Parker kicked his shoes off and slid in right behind me. I felt him scoot forward against my back and he wrapped his arm around my waist.