“Baby, what the fuck is going on?” Cash says softly into my ear. I pull at his shirt, needing to be closer to him. I start to cry harder. “Baby, I need you to tell me what’s happened.”
“I got fired,” I breathe out, stepping out of his arms. I bend over, putting my hands on my knees, trying to catch my breath.
“You got fired?”
“Yes, Jules came to my classroom and told me to stay away from you, and then my principal showed up. Jules started to cry, and then I got fired.” I try to get all the words out in-between harsh breaths.
“Why is your window broken?” Nico asks. I look up to see Cash’s concerned eyes on me.
“Jules broke it before I could get away,” I tell them.
“Jules broke your car window?” I nod, hugging my waist. I want to sit down before I fall over. Cash takes two steps, pulling me into him; his hand goes to the back of my head to tuck my face into his chest, and the pain has me crying out. “What the fuck?” I put my hand to the back of my head. There’s not a bump, but I can feel a slight bald spot, along with heat coming off the area. “What’s wrong with your head?”
“She had a handful of my hair when I drove off.”
“I'm going to fucking kill her!” Cash growls, holding me tighter.
“You need to press charges,” Nico says looking at me, and I can see that he is barely holding on to his temper.
“I don’t want to make it worse,” I say, looking up at Cash.
“If you don’t press charges, there will never be any proof of what she did,” Cash says.
“I hate this. Why is she doing this?” I ask, laying my forehead against his chest.
“She’s crazy, baby. I don’t think there is a reason for anything she does.”
“Why did she let you divorce her if she was going to act crazy?”
“She didn’t let me divorce her. She tried to contest it, but her plan fell through when she saw how much money it would cost her to keep playing games. She tried to get custody of Jax, but the judge who had the case, didn’t believe he would be in good hands if placed with her.”
“I think she needs medication,” I say quietly. There is no way someone can act like she does and not need serious help. I pull my head up and look between Cash and Nico, and I can tell they are having a silent conversation. “What?” I ask, looking at Nico.
“I'm going to call the cops and have them meet us here. When they leave, Cash and I can take your car to get fixed.”
“Are you sure about this? I mean, do you think if we ignore her, she will go away?” I ask, looking between the two of them.
“Fuck no. That bitch is like crabs—you ignore them and they spread,” Nico says. A laugh bubbles up my throat, and I am just about to ask him if he is speaking from experience when he says, “No, I have not had that shit, so don’t even ask.”
“Alrighty then.” I bite my lip when he glares at me. I know that on the inside he is a big softy, but there are times when I can see an edge of darkness about him. It was the same thing I saw in their cousin Kenton when I met him at a bar-b-que we had a while back, but Kenton’s darkness is right there out in the open. I don’t know if it’s because of the job he does, or the people in his life, but something about him scares me in a way I would never want to be on his bad side. I watch Nico pull out his phone; he walks off before he puts it to his ear.
“I'm really sorry about this,” Cash says, and my eyes go to him.
“It’s not your fault.” He raises an eyebrow. “Okay, she’s your ex, but it’s still not your fault. I just can’t believe that she went so far.”
He sighs, laying his forehead against mine. “Me either, honestly.”
“She said that she is going to get Jax.”
“I have full custody. She’s just spouting bullshit.” I wrap my arms around his waist, trying not to think about the chance that Jules could ever get custody of Jax. I know how much Cash has sacrificed for his son; I don’t want anything to jeopardize that.
“Cops are on the way,” Nico says, walking back over to us. “When they get here, I want you to make sure that you tell them everything that happened. And I want you to tell them that you are pressing charges and applying for a restraining order.”
“Okay.” I take a breath, letting it out slowly. It takes about thirty minutes for the cops to arrive. They ask a few questions and take pictures of my car window, and then the back of my head at Cash’s demand. After they leave, I look at Cash and Nico. I can tell that they are up to something. “What’s going on?” I ask impatiently.
“Nothing, sugar. Why don’t you go see Ashlyn? She’s in the trailer with Mom. Me and Cash will take your car and get the window replaced.”
“But—”
“Baby, go inside. When you’re ready, I
want you to take my truck and the kids to my house. I will be home later.”
“But—” I try again, getting sick of people not letting me get a word in. He shakes his head, and then wraps his arms around me, pulling me flush with him. His face goes into my neck, and I can feel him taking a few deep breaths.
“I want you to go inside and sit with Mom until you’re ready to take the kids home,” he repeats.
“What are you going to do?”
“I'm going to get your car fixed. Then I'm going to meet up with my dad.”
“And that’s all?”
“That’s all,” he says, avoiding my eyes.
“Please, don’t do anything stupid. And you,” I say, pointing at Nico, “if he gets in trouble, I'm going to hurt you.”
Nico smiles, and then looks at Cash. “Whatever you say, sugar,” he says, walking off to my car.
“Please be careful,” I say, standing up on my tiptoes, pressing my mouth to his. Cash groans, wrapping his arms around me and plastering me against him.
“I won’t be long. Hang out with Mom for a while, before you take the kids home. We can order in food if you want.”
“So, you don’t want fish sticks and tatter tots?” I ask, knowing that was the only thing left in our freezer.
“No, thanks.” His face looks disgusted at the idea of fish sticks, making me laugh.
“Okay, I will see you in a little while.”
“See you,” I say, taking a step back. He starts to walk off, and then turns abruptly, walking back to me. His hand goes to the back of my neck and pulls me forward, being mindful of the back of my head, and this time, the kiss is all tongue and teeth, and when he pulls his mouth from mine, I'm completely breathless. “What was that?”
“Love you. See you when I get home,” he says. His eyes flash before he turns and walks to my car, climbing inside. I go up the steps of the work trailer and watch as he pulls away. Once I can no longer see him, I go inside and sit with Susan for a while, watching the kids finish a project she has set up for them. While they are occupied, I explain to Susan what happened with the police, and why they took me in for questioning last week. I’m so worried she won’t believe I didn’t do what they accused me of, until she pulls me in for a hug, much like my mother would do. When she pulls away, she puts her hands on each side of my face, holding me gently.