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“T-th-there was a photo… when we got home,” she stutters, waving toward the counter. Striding quickly over, I spot it but hesitate—probably not the best idea to pick it up. Evidence or something? I have to call Kenna and Tucker. The image knocks the wind out of me—it’s an obvious threat, but also seeing Arden round with child and that piece of shit standing behind her has all of my protective instincts raging.
A red haze clouds my vision and I’m ready to commit murder. Dead man walking.
“Okay. We should probably call Tucker,” I tell her, and she swallows hard before nodding in agreement. “And you don’t have to… but I think I should know more about him so I can best protect you both.”
“Jeremy, you don’t understand. We need to leave. If he finds out about you… I’m afraid he’ll kill you,” she whispers, and the fear in her voice undoes me. Yes, she’s afraid of him, but she’s also afraid for me. Love swells in my chest and I close the distance between us, desperate to have them both in my arms again. I love them. Holy shit. The realization hits home. And I’m not going to let anyone take this away from us.
“He’s a cop. With so many guns… I don’t even know how many. He drinks, has a temper, and wasn’t keen on letting us leave. If it weren’t for the court orders, I don’t think he would have let us leave that day,” she explains, her thoughts pouring out in a scattered fray. Arden gives Theo a tablet, sliding headphones over his ears before turning toward me to share all the sordid details.
“I don’t even know where to begin,” she says, chewing on her lower lip and then raising her thumb to her mouth to gnaw on that. Unable to watch her torture the poor digit, I reach forward and claim her hand. Silence sits between us, heavy but still comfortable, as she gathers her thoughts before speaking. “Well, we met in college and he seemed like a good guy. We didn’t know each other for long before I ended up getting pregnant.”
Her hand gets clammy in mine, a sure sign of her nerves. But I give her a gentle squeeze, hoping she’ll keep going, but unwilling to pressure her into sharing anything she doesn’t feel ready to. She takes a moment before pushing forward. “Honestly, now that I think about it, I wonder if the pregnancy was just a strange coincidence; or he somehow tampered with my birth control…not that it matters. Theo is the best thing I’ve ever done in my life.”
She goes on, and with every word that passes her lips, my desire to commit murder grows. Arden tells me about him forcing her to quit school and take paralegal classes instead of completing her education. How he cut her off from friends. Often threw fits about her family. She shares about his increasing rage and abusive behaviors.
“The real catalyst for the beatings started the day I brought home divorce papers. I didn’t think he would be thrilled, but we weren’t getting along. I was hoping maybe he would be relieved.” She pauses, tears welling in her eyes. Dread clenches in my stomach, afraid of her next words. “But he wasn’t. He held a gun to my head and told me I had a choice—stay and take my punishment or leave in a body bag.”
Arden’s voice becomes barely a whisper, struggling to breathe through panic-provoking memories. And I can’t fucking take it anymore. My hands clasp her hips, running against the soft fabric of her leggings, and lifting her into my lap. For the first time since I’ve met her, she feels small and fragile. Like the slightest gust of wind would shatter her.
“You are so strong, Sugar,” I tell her. “And I’m never going to let him near you again.”
“It didn’t end there. That was just the start of the worst year of my life. He punished me constantly, never happy with anything Theo or I did—using every excuse to beat me. But I documented it all to build a case where no judge could deny me full custody. After he threatened to kill me, I knew the only possible way for Theo to have a childhood was to make sure no rational person could doubt the threat that Frank posed to both of us,” she admits. “It wasn’t easy with him being a cop.”
Arden rests her head on my shoulder. Dropping the entire weight on me as if it’s suddenly too heavy to hold up and her trust makes my determination even stronger. I’ll do whatever it takes to stay with this woman. If she wants to run, I’ll get the bags in the car. If she wants to stay, I won’t leave her side. But no matter what, we’re in this together.
“And now he’s found us. And I worry the restraining order won’t stop him…” she trails off, her fingers trailing down my arm before rising again. The motion tickles and I shudder.
“It might not. But I will,” I vow, resting my chin on her head and rubbing her arms, feeling the smooth skin warm under my caress. The urge to text my family and get everyone on high alert pulses within me, pushing me to act. But right now, I can’t imagine ending our connection for even a second, so I lean back on the couch, hold her against my chest, and just listen to her breathe.
The sound of tires crunching on the gravel reaches my ears and, with the surrounding tension, Blue reacts immediately. He rushes to the window, letting out a howl followed by several fierce barks. His tail wags back and forth slowly, and Arden leaps from my arms. Theo looks up with fear in his face and a quiver in his lip.
“Is Dad here?” his voice wobbles with terror. I run my hand over his head and make my way to the window, needing to know who’s outside. Pushing back the curtain, my eyes land on the patrol car that’s just pulled up to the house, and I squint, trying to make out which officer is here.
“It looks like one of our local police cars,” I tell them hesitantly, curious to see who emerges from the vehicle. You can hear a pin drop as we wait expectantly. The car door clicks and swings open. Tucker steps out of the front and then turns to open the back door. What is he doing here? Honestly, he was one of the calls I was going to make. But his arrival without already knowing about the photograph seems a bit too convenient.
Theo crowds in front of me, unable to wait.
“Yay! It’s Officer Tucker and Mayhem!” he exclaims as the German Shepherd leaps lightly onto the ground.
“You okay if I answer it?” I ask Arden, not quite sure why he’s here. Although I know Tucker would never hurt either of them, a sense of foreboding fills me at the somber look on his face. Arden nods her head, so I move to greet him.
Tucker has already reached the front door and has his hand up, poised to knock when I open it.
“Hey man,” I say gruffly, using my body to block his view into the house. Blue has no such reservations, wiggling past me to greet Mayhem. They do some puppy bows before leaping from the porch to enjoy a game of chase.
“Hey, Jeremy. Arden home? I have some shit to tell her,” he says, his mouth turned down in a frown. Tucker crosses his arms over his chest in discomfort, clearly unhappy with whatever news he brings.
Shit’s about to get real.
Chapter Twenty-One
While I appreciate Jeremy’s protective gesture, there is no way in hell I’m going to cower in this house and let him handle my life. My hand comes up to rub along his back before I give him a little push, making it clear that I want to talk to Tucker.
“Hello, Officer Tucker, what’s going on?” I ask him, lifting my chin. Butterflies dance, fluttering in my stomach and making me want to vomit, but I need to know. Tucker’s face is drawn and frustration shines in his eyes. He opens his mouth to speak, his eyes darting between me and Jeremy. “It’s okay. He knows everything.”
“Actually, someone left Arden a threat today. We were going to call you and Kenna,” Jeremy interjects. Shit. We should have done that already. Tucker’s jaw clenches hard, his nostrils flaring.
“Fuck. Okay,” he replies. “Well, the first thing is—Arden, your twat-waffle of an ex-husband is in town. He’s insisting that we arrest you for child endangerment. Apparently, he knows about Theo getting lost, and now I have to give you these bullshit papers.”
