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“I know you want to believe that, sweetie,” Tracy interrupted. “But if you’re having any doubts at all, you need to keep your distance. Your job’s too important to risk over some man.”
Sabrina closed her eyes, conflicting emotions warring within her. Part of her wanted to defend Freddy, to explain how different he was from her father. But it didn’t matter, did it?
“I’m coming home, Ma,” she finally admitted, her voice barely above a whisper. “I’ve only got a few days of work left, and it’ll be easier for us to rebuild together.”
“What?” Tracy asked softly. “You swore you would never be back, and you’ve been doing so well. I don’t understand.”
“I can’t talk about this right now. Can we just get everything sorted out, so you have clothes and a place to stay?”
“I suppose, but I don’t like that you’re running away from whatever the problem is. That’s not how we work, and you know it.”
“I’m not running away. I’m making the smart and responsible choice.”
“Hmm.” Ma didn’t believe her, but she would stop arguing for now.
As they delved back into practical matters, Sabrina pushed thoughts of Freddy to the back of her mind. She had responsibilities and people counting on her. She couldn’t afford to let her heart lead her astray.
She ended their call with a list of action items and organizations to call. Ma had her own errands to run. She was taking care of things that must be handled in person, while Sabrina made phone calls and filled out paperwork.
As the day wore on, Sabrina’s thoughts drifted to Freddy, to the tenderness of his touch and the comfort of his presence. She longed to call him, to hear his voice and feel his steadiness grounding her.
But she resisted the urge, reminding herself of the boundaries she needed to maintain. Last night was a moment of weakness, a temporary respite from the harsh realities of her life. She couldn’t afford to blur those lines again, or she’d never have the strength to leave.
Chapter 21: Freddy
Freddy woke to the sound of his phone alerting him that Patrick was calling. As he answered, he stretched naked between the sheets and wondered if Sabrina had started the coffee. They needed to talk, but it would have to wait until he got back from today’s meetings.
“What’s up?” he answered.
“What the fuck did you do?” Patrick asked.
Bolting upright, Freddy noticed the deep silence of his house for the first time that morning. The place felt cold, like it used to before. “What do you mean?” he asked as dread filled his core.
“Holly just helped Sabrina move into one of the spare rooms here.”
“What the fuck? No, she’s staying here.”
“You sure about that?” his brother asked.
Freddy leaped from his bed and tore down the hall to check Sabrina’s room, uncaring that he was bare-ass naked. Her door was open, and the room was empty. He might have thought everything was just put away neatly, but Sabrina always kept her personal laptop on the table by her bed. “Oh fuck.”
“Yeah, but we don’t have time for the drama right now, because we need to leave in less than an hour if we’re going to make it to Dynamic Solutions on time, and we really fucking need to be on time today. You can bitch and moan about how stupid you are during the two-hour drive.”
Patrick hung up before Freddy could respond.
He checked the rest of the house and found her computers still set up in his office, but everything else was gone. He’d just started pulling on pants after deciding to say screw the meeting and go up to HQ to talk to Sabrina when his phone chimed with a text.
Sabrina: Sorry i left without talking but its best. Good luck at the meeting today. Text me how it goes.
Freddy swallowed the bile rising in his throat. He didn’t want to do this today, but Sabrina would kill him if he skipped the meeting. Worse, there’d be no one there to defend her. In fact, now that he was thinking it through, going to the meeting and showing how he’d stand up for her and secure her job might be the best way to prove to her that staying here was the smarter choice. He replied to her message.
Freddy: I’ll text you as soon as its done.
Then he pulled up his brother’s number and texted Patrick.
Freddy: I’m driving myself. Wont be late. See you there.
Freddy’s shoulders sagged with relief as he exited the Dynamic Solutions building. The meeting had been tense, with accusations flying and tempers flaring. Patrick’s passionate defense of Taylor Industries’ security measures had been impressive, but it was Freddy’s own assertion that seemed to finally convince the DS executives.
