“Okay, are all the doors locked up?”
“Yes.”
She is freaking me out, and now I’m freaking myself out. I double-checked the back door, and it’s locked too. Never have I been afraid to be here when the salon closes, but tonight, I’m scared. He’s like a loose cannon ready to blow. There have been so many other incidents that have driven him out of control. I’m afraid this will bring everything to a head, and frankly, I can’t take it anymore. I need to get out of this relationship. It isn’t healthy, and I shouldn’t be feeling afraid of my boyfriend. For the last couple of days, he’s seemed more unhinged than I’ve ever seen him. I’ve asked what’s wrong, but he says nothing. Nothing, my ass.
“Then I’m going to call the police and meet you over there. This is it, Kendall. You’re going to need to end things with him.”
“I know; he’s totally lost it.”
“I want you to take a few seconds to think about this. Do you feel safe?”
“No, but he won’t do anything. Well, I don’t think he will.”
“As your best friend, we aren’t taking any chances on this one.”
Worry takes over, and I decide that I’m barricading myself in one of the back rooms that has a lock and things I can put up against the wall. Staying on the phone with Faith, she connects us to the local police department and tells them what is going on. She requests that they not come screaming into the area with their sirens and lights, but more like a wellness check. We stay on the call with dispatch until the police arrive. Faith is in her car, but she’s waiting until the police approach the situationfirst. She hangs back a couple of streets over, ready to move when they arrive.
The cops confirm it's him in the car, creeping. A part of me was hoping I was wrong, and it wasn’t him. He tells the police he was concerned because it was so late, and I wasn’t picking up his calls or responding to his text messages. That is a complete lie. I answered his text messages. I told him I couldn’t talk because I was finishing my client's hair. But he incessantly called, so finally I excused myself to answer him.
Thankfully, Faith is with me. Jake eyes us both, and it feels like he is going to lose it. But I know him; he won't do it in front of anyone, especially the police. The chill down my spine and the nausea that is rolling up my throat tell me everything I need to know.
Someone knocks on the door. I jump back and scream. Dropping the broom on the floor and clenching my chest, I look at the door. It’s just my girlfriends. They are here to help put the finishing touches on the spa. And I may have promised them some champagne.
“Why are you screaming?” Faith says.
“I locked up, and the whole Jake situation popped into my head.” I rolled my eyes at how I had let him into my life so easily and had no clue who he really was.
“He was a manipulative asshole. You haven’t heard from him, right?” Faith asks skeptically.
“No, nothing like that.” I wave my hand. “I don’t want to dwell on him anymore.”
“Understandable.” Faith hugs me. “So, tell me something good that happened today. You’ve been on a streak.”
“Well…Dane texted and asked to take me on a date again.”
“And you said…” Addison leans in. “Yes?”
“I said yes, but not until Sunday. I have way too many loose ends to wrap up going into the weekend.”
“You finally said yes. That guy must really want to take you to dinner.” Lane drops into the seat by the window.
I tell them about the text messages, and they want to see for themselves, so I pass my phone around.
As the heat radiates through my body, I cross my legs, thinking about him.
“Listen, I’m not even sure I made the right decision in saying yes to dinner. I don’t have time for a guy.”
“I don’t know; you light up when you talk about him. It’s been a while since you talked about a guy like this, really any guy.” Faith chuckles and stares, waiting for me to say something.
And I break instantly. “There was an instant attraction to him, and a night that I’ll never forget. It took everything I had last week to say no to him for dinner. I was ready to drop everything and have dinner. But the spa took priority. He consumes me with this magnetic pull to him, like I’m tethered to him. Text messaging…it’s fun.”
“We can see how much fun you two were having.” Addison wiggles her eyebrows dramatically at me.
“Hence, the reason I can’t say no, but I have a ton of stuff to accomplish here, or I’ll have to cancel.”
They all yell at once. “No.”
“No, you will not.” Addison wags her finger at me. “No matter what, you made the decision. Now you follow through and have some fun.”
