Speaking of voices, and of Huntley, I could practically hear him before he left that evening when he said to call him, a huge smile on his face, and then admitted he liked hearing my voice. I’d told him I had thought I could manage that.
Turning onto my side, I grabbed my cell off the nightstand where I had set it before climbing into bed. I looked atthe time and hemmed and hawed whether it was too late to make the call. Of course it was, it was ten minutes shy of midnight.
I heard him again in my head.I told you before, sweetheart, you are never a bother and I meant it.
Knowing somehow that I’d never sleep until I heard his voice, I hoped he meant what he said, and I dialed.
“Hey, Warrior,” he answered.
“Hi. I’m sorry it’s so late. I just wanted…”
Shutting up before I embarrassed myself, I let the sentence hang in the air. I should have known he’d pick up what I was thinking.
“Me too, sweetheart. I’ve been waiting to hear your voice all night.”
How in the world does he do that?
After a minute of silence, he asked, “Are you okay?”
Not really, but unable to tell him what I’d spoken with Lake about, and too raw from the conversation with her as well as the kids, I found myself asking him a question I should have probably kept to myself.
“Is it bad parenting if I wanted to high five Lennon for slugging the little shit who put his hands on my daughter without permission?”
A feral growl came through the phone and instead of alarming me, it made me smile.
“Hell no,” he said. “I mean, I’m not a parent so I don’t know the protocol here, but I’d probably have given him more than a high five. I think it’s natural to feel that way.”
Another beat of silence past.
“Nobody has a right to touch someone without permission or without knowing that the person wants to be touched.”
It was as if he was speaking to me, not about Bre.
“I’m so tired,” I found myself saying, the events of the daysinking in even more. “Between the thing with Bre and my conversation with Lake, I feel broken.”
Shocked that I admitted that to him, I sucked in a surprised breath.
“What can I do to help?”
I bit my lip, scared to ask for what I really wanted.
“Anything,” he said.
Releasing my lip before I drew blood, I summoned all the courage I could. “Will you stay on the phone with me while I try to fall asleep?”
I wanted to pull the ridiculous words back as soon as they left my mouth. And what if he said no?
“Of course I will, sweetheart.”
“Really?” I couldn’t believe he agreed to such a crazy request.
“I’m right here,” he said in a soothing voice. “Go to sleep, Warrior.”
Miraculously I did just that.
Chapter Twelve
HUNTLEY
