Letting out a sigh, I go to press down on her name just as a new text comes through from a private number. I usually delete random texts the majority of the time. They’re generally men living in their mother’s basement, hoping I would want to be a sugar baby, despite not having a single cent to their name. Either that or an Egyptian prince who wants to make me his wife, but in order for him to share all of his wealth, I’d first need to give him access to my bank account.
Or feet pics. Men always seem to ask me for feet pics. And I won’t lie, pure boredom has seen me paint my toenails and put on one hell of a foot photo shoot. Fucker never even paid me for it, but that’s what I get for sending the goods before asking for payment.
Something twists in the pit of my gut, and instead of swiping the notification away, I find myself pressing on it and opening the new text.
Well, fuck.
7
HARPER-RAYN
Astupid smile plays on my lips as I pull my scrub top down into place while watching Knight behind me in the reflection of our bathroom mirror. Today is the day. My house arrest is officially over, and I’ve finally been cleared to head back to work.
Okay, house arrest is probably a little dramatic. It really wasn’t that bad, and it’s not as though I wasn’t allowed to leave the house; Knight just made sure I didn’t have to. Anything I needed, he made sure to have it here for me. He was the perfect, delicious prison guard, though I doubt actual prisoners are getting the type of benefits I was getting during my lockup.
“Are you sure you’re ready for this?” Knight murmurs, watching me dress.
“I’ll be fine,” I tell him, turning on my heel and walking straight into his open arms. “Amelia cleared me to work, and you know she wouldn’t have done that unless she was absolutelysure. Besides, most of my shift is going to be catching up on reports. I’ll only be on my feet for a little while, and if it gets to be too much, I’ll sit my ass back down. It’s not a big deal.”
Knight gives me a blank stare. “It sure as fuck is a big deal, and you know damn well that being on your feet isn’t what’s got me worried,” he reminds me. “We haven’t caught this fucker yet. There’s nothing stopping him from coming back and finishing what he started.”
“I’ll be okay,” I tell him, already having had this argument out a few times over the past couple days. “I’ll have the hospital security walk me out to my car, and if for whatever reason the security guard is a dickhead and won’t do it, I’ll call you to personally escort my ass out to my car. I’ll be safe, Knight. You don’t need to worry about me.”
He scoffs. “You’re asking for the impossible, doll. I can’t help but worry about you, especially considering every damn phone call I get seems to be someone telling me that you’re being rushed into emergency surgery,” he mutters. “I might as well wrap you in Bubble Wrap and chain you to my bed.”
“Switch out the Bubble Wrap for skimpy lingerie, and you’ve got yourself a deal.”
Knight smirks, and I push up onto my tippy toes to press a kiss to his lips, but he’s so damn tall that he has to wind his arms around my waist and lift me off my feet just so I can reach. I give him a quick kiss, and before I know it, I’m back on my feet, making my way up the hallway as a deep excitement pulses through my veins.
My work is my life. It’s part of my identity and gives me something to be proud of. It makes me feel as though I’m doing something good in the world, and without it, I’d feel empty. Knight knows this. It’s the same with his job, which is why he isn’t putting up more of a fight.
Reaching the front door, I pause and glance back, a smile lingering on my lips. “I’ll be home just after four.”
“Try not to get yourself killed.”
I salute him but can’t help the stupid smile that stretches across my lips. “Yes, sir. Bossy, sir.”
Knight shakes his head, fighting a grin. “Get the fuck out of here before you make yourself late.”
“And if I don’t?” I ask, hunger pooling deep in my core as I watch him watching me. “Are you going to punish me? Whip that belt off and teach me a lesson?”
“Don’t fucking tempt me, Morticia.”
Laughter tears from deep in my chest as I step out of the house and happily make my way to my old Honda that’s been living at the top of the driveway, completely untouched for the past four weeks.
I climb in, and just as Knight had so politely requested, I get my ass to work, because it’s one thing for him to want me to take time off to heal, but if I say I’m going to show up at work and make a commitment to my team, then he’ll walk through the darkest pits of hell to ensure I keep my word.
It’s a quick drive to the hospital, and I spend every minute of it singing along to whatever’s being played through my speakers, and truth be told, I sound more like a screeching cat with rabies trying to resurrect the dead, but I’m having a good time all the same. That is until I turn into the hospital parking garage, and my good mood suddenly falters.
I haven’t been here since the attack, and because I’ve been so focused on how great it’d be to get out of the house and back to work, I didn’t take a moment to consider how it’d feel being back in this parking garage. I didn’t realize I was the type to hold on to my trauma like this. I always thought I was the chin-up kinda girl, the one who didn’t let things weigh her down, but thedeeper I get into the parking garage, the harder it gets to keep going.
I find myself searching every dark corner, wondering if my attacker is waiting for me behind one of my colleagues’ cars, wanting to finish what he started, and as I reach the third floor and drive straight past the dark stain left on the dirty ground, a chill sweeps through my body.
I might be physically ready to go back to work, but it’s becoming more than clear that maybe I’m not mentally ready for this.
My chest heaves with shallow breaths as I finally find a parking space, and I quickly pull into it before looking around again. There are a few people wandering around, locking up their cars and striding toward the stairwell to start their shift, and as I watch them, my heart calms. These people are witnesses, and while they’re here, nothing could possibly happen to me.
I’m safe.
