Chapter 5
CHAPTER FIVE
Angelica lay on the bed in Whip Johansen’s guest room and stared at the ceiling.
The sun was coming through the edges of the curtain over the window, and Mittens was lying next to her hip, purring and snoring.
She couldn’t remember the last time she’d woken up and simply lain in bed.
Usually she leapt up to get Dwayne’s breakfast started.
To do laundry. Clean. Something. To look busy so her husband wouldn’t scream at her for being a lazy bitch.
The house was quiet. It didn’t seem as if Whip was awake yet, and she didn’t think he’d expect her to do any kind of chores. At least not this morning.
But it was the feeling of…safety, that had her almost wanting to cry.
When was the last time she’d felt this way?
Angelica couldn’t remember. She’d been going through the motions of living for so long.
Scared of her husband, but more scared to leave.
There was no doubt Dwayne would be next-level furious with her.
No doubt that getting beaten up by Whip—twice—would’ve just inflamed him further.
He wasn’t going to give her up easily. Angelica knew that as well as she knew anything.
She wanted to believe Whip could keep her safe, but he didn’t know her husband like she did.
Dwayne would bide his time. Wait for her to let down her guard.
Then he’d strike. It was only a matter of time before he made her pay for those beatings.
Before he acted on the threat he used all the time—that if he couldn’t have her, no one could.
It was cliché, but Dwayne believed it down to his very bones. She was nothing but a possession. She didn’t think he ever really loved her. Or even liked her all that much. She was a conquest. And once he’d “won” her, his true colors showed through loud and clear.
The beating he gave her on their wedding night, when she wasn’t as enthusiastic in bed as he’d thought she should be, was a clear sign of what her future held. She’d made a mistake in marrying him, but at that point, she was already trapped. It was too late to take it back.
Angelica sighed. Rehashing her life with Dwayne wasn’t how she wanted to start her day. She and her babies were safe, thanks to Whip.
She’d heard rumors about him. In the grocery store, people openly talked about him behind his back.
How much of a jerk he was. How they wished The Cellar would fail and he’d leave town.
She hadn’t given him a thought then—she’d had her own worries—but Angelica couldn’t help thinking about his reputation now.
It seemed to her that he had a shield around him about three feet thick.
He didn’t let anyone in. Didn’t seem to care what the locals said or thought.
Which, honestly, Angelica found awesome.
He was mean looking, and tough, and definitely not someone to screw with.
He hadn’t hesitated to beat the crap out of Dwayne, and she had a feeling he wouldn’t have cared if he’d killed him last night.
She should be terrified of him.
But she wasn’t.
The second he’d heard she had two cats at home that she was worried about, he’d practically thrown her into his truck and rushed off to rescue them.
And Kevin had gone to him! That in itself was a huge plus in Angelica’s book.
Kevin hated everyone. And yet, he’d not only gone to Whip, the cat had willingly let him pick him up.
And Angelica had seen him with Luna. The cat wasn’t pretty, but Whip had looked at her as if she was the most precious thing in the world.
The man had depths that were intriguing.
And he hadn’t hurt her. Had kept her safe.
Fed her. Parked in a lot at a business with a camera to make her feel better about him stopping to talk to her.
Had given her a place to stay without strings…
so far. She’d have to see if that changed in the light of day.
Whip was an interesting man, and as she lay there, Angelica realized once more that she was attracted to him. She was married. She couldn’t get involved with anyone right now. Hell, she didn’t want to be in another relationship, like, ever.
And yet, she couldn’t stop thinking about Whip.
Crap.
Moving carefully so she didn’t disturb Mittens, Angelica sat up.
She needed to plug in her computer and get to work.
She didn’t have set hours but was expected to work exactly twenty-nine hours a week.
She wasn’t allowed to work more than that because that would make her eligible for health insurance, and then the company would have to pay her more.
She wanted that, wanted the security that came with a full-time job, but that wasn’t in the cards right now.
Sighing, Angelica thought the hill she had to climb to get back on her feet seemed overwhelming, but she forced that thought away.
One day at a time. That’s all she could do.
One minute at a time. The future was big, scary, and uncertain, and she didn’t want to think about the first time she’d come face-to-face with Dwayne again.
Shivering, she went over to her suitcase on the floor and rummaged through it before pulling out a pair of jeans and a T-shirt, as well as clean underthings. Nothing fancy, but then again, she didn’t own anything fancy. She slowly opened the door and peered out. It was quiet and still.
Tiptoeing down the hall to the bathroom, she let out the breath she’d been holding as she shut and locked the door behind her. She didn’t think Whip was the kind of man to barge in on her when she was naked in the shower, but then again, she didn’t really know him.
A little voice in the back of her mind argued against that. She knew him. He wouldn’t have gone to the lengths he had last night—rather, this morning—to make her feel comfortable and safe, only to lose his mind and assault her while she was in the shower.
She felt much better by the time she was clean, dressed, and her teeth were brushed.
She brought her dirty clothes back to her room to find Mittens had left the bed.
Angelica wandered back into the living area of the smallish house—and stopped in her tracks when she saw five cats lined up, staring at her expectedly.
She knew what Mittens and Kevin wanted, and assumed the other three were the same. “Let me guess, you guys are hungry, right?”
All five cats tilted their heads at the sound of her voice.
Angelica chuckled. “Right. Let me see if I can find your food.”
Feeling as if she was trespassing, she opened a few cabinets until she found what she was looking for.
There were tons of cat food cans—the good stuff, not the cheap crap she’d been buying—and a bag of dry kibble.
Not sure exactly how Whip fed his cats, she mentally shrugged and got to work mixing some of the dry nuggets in with the wet stuff, hoping he wouldn’t be mad at her if she was feeding his babies wrong, or for going through his cabinets.
Angelica put the plates of food on the floor and all five cats immediately dug in. She stood there for a moment with a small smile on her face, watching them eat. She was so very glad that Mittens and Kevin were all right. Thinking about what Dwayne had planned for them made her shudder.
If she hadn’t gotten there when she had…
Shutting out the thought, Angelica turned back to the counter and the coffeemaker.
She’d seen the coffee while looking for the cat food, and now she busied herself with brewing a pot.
Whip had several flavors to choose from, and she opted for a roasted vanilla medium brew.
It didn’t take long for the cats to finish their meals, so while the coffee was brewing, she picked up the plates and rinsed them off, refilled the water bowls, and set about checking and cleaning out the four litter boxes she’d noticed scattered around the house.
It felt like the least she could do. Besides, she was used to being busy. And taking care of the cats was second nature.
The coffee was done by the time she went back into the kitchen, and she poured herself a large mug before wandering over to the back door that led out onto a large wooden deck.
Whip’s house was at the edge of a small neighborhood on the outskirts of Fallport, and there were no houses behind his property. Just trees as far as she could see.
She stood at the door, staring into the woods, lost in her head. She needed to log in and start making some calls, but she didn’t want to do anything that might wake up Whip. And she certainly didn’t want to irritate him.
The man was a stranger to her. Yes, he’d been nothing but considerate and had gone way out of his way to make her feel safe, but she didn’t know if he was a jerk when he first woke up, if he’d already regret inviting her to stay with him, or if all the rumors she’d heard about him would override the kind things he’d done for her last night.
As if thinking about the man conjured him up, Angelica heard a door behind her open.
She quickly turned, knowing better than to keep her back to any man.
Whip burst into the room, as if he was panicked about something.
The second he saw her, he stilled. He stared at her for a long moment. Long enough to make Angelica extremely nervous. The coffee in her belly churned as she waited to see what kind of mood he’d be in.
“Morning,” he grunted, then looked around the room.
His gaze landed on the cats, lying in various places around the kitchen and adjoining living room.
Some were sleeping, others were grooming themselves.
Simba was playing with a small stuffed mouse, batting it around on the floor, then pouncing on it.
“You fed them?”
The churning in her stomach increased, and she prayed she wouldn’t barf all over the floor at her feet. She nodded.
“Thanks. Mine can be assholes if they don’t get their food exactly when they want it. You find everything all right?”