28. 28
28
B onnie didn’t know how long she stood at the window, watching and wondering what was happening. When Corey came walking up the road, looking unhurt and whole, a wave of relief so strong it nearly took her to her knees washed through her.
She stepped back, letting the curtain fall back into place and took a deep breath. She really needed to worry less but she couldn’t help it. Even if it hadn’t been her at risk, it had been Corey and that was enough to make her stomach churn. Now, she hurried to the bedroom to change out of her work clothes, hoping maybe he wouldn’t realize she’d been waiting at the window for him.
By the time she returned to the main room, Corey had come inside. He sat on the sofa, one ankle resting on the other knee and his head dropped back against the sofa, making it look like he stared up at the ceiling. Or would be if his eyes weren’t closed.
She approached him, closing the distance until she stood in front of him, looking down at him and wondering what she should say. Was thank you enough? Had she already said it too much?
“He left, sweetness, have a seat and relax,” Corey said without even lifting his head.
“How did you know I was standing here.”
“I heard you walk up. and I could hear you breathing while you stood there, that’s how I knew you weren’t moving.” He lifted a hand toward her. “Sit down with me for a bit. Then we’ll go up for dinner.”
She tilted her head as she looked at him for a moment, taking in what he wore. He’d already changed out of his work clothes. He’d been waiting for her to get home when she’d called him.
She took his hand and sat, curling against his side as he wrapped his arm around her and tugged her close.
“What happened?” she asked after a moment of struggling with herself. Did she really want to know? Yes. She needed to, if she had any hope of moving on with her life.
“He demanded to see you. Said you were his, same old bull shit. We stood at a stand off for a few minutes and he eventually left.”
“That’s all?”
“That’s all.”
“But what if he’d refused to leave. What would you have done? What if he’d gotten violent or tried to hurt you?”
Corey took a deep breath before speaking. “Sweetness, I wasn’t out there alone. If he’d gotten past me, and that’s a big if, he still wouldn’t have made it here because my brothers wouldn’t let him.”
Bonnie thought about that for a minute. It hadn’t occurred to her that he’d called the others to confront Phillip with him. Knowing he hadn’t been alone made her feel better. If something had happened, at least they would have known and could have taken care of him. Still, she hated putting him at risk like that.
But had he been at risk? She remembered the way Phillip had backed down nearly as soon as Corey had confronted him outside that little diner. Was it only her he didn’t mind getting physical with? Was she the weak one here? Should she be more aggressive and fight back more? Was this her fault? Had she done something to cause Phillip to do this?
“Stop over thinking things, sweetness.” The arm wrapped around her tightened as he dropped a gentle kiss on top of her head.
Had she been so lost in her own thoughts and worries that she’d missed him moving? Missed him lifting his head and watching her?
“Come on, let’s talk about something other than that stupid fucker. How was your day at work?”
She shrugged and told him about her day. After a few minutes, she was able to take a deep breath and push her worries about Phillip from her mind. Not that she forgot about him, but she wasn’t going to let him rule her thoughts every minute. And now that she was here for the evening, and knew she was safe, he didn’t get any more time in her head.
A hand covered her mouth, keeping her from breathing. Bonnie struggled, trying to get free but something wrapped around her chest kept her from moving and made it hard to take more than a shallow breath when she was able to struggle enough to dislodge the hand so she could try to breathe. It felt like she was tied down, but how did she get here? Where was she?
She continued to struggle as her brain tried to reconcile where she was and how she’d gotten here.
“Bonnie,” Phillip’s voice taunted her as she struggled to breathe.
“Bonnie,” the voice changed.
She knew she should recognize it but couldn’t place it, not while she struggled to get enough oxygen.
“Bonnie, wake up.”
Wake up? Was she dreaming? As soon as she realized she was dreaming, her eyes snapped open. The hand on her face vanished, but she could still feel where it had been pressed so tightly against her face. She took a deep breath and let it out, then another.
“Are you okay?” the voice that had woken her spoke again. This time she had no trouble recognizing it as Corey.
She turned her head to find he lay on his side, watching her, his face creased with concern. “I think so. Did you wake me up?” She glanced toward the window where the nearly full moon was visible, giving her enough light to see his face, though dimly.
“I did. You were struggling and I thought you were going to hurt yourself.”
“I’m sorry. I was dreaming.”
“It didn’t look like a very pleasant dream.”
“It wasn’t.” She took another deep breath and snuggled against Corey, enjoying the warmth that seeped into her and helped her relax. “I think it was seeing Phillip today.”
“Would it help to talk about it?”
She stared at the dark ceiling as she tried to put what she was thinking and feeling into words. “I dreamed I was trapped, being held hostage by Phillip. It was just an unpleasant dream until he covered my mouth. Then I don’t know if something was making it hard for me to really breathe, or if it was just part of the dream, but I couldn’t breathe, and it made me panic.”
“I could see you fighting something, and it took me a bit to wake you, but I’m glad I did.” He stretched one arm across her belly and tugged her closer against him. “I hate that seeing him, even from a distance, does this to you.”
She turned and watched him for a moment in the pale glow of the moon. She didn’t want to think about how much worse her dreams might have been if she’d actually had to talk to or confront her ex.
“I’m glad you ran him off. I just wish he would take a hint or even blatantly being told I don’t want to see him, as the truth and would leave me alone.”
“I’m starting to think it may take a clue-by-four upside the head or maybe a long drive over a steep cliff to get him to see reason.”
Bonnie opened her mouth to respond, then Corey’s words sank in and all she could do was stare at him, open mouthed. Had that been a joke? She couldn’t decide from the look on his face if he was serious or not. Did he really think it would take violence or even Phillip’s death to get him to leave her alone? She didn’t know what to say and finally closed her mouth without saying anything. Instead she moved closer to him, rolling up on her side so he stretched along her back. His arm wrapped around her, making her feel safe and protected.
She wondered if she should say something, anything but before she could find the words, sleep once more overtook her.