Chapter 6
CHAPTER
SIX
Olivia
To say my heart was in my throat when I woke up and didn’t find Theo in the borrowed crib is an understatement.
Every single second since he was born, I’ve been the one to take care of his needs.
While part of me realized he wasn’t kidnapped, fear of what Jasper might do if he ever finds me has me running downstairs for help.
So, for me to see BamBam sitting in a well-worn recliner feeding Theo as if it’s a regular occurrence, it takes me a few minutes to calm down.
Entering the kitchen, I’m beyond impressed.
While there’s a couple of huge tables with enough chairs to ensure everyone has a spot, the area where the refrigerators and stoves, yes plural for both, is better than what the diner I worked at had, and that’s saying something considering they had the finer equipment.
I meander over to the refrigerator and open it, unsurprised to find a container with my name scrawled on it in precise, neat handwriting.
Somehow, I instinctively know it’s from Constance, which is confirmed when I read the note.
Olivia,
I’m sure you’re starving by now. Doc said you should be okay to eat this; it’s a simple homemade chicken pot pie.
All you have to do is reheat it for no more than five minutes.
The microwave can be finicky, just yell at it like Maria, Millie, and I do!
Breakfast will be around seven in the morning, although the ranch hands get an earlier start.
Will see you in the morning.
Constance
Looking around, I spot the microwave and giggle because it’s the biggest one I’ve ever seen.
I take the top off the container, slip it inside, then set the timer.
While it heats up my food, I search the drawers for some silverware, then grab a bottle of water from the fridge.
By the time the timer goes off and my food is warm, I’m salivating over the smells.
Grabbing a potholder that’s sitting next to the microwave, I carefully remove the steaming pot pie and carry it over to the table.
“God, this smells so freaking good,” I mumble to myself as I break it apart using my fork. There are salt and pepper containers evenly spaced down the table I’m at, but I’m going to wait to add anything until I’ve had a taste.
After opening my water, I take a few sips since my mouth is dry from whatever Doc prescribed. I won’t complain, though, because the nap I took was some of the best sleep I’ve had in years.
“Of course, it was, you ninny. You didn’t have to sleep with one eye open,” I say as I bring a forkful of the pie to my mouth. “Holy smokes, this is good!”
The crust, one of my favorite parts, is light, flaky, and fluffy, and the inside is perfectly seasoned, with good sized chunks of chicken, potatoes, peas, and carrots. Hands down, it makes the frozen ones seem like they’re little more than cardboard.
I’m so lost in my head as I eat that I don’t hear BamBam and Theo come in until the refrigerator door opens and closes. Looking up, I see my boy cuddled against BamBam’s impressive chest as the man himself makes his way to me with two bottles of water in his hand.
“Figured you might want a second bottle,” he says, sitting down across from me. “He’s a good eater, isn’t he?” he asks.
“He acts like every bottle is the only one he’s ever had,” I admit. “I think food will be his love language.”
BamBam barks out a laugh, causing Theo to shift in his arms before he settles once again. “I changed him when he woke up, then when he wouldn’t calm down, I figured out he was hungry. I’m sorry it scared you.”
“It’s okay,” I reply, “I guess my inner clock decided he should’ve woken up and when I went to check, he wasn’t there. He’s been my tether ever since I found out I was pregnant.”
“Tethers are good things,” he slowly replies.
I can tell he’s being careful with not only his words, but how he moves.
Probably so he doesn’t spook me. Can’t say I blame him; I’m wound pretty tight right now.
While it’s kind of embarrassing that when we met on that desolate highway, I was literally at my absolute worst, I instinctively know that as abrasive and brash as he comes across, he’ll never hurt me.
He’s a wide-open book as far as his intentions go if that makes any sense.
Granted, I’m definitely not planning to try and figure it out. Hell, I chose Jasper for heaven’s sake, so what does that say about me?
“It says that you were likely in a vulnerable position, and he took advantage of that fact,” BamBam says, causing me to realize that I spoke out loud. Seems to be a running trend between me and him.
“I guess it’s my turn to spew my inner thoughts,” I murmur, voicing my internal thoughts. “But looking at things from that perspective, I think you’re right.”
“Livy, why did you stay?” he asks.
And… there’s a question for the ages. “I think at first I was still in so much shock that my parents were gone that I didn’t recognize a lot of the red flags,” I admit.
“By the time they were glaringly obvious, I found out I was pregnant. Who would hire a pregnant woman knowing that she’d have to take time off?
I mean, I worked at the local diner, of course, but there was no way I could’ve left him and stayed in that town without repercussions. I was well and truly stuck.”
“But he had already started hitting you?” His voice is cautious when he asks, as though he’s afraid I might bolt.
I can’t speak beyond the lump in my throat so instead, I nod.
Glancing down at the container of food I’ve been steadily eating, I’m unsurprised to find that I’ve eaten every last bite.
Since I can’t face him as I talk, I carry my dirty dish and fork over to the sink so I can rinse them and put them in the dishwasher.
With my back now to him, I say, “It was little stuff at first. The first time it happened, he apologized profusely and blamed the fact that he had just lost his job for his bad mood. Alcohol made it worse, of course, so I quickly became proficient in reading the signs, so I’d know if I was going to have a good night or a horrible one. ”
Shame courses through me. Even though by then I no longer had a vehicle, I’m pretty sure I could’ve found help. Of course, by the time it all really hit the fan, I think I was just so beaten down, I had begun to believe the lies he spun.
“It’s your fault that I do this, Olivia. If you’d just do what I said, I wouldn’t have to correct your behavior.” Whispers from the past flash through my mind
Strong arms band around me and while I know they’re BamBam’s, I still jolt as fear rolls through me. My vulnerability was used against me time and again by Jasper, who often approached me the same way. “Shh, it’s okay, Livy, it’s just me,” he murmurs as I continue to be caught in a grip of terror.
“I-I-I’m sorry,” I stammer. I’m so embarrassed at my behavior right now, I can feel my cheeks heating up.
“Nothing to be sorry for, Pixie,” he quietly replies. “C’mon now, little man is snoozing again, how about we go back upstairs so you can take something for the pain and get some more rest?”
I huff out a laugh as his voice centers me.
I’m not in the small kitchen that was the scene of so many of my nightmares.
No, I’m in an industrial sized one that belongs to an outlaw motorcycle club, yet still gives off an almost homey vibe.
He must sense I’m ready to move because he steps back, and I immediately miss his secure arms being around me.
Grabbing my second bottle of water, I follow behind him as we return to the room that was prepared for Theo and me, where I watch as he gets my baby settled while I open the bottle of painkillers that Mongrel brought back from the pharmacy for me and shake one out.
Swallowing it down, I don’t miss BamBam nodding his head toward the bed as if to tell me to climb back in and rest.
“Bet you never thought your day was going to end up the way it did yesterday,” I say as I get settled under the covers while he returns to sit in the recliner. “You don’t have to stay, BamBam, I can take care of Theo.”
“I don’t mind staying, Livy, so you can get some sleep. How else are you going to heal?” he asks.
“Same way I always did before,” I admit, shrugging. Okay, that particular movement hurt, probably because my arm is throbbing, and I carried a backpack over my shoulders and Theo on my front in a swaddle.
He makes what sounds like a growling noise but when I look over at him, his face is carefully masked.
I have no clue how strong the pill is that I just took, all I know is while I want to respond, I find myself sliding into darkness as sleep rushes up to claim me.
I’m knocked out so quickly, I don’t hear him say, “You don’t have to do things on your own any longer. ”