Page 1 of Knot Enough
ONE
The familiarthunkof the iron doorknob bashed into the wall.
I jolted upright in bed, my senses on high alert as I squinted into the darkness. That fucking sound!
What couldn’t wait until morning?
A shadowed figure stood at the foot of my bed. I yanked the blanket over my boobs.
“What the fuck?”
Was Valerie going through my thingsagain?
I blinked a few times, my vision gradually adjusting . . . The housekeeper came into focus, and my shoulders sagged in relief. I reached over to the nightstand and pulled the chain to flood light into the room since the beam filtering through the curtains wasn’t enough to see.
“What are you doing?” She turned quickly, shoving her hand back into her apron. A strand of her bright red hair escaped her bun.
“Apologies, Ms. Noa, I didn’t mean to wake you, but your mother insisted I bring the boxes up.” The lines bracketing her mouth deepened with her frown.
“It’s all right.” I stifled a yawn. “It’s not your fault, Tams. Did she tell you why?”
“No, miss,” she hesitated before continuing. “They’re downstairs having breakfast.”
An ache bloomed in my stomach. They were having breakfast, which was nothing new, but being left out for the umpteenth time still stung.
Tams siddled toward the door.
“Wait! Can you toss me my pills before you go?”
“Yes, miss.” In two strides, she had the orange container in hand and strode over to my bedside. I kept the blanket tucked under my armpits and plucked it from her grip.
“Thank you,” I murmured, watching her leave. I didn’t release the blanket until she was gone, letting my girls have freedom.
You’d think that with them charging me rent, it would allow me a smidge of privacy, but here I was. With my measly check as a dog walker, I barely covered the rent of the ten-by-ten bedroom. But I should be grateful, I’d have to pay three times as much on my own, and I wouldn’t be able to afford it.
I popped the cap of my pills, peeking inside the tube. Five . . . Seven . . . Uhg. I had seven pills left. That meant refill time, and Valerie wasn’t going to make it easy for me after I’d accidentally bleached her favorite shirt.
But I couldn’t go without my depressy pills. With the container tipped over, I wiggled one of the little white pills into my palm and tossed it back, swallowing it down with a gulp.
I would have to get in her good graces before asking her to get them.
Depression was a bitch.
The residual sensation after taking a pill without water settled in my throat. I tossed the blanket aside and threw my legs over the edge of the bed.
A cramp assaulted my stomach. I needed to get downstairs to put something in my belly, or the pill would make me vomit.
Hopefully, everyone had left the kitchen, and Bear, Valerie’s damn pomeranian, had left me some scraps.
I slid my feet into my slippers and sluggishly shuffled to the dresser to pull out a bra.
My hair had dried in waves around my shoulders, as it liked to do after I fell asleep with my hair wet. I finished getting dressed in jeans and a t-shirt. Breathing in sharply, I straightened my shoulders, preparing myself for whatever comments would be directed my way.
Please, God, let them not still be in the kitchen.
When all three of them were in the same room, they were insufferable.
My jeans snagged the box on my way to the door. The last time Tam was ordered to put boxes in my room, I’d been forced to move bedrooms. I had a bad feeling this wouldn’t be good. They were always renovating this place; the latest project had been a pool.
