Page 20 of No Fear
“Uh… it’s not much.” He forced himself to release her hand so they could both step out of the car. “In all honesty, it’s kind of a mess.”
“I don’t mind.” Rachel shrugged, “I’m sure it can’t be any worse than mine.”
“Right. Yeah, you’ve got a place over in the park right?”
“Right.” She followed him as he went to the door and unlocked it. “It was my mom’s. She left it to me when she died. Cancer about five years ago.”
He motioned for her to go inside, “You were sixteen when she died?”
“Yeah.”
“And child protective didn’t get involved? Isn’t your dad in prison?”
Rachel made a strangled sound, “Yeah, well, how do you think I ended up with Craig back in my life?”
He hummed his acknowledgement of that piece of information. Her older half-brother had gotten custody of her probably. She’d been so close to legal age that the system had probably taken one look at an adult sibling, told him to handle her, and never checked on them again. God only knew what she’d had to deal with since if that little scene earlier was any indication.
A dead mother. A father in prison. A brother that ran in the Bomar crew. Jesus, how had she ended up so good and sweet and innocent? It shouldn’t have been possible but he was thankful that she’d survived her horrors. He wasn’t naïve enough to think she wasn’t scarred, wasn’t damaged, but she’d come out the other side and now here she was, with him.
Right where she was supposed to be.
“Uh, have a seat. I recommend the chair. That couch is shit.” He scrubbed his hair, “You want something to drink?”
“N-no thank you.” Rachel twisted her hands in front of her nervously and he resisted the urge to take them and kiss them again.
It was different here. Kissing her here, with his bedroom just down the hallway, it was somehow more intimate. She must have realized that too because he didn’t miss the slight stutter in her words. He didn’t trust himself to touch her with that being the case so he stepped back, away from her, putting more space between them.
“I uh… I’m gonna go take a shower. Need to wash off this night.”
“Yeah, of course. Go.”
“Make yourself comfortable. Help yourself to whatever. I’ll only be a minute and then we can talk.”
Rachel nodded but didn’t move from her spot just inside the door.
Remy forced himself to turn and go down the hallway. It was a two bedroom trailer and he’d taken the master in the back. The spare was completely empty for the time being. He’d have to figure out sleeping arrangements when he got out but for now he was only worried about hurrying through his shower before she freaked out and decided to bolt. The last thing he needed was for her to go running off on Bomar land and end up shot like a trespasser if one of his family members came across her.
After retrieving a clean set of shorts, t-shirt and boxers from his room, Remy ducked into the shower in the hallway. The hot water heater was shit so he always felt like he was racing against the clock to clean up before the stream turned to ice. Tonight though, he rushed through even his normal ritual of scrubbing down and rinsing off.
After what couldn’t have been more than five minutes, Remy snapped off the water and toweled off. He wasn’t going to touch her. Not tonight. But he was going to get some answers.
But after he’d tossed his clothes on, he walked back into the living room and came to a stop. There would be no talking tonight. Not because she’d run like he feared but because she was asleep.
Rachel had taken his order to get comfortable seriously. Her boots were sitting neatly just inside the front door. She had curled up in his big, easy chair and her hands were tucked under her cheek. Her legs were drawn up, as if she’d tried to curl into a ball to protect herself from something and his heart ached at the sight of her there.
Right. Having her here felt so damn right it made his chest hurt. He liked seeing her in his home. He liked her boots sitting beside his at the door. The only way it would feel any more right would be if he could pick her up and carry her to his bed but he knew that was a bad idea.
It was best if he left her here. Safer for both of them that way. He wouldn’t get any lewd ideas about rolling over and touching her in the middle of the night if she wasn’t within reach. Probably. He didn’t want to startle her awake either. He didn’t know enough about who had hurt her, or how, to risk her freaking out if she woke up in a strange bed with someone beside her. He had plenty of his own nightmares that started that way and he wouldn’t add to hers just in case.
Instead he retrieved the blanket off his bed and then draped it over her gently. She stirred softly and muttered his name but didn’t wake up. That ache in his chest became even more pronounced. She was dreaming of him and he could only pray it was a good dream. Taking a chance, he leaned forward and brushed a kiss across her forehead and then pulled away when she didn’t stir again. He could get his answers tomorrow.
“Goodnight baby.”
