We spent the rest of the afternoon in the playroom drawing but Molly wasn’t herself.
I tried to comfort her. "You know sometimes urgent things come up," I said.
She looked up at me with large hopeful eyes and nodded.
I didn’t want to offer her false hope but at the same time, I wanted the forlorn look gone from her face. "Your mom might come tomorrow." I hated myself for saying it. What if she didn't?
She managed the first smile of the afternoon and she went back to coloring.
While Molly was playing, I straightened up the playroom.
My phone vibrated with a message and I smiled as I picked it up. My heart took on a faster beat when I saw the message wasn’t from Luke. He was back at it again, and dread filled my chest.
I've been thinking about you a lot. I miss you. We were good together.
Sweat gathered in my armpits. The person writing the messages was Stan. I felt sure about it now. Despite my earlier bravado and decision not to let him get to me, every part of me trembled.
I noticed that Molly had stopped playing and was staring at me. She wore a worried look.
I smiled at her automatically.
This seemed to reassure her and she went back to her toys.
Another message came in.
What do you say to us getting back together?
I couldn’t ignore the messages any longer. My finger flew as I typed a response
Please leave me alone.
Thirty seconds later, a new one came in.
I’m trying to be really nice here. After what you did, I should be mad, but I’m giving you another chance.
Nausea rose up my throat. He was mad. Insane, if he thought we could ever get back together. The next time my phone vibrated, I contemplated not picking it up to read the message. But that wouldn't make them go away.
You had me locked up.
My fingers flew into action. I didn’t want to get into a conversation with him but I simply couldn’t let this go.
You got locked up because you got into a fight with someone in a bar. NOTHING TO DO WITH ME!
I stared at the screen. Sure enough an answer came right back.
If you hadn’t left me, I wouldn’t have been at that bar. I blame you.
I was trembling again. I couldn’t do it. I shouldn’t have given in to the temptation to try and justify myself or communicate with him in any way. He was criminally insane. I switched off my phone.
Then I sat down and I held on to the rational side of my brain. His aim was to torment me. He was probably far away, living his life and if I completely ignored him from now on, he would go away.
He had to.
I contemplated calling Ruby, then changed my mind. I didn’t want to burden her with my problems and besides, she would urge me to go to the police.
I didn’t want to. Not yet, anyway. I didn't want to cause a fuss when I hoped it would blow over with time. Stan had a tendency to grow bored quickly and I knew he would eventually tire of texting me when something more exciting came up. In the meantime, I just needed to keep my cool.
But I kept remembering the murderous look in his eyes the night when he’d kicked me again and again, in the ribs while I was on the floor. I’d felt alone and scared.
An hour later, Luke came home. "I'm home!" he announced, in his usual loud fashion.
It always got Molly giggling. She jumped to her feet.
I followed her.
Downstairs, Molly ran to him and threw her arms around his legs. She held him tighter than she usually did and for longer.
Luke kissed her head and murmured loving words to her.
I could have hugged him. She needed this so much. A reassurance telling her someone loved her and had been thinking about her. Penelope was a bitch. And that was me being kind.
My turn came next to say hello. Still holding Molly, Luke pulled me in with his other arm and held me tight against his body.
I inhaled his scent and when I leaned on his chest, it felt like I was home. And safe. With Luke home, my fears ebbed away. I was safe from Stan and his threats.
"How was your day?" Luke asked while shepherding us all to the living room.
"It was good,” I said cheerfully. "We played a lot with Bean, and we ordered a sleeping basket for him. He’s chewed his until it looks like a rug now."
Molly and Luke both laughed.
"That sounds like a fun day. I have meetings all day tomorrow. Otherwise, I’d have loved to spend the day with both of you. You have all the fun."
We spent a pleasant evening catching up before Luke excused himself to take a shower.
Molly and I went out to the backyard to play with Bean.
A bit later, Luke joined us and got down on the grass to play with Molly and Bean. "He’s growing so big. You’re really good at taking care of a puppy," he said to Molly.
The smile she gave him could have split her face.
"Has she forgotten about being let down by her mother?" he whispered to me later, when Molly was engrossed in Bean.
“I think so, but she took it hard. She almost didn’t want to have her nap."
A hard look came over Luke's features, but he didn’t say anything.
My heart went out to him. Penelope was putting him in an impossible situation. It was important for Molly to see her mom, but at the same time, Penelope had shown herself to be unreliable and uninterested in Molly.
I leaned in and kissed Luke on the mouth.
He looked at me, pleasantly surprised. “Not complaining, but what was that for?"
I laughed. "Just because you’re a wonderful man."
Luke didn’t say anything, but he looked pleased.
Luke
Hi, sweetheart… missing you.
I'd never been one to text before but Ella had converted me.
