Page 97 of Affliction

Chapter Thirty-Nine

Terry

I took her home with me. There was no way, in the condition that she was in, that I was going to let her go home by herself. She didn’t fight it, which told me how broken she actually was. She just allowed me to take her hand, lead her out of her office, and out into the street. I watched her the entire time we waited for a cab, her eyes searching the crowded street, looking for him. I was sure of it. I was instantly glad that I had decided to take a cab home. Normally, I walked, but there was no way in hell I was walking home with her. She’d be on high alert the whole time. And what if he happened upon us? No way in hell I was chancing that.

When we reached the apartment, I took her to my bedroom and handed her a pair of sweatpants and a T-shirt. Once she was changed and comfortable, I put her on the sofa and gave her the remote.

“What do you want me to do with this?” she asked me. Her eyes searched mine, wide with confusion and fear. Her lip was drawn in between her teeth after she spoke, waiting for me to explain my action.

“I thought you might want to watch some garbage television while I whip us up some dinner. Ally said you barely touched your lunch, and I know you didn’t have breakfast,” I told her.

Her head barely nodded in agreement. Her movement was small—the way she looked right now in my sweats. “Relax? Doubtful.”

She looked so defeated and I hated it. This Mia in front of me was so different than the girl that I was used to. This Mia had felt pain, real pain, at the hands of someone she had loved. I hated that someone had done that to her. That I left her and that’s what she found.

“Well, give it a try,” I told her, taking the remote back and switching on Food Network. “Here, you can maybe learn some cooking techniques and gain a new recipe or two.”

She scoffed and looked at the remote. “I’m not much for sitting idle these days.”

“I get it, but you’ve got to relax. Maybe you’ll even fall asleep. You look like you could use the rest.”

“Hold me?” she asked me timidly. I barely heard her in the stillness of my apartment. Who was I to deny her?

I sat down beside her and propped my feet up on the hassock. “Come here, beautiful girl.”

Mia instantly moved over to me. Laying her head on my shoulder, she aligned her body with mine until we were touching as much as our position would allow. I didn’t miss the content sigh that escaped her lips. Placing a kiss on the top of her head, I lay there and hoped that sleep would find her soon.

“Thank you, Terry,” she said after a few minutes. Her body had been so relaxed that I could have sworn she was sleeping.

“For what?”

“For being you,” she said simply. As if that should explain it all. It only confused me further.

“You don’t ever have to thank me for this. How could I not bring you home and protect you?”

“Not everyone would do what you are doing. This isn’t your fight. This isn’t your problem.” Her voice sounded sleepy, and I was sure I was going to lose her to sleep soon. I was glad she had relaxed enough to sleep in such a short period of time, but at the same time, I wanted her to hear what I had to say.

“This involves you. If it involves you, it is my problem. It is my concern.”

“Thank you, Terry,” she said again before drifting off to sleep.

I kissed her head one more time and thought about using this time to sleep, but I knew that when she woke up, I wanted to have dinner ready. I went to get up, but her hand reached out and gently grabbed ahold of my arm. She made a contented sound, and I decided that this was where I would remain until she woke up. Then I would either cook for her or order some dinner. Whatever she wanted, that’s what I would do.

I lay there thinking about Chad. What did he look like? Was he the polar opposite of me? She had said that she dated him after me. So was this some type of overcorrection? He was an attorney, a prosecuting attorney. His job was to speak for the victims, not make the woman he was supposed to love a victim of violence. Not to make her hide in fear, even after all these years. I wished she had told me his last name. I would have Googled him to see what he looked like. Not that it mattered, but the curiosity of it all was eating at me.

Did I really want to see the type of man she had gravitated to after me? In a way, I didn’t. But at the same time, I wanted to see what this bastard looked like. I wanted to see what kind of man would want to place his hands on a woman. What did it take for you to decide that the one you were supposed to love was someone you could also abuse?

I scrubbed a hand down my face. I hated this man, and I had never even met him. I hated that he had reduced Mia, a strong, beautiful woman, to a cowering woman. I lay there thinking about the events of the day. I had really made a mess of things. I’d lied to Mia, left her in LA for my own selfish reasons, and left her easy prey to a man who hurt her. Now, Mia had the emotional scars of domestic abuse—and even some physical ones. Just the thought made my blood boil. Anger coursed through my veins. What an ass I had been, what a selfish ass. Mia, my Mia, had been abused. If I had stayed, if we had talked through our issues, none of this would have happened.

Mumbling in my ear caused me to wake. I had no idea how long I had been out, but I could tell it was dark out. The minimal light my curtains allowed in was no longer visible in the dark of my apartment.

“No, no,” the voice in my ear kept repeating.

Finding my bearings, I figured out that it was Mia. She was dreaming. Based on her cries, this wasn’t a happy dream.

“Mia, honey, wake up. It’s only a dream.” She just kept saying no. I tried again. “Baby, it’s Terry. You’re dreaming. Please wake up for me.”

Her eyelids slid open and revealed her hazel eyes. I smiled into them, hoping it would provide her some comfort. It took them a minute to come into focus, but once they did, she smiled back. Mia sat up and stretched for a moment before lying back down beside me. Her body curled into mine again.

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