Page 92 of Until Tomorrow Comes
Sighing heavily, I hold her in my arms. Yesterday, the three of us plus Coop spent the day putting together food donations for the VA center. It’s something I do every few months, normally by myself, but when Kat saw all the nonperishable food and personal hygiene items I got, she immediately jumped in to help. Somehow that turned into both Thea and Cooper jumping in with us.
Still, it’s been almost three weeks since the wedding and the break-in.
Breaking in and taunting Kat with the pictures on the fridge was the most extreme he’s gone, but he has clearly enjoyed letting us know he’s still here, without showing his face.
Now the prick taunts Kat by leaving pictures for her to find, ruining her favorite spots around the house, and even making her not want to leave. Last week, he left a zoomed in picture of the two of us walking into Doctor Davis’s office. Which only freaked Kat out enough to cancel this week’s therapy appointment.
Seeing Kat close herself off, scared to go out in public or even our morning walks, is equally infuriating as it is heartbreaking.
It’s also the main reason I haven’t left her alone.
Staring into her wide shining eyes now, apprehension weighs on me.
Dropping the donations off isn’t what’s holding me up, I’ve been doing that regularly for years. It’s leaving Kat for the first time since the break-in, with her abusive ex lingering in the shadows.
The police know about every picture left and continue to update the report. Officer Robins set up a patrol schedule to have officers drive by every few hours, but the weasel knows how to stay out of sight.
“Jackson, I’ll be okay.” Kat whispers, gently cupping my cheek in her hand. “Thea is here with me, Cooper is down the road finishing up some work at her house, and Alan will be here soon. It’s okay.”
I shake my head slightly, still not liking the idea of leaving her.
Kat glances over her shoulder at Thea before focusing back on me.
“I…I don’t want him to still have this much control over my life,” she lets out a huff, resting her hands on my shoulders, and leaning into me. “Ileft him. It’s not fair for everyone to be living like this because of me.”
“It’s not because of you, Kat.” I remind her, she opens her mouth to protest, but I cut her off. “None of this is your fault. Everything is onhim.”
“You’re right. It is all on him. But he’s also winning by controlling my life like this. If this was a month ago, you wouldn’t have thought twice about dropping donations off. He’s literally controlling all our lives.”
She’s right and she knows it. Wehaveall been living as if he’s going to come out of the woodwork at any second.
Kat steps back, throwing her hands in the air and moving toward her purse that’s hanging on the back of a kitchen chair.
“Addison called me yesterday.” She states angrily while pulling out a manilla envelope and turning to drop it heavily on the island. “She overnighted this paperwork to sign, which I did! The divorce will literally be finalized by the end of the week!”
She paces toward me, spinning on her heel just before she reaches me and moves toward the table again. Thea watches carefully, arms crossed and brows scrunched together as Kat continues on.
“That man ruined my life for two years! I’ve spent over half this year healing from the physical damage done by him, add in the psychological issues he left behind in his wake. He has my parents wrapped around his finger while I live in fear of him finding me.” She runs a hand through her hair. Thea and I both listen, not interrupting her and letting her get all this off her chest.
“I haven’t spoken to my parents in almost seven months because they chosehimover me. He literally made it so I had no one. No, he doesn’t get anything more from me.”
She stops then and faces me. Her eyes shine with unshed tears, but not from sadness. I note the tightness of her jaw as she clenches her teeth, and the way her fists clench at her sides.
She stands tall and determined.
“I’m done cowering and hiding because of him. None of us should be changing what we do or how we’re living. This is something you have been doing since long before I came into your life.” She motions to the last of the donation boxes that I need to bring to the car with me. “Please don’t let him determine what you do or don’t do.”
Without saying a word, I close the distance between us. Wrapping an arm around her waist and tucking a strand of hair behind her ear with the other.
“If you wanted a couple hours away from me, you could have just said so.” I smirk down at her.
A smile spreads across her face.
“Noted for next time.” She laughs with a wink and it eases a bit of the tension that lingers in the air.
Unable to resist, I cut her laughter off with a kiss.
“Okay, lovebirds. As cute as y’all are…” Thea claps her hands, interrupting our moment. She moves to pick up the final donation box and turns to hand it to me. “Unless you’re joining our tea talk, then get outta here. You heard the woman. Coop is right down the road and Al is on his way. We’ll be fine.”
