Page 56 of In Hiding

10.

Sarah pushed against the armchair to shove it to the side of the room, clearing an open space for the training session with Jake. It slid easily enough along the floor rug, but she still needed to summon all of her strength. She hated this side-effect of the attack. The lack of fitness and the inability to build any sort of stamina due to her injuries frustrated her no end. It made her wonder just how well she could defend herself if the need arose.

Leaning a hand against the wall, she shuddered at the thought of Ryan finding her. Fear spurred her heartrate into overdrive and her chest contracted around her lungs. If it hadn’t been for her brother, Ryan would have killed her.

Her head spun and she closed her eyes to ward off the nausea. Knowing how close she’d come to losing her life made her grateful to be alive. What did it matter how fit she was? Still, the smallest efforts made her short of breath and the discomfort that came with it annoyed her.

“Sarah? Are you alright?”

Raising her head, she opened her eyes to see Jake coming up the stairs. Worry creased his brow.

“I’m fine,” she lied. “Moving furniture takes it out of me.”

He shook his head and crossed the room. “You should’ve waited.”

“I’m not helpless.” Although somedays it felt exactly like that.

“I wasn’t suggesting you are,” he said with a handsome smile. Empathy lightened his dark eyes. “But you don’t have to do everything alone.”

It was a nice thought, but an empty one. Eventually, William would grow up and move away, and she had no illusions that Jake would stay here forever. No. She needed to face facts and it meant that someday—probably not too far away—she’d be rattling around this big old house by herself.

To her surprise, she saw Jake was dressed in sweats and a loose cotton T. The outfit was such a contrast to his usual handyman garb of jeans and shirt that it chased away her feelings of annoyance. He glanced down at his attire and smiled sheepishly, his cheeks reddening.

“I picked these up the other day in town.”

He must have. She’d noticed his meagre wardrobe when he arrived. Had he expected to fail the job interview? It would seem the unexpected permanency of the job had forced him to stock up on everything, from workwear to winter attire. And sweats, apparently.

“It’s a very different look to the biker who rolled up here back in May.”

He kicked off his shoes. “I think I’m a different man to the biker, too.”

“How is your training going with William?”

A proud smile beamed at her. “He’s a quick study. I think he likes things to be a little more hands on and practical.”

“Indeed.”

Jake moved to the center of the clearing and began to stretch. “He’ll be fine, Sarah. Come and join me.”

Following his lead, she toed off her sneakers and padded over to stand opposite him. Nerves fluttered in her belly. Aside from the obvious physicality of learning to defend herself, she fretted over the psychology of it, fearing it would wake the nightmares she’d worked hard to control. Reliving the day Ryan came at her with the knife was not something she looked forward to.

Ever.

Jake took her hand. “Are you sure about this?”

She’d asked him to be honest with her. The least she could do was return the favor. “Yes and no.”

“There’s no rush. We can postpone until you’re ready.”

“I don’t know when that will be.”

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