Sully stayed up late working that night. When a story called, it called. He’d long ago learned to write when the words flowed. A little after midnight, he heard a noise from Clarisse’s room. By the time he reached her door, she was screaming.
Without hesitation and realizing he’d reached for a gun he no longer wore, he burst through her door to find her alone in bed.
A nightmare.
By the time he reached her side and pulled her into his arms, she was sobbing and clung to him.
“Shh, it’s okay. Just bad dreams.” He stroked her hair as she cried, trembling from fear and adrenaline.
Mac ran in carrying a baseball bat. “What happened? What’s wrong?”
Sully smirked. “Stand down, slugger. She had a nightmare.”
He put the bat down and joined them in bed, sandwiching her between them until she calmed.
She made no attempt to pull away from Sully.
He closed his eyes as he nuzzled her hair, smelled her shampoo, breathed her scent. “Why don’t you come sleep with us tonight, sweetie?”
Without a word she nodded, still shivering in his arms.
Fuck.
She was terrified. Whatever the dream had been, it did more than scare the crap out of her. It had probably triggered flashbacks of the attack.
Mac hovered, worried, as Sully helped her out of bed. Sully kept his arm around her, snugged her closely to his side, and led her to their bedroom. A few minutes later, she curled in his arms in their bed while Mac lay beside her and held her hands.
“Thank you,” she whispered.
Sully kissed her shoulder. “It’s okay. You’re softer to cuddle with than he is.”
“Hey,” Mac protested, but he smiled.
She looked over her shoulder at Sully, a wan smile on her face.
“I’m sorry I’m a pain.”
“Stop,” he firmly said. “You’re not a pain. Go to sleep and have good dreams. That’s an order.”
Clarisse found she couldn’t resist that command. Being protectively snuggled in Sully’s arms, Mac’s comforting presence there…
She felt loved.
Well, maybe not loved, but it felt a hell of a lot better than the terror she’d awoken to.
In the lonely, stormy sea her life had become, these two men provided a safe harbor.
She closed her eyes and tried not to think about the nightmare.
About the feel of Bryan’s fist shooting out and punching her as she’d turned from the stove after telling him to fuck off.
His angry voice as he kicked and punched her, then the terror as he wrapped his hands around her throat and threatened to choke the life out of her.
When he finally quit beating and kicking her, how he’d knelt in front of her.
“I want meatloaf for dinner. I’ll be home at the usual time. Have a good day.” His tone sounding light, as if he hadn’t just beaten the crap out of her.
The slamming of the front door and the sound of his car pulling out of the driveway, heading for work as if he hadn’t just threatened to kill her.
She’d lain on the cold kitchen tile for nearly thirty minutes before she could stand and call Raquel. Raquel had raced over, taken one look at her, and called 911 despite Clarisse’s protests.
She hadn’t seen Bryan Jackson face to face since. He’d claimed she was fine when he left the house, hence why he was put on administrative leave and not immediately fired. He’d acted like the desperately worried boyfriend wanting revenge against whoever had beaten his beloved girlfriend. He’d been wearing driving gloves when he attacked her, because of the cold morning, so there were no marks on his hands. No surprise, he’d denied he’d worn gloves on that morning.
He said, she said.
Not to mention Bryan’s father’s pull with the chief of police.
She tried to push that all out of her mind as she focused on the comforting feel of Sully’s body against hers.
Could she trust him?
It occurred to her that maybe the question should be could she afford not to?
Chapter Nine
Clarisse made a pointed effort to get closer to Sully over the next few days. Mac told her Sully would leave early Friday morning, flying to California for a conference. As her bruises faded, she needed less makeup to hide them. She stepped into Sully’s office doorway on Thursday night, hesitant to interrupt him.
He offered her a soul-melting smile. “Hi, sweetie, come on in.
What’s up?”
She didn’t mind the endearments from either man. Maybe it made her weak to enjoy the warm fuzzies, but she didn’t care. She felt more welcomed with two practical strangers than she had in the years she spent with Bryan. She stepped forward, closer to him. “If I don’t see you before you leave tomorrow morning, I just wanted to say have a safe trip.” She took a deep breath. “I’ll miss you.”
He smiled. “I’ll miss you, too. You starting to feel a little more stable?”
“That’s an understatement.”
“When I get back, we can talk about the details of your arrangement. This weekend, let Mac spoil you. I know he’s planning on taking the boat out. I’d prefer you go with him. I don’t want you here alone.”
“I’ll be okay by myself.”
He leaned back in his chair. “I would prefer not to leave you alone right now.”
She felt herself falling into his grey gaze. “You’re worried Bryan might find me?”
“Let’s not take any chances. The longer we go without hearing anything from him, the better I’ll feel. If you don’t want to go out on the boat, Mac can stay here.”
A chance to be out on the Dilly again, alone with Mac?
“No, that’s okay. I’ll go.” She took a chance and leaned in, hugged him. “Thank you for everything, Sully. Really.”
He patted her on the back before releasing her. “It’s okay. I hope you aren’t planning on leaving any time soon.”
“No. Uncle Tad would spank me.”
He winked. “Maybe I would, too.”
She pondered his comment as she prepared for bed. She suspected Sully and Mac hadn’t shown her all the aspects of their relationship, most likely out of fear she’d run away, screaming and terrified. A few days ago, she would have agreed. Now she felt safe enough with them to know they were men of their word. Neither had acted even remotely improper with her, and the night she’d spent in their bed had been nothing but platonic.
Besides, they were, after all, gay. The fact that Uncle Tad felt secure with her arrangement went a long way to settling her mind.
The next morning when she got up at six, Mac was making coffee and Sully had already left. Mac flashed her a bright smile. “Ready to get back on the water, kiddo?”
“Yeah.” She took the offered mug. “When do we leave?”
“I figured we go see Tad, hit the store, then pull out around four, catch the tide.”
A thrill of excitement washed through her, the first time she’d felt it in…years.
Getting out on the boat.
By three o’clock, they unloaded gear and supplies at the dock.
When she stepped out of Mac’s truck, she closed her eyes and took a deep breath. Marina salt water, diesel fumes, bait.
Home. God how she’d missed it! She reached into the back of the truck to grab her duffel bag.
Mac touched her arm. “You’ll need these. Why don’t you go unlock the boat?”
Her Dilly keys dangled from his hand.
She smiled as she took them. “You’re giving them back?”
“They’re your keys.”
“It’s your boat.”