Damsel in the Dust

29

Jake and Maive make their way to the loft in the barn for the night, and I feel a twinge of emptiness. I'm not ready for my night with Jake to end, though I'm also not ready to push its limits. I can tell Jake is being cautious in front of Maive, too. He only gives me a lingering hug before disappearing into the night. I make my way to my room and wash away the makeup Maive had so carefully applied, playing the night over in my mind.

I don't remember my dreams, but I do wake up with the same bubbly feelings at the thought of getting to see Jake again. Everything is different over breakfast. Where the whole week had been tense and filled with heavy silences, today we are all laughing and smiling. Every time I steal a glance at Jake, I catch him stealing one of me. I think this is bliss.

We spend the day packing - mostly my things since Jake and Maive don't have much. I decide to leave behind the furniture that's mine; it'll be too much trouble to move on short notice and I honestly don't want to keep anything that has a memory of Shawn imprinted on it. We fill the bed of my truck with boxes and drop them off with Chris after taking Maive to the Rose for work.

"You know, Stephie is going to hate me moving in here," I tease Chris.

"I can already hear her whining about you 'moving in' on her man," Chris winks at me.

"Um, what are you talking about?" Jake asks.

Chris and I exchange a look, and I confess the whole backstory.

"When Shawn moved into town, Stephie was all over him," I say.

"Crushing hard," Chris adds.

"But he wasn't interested," I start.

"Because she was crazy, and he only had eyes for Leah. Figures he would pick the best girl in town," Chris says. I give him a gentle shove.

"Anyway, Stephie thinks I stole him or something, so she's held a grudge. Then you came along and from where she's standing I guess it looks like I kind of..." I shrug.

"Stole me?" Jake supplies.

"Yep."

"Wow. That explains a lot... Sounds like I dodged a bullet, didn't I?" Jake laughs.

"Hey man, Steph isn't that bad," Chris says.

Our laughter carries us back to the Rose for dinner, then home for the evening. With Jake, everything feels possible. Even though I'm not out of the woods yet, I feel like I've been granted a fresh start.

After Maive retires to the loft for the night, I curl up on the porch swing with Jake. As I rest my head against his shoulder and sway with him beneath the stars, I dare to hope that everything will be alright. Maive starts school tomorrow, most of my few belongings have been safely spirited away to Christian's, and Jake is going to talk to Mrs. Abernathy about moving into the staff casita on their property. Everything is in place for our fresh start, though I can't help feeling like something is going to go wrong.

Jake runs his thumb over my arm in a steady rhythm, and I want nothing more than to give in and let that simple action lull me to sleep. But something is still nagging at me, and I can't relax.

As if he can sense my internal struggle, Jake asks, "Everything alright?"

"I think so. I mean, I can't shake the feeling that something is going to go wrong. I just don't know what..." I bite my lip and sit up, turning to face him.

Jake cups my face with both hands, locking me in place with the sincerity of his gaze. "We've planned for everything, Leah. He won't be able to hurt you anymore. I promised you that, and I plan to keep that promise."

He leans in, brushing a gentle kiss across my lips. Electricity races down my spine, curling my toes and making my thoughts fuzzy.

"He'll find out eventually, Jake. It's a small town..."

Jake looks thoughtful as he considers what I'm trying to say. I've been thinking this through all day, and I don't see how I can run away within the same small town. But Jake and Maive are just getting settled and I can't imagine ripping them away from the somewhat normal life they've found. The only way this ends without them getting hurt is if I stay with Shawn, or move far enough away from all of them that Shawn doesn't connect me with Jake.

"No. I know what you're thinking, Leah, and I won't let you do it," Jake says as I bite my lip.

Damn it, how can he know? How does he know me so damn well?

"I'll never forgive myself if something happens to you or - God forbid - Maive. Jake, he knew that I went to visit my auntie. I don't know how. But if he knew that, what if he knows about you? If he finds out..." I don't need to finish the thought.

"I've been thinking about that," Jake says, "and I think he's been tracking your phone. That's the only explanation I can come up with for how he knew you went to the city. As for him finding out about...us, you're right. It's a small town so he's going to know eventually. The minute he tries anything, we'll call the cops. Get a restraining order. Or we can leave, Leah. We can all go somewhere he'll never find us if that would put you at ease. Or we can stay, and I promise I will not let him hurt you."

"It's not me I'm worried about," I whisper.

Jake pulls me into him, enfolding me in a warm hug. "We are going to be okay. All of us. You, me, Maive - he's not going to hurt us."

I know that nothing I say is going to get through to Jake, but I also know that this is a promise he can't hope to keep. He sounds so sincere, so certain, but he's never met Shawn. Eventually, Shawn will find a way to get to me, a way that Jake won't be able to stop. I bite back the rest of my worries and make up my mind. I have to find a way to fix this for all of us, or it will never, ever, end.