Breaking Free

Noah

Meeting tomorrow, 7pm.-T

I closed out of the message without replying. I didn't need too. Tag knew I'd show up anyway. I tossed my phone on the desk and walked back out into the coffee shop to start closing up. The last few customers were regulars that would hang around until I was ready to lock the door. It was one of the many things I like about living in a small town. Everyone knew everyone and for the most part it wasn't a bad thing. This was the closest I was going to get to peace while still working for Iron Thorn.

The office was based in the city about twenty miles from here. It wasn't a long ride so when my current property went up for sale I jumped on the chance of being able to find myself just a little bit of quiet. When you spend long enough working high risk security it starts to wear on you. Iron Thorn does everything from high paying to charity work and they specialize in the protection of women and children.

I stood behind the counter for a second and caught sight of the leggy brunette looking out the window. I'd never seen her around here before. Her brown hair fell in waves halfway down her back. Her blue eyes flicked around the room every once in a while taking in every person as though they may stand up and shoot her. I'd bet money she was running from something; or someone. She looked like she may weigh a hundred pounds soaking wet but the fear in her eyes told me whoever tried to mess with her would wholey regret it, and damn if I wasn't intrigued. After a while my customers had mostly cleared out and it was just her, myself and an older gentleman. I walked over to see if I could get her anything else before I started to close up shop.

"Can I get you anything else?" I asked causing her to flinch. I smirked slightly knowing my earlier feelings about her being a runner was most likely true. She looked up at me, her cheeks red and pushed her chair back from the table.

"Uhm, no thank you. I actually need to get going" she said clearing her throat. She stood up and grabbed her bag. I stepped back so she could get through. I wasn't in the habit of making a woman feel trapped.

"Okay, have a good day" I smiled at her. The blush creeping down her neck as she looked back at me and nodded. Oh, I was definitely curious. I walked back to the counter to wipe it down and say goodbye to the last customer. I closed up shop and headed out to my truck. I stopped to grab a pizza on my way home for dinner.

I unlocked the door and walked into the sound of my dog, Benny barking at me. Benny is a six year old German shepherd I'd adopted when his owner couldn't take care of him anymore. I smiled and leaned down to pet him.

"Did you miss me?" I asked him. He responded by jumping up and putting his big pawn up on my chest almost knocking me over. I laughed at him and pushed him off of me.

"All right boy, all right" I laughed walking towards my kitchen, placing the pizza down on the counter. I poured some of Benny's food into his bowl and grabbed myself some food. When I was done I cleaned up and headed upstairs for a shower. I didn't open my shop on Sundays so I had plans to fix stuff up around my house. After showering I climbed into bed and turned off the light ready to get up bright and early in the morning.

I silenced my alarm clock and climbed out of bed. I grabbed some old jeans and a plain t-shirt. I tossed on my shoes and headed out the door. I drove into town to the hardware store to grab paint and some supplies to fix the leak under the kitchen sink. On the way back to my house I saw the woman from the coffee shop yesterday sitting on the bench on the outside of the park looking at a map. I pulled my truck over before I knew what I was doing. I got out and stood on the passenger side so she could see me.

"Hey" I called. Her head shot up, her eyes wide. She looked scared for a second before her face cleared of any emotion. I strode over to where she was sitting and sat on the bench. She scooted as far away from me as possible and I couldn't help but smile at her.

"Didn't mean to startle you. I don't bite, promise" I joked. She turned the same scarlet rose color as she did yesterday. It was cute I decided and smirked again. She cleared her throat and glanced away from me, scanning the area around her for a moment before her eyes landed on me again.

"Where are you headed; do you need a ride?" I asked her pointing at her map. She bit her lip and looked down away from me causing my stomach to clench. I'd be a damn liar if I said that didn't turn me on. As she looked up to answer me I saw the fear eyes again before she stood up glancing behind her.

"I-I don't need a ride" she trailed off taking a step back as though she might bolt at any second. I tilted my head back and looked up at the sky quiet for a moment to see if she'd say anything else. When she didn't speak I glanced out of the corner of my eye to see if she'd taken off. She still stood there staring at me and watching all around her. I wanted to know what had her so scared.

"Well where are you headed? If it's too far I'm not going to let you just walk that'd be rude of me" I said calmly trying not to come off as creepy. She shook her head at me and took a step back.

"It doesn't matter where I'm headed I don't even know you. I appreciate the offer but I'm fine, don't worry about it. I have to go" she said turning around. Without thinking I reached out and grabbed her wrist. She whipped her head around to look at me, fear all across her face. She stumbled back trying to get away but tripped and landed on her side. I heard her yelp in pain before trying to get back up. I knelt down and put my hand on her shoulder once she was sitting up. Her eyes were glossy with tears and her breathing was coming out in short ragged breaths. I knew better than to grab a scared woman, what was I thinking?

"Are you alright?" I asked her but she shook her head trying to stand and get away from me. She was having a panic attack so I pushed gently on her shoulders to keep her sitting but trying not to scare her.

"Pull your head into your knees and take a few deep breaths" I told her removing my hand from her shoulders once I was sure she wouldn't try to get up again. She did as I asked and I sat down on the sidewalk next to her and glanced around to make sure nobody was watching. After a little while I heard her breathing slow and she lowered her legs to the ground.

"Okay?" I questioned looking at her. She looked confused for a moment before nodding at me. I gave her a half smile and stood up. She stood up quickly after me and took a few steps away.

"I didn't mean to scare you. I'm Noah." I introduced myself. She shook her head dismissing my apology. Her hands trembling as she retrieved her map from the ground.

"Harper" she whispered. I smiled at her.

"Want to come get a coffee with me? I just want to make sure you're all right" I told her but what I really wanted was to know what had her so frightened. She bit her lip and looked nervously in my direction before she nodded. She followed me back over to my truck and climbed into the passenger's seat sitting as close to the door as she could. It wasn't until I'd parked outside the coffee shop that I realized she was still shaking. I wasn't going to be able to live with myself if I saw all the signs and did nothing about it. I sighed and looked at her.

"Are you in some sort of trouble?" I asked. She whipped her head around to look at me, shock evident all over her face.

"Nope." She ground out at me with her jaw clenched before climbing out of the truck. Not a very good liar which would be helpful for me in the end. I climbed out after her and followed her inside the only other coffee shop in town. Once we had ordered I told her to find a seat anywhere and I'd wait for the drinks. She walked and sat at a booth in the back corner. I grabbed our drinks and headed over to her.

"Anybody ever tell you you're a bad liar?" I asked putting her drink in front of her, not missing the small flinch. She shook her head staring down at her cup her forehead wrinkled in thought. I sighed heavily, knowing I'd just stepped into something big.