Dark Sexy Knight (A Modern Fairytale)(79)

“Nothing,” murmured Colt.

“Promise me you’ll think about it?”

Colt nodded. “I’ll think about it.”

“Good to hear. That’s it for today. You’ve got chores and exercise, and I’ve got Maureen. Wish me luck.”

Colt grimaced. Maureen was a biter.

“Good luck,” said Colt, standing up and heading for the door. He turned at the last minute. “Thanks, doc. Thanks for everything.”

“Think about it, Colton,” he said. “Nothing to lose.”

“Yes, sir,” said Colt, closing the door behind him.

***

It didn’t surprise Verity when Lynette let them go a week after the incident between Colton and Artie in the stable.

She’d actually fired Verity “with cause,” claiming that she’d left her shift several times without completing it, which was—theoretically, at least—true. Ryan was a trickier case, however, because he was protected under the ADA and Lynette wasn’t interested in being dragged through court by Verity, who could likely win a civil case on harassment-on-the-job charges alone.

It helped a little to know that Artie had been fired too—his squeaky clean Knight in Shining Armor image permanently tarnished by his cruelty to Ryan. He was smart to leave TLOC as soon as possible, as the tides had quickly turned against him, with many female servers finally coming forward to complain of him taking liberties—squeezing their breasts and backsides uninvited and making lewd overtures—once he was gone.

Lynette offered fifty percent of Ryan’s salary, including full health care and dental, for twelve months or until he found another job, as long as they’d leave quickly and wouldn’t press charges against TLOC for Artie’s mistreatment of Ryan. And although it grated on Verity to take the deal when it meant sweeping Artie’s disgusting behavior under the rug, she couldn’t eat her convictions. If they lived at Colton’s house and spent Ryan’s partial salary frugally, they could eke by until they found new jobs. So she’d said yes to the deal, then cried herself to sleep in Colton’s bed, hating her desperation, missing him terribly, and wondering—as she did every night—what would happen at the end of their long sixty days apart.

Would he be shocked to find them still in his house and kick them out, insisting that he blamed her and hated her for what had happened? Or would he once again be the Colton she’d fallen in love with—gentle and protective, loving and tender—sorry for his unforgiving words and desperate to make things right? She worried about the former but remained hopeful for the latter.

She’d also taken time to review the judge’s sentence and think over Colton’s behavior. Twice she’d watched him—once in the motel parking lot and again in the stables with Artie—lash out brutally when someone he cared about was threatened. Both times, it was almost like he was on autopilot, in a thick, almost unreachable fog of rage. And while she truly didn’t believe that he’d ever hurt her, she worried now, as she had in the past, that if he couldn’t get his anger under control, it would be a matter of time before he killed someone.

During their time apart, she’d looked up anger disorders on the Internet, and, although she didn’t know Colton’s formal medical diagnosis, enough of the symptoms she read about led her to believe that he was probably struggling with a manageable condition called intermittent explosive disorder. If so, during his time away from her at Central State Hospital, he was receiving medical and psychological care that could end up saving his life, and maybe even saving their relationship too.

She hoped so. She hoped so hard, it ached.

But no matter how much it hurt, she couldn’t give up on him. She wouldn’t. Not yet.

She found some unexpected solace in gardening—planting borders of cheerful impatiens and pansies around the walkways of his home, keeping the lawn mowed and the edges trimmed. She remembered, with such happiness, the last Sunday they’d spent together before the incident with Artie. Colton gardening, her cleaning, spraying each other with the hose, making love in the sunshine. It had been so normal. Just a young couple in love spending a Sunday together. How she’d wanted a million more. She still did.

As days turned into weeks, Melody and Ryan became Verity’s focal points. Ryan adored Melody, and by loving and looking out for Mel, Verity felt like she was honoring Colton’s unspoken wishes, which gave her purpose and somehow made his absence easier to bear . . . except at night, when she slept in his bed and snuggled into his pillow, missing him, dreaming of him—bright vivid dreams of his hands on her body, his dark eyes looking tenderly into hers, through hers, fusing his soul to hers. When she woke up alone, the endless tears would start, falling until she fell asleep again or woke up groggily to make Ryan’s breakfast.

Time went slowly without a job, without word from Colton, her thoughts and worries preying on her, even as she tried to stay positive. Bonnie’s Place became her haven, little by little, until she and Ryan got into the habit of stopping by every afternoon, after Melody got home from work, to share supper together.

The little family that Verity had seen coming into focus at the zoo, less one important member, was as intact as it could be for now, though missing Colton’s face at the table was a daily ache that wouldn’t subside.

But her time visiting Bonnie’s Place turned out to be fruitful for more than just looking after Melody. It led to a new opportunity that gave Verity even more purpose. After several weeks of daily visits, one of Mel’s CMs, Francisco, asked Verity if she had any interest in, one, enrolling Ryan in their day program, and two, working part-time at the Bonnie’s Place sundries store.