When We Fall (Take the Fall, #2)(34)

I watch as Piper walks down the hallway, her curvy hips swaying, tempting me to follow her and find out what she’s wearing underneath her skirt.

It’s not that I’m not appreciative of more revealing clothes on a woman; it’s the way Piper wears her clothes. They fit her like they were tailor-made for her body, which in her case might be entirely true. She certainly could afford it before she moved out of her parents’ house.

“Like a beautifully wrapped gift,” my client says, and I glance at him.

“Excuse me?”

“That woman you were eye-f*cking.” He smiles and winks at his boyfriend sitting across from him in my booth. “You know what I’m talking about, huh?”

The boyfriend rolls his eyes, then shakes his head. “Francis is referring to how exquisitely she’s dressed. She’s like a classic car that they don’t make anymore.”

I nod. “That comparison I totally get.”

“Hope you take her out for more than just a Sunday drive,” my client says with a chuckle.

I go back to inking his bicep. I’m correcting a piece that was done by some crap artist in upstate Virginia. “I take her out as often as she wants, but she likes to stay home with me.”

“Parents don’t approve?”

I smirk a little. “Parents would lose their ever-loving minds.”

The boyfriend sighs. “Forbidden love.”

“Something like that,” I agree, then get back to work. Piper’s parents would do more than lose their ever-loving minds. I’m pretty sure that her dad will find a reason to arrest me when he does find out about us.

But I’m not going to let that stop me from being with her.





Piper


The women’s shelter is quiet tonight. It’s also full, which means I won’t have to check anyone in tonight.

I hear a door open and close. My heart pounds in my chest.

Standing up, I walk to the doorway of my office and peer out. “Hello?”

No one answers me. Why would they? And, I remind myself that the night watchman, a woman, is patrolling the house.

As I turn around, there’s a light knock on my door and I almost jump out of my skin. “God bless America,” I scream.

“My sister used to say that a lot. I don’t think she meant for God to bless anything.”

A woman cautiously steps into my office, but I barely recognize her. The swelling has gone down on her face, so her eye can open, but it’s shot through with blood and her lip is still split. Her cheeks are puffy, while the bruises around her neck have faded slightly.

“Evangeline?” I whisper.

She nods. “I hope you don’t mind that I stopped by.” Evangeline holds herself so still, too still. “I can come back another time.”

“No. I’m glad—happy to see you again,” I say, then start gesturing at the chair. “Want to have a seat? I can make you some tea or coffee. Whatever you want.”

Evangeline inches forward and scoots to the left, leaning against the wall. “I only want to talk.”

“Sure.” I have no idea what the procedure is for this and I begin to panic. What if I say the wrong thing? What if I trigger a flashback or…what if I’m breaking the rules by having her in my office in the first place? “About w-what?”

Her good eye narrows at me. “How long do I have to stay here?”

“Y-you want to go?” I take a deep breath, trying to calm my nerves. “I d-don’t think that’s a good idea.”

“Ginger keeps saying that, but I thought I had a choice.”

I nod emphatically. “You do. You really do.”

She glances away, her arm coming up to her face. “I haven’t looked in a mirror. I’m too scared of what I might see. That’s really stupid, huh?”

“No. They’re your feelings and they’re important, not stupid.”

Evangeline shakes her head and looks at me, tears running down her cheeks. “I’m pretty sure it’s stupid. He almost killed me and I fought him back with every bit of strength I had inside, but all I can think about now is if I’m still pretty or not,” she says tearfully, and my heart feels like it’s going to break for her.

Unsure if I should comfort her emotionally or physically, I take a step toward her, then stop. “It’s okay to feel bad, but it’s not your fault. You’re allowed to be mad, sad, angry…to miss him, to hate him, to love him…no matter what anyone else thinks.”

Evangeline wipes the tears away. “Everyone thinks he’s such a great guy, you know. No one believed me when I tried to tell them. I think if he finds out where I am, he’ll kill me this time.”

My heart stutters. “That’s why you should stay here for as long as you can.” Her file indicated that her ex-husband, a decorated officer in the Army who had recently gotten out, doesn’t know she’s in this town and the police haven’t found him yet. Evangeline walked to Charlotte from some tiny town in South Carolina. That’s why the police had found her wandering on the beltway.

Evangeline considers my words, then crosses her arms over her chest. “Sorry to have bothered you. I’ll go back to my room.”

I swallow. “You can stay here as long as you like—in my office, that is.”