Willow followed Claire back through the employee’s lounge to the owner’s office. The stood ready to question and Claire shook her head.
“The boss is out front. He wants a place for her to change.” Claire looked around at the men congregating in the room. None of them appeared to be moving for the door including the manager behind the desk.
“You want me to go back out there and tell him ya’ll taking your time?” Claire moved toward the door and the manager jumped.
“You heard her—all of you out!”
Willow watched as the men that had been lounging around vacated the place as if there was a raid.
“Here you go miss.” Claire opened the bathroom door and sat her bag down.
Willow made her way inside and rested against the door. Their exchange had been less than a few seconds and yet the man outside with the dreadlocks irritated her. One minute she was enjoying her reunion with her extended family and the next she was having a verbal sparring match with a man she hardly knew.
He wasn’t condescending, but his tone left little room for debate. And then there was the way he chastised her for allowing a man close enough to put his hands on her. Willow looked at the bracelet of bruises growing around her arm.
“Damn you Kyle!” She spat.
She had no intentions of going home that night—if ever. There were plenty of places for her to crash. Kyle Endicott may have been a federal agent like her, but Willow was still smaller and smarter than he was. At least that was what her teacher, Alana Symone Garrett told her when she was at Quantico.
‘Use your size to your advantage. Just because your small doesn’t mean you are weak.’
Willow gripped the side of the sink and tried to center herself. She dug in her pocket, pulled out the velvet box, took one look at the pear-shaped solitaire, then snapped it shut. Willow held her hand out over the garbage can, then stopped. The last thing she needed was one of the club owner’s lackeys finding the ring and telling him. Her mind went back to the man outside and she fumed.
Who was he to tell her what her father did or didn’t teach her about men? And what was his name? What was the big secret?
She hated to admit it, but he shocked her by not answering. Normally if a person gave their name during an introduction, the other person responded in kind. Not this guy. The fact that he bested her, and she didn’t have a comeback annoyed her even more.
“What a jerk.” She muttered as her eye fell on the pin up calendar handing over the toilet. “And you’ve got bad taste in artwork!”
“Excuse me, miss, were you talking to me?” The familiar sound of Claire’s voice at the door made Willow open it.
“Is your boss always that cheerful?” she said stooping down to pull her jumpsuit out of the bag. Matisse pushed his way in and sniffed around the toilet.
“D’s good people. He don’t like to see women hurt is all. He cleaned me up and had a talk with my ex-boyfriend. No one’s seen him since.” Claire’s gaze went to the bruises on her arm. “He didn’t kill him, he just... well, anyway, that looks really bad.”
“Oh, this is nothing.” Willow shrugged.
“That’s what I said, too.” Claire said wincing at some private thought.
“Well, if you are in the market for engagement rings, I have one you can hock.” Willow said drawing the woman’s attention. Claire gave her a smile that made her blue eyes light up.
“Got one of those already from my honey man.” Claire gushed as she held out her hand to show a solitaire in a white gold setting. “And I intend to wear it when I’m all grey hair and girdles.”
“It’s beautiful.” Willow said as she kicked off her boots and stepped into the jumpsuit. She shimmied the black fatigue styled flame retardant material all the way up to her midsection before she snatched the gown over her head. Then she remembered that her ribs were wrapped, and quickly shrugged into the jumpsuit. Willow turned her back to zip the fabric as someone came to the door.
Matisse pushed his way out of the bathroom and nudged Claire. Her eyes lit up as she kneeled down to give him a scratch behind the ears. “He’s beautiful. What is he?”
“He’s a little bit German Sheppard and a lot of wolf. But he’s my heart. Best partner I’ve ever had.”
“You a cop?”
“Hardly. Arson Investigator.”
The woman blanched as she looked up at her. “But you’re a woman. Does your fiancé know you’re out here?”
“He’s not my fiancé. I left him at the dinner table, actually. He asked me to hold onto this ring to think about it.” Willow pulled out the box and handed it to her. “I just wanted away from him. Should have thrown it in his face.”
Claire’s eyes widened as she opened the box. “You mean you just turned this down?”
“It was either tell him no or spend the next ten years asking myself why.” She looked down at her arm and sighed. “The life expectancy for domestic violence survivors varies but he more than fits the profile of an abuser: insecure, small, and mean. Tonight, was the only time he’s grabbed me like this. I’m sure the apologies, flowers and tears were forth coming.”
Claire closed the box and handed it back.
“Sounds like some real shackles with them shekels. Much respect, though. I know some that would take the punches and anything else for that hunk of ice and some dude with a good job or a place to call home. Kids get caught up, beat up or God only knows what to appease Mamma’s new friend. You think he’ll listen?”
“Why? So that he can rationalize it away with the lie that he loves me so much that he just lost control?” Willow shook the box in her hand like dice before she tucked it in her pocket. She looked down at the ace wrap around her hand and smiled. “ A second chance or his idea of closure may include me on a slab in a morgue.”
Claire nodded as a wan smile softened her hard features. “Well, I can’t compete with the ice in your pocket, but here.” She handed her the ice pack. “And before you say no, my boss asked me to get this for you. He’s convinced that you won’t be able to lift your arm in an hour.”
“Has he ever been wrong?”
“No. That’s why he’s the boss. He’s got a thing for old buildings. Said this place is an old landmark. He said you could stay back here until they’re ready for you outside. No one will come through that door unless he says so. Oh, and he told me to bring this to your partner. I put the ice in it like he said. Got some bacon too.”
“How did he know Matisse liked... never mind. Does your boss have a name?”
Claire shook her head and chuckled.
“Said you’d ask. He told me to tell you if you were that interested you could ask him again yourself.”