Total pages in book: 70
Estimated words: 64704 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 324(@200wpm)___ 259(@250wpm)___ 216(@300wpm)
Estimated words: 64704 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 324(@200wpm)___ 259(@250wpm)___ 216(@300wpm)
A frown tugged at my mouth. “I was at work yesterday.”
“I guess that maybe he didn’t want you to see what he was doing.” Nadia reached over and squeezed my hand. “From what you’ve told me, Brick has always treated women like objects and tools. Now, it looks like he’s trying to make amends for that.”
My heart skipped a beat. I thought that Brick might attempt to drown me in lavish presents, but this?
I didn’t even know what to do with this.
* * *
Another two weeks passed, and I still didn’t see Brick. Changes continued to be made at the shelter. Brick had hired a lawyer to take cases from the shelter pro-bono. Women didn’t have to worry about losing their children if they left their abusive husbands. Suzie even showed up. She wanted to help out with meals. She swore it wasn’t Brick’s idea. She just wanted to volunteer her time, but I knew that Brick would somehow compensate her for it. My head spun.
I moved into my new apartment. It was a small one-bedroom place a few miles from the shelter. An hour after moving my stuff in, an alarm company showed up to install a high-tech security system. It had everything but the guard dog.
There was also an apartment-warming basket waiting for me. It contained all the ingredients that I needed to make a breakfast pizza.
It was Brick. It was all Brick, but he never showed up.
I made my breakfast pizza for dinner and curled up on the couch to watch television. It was my first night living alone. I was proud of myself for taking this step, but my heart ached for Brick.
I knew that he didn’t have much experience dating women, but it usually involved making an appearance. How much longer was I going to have to wait?
* * *
“I should probably turn you in for the illegal activity happening before my eyes,” Nadia remarked as she sat down at the table in the shelter. “This shelter upholds the law.”
“I’m sorry, but it’s a celebration!” I poured three glasses of champagne. Suzie joined us and wrinkled her nose when she looked at the label on the bottle. “You’re going to have to forgive a little underage drinking.”
“Where did you even get this?” Suzie demanded. “The gas station?”
“Would you two quit raining on my parade? I paid my first month’s bills, got a cellphone, and put a hundred dollars into a savings account,” I said with pride. “So yes. The champagne is cheap, but the celebration is real!”
“I’ll drink to that,” Nadia laughed. They raised their glasses, toasted me, and lifted it to their lips.
Suzie immediately choked on it. “I haven’t drank anything this bad since I was a teenager,” she grumbled. “Might as well top me off. I’ve got to die of something.”
“For someone who used to be poor, you certainly are snobby,” Nadia said and sighed.
I just laughed. The two of them had been like this ever since they met. Listening to them bicker had been comforting to me. I topped Suzie off and reached for the crackers in the middle of the table. “It’s sad that this feels like the most accomplished thing that I’ve done in my entire life.”
“I don’t know,’ Suzie muttered. “I don’t know of any other woman who has walked away from Brick and then turned down his marriage proposal.”
“He said that he thought about bringing a diamond ring. That’s not a proposal,” I argued, and it wasn’t the first time. Suzie thought I’d lost my mind. The man that I loved wanted to marry me. Who would walk away from that? “Besides, I’m not defining any part of my life by a man anymore. This is my new independent self. Remember?”
“I remember, and am proud of you, Daisy,” she said softly.
“Me too,” Nadia laughed. “All my girls are making me proud lately!”
Sarah and her sister had recently gotten a place of their own as well. They were celebrating one week in their new apartment together, and from what I could see, Officer Jenkins was acting a little too protective over Sarah, and she blushed a little too hard when he was around.
I was starting to like the idea of passionate romance and happy endings.
After we killed the bottle of champagne, I made arrangements with Nadia regarding my schedule for the next week at the shelter, and headed home. The night was chilly, but I didn’t mind it. The cool air was nice against my skin and the champagne kept me warm.
I thought about the strange events that had led me here. The shackles to my father that I labeled duty. The need for stability that led me to Ralph, and the weight that I attributed to care and respect. And finally, my love for Brick.
It started out messy, tawdry, and more than a little terrifying, but my love for him was real. It gave me the strength to do something better for myself.