Playing with Fire (11 page)

“
My mother’s husband left
when I was five years old. He run off with another woman who had
more money. He left my momma with nuthin’ but the clothes on her
back, ten dollars and me. He coulda cared less about me. It was
just me and her. Momma never bothered to look for love after that,
figuring if what she’d had was love she didn’t want it
again.”

“What did your mother say about the
guy you were with? Lenny, was it?”

Noelle nodded. “Yeah, Lenny Dunlap.
Momma hated him. She’d raised me to be independent and not depend
on a man, but Lenny insisted I not work. At first I thought it was
nice, being taken care of. It took a while, but I realized it was
more about controlling me than anything.”

“Did she ever try to talk you out of
being with him?”

“Yeah, especially in the beginning
when she saw the first bruises. But eventually she stopped saying
anything and I never went around with bruises anymore.”

Trent was silent for a moment, and
something in the distant look on his face made her feel he was
thinking about something else. “My abuelita was like that with my
mom too. It was hard to see, but we realized our protesting just
made her want to prove that my father really was a good
guy.”

Noelle nodded. “Yeah, that’s how I was
too. Even after he’d beat me I’d still defend him. I thought if
people could see that he did have good days that they wouldn’t be
so hard on him. But I was wrong.”

“So what made you finally
leave?”

Noelle wiped away the tears as they
silently fell at the memories. “I decided I deserved better. Lenny
cut me off from everyone and when my momma died I almost missed my
chance to say goodbye. Luckily my momma’s best friend, LuAnn, is a
nurse and she called to say my mother was on her deathbed. Momma
wasn’t awake, but I still think she heard me when I vowed to get
away from him. She passed a few moments later.”

Trent reached out and took her hand.
This time she didn’t pull away. “I’m glad you got to say
goodbye.”

“Me too. From that day on I quietly
put things in motion and waited until I had things
together.”

“What things?”

Noelle shrugged. “Things. When momma
died I got what little she’d saved and everything she owned. I got
a storage unit and hid the money away. Lenny had a routine, and I
knew when and for how long he’d be passed out drunk. During those
times I’d do odd jobs for some of the neighbor ladies. Sewing,
cleaning, babysitting.”

“And he never knew it?”

She couldn’t help the half-laugh,
half-snort she let out. “He was oblivious. Most of the time he was
too wasted to remember what he was doing. He lived with an almost
constant buzz.”

Trent nodded and asked, “Do you think
he may have reached out to the neighbors when you left and they
would tell him what you were doing?”

She thought about it a minute and
shrugged. “I don’t really know. I mean, he thought he kept me
secluded enough that people wouldn’t talk to me, but maybe he got
worried enough that he’d give them some story.”

“Worried that something may have
happened to you?”

She laughed outright at that, but
there was little humor in the sound. “No, worried I’d get far
enough away to tell someone what he really did behind closed doors.
Around where we lived he had immunity to do what he wanted, but
people weren’t stupid, they’d heard he had a temper just like his
daddy.”

He arched his eyebrow with a
questioning look. “His daddy?”

Noelle nodded. “Yeah, he’s the
sheriff.”

Trent swore again. “That would explain
the immunity. “

“Yep. And on the occasions when it was
bad enough where I ended up in the hospital, his daddy made sure
that even when the nurses and doctors reported it, the report got
so lost in red tape it never went far.”

“I hate men who abuse women, but I
really hate men who abuse power so they can do it. How did you
finally get away?”

“Two weeks ago I ended up in the
emergency room when Lenny threw me across the room and I hit my
head on the counter. It knocked me out and after almost an hour his
momma finally talked him into taking me to get looked at. He’d
already given me a black eye, but hitting my head gave me a
concussion.”

Trent clenched his teeth again and she
could nearly see the anger radiate from him. “And nobody did
anything to help, did they?”

She shook her head. “Lenny told them I
tripped and hit my head. He made it sound like I was clumsy. In my
heart I was ready to leave a long time ago, but I think hitting my
head knocked out any remaining hope because the next morning, as
soon as he left, I took off.”

“That explains the bruises I noticed
on you that first night. I could tell they were several days
old.”

She nodded. “Yeah, those were from
him. LuAnn was working the night I got admitted and we hatched a
plan to get me out of town. She is the one that got the U-Haul for
me and helped me load up so quick. She truly was a
lifesaver.”

“What made you choose
California?”

Noelle shrugged. “It’s where I ran
outta money. I figured with as many people as there are here I
would be able to get lost in the crowd.”

Trent laughed and Noelle glared at
him. “What is so funny?”

He motioned toward her, “You thinking
you could fit into a crowd. Honey, you stand out in so many
ways.”

Noelle crossed her arms in front of
her and gave a humph. “That isn’t very nice.”

He held up his hands. “No, I mean it
in a good way. You’re naturally beautiful without a bunch of
make-up or spray tan. You have that hair I can spot from two blocks
away and a smile that stops me in my tracks. If you have that
effect on me I’d hate to think how a crowd would respond to
you.”

She shook her head. “Only you could
find a chance to hit on a woman during a serious
conversation.”

He reached out and cupped her cheek
with his hand. “But it made you smile so it’s worth it. I mean it,
too.”

She blushed. The look he gave her made
her brain go blank and she had to shake her head. “Anyway, that’s
my story. I didn’t do nuthin’ wrong.”

Trent nodded. “I know. Fitzer asked me
yesterday why I was so damn happy and then started asking questions
about you that got my wheels turning. I knew the U-Haul came from
Batesville; I put that and your name into the computer
system.”

“And?”

“And luckily there aren’t too many
Noelles in Batesville. But when your name did come up it was a
Missing Person Bulletin.”

“What did it say?”

“That your mother reported you missing
and your purse and identification were found in the
house.”

Noelle nodded. “That’s why you asked
me about my momma?”

“Yeah, as soon as I saw that I knew
something wasn’t right. You mentioned before you were trying to get
away from something, I wanted to make sure before I called and told
them where to find you.”

Noelle froze and her eyes widened.
“You called them?”

Trent shook his head and used his hand
to soothe her, gently caressing her arm. “No, I told you before
that you can tell me anything and it will be safe with me. The only
way I’ll call is if you say it’s okay. I can tell them you are fine
and wish to not be contacted.”

She shook her head vehemently.
“Absolutely not. They’ll track me down. Lenny’s made the comment
several times the only way I would ever get away from him is if I
was dead.”

Trent stared at her. “Why didn’t you
say that sooner? He can’t threaten you like that. There are things
we can legally do to stop him.”

She shook her head again. “No there
isn’t. His daddy would make sure nuthin’ comes of it. They’d say I
was lying and then make my life even more miserable.”

“So what, you’re gonna do
nothing?”

Noelle saw the exasperation in Trent’s
face, but she was done justifying her reasons. “Yep. All I want is
to move on and forget about that life. Why can’t we do
that?”

“You really think you won’t be looking
over your shoulder the rest of your life?”

She fell silent. Her main objective
had always been to get away, she’d never thought about what would
happen after that. “No.”

She thought it over for a moment then
asked, “Can I have a few days to think about it, about you calling
to just say I’m fine?”

She could tell he didn’t like the
idea, but was relieved when Trent finally nodded. “Yeah. But I
think it would be better to do it sooner rather than
later.”

Noelle nodded. “I know. Thank you for
making the decision mine. If you were to do it without my okay I
would be very hurt. For so long Lenny ran my life, but I’m the one
who has the say now.”

Trent caressed her cheek. “Fair
enough.”

The car got very quiet. Noelle turned
her cheek into the warmth of his hand and delighted in the
gentleness of his touch. She felt relief at finally telling
him.

After another moment Trent spoke. “I
know I said I was going to take you to meet my friends, but I’m
thinking maybe it would be better to just hang out by ourselves. Do
you want to go get something to eat and watch a movie?”

Noelle smiled at him. “That sounds
perfect.”

Trent gave her another smile and
started the car. As she buckled up, Noelle realized that it didn’t
matter what they did tonight, or any night. She was just happy to
spend time with him. For the first time ever, she was totally
relaxed in the company of a man.

But it wasn’t just any man. Trent was
quickly becoming the man who held her heart.

Trent rested his chin on top of
Noelle’s head as they cuddled on his couch watching a movie – it
was heartwarming enough for her and had football for him so they
were both happy.

He liked the feel of her in his arms
this way. It had taken some work, but she’d finally agreed to come
back to his place and rent an on-demand movie. He’d promised to be
on his best behavior, and was surprised to find it was easier than
he thought.

Most of the movie he did his best to
not ogle her, but he’d be content to sit and stare at her all day.
After her admission earlier he saw her in a new light. He knew
Noelle had a fierceness to her, but now he held an even deeper
respect for her strength.

It also opened his eyes to how his
mother must feel. He’d been wrapped up in his anger at his father
for so long that he hadn’t taken enough time to understand her
point of view. Now he did, at least a little more.

He stared blankly at the television as
his mind raced with a million thoughts. The most predominant was
fighting the urge to track down this Lenny schmuck and teach him a
lesson. He knew Noelle wouldn’t want him to get in a fight, but
something in him wanted to defend her honor.

“Hey Trent?”

Her voice broke through his thoughts.
“Yeah …”

“Do you think you can stop squeezing
me so tight?”

He looked down at where his arms were
wrapped around her midsection. He loosened his grip, not realizing
that while his brain was thinking of protecting her, his body was
responding by hugging her tightly, like he did when he was a young
boy with his favorite teddy bear.

He dropped his hands.
“Sorry.”

She looked up at him and smiled. “It’s
alright, I just like to breathe.”

He laughed. “Yeah I could see how that
would be a good thing.”

Noelle turned more fully toward him.
“What’s going on in that head of yours?”

“Nothing, just not wanting to let you
go.”

She squinted at him. “Smooth, real
smooth.”

He gave her a quick peck on the lips.
“I try.”

She laughed and the warmth in it did
something funny to his heart again. If this is what love was, on
one hand he kicked himself for waiting so long to feel it, but on
the other hand was glad to have waited for someone like Noelle to
come along.

He couldn’t keep from running his
fingers through her wild tresses and giving her another, longer
kiss.

When they finally came up for air, the
movie credits were playing. Regretfully he said, “It’s probably
time I took you home, huh?”

She bit her lip and it took everything
in him to not carry her straight to the bedroom. She finally nodded
and the disappointment at having to say goodbye seemed to take the
wind out of him.

Trent cleared his throat. “Yeah, I
figured as much. What do you have going on tomorrow
night?”

Noelle shook her head. “Nuthin’.
Delphine has been trying to talk me into going with her to karaoke,
but if you want to do something … I would rather be with
you.”

Trent shook his head. “Can you repeat
that? Because the woman I met a week ago didn’t want anything to do
with me!”