Saving Us (5 page)

I started laughing. "Too bad your both married, huh?"

He chuckled and looked around the room. "Yeah, too bad. This old man still has some moves though."

I knew he w
as teasing, but I didn't want the visual of my father getting freaky. "Eww, Dad, please!"

The guy from the alarm company walked in and cleared his throat. "You are all set on our end. The new security pin is what you requested and the authorized names have also been changed with a passcode for each person. I just need you to sign this paper and you'll be good to go." He handed my father the paperwork and I watched him sign everything. He waited for the man to leave before he turned to talk to me again. "Now, we just need that locksmith to get done and you will be all set, sweetie. I know I will sleep better at night knowing that this is taken care of. I can't believe that man kept us apart for all those years. You let me get
my hands on him and there won't be any court date to attend. I will bury that son of a bitch so far down that they will never recover the bones."

"Dad!"

"I'm sorry, I just hate what he's done. He not only hurt you, but he stole from us both. This salon has been yours from day one, but you don't have a penny saved. I know there is money somewhere. I've got some people I know looking into him. We're going to figure this out and when I do, I will nail his ass to the wall."

I could sense my father's blood boiling as he spoke of Rick. My dad was upset about the business and the money, where all I wanted was to be free of him. If there was money out there for me somewhere, I would love that, but it just wasn't my first priority. "Dad, at the end of the day, I'm happy now and that is all that matters to me. We can make more money."

He walked up and unexpectedly hugged me. "You're right. We can make more money. I just wish you had it all along. I worked my whole life to provide for my family. I don't want you to have to live with other people."

I pulled away from him and tapped him on his chest. "We can talk about this another time. I'm sure Conner has a plan. He always does."

The locksmith took another hour to finish, but as he left, I was holding new keys to my salon. Aside from a couple women wanting to have their hair done, I hadn't gotten any threatening phone calls. I convinced my father that I was going to be fine thirty minutes after my first client came in. When he left, I felt both relieved and regretful. The sense of security that he offered had left the building and I was all on my own.

By the time
lunch came around, I had cut three clients hair and done a color treatment on one of my regulars. When the phone rang suddenly, I jumped before walking over to answer it.

Hello?

I could hear someone breathing...

Hello? Is someone there?

Still nothing...

I hung up the phone and it rang back instantly. I was almost afraid to answer.

Hello?

Blaze, it's me. Can you hear me? My phone is bein' stupid.

Did you try to call me a second ago?

Yeah, could you hear me talkin' to you?

No! I got all scared it was a crank call.

Sorry, babe. I was callin' to check on ya, not scare ya.

It's fine. I'm fine. The locks are changed and the alarm codes are all reset. It's been quiet.

Alright, I better get back to this fence we're reparin'.

Okay, I'll see you around five then?

I might get there earlier if I can. See you in a bit, Blaze.

We ended the call as another customer came in. It was a little old lady that knew more town gossip than I could ever possibly remember. She sat her floral purse down on the chair beside her and got comfortable. "It's about time you reopened. I was thinking that I would have to go back to that Sally woman's establishment. Did you know she has five children by all different men? That's not very Christian if you ask me."

I hadn't asked her, nor did I even want to know. "I'm open for business. We had some electrical problems and had to close until the repairmen could get in to fix them. The
weather didn’t make it easy on them."

Sure, it was a total lie, but I didn't want Mrs. Mouth to alert the news or print it in the church bulletin. My business was private.

"Well, do you remember how I like things or do I need to explain it?" What a little white headed spitfire she was.

"I remember. You just sit back and relax. I will have you fixed up in no time."

I started on the little old ladies hair and after five minutes, she began gossiping. "Did you hear about the Taylor boy who drove his truck into the horse corral? They had to shoot one of the horses after the truck broke two of it's legs. I tell ya, all these kids do nowadays is ride around in those trucks drinking. You'd think the parents would have enough sense to keep their kids at home where they belong. Back in my day this type of thing was unheard of. It's a shame when a farmer has to put down a good animal because of mischievous kids."

I rolled my eyes, but continued rolling the woman's hair. "I can see where things are a lot different than when you were growing up."

She nodded her head, even with the hot iron attached to her hair. "Yes indeed. My daddy would have tanned my hide if I brought home a boy like that. He would have chased him down our dirt road with his rifle. You should be glad that you don't have children of your own. I bet that step-daughter of yours is a handful."

"She's all grown up. She lives with her boyfriend now." I knew I shouldn't have given her that information.

Right away, I could see the concern on her face. "Are they living in vain?"

"They aren't married if that is what you're asking."

"Couples that aren't married and live in sin will go to Hell. You need to get that girl hitched and get her saved before it's too late."

I could only imagine what she would say about me being married to someone and pregnant by and living with another. "It was her father's decision. Since the two of us are no longer together, it really doesn't matter that much to me. I appreciate your concern though."

My answer must have pissed her off. She sat in silence until her hair was done. After she paid, leaving me with a whopping one dollar tip, she exited the salon. I let out a sigh of relief as I watched her pull away. After locking the door, I walked over to answer the ringing phone.

Hello?

It was the same sounds as before.

Conner?

It's only a matter of time, bitch! When you least expect it, I'll be there. You'll be sorry you ever crossed me.

The line went dead and I just stood there, shocked.

Chapter 6

Conner

Even though the day was halfway over, I knew Ty had noticed that I hadn't gotten shit done. "Dude, you need to get your mind off of that ginger pussy and give me a hand here. We need to finish this fence before Christmas next year."

The fence wasn't that big. I tossed a rock at him. "Screw you. I got shit on my mind today."

"Pussy? It's all about the pussy. You throw another rock and I will start texting you pictures of your sister naked, punk."

I shook my head and started digging another hole for a post. "So, let me ask you somethin'. I got this call from Heather the other night saying she needed to talk to us. You know better than anyone what that bitch is capable of. Do you really think she wants to help, or is she up to somethin'?"

Ty laughed and picked up another pole. While trying to get it level, he finally looked up at me. "The Heather that I knew was only about herself. After what she did to my wife, I hope she gets hit by a fucking truck. I wouldn't take her hel
p if she was the last person on the planet, dude. You know what she is capable of. Tell me you didn't call her."

I cocked my eyebrow and then gave him a dirty look. "Don't even ask me that, man. I ain't goin' to call that bitch without talkin' to you or my sister first. I just want this shit with Rick to be over. It's not just Amy I have to worry about. I got a kid on the way. It's important that they are both safe."

We leveled the pole and poured in the concrete to set it. "I get it, bro. I just think that should be the last option."

I didn't want to tell him that Heather had stopped by the farm. He would just flip out and upset my sister. "I'm thinkin' of takin' Amy to Kentucky. You think Randa could work at the shop for a few days? I want to show her where I grew up."

It was coming up on the anniversary of my father's death and every year since he'd died I'd visited his grave. Just because I was living here didn't mean I couldn't be there on that day.

"I will have to make sure my mom can keep the kids. Sometimes the boys get a little too wild for her. She
says it’s like having two of me running around."

I
knew exactly what the woman meant. Those boys worked together to drive anyone mad. They were so in sync. "You really get a kick out of bein' a dad, don't ya?"

Ty smiled and leaned on the next pole. "I do, bro. Those three kids are everything to me. If your sister wouldn't have had the problems with the boys, I might consider wanting more. Even if we just had the three, I'd be happy."

I shook my head. "I hate sayin' this, because it goes against everything I ever thought about you, but you're a good dad. Randa obviously saw something that none of us did in you."

He wiped the sweat off his forehead and chuckled. "She makes me crazy sometimes, but her body makes up for it."

I knew he was joking. It still didn't stop me from tossing a bolt at him. "Forget what I just said. You're still the number one douche I know."

"It takes one to know one, bitch!"

I could tell that it was starting to get later in the afternoon from the position of the sun. We finished the main part of the fence and headed back to the house. I considered showering the funk off my body before heading out to pick up Amy, but my anticipation of having her safe in my arms changed my mind. Ty headed in the house, while I jumped right in my truck. The snow had all melted and the ground was left soggy. I pulled off the farm road slowly, but heard the mud kicking up from the tires as I drove. There was no sense washing it when it was just going to get muddy again when we got home.

I tried to call Amy several times, but she never answered. It made me concerned that something bad may have happened to her. As much as I wanted to call her father, I knew getting him worried would upset Amy.

When I pulled up to the salon, the lights were still on. I jumped out and headed straight for the door, overwhelmed with concern. As I looked through the glass and spotted Amy standing at her station, relief washed over me. I tapped on the glass lightly, but she still jumped before turning around. Right away, I could tell that there was something wrong. She opened the door and locked it behind me. Before I could even say anything, she wrapped her arms around me. "I missed you today."

I lifted up her face and looked into her eyes. "What's wrong?"

"Nothing." She shook her head, but continued to hug me tightly.

"Amy, tell me."

"It's nothing. I just...I haven't had a customer in an hour and it’s been too quiet."

"Why didn't you answer my phone calls. You had me worried."

"Sorry, I turned my phone on vibrate and was talking to a customer when you called on the other line. Stop worrying, I'm fine."

Although I didn't believe her, I hugged her
back before helping her get everything cleaned up. She seemed better once we were in my truck, headed back to the farm. Maybe it was just me being overly protective. Still, I couldn't shake the feeling that something had her spooked. "How was your day?"

I looked over at her before looking back at the road. She shrugged. "Fine. I had to set this old bats hair who had an opinion about unwed women living in sin. At one point I wanted to smack her in the face. I don't remember ever feeling so angry before. Do you think
it’s my pregnancy?"

I chuckled. "Darlin' I sure hope so. I don't want to get beat up while I'm sleepin'. Let me know ahead of time if I piss you off. I'll sleep in protective gear."

She smacked my arm and started to laugh. "Ha ha, you're so funny. I just feel moody. Maybe I'm just tired after being on my feet for so long."

"I give excellent foot rubs." I placed my hand on her leg and squeezed.

She looked over at me and smiled. "I know. It's pretty much the only reason I like you."

I knew she was teasing, but her little games always resulted in one thing and I wasn't about to pull over to fuck her in my truck. "Calm down little rabbit, you can have some of this later tonight
when we get home."

"I didn't ask for it."

"Oh, yes you did. You think I can't read your mind by now?"

She laughed and leaned her body into mine. I watched her scoot her
body to the middle seat and get comfortable before clicking the seatbelt. Her hands slid between my legs and she started rubbing on my balls through my jeans. "When I want you, you will know it, baby."