Page 57 of Possess Me

Just like her mommy dog.

What was I saying? I couldn’t get too attached. I was certain there were dozens of laws regarding bringing a dog in from another country, including quarantine needs. I didn’t have the money to keep her locked away for a couple of weeks.

I also wasn’t comfortable with placing her life in danger. Antonio would do something terrible to her.

Then again, I already couldn’t stand the thought of leaving her.

While still struggling into the shirt, I followed behind her. She was happily lapping at her makeshift water bowl.

Croissants and fresh fruit were on the table. Wonders never ceased with the man. So much of me wanted to trust him. Maybe I was just dreaming. The scent of the strawberries was incredible, but I needed coffee more than anything. There was a vast selection of flavors. After choosing one, I checked the refrigerator, finding leftover chicken and some cheese already cubed for Bella.

With her happily eating, I grabbed the mug, adding cream and leaning against the counter.

Suddenly, buyer’s remorse settled in. What in God’s name had I done? Yes, I was an adult and no, sleeping with the man didn’t mean anything long term. Hell, he lived fifteen hundred miles away from me. Still, I’d set myself up for another letdown.

Maybe the best thing to do was to draw a line in the sand right now.

Bella stretched and lay down, peering up at me as she’d done before, her tail swishing back and forth across the tile. “You like him. Don’t you?”

She lifted and cocked her head.

“Me too. Maybe too much. But I can’t let my guard down, Bella.”

Her slight growl made me laugh.

“Don’t argue with me.”

Woof!

“What a little brat you are.” Reaching down, I couldn’t help but run my fingers through her fur. I’d had a puppy once. Well, it wasn’t technically my puppy. The fur ball had belonged to my sister. But I’d adored her just the same. At least I had a few memories of our ranch in Colorado. I prayed to God I didn’t lose them.

Hearing my phone, I stiffened. I’d wanted to dump my phone for a new one and had planned on it, but there’d been no chance with Jeffrey needing me on a whim.

It reminded me I needed to call and check on how he was doing. He hadn’t allowed me to go to the hospital with him, which meant I had no clue which one, but I would find out.

The ringing continued and I chose to be a brave girl, grabbing it from the table near the patio doors. After taking a deep breath, I glanced at the screen.

“Thank God.” My stomach could finally stop being in knots. A friendly voice. “Jasmine.”

She giggled. “Who did you think it was?”

Jasmine had also been a former girlfriend of Jeffrey’s, only their relationship hadn’t ended with roses and the two of them shaking hands. She’d been pissed. I’d run into her the day I’d moved in with Jeffrey. That should have told me something rightthere, especially since she warned me in no uncertain terms that he was a womanizer.

I hadn’t listened, at least not at first.

Maybe I should hate the man, but there hadn’t been enough time for him to cheat on me. We’d had lunch and one thing had led to another and Jasmine and I had become best friends.

“Maybe the realtor about my mom’s house.” The last thing she needed was to hear I was afraid Antonio would do something even more horrible than before.

“Are you sure, because you sound as if you just lost your best friend or had wild, wicked sex last night. All. Night. Long.”

When I coughed, she gasped. “Don’t… Just don’t,” I said.

“Uh-huh. I can tell something is wrong.”

I wiped coffee from my mouth. I’d told her almost nothing about the confrontation and violence, or about Antonio’s threat. She’d known he’d hit me, threatening to use all her connections, including every NFL football player she’d ever dated, and have Antonio wiped off the earth.

Not that I would mind.