Sarah Gilmore

Being pissed off at Wes made the last bit of the weekend go by a little faster. He wasn't supposed to be gone that long, but I chose to ignore his calls and texts.

Being angry always made me more motivated to be productive. After an 18-hour shift, I scrubbed my house from top to bottom, did the only load of laundry that was available to do, and read some of a book. I only slept for about four hours before I was up and working in my garden. I left my phone in the house and kept it on silent.

That night I worked a 12-hour shift followed by being on call for another eight. I passed out at home when I was done and slept through the afternoon and into the early morning.

As I woke, I rolled over to my back. I had fallen asleep in the clothes I had come home in. Looking at my phone, it was dead. As I put it on its charger, there was a knock at the door. My clock on my dresser read that it was 5:10 a.m.

Throwing on my robe, I made my way to the door and threw it open.

"Yes?" My tone was snappier than I meant it to come off, but I had just gotten up and wasn't fond of having company first thing. Blinking at the sunlight, my eyes finally adjusted to the brightness. Before me stood Ashton, wearing an amused frown on his smug face.

"You forgot, didn't you?" He bowed his head, slightly as he looked at my wrinkled clothes that peeked out beneath my bathrobe.

"I... No, I just," I stopped myself and tried to recall the conversation. He had said he would stop asking me out if I... Yup, I totally forgot. The day we met for coffee, he asked to take me out to breakfast, as friends, coworkers... but in the haze of anger I had been brooding in, I had definitely forgotten.

"It's okay. We can have breakfast another time. I'm sure I can reschedule at Criollo." He stood at my door looking awake, casually dressed, and put together. All the things I wasn't.

"I'd still like to grab breakfast," especially at Criollo, expensive and absolutely amazing food. "I think I missed my alarm or slept through it," I lied. "Can you give me 15 minutes to get changed?"

"Uh, of course" With that cleared up and my brain still groggy, I stood there like an idiot. An awkward silence passed between us before he spoke again. "May I come in?"

"Shit, sorry, yeah." I opened the door wider and he stepped past me.

Since I had moved, I had gotten much more cautious. I hadn't allowed anyone to get close to me. Ashton was the first guy I'd let in my bubble and he was the first I'd let in my house as a social call.

Wes Dalton was my anomaly.

As I headed back to my room, I couldn't help chide myself at how stupid I was for letting him in, again. Hurricane Dalton.

I was still in disbelief that he had met Ashton! Although Ashton didn't know, I was sure that Wes had messed with the both of us. The emergency that pulled Ashton away, didn't actually come from the Hospital. For me, that meant that Wes or his techie friend made a call that looked like it originated from the hospital. On top of that, Wes had met Ashton at my damn door while I had gone to change!

Ashton admitted to me that he thought that Wes was my boyfriend. That somehow I hadn't mentioned it because of his job.

No! I hadn't mentioned it because it wasn't the case!

Anger boiled up as I lotioned my skin. I had written several texts to him but I ended up deleting them before I could hit send. Choosing silence as my best option. He would hate it.

On a whim, I turned my phone back on. There was a new voicemail and I was curious. I knew who it would be from, but decided to listen anyway.

"Hey sweetness. I'm not coming back as soon as I'd planned. I'm going home to Maryland for a few days, but I am coming back to you. I know you're mad at me. No idea why, but I know because you haven't answered a single one of my calls or texts. Whatever the reason, we will be talking about it when I come back down. Behave yourself. I'll be thinking about you."

I could hear the smirk in his voice as the message ended. How did he know I wasn't dead or kidnapped? Then again, this was Dalton. He probably had access to the hospital's system and knew that I'd been working my ass off.

Although I didn't need to save the message, I did. I loved the sound of his voice. No matter how mad I was at him, I always felt relief when he spoke to me.

Dropping the phone on my bed, I walked over to my dresser. Snagging a cotton bra and panties. Slipping into a plain T and jeans, I wasn't planning on going out looking anything more than put together. Brushing my teeth and my hair were the final things I needed to do before slipping into my flats.

My phone hadn't been on the charger long, but it was already at 40%. As I unplugged it, a voicemail popped up. I didn't have any missed calls since checking the message from Wes. Confused, I wandered towards my living room as I listened to the voicemail.

"Hey sweetheart, it's mom. I don't want to worry you, but we had a break-in last night. Thankfully, my neighbor was just coming home. He saw the door open and came over to check on us. We are all okay, but I wanted to let you know. I love you. We will talk to you soon. Bye baby."

My heart thundered through my chest. I pressed for more information to know when she left the message. The automated woman said, "3:46 a.m."

"Everything okay, Sarah?" Ashton had rounded the couch and was in front of me, hands on my arms with his brows pinched.

"No," I whispered. "Something happened to my mom. I'm sorry, I need to call her back."

I hung up with my voicemail and focused on trying to find my mom's number, my hands shaking.

"That's fine. Do you need me to stay? Is there anything I can do for you?" The man genuinely cared for other people, more than most.

Shaking my head, all I could get out was, "I... I... no idea... something happened."

"Sarah, take a breath," he said as he put a kind hand on my shoulder.

Following his direction, I closed my eyes and swallowed the panic in my throat before taking in a lung full of air and slowly releasing it.

"I'm going to go, but call me if there is anything you need, don't hesitate to call me, okay?"

Finally feeling more stable, I nodded and mumbled my response as I walked him to the door. As he left, my phone connected.

"Thank you, again. I really appreciate it." My mom's voice came through, sure and strong.

"Mom?"

"Hey baby. Sorry, Dee was just leaving."

"Dee?"

"My neighbor, honey. He stayed with me throughout the night."

"What time did this happen?"

"Rround one in the morning."

"What happened?" I asked as I sunk into my couch.

"I woke up to a crash and thought somethin' had fallen or a babe was out of bed. I didn't realize that it was the front door until I woke up a lil' more. I realized there was a... a... vibration of sorts, so it wasn't somethin' being knocked over."

"Do you still have the gun I got you?" I asked as I tried to stay calm.

"Yes baby. I grabbed it and went to figure out what was happen'n. The kids were out of bed tryin' to come out of their rooms. Pretty sure they just wanted to come to me, but I had them go to my bathroom. You know? To hunker down and all."

"Are they okay? Where are they now?"

"Sweetheart, they're alright. I called Aislinn's mom. She works most nights, ya'know. She was happy to come over as soon as I had explained what happened."

"Are you okay?"

"Yeah, baby, I'm fine. I'm just glad Dee was home. He said he was just gettin' home when he saw my door open, knew somthin' wasn't right and came over," she repeated the information she had already told me on the voicemail. Although her voice was strong, I could tell she was still shaken from the situation.

I let out a deep breath, closed my eyes, and rubbed my free hand over my face. "So Dee stayed with you?"

"Yeah. He is a sweetheart."

"Take him to bed, momma?" I smiled as I teased her. She hadn't been with anyone since she had left my dad. The attempt to lighten the mood of our conversation worked as I heard her laugh.

"Hell no! He slept on the couch in the living room, like the gentleman he is. Plus, he is over half my age. Not that he isn't good lookin' or nothin'. Actually, I think he is single. He likes the kids a whole lot, too."

"Mom, don't go there. I'm not interested."

"When you come up, you'll see. He mows the yard shirtless and he is gorgeous. I can send you a picture. It's candid, I don't think he even knew I took it."

"No! I can't believe you took a picture of him while he was doing you a favor. Mom, you're too much!" I laughed at the thought of her peering out at her neighbor as he mowed her yard. "So did Dee get the burglar out?"

"Yeah. They had a lil' scuffle, but the man is a beast! He must work out. I don't know what he does, but he wrestled the guy to the ground and chased him off. When he came back in the house, he told me to have a look-see to see if anything had been taken, but there wasn't nothin'."

"So nothing was taken?" I wanted to correct her statement, but it would just start her on a tangent I didn't need. She grew up in Alabama and her accent was still thick.

"No, baby. I don't think he got far into the house before Dee came after him." She paused before speaking again, "Dee is comin' back this afternoon to fix the door. It's busted. I offered to pay him, but he refused."

"That is sweet of him. I can send him a check or something. That way he doesn't think it is coming from you."

"Already planned on doing that, honey. I'll pay him back somehow. I may make my famous lemon bars. The man loves them!"

I smiled at the thought of some muscular man nibbling on the sweet and tangy little bars covered in powdered sugar. "They are pretty good. I'm glad you shared your recipe with me, they are one of my favorites too."

"When's the last time you made 'em?"

"It has been way too long."

"You should make some."

"I will. Hey momma?"

"Yes baby?"

"Do you want me to get a security system installed in the house?" They lived in a decent area, but she was towards the beginning of the large cul-de-sac. Being close to the entrance had made me realize that she could also be targeted more easily.

"Heavens, no. I don't need all that!"

"What if something else happens?"

"I got good neighbors. I'll be fine."

"What if he isn't home? You said he travels."

"Sarah, I'm fine. I wasn't scared to use the gun, just Dee beat me to him. I can handle myself."

"I know you can mom, I just worry about you and the kids."

"Well, that's backward. I'm your momma. I'm the one who 'ought to worry about you."

"Yeah, yeah... I can't help it. You may be my mom but you have my babies."

"And I promise to put them before myself, always."

"I am lucky to have a momma as wonderful as you." I let out a sigh away from the phone so she wouldn't hear it. Slumping back into my seat, I was finally feeling better about the situation.

"Flood my ego, baby. I love it!"

"Ha, you don't need it. It may go to your head."

We bantered back and forth before she had to go. She needed to clean up the remaining mess from the break-in and I needed food.

Next I would need to message Ashton, only after I'd eaten. My breakfast wasn't as fancy or as delicious as eating at Criollo, but I managed.

All I wanted to do was crawl back into bed and shut the world out. My mom and my babies were safe. Saved by their neighbor. It was in moments like these that made me want to move home, but the reality was that I couldn't fathom moving back.

As my day wound down, I messaged Ashton that all was well and that I was sorry plans had changed again. I waited for a moment to see if he would reply, but there was nothing.

Brushing my teeth and slipping under my covers, and then I got a message from Ashton.

Ashton:

Benefit dinner for
Wounded Warrior.
Be my plus one?

A lump formed in my throat as I thought about my answer. I knew exactly when the dinner was. Ashton had been talking about it for about a month because it was something that his entire family took pride in. He had hinted at needing a date but never asked.

Ashton came from money and his mother pushed to support and host charity events whenever there was time for it. Warring with my emotions, I chewed on my lip as I typed out my reply.

Me:

I'd be honored.
I guess I'll need a dress.

Ashton:

Perfect. Do you need
the details?

Ashton:

Dress is on me.
I insist.

Me:

I know the when
and where. I can
buy my own dress.

Ashton:

I know you can,
but this is last minute.
Please?

I shook my head as I read his message. It wasn't last minute, I had an entire week. Getting a dress was the stressor, but not having the financial burden of it would be nice.

Me:

Yeah, okay.
Thank you.

Ashton:

Wonderful. Send me
your size, I'll take care
of it. I'll pick you up
at 7, Friday. Glad you
didn't have to work

My eyes widened as I read what he wrote. He was going to buy it for me!? I didn't respond. I didn't know what to say. Taking in the fact that he would be picking my gown worried me. He dressed well, but how well could he dress a woman?