Page 45 of Under His Protection
“I had a wonderful time today,” I say as I lay my arm across her shoulders. “In spite of the drama at the beach.”
“Me, too.” She holds out her hand, and I give her mine. “You were incredibly heroic today, Philip. If you hadn’t been there, that boy would have died, and that poor mother’s heart would have broken.”
“It was nothing, honestly. I’m glad I was there to help.”
She squeezes my hand. “You’re just being modest. It wasn’tnothing. It was everything for that family.” She sighs. “You scared the crap out of me, but you also amazed me.”
I pay our dinner tab—after a lengthy discussion in which I refuse to let her pay half—and we step outside. It’s a nice evening, not too hot.
“Would you like to take a walk?” I ask.
She’s all for it, so we walk leisurely, holding hands, and watch the daylight fade.
When the street lights come on, I figure I’d better get her home. She does have a curfew after all.
I flag a cab to take us back to campus. On the drive, we hold hands in the backseat, smiling at each other while the cabbie rattles on about how nice the weather is tonight.
It’s nine-thirty when we arrive at Haley’s dorm. I pay the fare and tip the driver. Inside, the community room is nearly empty. There’s just one quiet group of students seated at a table playing cards.
We climb the stairs—Haley insists on getting more steps in after all we ate this evening. As we’re walking down the hallway to her room, we pass the RA, Ryan, who’s unlocking a door for a female student.
“This is the second time this week you’ve forgotten your key, Brittany,” Ryan says. “Wear it on a chain around your neck soyou don’t forget it.” He spots us coming toward him and waves. “Hey, guys.”
When we arrive at Haley’s room, we stand outside her door to say goodnight. It’s nine-thirty, and I don’t want to barge in on Melissa.
“Thirty minutes until curfew, Haley,” Ryan says as he walks by. And then to me, he adds, “Visiting time is over, pal. Say goodnight,” before he continues on his way.
I pull Haley close for one last kiss. “I guess that’s my cue to leave.”
She wraps her arms around my waist, and we stand here for a little while longer just holding each other.
“Sleep well, sweetheart. I’ll talk to you soon.”
Chapter 14 – Haley
The next morning, I go to the cafeteria with Melissa to get breakfast. We eat in our new favorite spot overlooking the flower garden so we can watch the birds and little critters. After we’re done eating, Melissa goes to the gym to work out, and I head back to the dorm.
On my way back to the room, I stop to check my mailbox. Besides the usual junk mail, there’s a small folded piece of notebook paper in there with my name on it.
I unfold it and read the words written in all caps.
I CAN’T STOP THINKING ABOUT YOU
Below the words are a sad face emoji and a heart.
A chill crawls down my spine as I read those words over again.Who sent this? And why to me?I rip the note into pieces and toss them in the trash.
I hurry upstairs to my room, and since I’m too freaked out to do anything else, I readJane Eyre.
Mr. Rochester is a good distraction.
Philip gets called into work on a new assignment, so we can’t make plans to see each other today. We do manage to fit in a couple of phone calls and lots of texts, but it’s not the same as being together in person.
* * *
I spend the afternoon doing homework and working on a paper for my political science class. Mom and Dave come laterthat day to take me out to dinner. We go back to that sweet little Italian restaurant, Mama Bella’s, on Lafayette Street.
When I return from dinner, I find a note has been slipped under my door again, with my name on it.
