Early the next morning, Simone returned to the Women’s Center. Entering through the main entrance, she stopped at the desk and greeted the receptionist, who buzzed her inside. Simone stopped to get updated.
“Any problems this morning?”
The receptionist shook her head. “No, it’s been quiet this morning. I heard that wasn’t the case last night.”
Simone nodded. “Stay on guard, and no one gets in without clearance first.”
“Got it,”
“I’ll be in my office,” Simone told her. “Have Mrs. Polk come down to see me.”
Nodding, the woman responded, “I sure will.”
Simone entered her office, put her purse inside her desk then sat in her chair. She placed her phone on the wood, and turned on her computer. The device buzzed on her desk and she looked at the message.
Hi Simone. It’s Nick. I’d like to come by this afternoon around one, if that’s good for you?
Simone stared at the message and felt another rush. She replied:
Yes, that works for me. I’ll see you then. Please check in at the front desk.
He answered:
Will do
Simone looked up at the light knock on her door. “Please come in Mrs. Polk.”
She watched the woman come inside quietly and take the seat across from her. Simone stood and walked around the desk to close the door. When she returned to her chair, she stared at the young woman.
“How are your children?” Simone asked, softly.
The woman wrung her hands. “They’re scared…and my grandmother is too.”
“Has your husband tried to contact you?”
She watched the woman look away.
“Mrs. Polk?”
Mrs. Polk nodded slowly. “He wants me to come home with the kids.”
Simone studied her. “Is that what you’re planning to do?”
“He apologized for being angry last night,” she said softly.
Simone lifted a brow. “Did he also apologize for trying to kill your family?”
“Ja’Traveon said he didn’t do that,” Mrs. Polk protested. “He said, he’d never hurt us.”
“But he’s hurt you before,” Simone reminded her.
She looked away again. “He didn’t mean to…”
Simone leaned back in her seat. “Do you know that on average an abused woman returns seven times to her abuser before she finally leaves…if she’s alive to do so?”
Mrs. Polk stared at her hands.
“What number are you on Mrs. Polk?”
“Four…”
Simone continued. “I’m not saying that you should be ashamed of returning, because it takes a lot of strength, courage and support to do that. That’s why the Women’s Center is here. Let me explain the stages of leaving…”
Mrs. Polk listened as Simone continued.
“Stages 1 & 2 consist of you beginning to not care for your abuser and you begin to disconnect from the abusive relationship. Stage 3 is when you begin to actually notice the effects of the abuse, like your children being afraid, and you start to prepare to leave the situation.”
Simone watched her closely.
“Stage 4 is going back to the relationship. Your mind goes back and forth because you need clarity, and you still crave that physical and emotional connection, which is why you go back. He’s made you feel that everything is going to be okay, this time…”
“Stage 5 is actually leaving for good.” Simone finished. “Where are you Mrs. Polk?”
The woman sniffed and wiped her nose. “I don’t know…”
Simone reached for a box of tissue and handed it to Mrs. Polk.
“I understand the reasons why you want to stay,” Simone said quietly. “You love him. You have hope that things will change. You want normalcy for you and your children. You’re afraid…both of staying with him, and leaving him.”
“I can’t take his kids away,” Mrs. Polk said, wiping her face. “He says that’s all he has…”
“Yet, he fights with you in front of them?”
She shook her head. “Only when he’s angry,”
“Stop making excuses for him Mrs. Polk. He’s a grown man.”
Mrs. Polk paused. “You don’t know him.”
“I think I met him last night, when he threw a firebomb at your grandmother’s house,” Simone told her.
“He wouldn’t do that!”
“Tell him to turn himself in to the police and let them clear him,”
She shook her head. “He can’t go to the police.”
Simone lifted a brow. “Why not?”
“He has an assault charge,” she explained. “My grandmother reported him, when they argued.”
Standing to her feet, Simone walked over to the woman. “So this man assaulted your grandmother?”
“She made him angry when she told him to not put his hands on me again,” the woman explained.
Simone blew out a breath. “Mrs. Polk, your husband is dangerous and the last thing I want is for you, your grandmother or your children to be seriously hurt.” She sat next the woman and took her hands.
“Scared animals return home, whether the house is safe or frightening.” Simone counseled. “You want to seek refuge in what is familiar, feeling that it’s better to have to deal with what you know, instead of uncharted waters.”
She looked at Simone. “I’m all he has…”
Simone shook her head. “Then he should appreciate you as such, and your children. The damage that’s being done now is not just on you. Those children are going to suffer this trauma for the rest of their lives.”
Simone squeezed her hands. “Tell him to turn himself in, before he’s caught. We will work with you to find a safe place for your family, including your grandmother.”
Watching the woman deep in thought, Simone remained silent. When she began to sob, Simone put her arms around her.
“It’s very hard,” Simone soothed. “But no one can make the choice, but you…”
“I don’t know what to do,” she cried.
Simone rubbed her back softly. “You can stay here at the Center for a five-day maximum. After that we can move you somewhere safe or you can return to your situation,” she explained.
Pulling back to look at her, Simone stared into her face.
“Think about your future and the future of your three children,” she told her. “I’m here, if you need to talk to me.”
Mrs. Polk nodded. “Thank you,”
“Tell Ja’Traveon that the police are looking for him and if he returns to this building, the police will be the last of his worries,” Simone warned.
Getting her meaning, Mrs. Polk nodded. “I’ll tell him.”
She stood and Simone walked her to the door. Watching the woman walk away, Simone turned back to her office and closed the door again. She began working and preparing for Nick Webster’s visit, since she wanted to have more than an idea to present to him.
A few hours later, she looked up and saw that he would be arriving shortly. Picking up her phone, she placed a call.
“Hello, goddess.” A deep voice answered.
Simone smiled broadly. “Hello, Sun God.”
“How are you?”
“Very good, actually.” Simone responded. “I need to ask you about someone.”
Ray agreed. “Okay, who?”
“His name is Nick Webster. He’s one of your agents down here in Atlanta.”
“Yeah, Nick. I know him well. What about him?”
Simone sighed. “I want to start training the women here at the Center in weapons to protect themselves, and Lotus recommended him to assist.”
“He’s former Special Ops. He’s expertly trained, and owns both a gun range and a number of gun shops, so she’s right on point,” Ray agreed.
“Can I trust him?” Simone asked quietly.
Ray paused. “If you couldn’t, he wouldn’t work for me and as soon as you’d mentioned his name, I’d have warned you. Nick is a good dude.”
“What’s his story?” she inquired.
Chuckling, Ray answered. “No goddess, that’s for that man to tell…just like your story is for you to tell, when you’re ready.”
She nodded. “That’s why I can’t find anybody. Nobody compares to you.”
“There can only be one Sun God,” Ray boasted, and she laughed.
“Seriously, I’m glad you’re helping the goddesses protect themselves. We lose too many due to violence, committed by sorry ass men.” Ray added.
Simone sighed. “I know, it’s astounding. I have a woman here now, whose husband has both threatened to shoot up the Center and possibly tried to kill her grandmother and his own children.”
Ray frowned. “What the hell? Do I need to put somebody on you?” Ray asked concerned.
“Ray, I’m a Diamond. I can handle myself, but Nick did show up at the right time last night. He rescued the children from the burning house,” Simone explained.
“What is going on down there?”
“We’re good. We can handle this, but if I need you, I know the number,”
He agreed. “Yes, you do, and don’t ever hesitate to use it.”
“I won’t…” she said softly. “I need to thank you.”
“No, you don’t.” Ray told her firmly. “Just be happy.”
Simone nodded. “I’m trying…”
“Are you still liking Atlanta, because I can find you something here in LA?” Ray offered.
“No, I’m fine. I love my job, and Kent and Lotus are here.”
“Again, I could find you something in LA,”
She laughed. “They’re my family and Laurel is my little homie. I don’t plan to be leaving anytime soon. Plus, Dr. Richards is here…”
“Things are going well with him?” Ray asked.
“Yes, very well. I was lucky to find him.”
“On an assignment of all things?”
She laughed. “Undercover as a sex addict…how appropriate.”
“That’s when Trent was in charge,” Ray said, shaking his head.
“He thought so,” Simone added and Ray laughed. “Please tell Isabelle and the children I said hello.”
“I sure will, and keep in touch.” Ray ordered.
“I promise I will.”
They ended the call and Simone stared at her phone with a soft smile. If only more than one Sun God had been created, but that wasn’t the case. Ray Parker was a man that women loved, men admired and the world needed. If she found someone with half of his qualities, she’d snap him up in a minute.
“Ms. Jenkins?”
Simone turned to the phone on her desk. “Yes?”
“A Mr. Webster is here to see you,”
Checking her watch, Simone got to her feet. “I’ll be right there.”
She arrived at the front desk and saw her staff staring across the glass at the tall, handsome man in a dark suit and dark glasses.
“You can buzz him in,” she instructed and when no one moved, she reached for the buzzer herself.
Nick walked through the door and surveyed the surroundings until Simone approached with a smile.
“Hello, Nick.”
He looked down at her. “Hello, Simone.”
Simone felt the entire staff watching, and turned back to them. Nick watched as the women quickly went back to work.
“Let’s go to my office.” Simone said turning back to him. “Are you packing?”
He nodded slowly.
“We normally don’t allow weapons inside,” she informed him. “But I’ll make an exception for you, since I know your background.”
“Thank you.” Nick agreed. “And thank you for checking me out, that was a good move on your part.”
She looked up into his shades. “How do you know I checked you out?”
“A text, about five minutes ago from Ray Parker, telling me that if I hurt you in any way, all of the Diamonds would be on their way to Atlanta,” Nick replied.
Simone flushed. “I didn’t know that he was going to do that.”
“He says that you are one of them and they’ll protect you from anybody.”
She shook her head. “That Ray…”
Simone led him to her office and offered him a seat, while closing the door. Nick watched as she walked around her desk and sat down.
“Have you had any other problems?” he inquired.
She shook her head. “No, I’ve told the wife to encourage her husband to turn himself in, but she doesn’t think he will.”
“You want me to get him?”
“Can you?”
He nodded. “Of course,”
She felt that familiar rush at his tone.
“Maybe we should let the police handle it first,”
“It’s your call.”
Simone studied the man across her desk. “I’m intrigued Nick. Tell me about yourself.”
“I worked Special Operations in the military for several years. I’m trained in a long list of skills. After leaving the military, I came back home to Atlanta and opened a shooting range along with several gun shops,” he explained. “I also helped the Black Diamonds out, when needed.”
“Ray had wonderful things to say about you,” Simone told him.
He shrugged. “Ray’s a good guy. I admire what he does…”
“So do I,” she agreed.
Nick leaned forward. “So you were a Diamond?”
“An Uncut Diamond, the second group of Diamonds,” she confirmed.
“That’s impressive,”
Simone stared at him. “You think so?”
“I do,” he said quietly. “Almost as impressive as seeing you in action last night.”
She fanned a hand. “That was just impulse. You were the hero.”
“How are the kids?”
“They’re here with their mother and grandmother. The mother is trying to decide what her next move is,”
“Is she going back to the husband?”
Simone shrugged. “I don’t know…she’s left him three times before.”
He shook his head. “The Seven Times Statistic.”
“You know about that?”
“I’m familiar with it,” he told her. “I’ve buried someone, who went back when she shouldn’t have.”
“I’m sorry…” Simone said softly.
He clasped his hands in front of him. “Thank you. It was a while ago.” Nick looked around her office. “This is why I’m very interested in helping you.”
“I appreciate your willingness.”
“I’d also like to check out your security while I’m here,” Nick told her.
“I don’t have a problem with that,”
He stared at her for a long moment. “So I’m also intrigued. Tell me about Simone Jenkins.”
“I’m originally from LA, but I relocated to Atlanta two years ago,” she explained. “I started managing the Center last year as a way of helping other women who’ve also been victims of trauma.”
She watched for a reaction from him and when she received none, she continued, “I think that women should learn to better arm and protect themselves from male predators.”
There was a long pause, before Nick asked, “Did you kill him?”
Simone looked away. “No, someone else did.”
“As long as he’s dead.”
She turned back to him. “Did you kill the one who hurt your loved one?”
“Very slowly…”
Simone knew she would have to discuss these irrational feelings of warmth at Nick’s low spoken, deadly words, because they couldn’t be normal.
She swallowed. “If you’d like to look around, I could take you now.”
Nick waited until she got to her feet, then stood.
“Just a few things, though,” Simone said, coming around her desk to face him.
He looked down at her, then Simone reached up to remove the dark glasses from his eyes. The handsome face she revealed, stole her breath for a moment. Penetrating dark pupils, stared down into hers, before she surveyed the chiseled jaw, covered in a trimmed beard. His full lips were covered by a dark mustache that rested under a broad nose. Her eyes lifted to his black hair, with a professional line across a wide forehead. All of this was covered in skin the color of maple syrup.
Sitting the glasses aside, Simone put her hands inside of his unbuttoned suit jacket on his chest, before they moved up to his shoulders.
“I can’t have you walking through here looking like you’re about to kill everybody,” Simone told him and pushed the jacket off his shoulders. Nick caught the material in his hand, then handed it to her.
“Anything else?” he asked, as she placed his jacket across her desk.
Simone held his gaze, then reached for his tie. She loosened the knot, and lifted her other hand to release the fabric. Slowly, she slid it around his thick neck, while her mind screamed how she’d love to lick it.
“I’d like for you to leave your weapon in here,” Simone told him. “The one on your hip.”
Nick slowly reached for his waist and removed his gun. Unhurriedly, he sat it on her desk.
“Am I ready now?”
Simone inhaled his cologne. “I am…” She stepped back and moved to lock his weapon in a drawer. “We can start at the front desk and make our way around.
She walked to the door and tried to open it, but before she could, a large hand rested against it, from behind.
“The next time you undress me,” Nick whispered in her ear from behind. “Expect the same…”
Simone stared at the door in front of her. “Duly noted.”
He removed his hand, and she smiled to herself as he followed behind her to the front.
Thirty minutes later, the pair returned to her office. Nick retrieved his tie and began to dress himself.
Simone sat back in her chair and watched him expertly tie the fabric, then adjust it, along with his collar. He picked up his jacket and slipped back into it, before lifting those dark eyes to hers.
“May I have my weapon?”
She blinked. “Oh, I’m sorry.” So caught up in the show, she’d forgotten about everything but watching the way that he moved. Grabbing her keys, she opened the drawer and retrieved the gun, before handing it to him.
Their hands touched and again, the rush was on, throughout Simone’s body. Those two years of celibacy, had really done a job on her, she thought. Never had a man excited her, by actually getting dressed.
She continued to watch as he attached the pistol to his side. Straightening his jacket, he turned his attention to her again, as she sat.
“I have some suggestions for your security, based on what I’ve seen today,” Nick told her taking a seat.
“I’d love to hear them,” Simone replied.
“Why don’t you come out to the range and I can give you a tour, without undressing you…then we can discuss my ideas?” he told her.
She smiled softly. “I can do that.”
Nick reached for his glasses on the desk and placed them back on his face. “Is there anything else that you need from me today?”
Simone listed quite a few freaky things in her mind.
“No, I appreciate your time today,” Simone made her voice neutral. “I’m looking forward to working with you.”
Nick stood to his feet. “There’s no need trying to neutralize your voice, Simone. I hear everything you’re trying not to say…”
He walked to the door, then turned back. “Let me know when you’re coming.”
Simone watched him walk out and close the door behind him. “Oh Nick, I believe I will be coming very soon…” She let out a pent up breath.