exit.”
“I understand.”
“Call you later.” He gave her a kiss on the lips, grabbed his keys, and left.
When she heard the door close, she rolled onto her back and threw her legs and arms out to the side giddily. Just then, she heard the ping of a text message. She rummaged through her purse until she found her phone.
Slade: BTW, had a great time last night.
If possible, her stupid grin got even stupider. This man was going to be the death of her.
Jessica: Me too.
Before she could stop herself she sent off another text.
Jessica: See you tonight?
She waited with bated breath. She didn’t want to come off as clingy. She should’ve acted more casual. Stupid stupid stu—
Slade: Hell, yeah. Be safe at work.
Jessica: Me? You’re the one who fights for a living. I should be telling you the same thing.
Slade: Don’t worry about me. Just be safe, okay?
Her heart warmed.
Jessica: I will, Slay. See you later.
She realized then that she was in trouble. If Slade broke her heart, she wasn’t sure if she’d recover.
After she finished taking a long, rejuvenating hot bath and got dressed for work, she found she still had about an hour to kill. Feeling reinvigorated, she decided it was time to revisit her dream. So she fired up her computer and searched for the folder that contained the business plan for her proposed yoga studio.
At one point she had mentioned to Dennis that she wanted to open a yoga studio, but he’d just laughed at her.
You may one day be the wife of the governor of Florida—how would it look having my wife doing all that New Age bullshit? As it is, I hate that you’re working at the Pier.
If there was a lesson to be learned in having been in an abusive relationship, it was that she never wanted to be dependent on a man again. She needed to be self-sufficient and strong. Her decisions and opinions mattered. Yoga was important to her, and she would make that dream come true even if it took her years to achieve it. She felt as though she’d been lost for the last few years—pushed aside, both literally and figuratively. She needed to do something she loved, something for herself.
She opened the spreadsheet she used for her budget, and updated some of the figures. Her savings account wasn’t large enough just yet, but if she worked a few extra shifts and cut back in a few places, she would be that much closer to her goal.
She wasn’t sure how Slade would react to her having less time to spend with him when she picked up some extra shifts. Even though she hoped he would understand, she wouldn’t relent even if it upset him. A man like Slade would want to be with the kind of woman she was trying to become, even if it meant they couldn’t spend every waking minute together…wouldn’t he?
She could always ask her parents for money, she knew. Jessica’s mother was retired and spent most of her time socializing at the country club, while her father, a retired dentist, spent most of his days on the golf course. Jessica was an only child. She had been spoiled and given the best money could buy, from clothes to schooling. The only thing her parents hadn’t paid for was college; she had attended Florida State University on an academic scholarship and was damn proud of it. However, she was fairly certain her parents wouldn’t accept her putting down roots in Tarpon Springs, especially now that Dennis was out of the picture.
But even assuming that they would help her out, did she really want to do this with her parents’ money? Absolutely not. They were controlling and opinionated enough without adding money to the mix. The sacrifices she would have to make in order to save the money she needed would be just a small price to pay for something she was so passionate about, and any man who loved her would have to understand.
She looked at the clock and realized she needed to get to work. Jessica got up, grabbed her purse and keys, and walked out of her house toward the driveway. She stood there
“I understand.”
“Call you later.” He gave her a kiss on the lips, grabbed his keys, and left.
When she heard the door close, she rolled onto her back and threw her legs and arms out to the side giddily. Just then, she heard the ping of a text message. She rummaged through her purse until she found her phone.
Slade: BTW, had a great time last night.
If possible, her stupid grin got even stupider. This man was going to be the death of her.
Jessica: Me too.
Before she could stop herself she sent off another text.
Jessica: See you tonight?
She waited with bated breath. She didn’t want to come off as clingy. She should’ve acted more casual. Stupid stupid stu—
Slade: Hell, yeah. Be safe at work.
Jessica: Me? You’re the one who fights for a living. I should be telling you the same thing.
Slade: Don’t worry about me. Just be safe, okay?
Her heart warmed.
Jessica: I will, Slay. See you later.
She realized then that she was in trouble. If Slade broke her heart, she wasn’t sure if she’d recover.
After she finished taking a long, rejuvenating hot bath and got dressed for work, she found she still had about an hour to kill. Feeling reinvigorated, she decided it was time to revisit her dream. So she fired up her computer and searched for the folder that contained the business plan for her proposed yoga studio.
At one point she had mentioned to Dennis that she wanted to open a yoga studio, but he’d just laughed at her.
You may one day be the wife of the governor of Florida—how would it look having my wife doing all that New Age bullshit? As it is, I hate that you’re working at the Pier.
If there was a lesson to be learned in having been in an abusive relationship, it was that she never wanted to be dependent on a man again. She needed to be self-sufficient and strong. Her decisions and opinions mattered. Yoga was important to her, and she would make that dream come true even if it took her years to achieve it. She felt as though she’d been lost for the last few years—pushed aside, both literally and figuratively. She needed to do something she loved, something for herself.
She opened the spreadsheet she used for her budget, and updated some of the figures. Her savings account wasn’t large enough just yet, but if she worked a few extra shifts and cut back in a few places, she would be that much closer to her goal.
She wasn’t sure how Slade would react to her having less time to spend with him when she picked up some extra shifts. Even though she hoped he would understand, she wouldn’t relent even if it upset him. A man like Slade would want to be with the kind of woman she was trying to become, even if it meant they couldn’t spend every waking minute together…wouldn’t he?
She could always ask her parents for money, she knew. Jessica’s mother was retired and spent most of her time socializing at the country club, while her father, a retired dentist, spent most of his days on the golf course. Jessica was an only child. She had been spoiled and given the best money could buy, from clothes to schooling. The only thing her parents hadn’t paid for was college; she had attended Florida State University on an academic scholarship and was damn proud of it. However, she was fairly certain her parents wouldn’t accept her putting down roots in Tarpon Springs, especially now that Dennis was out of the picture.
But even assuming that they would help her out, did she really want to do this with her parents’ money? Absolutely not. They were controlling and opinionated enough without adding money to the mix. The sacrifices she would have to make in order to save the money she needed would be just a small price to pay for something she was so passionate about, and any man who loved her would have to understand.
She looked at the clock and realized she needed to get to work. Jessica got up, grabbed her purse and keys, and walked out of her house toward the driveway. She stood there
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