and took a deep breath.
“What happened?” Heaven darted off the bed and went over to him. She knew the moment he walked through the door that something was wrong.
“Julia attacked my father,” he informed her as he sat on the bed.
“What do you mean she attacked him?”
“She shot him.”
“You’re kidding? Is he all right?” Heaven asked in shock and worry.
“He’s fine; one bullet grazed the side of his head, and the other one went through his arm. Ian said he went right back to work the next day.”
“Yeah, that sounds like your father. I can’t believe your mother did that.”
“She’s a piece of work,” he said as he rose from the bed.
“Where are you going?” she asked as she watched him grab his cell phone.
“They’re tearing down the old fence in preparation for the new one. I need to get down there—the workers should be here by now.”
“No, Julian, not now.
“I need to get this done.”
“You just found out your father was shot by your mother; you really should take the rest of the day off. Just stay here with me; I want you to get some rest,” Heaven pleaded with him.
“As much as I would love to, I can’t. I need to get this fence down.”
“But—“
“No buts. I’ll be back as soon as I can. Keep that phone on.”
“I will.” She frowned as she watched him leave the room.
***
Julian worked himself like a dog. He worked without speaking to his family, but they understood. Julian was trying to work himself to exhaustion. He was trying to work hard enough to forget his troubles. He didn’t want to know that his co-worker was trying to kill his fiancée. He didn’t want to know that his mother had tried to kill his father. He didn’t want to face Heaven one more time and deny her. He needed her now more than ever but keeping her safe was more important.
He had a bad feeling about Gavin, a feeling he couldn’t shake. He was bombarded with images of Gavin attacking Heaven. They were images that would not go away. Gavin would always be a threat, and he would always be in the back of Julian’s mind.
He waited until he knew that Heaven was asleep before he went to the room. He had talked to her on and off during the day, explaining how busy they were. She complained and argued, but finally fell asleep. He crept into the room and lay next to her. Instinctively, she turned to him, and he smiled. Under normal circumstances, he would take advantage of such an opportunity.
You’ll be done with security soon. Then you can lock her away and take advantage of her for the next thirty days, he reminded himself.
***
Julian was going to extremes to keep her safe. Although Heaven appreciated his concern, he was becoming unmanageable. He was relentless, and wouldn’t listen to reason. She couldn’t get him to understand how dire her need to get out was.
“Let’s go visit your father; then we can go eat at that little café by work,” Heaven suggested.
“No.”
“Have you even talked to your father yet?”
“No.”
“He was shot Julian; you really should call him,” she snapped.
“He’s fine.”
“How do you know that if you haven’t talked to him?”
“Fritz and Riley are keeping close tabs on him.”
“I really think that we should go see him.”
“No.”
“Then let’s go to the park today; the weather is gorgeous.”
“No.”
“The movies?”
“No.”
“Fine, I’m going for a walk.” She took a step, but he stopped her.
“No, you’re not.” He grabbed her arm, but she yanked it back.
“I need to get out and get some air. I’ve been inside of this house since the night Gavin was arrested. I need to get out of here.”
“Not yet.”
“What are you going to do when we go back to work? Will you attach a camera to me and monitor where I
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