“Well, like I mentioned earlier, how I overanalyze everything and see the negatives. Well, when I met Hunter, and I saw the size of his hands, I imagined the pain I would feel if he hit me.
“Oh God,” Shelby said and stopped walking. She felt the tears reach her eyes.
“Cameron hit you a lot?” she asked.
Caroline looked away and then back down at her hands.
“It started out as little shoves, or if I said something he thought was stupid or whatever, he would give me a knuckle punch to the back of my head or a pinch to my side. One night, when we were at a party and he saw me talking to these two guys who he was friends with, he lost it the second I unlocked the door to my apartment. He shoved me hard then slammed the door and he was on me so fast I screamed.
“He kicked me and gave me a smack, and yelled at me about flirting with those guys and how I belonged to him.”
Shelby felt the tear fall and she wiped it away. She remembered many a time Skip getting pissed off at her for similar reasons and then facing his wrath.
“I’m so sorry you went through that. I ask myself all the time why I didn’t run off earlier. Why hadn’t I seen what kind of man Skip really was, but I think I was blinded by what I wanted to see and also what I hoped to have. You know, to have someone love me, hold me, and care for me like I never had. It didn’t matter that those kisses, the holding came after the beatings and the pain. It was still something to hold onto and feel.” She hugged her sister.
“Like we never had,” Caroline added and then pulled back.
“Exactly,” Shelby said and they wiped their tears and continued walking.
“I don’t know if I can get past this fear, Shelby. Especially living in this town, a place where such relationships occur.”
“Honey, no one can force this on you. The sheriff ensures that everyone is in agreement when a relationship happens. There’s this unwritten protocol. So even if a set of men are interested in a woman and claiming her, or being her guardian, they can’t if she denies them.”
“Explain more to me so I understand.”
Shelby smiled. “Okay, we’ll start at the beginning and what I learned since I moved here. That should give you peace of mind and help you to realize that you’re in control, not anyone else. That’s the first thing to always remember. The women are protected here and we have the power to choose. That’s huge, especially for women like you and I who have experienced what we did. Got it?”
Caroline nodded and Shelby began to explain what she knew about ménage relationships and how this town of Chance really worked.
* * * *
Hunter Mantel and Sam Pace were sitting on a bench talking about the war and shit, and how difficult it was to return to a so-called normal life. They met like this often, and Sam felt that it really helped his good friend with his reservations and difficulties.
“So what’s making you feel so on edge and protective? Can you recall what it was that brought this on?” Sam asked.
Hunter rubbed his hand along the scruff on his chin and jaw. He exhaled. “It was C.J. and what he told York and me last night.”
“What did he tell you?” Sam asked, immediately feeling concerned.
“You know Shelby, right?” Hunter asked him, and Sam knew that Hunter knew he and his brothers were interested in Shelby but she wasn’t reciprocating. His chest tightened as he prayed that Hunter wasn’t going to tell him that he and his brothers were making a move on Shelby and she was accepting.
“Have you met her sister, Caroline?” Hunter asked, and Sam immediately exhaled and felt so relieved he felt weak in the knees. He and his brothers wanted Shelby to be theirs, but she held back, ignored them all the time, and there was only so much they could take. He was still coming and going with work, so he wasn’t as affected, or so he thought. Lately he felt that semi-retiring from the service and taking the job on the base was a good decision. His brothers were losing hope with Shelby, so they stopped for a while and hoped time would make her more comfortable.
“I haven’t met her yet.”
“Well, we have. York met her first. On her way into town, she had a flat tire on the highway an exit before the Chance exit. Then C.J. met her and I met her. We all felt the attraction to her and it seemed she felt it, too, but like you’ve explained about Shelby, Caroline held back and she tries to ignore us. Anyway, she lied to York about her name. She has this cast on her arm, it’s broken, and yesterday, when she spent a little time with C.J. at lunch after he smoothly convinced her to be friends first, she said things that hinted about a scary past. C.J. pretty much found out that someone hurt her.”
“A man?”
“We think so, and well we can’t help but to put this shit together, about her lying about her name to York, about her broken arm and tripping when a high heel broke, and then our mom is paying her off the books. We found out on the down low when our dad Jake was asking our mom what was going on and she denied everything and then told him to let it be. York overheard that conversation.”
Sam squinted his eyes at Hunter. “It does sound suspicious and like perhaps she’s running from danger, maybe the man that hurt her. Did you guys talk with Max? As the sheriff he needs to be aware of these things and to ensure the women’s safety. What if whatever is going on has to do with Shelby, too, and they’re both in danger and afraid to trust anyone?”
“Exactly. This is why these feelings are becoming overwhelming. I feel so protective of her. I want to make her feel safe, but damn, Sam, when she looks at me it’s like she’
s looking at a monster. I just get this feeling that my size frightens her. I don’t know, but I can’t get close enough to find out and to prove that I would never hurt her.”
“Well that won’t be easy if she’s been abused, but we don’t know that. Everything we’re discussing is hypothetical. We need proof. Some way of helping her, them to see that they’re safe here and we’re trustworthy.”