Sweet Taboo

“Take the couch, baby. I’ll take the chair. Just tell me where I can find us some blankets.” I stood, ready for her response.

“Right there in the ottoman.” A half smile spread across her face.

I tugged on the top and it opened up like a car trunk. “Nice.” I laughed as I pulled out some of the throws she had folded inside. “Which do you want?” When she reached for the beige one, I spread it on top of her.

“You don’t have to stay in the chair,” she murmured as she stretched out and rolled onto her side. “This is big enough. You could sleep at that end and use the ottoman. It would be more comfortable,” she argued.

I nodded. Anything to be close to her. I just wanted to be able to reach out and touch her, know that she was okay. So I settled into the corner, with the other blanket over me and casually reached out a hand to hold her feet. Tegyn didn’t object, so I left it there. For the next few hours, I dozed on and off, while waking to the crackle of every tree branch, and the groan of the house expanding and contracting with the temperatures. Apparently, I was bothering Tegyn because she eventually sat up and murmured, “It’s okay.”

I had to laugh at her trying to comfort me. That was my job. Eventually, I gave up on sleep. Before the sun broke over the horizon, I was already up. After making sure I hadn’t disturbed her, I snuck into the hall bathroom to pee and prepare for the day. I’d barely managed to flush when Tegyn started yelling for me.

“DeSean!” She wailed.

I rushed out to see what had happened, only to discover her standing near the patio door, pointing. “What?” I asked with a frown.

“It’s open. Only half an inch, but the lock is broken. If not for the wood I use to block it, it could’ve been completely opened.” She swallowed hard.

I moved closer to inspect. Sure enough, the door had been tampered with. I had checked everything the night before. I pushed the handle to completely close it, then removed the wood. When I opened it again, I realized there were footprints in the dusting of snow. “Call the police,” I urged.

She grabbed her phone and made the call. While she worked on that, I paced and considered her options. Tegyn ended the call and announced, “They’re on their way.” She wrapped her arms around her body and stared sadly out the window.

“Tegyn, you know what you have to do,” I murmured.

“What?” she asked with a sigh.

I took a deep breath. “You have to come stay with me.”