Groomed For Love

I shoot a glance up to Naomi, who’s stopped crying but is red in the face now, staring down at her feet.

“Is that true?” I ask her, cutting off shit lips mid sentence.

She nods sheepishly.

“She’s two weeks behind, signed a lease, and has broken every condition of it,” her landlord continues. “Not to mention having that fucking mutt in there all last night, I only got a complaint from her neighbor this morning.”

My hand’s ball up into a fist. My own justice is just itching to be served on this piece of shit.

If it was with anyone else, it wouldn’t matter so much. But anything involving Naomi has my caveman instinct on high alert.

She’s mine now, just been set in stone and anyone or anything that gets in the way of that or tries to hurt her even looks at her sideways has me to answer to.

Seeing her eyes though. How ashamed she looks. How embarrassed.

I don’t want to add to her shame by making a fool out of myself either.

She deserves more than this. And I’m man enough to help her, the right way.

I read her landlord his rights and then let Naomi know I have to call the arrest in.

“Maybe wait inside until the uniforms arrive?” I suggest, but she shakes her head in the negative.

“I want to stay with you, with Moose,” she squeaks, and Moose moves over to her, nuzzling her leg and standing guard next to her.

“Then maybe he can help you pack a bag?” I suggest. “You’re not staying here,” I inform her casually.

She opens her mouth in protest, but it’s my turn to shake my head, pressing a finger to my lips as I make my call.

No arguments. No, if’s, and’s, or but’s.

She won’t spend another minute in this shit hole as long as I draw breath.

Chapter Five

Naomi

Just when I think I couldn’t cry any harder or feel any worse, there’s a firm knock at the door.

My heart’s in my throat and I leap up off my bed, straightening my hair and sniffing back my tears.

He’s back. I knew he would be. I knew he wouldn’t leave me.

The knocking gets louder, more insistent and I hurry to try and make myself look presentable, but the urge to see him all over again is too much.

I throw back the door, not even using the safety chains.

“Parker!” I exclaim.

But it’s not Parker.

It’s my asshole landlord, Otis Canning.

I feel my face fall, and my heart suddenly starts thumping for a different reason.

His sour look matches the stale odor of sweat and tobacco mixed with booze that pours out off of him like fog off a swamp.

He’s an ugly man, mean too, but today he looks meaner and uglier than ever as he thrusts a pink slip of paper so close to my face I can’t see what it says.

But I can guess.

“I hear you got a dog in there, and you’re two weeks past due on your rent today. This is an eviction notice and it says you’re out on your fat ass… today.”

I open my mouth to explain, hoping something sensible will come out, but I can’t speak.

I move back from the door suddenly, trying to close it enough to set the chain, but his foot is in the way.

He’s evicted more tenants than he’s had triple whiskies recently, so I’m not surprised at how well he’s planned all this.

He grabs my wrist when I try to push him away, pulling me closer so I can smell his garbage breath and see his black teeth as he hisses more threats.

“You’ll get nothing from me, no security deposit no reference. Nothing!” he spits.

“You can fuck off right now with what you can carry, or I’ll call the fuckin’ cops,” he says, threatening me as I wrestle to get away from his iron grip.

Everything that happens next is kind of a blur.

Like in slow motion.

That part of the movie where the hero flies in to save the day.

And today I have my heroes. Today is my day after all.

The first thing I hear is Moose barking, then snarling as Otis is suckered away from me, Moose with his arm in his mouth as he pins the man to the ground.

The next thing I hear is Parker’s booming voice, identifying himself as police.

Hearing his strong voice and then seeing his even stronger body once he’s between me and the landlord makes me feel safe straight away.

I know somehow, that all my problems are over.

That I’ll never have to be afraid of anything or anyone ever again.

Otis has a smug look for a second, figuring it’s him who’s been rescued by the police after a dog I had in my apartment has just savaged him, but his look turns once Parker lets him know that it’s Officer Parker and Officer Moose on the scene and that he’s under arrest.