The Rescue

"Nothing dangerous?" I asked fearfully.

"Naw. My car is done, Ima go take it to Jaimes, let her use it. Say bye to my little brothers."

"Should I drop you off?"

"If you want, but you come right back here and lock the door."

His car was an old Monte Carlo, and it looked pretty amazing all refurbished and repainted it's original color. I was nervous about going home alone, but I did remember to finally check my mail. I got my cards and I was relieved for that as I went up and locked myself in.

When Jeremy knocked, I let him in with another excited grin and he laughed and kissed me. "You shoulda seen her face! She cried and cried and hugged me so many times my arms is sore!" he laughed. "She needed it though, an' I don't. You have one and aint no reason to have two if she needs one so bad."

"Yeah," I agreed, looking up at him and the joy in his eyes. Was this happy, smiling man the same scary man from before? He didn't scare me at all, he was so gentle and sweet. It hit me then that he had killed a man today. He had killed Monty for doing what he did to me. He would always protect me, or punish anyone who hurt me.

I felt a sort of calm understanding take over.

Jeremy was a very scary and dangerous man... to anyone who thought to hurt me. To me he would always be gentle and loving and sweet, to the rest of the world, he was who he was.

Moving to Montana wasn't nearly as bad as I thought it was going to be. The housing they had for us was a subdivision that was right behind the office building, within walking distance. They even had an overhang along the walkways so that we wouldn't have to walk in snow. We were within sight of the border and I had to get a passport for as often as we went back and forth to work.

Jeremy didn't try for a passport, he didn't say why, but he did get a job as an orderly at the hospital three blocks down. I traded my Prius in for an SUV with 4 wheel drive and we needed it in order to go anywhere when it snowed.

Once we left the city behind us, Jeremy changed a lot. He was always smiling and happy and he made very different kinds of friends. People from the hospital, people from my work. He didn't seem like the scary, hostile man at all anymore. Whatever he had been into, he left that behind too.

I didn't understand it. Why had he been in that life if it was never him?

That Thanksgiving, I asked if he wanted to go back and see his dad and brothers and he said no. He talked to his brothers all the time and he didn't care much for his father. He did get a lot for his brothers for Christmas though, spoiling them and when I suggested we invite them up, he was a lot more excited.

I got their plane tickets and neither of us were surprised when it was just Jaimie and the boys who came and not his father.

I sat and listened the first night as Jaimie told Jeremy how his dad had taken the keys from her the first day she came home from work and he took off in the car. When he came back, dropped off by someone, he had sold the car.

Jeremy looked pissed, shaking his head, but when he spoke it surprised me. "Why you still with him? You was always too good for him, why you still there? You aint need to work yo'self to death to take care a' that sick ole' man! He ain't never gon' change, Jaimes, you know he aint. Jus... don't go back, Jaimes. Stay here, you an' the boys. The hospital where I work, they's hirin' and they pay more'n what you makin back home. An the houses here is cheaper. A lot. They boys could go to a good school."

"Jeremy," Jaimie began, shaking her head.

I cut in. "He's right," I said softly. "Things are better here and you would have family close. This is a three bedroom house with a finished basement. We don't need all of this room for just us. Come and stay with us, until you decide you might want to live somewhere else, but you are welcome here. Truly. And I know it would ease Jeremy's mind to know you and the boys are taken care of."

"What about John?" Jaimie said weakly, her mind working.

"He ain't never deserved you!" Jeremy said heatedly. "And he aint a dad to them boys!"

I spoke up. "He's a grown man who has made all of his own choices. He has to pay for those choices. That doesn't mean you and your sons have to pay for his choices too. You have your own lives and your own choices to make, don't let him burden you with his bad decisions. He can take care of himself."

Jaimie half nodded fretfully, then looked at the boys who were looking at her hopefully. "I would have to go back and pack the rest of our clothes..."

"No, he'll talk you out of it," Jeremy said.

"Clothes are easy to replace," I said softly. "And it will be fun to take them up and go shopping with them. I've never gotten to take anyone clothes shopping, I would kind of love to."

"The boys can be... loud and full of energy..." Jaimie warned.

"Jeremy is good with them, I have seen him," I reminded her. "Besides, there's a lot to do here. I looked into the schools as soon as you said yes to coming for Christmas. There are so many sports and extracurriculars!"

"So you two planned this?" she asked, surprised.

"No," I answered, smiling and leaning against Jeremy. "I just know him. I knew once he saw all of you, he wouldn't want you to leave. He would want a better life for you. So, boys, I found this pretty great bunk bed, what do you think?" I asked them.

"We won't have to share a bed?!?"

"Nope, bunk beds. I found bedding as well, but I wasn't sure if you wanted Star Wars or Fortnight."

After that, there were no arguments but who was getting the top bunk.

Jeremy was passionate that night, holding me under him and trembling as he stared down at me. "Lil'bit..." he breathed.

"Jer," I asked softly. "When did you know?"

He let out a ragged laugh. "I don't deserve you. I lied to you."

"I know you did," I said softly, stroking his face. "And I am glad you did."

"You are?"

"Yeah. When did you know?"

"On the bus that day. Looking down at you, you was so small and beautiful and vulnerable. I needed you. I knew it, lookin at you , I needed you and you needed me. I coulda let that driver take you to the hospital like he wanted. I shoulda. But I knew if I took you back with me, I could make it so you would have to stay with me for a lil while. I knew Monty would want you and I knew I'd have to claim you, I jus didn't know how bad he'd want you. I didn't know it would go that far and I didn't know how much... how I would feel about you. You changed everythan', Lil'bit. I was ready to have my own crew, work my own district and I jus didn't want it no more. None a' it. Jus you away from alla that where you couldn't get hurt again. You really knew?"

"Yeah... It would have been easy for you to just drop me at the hospital or let someone else take me. I knew you made a choice and you did it for a reason. That reason was easy to figure out. But I am still glad you did."

"You serious about wantin' Jaimes and the boys here?"

"Of course I am, and I am serious when I say I am excited to take them shopping. I have never got to do that before."

"You is somethin', Lil'bit," he chuckled. He made love to me then, sweet and passionate and adoring.