Colton 911: Secret Defender Page 3

  That in essence left Greg free to do to her anything he wanted to.

  Felicia had no idea what happened after that, because she had taken off that very night. Truly terrified of what Greg could do to her now that he felt so reassured that he was “untouchable,” she had fled to Chicago. There was nothing to connect her to the city.

  And in doing that, she had given up any hope of having anything like a normal life.

  Until just now.

  Thank heavens she had taken courses in physical therapy so that she had a vocation to fall back on. The ironic thing was that was where she had first met Greg. They were both working toward a degree in physical therapy.

  Looking back now, she was aware that dreams died hard. For the most part, until just now when Nicole had offered her a job, Felicia had gotten by with stitching together various part-time jobs and praying for the day that she felt secure enough to attempt to get back to a normal way of life.

  She sighed. Even with Nicole in her life—temporarily, she reminded herself—it didn’t feel as if “normal” was going to happen any time soon.

  “Knock it off, Fee. This is getting you nowhere,” she told herself as she laid open her battered suitcase on the sagging bed. “Pack, don’t talk,” she ordered. “You’ve finally got a decent position. Make the most of it.”

  Packing didn’t take long. When she had put away all her worldly possessions into the suitcase, it struck her that there wasn’t much to show for twenty-eight years of living.

  But then, she couldn’t allow herself to look at it that way. She had to look at the positive side of the situation. She was alive—for a while, the alternative had been a highly likely possibility. And according to what Jeanne, the woman who had helped her initially escape from her soul-sucking marriage, had said, “Where there’s life, there’s always hope.”

  Yes, it was a trite saying, but nonetheless, it didn’t make it any the less true. And she intended to make everything she could out of this unexpected opportunity that had come her way.

  After that, who knew?

  Checking the closet one last time to make sure she hadn’t left anything behind, Felicia snapped the locks shut. She was ready to go.

  Felicia was all paid up to the end of the week, and even though money at this point was very precious, not to mention scarce, she was not about to attempt to get a refund for the three days that she wasn’t going to be using. The last thing she wanted to do was call any extra attention to herself than she had to.

  Telling the clerk at the front desk that she was leaving early would be doing just that. Everything she did these days was done with her being mindful that Greg might just track her down and use the information to his advantage.

  Felicia left everything just the way she had found it when she checked into the small room. Tidier actually, she thought, giving it one last look around. But then that was just her nature. She didn’t like leaving things in disarray.

  The suitcase on the floor, ready to go, she looked out the window. She wanted to assure herself that there was no one out in the courtyard who could bear witness to her exodus. At the very least, she wanted to be sure that no one saw her carrying her suitcase to her car. She had actually considered putting all her belongings into two shopping bags and carrying her clothes out that way.

  But the thought of doing that was just too depressing to bear. It would have meant that Greg had beaten her down to a new low. She had no place that she could actually call, or even think of, as home.

  Someday, she promised herself. Someday this would all be behind her and she would be able to forge a new life for herself, but until that day came, she had to make the most out of any opportunity that came her way, and this was definitely an opportunity.

  She had taken an instant liking to Nicole Colton when she was working with her at the rehab facility. In an odd way, the feisty woman reminded her of herself, Felicia thought. She could only hope that when she was Nicole’s age, she would have half the woman’s spirit, half her fighting attitude.

  She glanced out the window again. There was still no one in the courtyard. The path appeared to be clear. Taking nothing for granted, Felicia opened the front door to her motel room just a crack. Her eyes swept over the immediate area, then looked a little farther, until eventually, she had taken in as much as she could. It was still clear, but who knew how long that would be the case? She had to leave now.

  Slipping out of the room, she eased the door closed behind her. She made her way forward, not slowly, not quickly, but at a normal, unhurried pace. She had purposely gotten a room on the second floor so that she could hear someone coming. The floor directly in front of her door creaked if anyone passed by.

  Fortunately for her nerves, that didn’t happen very often.

  Satisfied she was alone, Felicia made her way down the stairs to the first floor and then into the parking lot where she had parked her small, beige vehicle.

  She didn’t relax until she finally made it to her car and then into it.

  Sliding behind the wheel, Felicia was quick to lock her door even before she buckled up.

  Only then did she release the breath she was holding.

  Key clutched in her hand, she inserted it into the ignition and started up the vehicle as quietly as possible. Now wasn’t the time to rev up her motor, even by accident. She wanted to be as unobtrusive as possible.

  Holding her breath again, she slowly drove out of the spot and then away from the motel. She was more than ready to begin a new phase of her life.

  Again.

  Chapter 3

  Nicole Colton’s home was located in the Chicago suburb of Bartlett. As Felicia drove up to the impressive old Victorian-style, three-storied redbrick house, she was so awestruck by the edifice that it all but took her breath away.

  So much so that for a moment, she wasn’t sure if she even had any business attempting to work for anyone who lived in a house as fine as this.

  The building made her think of old families coming from old wealth, while she, at best, was an interloper just trying to make her way through life and not get noticed.

  But she had given her word to the woman that she was coming, and Nicole Colton was expecting her, so rather than give in to her mounting insecurity and turn around, Felicia pulled up in front of the house and parked.

  She took a deep breath, trying to gather her courage together and focus on putting one foot in front of the other.

  She left her suitcase in her car for the time being, got out of the vehicle and went up the steps leading to the front door.

  Pressing the doorbell, Felicia heard a series of chimes ringing softly and melodiously. But when the front door opened less than a couple of minutes later, she found herself looking into the soft brown eyes of someone who was definitely not Nicole.

  “I’m sorry, I must have made a mistake,” she apologized. Her hand on the banister, she was ready to go back down the steps and to her vehicle.

  “No, no mistake, dear,” the slender, attractive woman with the short, dark-haired bob told her. “That is, if you are Felicia Wagner. Are you?” she asked, doing a quick assessment of the young woman in front of her.

  “Yes,” Felicia replied. This was someone new and unknown to her. She was not at ease with new people. They represented the unknown and thus a possible danger to her very existence. The smile never left her face, but her heart had begun hammering.

  “Felicia, this is my sister-in-law, Vita Yates,” Nicole called out to the young woman as she came into the foyer to join them. “Or rather, my former sister-in-law. She had to be tough in order to survive her marriage to my ex-husband’s brother. But sometimes she forgets that she no longer needs to come across that way. Don’t let Vita intimidate you. Please,” she said, waving the young woman into the house, “come in, come in.”

  Nicole, looking amazingly fit considering that he
r operation had been a little more than five weeks ago, came to greet Felicia. The first thing she noticed was that Felicia had brought nothing with her.

  “Where’s your suitcase, Felicia?” Nicole asked.

  Felicia nodded behind her toward the door. “It’s in my car.”

  “Well, it’s not going to do you any good there,” Nicole told her new physical therapist. She turned toward her former sister-in-law and eternal confidante. “Vita, would you mind going to get Felicia’s suitcase?” she requested.

  “No problem,” the other woman replied obligingly as she started to go out the front door.

  “No, please, I can get my own suitcase. I just wanted to be sure I had the right place before I brought out my baggage,” Felicia said as she doubled back down the front steps. Within a few moments, she had retrieved her suitcase and returned.

  Nicole looked at the suitcase, amused. “That’s not baggage, dear. That’s hardly enough to qualify as a backpack. I take it you’re not sure about staying?” she asked pleasantly as she linked her arm through the one that Felicia wasn’t using to carry her suitcase.

  “No, these are all my belongings.” Seeing the skeptical look on Nicole’s face, Felicia added, “I like to travel light.”

  Nicole rolled her eyes. “Oh, darling, the first thing I’m going to do once you’ve established a routine for me is take you clothes shopping.”

  “Don’t mind her,” Vita told Felicia, as if sharing a secret. “Nicole likes to mother everyone, whether they feel they need it or not.”

  Rather than comment on Vita’s assessment, Felicia spoke to the woman she hoped was still going to be her new employer. “I’m here to help you with your physical therapy, Nicole, not to acquire a wardrobe.”

  Vita nodded, pleased by the comment. “I like her, Nicole. I think you picked a good one.”

  “I told you I had good instincts,” Nicole said to Vita with a wide, satisfied smile.

  Vita turned toward Felicia. “I know that Nicole would like to take you on a tour of the entire house, but given the fact that she is technically still recovering from her surgery, albeit faster than anyone thought she would, that task falls to me. Unless, of course, you’d like to eat something first. Are you hungry?” She waited for a response.

  Felicia shook her head, not in refusal, but in sheer wonder. “You two do go a hundred miles an hour, don’t you?” she marveled.

  Vita laughed, clearly taking the remark to mean Nicole, not her. “You should see her when she’s built up a full head of steam.” Her eyes smiled as she told Felicia, “That’s when everyone makes sure to get out of Nicole’s way.”

  “Which is why I found Aaron’s hovering over me like a mother hen insulting,” Nicole said, putting in her two cents. “I’m afraid that it got me angrier than it should have.”

  “But it did get results,” Vita pointed out, gesturing toward Felicia. “So, what do you say, Nic? Shall I take her up to her room first?”

  “Sure. Go find a home for your suitcase, Fee, and then come on back down so that we can visit some more,” Nicole said as she accompanied Felicia and her sister-in-law to the staircase and then called up after them, “Over lunch.”

  “You know, you’ve made her very happy by accepting her offer,” Vita told Felicia once they had reached the second-floor landing. “Nicole is a very independent lady and her boys weren’t going to give her any peace until she agreed to having someone stay here with her. She likes having a say in matters.”

  “Well, it’s a two-way street,” Felicia replied. “She’s made me very happy, as well.”

  Vita studied the young woman for a moment. “I get that, but you’re not just smiling because of that, are you?”

  These were two very sharp ladies who didn’t stand on ceremony, Felicia thought. She was definitely going to be on her toes, working here, but she also felt that she was going to enjoy the experience.

  “You’re right. I have to admit that I’m getting a kick out of both you and Nicole referring to what I assume are grown men as ‘boys.’”

  “Honey, when you get to be Nicole’s and my age, anyone who is ten years younger gets placed into a younger realm. Besides, we knew these grown ‘men’ when they were in diapers. It’s hard to think of them as full-grown adults, even though admittedly they are.

  “It’s also hard,” Vita confided, “to put up with the idea that people you once diapered suddenly think that they can take over your life. I understand exactly where Nicole is coming from.”

  “So do I,” Felicia admitted.

  “You?” Vita marveled. “You’re a baby.”

  “That’s just it. I’m not,” Felicia said, thinking of everything she had been through. “The way I see it, this is a tug-of-war between kids who have grown up and parents who don’t welcome the idea of their children taking over their lives. If they’ve somehow managed to earn it, everyone has the right to be independent.”

  “That sounds like a hard-won lesson,” Vita observed, studying her.

  Felicia flushed. She had said too much. “I didn’t mean to sound as if I’d gotten on my soapbox,” she murmured.

  “No need to apologize, dear. If you ever need anyone to talk to, I drop by Nicole’s on a regular basis,” Vita said. “Even before she broke anything, I used to help out with her catering business. I still will,” she amended, knowing that Nicole had no intentions of backing off from the business she had worked so hard to build and get off the ground.

  “Thank you, I’ll keep that in mind,” Felicia said, even though she had no intentions of confiding in the older woman. Except for one instance, she had always kept her own counsel and she intended to continue doing so.

  Feeling as if the door had just closed on this subject, at least for the time being, Vita turned to the business at hand. “So, let me show you the spare bedrooms and you can decide which one suits you.”

  Mindful of the fact that they had left Nicole by herself downstairs, Felicia wanted to get back to the woman as soon as possible.

  “This isn’t about the room,” she told Vita. “I’m sure that they’re all equally very nice.” Certainly nicer than the motel room she had just left in her wake. “I’ll just take this first one,” she proclaimed, stepping into the room just far enough to leave her suitcase inside the door.

  Vita laughed. “I could have really used you when my kids were growing up. They were a picky pair,” she recalled with a wistful note in her voice, her eyes getting a faraway look in them as she thought of her son and daughter. “And I’d do it all over again,” she told Felicia with a wink.

  “That makes you a good mother.” Felicia smiled. “Shall we go down?”

  “You sure you don’t want to look at the other three bedrooms?” Vita asked. “You might find you like one of them better.”

  “No, this room is just fine,” Felicia assured the woman. “Besides, it’s not about the room. It’s about my working with Nicole and helping her get back to her old self. As long as the room isn’t a tiny, dark shoebox, I’m fine.”

  “I definitely could have used you when my kids were growing up,” Vita told Felicia. “All right, let’s go downstairs and let Nicole know that you’ve picked out your room and are currently in the process of settling in,” she said, thereby leaving the door open for Felicia to change her mind if it came to that.

  When they went back downstairs, Nicole was not where they had left her.

  Vita frowned. “Nicole?” She looked around the immediate area. “Where are you?”

  “I’m in the kitchen.” The other woman’s voice drifted out to them from what sounded like a distance.

  “I should have known,” Vita said with a patient sigh. She glanced in Felicia’s direction. “If it doesn’t have to do with her sons, the woman lives and breathes her catering business. She’s either filling an order, or barring that, puttering around and crea
ting new recipes.” Vita shook her head. “Personally, I don’t think the woman even knows how to sit still and do nothing,” she confided to Felicia in a deliberate stage whisper so that her voice would carry as she brought Nicole’s new physical therapist into the kitchen.

  The outside of the house might have presented itself as an old-fashioned Victorian-style home, but the kitchen, at its center, was nothing less than state-of-the-art. It was large and functional, with all the very latest, not to mention large, appliances.

  Scanning her surroundings, Felicia felt not unlike Alice in Wonderland right after Alice had fallen down the rabbit hole.

  As she looked around the large, bright and exceedingly sunlit area, the first word that came out of her mouth was “Wow.”

  “You like it?” Nicole asked needlessly.

  “Like it?” Felicia echoed in wonder. “I think I’m in love with it. If this kitchen was a person, right now I’d be asking it to marry me,” she confided before she could think to censor herself.

  It was definitely the right thing to say. Nicole beamed in response. She had put a great deal of effort into remodeling the kitchen and was very proud of the results. It was while she had been busy remodeling the kitchen that her husband, Erik, had decided to walk out of their marriage.

  “You should have seen it before I got to work on remodeling it.” She looked around the room as if seeing it for the first time. “This house was all I asked for when Aaron’s father decided he wanted to get a divorce,” she stated matter-of-factly.

  “Asked for?” Vita echoed her friend’s phrase, amused. “The woman fought for this house like her very soul depended on it,” she told Felicia. “I have to admit that Nicole surprised all of us. Up until that point, she had always been a mild-mannered person. She was the kind of woman who never argued over anything but just went along with whatever was asked of her for the sake of peace.” Vita looked at her sister-in-law with unabashed admiration and pride.

  Nicole frowned. “You’re making me sound like I was a pushover. I was not a pushover,” the woman underscored with emphasis.