All Chapters of Pelican Bay Security: Chapter 201 - Chapter 210

"I didn't know you had so much stuff at your place in Hawaii," I comment as another huge box comes off the moving truck and gets directly transported to the storage unit Huxley and I rented until we found a place to live. They parked the big red storage container right at the back of the apartment building. Tabitha graciously offered up her home for Huxley and I to rent, but he's decided that since he's here in Pelican Bay permanently we have to buy something. He dreams of finding a fixer-upper and using his blood, sweat, and tears to make the place better. All I envision is the movie The Money Pit with holes in the floor and leaky faucets."My mother said since I wasn't coming home it was time for me to clear out my boxes from her basement.""That's a lot of boxes,"Huxley smiles, setting a small box at my feet and popping open the top. The contents glitter in the sunlight. It's a small treasure chest of gold."She sent every trophy I ever won."I peek in the box, pulling ou

He said not to worry, but I can't help my growing concern. The ends of my crutches catch on the carpet when I don't lift them up high enough, but I manage to make it to the kitchen without falling on my face.My eyes water with the haze billowing out of the small area. I twist the knob, turning the stove off, but a steady stream of smoke continues to rise from a blackened pan with what looks like burned and shriveled eggs. The smoke tenderloins reach up toward the ceiling as if calling for help from whatever torture he's put them through this morning. A stack of dishes rises over the edge of the sink and there're bits of scrambled egg squashed to the floor. I'm not sure who made breakfast—Nate or Emma.How did all this damage happen in the few minutes it took me to turtle walk from my bedroom to the living room? How long has he been here?The one lesson I learned since becoming a parent is that it's easier to stay in front of the mess than to come up behind it. If you're continuo

I also don't like the fact that practically a stranger — the same one who hit me with a truck — is watching my child play with blocks on the floor. He was the one to chase after her the last time the toilet flushed when neither of us were using the room, and most recently he ran off to figure out why it was so quiet in the hallway before he could drop off the laptop. At least if I had my laptop I could work.I need the money, but I'm also concerned about my job. The Environmental Quality Office in Clearwater is understaffed at the moment, and the more work I get done from my couch the better. I don't have enough hours at my part-time job to qualify for FMLA, and my inability to make it to the office for the next two weeks — until I get better at getting myself around — means I'm back to living off my savings account.When I left Barry, I promised myself I'd never depend on someone else again, but that's what I am right now. At Barry's urging, I'd quit my job when I gave birth to Em

"Daycare? How can I let my girlfriend's child go to daycare when I'm capable of taking care of both of them? Plus, with Josie unable to work she'll be missing a paycheck, something I'm sure you, as a concerned father, care about and want to open up the checkbook and help with the extra expenses." Nate ends his short speech with a knowing smile and my heart blossoms for the man who a few hours ago I worried had a criminal record.Barry and I both stand looking at him with our mouths open. Me because I can't believe he called me his girlfriend. He's doing it for shock value because that's something he should ask for approval on in advance."Well, um, things haven't been great at the firm, but I can slip you extra grocery money. I can keep a record and make the courts take it out of future child support checks once you're back on your feet," Barry stumbles over himself getting all the words out.This time it's my turn to roll my eyes. I may hate the trait, but I picked it up from hi

Yesterday, I saw what he considered under control, but I haven't eaten breakfast, let alone breakfast alone, in months.I wash down my morning pain pill with the glass of orange juice and eat the eggs in under five bites before I remind myself to calm down and chew slower. There are no devious little giggles coming from the living room and besides a steady clatter of pots and pans, nothing sounds as if it's breaking.It's a pleasant morning.A different scene than the one I went to bed with last night. After I let out two years of tears and relayed my entire life history and the ugly divorce while Nate cradled me on the couch, he put me to bed. Tucked me in and everything. Before he left, he said he'd see me in the morning, but I thought I'd scared him away for good. I was only 25 percent certain it wasn't all a dream.Once the eggs are finished, he hasn't come back to collect the tray. There's no way I can carry it while using my crutches, so I abandon the dirty dishes to the