Chapter 8: The Calm Before
The restraining order was served to David the next afternoon. Jake called to let me know, and I could hear the satisfaction in his voice.
"His lawyer tried to argue that it was harassment, that David was just a concerned father trying to see his daughter," Jake reported. "But the judge wasn't buying it. The order stands."
"What happens now?"
"Now we wait. David can't come within five hundred feet of you, Emma, the school, the diner, or your apartment. If he violates it, we can arrest him immediately."
I should have felt safer, but instead I felt like we'd just poked a sleeping dragon. David didn't respond well to being told what he couldn't do.
"Jake, what if this makes things worse?"
"Lisa, it was already as bad as it could get. At least now we have legal protection."
That evening, Betty Ann closed the diner early and insisted on cooking dinner for all of us—me, Emma, and Jake. She'd become fiercely protective of Emma and me, and I think having Jake around made her feel better too.
"That man shows his face around here, he'll have to deal with more than just the sheriff," she declared, waving her wooden spoon for emphasis. "This whole town's looking out for you girls now."
Emma was coloring at the counter while we cooked, chattering about her day at school. She seemed completely unaware of the tension surrounding her, which was exactly what I wanted.
"Maria and I are going to be partners for the science project," she announced. "We're going to make a volcano that erupts!"
"That sounds exciting, sweetheart," I said, grateful for the normalcy of childhood concerns.
"Can Sheriff Miller help us? He knows about science stuff, right?"
Jake looked up from where he was stirring sauce on the stove. "I might know a thing or two about volcanos. I'd be happy to help."
The casual way he included himself in our future plans made my heart ache. I wanted this so badly—the three of us as a family, making memories and building traditions. But I was afraid to hope for it.
After dinner, Emma fell asleep on Jake's couch while we watched a movie. She'd curled up against his side like it was the most natural thing in the world, and he'd covered her with a blanket without even thinking about it.
"She trusts you," I said quietly.
"She's an amazing kid. You've done such a good job with her, Lisa."
"I've done the best I could. But she's missed out on so much. Stability, friendships that last longer than a few months, a father figure..." I looked at Emma's peaceful face. "She's never had that."
"She has it now, if you want her to."
The words hung between us, heavy with possibility and promise. I wanted to say yes, wanted to throw myself into Jake's arms and tell him that yes, I wanted him to be Emma's father figure, wanted him to be my partner in all of this. But fear held me back.
"What if David ruins it? What if he finds a way to destroy this like he's destroyed everything else?"
"Then we'll rebuild. As many times as it takes."
Jake reached over and took my hand. His was warm and steady, calloused from years of hard work but gentle when he touched me.
"Lisa, I know you're scared. I know you have every reason to be. But I'm not going anywhere. Whatever comes, we'll face it together."
"You say that now, but you don't know what he's capable of. You don't know how he can twist things, make people doubt what they see with their own eyes."
"I know what I see when I look at you. I see a woman who's stronger than she realizes, braver than she believes, and more deserving of happiness than she thinks." Jake shifted closer to me on the couch. "I see the girl I fell in love with fifteen years ago, and the woman I'm falling in love with now."
Before I could overthink it, before fear could stop me, I leaned forward and kissed him. It was soft and tentative at first, then deeper as he pulled me closer. It felt like coming home and starting an adventure all at the same time.
When we broke apart, I rested my forehead against his.
"I'm scared," I whispered.
"I know. But we don't have to figure everything out tonight. We just have to take it one day at a time."
The next few days passed quietly. Emma went to school, I worked at the diner, and Jake made sure we were never truly alone. He coordinated with the other officers to have someone drive by our apartment regularly, and he personally picked Emma up from school each day.
It felt like we were holding our breath, waiting for the other shoe to drop.
On Thursday evening, that shoe finally fell.
I was walking home from the diner when I saw him. David was standing across the street from our apartment building, just beyond the five hundred foot restriction of the restraining order. He wasn't trying to hide—he wanted me to see him.
He looked exactly the same as he had three years ago. Expensive suit, perfectly styled hair, that smile that had once charmed me and later terrorized me. He raised his hand in a casual wave, like we were old friends who'd bumped into each other.
My blood turned to ice.
I fumbled for my phone and called Jake, never taking my eyes off David.
"He's here," I said when Jake answered. "David's here."
"Where?"
"Across from my apartment. He's not technically violating the restraining order, but Jake, he's just standing there. Watching."
"I'm on my way. Get inside and stay there. Don't engage with him, don't let him see that he's scared you."
But it was too late for that. David had already seen me freeze, seen my panic. His smile widened, and he touched his fingers to his lips and blew me a kiss.
Then he turned and walked away, disappearing around the corner as casually as if he'd been out for an evening stroll.
Jake arrived five minutes later, but David was long gone.
"He's playing games," Jake said, scanning the empty street. "Testing the boundaries, trying to rattle you."
"It worked." My hands were still shaking. "He looked exactly the same, Jake. Like the last three years never happened."
"But you're not the same. You're stronger now. You have people who care about you, people who will fight for you."
I nodded, but inside I was terrified. David was here, and he was planning something. I could feel it in my bones.
The calm before the storm was over.