Page 7 of Captivating Anika

“Bullshit!” the idiot protests. “I saw her in there.”

Anika walks up to him—her pointy boots mere inches from where his face is still pressed to the sidewalk—and folding her arms over her chest, looks down her pretty nose at the man at her feet.

“You’re drunk and you’re imagining things. I’m the only one here.”

I doubt the guy catches it, but something tells me Anika is lying through her teeth.

CHAPTER THREE

Anika

I’m still vibrating with anger when Hog follows me into the salon.

My aim is for Kim, who I told to wait inside my office while I got rid of Chris.

Already my morning coffee routine was disrupted when Kim came in the back door the moment I arrived at the salon. She’d had a rough night and was eager to see a friendly face. By her account, the calls and messages were nonstop, and she ended up turning off her phone altogether.

Chris started yelling and banging on the front door not long after.

“Gimme a minute,” I aim over my shoulder at Hog, before ducking into my office where Kim is bunched up in a tight ball in my chair.

“Is he gone?”

“He’s in cuffs. The cops are here, Kim. He was making such a ruckus; he drew the attention of a passing detective. Hog is here too. Chris took a swing at him. The cops are going to be asking questions.”

She lets out a small whimper and covers her face with her hands. I feel for her, I do, but she can’t hide here forever.

“Look, this is not going to go away. The only way to the other end of this is to go through it.” I crouch down in front of her to catch her eyes. “Kim, the evidence of his fists is still visible all over you. Press charges, tell them about the abuse, let them take pictures for the record, get a restraining order.” I take her hands in mine and give them a squeeze. “There is only one person who can stop this, and that is you. You can stay here, you have all of us to support you and help you get back on your feet, but you have to take this first step. You can’t put it off any longer.”

It feels like I’m badgering her, but I’m afraid if she doesn’t push through now, she never will.

“He’s gonna be so mad.”

She sounds so small.

“Honey, he’s already pissed off, that’s why it’s better to get ahead now. Talk to the police. We’ll get a restraining order.”

Her, “Okay,” is barely distinguishable, but I’ll take it. I give her a quick hug before getting to my feet.

“Hang tight here for a minute, okay?”

I quickly slip out before she changes her mind, only to find Hog standing right outside the door.

“Everything okay?” He wants to know.

It’s only now I notice the small cut on his cheekbone.

“You’re bleeding.”

His hand immediately goes to the left side of his face where Chris’s fist connected.

“Come with me,” I instruct him, grabbing hold of his arm and pulling him to my station.

I motion for him to sit and duck down to grab the first aid kit from the cupboard. When I turn, I catch him leaning toward the mirror, checking the cut.

“It’s fine,” he mumbles when I dig up some gauze and a small bottle of saline solution.

“It will be when I’m done with it,” I snap.