Protection

Chapter 37

Chapter 37

Bliss lay down on her bed and allowed her tears to wet her cheeks.

What had she done?

She felt completely alone and vulnerable knowing that Clint was too far away to help if she was in danger. She didn’t have the assurance of knowing that he was in the next room, sleeping lightly so that he could hear any sign of danger. She had just returned from the room where he had stayed, checking to see if he was really and truly gone.

The room was completely empty. He hadn’t left a trace behind that he had been there. There was nothing to remember him by but the memories.

She reached for her bedside table and pulled the drawer out to retrieve the buckle and rusty pocketknife that Clint had helped her retrieve the day he saved her life.

The day he had let her wear his boots while he walked barefooted.

The day he had taken her father’s accusations without a hint of retaliation.

The thoughts made her tears become a more steady flow.

“What have I done?” she muttered aloud into the silence.

Colt was sitting up in the kitchen on guard, but she still felt vulnerable.

Her family surrounded her, yet she still felt alone.

She was clean on the outside, yet she felt as dirty as sin on the inside.

Why did life have to be so complicated? Two months ago, she was enjoying her life as it was and had no doubts about where she was meant to be. She had walls build up around herself so that she never saw anything about herself that she didn’t want to.

Now those walls had fallen down and left her heart completely defenseless.

At about six o’clock that next morning, she woke up from about a half hour of sleep hat she had gotten that night and got dressed for the day. She didn’t even want to leave her room, but she knew that she had to face life without Clint, and she might as well start today.

Brushing out her hair and putting it in a dull braid, she heaved a sigh and realized that she didn’t want to face the day. She didn’t want to face her family.

Closing her eyes and sucking in a deep breath, she turned toward the door and exited her room.

She had to move on, because that’s what independent people do.

Walking down the hall, she made her appearance in the kitchen and her glimmer of confidence faded.

Every was scowling at her, even Daddy.

“What’s the matter with all of you?” she asked irritably.

“You know what my problem is,” Daddy said. “You had no right to run him off without talking to me first.”

Bliss tried to dismiss her guilt. “You didn’t even like him anyways.”

“But I hired him. It was my job to tell him when to leave, not yours,” Daddy reprimanded her.

“You said yourself that his job was done,” Bliss sat at the table and crossed her arms around her stomach.

“You still haven’t told us why you did it,” Grace mentioned.

“None of you would understand my reasons,” Bliss mumbled.

Even she didn’t understand her reasons. Her mind was one big jumbled up mess and she didn’t have the patience to untangle it at the moment.