“Hey,” he said softly. Fresh tears – of relief – flowed down Abby’s cheeks.
“Chris,” she said, anguished.
“Abby, what’s wrong?”
“I’m just being stupid,” she said, now sobbing.
“Are you at the club? Do you need me to come there?”
“No. I’m in the parking lot.”
“The parking lot of the club?”
“No…of the hospital.”
“Jesus, Abby, are you okay? You’re really scaring me.”
“Can you come out here?”
“I’ll be right there.”
Abby gripped the steering wheel as she waited, laying her head on it as she continued crying. When Chris knocked on the window, she jumped before she recognized him and reached for the door lock.
“Are you hurt?” he asked. She shook her head as she stepped out of the car and pressed herself into him, sobbing loudly.
“It’s okay,” he said soothingly. “Hey, it’s okay.”
Her body calmed against his after a couple minutes, and she looked up at him.
“Tell me what happened,” he said.
“Can we go inside? I’m cold.”
Chris kept his arm around her shoulders as they made their way through the double doors of the emergency room, down the long hallway and into the sleeping room that was becoming familiar to Abby. He turned the lights on this time, sitting her on the bed and pulling up a chair so he was across from her.
“Mickey asked me to do a bed dance,” she said.
“Did you tell him no?”
“I did at first, but he talked me into it.”
He closed his eyes, and she couldn’t read his expression.
“It was horrible,” she said. “I felt like I was suffocating, and his hands were all over me. I told him to stop, but he wouldn’t.”
Chris’ head dropped into her lap, and Abby instinctively ran her fingers into his blond waves.
“What happened?” he asked.
“He grabbed me when I tried to leave,” she said, her voice shaking at the memory. “I’ve had guys grab me before, but this was different. It really hurt.”
Chris got up from his chair and reached for Abby’s coat, his eyes on hers.
“Let me see,” he said. She let him slide the coat from her shoulders and she pulled up the sleeve of her dress, revealing the red ring around her upper arm.
“Oh, Abby,” he murmured, looking tortured.
“Joe took care of him. This is all he did.”
“This isn’t all he did. Look at you, you’re shaking.”
“I’m okay now. I just wanted you, and I’m okay now. Do you need to get back to work?”
“No, someone’s covering me. I hate seeing you like this, Abby.”
“It’s my fault for agreeing to do the dance.”
“It’s not even remotely your fault, don’t say that. Why do you feel like you deserve to be objectified and mistreated by men?”
“I don’t know. Don’t be mad at me, Chris.”
“I’m not mad. I just don’t know how to handle this. Frankly, Abby, I think every fucking guy who leers at you and grinds against you in that place is an asshole. I hate that you work there.”
“Well, I do, and you know why,” she bristled. “I can’t quit and sit at home every night when I have the kids to take care of.”
“You have a day job. And I can help you if you need it.”
“I don’t want your money!”
“So, what, I should just wait for the next time someone does this to you? Women can be seriously hurt by those guys, Abby,” he said hotly.
“You think I don’t know that? You think I haven’t seen it?”
“You deserve better.”
“Doesn’t every woman who works there deserve better?”
“Yes, but you’re the only one I’m concerned with.”
“I don’t have other options, Chris.”
He shook his head and looked away, frustrated.
“So you’d rather work at that place than accept my help,” he said bitterly.
“I have to have stability, please understand. I feel helpless without plenty of money in the bank to rely on if I need it. Something could happen to me, and then Justin would have to raise Audrey and Sara. He would need the money.”
Chris nodded slowly.
“If you ever need money, all you have to do is tell me. I don’t just have my salary, I have other money,” he said, his eyes dark and serious.
“I’d never take money from you. We haven’t even known each other very long. Look, let’s not go into it, okay? This night was awful and I just want to feel better.”
Chris stood, pulling her close as she sat on the edge of the bed. He smoothed a hand over her hair, filling her with a safe, warm feeling.