Head On (Strength And Love)(3)
I smile. Yeah, I’m willing to do rough.
Chapter Two
Isla
“Don’t forget your toothbrush this time, Dad,” I yell from the bathroom. “You know they don’t always have them in those vending machines, and last time you were staying in a rough part of town. I don’t want to think of you traipsing all over New York.”
He comes into my room with his wash bag in hand and pulls his toothbrush out, like a magician pulling a rabbit out of a hat. “Got it, sweetpea.” His smile falters and he frowns. “Are you sure you’re going to be okay while I’m gone? I hate leaving you alone.”
I force a smile on my face. Normally Gran comes to stay, but she’s sick with the flu, and at her age she needs her rest when unwell. It’s stupid to be nervous, after all I’m twenty-one years old, not exactly a child anymore. I’ve been wanting to start being more adventurous, so this is a good beginning, right? “Of course, I’ll be fine. I’ve got Sadie.” I nod to our beloved Labrador snoozing on the bed next to me.
None of my friends can come and stay, either, not that I’m surprised. I only have a few, and we’re not that close. I’m too different from most people to find it easy to get on with them. My best friends are part of an online support group I’m a member of, but none of them live remotely close.
“I love you, pumpkin.” My dad comes and kisses my forehead and I smile up at him. A genuine one this time. He’s my hero. When mum died he took care of me, and worked full-time, too. When I got sick, Gran moved in for a few months, but Dad still did the majority of the caring. I don’t like to think about that period though, not now I’m better.
I love my dad so much that I don’t know how any guy will ever measure up. It’s one of the reasons I don’t date.
A twenty-one-year-old virgin. How sad is that? I’m almost as rare as a unicorn. Not that I’m some naive idiot. I’ve watched porn. And I’ve got a trusty vibrator, and a g-spot stimulator. So, I suppose that technically I’m not a virgin. Not if you count silicone.
“I’ve left you two hundred pounds in the bowl on the bookshelf,” Dad says. “And my spare bankcard is in the kitchen drawer, and you know the pin.” I hate him having to leave me money as if I’m a kid. But I lost my job at the bookstore, and I’m still looking for something new. I have a few thousand in savings, and dad doesn’t want it to all go so he’s helping until something comes up. Even though I keep telling him he doesn’t need to.
“I’ll call when I get there. And if you get into trouble, you can always ring Dave.”
As if! Dave is my dad’s business partner and he makes me shudder. There’s something icky about him, and the way he stares at me. He used to look after me sometimes, but not for years, thank God. Dad’s normally a good judge of character, but I think he dropped the ball with Dodgy Dave.
“Right. I’m off. You take care, and don’t forget to give Sadie her pills every morning.”
I nod and smile brightly, but my insides are churning as Dad turns and walks out of the door. Five minutes later, I hear him lugging his suitcase down the stairs, and then the front door opens and shuts and the key turns in the lock. Alone. All alone.
I look at Sadie. “I suppose if I were a normal twenty-one-year-old, I’d be tearing the house up with parties and getting into trouble.” She doesn’t answer me, of course, but simply stares with her big brown eyes.
I think she’s telling me she loves me anyway. Weird or not, I’m sure my dog talks to me in her own way.
*****
I flip open my Kindle and begin to read my book. It’s dark outside and I’m missing dad already. It’s my second night alone and my nerves aren’t as bad as they were the previous evening. After about ten minutes my eyes begin to close. I’m still somewhat unnerved being in this big house alone, but I’m also bushed. And my tiredness over-rules my lingering anxiety. I put my Kindle down and snuggle deep under the covers. Normally I’d turn all the lights off, but tonight I leave the hallway light on, and the orange glow helps soothe me. It doesn’t help that I’ve been reading a horror story. Stupid choice. I smile and wiggle around getting comfy as my breathing evens out and I let sleep take me.
There’s someone in the room.
My heart is pounding out of my ribcage and I’m aware there’s something very wrong before I’m even fully awake. Dread settles in my stomach, a cold hard ball making it hard to breathe. Sadie is nowhere to be seen. A shadow to the right of me moves and my throat spasms closed. Shit. There’s a man looming over the foot of my bed, lit by the light shining in from the crack in the door.
Oh, fuck. I think I‘m going to be sick. I open my mouth to scream, but who will hear me? He walks the length of the bed in super-quick time, and a hand is clamped over my mouth.
“Now, now, Isla. Screaming isn’t nice.”
How does he know my name? My mind is scrambling, trying to figure out if I know him. I can’t see him well, only that he’s tall and broad with a sharply defined face. His voice is rough and deep, with a mild Yorkshire accent. Maybe he’s a colleague of my father’s? I dismiss the comforting but deeply stupid idea immediately. This person means me harm. He’s in my bedroom, at night, with his hand over my mouth.