The Only Shark In The Sea (The Date Shark Series Book 3) (4 page)

Vance sighed. “Natalie, you don’t have to be sorry. We’re here for you, not the other way around. If you need us to keep our distance from each other, that’s what we’ll do. There’s nothing wrong with that.”

“There is,” Natalie argued. “It’s normal, right? People touch all the time.”

“You don’t,” Vance countered. “You’re not ready for that, and we’ll respect your limits.”

Tears slid down her already puffy face. “Why?”

“Because that’s what people do for each other,” Vance said. “You’ve come to me for help. How can I expect you to trust me if I can’t provide you with a safe environment?”

“But…holding hands…”

Vance shook his head. “That may be normal for Steph and me, but it’s not for you, and that’s okay.” Sitting back, Vance relaxed, but his eyes stayed focused on Natalie. “As we get to know each other, I need you to tell me what you’re comfortable with, and what you’re not. Trust me enough to respect your limits, and I’ll trust you to be honest with me. That’s the only way this is going to work.”

What he said made sense, but she knew there was so much more to it than that. Trust was the first step, but it felt like it was miles away from solving the real problem. Vance promised she didn’t have to talk about why people terrified her, but she knew nothing would really change until she did. As she held Vance’s gaze, she understood that he knew it too. He was simply patient enough to take it one step at a time. The way to facing what terrified her most was through him. Natalie knew that with more surety than she could even understand.

“Okay,” she said quietly.

Vance smiled. “Okay.”

Chapter 4

The Pounding

Saying it had been a long day by the time Natalie made it to her apartment was not even close to being adequate. The moment she had returned from her lunch appointment, her boss, Donald, had knocked on her office door to pull her into a last minute meeting for one of her accounts. Normally she would have just called in to answer questions, but her recommendation against the project in question demanded an in-person meeting. Being forced to sit in a room with three men all hounding her for answers had taken what little strength she’d had remaining after lunch. She nearly fell against her door when she reached it.

“Natalie, right?” a voice called out, making her spin around and nearly fall into a dead faint.

She stared at the vaguely familiar face as panic crept up her spine. What did he want? She pressed herself against the door when he dared to take a step closer. Her frenzied movements halted him. Frowning, he stopped trying to get any closer, but he held something out to her. She didn’t take it.

“You’re Natalie Price, right?”

Somehow, she convinced herself to nod. In the back of her mind, recollection that this man was her new neighbor gave her the tiniest bit of confidence. His balding head and baggy clothes didn’t seem to fit with the way he carried himself. He seemed confident, if not unsure of why she was acting so bizarrely.

“The mail carrier, he put some of your mail in my box again,” the man said. “I didn’t realize until I started going through it once I got home, and I just thought I’d give it to you myself when I saw you walk by.”

Still breathing heavily, Natalie had to focus in order to respond. “Oh. Uh, thank you.” Only after she’d said that did she wonder exactly how he had happened to see her walking by. The peephole in the door didn’t really provide a good view of passersby.

Unaware of her internal thoughts, he held out the mail again. The normal thing to do would be to take it from him. Natalie wasn’t sure she could. The poor man seemed locked in indecision. Obviously, she didn’t want to approach him, but she didn’t want him approaching her either. They were at a stalemate.

One, two, three, four, five
, Natalie began counting as she pulled in a deep breath. Slowly, she pushed away from the door. Seeming encouraged, the man took a step forward as well. Natalie had to bite back a yelp, but she took another step. When she was close enough to reach him, just barely, she extended her hand for the letters. He met her the rest of the way, stopping when the corner of the envelope reached her fingertips. Natalie snatched them away quickly and stepped back.

“Sorry again for scaring you like that.”

“It’s…it’s okay.”

He looked as though he might say something else, but Natalie spun around before he could and darted into her apartment. She fell against the closed door and locked it without looking. Leaning there, panting, she didn’t think she could stay on her feet much longer, but moving seemed like a monumental task. At least, until panting from another source joined hers.

Natalie slid down the door and sighed when Gypsy jumped into her lap. Her squat little body jumped and turned, trying to get at her face. She giggled at her efforts as she gently pushed her little friend’s face away from hers. “I’m so glad to see you,” Natalie said as she rubbed her head.

Gypsy barked twice before leaping off her lap and heading straight for the kitchen. Mostly recovered from the experience in the hallway, Natalie pushed herself back up to her feet. The mundane tasks of preparing Gypsy’s dinner, as well as her own, were soothing. She worked quietly. The only sounds in the apartment were Gypsy’s claws clicking against the tile and the hum of the heater. It was enough to let her know she wasn’t alone, but not so much that she couldn’t hear if someone tried to get in.

No one had ever tried to break into her apartment in the three years she’d been there. No one even knocked on her door. There wasn’t a single other person in the complex she conversed with on a regular basis. No one was going to ask her to borrow an egg or cup of sugar. Somehow, they all seemed to know she wanted to be left alone.

That guy in the hall—whoever he was—was the first person in months who had even spoken to her. Natalie wasn’t even sure how he knew her name. He had a familiar face only because she’d seen him moving boxes into his apartment earlier in the week. It was still a mystery how he knew her name. Even her mailbox only had her apartment number on it.

Unsettled by the thought, Natalie stopped stirring the tomatoes and spinach she was sautéing. She couldn’t explain the man’s familiarity, but she also couldn’t see how it might be a threat. Her name wasn’t a secret. Someone in the complex must have remembered it and mentioned it to him at some point. It was often difficult for Natalie to remember that others lived differently than her. Not everyone ran away when they were accidentally bumped into.

Natalie put the encounter out of her mind and went back to cooking. Twenty minutes later, she had a bowl of noodles drenched in veggies balanced on her lap as she and Gypsy watched TV. Slowly, the stressful day melted away and her body began to unwind. Natalie was normally a bit of a night owl, but she found herself nodding off hours before she would usually turn in.

After the third time of being woken back up by a lick from Gypsy, Natalie gave in. She carried her dishes to the sink while calling for her little friend to follow. The pair made their way to the bedroom. Natalie had brushed her own teeth, and was just about to start on Gypsy’s, when banging erupted on her front door.

The toothbrush dropped from her hands and she crumbled to the floor seconds later. Gypsy’s animated barking only frightened her even more, not because she feared the dog, but because she seemed to sense something wasn’t right. Huddled under the bathroom sink, tears of terror streamed down Natalie’s face as she frantically searched for her phone.

Adrenaline and panic spiked as the pounding stopped abruptly. Gypsy barked twice more, then quieted and pressed her head into her leg as she whimpered. Natalie couldn’t breathe. Her head was pounding as she strained to hear even the smallest sound. She almost yelped when she finally felt her phone beneath her fingers. Pressing it to her chest, she held her breath.

The pounding started up again, clanging through the apartment and sending Natalie into a spiral. Somehow she managed to pull up her contacts list and hit her only recent call. Whoever was pounding on the door began screaming obscenities. Gypsy answered with another round of barking while Natalie sobbed in fear.

“This is Vance.”

“There’s someone…the door…pounding.” Crying broke up her words. She could barely think enough to form them. She was terrified and had no idea what else to do.

“Natalie?” Vance asked. “Are you okay? What’s going on?”

“He’s trying…to get…in.” She broke down, the phone slipping from her fingers as she shut everything else out.

Chapter 5

The Line

Vance sprang up from the couch, racing over to his desk and yanking a paper out of Natalie’s file as Stephanie tried to ask him what was wrong. He shoved the contact information sheet into her hands. “Call the police. Send them to this address. Someone’s trying to break into Natalie’s apartment.”

“What?”

He didn’t have time to explain. He could hear the banging on the door through the phone. The call was still live, but Natalie wasn’t talking anymore. Vance ran for the door, but Stephanie grabbed his arm and held him back.

“Where are you going?”

“I have to get to her apartment and make sure she’s okay,” Vance said quickly.

Startled, it took Steph a half-second to respond. “Then I’m going with you.”

“No, it could be dangerous!”

“No kidding!” she snapped. “You’re going, though, aren’t you?”

Vance pulled her hand from his arm and said, “Please stay here where I know you’re safe. I’ll call you as soon as I make sure Natalie’s all right.”

He didn’t give her a chance to respond. He was bounding out the door and down the stairs a moment later. All he could hear was Natalie crying and the pounding as he jumped into his car and raced toward her apartment. He wasn’t that far from where Natalie lived, but the drive seemed to take forever. No matter what Vance said to Natalie as he drove, she didn’t respond. He was scared for her, terrified her secrets had somehow caught up to her.

Relief shot through him when he pulled up to the apartment and saw two police cruisers already there. Vance swung sloppily into the first spot he saw and was running a moment later. He was so focused, he very nearly crashed right into an officer at the bottom of the stairs who was trying to keep anyone from going up.

“Is she okay?” he demanded.

“Are you the one who called?” the officer asked.

“My girlfriend called,” Vance said. “I came over to make sure she wasn’t hurt.”

“Are you a friend of hers?” the officer asked.

“She’s a patient of mine. I’m her psychiatrist. She called me because she said someone was trying to break into her apartment.”

“Why didn’t she just call 911?”

Vance had no idea. “She’s, uh, been through some difficult experiences. I think she just panicked.”

The officer shrugged and looked over his shoulder when sounds of struggling erupted. Vance peered past him and saw two other officers wrestling a rather large man to the floor. “What happened?”

Sighing, the officer said, “He had the wrong apartment, apparently. His girlfriend is two doors down. Guy’s drunk out of his mind and couldn’t figure out why his key wasn’t working is the best we can guess. He’s not making much sense and his girlfriend is too scared of him to really say much. We’re taking him in for public intoxication.”

The officer moved Vance to the side as his companions dragged the source of the problem down the stairs and out the door. Vance saw that a fourth officer was about to knock on Natalie’s door, and cringed. “Uh, it might be better if I try to talk with her. She’s probably not going to react well to a stranger.”

The officer nodded and hollered up the stairs to let his partner know Vance was coming. When he reached the door, the officer waiting for him stepped aside. He gave Vance a confused expression when he didn’t knock on the door, but pulled out his phone that was still in the middle of a call to Natalie and put it on speaker.

“Natalie?” Nothing. “Natalie, this is Dr. Sullivan. Vance. I’m right outside your door. The police caught the man banging on your door and have taken him away, but I want to make sure you’re all right. Can you come to the door and open it for me?”

There was a long moment of silence before he heard anything. Even then, it was only her stifled sobs that echoed over the line. Vance sighed and tried again.

“Gypsy? Are you in in there with Natalie?” Immediately, the dog’s bark chirped through the phone. Smiling, Vance was glad he’d guessed correctly. With no other companionship, he thought it likely that Natalie treated Gypsy like a best friend or child. “Gypsy, give Natalie a kiss, okay? Tell her it’s all right now.”

Happy panting and yips erupted from the phone, and Vance could only hope the little dog was doing something to make Natalie feel better. He held his breath, hoping it would be enough. There was no way he could leave without making sure this poor woman wasn’t going to completely break down.

“Vance?” Natalie’s frail voice said a few minutes later.

Vance sighed in relief, and even the officer relaxed a little. “Yes, I’m here, Natalie. I want to make sure you’re okay. Can you come to the door?”

“I…he’s gone?”

“Yes, the police have him in custody.”

He could hear her sniff and knew she was still very upset. “Who was he?”

“Just one of your neighbors. He was drunk and thought he was at his apartment and couldn’t get in. He wasn’t trying to hurt you,” Vance promised. He shuddered to think of what might have happened if the man had somehow gotten in and thought Natalie was his girlfriend. Thinking of what that would do to her made him sick and an intense urge to protect her hit him squarely in the chest. “Natalie, everything’s okay now, I promise.”

“Okay,” she whispered. “I’m coming.”

It seemed to take much longer than one might think for her to reach the door. Gypsy was barking and panting at the door long before she got there. Vance couldn’t be sure, but he guessed she made use of the peephole for more than a brief glance before he heard the bolt begin to slide. Hurriedly, Vance turned to the officer.

“Step back, please. She’ll be upset if she sees someone she doesn’t know at first.”

“But…”

Vance gestured hurriedly, and the concern in his expression must have been enough. The officer stepped back just as the door cracked open. Natalie stared out at him with a tear-streaked face and puffy, red eyes. The little pug Vance assumed must be Gypsy was crowded in next to her feet. She barked a few times, then licked Natalie’s ankle.

“Natalie, are you okay now?” Vance asked. She nodded, but it wasn’t very convincing. “Would it be okay if I came in?”

Natalie hesitated, but eventually nodded. She opened the door a little wider, but before Vance took a step forward, he needed to deal with the officer. Fearing it would be too much for her, he decided to explain before introducing him.

“Natalie, one of the officers is still here. He probably needs to take a short statement from you when you’re ready.” Panic seized her entire body and Vance scrambled to rein her in. “I’ll stay with you the whole time. It’ll only take a few minutes, I’m sure.”

She closed her eyes, clinging to the door for support.

“I can talk to her from the hallway,” the officer said as he stepped just barely into view.

Vance almost reached for Natalie when she wavered a bit, but held back before actually touching her. He stayed close, though, just in case she fainted. He could see her fingers tighten even more, but she stayed on her feet. “What do you need to know?” Natalie asked quietly.

The officer didn’t move any closer, but he did retrieve a small notebook and pen from one of his pockets. “When did the pounding on your door start?”

“Um, I think it was just before nine. I was brushing my teeth.”

“Did you attempt to interact with the person at the door?”

Natalie looked horrified at the prospect. “No, of course not.”

“She said she was staying in the bathroom when she called me,” Vance offered.

The officer nodded. “Were you aware of who was at your door?” Natalie shook her head and he noted her response. “Has this ever happened before?”

“No,” she said, “not that I know of.”

Flipping his notebook closed and packing it away, the officer nodded. “Thank you for your time. That’s all I need for now.” He took a card from a different pocket and attempted to hand it to Natalie, but Vance intercepted it. The officer nodded, then shook hands with Vance before excusing himself.

Once he was out of sight, Vance’s attention turned back to Natalie. “Would it be all right if I came in now?”

The idea of having someone in her apartment still sounded unappealing, judging by the expression on Natalie’s face, but she stepped back from the door anyway. Vance took in everything. He wondered if it might hold some clue to her secrets, but it looked like a perfectly average home.

What he could tell was that this was Natalie’s safe place. The living room was warm and inviting, despite the fact that he was almost positive he was the first to see it aside from Natalie and Gypsy. The colors were soothing, from the walls to the throw pillows. Artwork adorned the walls, but no pictures. That was the only thing Vance saw that seemed off.

By the time he reached the couch, Natalie was already curled up on the armchair. Her arms were locked around her knees like a protective barrier. She looked so small, so frail, as she sat there. The desire to help and protect her that Vance felt when they first met hadn’t diminished. Rushing to her rescue had only intensified the desire. There was something very dark in her past and it was killing her chance to live a normal and happy life. He found himself wanting to help her overcome it not only because she was his patient, but because he felt an inexplicable kinship with her.

“I’m so sorry you had to go through this tonight,” Vance said. “I can only imagine how terrified Steph would have been if something like this had happened when I wasn’t home.”

Stephanie was a strong person, but being alone at home by herself, especially at night, had always been difficult for her. Every creak and rustle made her think someone was in the apartment. She could handle two dozen first graders on a daily basis, but her tolerance for night noises was less than that of her students.

“Why did you call me instead of the police?” Vance asked. He was surprised when Natalie blushed.

She wouldn’t look at him as she said, “I didn’t mean to.”

“You didn’t?”

“Well, I mean, I didn’t know who I was calling. I was so scared, I just hit the first number that came up in my history.” She grabbed a strand of her hair and clenched it with both hands. “I’m really sorry for messing up your night.”

“I’m just glad I could help, and that you’re okay. I was pretty worried,” Vance said seriously.

“Really?” Natalie asked. “Why?”

“Why was I worried?” Vance wasn’t entirely surprised by the question, but it still bothered him. “Natalie, of course I was worried. Someone was trying to get into your apartment. That’s reason enough to be worried about you, but I was also concerned this had something to do with your past. I know you’re not ready to talk about that, but I’m still here to help protect you from it.”

“Oh. Well, thanks.” She looked away, reaching down to pick up Gypsy and hold her in her lap. “I just hope you know I’m not like, some crazy stalker patient who’s going to call you all the time. I’m glad you came tonight, because I was absolutely terrified, but I promise I won’t call again. This is way beyond what I’m paying you for, Vance, and I feel terrible about that.”

“This wouldn’t be the first time I’ve had to run out of the apartment in the middle of the night for a patient.” He was glad to see her relax at that, but he continued. “Natalie, I just want you to know, that if you really need to, you can call. That’s why I gave you my number at lunch today. Hopefully something like this doesn’t happen again, but if you find yourself in a situation you can’t handle, please don’t hesitate to call.”

Part of Vance worried that Steph would be angry about such an offer, but he felt he had to make it. Thinking of her reminded him of his promise to her. “I need to call Steph and let her know you’re all right, but I’ll be right back, okay?”

He waited for her to nod, albeit hesitantly, before stepping into her kitchen and calling Stephanie. She picked up on the first ring and demanded, “Are you both okay?”

“Natalie’s fine. Just some drunk at the wrong apartment.”

Stephanie let out a sigh of relief. “Good. I was worried,” she admitted. “Are you on your way home then?”

Vance hesitated. “Not yet,” he said slowly. He could almost hear Steph’s shoulders bunching. “She’s really freaked out, Steph. I can’t leave her like this.”

“She’s a patient, Vance,” Steph argued. “I mean, I like her, and I hope you can help her get past her issues, but outside of sessions, she’s not your responsibility.”

“You know she doesn’t have anyone else,” Vance countered.

Steph sighed, frustration and understanding battling each other. “I know that, but…” An internal argument raged in the silence. Vance could have almost mouthed it word for word as it ran through Steph’s mind, but he stayed quiet and waited for her response. Finally, she sighed again, this time in resignation. “Just, don’t stay too long, okay?”

Vance blew out the breath he was holding. “I’ll be home soon.”

Part of him knew it was unfair of him to ask Steph to be okay with this, but he couldn’t stop himself from pushing her. It was beyond what his commitment to Natalie required. It bordered on crossing a line of professionalism he had never even skirted before. He knew all of that, but he still stuffed his phone back in his pocket and walked back to Natalie’s living room.