Battered

Chapter 44

"Who were you texting earlier?" I ask Cheryl as we lay in bed together, our bodies tangled in the sheets.

"Oh, no-one important." she answers, shrugging her shoulders.

"Has your lawyer been in touch?"

Cheryl sighs, "No, it wasn't my lawyer. It was Josh. I bumped into him on my way home from work the other day and he asked me about maybe doing some volunteer work at the new shelter. He said they are really short staffed at the moment so I gave him my number and told him to call me."

"How come you never mentioned it?" I say, moving out of our embrace.

Cheryl sits up, clutching the bed sheet around her exposed body, eager to explain, "Because you were working late that night and I was rushing around trying to get everything ready for our anniversary dinner. It just went out of my head."

"And are you going to do it, the volunteering thing?" Despite Cheryl's perfectly reasonable explanation, I can't help but feel a little uneasy.

"I don't know. I was thinking about it then this whole thing with Ashley kicked off and that was the last thing on my mind. Josh texted me last night to ask if I'd made a decision and I told him I need a little more time to think it over."

Cheryl lies back down next to me, moving in close and draping an arm over my stomach, "I won't do it if you don't want me to."

"It's not that I don't want you to babe, but do you really think it's a good idea with everything that's going on right now?"

"Hmm, I suppose not." Cheryl says, "I feel bad about letting Josh down though."

"I can talk to him if you want?" I offer, ducking my head down to lightly kiss her shoulder.

"No, it's ok." she sighs, "I'll speak to him once we get back home."

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The saucepan of water begins to boil and I add the spaghetti to the pan before turning down the heat, leaving it to gently simmer while I finish chopping the salad.

Taking two glasses from the cupboard, I fill them with orange juice before carrying them through to the living room and putting them on the dining table, looking up and smiling at Cheryl who has fallen asleep on the sofa.

Returning to the kitchen, I lift the lid on the pot of bolognaise sauce and give it a stir, bringing a spoonful to my lips and blowing on it before tasting it.

"Mmm, not bad." I say to myself, placing the lid back on again and going over to put the dirty spoon in the sink.

As I'm getting the cutlery out of the drawer, Cheryl's mobile phone starts ringing and I hurry across the room to answer it, hoping that the sudden loud noise hasn't woke her up from her nap.

"Hello?"

"Good evening is this Miss Tweedy speaking?"

"No, I'm afraid she's sleeping at the moment. May I ask who is calling?"

"My name is Janet Wilson. I'm calling from her lawyer's office."

"Oh, has there been some news about her husband's release?" I ask hopefully.

"I'm sorry miss; I really can't discuss the details of a client's case with anyone else."

"But I'm her girlfriend" I protest, frustrated that the call we have been waiting for all weekend has finally come and now nobody will tell me anything, "and her case worker!"

"Be that as it may, I can't disclose any-"

"Could you put Mr Bradford on the line?" I interrupt, growing impatient with the secretary's stuck-up attitude, "We're old business acquaintances and I'd like to speak with him directly."

A loud, irritated sigh sounds down the line, "One moment please"

I'm put on hold, forced to listen to an awful rendition of Greensleeves while Janet goes off to get her boss.

After a short while the phone is picked up again, "James Bradford speaking, how may I help?"

"Hi James, it's Kimberley."

"Oh, so you're the one upsetting my secretary" James laughs, "Some things never change. What can I do for you Kimba?"

"The Ashley Cole case, I want to know what's happening with his release" I say, getting right to the point.

"Sure, just give me a second." In the background I hear James typing on his computer, obviously bringing up the right file.

"Ok, I've got it" he says a few minutes later, "You might want to sit down for this."

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After saying my goodbyes to James, I hang up the phone and place it back on the counter top. Walking into the living room, a smile comes to my face when my eyes settle on Cheryl's sleeping form and unable to contain my excitement any longer, I rush over to the sofa and kneel by her side, putting a hand on her shoulder and giving a gentle shake.

"Chez......wake up babe."

All I get in return is a sleepy grumble. Cheryl swats my hand away and tries to turn over so I shake her a little harder, "Cheryl!"

Her eyes half open and she sits up a little, yawning and scratching her head, "What is it?"

I lean down and press a quick kiss to her lips, "I just got off the phone with your lawyer and he told me some very, very good news."

Her sleepy eyes are all of a sudden much more alert and she swings her legs off the couch, sitting quite literally on the edge of her seat, "What did he say?"

"That we don't have to worry about Ashley's release because he won't be in the country for very long. The football club that's signing him is a Spanish club."

"Are you serious?" Cheryl asks, a hint of a smile playing on her lips.

"Completely serious" I smile back at her, "It's a two year contract to start with and the restraining order that you have against him still stands. He has to notify his parole officer if he's entering the country and if he breaks the terms of his parole, it's an automatic imprisonment."

It takes Cheryl a few seconds to process this information and then without warning she lets out a shriek of happiness and leans forward to throws her arms around my neck, knocking us both to the floor.

"I can't believe it" she laughs jubilantly, moving back a little to help me up, "I mean, it's not as good as him being behind bars but at least he isn't going to be anywhere near us."

"That's part of why the judge granted the appeal" I tell her, "and with all the bikini clad tourists to keep him busy I don't think he'll be back for a very long time."

Cheryl tips her head back and laughs loudly, her nose wrinkling in that adorable way that makes me smile. She stands up and extends a hand, pulling me to my feet and into a hug.

"Let's go home" she sighs happily.