We Belong

Chapter 19

Bonnie seemed to be a bit out of sorts when I got to her office. Her glasses, however, were still perched on the end of her nose and didn't seem to move at all even when she shook her head violently while speaking to someone on the phone. She slammed her phone down after gruffly saying goodbye, typed something on her computer and then looked at me,

"Morning, Niall."

I raised my eyebrows,

"Morning. Am I interruptin' somethin'?"

She shook her head,

"Just...stupid idiot men." She stopped, "No offense."

"None taken."

She let out a deep sigh and then folded her hands in front of her on the desk,

"So, how'd the dog go?"

"Got a German Shepherd. He's huge. Name's Henry. Sweetest dog ever...dunno how that's gonna work when he's supposed t'be guardin' her."

Bonnie smiled,

"He knows his job."

"Wish I knew mine." I muttered under my breath.

"That's what I'm here for." She answered. My eyes widened. I didn't know she'd heard me. She cleared her throat, "How was she this morning?"

"Well..." I situated myself in my seat, "She uh...yesterday when I left, I lied to her about where I was going. She found out. So she moved her stuff into the guest bedroom."

Bonnie raised her eyebrows,

"Uh huh..."

"I don't think she's worryin' about any romance between us."

"Did she say that's why she moved?"

"No." I answered, "Just the feelin' I get."

"Why did you lie to her?"

When I'd lied to her, I thought I understood why. But now, I just felt like it was a shoddy excuse,

"I was goin' t'see Aiden and Laura...and I was sure she would get upset if I told her that. I want her t'see a therapist but she's...resistant to it."

Bonnie nodded,

"Some abuse victims are. It's important not to force them into the decision."

I studied my fingers closely,

"I know she needs to talk about it on her own time...but it seems like that might never happen."

"Molly will get to a point where it will probably just happen. She won't even realize that she's discussing it until she's knee deep in doing just that. And it's better for her that way."

I shifted uncomfortably,

"So what do I do until then? I feel like every decision I make is about me and not her even though I'm really trying t'help her."

"You are far too concerned with helping."

Out of everything she could've said to me, that made the most sense to me. Shockingly, I'd been accused of that before. I couldn't help it, my whole life all I'd ever wanted to do is help my family and friends. And now, I actually had the resources to be able to make a difference in someone's life. I suppose sometimes I was overzealous.

She smiled,

"Been told that before huh?" I didn't answer, but she knew, "Niall, you don't have to do anything special here. She knows you're there for her. What else do you think you need to be doing?"