She was happy to have Hook back, no lie. What was she thinking that they did not have things in common? They did not but he was her ying to her yang. He liked to cook, she liked to eat. He hated to clean, she liked to clean. He liked to have sex, and well, she liked to have sex.

She woke up with him snoring in the bed beside her and she smiled and wrapped her arms around him, snuggled up against his neck.

"You wore me out woman, I can't go at it again this morning."

"I didn't say-"

"Girl, I feel yo body heat. You want some more," he said, with a stretch.

"I mean, if you're serving it, I'm eating it."

"No!" He hopped off the bed. "I am starving...for food girl, get yo mind out the gutter."

"It's always in the gutter."

"True," he said. "Didn't you say you needed food in the house? Want me to go run out and get some things then cook?"

"I'll cook."

He glared at her.

"Okay, okay!" She got out of bed.

He went to the bathroom first and freshened up while she grabbed a t-shirt to put on. He came out of the bathroom.

"I didn't know I was staying over so I didn't bring any clothes."

"You still have some clothes here. I washed everything." She headed to the bathroom to freshen up herself.

"Hey, stay out the kitchen till I get back. I think you're ready for some cooking lessons. You can't burn eggs, right?"

After she took a quick shower and brushed her teeth, she put on a long, comfy lounge dress. She pulled her hair up in a bun and went to see what Hook was doing. He was not in the kitchen, maybe he was gone already. Then he came back in through her garage muttering curse words under his breath.

"What's wrong?"

"That motherfucker lost his whole damn mind."

"Who? What are you talking about?"

"Your ex has been here." He pulled out his phone and called someone.

"What?" Her heart raced. Matthew came to the house? "What happened? What did he do?"

"All my tires are slashed, he broke into my car and-" He stopped talking to her when someone answered the phone. "Hey Rah, I need you to come out and tow my shit. Somebody fucking with me and it's about to get real. And oh, strap up. I'll text you the address."

"What are you talking about?"

Hook did not say anything. He was trying to remain calm, she could tell. She grabbed his arms.

"Hook, what did Matthew do?"

"Babe, this shit between me and him now."

"What did he do to your car?"

"The motherfucker playing with the wrong nigga! I don't give a fuck what he did to my ride, he's still trying to hurt you."

"Do we need to call the police again?"

"Angel, really? So the bitch asses can arrest me? Imma deal with him. Besides...he stole my piece out the ride."

"What? You have a gun?"

"I'm not supposed to, I still have a record, so I can't exactly report it missing, huh?"

"I'm...sorry, I-"

"Stop apologizing for that asshole. You didn't do anything. And this is why I didn't want you here. He's been staking you out and now he knows you're back. I can't leave you here Angel, I don't know what the fuck you want me to do."

"I don't want to go back to your place."

"I kept you safe there."

"I'll get a hotel room."

"Why waste that money?"

"My dad...I need to talk to my dad. He's a lawyer, there has to be something I can do. A restraining order, protection order..."

She walked away from Hook as she called her father. He picked up after the first ring.

"Baby girl, you doing okay at home?"

"No, dad, ummm, something happened...with Matthew again."

"Are you okay?"

"Yes, I'm fine. I uh...had a friend stay over and when he went outside to his car, Matthew destroyed it and broke inside and stole...stuff. I can't keep living like this daddy!"

"I'm on my way over."

"No dad, no, that's not necessary. I just need some legal advice. There has to be something I can do to make him stop harassing me."

"I'm on my way. You stay inside your house. Is your friend still there?"

"Yes, daddy but, he's umm...more than just a friend. He's my...boyfriend and we-"

"I don't care about that right now little Angel, I just need to make sure my little girl is safe. Now you don't go outside till I get there. If that crazy bastard is still around I have something for him."

Oh no, her father was coming and he would meet Hook. She was not ready for that. Not one bit. She went around the house to make sure there were no signs of all the wild sex they had last night. She wiped the counters down with bleach wipes, picked up all the pillows from the floor, fixed the fallen books from the bookcase, wiped the tables and the walls, and made sure her bed was made.

Hook was on the phone talking to someone. She looked him over. She straightened his wrinkled tank. She wished he would have had on something nice like he had on last night. Not the wife-beater that showed off all his tattoos and sweatpants. She rubbed his bald-head, looked his face over, made sure he looked presentable.

"What the hell are you doing?" he asked, moving the phone away from his ear.

"My father is coming over," she said softly to him.

"What?"

"My father is coming over," she repeated. "He wants to make sure I'm okay. I told him not to, but..."

"Good. Maybe he can talk some sense into your ass to leave here. I'm talking to Jared. He said you can come to stay at his place since you're so set at not coming back to my place."

"You called Jared? Since when did you even have his number?"

"Since I needed him to keep eyes on you at work. So, you're gonna pack a bag or what so I can take you over to Jared's?"

"No! I'm not going over there!"

"Jared, she still tripping, you talk to her." He handed her his phone.

"Jared, just no!" She hung up the phone on him. "I'm not going to stay afraid of that man."

"When he has a gun to your head? When he just stole another gun? When he has been staking out your place like a psycho? Don't test him."

The doorbell rang. Now she would have to hear her father convince her she was weak and needed a man to protect her. She went over to the door with Hook right behind her.

Soon as she opened the door, her father hugged her.

"You okay?"

"I told you, dad..."

Her father looked toward Hook. He gave him a once over and she held her breath.

"That's your car out there?"

"Yeah."

"Daddy, this is Ho...Antione," she said. "Antione, my father Edward Hamilton."

"Just call me Eddie," her father said, holding out his hand to him.

"Nice to meet you, sir," he said, shaking his hand.

"Wish it was under different circumstances. My little Angel likes to keep her private life private. It's not my business who she dates as long as they treat her right. Now, this Matthew, I treated him like a son, so this is very upsetting to me."

"She's told me he-"

"Ho...I mean Antione, no, look, daddy doesn't need to know all of that."

"Why don't you come out with me and we talk about what happened to your car," her father said. "You stayed the night with my daughter and then this morning..."

She was following behind them as they walked outside, but her father stopped and turned to her.

"You can go inside and wait."

"Why? I want to see what happened?"

"Go inside Angel," Hook said to her.

Oh, it was two to one now?

"No! What's he going to do if he comes up with you two both here?"

"I did drive around the block twice and looked at every parked car," her father said. "He's not out here that I know of."

"I checked up and down the street last night when I came but I didn't see anything," Hook said.

"Ever been on a stake-out? There are ways you can hide in plain sight. Matthew is one of my best lawyers, he knows everything about staking out a person."

"You think he really-" Angel said, then stopped herself. She saw the car. The tires were slashed with a knife, like overkill slashes that were long and jagged. Both the passenger and driver's side windows were smashed.

"Angel, you work too hard and live out here to protect you from common thug mess like..." Her father stopped talking and looked at Hook. He was smart enough to know the tats on Hook didn't mean he was a professional man. "I mean he-"

"No sir, you right. You don't expect this out here. I'm from where this happens a lot. Out here, it's always something domestic. That type of crime can be worse than the random acts of violence."

"You still in that life?" her father asked.

Angel could not believe her father was asking him this.

"No sir, but I ain't gonna let a mother fucker punk me, or hurt Angel."

"Good. I can pay for the repairs to your car, it's no big deal."

"Daddy, Antione has his own car shop. He can do that himself."

"Your own shop, huh?"

"It's not much, but it's mine," he said.

Hook's friend with the tow truck pulled up and parked in front of Hook's car.

"Man, this a long way outta the fuckin' way," Rakeem said.

"Just tow the ride, man," Hook said to him.

Her father looked at the writing on the side of the tow truck as Rakeem went to work, "Hook it Up Auto Repair and Tow."

"Nice name to it."

"They call me Hook."

"Hook?" her father repeated.

"Yeah daddy, just a nickname."

"I like it. It works, especially with the tow. Hook It Up," her father said with a grin, and a little tilt, like he had swag.

She did not know what to think of her dad trying to be hip. She groaned and looked at Hook who reached in his car through the window and got something out. He handed her father a business card.

"Here," he said. "You probably don't want to drive all the way to the city for car service, but if you need anything, I got you."

"I like him," her father said, patting his back.

Oh great! Hook had won over her father. She smiled because her father was hard to please. He didn't even like Matthew right away, but once he did he got along with him well.

"So, you're coming back to stay with me, my Angel?" her father asked.

"No daddy, I'm not."

"She won't come to stay at my place," Hook had to add. "I tried to get her to go stay with Jared. Maybe you can talk some sense into her."

"You should listen to Hook," her father said. "His place is probably the safest because Matt doesn't know where he lives, right?"

"Yes, but..."

"Then that's settled. I'll start the paperwork on a restraining order for you. And the dissolution of marriage hearing has been moved up to Thursday. Court's decision won't stop a guy like Matt. We need to involve the police. He has a lot of them in his pocket, but so does your old man." He kissed her cheek. "I feel better knowing you have Hook with you. Let me get home and not worry your mother."

"Did you tell her?"

"No, but I will. I don't keep secrets from her. And you should learn to not keep secrets either," her father said and walked to his car.

Oh shit! Her father really called her out. There was something else really big she had not told Hook about herself.

A/N: Something else? Angel got to be the most f*#&'d up person. Her father seems normal, overprotective but that's okay.

XOXO
Kimberly