Chapter 2

CHAPTER 2

The last few months had been rough on Lisa. She wasn’t prone to talking about her problems, so none of her friends really knew what was going on. It was better that way, as far as she was concerned. Only hiding things was getting harder to do as each day passed.

Early in the first week of November, she’d lost her job. It wasn’t anything she’d done wrong—at least as far as she was concerned. Business was down and the owner had decided to trim the staff. Her job as receptionist and bookkeeper was deemed unessential.

Her duties would be broken up and spread around to the other employees, making their jobs harder, but saving him a lot of money. He was an ass anyway, and she didn’t think it was a coincidence that her job had been the first cut.

Not when he’d asked her out no less than four times, and she’d said no every time. She’d been nice about it. “Sorry, I like to keep business and my personal life separate. It saves on the drama,” she’d explained repeatedly.

The clincher was that as soon as he’d given her the bad news, he’d followed it up with a pointed remark about how her personal life would no longer be connected to the business, leaving her free to accept a date. It had taken a lot of effort not to spit in his face before she turned and stalked out the door.

She wasn’t broken up about losing the job. It wasn’t exactly her dream position, and it had never paid that well anyway. She lived from paycheck to paycheck with very little left over.

The only reason she hadn’t quit was because it was difficult to go to interviews with her schedule. And even though they’d apparently be managing fine without her, somehow every time she’d needed to take a few hours off for an appointment, it became a big deal. The guilt trips over not ‘being a team player’ got to her.

Rather than face that, she’d just put off searching for a new job. Obviously she regretted it now, but she’d left feeling hopeful that she’d find something better. Since she had no savings to keep her going, she got down to applying for jobs immediately.

Only it turned out that it was a terrible time of year to get hired. Businesses didn’t want to be bothered to train new people right before the holidays. Most of her applications got no response, and those that did never went past the phone interview stage.

Unemployment was approved, but they were so backed up she still hadn’t gotten her first check. She’d managed to pick up a few weeks of seasonal work at one of the stores. The part time hours had kept the fridge stocked at least, and she’d been able to scrape up enough money to pay December’s rent, but when January rolled around, the job ended.

She didn’t have the rent. Her landlord was a nice enough guy, at first. He’d been understanding when she explained that she was still waiting on unemployment. He’d given her extra time and even waived the late fee.

But the check still didn’t come. She dutifully continued to report in her work searches and lack of income each week. She’d spent hours on hold waiting to speak with representatives, who could only tell her to be patient and that they were doing their best. “Sorry, ma’am, but fraud has been a real problem. We’re doing our best to get it sorted out, but all I can say is that you should receive your first payment within six to eight weeks after filing.”

Lisa bit back a frustrated reply, reminding them each time, “Yes, but it’s been more than eight weeks since I filed. That’s why I’m calling. I really need—”

“I understand, ma’am. I wish I could help you, but until the payment is registered in the system, you just don’t show up and I have no information for you. Hopefully it will be soon.”

Hopefully.

She’d been living on hope and not much else. Her fridge was practically empty. The landlord was now texting her daily, as January wrapped up without a payment.

Utilities were overdue. Late fees were piling up. Unemployment didn’t even pay the full amount she’d been making, so by the time it did arrive, it wouldn’t completely catch her up. Even the large, accumulated payment she was promised, wasn’t going to be enough to put her in the clear.

There were two bright spots that helped her hold on. One was that her heat was included in the rent she wasn’t paying, so she didn’t have to worry about freezing at least. The second was that with the new year, businesses were starting to hire again. She had several in-person interviews scheduled,

Of course, she hadn’t told her friends any of this. She’d declined all the invites she’d received, including the gift exchange at Christmas and the monthly movie dates. Trying to keep a smile on her face while she was so scared would have been impossible, and she couldn’t afford to pay her share anyway.

At the end of January she stocked up on groceries, filled her gas tank, and paid her cell bill with her credit card. Those were all essentials if she was going to keep job hunting. But when she missed her minimum payments at the beginning of February, her cards were cut off.

On February thirteenth she came home from a job interview, feeling confident that she’d at least get a callback, to find a pile of boxes and bags on the curb. She didn’t think much about it at first. There were eight units in her building, and someone was always moving out.

When she got to her apartment, she found an eviction notice taped to the door, and then discovered the locks had been changed. In an instant she understood she no longer had a place to live. Her mind whirled and it suddenly clicked that the pile of things on the curb… was hers.

That caught her immediate attention. She raced back down the stairs to save what she could. None of her furniture was there. If it had been, she might have realized sooner that this was her whole life piled on the street.

Maybe the landlord thought he could sell it for past due rent, or maybe people had already carted it off. All that was left were the smaller things. Her face was hot as she stood there and sorted through the bags and boxes, trying to decide what she could keep.

Thankfully Lisa’s car was big and boxy. It had plenty of storage room, but not enough for a whole apartment worth of stuff. She was able to save her important memories, her clothes and bedding. Anything that might have value went in back, as she ignored the aching feeling in her middle. She packed carefully, determined to cram in as much as she could.

At one point a neighbor walked by, and Lisa thought the shame would swallow her up on the spot.

“Lisa… are you moving?” Darlene was a new mother who always looked frazzled, and the dark circles under her eyes seemed perpetual.

She had always been nice though, so Lisa forced a smile. “Looks like it. Kind of unplanned.” There was no sense pretending, not when Darlene would see the notice on the door when she passed.

“Oh no, I’m so sorry! What happened?”

Lisa really didn’t want to talk about it, but she gave her the short answer. “Well, I lost my job in November, and you know no one hires during the holidays. Unemployment is so backed up it hasn’t kicked in and…” She shrugged.

Darlene pursed her lips and shook her head. “I noticed you hadn’t been leaving for work, but I thought maybe you were working from home. So many jobs are remote now.” Her soft southern voice was full of sympathy.

“Yeah, I wish. I’m sure I’ll find something soon. Guess Tony was tired of waiting for the rent. I—I can’t really blame him.” It wasn’t true. She did blame him for not being a little more patient, or at least giving her a few days to pack, but she didn’t want to sound petty.

“Girl, please! He could have waited. How many times have we had units sit empty for months. If he can get by then, he could have gotten by a little longer. And I can’t believe he just dumped your stuff out here. You want me to call him up and give him an earful?”

Lisa thought about it and then sighed. “He’s already changed the locks, so it won’t do any good. But thank you.”

Darlene frowned and rolled the carriage back and forth as the baby started to fuss. “Do you have somewhere to stay? My place is small, but you can camp on the couch until you find something.”

It was a sweet gesture and truthfully, Lisa was tempted to take her up on it, except she knew how small the apartments were. Crowding in with Darlene, her husband, and the baby would make all of them uncomfortable. “I’ve got a plan, but I really appreciate the offer,” she lied.

“Well, if you change your mind or the plan falls through, you know where I’ll be. Honestly, I wouldn’t mind another adult around to talk to. With Ricky always on the road, I feel like there’s days where nothing comes out of my mouth but babytalk. Ricky’s like to come home and find I’ve forgotten how to use real words one of these days.” Darlene let out a long wistful sigh.

Lisa couldn’t help but laugh. “Thanks, I’ll keep that in mind.”

The baby was growing more agitated, and finally Darlene had to make her excuses and hurry away to take care of him. Lisa was grateful that the woman cared, but the kindness had brought tears to her eyes, and she had to keep blinking them away.

She felt like a complete failure at life. She swiped at her hot, and now wet, cheeks with the back of her hand as she turned to the mess on the curb. There wasn’t much space left. No matter how carefully she packed, she was going to have to leave a lot of things behind.

It was painful to make those choices, but at least it kept her mind occupied so she wasn’t thinking too hard about the next step. It was winter in Colorado, and she was on the street. It wasn’t too cold at the moment, but the weather was unpredictable and that could change in a minute.

When she’d fit in as much as she could without making it impossible to drive, she forced herself to get in the car and drive away. She tried not to look in the rear-view mirror, but she couldn’t resist one painful glance back at everything she had left behind.

Since she couldn’t afford to drive aimlessly and waste the gas, she ended up at a truck stop by the highway. She grabbed a coffee and an overpriced hot dog and settled down at a café table to think about what she was going to do, but none of her options were pleasant.

It was lucky she’d had her laptop with her while she was out, or she might have lost it when her apartment was emptied. That and her phone were her only tools to fix the situation. With the truck stop’s free wi-fi, she hopped online to apply to some new job listings while she sat there.

The coffee refills were free, and she had no place to go, so she spent the afternoon there. Once she’d exhausted the listings that she was even vaguely qualified for, she started researching government programs that might be able to help her with rent assistance or emergency funds.

There wasn’t a lot, and most of it was specifically geared toward families with children. She filled out a few forms anyway, but as it grew darker outside, she began to realize that no miracle was going to present itself and save her.

For lack of better options, Lisa moved her car to the back of the lot, covered all the windows, and hunkered down for the night. It was cold, but with all the bedding, it was bearable, though not comfortable. With her car so tightly packed, she was forced to sleep sitting up in the driver’s seat.

In the morning her whole body ached, and she was shivering as she hurried back into the truck stop for warmth. She spent the morning at a table in the back, refreshing her e-mail constantly and hoping for something good to happen. By lunchtime she was beginning to consider another night in her car, and it was a depressing thought.

When she stepped outside, she realized the temperature had dropped and that sleeping in the car just wasn’t going to work. Maybe she could manage another night, but after that? No, she was going to have to give in and beg a friend for help, and when it came to that, there was only one person she trusted enough to go to.

Maya was her best friend in the world and her house did have a guest room. If her husband was okay with a guest, at least Lisa wouldn’t be cramping them too much. If… he allowed her to stay.

She knew that if it was up to Maya, there would be no problem. But she also knew Maya was a Little and her husband Rick was her Daddy. He made the rules and that meant it was going to be up to him.

Rick seemed like a nice guy, but he was obviously dominant. Even if Maya had never confessed their secret, Lisa felt like she might have guessed, just from the way he was. There was an aura of stern authority around him.

As a result, he’d always made her a little nervous. Even when he smiled and laughed, there was still that feeling of being in charge that made her tummy clench sometimes. She envied Maya her Daddy.

Lisa had known she was a submissive all the way back in her teen years, but for various complicated reasons, it had become clear to her that she’d never be able to live her dream the way Maya was. She wouldn’t allow herself to feel resentful of what Maya had, her friend deserved her happiness.

It was just that… she wished she could be happy too.

Being homeless had a way of changing priorities, and now all she was hoping for was a place to sleep while she sorted out her life. She knew Maya didn’t get off until later in the afternoon, so she went back into the truck stop. She washed down another hot dog with the strong coffee and trawled through the job listings again.

When it got to the time that Maya was usually on her way home, Lisa packed up her laptop and headed to the car. She knew calling to ask would have been a better plan, so she didn’t waste gas if it was a no, but it felt like such an awkward conversation to have over the phone. And besides, she kind of wanted to see a friendly face.

It was getting dark as she arrived at the house, but the driveway was empty and there were no lights on inside. Lisa knew where the spare key was hidden, and she was tempted to wait in the kitchen where it was warm, but it felt too intrusive, especially when she was there to ask for a favor. She waited in the car instead, hoping it wouldn’t be too long.

Alone with her thoughts, she bundled up in a blanket as the heat slowly dissipated. It was definitely going to be a colder night than the one before. If Maya couldn’t let her stay, she might just have to take Darlene up on her offer of couch surfing—but that was a last resort.

She struggled to keep her thoughts out of the negative, but with nothing else to do, it was only a matter of time before her mood started tumbling downhill. How had she gotten herself into this mess? How?

She’d always been responsible and hard working. She took care of herself and never asked for anything she hadn’t earned—at least until now. And yet… the universe had just crapped all over her. It wasn’t fair.

Suddenly all the emotions she’d been pushing back and ignoring tumbled free. The deluge blindsided her, and so did the loud wrenching sobs that seemed to come without warning. She didn’t bother to fight it. In a weird way, it felt good to let the tears out.

Consumed in her own misery, Lisa didn’t even notice when Maya’s car pulled in behind her.