Robert was working hard at getting my shorts off but I fought him back with all my might. Damn it! I was starting to get tired and Robert had managed to pin my left arm above my head.

“Sierra! Stop fighting me. Let me remind you what we had together.”

Closing my eyes, I fought as hard as I could. “Get the hell off of me, you sick fucker!” I screamed as I punched with my free hand and fiercely kicked with my legs. Then he was gone. Opening my eyes, I quickly sat up and covered my mouth as I watched Aaron push Robert against the wall. “You fucking piece of shit. Keep your hands off of her!”

Scrambling up and off the bed, I ran to the closet. Glancing over my shoulder, Aaron punched Robert and then Robert punched Aaron. Screaming, I turned and finished the combination. A loud crash caused me to scream and look over my shoulder. Oh God! Robert has pushed Aaron and he feel into one of the end tables next to my bed. Robert began kicking Aaron as I screamed out, “Aaron! Robert, stop this!”

Hearing sirens off in the distance, I opened the safe and pulled out my pistol and quickly stood back up. Aaron had Robert pinned against the wall as he kept punching him. Aaron punched him hard across his left cheek; it caused Robert to fall down and pass out. Aaron stood over him and pulled out his cell phone as I walked up to Robert. He was passed out and lying on the floor.

“Dad, I made it in time. They’re almost here,” Aaron said from behind me.

Looking down at my ex-husband, my body shuddered as I thought of what he had almost done to me. Closing my eyes, I took a deep breath and slowly pointed the gun at him. Opening my eyes, I let out the breath I had been holding and tried to steady my shaking hands.

Aaron walked up next to me and softly began to talk. “Sierra, baby, I need you to give me the gun.”

“He tried to rape me,” I said as my voice cracked.

Aaron softly touched my arm. I felt his love rush through my body, and I knew I was okay. Everything was going to be okay because Aaron saved me. He’d kept his promise and kept Robert from hurting me. Turning to Aaron, I let my tears fall freely again. “He tried . . . but you came . . . Aaron you came.” Dropping my hands, Aaron quickly took the gun from my hand and pulled me into his arms as the police came rushing into my house.

Burying my face in Aaron’s chest, I tried to block everything out. Robert had begun to wake up as the police rushed into the bedroom. Attempting to stand up, Robert started moaning. The police quickly began handcuffing Robert as he started yelling out, “Sierra! You belong to me! Only me!”

The police led Robert out of the house as he kept shouting over and over how I belonged to him.

Once Robert was out of the house, Aaron poured me a glass of water as he kept his arm wrapped around my waist. Brice walked into the kitchen and breathed a sigh of relief as he looked between Aaron and me. “He will sit in jail for a very long time, sweetheart.”

Smiling weakly, I attempted to talk but nothing came out.

Brice gave Aaron a look that told me he wanted to talk to Aaron alone.

Kate walked in, and I immediately felt tears build in my eyes. Quickly making my way over to her, she wrapped me up in her arms as she spoke softly to me.

“Shh, he won’t ever touch you again, darling girl. Aaron and Brice will make sure of it.”

Leading me away from the kitchen and outside, I let myself relax into Kate’s arms. These last few months she had become the mother I longed for since my own mother passed away. Her fight and win with cancer showed me how strong she was, and I strived to be half the woman she was.

Walking me to her car, I stopped and turned to her. “I don’t like feeling this way, Kate. He made me feel weak. He took something from me, and I’m not sure how to react to that.”

Giving me a smile that caused my heart to melt, Kate placed her hand on the side of my face. “Baby girl, he didn’t take a damn thing from you. You fought him off and you kept him away. He may have scared you and made you feel vulnerable, but he didn’t take anything away from you.”

My lower lip quivered as I said, “What if Aaron hadn’t showed up?”

Shaking her head. “There is no what if’s in life. Everything happens for a reason on a set course. What if I had never gotten cancer? What if you had never met my son? What if you had never caught Robert cheating? We could play that game all day long. What is in front of us, Sierra, is that you held off a man who wanted to hurt you. You did it until someone came to help. You were strong enough to fight him and he didn’t get to take that away from you. That is what we focus on. Nothing else.”