Chapter 113: R.A.D.
*Self-defense is not just a set of techniques; it’s a state of mind, and it begins with the belief that YOU are worth defending. – Rorion Gracie*
Shelby thought that Neo was an idiot.
Not with business. He was good with business. And he knew how to keep his clients and employees happy.
They had never made it that far, but she was certain that he knew how to keep a woman happy.
And this is why she thought that he was an idiot.
Shelby was driving out to the new facilities, house, compound, whatever he was calling it. Nate sat in the backseat of her pickup chatting happily about what he and Uncle Neo were going to do tonight. Ever since Neo said that he had signed both Shelby and Jolene up for the RAD class, the only thing that Nate could talk about was his Thursday nights with Uncle Neo.
Nate seemed to think that this was going to become a regular thing. She didn’t have the heart to tell him that this was only a three-week course. She waved at Chris who was working at the gate. He waved back as the gate opened and she went through. Shelby smiled as the man also waved at her son.
“Hi Chris!” he yelled at the closed window. Then he continued with what he was telling his mom. “And he said that he has new laser tag guns.”
They came around the corner and the view of the large house in the setting sun was even more breathtaking than usual. The pickup had barely come to a stop when Shelby heard Nate undo his seatbelt.
“Hey bud!” Neo said as he opened the back door. Jolene opened the front passenger door and climbed inside. “You girls go have fun at your class.”
“Yeah! We’re going to do man things!” Nate kissed his mother’s cheek after Neo pointed to his own cheek. “Love you.”
“Love you, too.” She smiled as Neo helped him out of the pickup. “Neo…”
“I know, no lap dances this time.” Her boss said as he closed the door. "And don't worry, Nate's the designated driver."
“Charles Neosho!” Shelby hissed at the now closed door. Shaking her head, she looked at Jolene. “Have you ever made a peach pit smoothy?”
“A what?” Jolene asked with a little laugh.
“A peach pit smoothy.” She said putting the pickup in gear and driving out of the portico over the circular drive. “Peach pits have cyanide in them. They’re very deadly.”
“Why would you make a peach pit smoothie?”
“Because the woodchipper makes a huge mess.” She said as they passed through the gate again.
“Woodchipper?” Jolene asked as they turned back towards Morgan City.
“You’ve never seen that movie? Serial killer chopped up the bodies in the woodchipper.” She gave a light laugh.
“I guess not.” Jolene murmured. Changing the topic, she put on a smile. “What is this class?”
“RAD – Rape and Aggression Defense.” Shelby replied turning onto the road leading to the Civic Center. “It’s self defense and situational awareness class.”
“Have you done it before?”
She laughed. “You would think that since I’m the one that sets them up, I would have. But no. I don’t really have any family and not everyone wants to keep Nate.”
“He seems like a good kid.”
“He’s great. Neo’s great with him. But I don’t want to rely on my boss to watch my son.”
“I thought that there was more between you two.” Jolene admitted quietly.
Sitting at the red light, Shelby looked over at the other woman. She wondered how she had missed it before. Jolene liked Neo. And this just confirmed that he was an idiot. The light turned green, and they began to move forward with the rest of the traffic.
“We tried.” Shelby admitted. “Neo described it best when he said it was like kissing his sister. We’re better friends than anything.”
Jolene nodded and then looked down at her hands in her lap. Shelby turned on her blinker and pulled into the turn lane. Waiting her turn, she reached over and squeezed the other woman’s hand.
“He’s a good guy. He won’t hurt you.”
“He said…” she let out a shaky breath. “He said that I needed time to heal.”
“He’s right.” Shelby agreed as she turned into the parking lot.
“I just want to know that I’m pretty.” Jolene said softly.
Shelby pulled around to the back of the building and parked in an open spot. Reaching over, she took the other woman’s hand back in her own. “I can tell you that you’re pretty. Your mom and brothers can tell you. Reese can tell you. But if you want to hear it from Neo you’re going to be waiting until he thinks you’re ready.”
“I just want to know that some man, any man, not related to me thinks I’m pretty.”
She squeezed the other woman’s hand and waited for her to look over at her. Shelby grinned. “Men come equipped with a pretty meter. Look down. If they’re pitching a tent, you pretty.”
“Pretty meter?” Jolene asked with a little laugh.
“Hotness meter. Fuckable meter. Take your pick.” Shelby shrugged. “Just don’t expect to get a good reading from the instructor tonight. We’re the wrong model. Your brother on the other hand, Andre would be all over that man.”
Jolene laughed. “Jaxon is pretty cute.”
“Both of them. if I was younger and didn’t love Dean like a sister, damn she would have some serious competition.” Shelby fanned herself with her hand.
Laughing at the other woman, Jolene shook her head. “It’s strange to know someone thinks of my baby brother like that.”
“Then I won’t tell you *any* of my me time fantasies. You got a boyfriend?”
“I thought we already established that was a no.”
“No, no, no. A *me* time boyfriend.”
Jolene blushed and looked away.
“We need to get you a boyfriend.”
“Hank…” she sighed.
“Probably said something about you not needing one because you had him. But, baby girl, it’s not about him. It’s about you.”
Blushing, Jolene nodded.
“Come on. Let’s have Andre tell us how to take over the world.” Shelby said as they both moved towards their doors.
Inside, Jolene was surprised to find the room filled with chairs placed in a circle. They found a place to sit and were chatting between themselves and the women that sat around them. Five minutes before the class was to start, Andre walked inside the circle.
“Good evening, ladies.” The tall slender man said he stood in the center turning in a circle and smiling at each woman. He was just shy of six feet, wore loose t-shirt and light sweatpants. Light brown hair was pulled into a low ponytail and dark brown eyes sparkled with humor.
“All of you wonderful ladies are on time, but my assistant is running late. Sooooo…..”
There was a ripple of laughter that surrounded him.
“Let’s get to know each other. I’m not going to ask you to tell all your deep dark secrets. But if you want to. We are all ears.” The smile he gave had everyone relaxing and laughing again. “We do have a few that are under eighteen, so we need to keep it PG13, for now.”
“Let’s start small.” Andre said. “I want you to raise your hand if a man has ever made you uncomfortable with the way they looked at you.” Every hand in the circle went up. Nodding, Andre raised his own hand. “Yeah, me too. If a man has ever touched you and made you feel uncomfortable.”
All the hands went back up, including the three teens and one girl that looked like she was maybe twelve.
“Again, me too. Have you ever walked somewhere, public or private, inside or outside, and feared for your safety?”
That one hit Jolene hard and the feeling of powerlessness flooded her. Shelby placed a comforting hand on her leg as all the hands in the circle went back up.
“If you have ever been attacked.” Almost all the hands went back up. “Beaten” a few hands went down. “Raped.”
The small sob had everyone looking towards the youngest member of their group as her hand was one of them that was up.
Her mother rubbed her back and older sister offered comfort. Andre walked over and knelt to speak to her softly so that no one else could hear. After a few minutes, she nodded, and he stood back up and returned to the center.
“This is hard. I get that. I’ve been there. This is our female only class. This is a safe place. Before we get into you ladies kicking my ass, we’re going to focus on trusting your instincts. God and the aliens have taken a million years of evolution to create us. They gave us that gut feeling that something is wrong. We need to listen.”
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