Page 9 of Blast from the Past

Of course he would be early.

Taking a deep breath, I make my way down the hall and open the door. Shane knows something is wrong the moment he sees me, just like he always has.

“What’s wrong?” His voice is low, urgent, but I can’t form any words.

I hate crying in front of other people. Even as a little girl, I wouldn’t do it. In my mind, it shows weakness. Don’t get me wrong, I cry. I just don’t like witnesses. But this is all too much. Since the moment I opened that damn box, all I have felt is fear and anger.

First, that someone would send it to me. And then because some poor animal had to die for this little gift to be a reality. It only took me a moment to realize what it was and from then on, I have been fighting my emotions.

When I shake my head, Shane pulls me into his arms and I breathe in his earthy scent as I try to center myself, hoping the answer will come to me if I just think hard enough. But my brain has gone into a complete shutdown mode, and I simply can’t fathom why someone would do anything like this.

After long moments Shane releases me before taking my hand and pulling me into the house, closing and locking the door behind us. In the kitchen, I point toward the counter where the offending box still remains. He picks up the box and looks it over with disgust. He assesses it carefully like maybe he is going to find some clue as to who the sender is before closing it.

“Was there a note?” he asks, and I shake my head. “Whendid you get this?”

“Just now,” I say softly before clearing my throat. “I just got home.”

I nod. I can’t seem to speak. He continues to study the box before opening it again.

“Here,” he says before turning the lid to show me what he has found. On the inside, one word is written in black ink:HEARTBREAKER.

My mind is reeling. Why would someone leave a package like this for me? Who would send me the heart of an innocent animal? What does this mean?

“Kalum,” Shane says after pressing his phone to his ear. “I need you to cancel all my clients for tomorrow.”

He listens as Kalum says something before ending the call.

“You can’t do that,” I say but my voice is still soft. “You can’t just leave your clients hanging.”

“I can and I will,” he says, taking the box and throwing it into the outdoor bin just outside the kitchen door. “I am going to help you figure this shit out.”

“But—”

He cuts me off. “We can go get some takeout and just get you out of here for a bit. But I am staying here with you until we know who the sicko is that sent that.” He stares at me waiting for me to argue. When I don’t, he gives me a soft smile. “Good, let’s go.”

He takes my hand, leading me down the hall once more. Outside, he pulls me toward a massive, gleaming blue truck sitting beside the curb.

It only takes us a few minutes to get to the local pizza place and twenty minutes of tense waiting for our food. But the entire time, Shane never once lets go of my hand, not even when he was driving. He grounds me and keeps me calm even when Ifeel like falling apart.

As the door to the restaurant closes behind us, we stand face-to-face with Zane, the man from last night. His gaze zeros in on my hand clasped in Shane’s and a flash of disgust crosses his features before he can school them.

What the hell was that? This man doesn’t know me. How dare he judge me?

“I don’t have the time or the patience for this shit today,” Shane says lowly.

“Brighten up, sunshine,” Zane says in an overly friendly tone.

I have no idea what the hell is going on between the two of them, but they clearly don’t like each other.

“Have you seen the new rankings? It seems it will be the two of us next weekend.”

Now it all makes sense. They’re rivals. I can feel Shane tense up beside me and I squeeze his hand before looking back at Zane. It doesn’t matter if I completely understand the situation or not, or whether I haven’t seen Shane in years, I will always have his back.

“Did it hurt?” I ask, suddenly finding my voice and backbone again. This is easier for me. I am better at being a snarky bitch than the damsel in distress.

“Did what hurt, pretty lady?” Zane switches on his best charming smile and I want to smack the smile off his too-pretty face.

Even with his split lip and broken nose, he is an extremely handsome man. The bruise on his jaw looks like it also may make smiling painful, and that brings a little bit of joy to my black heart.

---