Page 58 of Protecting Her Secrets

I smile. “That’s good. Maybe after the baby is born, we can plan a trip there with you guys.”

“I’d love that.” I hear the sound of a sliding door closing, and suddenly, there’s no more splashing and yelling in the background. “I’m glad you called. I needed to talk to you.”

Not liking the seriousness of that statement, I scoot until my back is resting against the headboard and pull the covers over me. “I need to talk to you too, but you go first.”

“Klutch called. I didn’t answer, but he left a voicemail.”

“What did he say?” I ask, chewing on a nail.

“He said I better tell him where you’re at, or he’ll hurt me and my family. Exactly what you thought.”

“Damn. I’m sorry, Dee. Can you send that voicemail to my email? We’re collecting everything we can to build a case against him so I can get a restraining order. It won’t keep him fromfinding me, but the more evidence I can collect against him, the better.”

“Sure, babes. I’ll do that right now. What did you want to tell me?”

“Walker and his friend, Wilder, took a trip down to Bakersfield to get my stuff from my apartment and found everything in there had been trashed. Everything, Dee.” I swallow the emotion. It was easier to be brave and logical with Walker, but I don’t need to feel that way talking to my best friend.

“Are you fucking kidding me?” Dee shouts.

I shake my head, even though she can’t see. “They couldn’t bring back anything. Nothing. Not even a pair of underwear.”

“I’m gonna kill him. I don’t care if I go to prison. It’ll be worth it.” It’s an empty threat, we both know it, but it feels good to hear it anyway.

“You look hideous in orange,” I say through a sob.

“Oh, babes, don’t cry.”

“I don’t want to. It’s just stuff, and I love shopping. This’ll give me an excuse to buy all new things.”

“It’s not the stuff you’re crying about. It’s knowing how unhinged that man is because if he can do that, what else will he do?”

Walker strides through the bedroom door, a smirk playing on his lips, no doubt thinking about what he’s going to do to me tonight. The second he spots me, my legs tucked to my chest, making myself as small as possible with tear-stained cheeks, his whole demeanor changes. He’s next to me in seconds, pulling the phone from my hand.

“Who’s this?” He pops the button of his jeans and pushes them to the ground, leaving him in a pair of boxer briefs. “Hi, Dee. Yeah, she’s fine, but can she call you back tomorrow?” He pats my shoulder and jerks his head, indicating he wants to slidebehind me on the bed, so I scoot forward. Once he’s in position, I lean back against his chest as he wraps an arm around my middle. “You guys enjoying the place? Good. Good. Yeah, I’ll tell her. Okay, bye.”

After tossing the phone to the mattress, his other arm joins the first. Then he’s everywhere—his body, his love, all of him surrounding me and making me feel safe. But why? He could so easily turn me away and not make this his problem. Before I showed up, he had a good life, one full of friends, his animals, and his business. He didn’t need the tornado of problems I brought to his door.

“I love you, Sky. The best day of my life was the day you showed up on my doorstep, half frozen.”

I think back to when I had snow up to my thighs as I climbed the hill to his house that glowed with the lights he had on. Part of me wishes I would’ve gone down the hill instead of up so he didn’t have to deal with all this. He never would’ve known just how big of a mess I’d made of my life.

But didn’t I just agree to trust his love not even twenty minutes ago? Yet here I am, already doubting everything. If the roles were reversed and he didn’t accept my love and believe me when I told him I wanted him in my life, it would make me feel terrible. How many times would I have to say it before I grew frustrated?

I don’t want to find out the answer, so instead, I ask him a question that has been on my mind ever since I climbed that hill. “Why do you have so many lights on outside? You don’t like visitors, so why would you want to make it easier for people to find you?”

He exhales deeply, his voice heavy with emotion. “It all began when I moved into that crummy garage apartment. I was convinced you would come to your senses and try to find me. So, I kept the lights on all the time, just in case. It became sucha habit over the years that the first thing I did when I moved into this place was make sure the house could be seen. I don’t know. . . the thought of turning them off felt like erasing my hope for us.”

“For fifteen years, you left all the lights on in case I ever showed up at your door?”

“Well, yeah. It’s stupid, huh? But even after all that time, I never gave up hope.” He kisses my shoulder. “And I’m glad I didn’t, because you’re here with me now.”

Chapter Twenty

Walker

I’mstartled awake by a trilling alarm from my phone. Without much thought, I silence it and settle back in the bed. This happens a lot when you have motion sensors in the forest. Wildlife doesn’t care about property lines. I’d never tell Rowan this, but usually, I silence them at night. So why wasn’t it silenced last night?

I bolt upright and grab my phone, noting it’s six in the morning. Any other day, I would’ve already had my first cup of coffee and my chores done, but Sky and I were up late, relearning every inch of each other’s bodies. I peer over my shoulder and can only see the top of her head. It’s good to know she still sleeps with her face under the blankets, even though I find it weird.

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