Page 53 of Don't Look Back

“Um… I have one, I'm just not sure if it’s here.” I squat down under the bathroom sink and rifle through my things.

Colt’s been such a good sport and told me to take over the bathroom. He claims he just needs a place to put his toothbrush and deodorant. Other than that, he doesn’t need any space.

“It must still be at my house. We can go get it.” I stand to my full height and brush my hands off on my jeans.

“No, I don’t want to bother you.” She waves me off.

“Sophia, it’s a five-minute drive. It’s not a huge deal. C’mon, I’ll make you come with me and keep me company on our long journey.” I roll my eyes as I walk through the house and bundle up.

“Are you sure? The snow is really coming down.” Sophia steps onto the covered front porch and stares out at the snow blanketing the street.

“I'm positive. Plus, we need to go to the grocery store anyway. We can stop at my house on the way home.”

We climb inside my SUV and I get the heat going as soon as the car has warmed up a little bit. I’ve never been so happy to have a garage to park in. I wouldn’t want to clean the car off before we left.

It only takes us a few minutes to get to the grocery store and though the roads have snow on them, it isn't hard to drive yet.

Sophia grabs a cart and begins pushing it up and down the aisles. Though we still have a few more days until Christmas, I want to get everything we need now. I'm sure the stores are going to be crazy otherwise.

“Ok, so what are we making?” Sophia glances over her shoulder at me.

“Corn casserole, mashed potatoes, and mac and cheese.”

“And how many people are going to be there?”

“Uhh… Skylar’s family, Tucker’s family, and Colt’s family. Maybe Maverick. I think about fifteen people?”

“Are we making any dessert?” Her eyes light up with excitement. I don’t think I’ve ever seen someone so excited about the idea of baking.

“I’m sure I can twist Skylar’s arm into letting you bake, though I wouldn’t make a pie. Tucker’s grandma is known for her pies and I'm not sure how it would go if you try to one up Gran.” I grin, thinking about the sassy old woman.

“Yeah, I'm not stealing the woman’s thunder. I'm not great at pies anyway. Oh! Maybe I can get some pointers from Gran. Do you think she’d tell me all of her secrets?”

“She’d probably love to pass on her secrets.” I grin.

“Yay!” She claps her hand in excitement. “Let’s get all your boring things, then spend some time in the baking aisle so I can go crazy.”

We turn down the next aisle and the hairs on the back of my neck stand up. I feel like someone’s watching me. I glance all around, but I don’t see anyone.

I'm being paranoid, everything is fine. We might not know where Jimmy is, but we know he isn't here.

I take a deep breath and blow it out slowly. I need to remain calm. Colt would know if there were any strangers in town. He’d call me right away if I were in danger.

Once I’ve grabbed all of my ingredients, I wait in the baking aisle, letting Sophia go wild. She’s like a little kid in a candy store.

“Do you know if Pecker’s coming for Christmas?”

“I'm not sure. His sister lives in Maple Springs, so he might be going there. I know he’s working during the day and the other deputy is working the night shift. I can text him and ask him.”

“No, it’s fine. He just keeps bringing up some of the desserts I’ve talked about. I'm trying to decide what I want to make,” she trails off as she skims her gaze over the shelves. “Do you think everyone would be opposed to getting some cookies from me? I clearly don’t have any gifts and I don’t know anyone well enough to buy them anything.”

“You don’t need to buy any presents, Sophia. I promise. They’re going to be happy to have you there, they wouldn’t care if you came completely empty handed.”

“So, I'm overthinking this?” She peeks up at me.

“A thousand percent. Do whatever makes you happy, but don’t feel obligated to do anything.”

“Ok. So just like ten dozen cookies?” She wrinkles up her nose.

---