Page 33 of Don't Leave Me

I skate off as quickly as I can. Colt and I told the girls the plan. They understand we need to keep acting normal, even though we’re all nervous. If Jimmy is watching us and sees us acting abnormal, he could make irrational decisions and we don’t want that.

Once I’ve spoken to Colt and find out they both feel like we’re being watched too, we decide to end our time ice skating. We gotalmost an hour in and honestly I'm not sure how much longer I’d want to skate anyway.

“I think it’s time to go, babe.” I interlace my fingers with Sophia as soon as I get close enough to her.

“What’s going on?”

“We all feel like someone is watching us. We don’t see anyone, but something feels off.”

“Ok.” She tries to sound like she’s ok with the idea of leaving, but I can tell she’s upset.

We quickly take off our skates and slip into our normal shoes. We’re waiting for Colt and Leslie to get ready to leave.

“Want to tell me what’s wrong?” I tug her over to the side and duck my head down until we’re eyelevel.

“I just… I wanted to spend more time with you.”

“I never said we needed to end our night, just our time skating. I planned on staying with you until you told me to go away tonight.”

“Don’t you have to work tomorrow?”

“Yeah, but I decided I’d rather be tired and get more Sophia time.” I kiss the top of her head and tug her into my arms.

“Are you guys ready?” Colt appears at our side with Leslie holding onto his hand with a death grip. He scans the area again, looking more intense than he ever does at work.

“Yeah. Let’s go.”

We walk Colt and Leslie to their car and once they’re safely locked inside, I usher Sophia into my SUV. I want to get out of here and go somewhere safe. Anything to know she isn't in danger.

Colt’s focus is protecting Leslie and I understand that, but Sophia’s my main priority.

I scan the area, looking to see if anyone follows Colt as they pull out of the lot and onto the street. We wait a few minutes and when no car comes or goes, I call Colt and turn onto the road.

“What’s going on?” Colt answers immediately.

“I don’t see anything, Colt. No one has left here since you did. No one seems out of place and every person I’ve seen I’ve recognized as a resident of Maple Springs. I don’t know what to say.”

“Ok, maybe I was wrong,” he says, but I can tell he doesn’t believe his own words. “Sorry to cut our night short, guys.”

“It’s fine. We don’t mind.”

“Can I come to your house?” Sophia asks softly.

“Of course, let me just tell Colt,” I whisper before turning my attention back to my phone call. “Hey, I’ll drive to your house to make sure everything is ok, but then I’m going to take Sophia back to my place for a little while.”

“You don’t need to do that. I think we’re ok. No one is following us. Just stay on the line until I get home.”

“Sounds good.”

As soon as Colt says everything is safe at his house, I take the turn to go home. I know Sydney and the kids are out tonight. There’s some function at the school tonight and they won't be home until later. I know Colt said Leslie was supposed to attend, but Skylar insisted she should stay home.

After we’re inside, I check all the doors and windows. I know there’s no reason for me to be this cautious at my house, but I'm not taking any chances. Not with Sophia or my family.

Chapter 14

Pecker

“Are you ok?” I brush her hair over her shoulder and lift her chin with my knuckles until she's forced to meet my gaze.

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