Page 76 of His Loving Wife

“Mom, what’s your problem?”

“I need you both to listen to me,” I say, making my voice as serious and clear as possible. “We need to get out of here. Now.”

“Is something wrong?” asks Noah.

“Yes. We’re not safe. I don’t have time to explain. You need to come with me now, and whatever I say you need to do, you do it. Okay?”

My delivery must have worked because there isn’t the angsty rebuttal I’m used to receiving. They both nod, then look at each other in mild confusion.

“Let’s go. Now.”

They follow me into the hallway. As we pass the living room, I look at the sliding glass doors. There’s no sight of either Vincent or Andrew. We make it to the front door and open it.

Vincent is standing on the other side. We all jump.

“Did you find your keys?” he asks, offering up that loaded smile.

“We’re just going to walk down to the nearest pier. Snap a few photos there.”

My words are clipped, my panic threatening to break. I don’t like being this close to him, and I’m frightened Andrew is nowhere to be found. What if Vincent has already hurt him?

Vincent takes a step closer, forcing us back inside. “I don’t think you’re going to want to do that. The wind is already picking up, and it’s starting to rain. It’s going to be one hell of a storm.”

“We won’t—”

“Let’s get this dinner started,” Vincent says, cutting me off. “I know the kids must be starving.”

Across the room, the sliding glass door opens, and Andrew walks inside. He looks pasty, his hair wind-swept, his shoulders damp from the falling rain, but he’s alive.

“I’m sorry, Kate,” he says calmly. “Looks like we’re stuck here.”

There’s something different about Andrew. The look he’s giving me now isn’t one of fear, but defiance.

In that moment, it hits me. Vincent might be here to hurt us, but Andrew is complicit.

Vincent, now fully inside, closes the front door.

He clicks the lock.

Chapter 40

Andrew

Andrew never knew his purpose, and yet finding one’s path was something that was drilled into him at a young age. His father preached these ideals from the pulpit every Sunday, and in smaller, more intimate sessions around the dinner table during the rest of the week. Andrew didn’t disbelieve his father; he had a relationship with God, but it never felt as intimate as the one his father claimed to have. It was more avuncular, clearly there, but somewhat disconnected.

He longed for a deeper connection with the world around him. After his lonely childhood as the minister’s son, he was happy to take on the role of brother. His fraternity fostered friendships he’d never had before. For the first time, he found himself on the cusp of belonging. He rejoiced in the brotherhood.

And yet, Andrew knew he was always a little different. He was a beta, a helper, a friend of. Most of the time, he watched festivities from the sidelines, but this didn’t leave him bitter. Detachment wasn’t an unfamiliar feeling.

He sometimes wondered if he inherited this docility from his mother. Marsha Brooks was a kind woman, gifted musically, but she was also extremely submissive. She didn’t form her own opinions, instead allowing Simon Brooks and the gospel to lead her way.

That was what first attracted Andrew to Kate: she was so wildly different from the parents he’d known. She was full of opinions, passions that were impossible to thwart. She was also religious (a requirement, Andrew admitted, for any future wife) but she had other callings that made her well-rounded, and it was these characteristics that left Andrew mesmerized.

He couldn’t believe he’d actually caught her attention. He had some experience with girls, usually the drunken cast-offs of his fraternity buddies, but nothing serious, no one who ever penetrated his soul the way Kate did. Everyone knew she was dating another fraternity brother at the time, but Kate didn’t seem to care. And the more Andrew got to know her, the more obvious it became that Paul Gunter was not a good match for her. What they had couldn’t hold a flame to what he was building with Kate.

And so, their relationship progressed at lightning speed. In many ways, Kate became his new religion. She fulfilled him in a way no message or sermon ever had, and he was humbled to be in her presence. Then, the pregnancy. Andrew had to hide his elation. It wasn’t hard; all he had to do was think of his parents’ reaction when they learned he’d conceived a child out of wedlock. Even with that stumble, he knew his parents would welcome Kate with open arms. They’d be as transfixed by her as he was.

Their wedding was small and intimate, all pictures taken before the baby started to show. By the time Willow was born, they were a happy family. His parents loved Kate, and Andrew adored Kate’s mother, although his relationship with his father-in-law always felt somewhat removed; he reminded him too much of some of his alpha fraternity brothers. The ability for everyone to get along was an added bonus, but the true prize was his future with Kate, and he didn’t believe either one of them could have been happier.

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