Page 118 of Prey for You

“Bridget, what—”

“Are you still out there?” I whispered, careful not to saywhere,just in case.

He was quiet for a second, his instincts obviously kicking in. “Yeah,” he said cautiously.

“Get out. Now,” I whispered. “Get out and don’t go back, ever. They know. They know what I was doing, but they were too late to catch us and… we can’t risk it. None of it. He’s… he’s going to prove you’re breaking the restraining order and he’s going to put you away. And I can’t handle it. I couldn’t handle it if you got… if that… if you were—”

“Hey, hey. Just breathe. I get it. I hear you, okay?”

“But—”

“Breathe, babe. Just breathe. Where are you?”

“I’m at home,” I murmured, checking that the door was locked before I backed up against the wall, closed my eyes and sank to the floor, knees to my chest and head in one arm. “He followed me all the way and… we can’t risk it anymore.”

“Okay, okay. It’s okay. I’ll be extra careful and make sure no one sees me. Don’t worry. I don’t have my car here.”

I breathed a little easier after that.

But only a little. Because it was time to face facts.

I wasn’t going to see my husband again until we were both sitting in a public courtroom and Jeremy was doing everything in his power to put Sam away. Because if I did, I’d end up being the reason I never got to see him free again.

38. Here with You

~ BRIDGET ~

I was shaking, curled up on the floor in the hallway between my garage door and the bedrooms.

“Bridget? Bridget, turn on your video.”

I’d put him on speaker and felt like I needed to shush him. What if they were in my house? What if they had set up cameras here and—

“Babe, look at me.”

I looked down at the phone, staring at the image of Sam staring at me intently as he walked through the forest.

“Jeremy’s threatening to find you and arrest you, even if you haven’t done anything illegal.”

Sam snorted, but I saw the shadow pass behind his eyes. “My lawyers would have a field day.”

“Yeah, but… I mean… you’d get asked and… and you’d be honest, right?”

Sam sighed and rubbed a hand over his face. “So, no more picnics.”

I nodded sadly. Then let my head sink back against the wall, because even the idea of going another whole month without him made me want to hyperventilate.

“Babe…Bridget.”

I looked down to find him right up in the screen, the bare glimpses of the forest behind him dimming and moving because he was walking.

“Bridget… listen to me. My voice—focus.”

I nodded.

“Bridget, you need tobreathe.”

I sucked in a deep lungful of air and blinked.

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