Page 76 of Prey for You

“What? Is your girlfriend there,ha ha?”

“Babe… no. I’ve got the guys here. They’re praying,” I sighed and pulled the phone away to turn on the video so she’d see me—the last thing she needed right now was to be worried about something likethat.But she hadn’t turned on her camera yet, so it was just me staring at a blank screen. “Can you see me?”

“Yeah, I just—”

“Did you skip Gerald? Or leave early?”

She didn’t answer. And didn’t turn her video on either.

Shit.“Bridge—”

“I forgot about your guys. That’s nice. I’m glad they’re still coming over. No judgment, right?” she said. But her voice was too bright, and too tight.

“None,” I said staring at the camera so she’d see the worry on my face. “But I’m not worried about them. What’s going on with you?”

“Nothing. I’m just lonely, I guess,” she said in a voice so small my stomach physically ached. “I wanted to see you. But now I have. You should go back to the guys. And tell them I said hi. Isn’t that what church people do? Send love and prayers, or something? God bless you, and all that? Should I make them pillows?Grateful, thankful, and blessed?”

“Bridget—”

“I’m teasing, Sam.”

“I know. But you’re hurting. I want to—”

“No, it’s fine. Gerald’s just worried, and that’s worse than when he’s pushing.”

“Worried about what, specifically?” I asked quickly. If it had stopped him nudging her about visiting her dad, it had to be bad, right?

“Nothing. Just the time of year. He thinks I’m going to do something stupid like I did last year…”

Christmas.But it was only the second week of December. She’d gotten better over Thanksgiving—she brightened up, and said all the raw turkey memes made her laugh.

“…But I’m not. It’s fine. Don’t worry. I forgot about your meeting. Give me a call later when they’re gone, okay?”

“I will. But—”

“It’s fine, Sam. I’m a big girl. I just… I don’t even know why I called. Just bored I guess.”

“You called because I love you, and I want to help you when you’re hurting. Are you—”

“I’m fine. I’ll talk to you when your things are done. Make sure you’re alone. I want to see you tonight, okay?”

Fine. Fine. She’s fine…Women rarely meant it when they used that word. Even I knew that.

I opened my mouth to argue with her—we werebotha little guilty of using sex to soothe our feelings. But she’d already told me that she found the phone sex a little hollow. I’d had an idea about how we might be able to make it more personal. But I’d had to save up for the present and it wouldn’t arrive for another week…

“Bridget, I’m worried about you, babe.”

“Don’t be. I’m going to watch a movie and eat popcorn. Call me later. Love you, bye!”

She was gone.

And I was the one freaking out.

I stood there for a second staring at the phone to make sure she really had hung up. It scared the shit out of me. She never dropped a call like that unless she was mad. And I didn’t think she was covering for anger.

Something else was going on.

I took a deep breath. When I walked back into the living room, the guys were still praying, but now I was shaky. I didn’t think I could sit still, so I stood, leaning in the doorway and joined them.

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