Page 94 of Coach

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But it was right then I saw something move out of the corner of my eye.

A scream gathered in my chest.

Then died in my throat.

The shadow that had haunted me for years was back.

And it was coming right for me.

CHAPTER TWENTY-ONE

Este

No.

No, no, no, no, no.

A cry rose in my throat but died there as fear squeezed my throat.

This could not be happening.

I was supposed to be safe in Shady Valley.

Well, if notsafeexactly, then at least able to have some sort of heads-up. He should have stood out like a sore thumb. I should have seen him from a mile away.

Even as I thought that, though, he loomed closer.

That familiar height—almost unnaturally tall.

But the frame was different.

Much thinner than I remembered him.

Gone was at least a hundred pounds, probably more.

Could it be that simple?

Had weight loss made him not stand out to me?

Even though I knew that face? Those eyes?

Had I even been looking?

I knew the answer immediately.

No.

No, I’d been too damn distracted.

I was working, renovating, falling for Saul, spending time with my dog.

I didn’t remember the last time my gaze simply scanned the streets or the stores when I was inside them.

Could he have been here all along? Lurking around aisle end caps? Watching me from a parked car? Hiding in a corner of the pool hall?

I hated to admit it, but… maybe.

I’d been so careful. My whole life had been built around rituals that forced me to be hyper-aware of my surroundings, of everyone who was—and wasn’t—around me.