Page 92 of Part of Me (The Seaside Chronicles 2)

I could hear Brody’s footsteps behind me. I barely made it to the toilet before I threw up.

Brody knelt next to me, holding my hair back and gently rubbing my back. I thought about how I’d watched his father do the same thing for his mom only moments ago.

“Hey, are you okay?” he asked.

I fell back onto my ass and buried my face in my hands as I started to cry.

Brody engulfed me in his arms and held me while I let out all the fear and anger I’d built up over the last few days.

“Shhh, it’s okay, sweetheart.”

“Who would do such a thing?” I could see he had someone on his mind but didn’t want to say it aloud. “Brody, who do you think it was?”

“If I’m being honest, I’d say Jack.”

Gasping, I stared at him. “Jack? He’s in France though. I mean, that’s what his lawyer said—that he was going back to his wife and kids.”

Brody nodded. “I didn’t want to say anything because I didn’t want you to worry, but Brax was almost certain he saw Jack on his parents’ yacht. The one that’s docked at the marina.”

“Has anyone gone to see if he’s there?”

“I mentioned it to the Seaside Police. They’re going to investigate.”

“When?”

“Yesterday, after I spoke to them.”

“And you haven’t heard anything since?”

Brody shook his head and tucked a piece of hair behind my ear. “Not yet.”

“We should go see for ourselves then.”

His eyes went wide. “Are you crazy? First, you still have a restraining order on him. Second, Brax wasn’t a hundred percent sure it was Jack. It could have been someone else. His father even.”

I shook my head. “Don and Melinda aren’t in Seaside.”

His brows pulled down as he frowned. “How do you know that?”

“They stopped by the store the other day to say they were leaving town that evening. They wanted to tell me they were sorry for all the problems Jack had caused me, and for any part they might have played in it.”

“I wish that family would just leave you the hell alone.”

I forced myself to smile. “Me too. What does your gut say? Do you think Jack is still in Seaside?”

Brody shook his head. “I think he left with this tail between his legs. Come on, let’s get you up and get some water to rinse out your mouth.”

“Can we stop by the police station on the way home and ask if they’ve checked on your tip yet?”

He gave me a sweet smile. “Yes.”

Brody and I stayed at his parents’ house for dinner after Janet begged us not to leave just yet. Brody had emailed the fire inspector’s report to his insurance agent. After they went through the house, Brody planned on tearing the rest of it down. We would decide what to do with the property later. We all decided to wait to tell Gannon and Addie about it until they came back home. There was no reason to spoil their honeymoon.

Later that night, as Brody pulled into the driveway of our house, I had the strangest feeling that someone was watching us. A shiver ran down my spine. It was quickly chased away by the warmth of my husband’s hand on my lower back as we made our way into the house.

But before we walked in, I glanced over my shoulder and did a quick sweep of the backyard. It was dark, so I wasn’t sure what I expected to see.

“What’s wrong?” Brody asked.

I forced a smile as I looked at him. “Nothing. I’m just tired.”

“Me too. Let’s take a shower, and then I’ll give you a massage.”

“I like the sound of that.”

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