Page 41 of Mine to Keep

Chapter8

Bryn stood in front of her Keurig and tapped her foot, waiting for her decaf coffee to finish percolating. She glanced over at her little girl, who was taking her morning nap in the portable bassinet that Jamison had bought. The man had managed to get her everything she needed, and relatively inexpensively. She knew this because she’d looked everything up online and checked the receipts he’d left. She wanted to return any overpriced items for less-expensive things, but he’d really done some bargain shopping.

She smiled as Zadie stretched but didn’t wake. She was sure that she had the best baby on the planet.

Zadie went to bed at night around one in the morning and didn’t wake up again until eight. That was pretty darn good. Of course, she didn’t sleep much from seven at night on and demanded to be held, swaddled, cooed at, and fed pretty much all the time before she went down for the night. However, Bryn figured this routine would change in a few weeks. During the day, Zadie was pure sweetness, giving Bryn enough time to build her website and populate it with some products, as well as Jamison’s. Now, both were live, and she was fielding emails and phone calls from both.

All she had to do was decide about going to Jamison’s sister-in-law’s party or not.

The more time she spent with Jamison, the more conflicted she became. On the one hand, he wore his emotions on his sleeve. When he walked into a room, she could tell what he was feeling. Or, at the very least, she could sense how others affected his mood.

She admired how he controlled his actions, though he dealt with things with a heavy dose of sarcasm. His bottled-up anger, which covered up his pain, gave her pause. He appeared to be a giant teddy bear, but she’d thought that Timothy had been romantic and sweet when an evil monster hid under all that generosity.

The doorbell startled her, and she jumped. She picked up her cell and opened the app that allowed her to see and talk with whoever was disturbing her morning ritual.

Mrs. Willamina Campbell from next door. Sweet old lady with some of the funniest stories.

And she missed her best friend.

From what Bryn had gathered, Chip’s mom, Elenore, had been the life of every party, and the entire town missed her dearly.

Bryn made sure the bassinet was settled in the middle of the table before scurrying from the kitchen to the front door. “Hi, Mrs.—”

“I’ve told you a million times to call me Willa.”

“Hi, Willa,” Bryn said with a smile. “I was just making some coffee. It’s decaf. Would you like some?”

“I’d prefer tea. Do you have that?”

“Of course. It’s just basic tea. Nothing fancy. Is that okay?”

“That would be perfect. Thank you. I actually haven’t had my morning cup.” Willa strolled—no, more like waddled like a duck—into the kitchen and took a seat at the table. She rested her hand on Zadie’s belly and gave it a little pat. Willa loved coming over and sitting with Zadie. She’d spent two hours with her yesterday while Bryn did some website work and made some jewelry. It was nice because Zadie would get a little fussy, and Willa would scoop her up and rock her, but she wouldn’t take any money. “I was hoping to borrow a bag of tea, but since you offered, I certainly won’t pass up a little company. And I have a favor to ask.”

Bryn went about fixing a mug of hot water and tea, making sure she grabbed a few extra bags so Willa could take some home. Not that she minded the woman coming over, but she knew Willa would likely go through two or three a day.

“Before we get to your favor, I made you a little present,” Bryn said.

“Oh, no, dear. I told you not to do that.”

“Well, it’s not exactly for you.” Bryn set a cup in front of Willa. “You mentioned that your granddaughter is turning eighteen next month and that she’s always loved dolphins.”

Willa nodded.

“I made her a dolphin necklace. Let me go get it.” Bryn raced to her bedroom and opened the top drawer of her desk. A shadow outside caught her attention. She gasped.

A man, at least she thought it was a man, wearing a hoodie, hunched down in her bushes. When he realized that she saw him, he took off running.

Bryn stood there, frozen, staring out the window, her muscles so tight she couldn’t move. She opened her mouth and gasped but covered it quickly, not wanting to scare her elderly neighbor. Whoever was out there could be here just for her and no one else.

Or maybe it was that bitch, Suzie.

She should call the police, but if Barb and Mark Perish found her, the police wouldn’t be able to help her because her in-laws would bribe the entire department. No one touched the Perish family. They could, anddid, get away with murder.

She wiggled her fingers. She’d know if the Perish family or anyone in their organization thought Bryn was alive. It would be an all-out witch hunt.

It was best if she called the authorities.

No. Then she’d be in the system. She couldn’t afford that.

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