Page 3 of Beneath the Surface

“Well, he was an angel, as usual.” She yawns again before disappearing.

My heart swells three times its normal size when she reappears, my gaze soaking up my baby boy. I miss him so much when I’m gone. His little fists rub into bleary eyes, his black hair, identical to mine, sticking up in random patches. His gaze swings around and locks onto me.

“Mommy!” he squeals, jumping into my arms. I stumble back, trying not to drop the bags as I wrap my hands around him.

“Hi, baby.” I kiss his forehead.

“What’s that?” He peers down at the bags on my arm.

“It’s a surprise.” I widen my eyes. “Only good three-year-olds who brush their teeth, and go straight to bed get to find out what it is.”

“I’mthwee!” he whisper-shouts.

I nod, juggling both him and the bags in one arm, unlocking our front door with the other. “That’s right. I guess you better be good.”

“Okay!” He shimmies down, racing to the bathroom, water turning on before I even make it to the kitchen.

After brushing his teeth, I settle him into bed, picking out our favorite nighttime story. The one I’ve read every single day since we came home from the hospital. He snuggles under his Spider-Man covers, his fluffy head resting against my side. He’s asleep before we even hit the fifth page.

“I’ll love you forever, I’ll like you for always. As long as I’m living, my baby, you’ll be.” I whisper the last lines of the book, closing the pages delicately as his soft snores fill the room, and just like that, everything drains away.

My throat swells with gratitude. I may have been a bitch to the stranger, but I’m not too proud to acknowledge help when I get it. I don’t know who he was, but he’s the reason my kid is smiling tonight, and the reason he’ll be smiling tomorrow, with a full belly and chocolate chip smudges on his face.

A treat we don’t ever get to have.

In moments like these, in the deep dark of night, right after I put my baby down to sleep and am feeling the sting of loneliness—that’s when I miss my brother the most. When I regret running away the way I did all those years ago.

Thoughts creep into the forefront of my mind and I wonder where he is, what he’s doing… if he still thinks of me.

I wouldn’t blame him if he didn’t.

Running my hand over my baby boy’s hair, I lean down, kissing his forehead.

“Good night, Chase. Sweet dreams.”

2

Mason

That was stupid.

And I had been doing so well. Keeping my distance. Watching her. Taking notes. Collecting data. Hiding in the shadows, the way I’m supposed to. The way I’m beingpaidto.

But today, something fogged my logic. This stupid fucking need inside of me, wanting to see Lily Adams justa little bit closer.

When I took the job six months ago to find her, I expected some used-up druggie on her last leg, needing to be saved. That’s what her brother, Chase, made it sound like, at least. But what I’ve actually found is someone completely different, and after watching her for the past two months, I’ve formed a bit of an infatuation.

Andthatis a fucking problem.

But she’s just so… different than what I was expecting.

She whips around the dingy diner she works at with a smile on her face, jabbering people’s ears off, and acting like there’s nothing that can bring her down. But I see her as she counts her money at the end of the night. I watch the world settle on her shoulders when no one is around to notice her slump from the weight.

There are secrets in her eyes, and hidden behind the tattoos on her arms.

I haven’t told Chase that I’ve found her. Unprofessional as fuck, but honestly, I don’t really care. Instead, I’ve been collecting as much information as possible, so that once I pass it along to him I can leave and never come this close to the West Coast again.

He’s lucky I took the job in the first place.

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