Page 98 of In Hiding

“He didn’t tell me any of it. He could’ve come here and been honest from the moment he arrived.” She shook her head. “Instead, he wormed his way into our home. Saved my life. Befriended my son. All under a false pretense. It wasn’t fair.”

Erik pressed a hand to her cheek, bringing her eyes open. The familiarity in his eyes called her out on her bullshit. He knew as well as she did, she wouldn’t have accepted him telling her Erik sent him. Just as Jake had predicted. And he knew, those very actions were enough to prove exactly how trustworthy Jake Langley was.

“I love you, little sister, but you know, deep in your soul I sent the right person. It’s not my fault you let your pride get in the way. You always were one for making snap judgments.”

He referred to Ryan. Of that, she was certain. He would never let her forget it, but he never held it against her either.

“What’s done is done. He’s gone. You’re here. That’s all that matters.”

He made an unconvinced sound before pulling her into another hug. Her hand throbbed where the peeler blade had sliced her open as she welcomed his support. Having him here eased the burden weighing on her shoulders. Sarah took a deep breath and laid her head on his chest, but she couldn’t escape the fact she wished it were Jake holding her rather than her brother.

17.

A shiver raked through his body as Jake pulled his jacket tighter around him. He flexed his gloved fingers and stared at the house below. Bathed in moonlight, the silent, still home taunted him. For three days he’d watched every movement, seeing them come and go as if he didn’t exist, and for three days, he’d frozen his ass off waiting for the chance to glimpse her.

He’d seen her a total of four times. Once to call down to her son from the veranda telling him dinner was ready. Once to help her brother bring in some groceries from the car. Once to put rubbish in the bin. And once, as she stood on the third-floor balcony in the dead of night, staring out over the valley.

He’d wondered what she thought about, standing there wrapped in a blanket as a light snow flurry whirled over them. Every fiber of his being hoped her mind was on him, but even he had to admit the likelihood was somewhere between zero and none.

Could she ever forgive him for not telling her about Erik? If the look in her eyes when she fired him for the second time wasn’t convincing enough, the sound of the hurt in her voice had hammered home the depth of her feeling.

He wanted to believe she hurt so much because she cared about him, but he wasn’t naïve enough to think it could be so simple. If he could take it back, he would. If he could step back in time and follow his own instincts, he would. Even Erik had once said his instincts were good but there was no point dwelling on why he had ignored them.

It was a rabbit hole he could ill-afford to spiral down. He needed to stay present, in the here and now. When word reached them two days ago that Mitchell had been recognized in town, not only had it added weight to Sarah’s prediction of his arrival, but it also strengthened Jake’s need to stay close to her and William. There was no doubt he’d protect Sarah with his life if needed, but the instruction from Damien to refrain from physical contact with Mitchell meant he couldn’t stop Mitchell himself.

Except, Jake believed it was his job. He owed Mitchell for the beating he delivered a year ago, and he would love to dish out a little payback.

Jake felt his eyelids close with fatigue but then shook himself awake. His bones ached. Partly from the cold. Mostly from hiding fifty feet in the air, hidden in the canopy of eucalypts. Every time the wind howled through the treetops and the tree swayed back and forward, his mind went back to the moment the enormous branch broke and crashed to the ground. He needed the tree to hold.

At least the snowfall had been minimal. The cover he’d built protected him somewhat, but it wasn’t perfect. Rain on the first night alerted him to the many leaks and the thought of it being covered in snow gave him visions of his shelter dislodging under its weight.

His mind wandered, indulging itself in her touch, her taste. Sometimes it strayed to a point in the future where the danger was over, and he’d convinced her he was as trustworthy as she needed him to be. It was in those moments he understood he had a lot of work to do.

Despite the cold. Despite his night owl existence. Despite the stash of tough, dried jerky sustaining him through the long nights, he wouldn’t choose to be anywhere else in the world. Whether or not she’d admit it, Sarah needed him. She needed his eyes and ears. She needed the element of surprise he offered.

“You awake?”

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