And the fact that the stress had finally caught up with me…I’d slept like the dead, thankfully that wasn’t the case. Seriously, though, was this pillow made from clouds?
“You’re awake!”
And life was even better if I woke up with Saidy sitting next to me. “Are you in pain?” she asked as she brushed a hand against my forehead.
She was leaning against the headboard. Her hair was loose, falling around her shoulders. She was wearing a tank top and leggings and she smelled amazing. “What can I get you? Do you need a pain reliever? Some breakfast?”
I shook my head “I feel pretty great this morning, actually.”
She narrowed her eyes. “You’re just saying that to get me to stop worrying about you.”
“I don’t know that it will feel great sitting down for a good long while, but lying here, in the comfy bed next to you is just perfect.” I smiled when she did. “Why don’t you scoot down here, and we’ll talk some more?”
“Okay.” Moving slowly, probably worried about bumping me, she rested her head down on the pillow next to me. “What should we talk about?”
I chuckled. “Leave it to you.”
“What?”
“I was sure you would have a million questions for me this morning. You’ve had time to think about everything I told you last night. So ask away.”
“Oh, I definitely have a few.”
“Okay, go for it.”
“If Sullivan’s suspicious of you, won’t you be at risk if you see him today or whenever you plan on seeing him again? What if he hurts you?”
Something strange was happening inside me at her question. Almost like a headache and a tightness in my chest, but it was causing moisture in my eyes. Her first question wasn’t a demand about the multitude of lies I’d told her. It was a question about my safety.
“Do you know, that the very first day I met you, I said to myself, “Fletcher, if you don’t marry that girl, you’ll have wasted every moment of your life.””
She reached a hand out and combed her fingers through my hair. “Do you know that I couldn’t stop loving you, even when I broke up with you?”
I was going to have to get these cluster headaches under control because all that moisture was about to turn into real tears. No way I could lie my way out of that in her presence.
“You are the most selfless person I know,” I told her. “You did so much for me in the past few months. You don’t even know how much you meant to me, and how much you saved me.”
“Please don’t make me start crying,” she whispered. “I already put mascara on today.”
“I don’t know what my excuse will be if I start crying,” I whispered back.
“Please let me do something to help you. I’m going to be sitting here all day worrying about you.”
“Knowing you care what happens to me will be all the help I need. We’re almost to the end of this.” I squeezed her hand. “I wish I could stay and explain everything to you, but I need to go get my van from my house, then hurry over to Sullivan’s. I have to make sure those security cameras are in place for the auction this weekend.”
“What can I do to help?”
“Promise me you will not say a word to anyone. Anyone. Not even your mom.”
She frowned. “Cross my heart. I know how serious this is.”
“How would you feel about driving me over to the duplex?”
It was the only tangible thing I could ask her to do. She deserved to be protected. But she was constantly taking care of me. “Saidy, I might not be around much over the next couple of weeks. I need to keep my distance from you to keep you safe. Sullivan is on to me. I couldn’t stand it if anything happened to you. If you don’t hear from me, or see me for a couple weeks, I want you to know I still love you.”
She nodded and stood up. “I understand, Fletcher. But I can at least drive you home.”
“I’ll sneak out the backyard and down the alleyway. You can meet me on the other street, just in case someone is still watching the house.”
Saidy grinned. “Do I get to wear big sunglasses and a trench coat?”
I grinned. “It depends on what’s underneath that trench coat.”
Chapter Twenty-Four
Saidy
It didn’t settle well with me that Sullivan didn’t believe me. I needed to know that Fletcher would be safe from any retaliation from him.
But Sullivan had acted like he knew I was lying about the dog.
And I was. But he should have been a gentleman and at least pretended like he believed me.
On the other hand, he hadn’t barged into my house. So he didn’t know for sure that Fletcher was there.
And now Fletcher was putting himself in harm’s way for his job.
I sat at my kitchen counter, scrubbing at my phone with disinfectant wipes. The remnants of dried blood inside the speaker was going to drive me crazy until it was gone.
I’d had to throw away my bathroom rug.
Along with his ripped and bloodied clothes.
I had a consultation to go to this morning too, and really wasn’t feeling it. I didn’t think the people would actually hire me. They sounded more like the type of people who were going to ask me for all sorts of free advice. It was fairly easy to spot those ones from a mile away. They kept wanting to triple-check that this was a free consultation.
But at least I’d have a distraction because otherwise all I would do today was wonder if Fletcher was alive or not. Just sit here and wonder if I’ll find him in a ditch somewhere because Sullivan found out the truth.
Unless Sullivan didn’t find out
