Page 42 of Contentious

Julian came bounding up the stairs, looking for Isla, who was smiling and ready to wrap herself around him, the two of them oblivious to the hundred other people in the area. They saw only each other.

As Cresley chatted with Marlene, she squeezed Carson’s hand, as if to tell him she was still there while her unmistakable essence surrounded him, making him want to pull up a chair and get comfortable wherever she was.

He ought to take back his hand.

He ought to get the hell out of there while he still could.

Then she dropped her hold on him and pulled her phone from her back pocket, her brows furrowing as she read a text.

“What’s wrong?” Carson asked.

“It’s from my nanny. She swears she saw Marlon lurking in the backyard.”

“Let’s go,” he said, taking her by the arm.

“I came with Marlene.”

“Can you get home okay?” he asked Marlene.

“Yes, of course. Go on ahead. I’ll check in later.”

Carson took Cresley’s hand and blazed a trail to the stairs, brushing by Julian and Isla as they made their escape.

Julian looked up and saw Carson. “Hey, where’re you going?”

“Might be trouble at Cresley’s place.”

“Want me to come?”

“Nah, I’ve got it.”

He continued down the stairs and toward the main door, sensing Cresley’s growing panic as she followed him outside and across the street to the parking garage. The second they were in his SUV, Cresley called her nanny.

“Put it on speaker,” Carson said.

“Hey,” the woman said when she answered.

“What happened?” Cresley asked.

“The floodlights kept coming on, so I went to look, thinking it might be a coyote or someone’s dog, but it was Marlon.”

“You got a good look at him?” Carson asked.

“Who’s that?” the woman asked.

“My friend Carson. He’s bringing me home.”

“Oh, okay. Yes, I saw his face. It was him.”

“We’re on the way,” Carson said. “Cresley is going to call the police. They may get there before us, but we’ll be there as soon as we can.”

“Okay.”

Cresley ended that call and dialed 911, calmly reciting the facts for the dispatcher. “I have a restraining order against him. He’s not allowed within a thousand feet of me or my son during a pending custody matter.”

“And your nanny is qualified to identify him?”

“Everyone who is ever with my son in any capacity is able to identify this man.”