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Her secrets were going to show. Miranda had debated canceling dinner with Tad altogether, but she’d needed the peace of mind being with him brought her, needed it too much to deny herself.
If she was being followed, she’d have to leave. To start over. Again. Lose not only her home, her life, but her career, too. She had enough saved to get her through school a third time. Maybe. But she wasn’t sure she could do it. Just the thought of not having a solid way to support her and Ethan, the thought of losing her solid income, panicked her.
She needed to calm down. To think practically. Tad’s presence helped her do that. And yet, when she jumped, hearing his car door in her driveway, she knew she was taking a huge chance seeing him when she was like this. The man was a good detective. Astute. He was going to notice if she was jittery.
He’d come at the time they’d originally designated for the beach, which meant they had an hour, at least, before dinner.
“You want to play Zoo Attack again?” Ethan asked before Tad was even fully in the door.
Wearing jeans and a black polo shirt, he looked so good to her. Way too good. She wanted to sleep with him, to lose herself in good feelings and then lie in his arms and rest, and didn’t care—in that second—that she shouldn’t.
“You got to play with him all last night,” she said to her son. “Tonight’s my turn.” True to his word, Tad had come over the night before, played Zoo Attack for a while and then left. She hadn’t invited him to eat with them. He hadn’t suggested it, either.
“Can I watch a movie, then?” Her son was jumping up and down with the grin that told her he was being cute on purpose because he knew she usually gave him what he wanted when he did that.
“You may watch two episodes of PAW Patrol before dinner,” she told him. He’d been watching the popular cartoon since he was a toddler, but he still liked it, so she allowed it when she could.
“You just didn’t feel like the beach today?” Tad asked as he followed her through the living area toward the backyard.
“She didn’t feel good, but she pooped and now she’s better,” Ethan blurted, and Miranda wanted to sink her chin to her chest and cry in embarrassment.
“You know, some girls don’t like to talk about bathroom stuff like a lot of boys do,” Tad said. “To us it’s gross and funny and kinda cool sometimes, but to girls it’s often embarrassing.”
His words were offered so easily, naturally, that they stopped her in her tracks. Everything about Tad Newberry arrested her attention.
“Oh. Sorry, Mom,” Ethan said.
The truth hit her then, in her dining room, talking about poop.
She was in love with Tad.
As the realization hit, she did start to cry.
* * *
Tad saw the tears. Miranda turned away, and there was no sign of them by the time they got to the patio, but he couldn’t get past the sight of them.
He’d only known her a couple of months, but from what he’d seen Miranda wasn’t a crier.
Already worried about her because of the rough weekend, he was growing ever more frustrated by his inability to bring everything out in the open between them and deal with the facts together.
Including the fact that he could very well be falling permanently, completely, in love with her.
“How’d you sleep last night?” he asked, taking the bottle of water she handed him as she sat down with her own. He’d hated leaving right after his gaming session with Ethan. Had wanted a chance to have a conversation with Miranda after the day’s events, to make sure she was okay.
She hadn’t invited the intimacy and he’d felt that pushing her would be wrong. At least he’d been able to stop by. To be with her so she’d have some sense that she wasn’t alone in the world.
“I slept okay,” she told him. “I was thinking about Marie a lot, of course. How could I not? I called the hospital today and spoke with Ruby. Marie’s expected to recover, though I expect she’s going to need some facial reconstruction. Ruby will be bringing Danny to his next appointment with me. He’s in counseling, too, of course.”
“I talked to Chantel this morning, and then had a brief conversation with Ruby, as well. I told her to call me if she needed any help.”
With Devon being held without bail, at least until a hearing to determine the extent of further danger if he were released, the physical danger was over. For the time being, anyway.
Maybe he’d get some help. There were programs for abusers. Some benefited.
The whole incident must have brought back memories for Miranda. Ones she couldn’t share. But there was a key difference in her case.
Her abuser was dead. The danger was over forever. She just didn’t know that.
