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I don’t know how to feel about that. If they’re doing things that mean they have enemies piling up, how safe can it be to get involved with them again? I can’t even begin to sort my feelings on knowing they’ve been doing this since high school. I never saw the slightest hint of it before.
“Don’t overthink it.” He gently taps my temple. “I promise we’ll keep you safe, and we will never hurt you.” He hands me a tablet with a bunch of movie selections, effectively ending this conversation for now. “Everything can be controlled from this tablet or the panel on that wall.” He points to a panel in the back corner of the room. “Pick whatever you want to watch, I don’t have a preference.”
I scroll through what feels like an endless list of movies and decide on10 Things I Hate About You.Sawyer gets us drinks and makes some popcorn. There is one giant sectional with enough space for all the guys to fit. I grab a corner seat and a blanket. Sawyer sits next to me and sets the popcorn down between us. He plays with my hair absentmindedly. Occasionally I’ll look over and catch him looking at me. He winks, and I look away quickly. The flirtation goes on all day, through a second movie that he picks.
Sawyer looks at me as the credits roll on the second film and runs through a list of options for dinner. We settle on ordering delivery from a pizzeria in town. He informs me that he’ll have to drive to the front gate of the property to wait for it because they don’t like allowing outsiders here, which sets off some red flags.
I tell him I’ll be fine to hang back at the house while he waits. All the information I’ve gotten has me questioning whether I’m actually making the right choice to stay here. I type Sawyer’s name into Google and skim through what comes up, which is really just a lot of legal stuff. Articles about him and his father’s firm, charities they support. There’s some tabloid coverage, pictures of him with the guys at events. Nothing remotely nefarious, but I know better than anyone how easy it is for monsters to hide.
I’m about to start searching Lake next, but I hear the back door open. I don’t hear footsteps, and immediately the hairs on the back of my neck rise. Unease settles in the pit of my stomach as I look out the kitchen window and see that the car Sawyer used is still gone. I try to tell myself that maybe Sawyer didn’t close the door and the wind blew it open. I walk to the threshold of the living room and risk a glance down the hall.
That’s when I see just the slightest movement shadow darting into Grant’s bedroom. A braver woman would grab a knife and go investigate, but I grab my phone and haul ass outside. I see a light on inside the building that has the gym and shooting range, so I run there, hoping it’ll be one of Lake’s men working out.
My feet are bare and frozen by the time I rip the door open. There are two guys lifting weights, and as soon as they see me, they immediately go on high alert, dropping the weights with a loud clang and coming toward me.
“There’s someone in the house, and it’s not Sawyer. He’s waiting at the front gate for a pizza.” I blurt not knowing if they even know who I am or what I’m doing here. They must though because one runs back into the armory and returns seconds later with three guns. He hands me the same one I used for practice with Lake yesterday.
“Take this,” he says, thrusting it into my hands and running out the door.
The other one stays with me but is already speaking into a Bluetooth headset. With shaking fingers, I call Sawyer. I don’t want him to walk into the house and be hurt.
“Hey, on my way back,” he says as he answers.
“There’s someone in the house,” I manage to say without stammering.
“What?” His voice goes sharp. “Get out of there immediately.”
“I did.” I nod even though he can’t see me. “I’m in the gym. I saw a light on and ran here as fast as I could.”
“Good. I’ll be there in less than a minute.”
True to his word, he’s throwing the car in park and running to me shortly after I hang up. He grabs me and looks me over head to toe. Then he pulls me in for a crushing hug and kisses the top of my head. I don’t even mind the pain in my ribs.
“Tell me exactly what happened and leave nothing out.”
“Sir, real quick,” the man with me interrupts, “Holcomb and Perry are doing a full search of the house, and Davis and Steiner are searching the grounds.”
Sawyer nods and turns his attention back to me.
“I was sitting at the kitchen island,” I almost admitted to Googling him, “surfing the internet when I heard the back door open. I didn’t see you pull up, and when I looked out the window and saw you weren’t there, I looked down the hall. I saw a shadow dart into Grant’s room.”
“Grant’s room?” Sawyer repeats looking perplexed.
“Yeah.”
His eyebrows draw together as he lets that information settle in. Then he looks down and sees the gun I’m holding in my hand. He looks at the guard who gave it to me and nods his approval. “I want you to keep this with you at all times from now on.”
“I’m a terrible shot.”
“Doesn’t matter, use it to pistol whip someone if necessary. We’ll keep working on your aim and accuracy.”
A couple more guys walk up to us from the house and tell Sawyer that it’s clear. They didn’t find anything out of place, no signs of anything missing or tampered with. Doubt creeps into my mind. Could I have been imagining things? In my mind, I start hearing Tripp’s voice as Sawyer and the guard’s voices fade into the background.
You’re crazy.
If you weren’t such a terrible wife, I wouldn’t have to do this.
It’s your fault I’m like this.
