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“I’m sorry about Richard,” she says softly when my sobs have trailed off to sniffles.
Pulling back, I swipe under my eyes. “He was going to propose.”
“I know.”
“I didn’t think we were at that point.”
She grimaces. “Well, you were together for over a year. He probably assumed marriage, kids, and the whole shebang was where it was heading.”
I sigh, not wanting to dwell on thoughts of all of that. Not only because it makes me feel guilty but because, in all honesty, every time I tried to picture a future like that with Richard, I just couldn't. It had nothing to do with him. I couldn’t imagine a future withanyone. The future with the pretty house in the suburbs and neat lawn, with two kids and a golden retriever running around that I’d always pictured as my future never comes to mind anymore. It hasn’t for quite some time. Instead of having that goal to work toward, I’ve had nothing but an unfocused image of my future for years now. I’m just not sure what that means. That I no longer want that? That it’s no longer in the cards for me? Perhaps I’m destined to end up alone as a crazy cat lady.
Shaking that unwanted thought from my mind, I focus on the significance of today’s events, my thoughts sticking to what Kai told me on the plane. “How could you not tell me about the threats?” I argue. “I feel so stupid.”
“You’d just graduated when you told me about the phone calls and gifts. I know you tried to play it off, but I could tell you were a little freaked out by it all. I didn’t want to frighten you, especially if whoever it was stopped.”
“But you didn’t think they would.”
“No. In my experience, people like that don’t just give up because of a change in circumstance or geography.”
Hadley would know. She had her own obsessed psycho when we were at Pacific Prep, although her situation was entirely different.
“I sent Kai to watch over you. He’s one of the best men we have, and I trust him,” she says earnestly. Hadley doesn’t hand out trust easily, so if he’s earned hers, he must be okay.
“What’s his story?” I ask, flicking my gaze out the window to where the man himself is standing guard, his back to us while we’re granted this moment of privacy.
Something flashes across Hadley’s face, but it’s gone before I can pinpoint it. “That’s his story to tell, but he’ll do everything he can to keep you safe.”
Sighing, I return my gaze to her. “So what happens now? Am I staying with you for a while?”
An apology flashes in her eyes and her lips press into a flat line.
“You can’t stay with me,” she states apologetically. “Whoever this is, most likely knows about me. My house will be one of the first places they look…” Her expression changes, and my eyes narrow as I try to place what she’s feeling. Then it hits me. Guilt. What the fuck does Hadley have to feel guilty about?
Unless…
“Hadley,” I growl, putting two and two together, even as my mind rebukes the idea. “No.” I shake my head adamantly. “No!”
“It’s the safest place for you without sending you away somewhere,” she pleads. “I don’t want you to be miles away if something goes wrong. Besides, I doubt anyone from Halston, or Springview even knows about them.” She quirks a brow in challenge, and I sigh.
“No. No one knows, but you're delusional if you think Wilder isn’t going to rip my head off when he sets eyes on me.”
She snorts, and I glower at her, not appreciating her amusement at the complete disaster that is my life. Reaching out, she takes my hand in hers. “Look, I know things are complicated between you, Hawk, and Wilder, but don’t you think enough time has passed? It’s been years. You all need to talk and sort it out, because you’re all such huge parts of my life. None of you are going anywhere, and Ineedyou all to get along.”
“Fine,” I relent, knowing it’s not fair of us to put her in the middle.
She beams, rewarding me with one of her rare genuine smiles as she gives me a quick hug. “I promise it will be okay. And Kai will be staying there too, so you won’t be alone with them.”
I paint on a fake smile as she reaches for something in her bag.
“Here’s a new phone. It has all our numbers in it. Don’t use it to call anyone else.” She hands over the phone while she continues, “We also sent an email from your account to your work, explaining that a family emergency had occurred and you needed some time off.”
I’d ask how she managed to do that, but West, one of her boyfriends, is a tech genius, so it was probably disturbingly easy for him to hack into my emails. Instead, I ask the more pressing question. “Am I even going to be able to go back to work? What is the plan here? Do I just hide out and hope this psycho gives up when they realize I’ve disappeared?”
“I don’t have all the answers for you yet, Em. It would be best if you stayed hidden while we work out who this guy is. I’ve sent a couple of people out to keep an eye on your apartment, see who shows up and snoops around, but I don’t know how long it will take.”
I sigh, rubbing at my temple as a headache begins to form. “I need to tell Mel. She will freak out when I just disappear off the face of the earth.”
“Okay, I’ll get West to message her and make it seem like it came from your number. Is there anything in particular you want us to say?”
