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He’d found her and he was going to make her pay for running from him.
Beth struggled to draw oxygen into her lungs. Her brain was screaming for her to run, to get as far away from him as possible, but her legs wouldn’t obey. Instead, she remained frozen on the spot, unable to move a muscle.
She didn’t realize she’d dropped the glass jar of spaghetti sauce until Freya started barking and an older woman placed a hand on her arm. “Are you okay, dear?”
The noises around her broke her trance and she tore her gaze away. “I’m sorry, what?”
“You dropped the jar.”
Beth looked down to where the shattered jar was spread all over the floor at her feet. “Oh no. Freya, don’t move, sweetie! I don’t want you getting glass in your paws.” She crouched down and began to pick up shards of glass, cupping her palm to hold them.
“Beth! What happened?”
The familiar voice had her looking up to find Leni standing next to the other lady. “Leni. I…I dropped the jar.”
“Oh, sweetie. Don’t touch the glass, you’ll hurt yourself! Shit, are you bleeding?”
Leni carefully tipped Beth’s hands so the remains of the jar fell back to the floor and pulled her up into a standing position. “Look, you’ve cut yourself.”
Beth looked down in a daze to find Leni was right. Her fingers were covered in blood and tiny pieces of glass were sticking out of her skin. Shock at seeing her ex in the flesh again had ensured she hadn’t even realized what she’d done. She looked up again at the other end of the aisle, but it was empty.
Miles was gone.
An employee of the store appeared to see what the commotion was about, and after assessing what had happened, he urged Beth and Leni to follow him to the office in the back where he told them a first aid kit was located.
Beth let Leni lead the way, Freya remaining by her side, and abandoned her shopping cart but ensuring she had her purse with her. Leni got her seated and the store employee wiped her fingers down with an alcohol pad, which stung a little. When Leni whipped out her cell, Beth stared at her. “Who are you calling?”
“Wyatt.”
The call connected and she heard Leni briefly explain what had happened. She couldn’t hear what Wyatt was saying, but she recognized his voice, and it soothed her in ways she couldn’t explain. Freya put her head on Beth’s lap, and she leaned over to kiss her snout, murmuring words of affection to reassure the dog she was okay.
Five minutes later, Wyatt appeared in the doorway, his expression one of concern. He crouched down in front of her, careful not to touch her fingers, a couple of which sported Band-Aids. “You okay, honey?”
She leaned forward and kissed him, his presence a comfort. “I am now.”
He tucked her hair back behind her ears. “What happened?”
“I dropped the jar I was holding. I’m so sorry, it was an accident.” She blinked rapidly to stem the tears threatening to spill down her face.
“It’s okay, Beth. It was an accident. Nobody’s mad.” He kissed her forehead before rising. “Thanks, Leni. I’ll take her to the doctor, then home.”
“I don’t need a doctor.”
“We should get your hands looked at, just in case you have glass stuck in your cuts.”
Beth couldn’t muster the energy to argue. She wanted to stick close to him and not leave his side. As they walked through the market to the front, she suddenly remembered something. “Our bags.” She’d left her shopping bags in the cart when she’d gone to the back.
“Here you go, ma’am. You left these in the cart.” The employee who’d patched her up approached them, bags in hand, as he pushed the cart to the front of the store. “Hope your fingers are not too badly hurt.”
“They’ll be okay, thank you.” She managed a small smile and stuck close to the man she loved, but she couldn’t resist looking around everywhere. Where had Miles disappeared to?
Wyatt ushered her and Freya into the truck, and a sudden thought struck her. “How did you get here?”
“I ran.”
Tears filled her eyes. “You didn’t need to do that.”
He put her seat belt on carefully, making sure not to touch her hands. “Yes, I did. I’ll always come running when you need me, Beth.”
