AllFreeNovel
Share Us
I wasn’t sure how many miles I had to go to hit the official trailhead, but I figured I should only be out for a short while. I decided to set a timer on my phone to keep myself from being gone too long, but when I reached for it, my pocket was empty.
Shit.
I had left in such a hurry, I’d forgotten to grab it from my jeans pocket. But I had my watch on, so I noted the time, fully intent on being back in less than fifteen minutes.
I passed a few offshoots and turned onto one that lead to a smaller trail. A few minutes in, I heard the distinct sound of someone running behind me.
There were threats against me. I was in hiding and supposed to stay on the property with all its security cameras. And now I was alone on a trail, with Blake not knowing where I was, with someone behind me.
I glanced backward, hoping to see another woman. Not that a woman couldn’t be a political freakshow who threatens a governor’s family. She could. But I still would have felt five hundred percent less nervous to find a woman jogging behind me, especially if she was dressed in running shorts and shoes like me.
It was a man.
That’s okay. Men jog. He’s dressed appropriately.
Don’t let everyone else’s paranoia get to you, Callie.
Was it my imagination, or did he start running faster after I glanced back at him?
I picked up the pace. I was sure he did too.
I had almost no chance of outrunning a man of that height. He was easily as tall as Blake. My only chance was to get somewhere with other people before he caught up with me. I could see a trail offshoot up ahead, one branching in the direction of the main road.
I ran full out toward that branch in the trail, like my life depended on it.
Because it might have.
I took the turn, running at top speed. Unfortunately, that part of the trail had been paved at some point but had fallen into disrepair over time. I tripped on a raised chunk of asphalt and went down hard.
I rolled over, scrambling backward, almost certain the man would be right there ready to fall on me like part of my nightmare come true. But he’d passed the offshoot and was running on the main trail, leaving me in his dust.
He must have passed me right after I branched off. He hadn’t even seen me fall, and probably had earbuds in, so he couldn’t have heard myoofas I hit the ground.
I lay there catching my breath, feeling like a damn fool. Both for coming out there alone and letting my fears get to me.
The back of my upper thigh hit some of the asphalt before my backside hit the grass, and the large scrape welled with blood. I wiped it away with my palm, hissing at the sting.
When I got up, I limped my way back onto the main trail for a few steps to test my ankle.
Then I headed back toward Blake’s house as fast as I could, hoping to get inside and get cleaned up before he got home.
7
BLAKE
“Want some coffee, boss?”My deputy, Cathy Marks, stood in the doorway, her arms crossed over her chest, hip cocked against the doorjamb. “Or maybe a donut? Something to counter that look you’ve got on your face making it seem like you’re sucking a hundred lemons?”
I sighed and leaned back in my chair to lace my fingers together behind my head. “Got something on your mind, Cathy?”
She sauntered forward and sat in the chair across from my desk. “Gee, what makes you say that?”
I tried not to sigh again. “Shoot.”
“What crawled up your ass and died?”
I snorted. I could always count on Cathy to be blunt. “So, you’re saying I’ve been in a bad mood?”
“Blake, you’re almost always in a bad mood in some way or another. It’s part of your charm. But you’ve been downright grouchy for a few days. You walked by the fresh cut flowers on the counter out front and they wilted. You breezed past my desk and the creamer in my coffee curdled. You—”
