AllFreeNovel
Share Us
“And he’s nosy.” I check the time. It’s almost seven. I’m running out of time to talk to Tatum in private.
“They all are,” she mutters. “Listen, do you want to bump up our wine Wednesday? I don’t want you left alone, okay?”
“No, keep it to Wednesday.” I shrug it off. It isn’t that I don’t want them around, but that I need time alone to decompress.
“Fine, but I’m stopping in anyway to check on you.”
It’s on the tip of my tongue to argue with her until Agent Hayes’ warning cycles back in my head like a revolving door that I can’t shut down. “Okay.” I point at her. “I expect you to give me a heads-up, though, Tate. You know something, I can see it in your eyes. I just want to keep Milo and me safe.”
“Charlotte.” Tate stands before me, her gaze haunted. “I swear on my life that you two are safe here. I promise.”
Humming under my breath, I yank open my bedroom door because I’m not sure I believe her. Not entirely. Maybe it’s because I’ve grown suspicious, or I’ve learned never to trust anyone at their word, but I get the weird feeling she’s hiding something from me. The worst part is, I’m pretty sure she’s being honest, and she truly believes we are safe here.
As I step into the hallway, a knock sounds at the front door. I have a second to look back at Tatum before I hear Milo open the door and say, “You are a stranger,” and then slam the door.
I take off down the steps, nearly falling over my feet to get to the first floor. Milo stands at the bottom, looking at me like I’ve lost my mind. He’s already dressed for school and has a smudge of jam on his cheek.
“Who was at the door?” I look from him to the shadow at the front door through the stained glass.
“A stranger.” He pushes his glasses up his nose and walks past me, completely undisturbed.
The stranger knocks again, and this time, I look back at Tatum, who is right behind me. An unspoken conversation swirls between us.
“Do I answer it?”
“Do you have a death wish?”
“No, but they are knocking again.”
“I’ll get the bat.”
Reaching down to my umbrella rack, she grabs a bat and slaps it against her palm before giving me a quick nod, then she stands off to the side, ready to swing if needed. We joked about this when I got the bat, or rather, I joked. Apparently, she was serious about using it.
We’ve never had to use it until now.
With my hand shaking, I grip the knob and swing it open like I’m ripping off a Band-Aid. Beyond the screen door is Agent Hayes, and he’s holding two cups of coffee. His brow shoots up to his hairline as he glances past me to Tatum, holding the bat.
“Should I have picked up three cups?” he drawls as he holds up the coffee.
I stand there stunned, unsure what to say or do, but I know I’m letting the cold inside. “Agent Hayes.” I relax a little, but not enough to let him in.
Tatum has other thoughts. Swinging the bat to her shoulder, she pushes me out of the way and opens the door. It’s like an entirely different person emerges out of her. “Come on in, Special Agent.” She practically spits the words out.
I don’t want him in my home, and I feel like I’m taking a back seat to whatever is happening. Hayes steps inside, looking more awake than I feel, but I know he didn’t sleep last night. There is no way he did.
“You’ve got some stalkers out front,” he tells me while holding out a peace offering of coffee. “It’s black. I wasn’t sure what you’d take in it.”
As though I’m on autopilot, I hold the hot coffee to my chest as I step to the side, letting him in. Tatum looks out the door to the cruiser across the street before she slams the door and turns around.
“Lottie!” Milo yells, followed by a crash coming from the kitchen.
I’m fast, but Hayes is faster. He takes off toward the kitchen, where he skids to a halt, Tatum and me right behind him.
He places his coffee on the counter, and in less than a second, he grabs Milo, who’s standing on the counter, reaching for the cereal boxes on top of the fridge.
“Whoa there, Spiderman.” Hayes grabs Milo and takes him across the room toward a chair, where he gently sets him down. “I don’t think your web shooters come in until puberty.”
Milo blinks up at Hayes, studying him through his glasses. His blue eyes assess him, trying to determine if he is friend or foe.
