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Her curly blonde hair was tied back, her mouth pulled back in a wide smile.
I really liked Keely. Grant seemed a little iffy on her, but I really didn’t care.
“Moira! Oh, I’m so happy to see you!” She leaned over Grant to give me a hug, and I heard Grant grunt as she crushed into him. “What can I get you guys today?”
I ordered a chicken salad sandwich, and Grant ordered two French dips for him and Day. Keely took our order and skipped away, while Grant settled back into his seat and cast a discreet glance at Pete.
Pete wasn’t very friendly. I didn’t think he liked anyone all that much, but it was obvious he was fiercely protective of his sister. Keely seemed blissfully unaware as she fluttered about the room that her brother was watching her every move as she worked, especially when she served plates of food to a gaggle of cowboys who were doing little to hide the fact they were looking at her ass as she walked away.
“Your mom wants to check out some of the shops before we head home,” Grant said to Day, who rolled his eyes.
“Do we have to?”
“Yes, we have to,” I said, narrowing my eyes at him.
“I’ll take him over to the park, it’s only a few blocks away,” Grant offered, his hand resting on my thigh. “You do what you need to do and meet up with us later.”
I looked down at the table, smiling to myself as Grant and Day talked about the new horses that had arrived the day before. Grant was really putting effort into getting to know Day, but most importantly, he was taking some of the weight off my shoulders when it came to parenting.
I hadn’t asked or expected him to do it, but he just… was.
I knitted my fingers in his under the table, running my thumb over his hand as we waited for our lunch.
I watched Day eat like we’d been starving him back home as I picked at my sandwich. Before long, Keely returned with the check, and Grant didn’t hesitate to pull out his wallet and give her a wad of cash, winking at her and telling her to keep the change.
He’d never let me pay for a meal, never.
It was going to take some getting used to, honestly. Grant was a total departure from the type of guys I’d dated in the past. Strong, secure, loving and fucking loyal—that was what he was.
I didn’t want to fuck this up. I didn’t want anything to get in the way of what we had going on.
But as I walked through the market on my way to the row of antique stores on the other side of main street, I realized there was something major that could come between us.
“What do you mean?” I said into my phone, my back pressed against a brick wall and beneath the shade of a blue and white awning. I watched people pass by, all smiles and sunshine as my world came crashing down around my feet.
“I don’t know, Moira. But he’s out on parole.” My lawyer let out a breath, and I imagined he was running a hand over his face as he gathered his thoughts. “Where are you, exactly?”
“Anthony,” I said swiftly, my heart beginning to race. “I have a permanent restraining order against him but he keeps tracking me down somehow. He has friends—”
“I know, I understand. He has strict rules he has to follow to remain out of prison, one of which is leaving you and Holliday alone. If he even calls you, you need to call the police. Moira, are you somewhere safe?”
“I am,” I practically whispered, but I’d said it without hesitation. “I’m not in Dallas anymore. I can… He couldn’t like—be hacking into this call, right?” My mind raced as I went over the possibilities. He’d had friends track us down and send us threatening mail over the years, even going as far as to call me in the dead of the night to just let me know Kirk knew exactly where we were. I’d changed my number more times than I could count, and I never had my mail rerouted to a physical address. I’d gone as far as to set up a P.O. Box two towns over from Hot Springs just to be on the safe side, even if the drive was over an hour there and back.
I’d only told Grant that Kirk had roughed me up.
He didn’t know the half of it.
“I doubt it. I really doubt it, but just… be on your guard. He’s being moved to a halfway house in Jersey tomorrow. So, if you’re out west… Look, Moira. Everything is going to be fine.”
I tried to swallow but found it damn near impossible.
“Okay,” I whispered. “Thank you for letting me know.”
“He can’t touch you without getting sent back to prison.”
I doubted that would deter him.
“Okay,” I replied, unable to find the words to describe my sudden terror. “Okay. I’ll call you if I have… if I have any issues.”
