Total pages in book: 152
Estimated words: 147545 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 738(@200wpm)___ 590(@250wpm)___ 492(@300wpm)
Estimated words: 147545 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 738(@200wpm)___ 590(@250wpm)___ 492(@300wpm)
I offer a little wave goodbye, then I turn to head inside my house.
My heart lurches, and I nearly jump out of my skin when a shadow on the porch suddenly moves.
Fear grips me, paralyzing me. It feels like my heart stops beating when I realize that someone is lying in wait for me outside my house, and then he takes a step forward, and the moonlight hits his face.
CHAPTER 8
CASSIE
“Oh my god,” I breathe, placing a bracing hand on my chest. “You scared the shit out of me.”
My heart skitters, racing to catch up with the beats it missed.
My ex-boyfriend, Russell, takes a slow step forward.
It was relief I felt initially, realizing I knew the person in the shadows and that he wasn’t a danger, but as he takes another deliberate step down the front porch toward me, a shiver of caution races down my spine.
I don’t like the look on his face, either. It’s been a long time since Russell looked happy to see me, but right now, he looks downright hostile.
He reaches the ground and continues toward me, and I have to root myself to the ground to keep from taking a step back.
I glance at the driveway quickly, then back at him. “I didn’t see your car…”
Because his car is not in my driveway. I resist the impulse to look for it on the road.
“I walked,” he says, voice low.
“Oh. Uh, w—what are you doing here?”
“What was he doing here?” he asks, sending another jolt down my spine.
“Um… Tor, he gave me a ride. I don’t have my car.”
His gaze drifts to my driveway, raking resentfully over the blue Lexus he knows I can’t afford. “Looks like you have one now.”
I swallow. “It’s Tor’s car. I mean… one of them. He’s just letting me borrow it until I get mine back.”
“How generous.” His gaze meets mine again, and I can’t help thinking he looks different than when we dated. More grown-up in a way, but now that he looks at me with bitterness instead of love, his gaze is harder to take.
My chest begins to feel tight, and I look longingly toward the front door I dreaded opening mere moments ago. “Anyway, it’s late, and I have to get inside.”
“House is dark. I’d say they’re asleep.”
I lick my lips. “Right. But it’s been a long day, and I’m exhausted—”
“Long night, too, huh? With Tor?”
I don’t miss the sarcastic twist when he says Tor’s name. He sounds jealous, but I don’t know why. We’ve been broken up for too long for him to still care.
“Did you need something?” I ask, wanting to get this over with.
“Yeah, I do. I need what belongs to me.”
I hold his gaze uncertainly.
His dark eyebrows rise. “I need my gun back.”
“Oh.” My stomach rocks with nerves. “Right. Of course.” The pounding of my heart increases, my breaths turning shallow. “Um, the thing is, I don’t have that right now.”
He laughs, but there’s no humor in it. “You don’t have it? You just happened to misplace my gun the night after someone was murdered?”
“It’s not misplaced. I know where it is.” The words are out before I even realize they’re not true.
He advances on me, and this time, I retreat. “Where is it, Cassie?” he asks carefully.
I grimace, realizing the answer won’t go over well. I can’t tell him Tor has it. “Did the police contact you?”
“They sure did.”
My stomach hurts, but I nod, understanding that he has to cooperate for his own sake. “And did you… did you tell them I have your gun?”
“Not yet. I heard the craziest fucking shit, things I knew couldn’t possibly be true, and like an idiot, I wanted to talk to you first. I wanted to get your side of things because I knew what everyone was saying wasn’t true. It couldn’t be.” He jabs a finger toward the road, his eyes widening. “Then I see Torrance fucking Walters dropping you off.” His voice rises as he takes another step toward me. I retreat two steps, but he keeps moving closer. “You’re fucking him now?” he demands. “Really?”
“Why do you care?” I ask, shaking my head, at a loss.
“After what you say Tim did to you, you couldn’t stand to be touched by me, your boyfriend, and now you’re fucking the guy who has the same face as your rapist?”
My heart stops. An icy numbness sweeps over me, stealing the air from my lungs.
“I loved you,” he says, near to shouting, and I flinch as I retreat farther, faster.
Too fast.
I gasp as I back into the Lexus.
“He doesn’t fucking love you,” he says, gesturing wildly to the road again. “He doesn’t give a damn about you, and him you’ll fuck? What the hell is wrong with you, Cassie?”
“Please stop,” I say, squeezing my eyes closed, then burying my face in my hands. “You’re making me very uncomfortable.”