“Sounds like they were trying to get him. You sure it wasn’t somebody he already had an issue with?”
“We were meeting Tyler. He was the only one who I told we would be there. Cyrus claims Tyler told him about the meeting, and he was coming there to talk to us and try to call Kannon off because he’s been helping me keep him away from me.”
“Why does Kannon need to keep him away from you? You two had a bad breakup or something? I just saw y’all on TV, and you show up with a whole new man.”
“It’s a long story, Ma. Just know that we are done and that’s that.”
“Do you think he had something to do with it?”
“I don’t know if he’s in on it or not. He says he mentioned coming to meet with me to Ceasar.”
“What did he want to talk to you about?” she asked.
“Some discrepancies in our contracts, so he said. We didn’t make it to the meeting. As soon as that shooting started, Kannon shoved me back in the truck and jumped on the road. We came straight here. Now he’s out there doing God knows what to protect me. I can’t even call him because he left his phone here. I found it on the nightstand.”
“I’m sure he did that for a reason.”
“I know he did, but that doesn’t stop me from worrying. He should have called me by now, Mama.”
“Sometimes, no news is good news. I know you trust him because if you didn’t, you wouldn’t have brought him here. If you trust him to protect you, then trust him to make it back here in one piece.”
“I do, but he needs to hurry.” I pouted.
“Poke your lip in and get up.”
“I don’t feel like getting up right now, Ma. Just leave me to rot a little while longer.”
“No, ma’am. Get up. We’re taking a trip. There is an apple orchard that makes the best apple fritters I can’t wait to get to.”
“Ma, I can’t take a trip right now. I gotta lay low until he calls.”
“This was his idea, baby. That guy Blaine came in with a message.”
“From Kannon?” I asked, perking up.
My mom laughed a little as she answered. “Yes, from your baby. He sent an itinerary for us. I told you we have a full day ahead of us.”
That made me blush. “Kannon sent an itinerary?” I asked again, just to make sure.
“Yes. We have a rug making class, then a pottery class before lunch at a farm to table apple orchard that makes homemade apple butter and jam.”
“And Kannon planned this?”
“Yes, baby, but there is a two-hour drive, so as much as I love answering your questions, you gotta get up.”
“Two hours to pick apples and make rugs?”
“And make sure you grab a couple of bottles of apple wine for when the strawberry comes, whatever that means.”
That was him all right. I was pretty sure he tossed that part in just to make sure I knew he was in on the plan.
“OK. Let me get myself together. I’ll be right out.”
I sat on the enormous back porch, rocking back and forth and trying to soothe myself. I was exhausted, but I couldn’t fall asleep for the life of me. Under Kannon’s direct orders, my mom,Candice, and I had been staying in a cabin for the past three days. After the first eventful day of apple picking and a pottery making fiasco, we didn’t drive back home.
Blaine brought us to a beautiful cabin on the lake. According to him, Kannon thought it would be a good idea for us to change locations. Cabin felt like an understatement. It was a luxury lake house with a dock and private lake in the back. I was going to have to add a lake to my list.
He even had brunch planned for us each morning before we journeyed out to whatever adventure awaited. It felt good to be in a place where every single person didn’t know who I was. As much as I enjoyed the fame, I loved my peace and privacy as well. Kannon was doing a good job of keeping us busy, but that didn’t stop me from missing him, and it damn sure didn’t stop me from worrying.
