“Lead the way.” Matt adjusted his gait to mine as we walked down the path to the sidewalk.
“Will you tell me more about your archery days?”
I wanted to talk about anything other than the threat looming over my head.
“Sure, anything specific you want to know?”
I was dying to know if he did trick shots or could shoot while riding a horse, but didn’t want to sound overly eager.
“Not really. I remember sucking when they taught us how to use a bow and arrow in gym class.” I laughed.
“I bet they didn’t really teach you, just put the bow in your hands and gave you a few tips.”
I laughed. “Accurate.”
“Shane spent hours teaching me the correct stance and posture with a bow in my hand before letting me shoot.”
“Wow.”
“If you’d like, I can teach you,” he said. “I promise I’ll make it fun.”
“I’ll think about it,” I said instead of jumping on the chance with a loud, eager yes.
As we turned to walk back, the hair on the back of my neck stood up. I glanced around, but nothing looked amiss.
“What’s wrong?” Matt was instantly on alert.
I looked around. “Nothing.”
“Madi.”
“You know that feeling when you think you’re being watched?”
“Yes.” He subtly did a three-sixty scan. “I sensed it too, but I can’t see anything out of the ordinary.”
“Neither can I.” I was looking for Paul, but couldn’t see him.
“Let’s head back,” Matt suggested.
He positioned himself between the road and me and put his hand on my lower back. “You’ve served, but were you ever in the line of fire?” he asked.
I had been, and it was terrifying. The seasoned guys, who dealt with combat regularly, were cool as cucumbers. I was scared and felt helpless.
“Yes.”
“So you understand that if I give an order, you follow it.”
“Yes.” I knew better than to argue. Matt’s job was to protect me, and I trusted he’d be the epitome of calm under pressure as he handled whatever came our way.
Nothing. Nothing happened.
“Well, that was much ado about nothing,” I said, climbing the porch steps.
“It’s never nothing, Madi.”
“I’m sure I imagined it.”
“Don’t talk yourself out of it. Trusting your instincts is a valuable tool. And remember, I felt it too.”
