He jogs up to his door and disappears inside.
I sit there for a second, engine idling.
Zephyr turns to me.
“Now that we dropped off the crybaby,” he says, “want to go back?”
I look over at him. “I thought you’d never ask.”
Before we pull away, Callum comes jogging out the front door with our overnight bags. He throws them in the back seat and says, “Looks like you’ll need this. See ya.”
We drive back to her neighborhood. We park at the spot where we were before.
The house is dark now except for a dim light in the living room window.
Zephyr doesn’t say anything. Just leans back in his seat and stares.
We sit in the dark. Watching. Waiting.
I won’t leave until I know she’s safe.
Even if this is fucking stalking.
Even if she deliberating walked away.
I’m not going anywhere.
Chapter Thirteen: Tigerlily
Elle pulls up to the curb outside my house.
The house looks daunting. I can feel its energy from here.
“You sure about this?” Elle asks quietly.
I flinch at her voice, forgetting that she was there.
She watches me with wide eyes. “You can stay with me if it’s that bad.”
If it’s that bad.
I suck in my bottom lip and shake my head. I have no words. I can’t speak. I open the door and step out into the cold, but Elle doesn’t drive right away. She waits, and that makes me look back at her. I need her to leave.
I walk up the path, and each step I take feels heavier than the last.
When the front door of the house opens, my heart slams against my ribs. I inhale, trying to ease my nerves. It’s not like he’s going to hit me right away.
I scan his face, seeing the hidden rage. He looks over my shoulder at Elle in the car. I finally hear her drive off. Great, he’s going to think she lied to him.
I step inside, and the front door closes behind me with a quiet click.
Then I see Zinnia. She rushes at me from the living room, arms wrapping tight around my waist. Her face presses into my stomach, and I feel her shoulders shaking.
“You’re back,” she whispers. “I was so scared.”
I kneel down to her level and cup her face in my hands. “Hey. I’m here. I’m okay.”
“Where were you?”
