Zharia pulled her into a hug and Seaton hugged her right back.
Tears leaked out of her eyes and she hugged Zharia tighter.
"I'm so sorry."
Seaton opened her eyes. She heard the words and thought that she'd said them, but the voice had been wrong.
It wasn't hers.
Leaning back, she looked at Zharia and something happened that neither of them seemed to expect.
They laughed.
It was weak at first. There were hiccups and a snort or two and moments later they were giggling like crazy.
And when Seaton saw Sam and Lincoln walk back into the room, she and Zharia were near breathless with laughter.
They probably would have gone on laughing like that for a while if they didn't hear someone shouting outside on the street.
It took Seaton a moment to realize that what they were shouting was her name.
"Oh God."
The high she'd felt a moment before crashed down around her feet.
She knew that voice.
'How did he find me?'
CHAPTER 6
SEATON
Later on, she'd wonder why she went outside, but when she heard Daryl screaming her name, she went out to stop him because her neighbors didn't need to hear him.
She didn't want to hear him either, but Daryl had been her mistake.
His metallic black Jaguar was idling at the curb in front of her rented house, and he was standing on the sidewalk, the heels of his custom-made shoes, precariously over the edge of the curb.
"Damnit, Seaton! Get your ass out here!"
She looked across the yard at her own porch and saw what Daryl was looking at.
Her front porch light was on because she knew she'd have to get back home after dinner and the flashlight on her phone wasn't enough.
She'd also left the light over the stove on to use as a night light when she returned home.
So to Daryl, it probably looked like she was home.
Sam hadn't left his porch light on, so they were standing there in the dark.
"Seaton! You need to stop hiding from me!'
Her heart broke knowing that her past was on full display in front of Sam and his friends.
She heard Sam behind her. "I'm calling the police."
It was nice that he was doing this, but she knew it would take time for them to come out. Daryl wasn't violent. He was just angry. Normally, when they were together, he would pull her in tight so she could feel his breath on her face and he’d tell her in slow, deliberate words just how much she disappointed him.
