They pulled me toward the clubhouse.
But I looked back over my shoulder at him.And he was still standing there.
Watching me.
Not like before.
Not like he ever had.
This was different.
Heavy.
Focused.
Like I was the only thing in the middle of all of this that mattered.
Adley shoved a plate into my hands once we got inside, piling it with food I barely saw.
Penny handed me a drink.
People were talking.
Laughing.
Eating.
The party kept going.
But none of it mattered because all I could think about was the way Jude had looked at me.
Chapter Twenty-Two
Jude
I stood where they’d left me.
Didn’t move.
Didn’t speak.
Didn’t even realize my hands were clenched until my fingers started to ache.
The party had snapped back to life like nothing had happened.Kids ran past with sugar on their faces and no clue what had just gone down ten feet away from them.
Wrecker had handled it.
I dragged a hand down my face and finally forced myself to move, stepping away from the table and toward the edge of the yard where things were quieter.Not quiet, but quieter than the middle of it all.
I needed a second to get my head right, because if I didn’t, I wasn’t sure what I’d do if I saw that guy again tonight.
I leaned against the fence, eyes tracking the crowd automatically, scanning faces, exits, movement.
Old habits.It didn’t matter that the threat we’d been dealing with was supposed to be gone.Didn’t matter that this was a party.You didn’t stop paying attention.
I pushed off the fence and paced a few steps, running my fingers through my hair.
The image of him trying to grab her.
