2
Kinsley glanced at Dev from her seat on the back of the ambulance. He stood by her car as a soft breeze blew the savory scent from a nearby bread factory over them in the early evening. He talked to the deputy who she had given her statement to about an hour ago.
She blinked a few times at Dev and pinched her arm below the blood pressure cuff to prove she wasn’t dreaming. She could hardly believe it. Of all the people to come to her rescue, it had to be him. The guy she’d been crushing on for years but wouldn’t get involved with due to her friendship with his sister.
Oh how Kinsley wished she hadn’t made a promise to Jada not to get involved with her brother. She considered breaking it every time she’d seen Dev since then, but she would never do anything to jeopardize a long-term friendship. A connection that spanned so many years and was too priceless to even consider risking over a relationship that could go wrong.
Besides, did he even return her feelings? He’d teased her when they were young, but once they’d graduated from high school, she got the feeling that a romantic tension sizzled between them. She had to be wrong. He’d gotten engaged and would be married today if his fiancée hadn’t left him at the altar. If that was any indication of his interest in her, she’d been way off base about the sizzle.
He’d invited her to the wedding. She didn’t want to go, but Jada pressured her to attend. The pain on Dev’s face when it became clear that Hailey had taken off nearly broke Kinsley’s heart. But at the same time, she was thankful he wasn’t getting married. Why? She didn’t know. Not when there wasn’t any hope of Jada ever changing her mind.
Dev shifted and planted his hands on his hips, gaining her attention. Streetlights in the parking lot shone harshly down on him and highlighted the rigid set of his jaw.
Oh no.She recognized that look. He was getting angry about something. But what could it be?
“Fine.” His voice carried on the breeze, and he spun toward her, marching across the distance between them, kicking up dust with his boots. “Come on. Let’s go.”
“What? Where?”
“You’re coming to Shadow Lake with me.” He jutted out his jaw, discouraging any argument she might have as he marched toward her car.
Jada had told Kinsley about Shadow Lake Survival, where Dev worked. Located just outside the town of Shadow Lake in the next county east of the campground. Reid Maddox and his brothers, Russ and Ryan, owned the business. Their family’s old resort had closed, and they converted the place for weeklong survival training camps, using the resort cabins to house their clients.
“Your car will be towed for evidence,” he said, still moving at a crisp pace. “But the deputy said we can take any belongings you need with us. Let’s get what you need and get out of here.”
Why did he think he could boss her around like this? He’d never done it before, and she didn’t like it. Not at all.
“I can’t go to Shadow Lake with you,” she called out after him.
He shoved his fists into his pockets and looked over his shoulder at her. “Yeah, well, the department can’t offer you any protection, and you’ll need help if the shooter comes back for you.”
She wanted to jerk him to a stop and tell him she didn’t agree with him, but he’d taken off so fast she had to run to try to catch up. “You’re assuming I was the target. I could’ve just been in the wrong place at the wrong time.”
“True, and that’s why I saidifhe comes back for you. But I’m not taking any chances.” He looked ahead again. “If he was indeed aiming at you, hoping to kill you, he’ll try again. Shadow Lake Survival has a secure compound, and our team can protect you.”
She didn’t like the sound of being under their watchful eye when she planned to have a relaxing vacation. Wouldn’t getting out of Portland be enough to keep her safe? After all, why would anyone have reason to look for her at the campground she hung out in as a child?
She caught up to him and stared at him. “I was going to your family’s campground at Boulder Lake from here. I doubt he’s going to find me there.”
“The campground?” He spun. Watched her. His eyes searching. “Why in the world would you want to go there?”
She didn’t like being told what to do or being questioned like a criminal, but she also didn’t like his judgmental attitude right now. “Jada and I planned a week-long reunion vacation. We’re celebrating twenty years of being friends.”
“But why there?” Dev came to a stop at her battered car.
The many bullet holes dotting her vehicle reminded her of the barrage of bullets coming so close to striking her. A harsh wind blew over her, and she tightened her sweater around her body to fend it off and maybe her fear with it.
“At this time of year,” he said. “Those poorly insulated cabins will be cold and damp. Why not celebrate somewhere warm and comfortable instead?”
“You know Jada and I hung out at the Bluebird Cabin all the time and had like a million sleepovers there. Revisiting the place will give us a break from life and bring back memories.”
He watched her, and she could almost see his thoughts parading through his brain like a runaway train. “Sounds like something the two of you might want to do. Could be fun, I guess.”
“Don’t sound so convinced.” She laughed.
“Sorry.” He frowned. “When I think about the campground, I don’t especially think about fun times. Mom and Dad always had Colin and me doing so much work around the place, in some respects, it seemed like we never really had a childhood.”
He was only remembering the hard times he and his brother had, not the good ones, and she felt the need to remind him. “What about all those sunny days at the lake? Swimming out to the raft and laying in the sun. Doing nothing but watching the dragonflies humming across the lake. And the barbecues? The horseshoes? And just hanging around and goofing off?”
