I sit down between Laurie and the other guy and listen as her conversation with her friend continues. Only when the train begins to move do I glance in her direction.
Once again, I’m instantly captivated by my little butterfly.
How am I going to handle this?
I could kidnap her right now.
Fuck she has beautiful eyes.
My thoughts jump from one thing to the next as I continue to stare at the woman who has me mesmerized.
She’s completely oblivious to her surroundings.
A frown forms on my forehead because I don’t like that she’s so vulnerable.
When we near her stop and she gets up, I rise to my feet and move dangerously close to her, wanting to check if she has any survival instincts.
Once I’m close enough to reach out and touch her, Laurie glances partially over her shoulder, enough to signal she’s aware of me.
The train stops, and the moment the doors open, Laurie flits away from me like the little butterfly she is.
I keep my pace slow, even stopping to check the incoming message on my phone.
Little Ricky: I’m to your right.
I glance at the SUV and give him a chin lift before I follow Laurie down the street.
The breeze comes from the front, and I get a whiff of her perfume. Something gentle and sweet.
With it being so late and the roads quiet, I fall back a little more.
I hate that Laurie has to commute at night. The amount of shit that could happen to her flashes through my mind, and it makes me clench my jaw.
She stops at a mailbox to check it before cutting across a lawn toward a house with a truck parked in the driveway. Just as I walk past, I see her clearly as she turns to shut the front door.
There’s a despondent look on her face.
She should be relieved to be home.
But she isn’t.
I glance around, making sure no one has spotted me, before I walk closer to the house.
Luckily for me, the curtains aren’t closed properly, and when I peek through the opening, I see a man asleep on a couch, the light from the TV flashing over him.
Rage shoots through me like a destructive force.
The fucker could’ve picked Laurie up after work, but clearly cares so little about the masterpiece he gets to call his own that he’s sleeping soundly at home.
It would be easy to make him disappear.
Laurie comes to stand by his feet, and when I see the disappointment on her face, I have to suppress the urge to kick down the front door and take her right now.
“Thanks for getting me something to eat,” she mutters, her tone bitter as she bends to pick up empty food containers.
Every muscle in my body tightens when I realize the man only takes care of himself, and he clearly doesn’t give two shits about Laurie.
When she leaves the living room, I walk to the other side where the kitchen is. Finding a hiding spot between shrubs and a tree, I have a clear view of her as she moves around.
