Page 112 of Legacy

I stood back and watched as my mother led us from conversation to conversation as if nothing had changed.

And I knew that she was doing it on purpose, showing everybody in this room, and then later the town, that nothing had changed. We were still the same, though irrevocably altered.

Or perhaps I was just looking too far into things.

By the time dinner was over and we had already planned the next meeting, Atlas had won, though he had let two goals in, as the starting forwards for the opposite team were some of the best in the NHL. I was going to have to text him later to make sure he knew that he was amazing. He took each goal harder than the last.

After we said our goodbyes, and were walking out the door, Callum said, “Hey, I need to head to the brewery real quick. I’m going to drop you off at the house, and then I’ll be back, okay?” Callum kissed my temple, and I frowned.

“I can go with you if you want.”

He shook his head. “I have to deal with some of the machinery, and you can’t go back there.”

“Oh, that makes sense. Okay. I’ll just get some work done, and are we staying at my house or your house tonight?”

“Whatever you’d like, just know that you’re not sleeping alone tonight.”

“I kind of like how growly you got just then.” I smiled.

“Oh, good. You decide where we’re sleeping, but I need to go fix this.”

“Is everything okay, really?”

“It should be. There’s just a weird alarm going off.”

He dropped me off at the front door, kissed me soundly until my knees went weak, and didn’t drive off until I locked the door behind me.

That was it. I was in love with Callum Ashford, and there was no returning.

I moved towards the kitchen, turning on the light as I did.

And if I hadn’t, I wouldn’t have been able to duck out of the way in time. A shadow moved forward, and as I opened my mouth to scream, a hand went over my mouth from the side so I could see the man nearly in front of me.

Bradley smiled at me, that same look on his face from all those years ago.

“Hello, Felicity. It’s been a long time.”

Chapter 18

Felicity

My heart raced, palms damp, as I realized who exactly held me in place. The moment I saw his face, then heard his voice, everything came back to me.

A blind date I hadn’t wanted to go on. A group event that had turned into a fun night of dancing and me running barefoot through the woods, screaming for help.

I had called Callum, hiding in a bush, hoping that Bradley wouldn’t find me.

But here he was, over two years later, in my house.

He lowered his hand and took a step to the side so he could face me. I opened my mouth to scream, but he held up a knife. One from my own butcher block.

“No. Don’t make a sound. We just need to talk it out.”

“What are you doing here?” I asked.

Bradley’s eyes narrowed as he stepped forward, knife in hand. “What part of don’t make a fucking sound do you not understand? You’re such an idiot.” His arm slashed out, thankfully the one without the knife, and he backhanded me. My head hit the wall behind me, and I grasped for something to hold on to so I wouldn’t fall. Blood trickled down my mouth, and I realized his ring had cut my lip.

“You know, I’ve been watching you these last few weeks. And you’re just so boring.”