Filed To Story: Secret Shifters Next Door Series PDF Free
Jordyn and Mariah looked at me, their faces blank. They stared at me for several seconds before glancing at each other and smiling. The little buttheads thought I was lying? Surely not. Why would I lie about something like that?
“I really am.”
Mariah grinned and shook her head. “Mom, we don’t think you’re lying, we just… kind of already suspected.”
I jerked back. “What? How?”
Again, they exchanged a look before Mariah said, “You’ve been pretty sick. You’ve also been napping, like, a lot.”
“Yeah, and you’ve had mood swings and stuff. Grumpier than usual. Crying more often. Like that commercial last night on T.V. had you sobbing,” Jordyn said.
I crossed my arms over my chest. “Well, it was sad.”
“Mom,” Jordyn said. “It was a commercial for dog food.”
I pressed my lips together, not wanting to respond.
“Plus, you’ve been eating crazy stuff,” Jordyn went on. “You were dipping corn chips into grape jelly the other day. Then you put hot sauce on that bowl of vanilla ice cream last night.” She wrinkled her nose.
My cheeks flushed. I’d had the same weird cravings when I’d been pregnant with both of them. It was a little disconcerting that the girls had been so aware of my actions.
Mariah nodded toward my midsection. “The kicker was that we both could tell your belly was getting bigger. It all sort of fit together.”
My embarrassment irritated me. So much for thinking I’d done a good job of hiding it. I was surprised that the girls didn’t seem overly concerned. In my mind, it had been a foregone conclusion that they would have thought it was the end of the world. Now I realized I could breathe easier.
Mariah’s smile faded away. “So, does this mean Luis will be coming around? Is he going to move out here?”
My heart lurched. This was why the girls hadn’t brought up their fears. Not because they were worried about having a new sibling but because they were afraid of Luis. They assumed Luis was the father. Why wouldn’t they? Jordyn also looked concerned. I needed to ease their fears.
“Luis is not part of this. You shouldn’t be concerned about him. He doesn’t know where we are, and he won’t be part of this family. Ever.”
They looked relieved at that. Just then, the little man running the restaurant brought out our sodas and our pizza, and we dug in, devouring the entire thing. It was indeed as good as New York pizza. Another delightful surprise to the day.
“Mom, I’ll help. When I’m not in school, I’ll do whatever you need to help with the baby,” Mariah said.
“Me, too. I’d love to babysit,” Jordyn said.
I smiled around a bite of pizza. “Thank you. I’m sure I’ll need help, but I don’t want you to let this rule your lives. It’s my responsibility, but I do appreciate the offer, and I’m sure I’ll take you both up on it at some point.”
We walked out of the restaurant a while later, full and happy. The day seemed glorious now that my heavy secret was out in the open. It felt like a whole new day. My chest and shoulders felt much lighter now that the heavy weight had been removed. Things were looking up.
Lilly Valley was a small town, and usually quiet. Through my reverie, I heard murmurs of conversation ahead of us. I glanced
past the girls who were walking ahead of me. A group of people were huddled around the side of the road near where our car was parked. Frowning, I pushed past the girls.
There were around twenty people standing around my car. They were blocking my view, so I couldn’t see what was wrong. Panic flooded me. People wouldn’t be huddled around a car if it only had a flat tire. Something else had to be wrong. Then the group parted, and I saw what they were gawking at.
I stopped dead, nearly stumbling as I looked at what had happened to my car. The windshield was smashed. All four side windows were gone, just chips of glass remained. All four tires had been slashed, and the car sat on its rims. Across the hood and side of the car, there were words spraypainted in red. WHORE. BITCH.
I covered my hand with my mouth. Luis had found us. Somehow, he’d tracked us all the way here. He was in this town, and he’d done this. In broad daylight. Why had no one stopped him? Had they watched and laughed, or were they too afraid to do anything? I was starting to shake when thick, strong arms wrapped around me. I jerked and screamed. Luis was grabbing me, trying to pull me into a car. I lashed out, trying to fight him off.
“Harley. Harley, stop. It’s me. It’s Tate.”
His voice cut through my panic, and I looked up into his face. I collapsed into his arms, tears streaming down my face. The girls were behind him. I hated that they’d seen the graffiti on the smashed car.
“Let’s get you out of here,” Tate said. “Girls, follow me.”
He put an arm around my shoulders and ushered me to his truck. Jordyn and Mariah hurried along behind us. I wanted to comfort my girls, but fear had a vice grip on my chest. Luis was dangerous. He was the reason we’d moved here. But I never expected him to follow us halfway across the country
and vandalize my car. That was more than dangerous—it was psychotic.
The girls and I buckled ourselves in, and Tate pulled away from the scene. He was speaking, yelling instructions into the phone, but I was in too much of a haze to take in what he was saying. Even as dazed as I was, I was surprised by how happy and relieved I was that Tate had been there.
“Momma?” Jordyn asked in an uncharacteristically meek voice. “Did Luis find us?”
I couldn’t answer. Simply couldn’t get the words out. Mariah answered for me.
“Yeah, I think he did.”