cuts the person off mid-sentence and hangs up the phone without a goodbye, tossing the cell phone into the passenger seat and studying the photo in his hands for a few minutes.
He looks up from the picture when he sees movement out of the corner of his eye. Layla and the idiot joined at her hip are finally done stretching at the entrance of the trail. They take off into the woods running side by side.
Ray smiles to himself as he tosses the butt of his cigarette out the window, opens the car door, and makes his way over to the F150 parked close to the trail. Luckily, with the nice weather lately, the park is packed early in the morning, and his beat-up Honda doesn’t stick out like a sore thumb. He’d found the last available parking space in the crowded lot, crouched down low in his seat, and sat waiting until the coast was clear.
He ambles over to the truck, bends down to tie his shoe next to the front tire, and glances around for any signs of anyone looking his way or paying any attention to him. When he sees no one, he stands up and quickly shoves the photo facedown underneath the windshield wiper blade on the passenger side, right where Layla will see it when she gets back into the truck.
Ray smiles to himself and whistles softly as he makes his way back to his car.
He can feel his dick swell in his pants when he thinks about the look that will be on Layla’s face when she sees that picture. Her full lips will part in surprise, and maybe a lone tear will fall from her eye and down her cheek. Soon enough, he’ll be so close to her that he’ll be able to lick her tears right off of her cheek. He wishes he could stick around for the show, but he’ll be with her soon enough. Right now, he’s got supplies to purchase and a kidnapping to map out.
When I woke up this morning, still wrapped in Brady’s arms after the best night of sleep I’d had in forever, I decided a morning run was needed to get my adrenaline pumping in some way other than rolling over to face him and pulling him into my body.
When I tried to slide out of his arms, he pulled me back against him, ran his hands down my side, and hitched my leg back over his thigh and slowly entered me from behind. Thirty minutes later, and after I was too worn out to move, he was the one who suggested the run.
Being with Brady is so easy that it scares me. I’m growing attached to him quickly, and for someone like me, that isn’t good. I can’t get attached to him. He doesn’t understand why I do the things I do, and even though he apologized last night for questioning me repeatedly about my choices, I know it still bothers him. If he sticks around after this case is over, it will always bother him. He might try to hide it so as not to upset me, but it would eat away at him. He’s not the type of man to sit back and watch someone suffer.
I don’t know why I’m even entertaining the idea of him being here after my stalker is caught. We’ve had sex a few times. That’s it. Mind-blowing, brain-numbing sex, but still…only sex. We’re not in love and he hasn’t promised me anything beyond today. He’s here because he has a job to do, and I’m probably an easy way to pass the time. I shouldn’t be worried about disappointing him down the road. It probably won’t be long now until the police figure out who is behind all of the threats, he’ll go to jail, and Brady will go back to his own life.
“So, tell me about your sister. Is she younger or older than you?” I ask, trying to banish thoughts of Brady and I having a future together as we jog past the first mile marker on the trail.
“She’s younger by two years,” he replies with a smile on his face as he thinks about her. “She’s had a rough time of it lately. Married an abusive asshole that my parents loved, and after he busted her face and broke some bones about six months ago, she finally got up the nerve to leave his sorry ass and showed up on my doorstep with her