Page 87 of Hurry Up And Wait

“In a sealed bag?” I said, a little shocked that he would think I would poison a bag of Funyuns. To prove my point, I slid my hand in and pulled out the Flamin’ Hot Funyuns, then shoved one in my mouth, never taking my eyes off his. “Now eat,” I commanded.

With a shaky hand, he grabbed one and stuffed it in his mouth. He chewed, his eyes watering as the heat hit him hard. Maybe it wasn’t a mistake to bring these.

“More.”

He stuffed his hand in, grabbing a handful and shoving them all in his mouth at once. He chewed with vigor, his gaze intent on mine as he finished every last bite. When he was done and his lips were covered in a red dust, I stalked close to him and lowered my voice.

“I don’t want to discuss this again.”

He shook his head as I slowly stepped away. I crumpled the bagand handed it to him. “Remember me,” I said before fleeing the room, trying my best not to laugh.

Cash was leaning against the wall as the door swung shut behind me. “Did you have your fun?”

“He’s alive. Relax.”

“Yes, but is he still sane?”

I shrugged, pulling out another snack-sized bag. “We’ll see.”

20

ISLA

I locked the door,then rushed down the steps. I was so late. I was never going to make the movie in time, and then Riley would be pissed as hell at me for making her sit in the theater for so long by herself. I didn’t even want to go, but I desperately needed the distraction—anything to take my mind off Kavanaugh’s terrible attempt at explaining why I needed bodyguards to protect me.

It was hard enough to wrap my mind around what Shawn had tried to do to me. Murder was a new low point in our failed marriage, though I never would have thought it possible. A bad attitude was one thing. Trying to blow me up was just unfathomable.

But still, I couldn’t see him taking it any further. Shawn did everything in his power to advance his career, but when it came to me—to our marriage, he was not a man of action. If I had to guess, he was back at home, wallowing over the fact that his attempt at ridding me of this earth was a botched attempt. But in a few days, another case would come along that would quickly draw his attention, and like every other time that something important happened in our marriage, he would forget all about me.

I pulled out into the street, gasping when I had to slam on the brakes because I failed to check my mirrors. An older car slowly creptpast and I raised my hand to Mrs. Braverman, though she probably didn’t see it with her terrible eyesight.

I closed my eyes and sucked in a deep breath. “Pay attention,” I muttered to myself.

When she was past my drive, I checked the road and pulled out slowly, cursing myself for nearly plowing into an old lady. I was on edge today, and I really shouldn’t be considering what Kavanaugh did to me yesterday. But our argument kept me awake all night, tossing and turning as I tried to determine if I had been too harsh on him. After all, he was only trying to protect me. It felt wrong to be so angry, knowing his intentions.

I pulled into the theater parking lot with only minutes to spare. I knew I would never hear the end of this. I didn’t even have my popcorn yet. I rushed to the doors, but halted when Kavanaugh stepped out in front of me, wincing as he ran his hand over the back of his neck.

“Sorry. I didn’t mean to scare you.”

I slung my purse over my shoulder and shook my head. “You didn’t.”

“Can I—can we talk?”

“Riley’s waiting for me inside.” Yes, it was wrong to put my sister above him. “You know how she gets when she’s kept waiting.”

“Still impatient,” he said, his lips quirking slightly.

I stood there awkwardly, waiting for him to move. I was still pissed at him, but the fact that he came here said something about the type of man he was. Shawn would have never done that.

“Listen, I know I don’t deserve the time, but…I have to head back today and…”

He was leaving again. I should have known, but part of me just assumed he would be like a normal boyfriend with a job around town.

“Back to…”

“The city,” was his only answer.

He didn’t tell me about the job and I didn’t ask. He was a bodyguard. Maybe his client had to keep a low profile or maybe it was in his contract not to talk about it. Either way, I didn’t push.