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She started shaking. “This wasn’t here before.”
I stared down at the picture. “You’re sure?”
“I’m sure. I don’t know who is doing this, but it feels personal.”
We walked outside and locked the door just as another police car was arriving. I hated that I wasn’t sure who’d been here and what they wanted. They’d been dangerous enough to turn off the power. None of this felt right.
We said goodbye to McCrae, who was now talking with other police officers I didn’t recognize. The ride to the Whipple cabin was quiet, with her only staring at the picture.
At home, I offered her a pair of my sweats and a T-shirt so she could change.
She looked disoriented, putting the picture on the bedside table. “I should’ve grabbed some clothes.”
I waved her into the bathroom. “There’s a lot going on tonight. Don’t worry about it. I’ll get the guest room ready for you.”
She disappeared, and I kept myself busy picking the sheets up off the dresser and making the bed. Nervousness pulsed through me, knowing I would have to sleep close to her.
I finished just as she came out, and she looked oh so good in my clothes. I glanced at her and then looked away, trying not to fall back into all my old feelings for her. “You can sleep in here. I’m going to find a sleeping bag and just sleep next to your bed.”
“No. You can’t do that.”
“We got shot at tonight. I’m not leaving you.”
She wrapped her arms around herself. “Are you sure?”
“Yes. I won’t sleep well unless I’m close.”
Our eyes met again, and I could see her fear.
I sat on the bed beside her. “Are you okay?”
She pointed at the picture. “How did that get into the house?”
Of course, I believed her when she said it hadn’t been there before, but I had no answers. “Who else had that picture?”
She frowned, then shook her head. “Honestly, no one. My grandmother had all the pictures. I mean, I didn’t even realize Grandma had so many of them until I inherited the house.”
“But that wasn’t one of her pictures?”
“I’m not sure.” She frowned. “I haven’t seen it in a long time. I don’t have any pictures up. I’ve been remodeling.”
I stared at the picture of her whole family in front of the lake house. Her mother, her father, her brother, both of her grandparents. “I noticed that.”
“The fact that someone found that picture or brought it into the house, then put it on that table … it’s just creepy.”
I cleared my throat. “Do you think your ex would have done that?”
She considered it, then shrugged. “I don’t know. It doesn’t seem like the type of thing he would do, but I honestly have no idea.”
“Do you think it was Clint?”
She shook her head. “I think Clint really liked me in a stalker type of way, but I don’t know why he would put up pictures of my family.”
We sat in silence for a minute, pondering the situation.
Finally, I dared to put my hand on her shoulder. “I’m sorry you’re going through this.”
She looked at my hand, then my eyes. The chemistry between us returned in full force. “Thank you,” she said quietly.
