Saving Mel

“No,” I said, sighing. “I’m okay.”

“Be back soon.”

The kids were still eating as the door shut behind him. I heard him start up his truck before the crunching of ice could be heard as he backed out of the driveway. I stood at the sink and listened to him drive away, secretly wishing he would’ve opened up to me.

I had no idea how the fuck I was going to repay him the favor, but I knew I was willing to try.

Just then, something started ringing down the hallway. I didn’t recognize the sound and it wasn’t stopping. I figured it was an alarm or something and it would die down with time, but after three minutes of listening to it ring on and off, I decided to go and find the source of the noise.

And what I found was Evan’s phone sitting on his nightstand.

“Shit,” I said. “He forgot his phone.”

“Mew?” Liam called out.

“I’ll be there in a second, sweetheart. Just hang tight.”

I turned my back to head for the kitchen but the phone went off again. The ringer was long and loud, and it vibrated against the wooden bedside table. I didn’t want to listen to the incessant noise the entire time he was gone, so I picked it up and toggled with the side buttons. I knew one of them had to be the volume button, but I turned on the phone screen before I could find it.

There was a text message from someone named ‘Mike’ scrolling across the screen.

“Come by later, forgot to give you Hadley’s present I made. Hope it’ll take the edge off being a new dad.”

A new dad? Now I was thoroughly confused.

“Mew!”

“Coming, sweetheart!”

Finding the volume button, I toggled it all the way down to silent. I set the phone back on his bedside table, then left in a hurry. I shut his door so I wouldn’t be tempted to scroll through any more of his phone, then I made my way back to the kids.

But my mind was still swirling with that text message.

Did it have something to do with why Evan never talked about his brother? Was there really no brother? Suddenly, I had the sick and horrifying thought that he had been lying to me all along. What better place to take a couple of kids you were trying to hide, than the mountains of Montana? It wouldn’t be the first time I’d met a man willing to take something – someone—that wasn’t his. I shivered at the thought as Liam came up beside me.

“You guys wanna watch a movie after we get cleaned up?” I asked, trying to keep my voice even.

“Aladdin?” Liam asked.

“We can watch whatever you want to,” I said, smiling.

A movie would keep them occupied for a couple more hours, and that was what I needed. I needed these kids to stay occupied until I could wrap my head around what the fuck was going on.

But the dreaded question crashed to the forefront of my mind, and I felt the breath in my lungs flee in a resounding reaction to the fear that was now coursing through my veins.

Was I still safe here?

CHAPTER 19

EVAN

I couldn’t figure this woman out. I wanted to. I wanted to know why she was so weird about my working in the shed and why she kept prying about my brother. But it was like each of us was waiting for the other to open up first. I wasn’t sure if I could let her in until she let me in, but it felt like she was playing that same game. It was exhausting, especially when I actually wanted to get to know her.

She was hiding something though, and I was determined to figure out what it was.

She got weird every time I mentioned I was going to the shed, which was odd. Why would a shed elicit that kind of reaction? None of it helped with my trust issues and, even though I wanted to let my guard down with her, I found it hard. Her body was so easy to succumb to. My fingertips hummed, begging for a connection with her whenever I passed her body.

And yet, we were still strangers, both seemingly hell-bent on waiting for the other to crack.

I got back to the cabin with everything in tow and saw Melanie playing with Liam through the window. The sight warmed my soul and made my heart beat rapidly in my chest. The kids were so happy when she was around, and if anything, it was them that would make me trust her. She was good for them, and something in my gut told me they were good for her.

I walked into the cabin and sat everything down. I was gone much longer than I’d wanted to be, which meant I couldn’t start on any of my projects. If I got going now I wouldn’t have time to break for dinner because I’d want to finish what I started.