SHELBY (Second Chance Novels Book 4) by Michaels Kemmie

Author:Michaels, Kemmie [Michaels, Kemmie]
Language: eng
Format: epub
Publisher: Bruce Street Publications, LLC
Published: 2015-06-25T07:00:00+00:00

In spite of our moment of connection, leaving the safe house infuriates me. The safest place on earth for her was in this house with me. Taking her out, especially with this ridiculous excuse for a reason, stresses me. I want to keep her in my protective bubble until the threats against her are gone. The sooner this trial is over, the better. Shelby deserves a life in which she can be happy, not one stuck under a cloud of fear and lack of control.

We load the SUV with the few boxes and duffles we need, keeping the garage door closed for as long as possible. There are no threats associated specifically with this move, but the highest level of alert is always appropriate when a witness is on the front line. Rankin's replacement from another team makes a sweep of the grounds while another marshal completes his drive through the neighborhood.

Shelby sits blankly aside, still guilt-ridden and frustrated with her situation. Once we've been given the all-clear, we leave the sanctuary of the safe house and drive forty-five minutes to the next. We'll be closer to the cliffs this time, close enough to listen to the ocean through the windows. Sadly, she won't be able to enjoy the pathway to the park where the ocean can be seen, but the sound may help to entertain her. Maybe the sea will soothe her. I don't know. I can put that at number four hundred eighty-two of things I'd like to know about her.

Quietly we ride together in the back seat, occasionally listening to the driver check in with the other two cars in our caravan, as well as the scout car ahead of us watching for potential threats or risky traffic conditions. Shelby sighs once softly, and my instinct is to take her hand. I remain still.

"We'll be there soon," I try to reassure her. She's quiet for only a few moments more.

"I wonder if my friends miss me," she says softly to herself.

"Of course they do."

"I really don't know," she says as she turns to me. "Ever since Mason broke up with me, everything changed. They shut me out whether they meant to or not, and then I let myself drift away until we barely had a connection at all. I'm not sure if there's anything left."

She looks at me thoughtfully for a moment, and I try to remind myself that just this morning she was degrading herself, teasing anyone who would look and sucking-off a man who should have been off-limits. Emotional decades have spanned since that moment. The woman before me now is no more or less broken, but she's more aware of her damage.

"Distance…" she says as though testing the word. She presses her lips together, betraying a bitter sensation from having said the word. "There's a lot of that."

"It's not always that way," I tell her. She looks at me again sadly. I can't think of another damn thing to say.

The rest of the trip is quiet.

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