Cherishing You

Chapter 2

Chapter 2

Shannon“Have you closed out table five?” Penny asked.

“I did. All my tables are closed out. The cash tips are logged. I think that’s it.”

“Cool. I’ll see you tomorrow, right? Or do you have the day off?”

“I have the day off.” I smiled. My days off always felt like a luxury.

“Lucky you. I’ll see you on Thursday then.”

“Sounds good.”

Like every other end of shift, I collected my things and heaved myself against the heavy back door of the restaurant to the lot behind the cafe. I took four steps before the raspy timber of voice I hadn’t heard in months—and had hoped to never hear again—startled me.

“Look at you. Eager beaver, working away.”

How in the hell did Kid get out of jail?

I turned and faced him while grasping for the cell phone in my purse.

“You aren’t supposed to be within five hundred feet of me. I’m calling the police,” I shouted. “Stay back.”

I hoped my yelling might alert someone in the restaurant or someone else in the parking lot. Darting my eyes around, I saw no one. Kid laughed and walked toward me.

I unlocked the phone and started to dial 911, but he was on me too quickly and slapped the phone out of my hand. My heart pounded, but I had to stay calm.

“How did you find me?”

Kid smirked. “You got all kinds of friends who know what you’ve been up to.”

I couldn’t imagine who would have told Kid, of all people, where I worked. It had to be someone from my last job at Wal-Mart. I’d followed another girl to the waitressing job, but I’d at least been cautious enough not to tell them where I lived. That might not matter if Kid could hang outside my job and follow me home.

“What do you want?” I shivered despite the blanketing Texas summer heat.

“I just want to let you know I’m out. Betcha didn’t think that’d happen. I got me a good lawyer this time. We have unfinished business.”

“What’s that? I’ve filed the divorce papers, and it’ll be final in a few weeks.”

“I never signed no papers.”

“You didn’t have to. I don’t need you to agree. I can just file.” I scanned the lot again to plan how to get around him and toward the street so someone might see me.

“You think you can get rid of me. Don’t you? After the trouble you caused me? You owe me,” Kid yelled.

“Get away from me!” I screamed and ran back between the cars, hoping to cut down the next row toward the alleyway leading to the street that ran beside the restaurant. As I turned, I heard Kid, but I also heard another set of footsteps.

“Hey, what’s going on back here?”

I kept running down the alley and didn’t stop until I hit the street and turned right around the corner to the front door of the cafe. Only then did I turn around and see that the man following me was Jonah Moran.