Page 59 of Claiming What's Mine

Snapping my face forward, I let my hair fall against my cheek like a wall, blocking him from seeing me. Fiddling with the edge of the bible, I kept my eyes forward. It didn't matter how much my face was covered, I could feel his eyes burning a hole in the back of my head.

“Well, that's him, isn't it?”

“Yeah, that's him.”

“And who is he again? How do you know him?”

“We used to be friends a long time ago.” Looking at my daughter, I forced an uncomfortable smile, doing my best to not let her see the anxiousness simmering under the surface.

“Oh.” Slouching back down, Bliss watched her feet, tapping her toes against each other.

She didn't care who he was, she didn't pay any attention to the sweat beading up on my forehead, or the way I kept shifting in my chair and trying to look over my shoulder without actually looking.

Bliss was too young to pick up on those cues, oblivious to the underlying shakes and nervous butterflies that had started to fly around in my belly.

The service lasted about twenty more minutes—twenty, uncomfortable, nail biting, heart throbbing minutes. I couldn't focus on the pastor and what he was saying anymore. All I could do was count down the seconds, wondering what Jayden's plan was.

He never went to church, he never believed in any of this.

But he's here now. And it's not for the service.

As the service came to a close, I grabbed my daughter's hand and attempted to move through the crowd quickly. I reacted, doing my best to control the situation.

“Mom, what are you doing?” she asked, attempting to pull her hand out of mine. “Why are you dragging me this way?”

“No questions, just follow me.”

Pushing through people, I smiled and nodded, giving blessings and brief hugs. I had to act as casual and normal as possible, not drawing any attention to the panic flowing through my veins.

The last thing I needed was for someone to tell my mother—or worse—my father, that they had seen Jayden Henry.

Jayden was standing to the side, his gaze floating around the room. I knew what he was doing, he was looking for me.

Spotting me as I got closer, a thick grin spread across his face. “You weren't that hard to find,” Jayden said with a wink.

“Come with me.” Snatching him by the wrist, I had my daughter in one hand, and Jayden in the other.

“What are you doing?” he asked.

“She's being weird, she does that sometimes.” Bliss answered for me, giving her own perception on the situation.

“She's still weird, huh? I guess I shouldn't be surprised.” Jayden smiled, biting on his lower lip as I glared at him over my shoulder.

Pushing the double doors open that exited out into the side parking lot, I pulled my daughter to my side. “Here, take the keys and go wait in the car.”

“But it's probably a million degrees in there.”

“So? Leave the door open then.”

“But—”

“Bliss,” I snapped, opening my lids wide so she knew I serious.

“Fine.” Yanking the keys out of my hand, she started to storm off towards our car. “But if I die from the heat—”

Holding up my hand, I cut her off. “Just stop, don't talk like that. Go.” Giving her a stern head nod, Bliss rolled her eyes, huffing out an annoyed breath as she continued on her way.

Waiting until she was out of ear shot, I looked at Jayden and asked, “What in the world are you doing here?”