Page 55 of Find Me
We moved to the dining room next. Knox pulled out all the chairs and looked under the table. Feeling a little brave, I went ahead of him to look in the kitchen. I rounded the island and there it was, on the floor, right in front of my kitchen sink. I let out an embarrassing scream and spun on my heel to book it out of the kitchen. I slammed into Knox’s chest, who I didn’t know was right behind me. He caught me around my waist before I could fall back. The panic and need to get away overtook me so much so that I jumped onto him and clung to him like a koala bear.
“It’s over there! It’s over there!” I repeated in a high-pitched voice as I tried to climb up his tall and very bulky body.
Knox let out a grunt when the heel of my shoe hit him in the butt. Other than that, he just stood there and let me scale him. “Shiloh,” he said calmly.
I was a panting mess as I clung onto him for dear life. I had managed to get one hand on his shoulder. The other was fisting the back of his shirt. I had one leg wrapped around his hip and the other around his upper thigh. I really needed to do upper-body strength training at the gym.
“Please don’t let it get me.” I knew I sounded pathetic, but I didn’t care.
Knox’s hands went to my hips and lifted me up. I wrapped my arms around his neck and locked my legs around his waist. He carried me to the living room and sat me on the couch. “Do you have a broom?” he asked, and I told him where I kept it. Knox disappeared back into the kitchen. I heard small noises followed by the back door being opened and closed.
Knox returned. “I got it out of the house.”
I relaxed back. “Thank you so much.”
He nodded and his expression turned serious. “I need to ask you something.”
My relief instantly evaporated. “What?”
“Why is there a gun taped under your coffee table?”
I forgot how to breathe for a good minute.
Sitting up straight, I regained my composure. I couldn’t tell him the truth. I couldn’t tell any of the guys the truth. For my safety and because I didn’t want them to think I was a freak. But I didn’t want to lie to them either, even to Knox. It would feel like a betrayal somehow. Lying period was a betrayal. So I needed to evade as much as I could.
“I’m a young woman who lives alone.”
His gaze moved to the control panel for my alarm on the wall by the front door. “You have a security system with cameras.”
“Cameras and alarms don’t stop someone from getting in,” I said with a little bit of bite. “Does it make you uncomfortable knowing that I have it? Because if so, I’m going to be honest and tell you that it’s not the only one I own. I’m eighteen, still in high school, and have no one left in this world apart from my uncle, who is on the other side of the country. When I moved here, I had zero connections. No one who would notice if I went missing. To someone who’s paying attention, I’d be the ideal target to be taken, raped, or killed. I know this might seem excessive to you, but it makes me feel safe and helps me close my eyes at night.”
He was quiet for a moment, processing everything. “It doesn’t make me uncomfortable,” he finally said. “It makes me wonder what happened to you that you think you need all of this to feel safe.”
My heart rate became rapid as I scrambled to think of something to say to steer him away from the questions I could see forming in his eyes.
I saw a flicker of surprise flash in his eyes. “Something did happen.”
“Please don’t ask me,” I begged.
He frowned and opened his mouth to ask anyway.
“Please, Knox. Don’t.”
His eyes bored into mine, searching. For what, I didn’t know. He gave me a single nod and headed for the door. When he opened it, he paused. “Pork chops and mashed potatoes,” he said. “That’s what I want for dinner.”
“Do you want them cooked a certain way?” I asked.
He glanced back at me. “Cook them however you want.”
Already making a grocery list in my head, I stood. “Alright.”
“If it’s easier for you, you can use our kitchen,” he offered before he left.
* * *
By the time Colt and Creed got home from practice, I had already returned from the store and was finishing up all the prep work that needed to be done before I began cooking. Per Knox’s request, I was making pork chops, but I was putting my own spin on it by serving them with a bacon jam on top. Keeping me somewhat company, Knox sat at the kitchen island, texting someone on his phone.
“We’re home,” Creed yelled out.