Page 18 of Snowed Inn For Christmas

I sat back in my chair and watched the scene play out on the monitor as the camera in Julie’s apartment was activated.It had been two days since I’d called her, so I was surprised it took her brother this long to get to town.Their parents were with him, all swooping in as if they were the CIA storming a criminal’s secret lair.What they didn’t know was that not only had I been expecting them, I had left a few surprises for them to find once they got there.

It was all so predictable, which was, to say the least, anticlimactic.While I missed being able to watch Julie any time I wanted, I was relieved that they hadn’t found the secret camera that I had embedded in the unicorn as well.I was shocked that they let Daisy have it after removing the AirTag, and was relieved that the camera had gone undetected.It was already proving to be worth the investment so I could watch that asshole she was staying with and make sure he didn’t try anything with her.I hadn’t told her that I had seen him because I wanted to get her where I knew it mattered the most—her daughter.

I clicked on the screen that showed the camera in the unicorn and pressed the button to view the live feed.I knew that I couldn’t rely on the battery lasting long now that I didn’t have access to her apartment to change it out when needed.But I also couldn’t stop myself from watching what she was doing and taking note of her location.While I didn’t love the fact that someone was there with her, I felt confident that I could eliminate him just as easily as I had her husband.

The living room came into view as Daisy sat on the couch, coloring while the dog laid on the floor beside her.She was such a good child, and I knew she would adjust easily to me being her new dad once I got all this nonsense taken care of.It provided me with a great sense of relief, being able to see what was going on without being there by watching whenever I wanted to.The only downside was when Daisy would toss the stuffed animal around, and the only view I could get was of the wall or the couch cushion.

I had gone through a lot of work getting everything set up one day while Julie was at the store.I knew when she started acting differently that she was going to run—and honestly, I had been expecting it.When I made the first move on her, I was quite disappointed that she hadn’t felt the same way, but I chalked it up to the fact that it was her first relationship since her husband died, and that she just needed time.

But then she started pulling away and getting more distant—so drastic times called for drastic measures.I had already put in a lot of time and effort into making this work, so I wasn’t going to give up now.

When I noticed her spending more on groceries but not having anything extra in her apartment, I figured she was stocking up so she could leave.I pretended not to notice and used the time she was gone to plant the cameras in her apartment and to set up the camera in the unicorn on her phone’s network, so I didn’t have to worry about where she went.I even went so far as to label it as our work Wi-Fi network so she wouldn’t be suspicious.

Everything was going according to plan.

I smiled as I looked at the wall beside me, which was covered in photos of Julie from the first time I saw her, almost six years ago.She was at a coffee shop, consumed by the book she was reading, her features changing as the story unfolded.Her swollen stomach barely fit in the booth, but she was radiant and glowed the way only an expectant mother could.

I hadn’t meant to stare at her and watch her, but I found that I couldn’t look away.I pulled up the camera on my phone and started taking pictures, never knowing that this would become my new obsession.

She looked so happy that her eyes sparkled with joy.The only problem was that asshole husband of hers who stood in our way.I had considered cutting him out of the photos, but decided to leave him so it would be my motivation to finish what I started.

I shifted in my seat and returned my focus to Julie’s apartment as her brother packed things into a duffel bag and looked around the room.Suddenly, his eyes landed on the picture frame where I’d hidden one of the cameras.I watched as he walked through the apartment, finding the rest of them.His face contorted with anger as he picked each one up and disabled it.I growled under my breath, frustrated even though I knew Julie wasn’t coming back to this apartment.

Then he walked over to the table where her computer was and stopped, staring at the papers I’d left out for him to find.His face turned red as he gripped them tightly.He hadn’t found the last camera yet, so I turned up the volume so I could hear what he was saying as his parents came into the room.

“What’s that?”her mother asked, her brows furrowed as he turned the papers to face her.

“Adoption paperwork for Daisy.This fucking idiot is out of his god damn mind if he thinks Julie would ever sign off on this,” he responded bitterly.

I tried to ignore the anger that was bubbling up to the surface because I knew he didn’t mean that.Julie would sign them because I would make sure she did.One way or another, I was going to have her, and Daisy would be a bonus, given that I’d always wanted children.

“You need to see this,” her dad said, covering his mouth with his hand.

They walked over, and I watched as they all stared in disbelief.

I had taken the photos out of Julie’s album that she had made for Daisy with pictures of her with her father.Instead of cutting Mike out of the photos, I’d glued my head on top of his, so it was me and Daisy in the photos.I even added a few that had Julie, so they could see what a happy family the three of us would be.

“This asshole is sick,” her father said, shaking his head.

“That’s not the worst part,” her mother said, holding up the heart-shaped keychain that was sitting beside them on the kitchen table.“This is the keychain that Julie bought for Mike the first Christmas they spent together.After his accident, they returned his belongings to her, and I remember her searching frantically for the keychain.She was devastated.We even went to the site of the accident, praying it would somehow show up.”

“How did it get here?”her father asked, studying the mom.

“I don’t know.”

“Maybe Julie had another one made to replace it?”her father offered.

“No.I can’t imagine Julie doing that,” her mother rushed out.“She wouldn’t have done something like that.”

“Can I see it?”her brother asked, holding his hand out.

Her mother nodded and handed it to him.On the front of the heart, it was engraved with "I will love you forever," and on the back, it was engraved with "Julie + Mike."

He flipped it over, and I grinned when I watched his face change when he read what I had carved into the back of the heart after putting a line through Mike’s name:You were mine first.

“What does that mean?”her mother asked, covering her mouth as a gasp slipped out.

“I think he’s been obsessed with Julie longer than we thought.”