Page 69 of The Bodyguard

“Let me ask you, do you know Sabrina King?”

He snorted. “Uh, yeah. Like, the whole country knows Sabrina King.Cowboy Princessand all that reality shit.”

“Yeah, but did you know her before that?” I pressed.

“She was a senior when I was a freshman in high school. So I knew of her, yeah. She was the most popular girl in school. I doubt she knew who I was. What’s with all the questions?”

“Just looking into some things for her. Have you seen her in town lately?”

He seemed to consider that. “Yeah, I saw her coming out of the Piggly Wiggly like...I don’t know, a week or so ago. I pointed at her and was like, oh, shit, it’s Sabrina King. Then it was weird because I remember she took off running. No clue what startled her, though.”

“You been to Dallas recently?”

He shook his head. “I told you I was working outside of Houston. Am I in some kind of trouble here? Because I didn’t do shit.”

I could tell he was getting defensive. Probably had every right since his only crime happened to be wearing a black hoodie and loosely fitting the description Brin had given me.

Of course it made sense now that it was probably Danny she had seen that day in the street. She’d just leaped to the wrong conclusion about who he was. Which meant there was no stalker in Dusty Creek.

Which meant there was no reason to keep her at my house any longer.

“No, you’re fine. See you around town.”

“Whatever, sheriff.”

He got in his car and I watched as he drove away. I had to go home. I had to tell Brin the man she’d seen had just been someone who recognized her and who had happened to be wearing a hoodie.

I stood rooted there on the sidewalk because I knew. I knew as soon as I did, that as soon as I told her she had nothing to fear anymore, I would lose her.

Because her smile, when she beamed at me, wasn’t going to be real tonight.