While she enters the number into her phone, I pick up the handbag and pull the zipper closed before I grab my backpack. I squash them both to my chest to keep them safe.
“Evening, Mr. Cahoon. This is Cassia, Jenna’s cousin.” She winks at me. “Jenna will no longer be working for you. We’re leaving in ten minutes, so I suggest you send someone over to take care of the store.”
Not waiting for his response, she ends the call. “We’re leaving now. I’ll have one of my guards wait for Mr. Cahoon.”
Wow. Cassia must be important if she has bodyguards.
I rush around the counter, and when I step out of the store, I pause to glance over my shoulder at the place where I’ve worked every night for the past eight years.
Even though I hated the work, I’ve spent so much time here, and it makes me feel nostalgic.
Then it dawns on me I won’t have to interact with people. Derek, Wayne, and Kirk won’t be able to come to my place of work anymore.
The thought is the only push I need to turn my back on the store. Then I see my bicycle and I walk to it and take hold of the bars.
I notice five men standing around. I look at Cassia, who’s standing by the back door of her SUV, and notice there’s another one parked by one of the pumps.
Shoot, how do I tell her I want to take my bicycle home with me without talking?
“We can load it into the guard's SUV, and they can bring it to the house,” she says.
When one of the men moves in my direction, I quickly let go of my bicycle and step out of the way.
“Come, Jenna.” Cassia gestures for me to get into the back seat, and after I do as I’m told, she climbs in beside me.
Two men climb into the front seats, and when the driver starts the engine, he asks, “Where to, ma’am?”
Crap. My address.
When Cassia gives them my address, my eyes fly to her face, and it has her explaining, “I did a search on you to make sure you’re a good fit for my business partner.”
I have so many questions, but I swallow them all as we drive away from the gas station.
I turn in the seat and look out the back window, and I see the guards loading my bicycle into their SUV.
God, is this really happening? Am I making a mistake?
As if Cassia can read my thoughts, she says, “Like I said earlier, you made the right decision, Jenna. I guarantee you’ll be safe and well cared for.”
I hope so. If I’m walking into a trap and she ends up hunting my butt through the woods, like I’ve seen in a horror movie, I deserve to die.
I look at the gorgeous cream dress and high heels she’s wearing and almost let out a snort because there’s no way she’s chasing me through the woods in those shoes.
I’m used to it taking forty-five minutes to get home, so when we stop in front of my house, I’m surprised by how fast the drive went.
I clutch the two bags to my chest as I climb out, then hook the handbag over my shoulder so I can dig my keys out of my backpack. I struggle with the lock, and when the front door squeaks as I open it, my cheeks turn red with embarrassment.
Cassia is going to see that I live in a dump.
She stops on the porch and says, “I’ll wait out here for you so you have privacy. Take your time.”
I give her a thankful smile before I shut the front door behind me. As I walk through the house I moved into after Mom and Aunt Sherrie sold our previous home, I once again wonder if I’m doing the right thing.
You already left the gas station, so it’s too late now. Mr. Cahoon will shout your head off if you dare go back.
In my bedroom, I crouch down by the bed and pull my luggage out from under it. I only have the one bag, but it will be enough because I don’t have a lot of clothes.
Conscious of Cassia waiting outside, I pack everything I want to take with me. I even squeeze my pillow in on top of my clothes and shoes, then hurry to grab my toiletries. Once I have everything, I zip the bag shut before lugging it to the kitchen so I can grab my favorite coffee mug.
