Total pages in book: 94
Estimated words: 89224 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 446(@200wpm)___ 357(@250wpm)___ 297(@300wpm)
Estimated words: 89224 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 446(@200wpm)___ 357(@250wpm)___ 297(@300wpm)
“Why do you think he did it?” he asks after a few minutes, and I glance over at him.
“I don’t know, maybe she told him that she was pregnant before she got the chance to take the test and he panicked. He wouldn’t be the first man to kill a woman he didn’t want to have a kid with. And if he couldn’t get Anna alone for whatever reason, Grace could have been collateral damage. I’ve seen men do worse when they feel they are losing control of their lives.”
“Because just ending a relationship isn’t an option.”
“I’m not saying I understand it, but you and I both know it happens more often than it should, especially when a woman is pregnant.”
The last study that came out claimed that women are thirty percent more likely to be murdered during pregnancy or shortly after, and three women a day are murdered by an intimate partner. Even now in the twenty-first century women are considered disposable to some. And raising a daughter, knowing what I do and seeing firsthand the devastation left behind in those types of scenarios is something that will forever keep me up at night.
I come out of my thoughts when my phone rings and glance at the screen on the dash. Seeing it’s Winter’s school calling I press answer.
“Hello.”
“Mr. Thatcher, this is Lisa, the nurse at Rose Crest Elementary.”
Shit.
“Hi Lisa.”
“I’m sorry to bother you but Winter’s teacher sent her down to my office because she’s not feeling great, I took her temp and it’s ninety-nine which isn’t considered a fever but it’s still above normal. I was wondering what you’d like me to do.”
“I’m about forty-five minutes outside of Nashville but I’ll have someone there to pick her up.”
“Sounds good, I’ll have her go get her things from her class.”
“Thanks Lisa.” I hang up and dial Emma’s cell.
“Hey.” Her soft voice sounds over the car stereo and the memory of her using that same tone this morning when I was still buried inside of her, and she asked me once more to tell her something she didn’t know about me. My answer was that I hate avocados. Hers was that peaches are her favorite fruit.”
“Hey baby, are you with a client?”
“I’m just finishing up with my last client of the day, is everything okay?”
“Win’s school called. She’s in the nurses’ office and I’m about forty-five minutes away.”
“Oh no, I’ll go get her. I should be done here in about five minutes.”
“Are you sure? I can see if Clay is around,” I say realizing that I called her first without even thinking about calling Clay or anyone else.
“Of course, should I take her to Urgent Care or her doctor?”
“Maybe check and see what’s bothering her. It could just be a bug.”
“Okay, I’ll call you after I pick her up.”
“Thanks baby.”
“Anytime.” She hangs up after a soft goodbye.
“Girlfriend?” Martinez asks. I glance over at him as the number for the school’s office rings. I want to let them know that Emma will be picking Win up so that there are no issues when she arrives at the school to get her early.
“Yeah,” I mutter even though it feels strange referring to her as my girlfriend. Especially when she’s become so fucking important to not just me but also Win. She’s fit herself into our lives like she was always here and every fucking day I wonder how we survived for so long without her.
CHAPTER 33
emma
I glance back into the rearview mirror after shifting my car into Park and find Winter with her head resting back against the seat, her eyes closed, and her cheeks flushed. When I got to the school to pick her up, the nurse let me know numerous kids have been out with the flu, and she most likely caught the bug from a friend in her class. Then she told me the good news is the worst of it normally only lasts about seventy-two hours, so she will hopefully feel better by Monday, when it’s time to go back to school.
Taking my bag off the passenger seat, I push my door open and get out, then open hers. She doesn’t even twitch when I reach across her to unbuckle her seatbelt, nor when I lift her out of the car. But I notice immediately that she feels warmer than she did when I picked her up from school. Adjusting my hold on her so I can close the door, I instantly realize it’s going to be difficult to get my cell out of my bag while carrying her. And I’m going to need it to get onto the elevator.
“Crap.”
“Bad word coin,” she mumbles sleepily, making me laugh.
“Sorry.” I step up onto the sidewalk and happen to glance toward the end of the block as Miles’s SUV turns the corner. “Daddy’s home,” I tell her quietly, relieved I won’t have to put her down to grab my phone.