Chapter 113
Ethan
I grab a bag of beef jerky off the display next to the register and set it on the counter beside the trail cam.
“Anything else?”
I shake my head and pay the total.
Not needing a bag, I shove the receipt in my pocket, then grab the box and my jerky and push through the door into the afternoon sunshine.
It’s warmer here down the mountain, but the stores in Lonely don’t have what I needed. So I took my lunch break to drive another town over, to a larger outdoor store, to buy the highest-rated trail camera.
But it’s not for a game trail. It’s for Tilda’s driveway.
I open my truck door and toss the goods onto my passenger seat. I’m about to climb in when a flash of color across the street catches my attention.
I step to the side, so my door isn’t blocking any of my view, and I watch as my pretty little wife steps out of a dispensary with a paper bag clutched to her chest.
My Matilda.
My Firecracker, buying some sort of weed so she can get high.
Dear lord.
I pull my phone out of my pocket and dial her number.
She’s in that red dress she was wearing the day she bought the pool for Quackers. And since the wind is strong again today, I’m once again grateful for the length.
Tilda stops walking, reaches into her little purse, and pulls her phone out.
And her smile hits me right in the fucking heart.
She sees my name on the screen. And she smiles.
I watch her lift the phone to her ear. “Hello, Husband.”
“Hello, Wife.”
Her smile grows even wider, and I have to remind myself there’s a busy road with traffic between us, because all I want to do is walk straight to her.
“Shouldn’t you be working?” Tilda turns so the wind blows her hair out of her eyes. And I know she doesn’t see me yet. But she’s facing my direction.
“Just on my lunch break. Had to do some shopping.”
“Oh yeah? Find anything fun?”
I smirk. “Sure did.”
“And… what is it?”
“A Firecracker dressed in red.”
Her head tilts, like she’s thinking about what I said. Then it clicks. And in an instant, her eyes lock on mine.