05

Zeb was now a hometown hero of sorts. The stories of his various medals and acts of courage have been in the papers for several years now. He was a soldier that bravely fought for our country. He had been willing to sacrifice his life for the rights that most of us take advantage of on a daily basis.

No ! It wasn’t worth it. The past just needed to stay in the past where it belongs.

Elizabeth shook her head from side to side. “There is nothing going on between us. It’s just that I haven’t seen him in six years, and when he left it wasn’t necessarily on good terms. I really don’t have anything to say to him and

I’d just as soon let it be. Right now, all I want is my shower and a bed.”

She could tell that Bobby wasn’t buying what she was telling him. She could almost see the wheels turning in his head as he stared intently at her. “Only if you’re sure that you’re going to be okay.”

This time Elizabeth smiled. “Yes, I promise you I’ll be fine Bobby, and as soon as I get my shower and a nap, I’ll be even better.”

Bobby grunted but accepted her answer. Leaning in, he gave her a sisterly peck on the forehead. “I’m not going to say anything else for now but I want you to promise me that if there is a problem or something I need to know, you’ll come tell me.”

“Of course.”

“I mean it Liz.” He warned. “I want to know if he starts bothering you. I may have a hard on for his car but you matter. I’ll open up a good ole’ fashion can of whoop ass if I have to.”

Lizzie started to laugh and hugged her friend. “I know you would Bobby and I thank you for that. You’re a good man Bobby. You know I love you ?”

“You better.” He crushed her to him. “But don’t think you’re getting out of paying me for that tire.”

Lizzie pushed back from him and tried her best to give him a stern look. “After you made me wait all that time ? I think I deserve a discount.”

Bobby rolled his eyes. “Always working a bargain, aren’t you Lizzie pooh.”

She lifted a mocking brow. “Of course. Some of us actually have to pay bills.”

He smiled back at her. “I’ll see what I can do.”

Ten minutes later, Lizzie quickly sidesteps Zeb in an effort to get out of the lobby. To give the man credit, he never said a word to her from the time that she followed Bobby back inside to pay for her tire to the time that she exited the cursed place. He just stood there and quietly watched her in a way that made her feel uncomfortable. She could feel his burning gaze on her back but she never once gave in to the urge to turn around.

Settling in her car, Elizabeth finally took a breath and cranked up the air conditioning. She hoped that she would never have to face that man again. She had no idea why he came back and she didn’t want to know. All she wanted was for him to leave again so she could get back to her perfect little life.

Pulling out of the garage Elizabeth made the mistake and looked up in her rearview mirror.

“Damn !” she exclaimed and gripped the steering wheel with her fingers even tighter. There he was standing in all his glory just outside the front door looking like a Greek God. He had his hands on his hips and the muscles along the expanse of his chest flexed with the slightest movement. His stormy blue-grey eyes were trained solely on her and that same feeling of unease that she had felt earlier swept through Elizabeth’s system again.

She groaned and forced her attention back to the road she was turning on. Zeb probably didn’t have a clue as to why she just acted like a first rate bitch. The last memory that he had of them was her sleeping dreamlessly away in his bed.

Elizabeth gunned the gas pedal to her small hatchback and tore down the street. She shouldn’t care what Zeb thought. No, she didn’t care one iota about what he thought of her. Let Zeb Crooker think what he wants to. He made his decision six years ago when he left her arms and walked into another’s.

This time she was the one making the decisions by making sure that she stayed as far away from him as she possibly could. Distance was the key.

Pulling into her familiar gravel drive, Elizabeth was already feeling a little better about her resolve. Once she had that shower she had been dreaming about all afternoon she would be feeling pretty darn near perfect, she thought to herself.

Walking into her small but comfortable cottage, she carelessly dropped her purse by the door and kicked off her shoes. After pushing the door closed behind her, she started for the kitchen for a nice tall glass of sweet tea. In all the excitement of the afternoon, she hadn’t drunk anything and now she felt absolutely parched.

Standing up on her tiptoes, Elizabeth was reaching up in the cabinet for a glass when the ominous sound of a car door slamming caught her attention. Dropping back on her heels she frowned. Her house was settled in the bend of a two mile road. She didn’t get hardly any traffic so it didn’t make any sense for her to be hearing a car door close.

Spinning around, Elizabeth waded over to the kitchen window and wanted to scream. It was him ! How dare he follow her home ? He had no right- no right at all.

Elizabeth took the glass that she held in her hand and slammed it down hard against the countertop. Didn’t he get the message the first time around or was she not clear enough when she told him ‘screw you’ ? Didn’t he understand that she didn’t want him anywhere around her ?