Chapter Eight
Larkin got out and made her way past the fence. The hole had been there for as long as she could remember. She snuck under the canopy of the tree to keep the cameras from catching her. The back patio door was unlocked as it should be at that time of day. Just inside the door, she stopped and listened and could hear Ella singing in the kitchen. It made tears come to her eyes to know she’d never hear it again.
She wiped them away. Enough. She could cry all she wanted when she got where she was going.
She carefully took the back stairs and walked into her playroom. Then she took one more look around and silently said goodbye.
After closing the door, she went to the master bedroom and sighed in relief when that door closed behind her because she didn’t have to be as quiet because she was so far from the kitchen.
Larkin dug into the closet for a suitcase she’d brought with her. It was beaten up, but it was hers. She found the drawer where she kept her money and put some in her suitcase, some in her shoe, and the rest in her wallet.
When she opened it, she saw the debit card Darian had given to her, which she rarely used. She set it on his nightstand before grabbing her things from the bathroom.
“Were you never going to talk to me again?”
She screamed and twirled toward the door where Darian stood, leaning against the doorjamb with a drink in his hand.
“Why aren’t you at work?” Her gaze raced over him, and she was amazed at how bad he looked.
“You weren’t going to say goodbye? Maybe write a note?”
Her stomach started twisting. The last thing she wanted was to see him.
She wiped a lone tear from her cheek. “I’m sorry about coming to get my stuff without talking to you. I’m not taking anything of yours. I promise.”
“I’m supposed to listen to your promises and believe them?” he asked.
Her eyes widened. “What are you talking about? You’re the one who broke your promise to always be here.”
“But I have been here. I’m not the one leaving.”
She pressed on her temple. “Listen, I don’t want to get into this shit with you.” She ignored his scowl at her cursing. “I’ve got an Uber waiting for me.”
“No, you don’t. I paid him and told him to go away.”
She wanted to yell, but instead, she took a few deep breaths. “That’s fine. I’m perfectly able to walk.”
He narrowed his eyes.
She went back to packing, aware that he stood there and watched her. “For God’s sake, I’m not going to steal anything. You don’t have to watch me.”
“You think I’m watching you because you think I think you’re going to steal from me?”
She threw out her hands. “Yeah.”
“How about the fact I can’t take my eyes off you because I love you?”
She snorted. “If that was true, or you really cared, you wouldn’t have lied to me for so long. You’ve also been pulling away from me for a while. You never hold me at night anymore. When you didn’t call me all week, I knew you didn’t give a shit.”
“Watch your mouth, baby.”
She looked at him like he was crazy. “You don’t get to tell me what to do ever again.”
He growled.
“Listen, I’m not sure what’s going on right now—” she said, but he interrupted her.
“How about I wanted to talk to you every day, but I wanted to give you a chance to heal. I was also busy this week.”