Concealed Read Free Page B

to have seen her friend’s face. The unflappable Melissa was actually rendered speechless—a monumental feat, for sure. Agnes snorted, hiding a grin behind her mug, enjoying Melissa’s stunned silence as much as Sydney.
    Melissa recovered and tried to sputter an explanation. “M-Me? A-Are you s-serious? I-I never, I mean you’re cute but… I don’t mean like, cute like I want to go out with you, I mean cute like a puppy. No, you’re no puppy. Maybe a baby tiger. Or a shark, but they’re not really cute. I’m gonna shut up now.” Melissa spun around and retreated into the kitchen with Pete.
    “Well played, Wade,” Agnes said with a laugh, slapping him on the back. “I’m going to go ask the reverend why he talks so damn long during those sermons on Sunday. See if I can’t make that vein pop out of the side of his head for a few seconds.” She winked at Sydney and excused herself, giving them an audience-free moment.
    Sydney offered Wade an appreciative smile. The only thing she though could have derailed Melissa from her line of questioning was and atomic bomb—although apparently a gorgeous sheriff with a sarcastic streak worked too. “You’re my hero.” She slipped the sandwich across the counter and topped off his coffee. There was one piece of pie left in the case so she quickly grabbed it and placed it beside his lunch.
    “Thanks for the pie.”
    “It’s on me. It’s the least I can do after assaulting you.” She stood there awkwardly when he didn’t break their eye contact. Part of her wondered if he had something to say, but then she was startled from her reverie by Pete’s booming voice.
    “Syd, it’s three o’clock. You better hustle over to school or little Faith is going to be ticked at you for picking her up late.”
    “Oh, my gosh!” Sydney looked down at her watch. She was never late to pick up Faith. Never. She couldn’t be. But the distraction of Wade and Melissa made her lose track of time. She had been careless, and that couldn’t happen again. She scrambled to get her purse and keys from under the counter then raced out the door. It dawned on her as she tore out of the parking lot that she had walked out on all her customers without a single word.
    Including Wade.
    Swamped with guilt, Sydney managed to keep it together on the drive to school, but her mind was racing the entire way. How could she have let herself be late? Even five minutes would make a difference. The plan needed to be followed.
    Always.
    Her fingers tapped out an erratic rhythm on the steering wheel as she tried to stay calm. Years of paranoia never really went away, no matter how comfortable she was in a new location. Something always happened to disrupt her calm. Nine moves in almost six years would do that to a person. Obsessively she scanned the area and noticed an unfamiliar car parked down the street. She tamped down the unwarranted suspicion and tried to get control of her fear.
    If only she had been on time!
    She leaned across the seat, trying to see around the pickup truck in front of her, but it was impossible. Until she had Faith in the car, Sydney was going to be a ball of nerves. She never liked being apart from her daughter, but now that Faith was in school, Sydney was going to have to learn to deal with that better.
    Don’t let Faith see you like this, she told herself. When it was her turn to pick up, she took a deep breath and stepped out to take Faith by the hand.
    “She had a great day,” Miss Westmore said as Faith barreled into Sydney’s arms.
    “Momma! I made you something today.”
    “I can’t wait to see it.” She looked over at her daughter’s teacher. “Thanks. Have a nice evening.”
    Sydney ushered Faith into the car and buckled her seatbelt. The moment she was in the car, the tension and anxiety began to ease. Out of habit, she quickly scanned her surroundings and couldn’t help but feel like she was being watched. Her eyes darted to where the car had been parked on