Unlovable

Chapter 24: One Week Later

Harold watched carefully from his hiding spot amongst the trees. He would've gotten there sooner, the day after the sighting even, but Darcie basically cleaned him out when she left. It had taken him a few days to save up the money needed to get to Virginia and back. Besides, the longer she sat, the more comfortable she became in her surroundings, and the more enjoyable it would be to pounce on her.

His eyes narrowed into thin slits when she walked from the cabin, hand in hand with a mysterious man. Watching, he saw the small kiss they'd shared and it made him completely furious. She was his. To kiss. To break. His.

Harold felt like he could definitely take the guy. He was a monster in comparison. It wouldn't take much to completely remove that hillbilly from the equation all together. He laughed to himself, wondering if that hick even knew what an equation was. On a sigh, he figured it probably wouldn't come to that.

Darcie had to be alone at some point. He decided that when she was, he'd take care of all of it, and of her.

*~*~*

Darcie's imagination was getting the best of her. As she pulled away with Roger she could've sworn she'd seen a black SUV nestled in the woods. She convinced herself she was delirious. Even if there was a truck between the trees, it didn't necessarily mean that it was Harold's. There's a million and a half black explorers in the world.

Maybe it just broke down and got pushed to the corner to avoid further damage. Maybe it wasn't there at all. Although, she would've put money on it.

It's fine, she assured herself. When we come back, it'll be long gone. She took a deep breath, mentally convincing herself she would feel better after she'd taken Wishbone to the vet and had dinner with Roger at his house. Maybe she would stay the night again. It had worked out so well for them the last time.

Roger looked over at her as the drove down the street, Wishbone bouncing happily between the two of them.

"Everything alright?" he asked with a gentle squeeze of her hand.

Darcie squeezed his fingers and smiled toward him.

"Better than alright. Everything's perfect."

*~*~*

Harold tapped the face of his watch. Was it working? According to the possibly broken hands it was well after one o'clock in the morning.

When the hell did she plan on coming home? He looked up and down the empty drive. Absently, he pictured his wife snuggled up to the dark haired stranger he'd seen her with earlier in the day. A fresh wave of anger shot through him. He gripped the steering wheel, his knuckles turning a pale white under the pressure.

Harold took a deep breath. None of it mattered, he tried to convince himself. Whether or not she was screwing that man was irrelevant. She'd have to come back some time. Once she did he would be waiting for her.

That was all that mattered now.