Page 24 of Fragile Sanctuary

Normally, I didn’t venture outside without a weapon. It was stupider than shit when there was a serial killer out there who thought messing with my life was fun and games. Someone who’d never been caught.

But tonight, I didn’t give a damn. I almost wished hewasout there. Wished he’d take me, too. At least, it would mean the end of this torture spiral.

That was what he wanted. Not to end my life but to see me suffer. But you could never tell when a psychopath would grow tired of waiting and need more. Need to see the life drain from your eyes or the blood spill from your body.

An owl hooted as the cold night air hit me full blast. Even though we were into April, the nights in the mountains could still hit freezing. I welcomed it. Maybe the cold could beat back the memories.

I stared out at the landscape in front of me, the forests dipping into fields and ranch lands. I didn’t feel any of the peace it sometimes gave me.

This was why I didn’t talk about the past. Because when it got a foothold, it could drag me down and swallow me whole.

8

RHODES

A cacophonyof birdsong filled the air as I opened my SUV door. Grinning, I slid out and shut the door behind me. I loved working first shift at the nursery. Thanks to all the plants around us, we could’ve doubled as a bird sanctuary.

Three swooped through the air, landing on a display of shrubs near the front. They chattered back and forth in their bird-speak as the early sun streamed over the horizon. A chill still clung to the air, but I had my thick Bloom & Berry Nursery sweatshirt to keep me warm. The same one I’d had since junior year of high school. It was just the right amount of worn while somehow managing to hold on to a bit of its cozy softness.

Another bird let out an especially shrill call, and I winced. “A little early for that, don’t you think?”

It seemed to stare at me in judgment.

I chuckled and pushed off my SUV, heading for the main greenhouse. We had several on the property. Bloom wasn’t a small operation. Duncan’s family had been running it for generations, and it hadgrown a bit each year. Now, it was a sight to behold, complete with a small café where customers could grab breakfast, lunch, or coffee.

Testing the doorknob to the greenhouse, I opened the door, not at all surprised that Duncan had beaten me in, even with me being fifteen minutes early to my shift.

“You in here, Dunc?” I called.

A figure straightened midway down the second row. A handful of years older than me, Duncan was brawny with tanned skin that spoke of a life spent in the sunshine. “Morning.”

“How are the babies?” I asked, inclining my head toward the seedlings in front of him.

He grinned. “Holding steady.” That curve of his mouth slipped a bit as he scanned my face. He cleared his throat. “How’d yesterday go?”

I rolled my lips over my teeth to keep any annoyance from slipping out. The problem with living in a small town was that everyone knew your past. Knew your business. Even if the concern came from a good place, it sometimes felt stifling.

“Good,” I finally said, then smiled. “Lolli made me a dick flower for my new place, so how could it be anything else?”

Duncan’s brows nearly hit his hairline, and he started coughing. “Did you say dick flower?”

I pulled out my phone and tapped the screen a few times until I navigated to my photos. Turning it around, I showed Duncan. His cheeks turned pink, and he started shaking his head.

I couldn’t help it, I burst out laughing. “We could offer her a show here. She’d love it.”

Duncan scrubbed a hand over his bearded cheek. “I really don’t need to get arrested for corrupting minors.”

“Keely asked for her own dick flower last night at dinner. Trace was not pleased.”

Duncan chuckled. “I don’t imagine so. Speaking of brothers, we need to pull a few more things for Shep’s order.”

“Sure. You got the list?” I locked my phone and shoved it back into my pocket. Shep was finishing up a stunning new build in thefoothills, and being a perfectionist meant he had to handle the landscaping, too.

Duncan tugged a scrap of paper from his back pocket and handed it to me. “Got most of it pulled and in the loading area last night, but I didn’t want to chance some of the flowers. Think you can handle the rest?”

I scanned the list, my lips twitching. It’d taken me years to decipher Duncan’s scrawl. A good seventy-five percent of the items were scratched out already. The only ones left were things the deer might decide to make a snack of. “Got it. I’ll start watering after. We should move the peonies up to the front, too. Some of them are starting to bloom.”

Duncan pinned me with a stare. “When are you going to take the manager position?”

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