Now she was really confused. “Everything about us has been fabulous. As for a future . . . I mean, when things are good they keep going and when they aren’t they end. You know I’m not in a place to offer more commitment than we have right now.”

Matt shook his head. “I’m not going about this right. For the first time in forever I feel a real connection with someone, you, and I’m scared to death you’re going to run away.”

She covered his hand with hers. “Matt, why would I run . . .” And then it hit her. The only reason she would run. “Desmond.” When he didn’t immediately deny the sheer mention of her ex, she panicked. “What do you know?”

“The brake lines weren’t an accident or a recall. I had a friend at the sheriff’s station take a look. They were cut, Erin. The first thing Ty asked was who had a grudge.”

The back of her throat constricted, and suddenly she felt entirely exposed, half naked and lounging by the pool. All the while in the back of her mind, she knew this was going to happen. Suspected it at the first mention of her brake problem being an anomaly.

Matt watched as she absorbed the information.

She needed to leave. That’s why Matt was talking the way he was. He knew.

“Running isn’t the answer,” Matt said. Both hands were on her knees and squeezing.

“So I sit back and wait for him to slice something better next time?”

“First”—he held up a finger—“we need to talk to this lawyer of yours. The one who said he was in Greece. She helped you get away from him before, right?”

“Yes.” I need to pack.

“She knows everything, right?”

I don’t have a car.

“Erin?”

“What?”

“She knows everything, right?”

“Yes . . . no. She doesn’t know where I am.”

“Really?”

“No. We used a complicated paper trail so Desmond couldn’t track it.” She swung her feet off Matt’s lap. “I went through a lot of effort so he could never find me. How the hell did he find me?”

Matt followed her into the house. “What are you doing?”

She didn’t know where to start. Just the essentials.

“Erin?”

She twisted around and yelled. “What?”

“What are you doing?”

“I’m panicking, Matt. I need to go.” Just saying that made her want to weep. “I don’t want to. But he won’t stop until I’m dead.” Her gaze fell to the bandages on her arms. “He did this. He could have killed all of us.” She twisted again. “Oh, God.”

“Erin, please. Let’s talk about this logically. You’re reacting and not thinking clearly. What if he wants you to run so he can get you alone?”

“Then at least he won’t hurt anyone else.”

It was Matt’s turn to panic. “No. I won’t let that happen.” He walked up and grabbed her arms. It was the first time he’d ever touched her with anything less than gentle hands. All she had to do was look at his hands and he flexed his fingers and softened his hold. “You have people here who can help you. We need facts. Is he here in the valley or did he send someone to do this for him? If it was someone else, you won’t even know who to watch out for if you leave.”

His words started to clear the fog.

Matt kept talking. “If he is here, and we have proof that your brakes were vandalized, then we get your lawyer to slap another restraining order on him. We have police confirmation of foul play and an accident report. We might even have probable cause to bring him in for questioning.”

“He has a lot of money, Matt. He won’t be in jail for long, if at all.”

Matt pushed into her personal space. “Please don’t run. I can’t protect you out there. But here, with all the people I know, those my dad knows . . . Colin’s team. Doesn’t that sound like a better chance than you out there alone?”

“I don’t know, Matt.”

“If your logic is to leave so he can’t hurt those you care about, he already knows they exist and will hold that against you. Isn’t that why your sister doesn’t know where you are?”

Matt was right. Could she forgive herself any less if Parker was hurt, or Mallory, Austin? Any of them? Erin leaned against the arm of her sofa.

Matt knelt in front of her. “Let’s call your lawyer.”

Erin found herself nodding, and Matt reached around her and dropped his head in her lap.

CHAPTER TWENTY-SIX

Matt waited while Erin showered and then handed her a second cup of coffee while they sat in her living room.

With her cell phone in front of them, she made the call.

He held her hand in his and watched every emotion wash over her face.

“Hello, Renee.”

“How are you? It’s great to hear your voice. Did you try that beet juice I told you about?” The attorney’s voice was like a cheerleader. Upbeat and timed as if she were chanting. And what was up with the beets?

“I’m . . . it’s not good. And yes, I did.”

In an instant, Renee’s voice dropped an octave. “What’s going on? Talk to me.”

Erin glanced at Matt.

“You know the man I was telling you about?”

“Oh, please don’t tell me he ended up being a douche.”

Erin smiled for the first time in the last hour and looked at him.

Matt pointed a finger to his chest and mouthed, Me?

“No . . . he’s a pretty amazing man. You would definitely approve.”

“Oh, so what, then?”

“He’s sitting right here, actually. I have the phone on speaker.”

Renee was silent.

Matt looked at the phone. “Did she hang up?”

“What about the coconut water . . . did you like that?” Renee asked.

“Yes, Renee. I did. I’m okay. Well, right now. I told Matt everything.”

“You what?”

“He knows about Desmond.”

“Hoookay, and you called to tell me that?”

Erin swallowed hard and had a difficult time finding the right words so Matt jumped in.

“Hello, Renee. Listen. We need to know if Desmond is in Greece. Actually we need to know if anyone knows exactly where he is right now.”

“Why?”

Erin found her voice. “Because he found me.”

“God no, Maci. Are you sure?”

Matt turned his head, narrowed his eyes. “Maci?”

Erin waved him off. “Someone sliced holes in my brake lines . . .” For the next five minutes, she explained to her attorney what had happened.

“Are you absolutely sure this was foul play?” Renee asked when Erin finished her story.

“Yes,” Matt answered. “If we can prove Desmond is in town, can we get a restraining order again?”

“We can ask for one, but if he isn’t home or at work to receive it . . .”

Erin closed her eyes. “What do I do, Renee? Do I disappear again?”

“If he knows your new name and your location, then we need to start at zero. There’s no point in leaving until we have those things in place.”