I parked in the driveway just after two.
Matthew’s car was there.
Odd.
He usually didn’t finish work until five.
I unlocked the front door as quietly as I could.
Then I heard my name.
My hand froze on the knob.
I heard my name.
Matthew stood in the living room, talking on the phone.
“…don’t worry.” He laughed softly. “She walked right into my trap back in high school.”
Every muscle in my body locked.
Then he spoke again.
The smile disappeared.
“I’ve been working on this since we were teenagers,” he added.
The gift bag slipped against my leg.
“She walked right into my trap back in high school.”
My fingers tightened until the paper handles dug painfully into my skin.
Who was he talking to?
What trap?
Why did it involve me?
Silence stretched between his sentences.
Then his voice grew quieter.
“I kept everything.”
A chill raced through my body.
Everything?
“I kept everything.”
I edged closer without thinking.
The hardwood floor creaked.
I stopped breathing.
Matthew didn’t notice.
He continued pacing.
“I honestly wasn’t sure she’d ever believe she could do it.”
My stomach twisted.
Make it where?
“I honestly wasn’t sure she’d ever believe she could do it.”
