She quickly snags the cup from my hand, her soft fingers gliding over mine. I hastily pull away and leave.
Only after I’ve reached the kitchen, do I hear her closing the door.
“Mere, come on. You’re gonna be late,” I holler from the kitchen, placing the cereal box and milk carton on the table.
She places her schoolbag on the dining table before opening the fridge and pouring herself a glass of OJ. Her gaze slides to the stairs and asks, “Should we invite Clementine for breakfast?”
“No.” My lips purse. Even though I hate to kill the hopeful expression on Mere’s face, my chest fills with fucking pride at her thoughtfulness. But after this morning, I want to stay away from our tenant as much as possible.
“But she doesn’t have—”
“She can buy breakfast like every other person her age.” I fix Merida with my pointed gaze. “She is a tenant, Mere, don’t forget that.”
“But can’t we be friendly?” she asks, dropping her Fruit Loops into a bowl.
“Friendly, yes. Overfriendly no.”
She is late for school and thank God, she doesn’t argue any further.
After Mere leaves, I finish my breakfast while looking at the new case file. Another abduction has been reported. This time a girl was kidnapped on her way to school. On impulse, I check my daughter’s location.
My racing heart settles when I see her on the usual school route. I put the dishes in the dishwasher and grab my bag to leave.
After locking the main door, my gaze turns up to the loft. I didn’t hear Clementine the entire morning. I hope Miss Hawthorne didn’t fall asleep and is late for her first day at work.
In my car, I wait at the signal after exiting the street, and my gaze lands on Clementine sitting alone at the bus stop. Dressed in a brown skirt and black sweater with black leggings and boots, she looks so young. My heart pounds at the sight of her. St. Peppers is a safe place, but still, with the recent happenings in the neighboring town, I can’t help but worry. My grip on the steering wheel tightens.
What the fuck is she doing here?
Why doesn’t she own a car?
Glancing her way for the last time as she’s busy reading something on her phone, I take a left and turn the radio on. I tune in to traffic announcements. Due to an accident between a sedan and a box truck, public transportation in this area has been cut off.
How is Clementine going to reach Vanshionista?
I shake my head.
She needs to figure out how to live by herself. Isn’t that what she wants? I make another right and wait at the signal. My mind keeps going back to my new tenant sitting alone at the stop, waiting for the bus.
When the light turns green, my hands steer the wheel and I make a sharp U-turn, earning a middle finger from an impatient Honda driver.
I stop at the bus stop and honk, but she doesn’t turn. I honk twice and that gets her attention.
She glances at my car before her brows rise. Clementine takes a step closer to the driver side and I ignore my fucking pulse as it picks up for some strange reason.
“There’s no bus today.”
“What? Why?” Her wild eyes search around, as if her transportation will magically appear.
“There’s been an accident. This route is closed.” I nod to the passenger seat. “Get in, I’ll drop you off.”
“You’ll…drop me off?” Her head jerks up as she looks at me incredulously. “How did you know I was here?”
“I saw you when I was passing by.”
Why is she asking all these questions?
“You came back for me?” Her mouth opens in surprise, making it a bigger deal than it is and I second-guess my return.