Free Hold on to Me by Elisabeth Naughton Page B

Opening day, just you and me. I need my best girl to cheer on the Giants with me. What do you say? Is it a date?”
    She sniffled. Rubbed her eyes. Seemed unsure. “O-okay.”
    “Okay.” He had no idea if she’d even be here on opening day, if Simone was staying in San Francisco or leaving like she’d told him she planned to do. But he’d do whatever he could to make this easier for her. Even if it killed him just a little bit more. “Okay. See? There’s nothing to be sad about. This isn’t good-bye. Before you know it, I’ll be back from British Columbia, and we’ll be heading to AT&T Park.”
    She sniffled once more. Drew up her shoulders and swiped at her tears. “Promise?”
    He forced a smile for her, knowing there was no way he could ever love his own kid more than he loved her. “I promise.”
    She sucked in a deep breath, then slowly let it out. And as her own lips curled into a forced smile, he knew nothing, not even nearly dying from a head wound, compared to the pain he felt at this moment.
    Tears threatened, and he knew if he didn’t leave now, he might not be able to without making a total ass of himself. Careful not to look at Simone, he grabbed his bag from the ground, tapped Shannon on the nose, and beat feet for the doors.
    Then told himself he was better off without them. Even if in his heart he knew that was a total lie.

    N othing eased the ache that had settled deep within her chest.
    Simone set her mug of tea on the kitchen counter and ran her hand through her hair, replaying the scene in the airport for the thousandth time. The look on Mitch’s face when Shannon had raced after him and he’d caught her in that hug was something she was never going to forget.
    She looked toward the stairs. Boxes littered the hallway that ran from the kitchen to the entry. After returning home from the airport, she’d told Shannon they didn’t need to resume packing, at least not yet. They’d talked some—about what Shannon had been thinking going up to Seattle, about how dangerous that had been, and about why it was so wrong—but Simone hadn’t laid into her daughter as she’d planned. Instead, they’d cuddled on the couch and watched a movie, and even now, after putting Shannon to bed, Simone couldn’t bring herself to box up anything else.
    Was she jumping the gun? Uprooting Shannon and herself all because of her own stupid fears? Will had said they knew where she was. And not to give them anything if they came after her. That didn’t mean someone was actually coming after her, though. No one had shown up in the last two days, had they? It was highly possible all that meant was that someone was keeping tabs on her, for safety’s sake, even if she didn’t understand why. Besides, if someone had been looking for her, they could have easily found her the last three years. It wasn’t like she’d been in hiding. If the people Steve had turned on really wanted to find her, they could have done it long before now.
    But the question still remained—why would they want to? She didn’t know anything. Steve had been careful not to tell her much about the case that had pushed him into running. And she’d hooked up with him after the fact anyway. That was why Will, the US marshal assigned to her case, had assured her it was okay for her and Shannon to leave the program after Steve’s death.
    Her mind drifted back over the call as she dumped what was left of her tea into the sink and washed out her cup. She’d tried to call Will several times since then to get answers to her questions, but his phone kept going to voice mail.
    “ You remember what I told you, right? Don’t forget it .”
    Her memory flashed to the day she’d had the moving van packed, ready to head west with Shannon. Will had come by to wish the two of them good luck. He’d placed his big hands on her shoulders, looked down at her and said, “ Fear is the biggest enemy. Remember that and you’ll make it through anything. If you