“I know,” I whispered, even though I hadn’t been able to hear Knox and the girl, so I knew they couldn’t hear me. “I’m sorry, I wasn’t thinking.”
She rolled her eyes and threw the can of food she’d been holding into her cart. Her already loud voice grew louder and raised an octave. “Well, don’t you think that was a little obvious when you tried to run me over?”
“Yeah, prob—” The word cut off when I felt a presence behind me, and the woman’s eyes snapped up and rounded.
“Low,” Knox’s deep voice rumbled. “Everything okay here?”
Knox
Present Day—Richland
“I’M TELLIN’ YOU, this girl is the one. I’m gonna get a ring and put it on her finger, and get out of the bachelor life for good,” Pete said as we walked into the grocery store to get food for the firehouse. The rest of the guys and I rolled our eyes.
Every couple of months or so Pete had a new girl he liked to claim was “the one,” only to replace her with someone else not long after. So if he was talking about getting a ring, then I was sure this girl only had a few days to a week left with Pete before she found herself single.
“I saw that! I saw you roll your eyes, but none of you have met her. You haven’t seen her . . .”
I turned to look at the guys, and mouthed the rest of what Pete said as he said it.
“. . . she’s got wife material written all over her.”
I laughed when Pete smacked my arm. It was what he said about all of them. “One day you’ll actually find someone, Pete,” I said. “And maybe then we’ll stop making fun of you.” I gave him a look and shrugged. “Maybe.”
We all tensed at the high-pitched shriek, ready for whatever it could mean, but my body relaxed and a smile crossed my face the second I caught a dimpled three-year-old running full speed toward me.
I bent down and grabbed her up into my arms as she yelled, “My Superman!”
“Hey, little flyer!” Pete said, and held up a hand for a high-five.
After slapping his hand quickly, she looked back at me and began talking as fast as ever. “Superman, I miss you. Can you come back so we can fly? We aren’t at my house, we’re at my aunt’s house, but you can find us at my aunt’s house, right? Because the fire hurt mine? But we’re going back to our house. Mommy said so, so we can. Where’s your cape?”
“Where’s yours?” I asked, and gave a disapproving look when I didn’t see the starry blanket in her hands.
She leaned close to whisper, “It’s in Mommy’s car because I can’t fly in here, she said.”
Natalie’s mom, whom I’d met later on the night of the fire, walked up to us and gave an awkward wave. “Hi, guys. Sorry about this; she saw you and was so excited.”
“Not a problem,” I murmured, and smiled when Natalie patted me excitedly and looked at her mom.
“Mommy, did you see? Superman is here!”
“I saw,” she said with wide, apologetic eyes. “We should let him go though, sweetie; they have things to do.”
Ignoring her mom, Natalie looked at me with the most excited expression and softly asked, “How are the stars?”
My smile widened and I whispered back, “Still saying you’re the bravest little girl.”
With a secretive smile, she again agreed. “I am.”
“Natalie, honey,” her mom said.
“I have to go,” the little girl said with a sad sigh.
“See you around, Natalie,” I said as I set her back down on the ground.
“Promise?”
“If the stars can see you, I can see you.”
Natalie sent me the cheesiest grin and took off after her mom, but after a few seconds turned and ran back to smack into my legs. Hugging them tightly, Natalie said, “You’re my favorite, Superman.”
I couldn’t respond as she released me, I just watched her go, my gaze only leaving her to automatically look over my shoulder when a woman yelled, “Excuse you!”
My body froze when I noticed Harlow trying to calm a woman down who kept yelling at her. Despite my instant irritation at someone yelling at my Harlow, relief surged through my body at seeing Harlow here. She was okay.
“You do realize you’re in a crowded store; you can’t just go flying around without looking where you’re going,” the woman continued, and by that point, I was already stalking toward them despite the confused calls from my crew.
The woman put her hands on her hips and gave Harlow a look that clearly said Harlow was beneath her. “Well, don’t you think that was a little obvious when you tried to run me over?”
“Yeah, prob—” Harlow began, but stopped when the other woman’s head tilted back to take me in, her eyes widening as she did.
“Low,” I mumbled. “Everything okay here?”
Harlow’s body sagged. “Yes,” she said softly.
I didn’t take my eyes off the other woman, and they narrowed when she opened her mouth and put a hand up like she was about to disagree with Harlow. Her mouth snapped shut.
“Again. Is everything okay here?”
Harlow swayed back toward me as we waited for the woman to respond, and I lifted an arm to grasp her thin waist in my hand. But the second I touched her, her body jolted and she moved away from me like I’d electrocuted her.
“Fine, fine. Just your everyday grocery store collision,” the woman tried to joke, but when she saw the frustration on my face from Harlow jumping away from me, she nodded absentmindedly, grabbed her cart, and took off in the opposite direction.
“Low,” I began, but Harlow whirled around and whispered, “You need to leave!”
My eyebrows slammed down and my shoulders went up as I threw a hand out. “Why are you always trying to make me leave?”
“He’s here, Collin is in the store, and I don’t know when he’s going to come looking for me. You can’t be here when he does.”
I automatically looked behind me, then took the step back to get out of the aisle and look up and down the store. When I didn’t see her husband, I walked back into the aisle and pushed her farther into it with me.
“No, no, no, no, Knox, no!” she said. “He cannot find me with you!”
I turned her so her back was against the shelf of bread and caged her in. “Tell me what the hell happened yesterday.”