Keeping Gemma (Holiday Cove 2)

I shrugged. “Yeah. I’m sure they’ll be gone soon.”

“Hmm.”

We all got out of the car and they followed me up to the porch. The three of us stood there awkwardly for a moment before Holly broke the ice and gave me a gentle hug, avoiding my injured side. “Take care of yourself, Player.”

“I will.”

She pulled out of my arms and wiped away more tears. Jack took her place, wrapping one arm around my shoulders. “Call if you need anything,” he said, backing out of the embrace. “And hey, come visit one of these days. Maybe we could do Christmas over there? I’ve heard it’s beautiful.”

“Sure,” I nodded enthusiastically. Or, at least as much as I could muster. “Sounds good. You two better get out of here, though. Don’t wanna miss your flight.”

Holly gave me one more quick hug before they got back into their rental and took off.

Once they were gone, I turned my attention back to the group of people outside the museum and sighed.

Time to face fucking reality.

I trudged over to the museum and found that only Lana and Daniel, one of the other pilots I’d hired, were there. “Where’s everyone else?” I asked them as I walked in the side door and found them standing at the counter, both staring blankly at the crowd outside the doors.

“They turned around when they saw the swarm,” Lana replied, her tone flat and listless. It was odd for her to be so low. Her bubbly, go get ‘em attitude—while helpful—was often the biggest annoyance of my day.

I suddenly missed it.

“Probably for the best. Doesn’t look like we’ll have any customers today…not with them out there.” I gestured to the doors.

“I doubt it. We had three dozen calls overnight. Most of them were people cussing us out and calling you a murderer,” Daniel said matter of fact, as though that were a normal accusation. “All my tours are canceled. Look at the calendar.”

I caught Lana flashing daggers at him as I turned my attention to the computer.

“Fuck…” I breathed, flipping through virtual page after page. All of the reservations had big, red canceled labels on them. “If I’m gonna murder anyone, it’s gonna be that shit stick, O’Keefe.”

“O’Keefe?” Lana perked at the name. “The land developer? Oh my gosh!” Her hands flew to cover her mouth. “That’s where I know her from! I’ve seen her picture on all those signs, but I couldn’t make the connection. She was Mr. O’Keefe’s girlfriend.” Her eyes were darting between the protesters and me on the other side of the glass. “Oh, Mr. Rosen, this is so very, very bad.”

“Gee, ya think?” I pushed off the desk and stalked toward the back of the museum. Moments later, I heard Lana’s clunky ass shoes slapping the floor as she chased after me. “Lana, go home. Send Daniel home too. We’re closed until further notice. If any other staff call, let them know I’ll make sure everyone is paid like normal. This is my fault…you guys won’t be punished for my mistake.”

Her squeaking shoes stopped and after a long second, I heard them retreat in the other direction.

Good, I thought to myself as I continued to my office. I’m not fit to be around.

23

My pulse thundered like I’d just finished a marathon as I stood in the doorway to the hangar, my finger on the light switch, hesitating over the cool plastic as I stared into the pitch black cavern. I hadn’t been into the hangar since the night Talia and I had boarded the Cessna, but I’d exhausted all the possible tasks I could complete in my office and it was barely noon. I had to find something to keep me busy or I’d risk losing my friggin’ mind entirely.

The hangar wasn’t the ideal solution. I knew that as soon as the lights were on, the ghosts waiting for me wouldn’t be contained anymore. It was hard enough keeping my mind off of what had happened. The images of Talia’s head hanging over her shoulder, the blood, were a constant presence, waiting for me to close my eyes to assault me again.

“Come on, Rosen. Get your shit together.” My words came out barely above a forceful whisper. “Don’t be a fuckin’ pussy.”

My fingertip quivered and then flipped up.

The fluorescent lights burst on, one by one, overhead, bathing the whole place in a soft glow that grew brighter as the bulbs warmed.

It was odd how the place that had once been my sanctuary was now my own private hell.

I could almost hear the sound of Talia’s heels clicking across the concrete, the sway of her sultry hips, the way she’d smiled at me from across the room the first time we’d been there together.

I forced myself into the room, taking clipped steps across the space, and went to the last project I’d been working on. I had another mechanic on staff, but he worked on the more tedious tasks that I didn’t want to fuck with. The exceptional cases—intricate, complicated puzzles—were left exclusively to me. And the one I’d left unfinished was still nowhere close to being ready for flight.