“Ronan?” Grace asked. “What are you doing here?”
He had a surprisingly soft voice when he was alone. “I wanted to make sure you were okay, Gracie. I saw you out walking earlier. I figured you would be heading here, and I wanted to check on you.”
She smiled as she stood next to him, looking tiny beside his large frame. “I’ll be okay.”
He glanced my way. “You’re really married?”
“Yes.”
“You gonna treat her right?”
“If she lets me.”
“She’s my favorite.”
Grace had once told me Ronan was her favorite as well.
“I don’t think I’m supposed to have a favorite,” she confessed. “But Ronan is special. He has a way of caring for people. Looking after them without being asked. We have great conversations, and he always listens to me.” She smiled. “He’s a jokester when he’s with the other two, but on his own, he’s quieter. More reflective. If I needed him, he’d be right there.”
“I’m glad she has you,” I said.
“You won’t be so glad if you hurt her.”
“Noted.”
He bent and lifted her in his arms, hugging her tight. Her feet rose off the ground and swung slightly as he swayed. “I’m right here, Gracie. I can get to you fast if you need me.”
She patted his back. “I know.”
He put her down and grinned evilly in my direction. “I know where to hide bodies. We have lots of land.”
She laughed. “I don’t think that will be needed, but thanks.”
“Okay.” He looked at me. “I’ll be watching.”
“Right.”
He dug into his pocket and opened his palm. Inside was the ring, glittering in the light. “I found this. I thought you’d want it back.”
I took it, the metal warm from his hand. I knew better than to try to give it to Grace right now. “Thanks.”
“Sure.” He grinned and winked. “It’s pretty. Drive safe.”
He sauntered past me, stopping. “If she decides to keep you, I’m okay with that. You’re good at air hockey, and I kinda like you.”
“Thanks,” I said dryly.
He walked away, and I put our bags in the SUV and opened Grace’s door.
“High praise,” she said.
“Does it sway your decision?”
She shook her head, not answering.
Chapter 27
Jaxson
The drive was silent, the roads bare, and the miles passed quickly. I pulled up to her building, letting the SUV idle at the curb.
“Are you sure you won’t come with me?”
She turned to me with a tired smile. “I can’t take the elevator today, Jaxson. Even with you.”
“I could come up to yours.”
“I think we need a little distance.”
“I don’t want distance from you.”
“That’s not what you said a few weeks ago.”
“Grace, I—”
She cut me off. “I can’t. Not right now, Jaxson. I’m exhausted. Emotional. I’m confused and upset.”
“I want to hold you.”
She opened the door, pausing as she turned.
“I needed you to do that weeks ago. You sent me away.”
She shut the door, pulled open the back door, and grabbed her bag.
“Can I at least call you?”
“I thought you got rid of your personal cell.”
I shook my head. “No.” I paused. “Please let me call you.”
She hesitated. “I’ll call you.”
“You remember the number?” I asked.
“I remember everything.”
“Will you?” I asked, frustrated. “Will you call?”
“When I’m ready.”
She shut the door and trudged up the steps to her building before I could ask her if she ever would be ready.
It took all I had to drive away from her.
I couldn’t settle, no matter how hard I tried. I paced my apartment constantly. Physically, I was exhausted, but mentally, my mind wouldn’t shut off. I was worried about Grace. I wanted to talk to her. Make sure she was all right. I thought about her father’s reaction. His anger. The shocked look on her mother’s face. The odd way that, for the first time in my life, I had felt part of something—connected with a group of people. It felt strange that it should sadden me when I thought of not seeing them again.
I used the gym in the building and worked out. Swam laps. Caught up on emails and correspondence. I had booked time off weeks ago, thinking I could spend it with Grace, and now I regretted it and thought perhaps I would return to the office the next day.
I sat down and turned on the TV, deciding to catch up on the news. I switched to a local channel, half listening to the reports of the usual muggings, shootings, and random feel-good stories they inserted, when the anchor announced a breaking story. A suspected gas line explosion had occurred not long before in a small area off Jamison, causing severe damage to the building as well as neighboring structures. The back of my neck prickled when they said the name. They cut to a live report, and the instant I saw where the reporter was standing, I was on my feet. I recognized the area and the building behind him.