Needing You Close (Ex-Con Duet 2)

“What in the hell is this?” I look at the can, and my face scrunches.

“That’s all I have!”

I laugh and crack it open. “Well, it’s no beer, but I guess it’ll do.” I take a sip and nearly spit it out.

“Don’t you dare waste a drop of that. It’s basic bitch gold.” She opens a loaf of bread and puts it in the skillet, then turns to me. “Will you tell me what you did in Vegas when you went?”

I bite the corner of my lip, thrown off by her question. “Are you sure you want all the details?”

She nods. “Yes. Now that Victoria is here, I wanna know everything.”

I swallow, then blow out a shaky breath before telling her about Eric and what Victoria did to his girlfriend, Amara. It’s impossible for me to leave out the details because Gemma needs to understand how dangerous Victoria really is. Her mouth falls open, and she gasps, pressing her hand to her chest.

“No way…” Her eyes widen in shock.

“So, I went to Vegas to testify in a deposition as a character witness for the case against Amara to discuss what I saw and heard when I worked for Victoria. The lawyer who represented me before went too,” I explain. “The day after, I flew with Serena to Sacramento and visited Liam and Maddie for the day.”

“Do you think it actually did any good?” she questions, but before I can respond, I smell something burning. As if she reads my mind, she turns around, and the skillet is smoking. The fire alarms start beeping, so I quickly open the front door and try to fan some of it out. Gemma opens a window, then throws the burnt bread in the trash. “Whoopsies. That was only a warmup round,” she claims. As if she’s well practiced, she grabs the broom and the beeping finally stops.

I walk around the island, not allowing her to embarrass herself anymore as she grabs the loaf for more bread.

“I’ll help,” I say, and this time, she willingly hands me the spatula. “We’ll do it together.”

“Perfect,” she whispers, noticing how close we are. It’s not lost on me either.

I go back to the previous conversation. “Long story short, I don’t know if it’ll help Eric. But I suspected Victoria would retaliate at some point. I just didn’t think it would be this fast, but I should’ve known better. That woman is always three steps ahead of her enemy. She lives for this shit, and probably gets off to it when she’s alone,” I groan. Talking about her puts me in a sour mood.

“Gross,” Gemma adds, which causes me to laugh.

I wipe out the skillet, and we get started on round two.

“The secret to making an amazing grilled cheese is buttering the bread, then putting it down. Otherwise, you can’t control how much butter it soaks up.” Our eyes meet for a brief second as I flip the bread. “Now, you put the cheese on while this side is still hot, then put the second piece of bread on top.”

Gemma unwraps American and cheddar, then adds them both. A minute later, I flip the sandwich and wait until it’s golden brown. When it’s good and toasty, I slide it on a plate.

“No fair. I was supposed to make dinner for you,” she playfully pouts.

“Cooking is my thing. I don’t mind,” I tell her as we continue our process. “Plus, it’s more like teamwork. I butter, and you add the cheese.” I smirk.

After I cook three more sandwiches, she grabs a bag of chips from the pantry. We fill our plates, then go to the couch.

“What do you wanna watch?” Gemma asks, turning on the TV before handing me the remote.

I flip through the channels and settle on a Bruce Willis movie. It’s nothing but action and explosions, but Gemma enjoys it. After we’re done eating, she cleans up the kitchen, and I join to help her.

“I’ve got this,” she says around a yawn. It’s then I realize how exhausted she is. Too much shit has happened this week for her not to be, and we’ve had a long day.

“You should get some rest,” I tell her, grabbing the dishes she rinses to put in the dishwasher.

“Yeah, but I’ll just lie in bed. I won’t be able to sleep because my mind runs too much.”

“I totally get that,” I admit. Drying off my hands, I think back to the countless nights I’ve stayed awake because she was on my mind.

“Let me take you home,” she offers. “It’s getting late.”

“I can walk.”

“Absolutely not. There’s a murderer in Lawton Ridge who has it out for you. It’s not an option, Tyler.” Gemma grabs her keys before I can argue.

“Valid point,” I admit, chuckling lightly, though it’s really not funny. Victoria’s unpredictable. “But I’m driving, just in case.”