“It complicated things. It was one night, the night after the attack. Things got weird afterward, and we both decided him leaving was the best solution. His men were a package deal. They go where he does.”
They both gave her a sympathetic look and headed toward the back door. Brooklyn stopped at the door and looked over her shoulder to address Aja again. “No worries, Aja. If it’s any consolation, I think the foreman was just as taken with you. He’s probably kicking himself for not finding a way to make it work. Anyone that spends a little time with you knows it don’t get no better.”
Aja wasn’t certain she deserved that kind of praise, especially since she’d told them a flat-out lie regarding Jackson’s disappearance. But Seneca’s words, whether or not she was worthy of them, still sneaked beneath her skin and made it tingle with the warmth of the woman’s kindness.
“Hey, we’ve been so busy talking about my personal life, we haven’t discussed the details of your anniversary party.”
The two women stopped, then stared at each other before simultaneously looking at Aja.
“You still plan on throwing this ‘We’ve been out of jail a year’ party?’”
Aja couldn’t help but laugh at Brooklyn’s description of the event.
“I promised the two of you we would celebrate every milestone. This definitely qualifies. I need to know what you want on the menu and if you have anyone to add to our usual guest list.”
She grabbed a pen and notepad from the desk in the corner and waved them back to the counter. “Come on, ladies. Let’s get these plans underway.”
* * *
Jackson sat behind his desk, trying to shake the general funk he couldn’t seem to get rid of. Of all days, today should’ve brought him a sense of professional pride. He’d sat in a courtroom galley, watching as Eli Bennett allocuted to the crimes he’d committed against Aja and Restoration Ranch.
The case was over, Aja was safe, and Eli Bennett was taken into custody immediately following his allocution. His team hadn’t even had to work hard to get Bennett’s confession. As soon as Gleason and Jennings presented him with the evidence against him, Bennett told his fancy mouthpiece to stop fighting and cut a deal. Everything was wrapped up in a nice, neat bow. Just the way he liked it. He should be thrilled. Yet looking around the courtroom and not seeing Aja there had somehow dampened his satisfaction of the way things concluded.
He stopped John Ross after the proceedings were over to ask where Aja was. She was the victim in all of this. She had a right to see justice done.
The prosecutor’s mouth straightened into a flat line. “When I spoke to her yesterday, she said she’d seen enough allocutions to last her a lifetime. To call her if anything went wrong, but other than that, she was moving on.”
Jackson’s mood had tanked right then and there. Having her so easily moving on, especially without him, rankled something in him. Certain he wasn’t fit to be in public spaces after that, he hurried to his office to find a sanctuary where he could do something monotonous like file paperwork and hopefully stay out of the path of people.
He was cracking open the first of a stack of files sitting on his desk when he heard a knock at his door.
“Come in.”
A short man with a tall hat stepped into the room, and Jackson tensed up. It was his boss, Major Edward Hargrove.
“What’s happened now?”
The major laughed, his shoulders shaking with each chuckle. “Why do you always assume I’m here to deliver bad news?”
“Because that’s all you do.” Jackson stood from his desk and offered the man his hand. “What can I do for you, sir?”
“I’ve been going over personnel files for HR’s annual audit. It seems you’ve been slacking on taking your mandatory time off.”
Jackson sat back down in his chair, tapping his fingers on the desk. “Oh, is that all? I’ll sit down soon and schedule time off.”
The major shook his head. “Nope. You’ve had four back-to-back undercover operations. The rules are very clear. You either take some time off, or I make you go sit with the department shrink to make sure you aren’t a danger to yourself or others. Which do you prefer?”
Jackson ground his teeth. He didn’t want to take any time off right now. Sitting at home with nothing but his thoughts of Aja would drive him up a wall.
Major Hargrove walked back to Jackson’s door and tipped his hat. “Let me know your decision by the end of the day. Four weeks, or I make the appointment for you with the shrink.”
Jackson sat for a moment, trying to get himself together before he picked up the phone on his desk. His fingers punched in the number by rote, and he waited until he heard a familiar “Hello” on the other end.
“Afternoon, Daddy.”
“Hey, Son, to what do I owe the pleasure of a call from you in the middle of a workday?”
“Well, I was thinking I would come spend some time with you at the house. Can you put me up, or are you too busy with work right now?”
