“While I was here, I learned about genuine family.” Her voice wobbles again and she clears her throat. “I will do what I can to help you and your family, but, hand to my heart,” she flattens her palm over her chest and I almost crack and pull her to me. “I did NOT know anything about what Harris was doing. That’s the truth.”
All I can manage is to swallow, it’s taking everything I have to resist the urge to be close to her. To put my faith in her.
Her eyes start to fill, and I clench my fists, willing myself to stay right where I’m at. “Gray, why would I drive all the way out here if I had anything to do with what Harris did last night?”
Not able to look into her eyes, she looks so genuine, I look down at my boots. My heart fucking breaking at what I’m about to say next. “It just seems like since you showed up, bad things keep happening.” I hear her suck in a breath, and I lift my eyes to meet hers. She looks like I just put a knife in her heart and the guilt is about to eat me up. “So many horrible things could have happened last night, to my sister, to my daughter, I think it’s best we put some space between us. We need to put things right around here and after last night, it’s not going to be easy.”
Her eyes volley between mine for a moment, and a tear slips down her cheek that she swats away before it gets far. She takes a deep breath and straightens her shoulders before she smiles that smile I hate, the one that doesn’t reach her eyes.
“Of course. Understood. Thank you for your time.” She turns to walk to her car.
The burn behind my sternum is consuming my entire chest, and it takes all I have to not go after her.
My feet feel like they are anchored to the porch as I watch her turn her car in the circle drive and I still don’t move as I watch her tail lights disappear over the hill in the driveway. The intense pressure in my chest makes it difficult to breathe, my head says I dodged a bullet, but the ache in my heart says I just made a huge fucking mistake.
Turning toward the stable, I walk around the porch and take a seat in one of the big wicker chairs outside the kitchen door, my palm over my chin. The damage to the stables is on the other side and can’t be seen from this angle, but through the course of the day, we have been busy cleaning and makingsure the two horses left are comfortable.
Marley has been withdrawn all day, and she only picked at her dinner. She woke us all up last night with one of her nightmares, Mason and Sloane sat with her until she went back to sleep. It scared Lainey Rai, and I had to sit with her until she went back to sleep.
The asshole that started the fire has no idea the type of wound he reopened last night. The feeling of being violated over again has sent her back into a state of mind that hundreds of hours of therapy helped her get out of.
I think about Elly’s question, why would she come back here today after what happened last night if she had anything to do with it? Is it possible her co-worker was working against her all this time, and she’s innocent of all the bullshit? Pulled into something that puts her at the front of a nasty fucking plan?
Anything is possible, but there are so many obstacles. And there’s Lainey Rai. I have to put my daughter first.
I don’t know how long I sat out there in the cold, staring across the yard at the stables lit up by the floodlights. My mind has been bouncing back and forth so fast that I pinch the bridge of my nose to stave off the pain of the headache tapping across my forehead from one temple to the other.
“Daddy.” Lainey Rai’s sweet voice pulls me from my thoughts, and I sling my head in her direction.
“Yes, sweetheart.” She’s in her pajamas and I realize its bedtime. “I’m sorry, pumpkin, I lost track of the time.” I say as I stand and walk to her.
Looking down at her feet, I see she doesn’t have any socks on. I scoop her up and say, “What are you doing? It’s freezing cold out here, you should have your house shoes on.”
She loops her arms around my neck and lays her head on my shoulder, her long legs hanging down each side of mine. She’s getting so big. Her long hair is laying on her back likebrown silk. Just like her mama. “I didn’t know you were outside, I thought you were in the office.”
Turning my head, I kiss the back of her head. “Well, next time knock on the window and I’ll come to you.”
It takes longer than usual for her to fall asleep. I even read a few chapters of her favorite book,A Wrinkle In Time, before her eyes are too heavy to hold open. It’s so late I doubt anyone is still awake.
As I quietly close the door to Lainey Rai’s room, I look down the hall and see Jax sitting against the wall, his head reclined with his eyes closed, next to Marley’s door. My hackles instantly rise, and I walk toward him.
He hears me and his head rolls against the wall to look in my direction. He quietly stands and turns to lean his shoulder casually against the wall, his arms crossed over his chest. “What are you doing?” I whisper.
“She might have another nightmare, I want her to know she’s safe.” He says quietly, like we are talking about the weather.
“You don’t have to do that, one of us will make sure she’s okay.” Keeping my voice firm, I’ll need to find out how Marley feels about this.
His expression doesn’t change, and he looks at me like we’re best friends. “I don’t mind, part of my job is keeping watch. I’m used to it.”
“Does Marley know you’re out here?” If she doesn’t, he will need to go. “She’s not good right now.”
He shakes his head once. “I didn’t ask her.”
The door opens and Marley is standing there in sleep shorts and a t-shirt, the silver necklace with the horseshoe still around her neck, and her hair is loose and wild from tossing and turning, hanging down to her waist. Her big blue eyes have dark shadows under them, and it tugs my heart to see her look so tired.
She glances at Jax, her gaze only landing on him for seconds before she looks at me. “It’s okay that he’s out here.” It’s short and simple.
Holding her gaze, I look over her face, she looks so tired. “Marley, if you want one of us to sit outside your door, we will. We don’t mind.”
