For a long moment, Jasper is still, and I wonder if I’ve said too much. Or maybe he thinks I’m less now that he knows the truth. Less of a woman. Less of a person. Not worth his time.
Stop it.
I make a move to wriggle free, but he tightens his grip. “I’m so fucking sorry, Emi.”
The emotion in his tone tells me everything he can’t say. Because there are no words. Not for this.
My eyes, flutter shut, and a tear splashes my cheek, following the invisible path etched onto my skin from years of mourning this pain. “Me too.”
Chapter Ten
Jasper
The first rays of the morning sun hit my face. Fuck. Emi is wrapped in my arms with her head tucked under my chin. She barely stirred all night, but I couldn’t sleep a wink. Not with her warm, soft body pressed up against me.
I laid awake for hours watching her. She was too damn young to go through something like that. Too damn innocent.
And so fucking brave to share her pain with me.
If I don’t move—and soon—she’ll wake up with my dick pressed up against her ass, and I’ll catch hell for it. I’ve seen several sides of Emmylou Marsh the past week. Determined. Polished. Excited. Even a little scared. But angry? I’m not sure I’d survive angry.
Carefully, I ease her onto her back. The bruise over her left eye looks ten times worse this morning. Dammit. I should have insisted she put some ice on it last night. Half a dozen small scratches mar her cheeks and forehead. If she’d been any closer to the car, she could have been seriously hurt. Or worse.
Tugging on my Wranglers and t-shirt, I shuffle out into Emi’s living room. My phone battery is down to ten percent, but that should be enough to get some information out of my brother.
Jasper: Car bomb went off at the Ninth and Molder Stop-N-Shop last night at 9:17 p.m. I need you to look into the case. I think someone tried to kill Emmylou Marsh.
AJ better not blow me off. I know he’s going through an ocean of shit, but he’s still a goddamned Ranger.
I stare at Emi’s fancy coffee machine for five full minutes. There are so many buttons, I’m afraid I’ll somehow launch a nuke if I’m not careful. But fuck, I need caffeine.
My phone buzzes on the counter before I find a mug.
AJ: The case is with Austin PD. Give me one good reason why I should call in a chit for this.
Jasper: Because I asked you to, asshole. And because I doubt Officer Devlin’s been out of the academy more than a month.
AJ: Give me an hour. I haven’t even had my coffee yet.
That makes two of us. I’ve gotta figure out how this damn machine works. It’s either that or sneak out before Emi wakes up. But if I did that, I couldn’t lock her door. Even with Benny downstairs—if he’s still on shift—I can’t take that chance.
Five tries—and one mess of spilled coffee later—I have a cup. The jolt fuels me enough, I find a travel mug in Emi’s cabinet and fumble my way through making what I think is an almond milk cappuccino.
Careful not to spill either cup, I shuffle down the hall and back into her bedroom. She’s still asleep. Easing my hip onto the edge of the mattress, I brush her hair away from her face. “Emi? Sweetheart I need you to wake up for me.”
She groans, her eyes opening to slits. “What time is it?”
“A little after eight. Do you know where you are?”
That riles her enough to glare at me. “Of course I know where I am. I told you last night—err, this morning—I was fine.” Her nose wrinkles, and suddenly, she’s not angry anymore. “You made coffee.”
As if she’s only now seeing the mug in my hand, she sits up and reaches for it.
“This one’s mine,” I say with a chuckle and pass her the travel mug. “But I made you a cappuccino. I think.“
Her eyelids flutter with her first sip. “God, I would not make it in this world without coffee.”
“Is it okay?” I ask. “Your machine is…somethin’.”
