I nod, and though I’m worried about hurting him, I need him inside me. If only to prove to myself that he’s alive. He’s whole. He’s mine.
Chapter Fifty-Four
AJ
Zephyr’s email comes through not long after lunch. Hours of flyover footage stitched together into a seamless slow sweep of east Texas. I check the run time. Five hours? I don’t know what the fuck we expect to learn from it, but I carry my laptop into the living room to start my search.
Grace is curled up on the couch with her sketchbook braced on the arm, tapping her pencil against the spiral binding. The sight punches the breath from my chest. For so long, I thought I’d never have this again. But we’re here. After everything we’ve clawed back from the dark, I’ll never take this for granted.
“Hey.” I sink down next to her and set the laptop on the coffee table. “This is the longest shot in the history of long shots, but in case I’m wrong, I could use another set of eyes.”
“And you want…mine?” She sets the pencil down, the furrow between her brows deepening. It’s been there since we woke up this morning, and I’m starting to worry.
“Always.” Leaning in, I press a kiss to her forehead, hoping to soothe whatever’s bothering her. “The plane was flyin’ at thirty thousand feet, so even if the bastards have a neon sign flashin’ ‘Cult Marks the Spot’ we won’t see it. But you’re an artist. You notice things other people don’t.”
She gives me the side eye. “You just want someone else to be as bored as you are, don’t you?”
I flash her a quick grin. “Maybe. Or maybe I just want to spend as much time with you as I can before Monday.”
The brief spark of humor in her eyes fades. “I wish you could stay home with me a little longer.”
“Me too, darlin’.” I wrap my arms around her, and she tucks her head under my chin. “Jas and Connor will be around whenever I can’t be. You won’t be alone. Not until we know the bastards who took you are six feet under.”
She nods against me, but doesn’t relax. “Don’t tell her, but I’m a little sad the chief lifted Parker’s suspension. She’d be more fun to hang out with.”
“She’ll be lucky if he doesn’t make her ride a desk for the next…forever,” I mutter. “And she’s too good for that.”
I should tell the chief to go fuck himself. But while we’re comfortable, we ain’t made of money. And what the hell else am I supposed to do? Being a Ranger is all I’ve ever wanted. Despite my asshole of a boss, I love the job, and I’m good at it.
We don’t move for several minutes, just soaking up each other’s warmth. But eventually, Grace sighs. “If you’re gonna force me to watch this boring-ass footage, at least throw it up on the television and make us some popcorn?”
I chuckle. “I think you mean ‘make us a bowl of salted butter with a side of popped corn.’”
Her smile lights up my entire world. “Well, duh.”
Every day, a little more of her sass shines through. The woman I fell in love with ain’t gone. She’s comin’ back one joke, one memory, one kiss at a time.
Once the popcorn’s ready, I set the bowl in her lap, kick off my shoes, and press play. Thousands of trees turn into a green blur beneath the AWAC’s camera. Pine, oak, and willow. Dense, tall, and endless.
After ten minutes, Grace stifles a yawn. “Well, I know what to put on if I can’t sleep at night.”
I bring up the menu and double the speed. Within a few minutes, the trees give way to prairie, and I slow things down again. Grace leans forward, her eyes fixed on the screen.
“Darlin’? Do you recognize this area?” I pause the video, watching her carefully.
“No. But there’s something…” She presses the heels of her hands to her eyes for a long moment. “I could see…for miles, I think. Nothing but grass, barely any trees…”
In the next moment, her entire body goes rigid. “Can’t stop running. Another few miles… I’ll find someone. They’ll call AJ…”
Fuck.
She’s trapped in her memories. Do I try to pull her out? Or see where this goes?
“It’s cold. God, it’s so cold I can’t feel my face. How much farther? It’s been hours.” She’s shivering now, her arms wrapped around herself so tightly. Every so often, she swipes at her face. “It’s too dark. Shit!”
The anguish in her voice tears a piece of my soul into shreds. I grab her hands, holding on tight. Grace struggles, and my fingers slip down to her wrists, right over her scars. She jerks away, cradling her hands to her chest.
“Grace! It’s me. It’s AJ.”
