“I guess that wasn’t a very good excuse.” Destiny looked away sheepishly.
“You never were a very good liar.” Grandma chuckled, not in the least upset that Destiny tried lying to her about it.
She knew better than to think she could pull the wool over Grandma’s eyes. “We had a fight. He apologized and I didn’t want to hear it.”
“What did you fight about?”
Well she couldn’t tell her grandma she thought he only wanted her for sex. She did have limits to what she shared. “It doesn’t matter anymore because I’ve decided to forgive him.” Destiny didn’t want to get into the secrets they had to keep for work. As long as there weren’t secrets between them, she could live with it.
“Good, then what are you waiting for? Go tell him.” Grandma tried shooing her away.
“I can’t just leave you. You almost had a whatever Carter called it. Aga-something.”
“Angina,” Grandma gently corrected.
“You didn’t know what it was two minutes ago and now you’re correcting me on what it’s called?”
Grandma shrugged with a smirk. She definitely was feeling like her old self. Destiny was glad. With all these health scares, she worried her grandma would start to lose some of her tough spirit, but she seemed stronger than ever. “Nevertheless, I’m not going anywhere until tomorrow. Don’t wait around for an ultimatum to be thrown in your face and force you to realize what’s most important in this world. Don’t make my same mistakes. I lost a lot of time with your grandpa I’ll never get back. Don’t let your pride keep you apart,” she finished, tears glistening in her eyes, her voice hoarse.
“I won’t,” Destiny promised.
“Good, now go.”
Destiny didn’t fight her this time. She didn’t want to. All she wanted to do was see Mike and apologize. To ask for another chance. “I love you, Grandma.” Destiny stood up and bent over to kiss her grandma’s cheek before leaving. If only she knew where Mike was. He could be anywhere. She worried he wouldn’t take her calls after the way she sent him packing yesterday. But she knew someone who would know where he was.
Chapter 26
Mike walked aimlessly down the street without a destination in mind. He couldn’t stand being in his apartment anymore. Everywhere he looked were reminders of Destiny. Her scent lingered in the air. A stark reminder of the woman he loved, who wanted nothing to do with him because he inadvertently made her feel insignificant when that couldn’t have been further from the truth.
Mike scrubbed the back of his head, wanting to punch something he was so frustrated. He’d barely slept a wink last night. Every time he closed his eyes, he saw her hurt ones staring back at him. The tears glistening. His fault. He should have told the guys about her from the beginning. He never should have pushed for her to blow off the barbeque for sex. There were a lot of things he should have done differently.
Too little too late.
His phone buzzed in his pocket, but he ignored it. It was probably Ben trying to figure out where he was. Mike had blown off morning PT. He wasn’t good company right now. How could he pretend all the world was normal when it wasn’t. Not without Destiny. He hadn’t realized how much he’d come to depend on talking to her every day. Seeing her smile. Hearing her sweet voice.
And why couldn’t he get to enjoy those things again? Was he really ready to just give up?
Mike stopped in the middle of the sidewalk, ignoring the snide comments from people who almost ran into him. He didn’t care. He needed to win his woman back. Mike wasn’t willing to give her up without a fight. He didn’t give up on a mission just because something didn’t go as planned. No, he regrouped and tried again.
He’d go to her house right now and get her back. He looked around, getting his bearings, and realized he was a block from Destiny’s street, standing about the same place as the alley where the mugger had disappeared. Oh yeah, he’d almost forgotten about him. He should call the sheriff and find out of the guy was in jail or not. What if he preyed on Destiny again, only this time he wasn’t there to protect her?
Before he could pull his phone out and do just that the hair on the back of his neck stood on end. Mike had learned early on in life not to ignore when his senses went on high alert like that.
He whipped around, not knowing what to expect, when he saw her. Like an angel, she stood apart in the crowd as she moved through it. Her arms were crossed like she were protecting herself. Her face looked sad almost defeated. As if she sensed she was being watched Destiny looked up and straight at him.
“Mike.” She could have been whispering his name, but he heard it all the way into his soul. It was like he’d just gotten hit by a defibrillator, bringing him back to life. She said his name not in anger but in shock, dare he think happiness.
His feet were moving before he made the mental command to move. He practically flew to her, closing the distance. Destiny smiled like a bright beacon on a foggy night. He wanted to crush her to his chest and never let go. To apologize again for being an ass. For not pushing harder for her to forgive him. So many things he wanted to say. He was almost to her when he saw it.
A dark SUV was coming down the street from behind Destiny. As it got closer it sped up and swerved toward Destiny, cutting in front of cars going the opposite direction, gunning right at her.
Pedestrians screamed and jumped out of the way. Everything happened as if in slow motion. Destiny’s smile dropped and she turned around toward the vehicle coming right for her. She froze like a deer caught in headlights. Mike pushed himself to run faster than he ever had in his life, fearing he wouldn’t make it time.
He reached out for her, his fingers brushing her blouse as the SUV came barreling down on her. As soon as he got a grip on her shirt, he pulled her toward the ground, tucking and rolling her away from danger. He shielded her body with his as the SUV just barely missed them scraping against the brick wall next to them. Mike felt the wind from the vehicle on the back of his neck. He waited for it to pass before he looked up and caught the license plate as it drove back onto the street and disappeared.
There was no point in chasing after it. He’d have no way of catching up with it now. “Are you alright?” He looked down at Destiny safely tucked in his arms. She needed his focus now more than anything. Destiny looked shell-shocked, her wide eyes darting around the street. “Babe, talk to me, are you alright?” He stood up, pulling her with him, and gently shook her. He’d protected her from the SUV crushing her, but he’d been less than gentle getting her out of harm’s way. He wasn’t a small man and finesse had been the last thing on his mind as he took them to the ground and rolled before the tires could clip them.
“I’m okay.” Her hair was in disarray and her eyes scared, but she was alive. That was good enough for him.
