So he’d recognized me. That meant he knew about my manslaughter conviction, and at the moment, I was happy to play the bloodthirsty killer. I hardly cared what this guy had to say about me.
“Piper and Ollie aremine,” he hissed. “They always will be.”
“Hurt either of them again, and I’ll break every bone in your body. Now get the fuck out.”
SIXTEEN
Grayden
Danny slammedthe door on his way out.
I turned around and stopped short. Piper stood just inside the living room, staring at me in shock.
“So you heard all that?” I asked.
“Hard not to.”
“Are you alright? How badly did he hurt you?” I crossed the room to her, but when I got close, Piper flinched.
“I’m fine.” Her voice was shaking.
Sticking my hands in my back pockets, I left a couple feet of space between us, realizing how badly I might’ve just fucked up.
She’d seen me almost take her ex-husband’s head off. Heard me yelling. She’d seen my temper, the pure, unrelenting rage living inside me that I tried not to let anyone see, butespeciallynot someone like Piper.
My eyes closed for a brief moment as shame spread through my insides.
“If you’d prefer that I go?—”
“What? No.” Piper reached for my arm. “Grayden, I’m sorry.”
Wait.Shewas sorry?
“Hey.” Carefully, I rested my hands on her shoulders over her coat. When she didn’t flinch away again, I put a little more weightbehind my touch, hoping it would ground her. “None of what just happened was your fault. Why would you be sorry?”
“This house is your home now. And my ex shows up and causes trouble for you.”
“I’ve had much worse trouble, believe me.”
Piper’s shaking got worse, tears filling her eyes. “Can I sit down for a minute? I’m…I’m dizzy.”
Fuck, I really was doing this all wrong. “Of course. C’mon.”
Keeping her upright, I led Piper to the sunporch. I was distantly aware of my belongings strewn all over the floor. Damn, Danny had been in here too. Doing who knew what. But I’d deal with cleanup later.
Right now, Piper was the only thing in the world I cared about.
“Have a seat.” I gestured at the futon, unzipping my own jacket and tossing it on the edge of the thin mattress.
Piper reached for the buttons of her coat, but her hands were shaking.
“I’ve got it.” I unbuttoned her coat and eased the wool fabric from her shoulders. Once it was off, revealing a sweater and jeans, I grabbed my blanket and draped it around her. Her fingers clutched the fabric.
“That okay?” I asked.
“Yeah.”
I sat beside her, the thin mattress dipping. Piper’s weight fell against me, and she let me hold her up. We sat like that for a long moment. Neither of us spoke.
