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But as strong as Grant was, he couldn’t bring Lane back. Now she was angry at the world. It wasn’t fair. Lane was too young, too vibrant. She had so much more to do and to accomplish.
And there was no way Mike was responsible for it.
“I swear I’m not going to let anything happen to you.”
“I know, but right now we should be worried about Mike. What if those men come back to finish the job? This was a warning to me, right? That’s what the message said. If I don’t do what he wants, he’s going to hurt my friends. First, he kills Lane, and he’s probably going to go after Mike again. We have to protect him.”
It was clear from the expression on Grant’s face that he didn’t agree.
“I can’t believe you’re being like this,” she said, taking a step back and out of his arms. Instantly, she felt cold and almost bereft. She wanted to run back immediately, but she steeled herself to stay still. “Mike is my friend, and I think he might be in danger.”
“Nothing is going to happen to Mike. I’m sure the police are watching him closely.”
“Because they think he’s guilty,” Mia snapped, wiping at her damp cheeks with the back of her hand. “I need to talk to Mike about all of this. He sent me a text that he’s at Steve’s so I’m going to go see him. He needs to know that the sheriff is looking at him for Lane’s death. He needs to get a lawyer.”
She wasn’t going to allow her friend to be railroaded by a cop with an agenda. She’d hate telling him, though. He was going to be shocked and hurt, and he was already fragile after being attacked.
“Mia, I’m asking you not to go. Not until we know more about what’s going on here.”
She looked into the eyes of the man she loved. And she did love Grant. More than she’d ever imagined that she could. She loved him, but at this moment, she didn’t like him. She was scared, frustrated, grieving, sad, and yes, angry. The police were looking for the easy way out, and she wasn’t going to let them hurt Mike. Not after he’d just lost his beloved wife.
“Are you asking me or telling me not to go?”
There was defiance in her tone, but her voice shook slightly as well. It wasn’t easy to say this to him. He wanted to keep her safe, and that was wonderful, but she couldn’t lose her own free will. Just like that stormy night so long ago, she’d known she needed to be independent and stand on her own two feet. She’d been right. She doubted they could have made it work when her life was in disarray.
And they couldn’t make it work if she couldn’t make her own decisions. She wouldn’t go back to living under someone’s thumb ever again.
“I’m asking you,” Grant replied, placing his hands on her shoulders, his gaze steady. “I would never tell you what to do. I’m asking you to trust me a little bit. Stay here for tonight. Tomorrow we’ll reassess. I know you believe in Mike, and you know that I have my doubts. Can we put it aside for tonight?”
She wanted to say yes, to tuck it away and pretend that they’d never had this conversation. But… Mike had been her friend for years. He and Lane had been her family when she’d run from Kevin. They’d helped her pick up the pieces of her life in those early days when she hadn’t known what to do.
“I’m going for a drive,” Mia finally said. “I need to think, and I can’t do that here with you.”
“Are you driving to see Mike?”
She couldn’t lie to him.
“I might,” she admitted. “That’s one of the things I have to think about.”
She pulled away and reached for her purse and car keys on the island, but Grant placed his hand over hers to stay her movements.
“I understand you don’t want to be around me. I get it. But will you let Trey go with you? He won’t say anything, he won’t try and convince you of anything. He’ll just be there to keep you safe. He won’t say a word. Will you let him? I don’t want anything to happen to you, Mia. I love you.”
The last three words sounded so sweet to her ears. Every time she heard them, her heart beat faster. That heart was currently aching as if it wasn’t yet broken but might have a few cracks or dings. They’d been so happy this morning and now they’d come to this. Tragedy was pulling them apart.
Mia glanced over at Trey who was trying to give her an encouraging smile. She believed that he wouldn’t try and sway her, give her arguments as to why she was wrong, and Grant was right. She’d heard he was a master negotiator though so if he wanted to convince her of something, he probably could.
“Trey can go with me,” she said. “But I don’t want to talk about it. I just want to drive for a while and clear my head.”
Grant stepped back, and he didn’t try and stop her when she retrieved her keys this time. He looked like he wanted to say so much more, perhaps even throw himself in her path, but he didn’t do any of that. He was quiet as she - and Trey - walked out of the house and down her front porch steps. As she started up the car and backed out of the driveway, with Trey in the passenger seat also not saying a word, she caught sight of Grant standing in the doorway watching her leave.
Mia couldn’t help the thought that jumped immediately into her head.
I might be making a big mistake.
23
True to Grant’s word, Trey didn’t say a word as Mia drove aimlessly around for a while. Eventually, she pulled into Steve’s driveway and turned off the car.
