Reese laughed and Garrett found himself loving the sound more and more, wanting to hear it again and again. They sat quietly for a long while before Reese cleared her throat. “Can I ask you something else?”
Garrett nodded. He’d tell her anything she wanted to know.
“What is Hallie’s gift? I mean, why did Vivian take her?”
Except that.He would tell her anything except the secrets he was sworn to keep and protect about the women his friends loved. “You’ll have to ask her yourself,” he said, pushing his legs under him to stand. “Come on,” he extended his hand down to her. “It’s getting late. I’ll walk you back to the guest house, then turn the lights back on so neither of us stubs a toe getting ready for bed.”
“Sorry, I didn’t mean to pry,” she said, taking his hand.
He easily pulled her up. “It’s okay. I just - I don’t share other people’s secrets. And that goes for you, too. When you meet my friends, if you want them to know about what you can do, you’ll have to be the one to tell them. There is one thing though. One exception.”
“What’s that?” Reese asked.
“If you’re ever hurt or are in danger, I reserve the right to tell them if it means getting to you faster or saving you sooner. We don’t trust traditional law enforcement with those who have paranormal abilities. We handle those cases personally.” He had chosen his words carefully, not wanting to let on that the only people he knew with these kinds of abilities were his friends’women. But she needed to know the circumstances under which he would break his word.
“Okay,” she said. “I can live with that. Thank you, Garrett. For everything.”
“You’re welcome.” They had arrived at the door of the guest house, and standing there with her in the doorway, Garrett had the uncanny desire to kiss her - like this had been a first date and he wanted the perfect ending to it. Instead, he reached into his pocket and said, “I have something for you.” He pulled out a small gadget and held it out to her. “It’s an ‘oh shit’ button with a GPS tracking device. The thing is practically indestructible, water resistant up to one hundred feet, and can withstand an explosion. At least that’s what the manufacturer claims. I’d like for you to keep it with you at all times. Just in case.”
When Reese didn’t say anything and just stood there staring at it, Garrett suddenly wasn’t sure if she’d accept it. He wasn’t trying to invade her space or privacy. His only concern was keeping her safe, and with Russell still out there, he didn’t want to take any chances.
“Wow,” she finally said. “You don’t mess around.”
Garrett shook his head. “Never. Not with the people I care about.”
A small smile tugged at the corners of her mouth as she carefully took the gadget and slipped it into her pocket. “Thank you,” she said again, her voice hitching. “No one’s ever gone out of their way to help me or protect me the way you have. I don’t know why you’re being so good to me, but I really appreciate it. And I promise, I will pay you back for everything as soon as I can.”
Garrett shook his head. “There’s nothing to pay back, Reese. I just want you to stay safe. And maybe help us catch your step brother.”
Reese sighed. “I’m sorry, but I don’t know anything useful about Russell. We haven’t been close since he moved out, and I have no idea who this man is that he’s turned into.”
Garrett nodded. “It’s okay, we can talk more about him some other time. Have a good night. I’ll stop by tomorrow after work if I don’t get home too late.”
“I’d like that.”
He waited for Reese to go inside and lock the door before he headed back to his house, stopping to flick the main breaker to turn the power back on. He saw the lamp inside the guest house turn on and then watched as it was turned off. Moments later, the light in the bedroom turned on.
Garrett smiled. He’d been so used to living alone out on his property, it was different having Reese here with him. When he first brought her back here, he had no idea how long she was going to stay, or if having her around would infringe too much on his daily life. As it turned out, he hardly noticed her, so much so that unless he knocked on her door those first days, he had no idea if she was even still there.
Now that it had been over a month, he was used to looking out his back windows, checking to see if her light was on, or watching her walk to the dock alone late at night, wondering what she was thinking about. The quiet companionship was growing on him in ways he hadn’t expected. Every relationship he’d ever been in had ended badly. He’d honestly considered giving up dating altogether.
But as he walked back to his now lit up house, he suddenly wished he was back on the dock with his toes in the water, sitting in the dark with Reese Graham.
