“I’m fairly certain you’re not the only person in my life that thinks that right now.” When I called him back after packing and watching Delilah walk out my door, I didn’t have the fight left in me to tell him I was coming. He would’ve tried to talk me out of it, and I wasn’t sure if I was strong enough not to let him. It’s the same reason I didn’t tell my parents. My mom would’ve lit me up. I can practically hear the swear words rolling for her tongue in Spanish.
“You piss the little lady off?”
“I’m not sure pissed is the right word. Delilah’s not angry. She’s too good to be angry. Scared and hurt is more accurate,” I say as I toe the sidewalk in front of his office.
“I like her. Make sure you don’t fuck that up beyond repair by being here.” Rich sweeps his arm out in front of him. “You may as well come in.”
I walk into the office ahead of him. “I’m not letting her get away. She’s my best friend and the only person I want a future with.”
“I don’t have any updates for you. So I’m not sure why you flew halfway across the country.”
“Didn’t expect you to, but I want to be here when you do. I think I’ve got at least a week before I have to be on the field—”
With a scowl that would put my dad’s to shame, Rich cuts in. “Don’t think I don’t know about your injury. I saw that hit and I know you’re supposed to be recovering from a concussion, not playing detective with me.” He drops his eyes to the picture frame on his desk. “But I also know why you came. I’ll do everything I can to get you answers, but these things take time.”
“I’ve waited three years. We are so close I can feel it. Miller had a part in this. He’s always been a bitter asshole. He was bitter about Jarrett rising to the top when his career was slipping away from him. I don’t know how he was involved or what happened, but he knows something.”
“We need to be careful how we handle this. If you want a real shot at justice for your brother, it needs to be airtight.”
“So what’s first?” I pace across Rich’s office as he watches me from his chair with narrowed eyes.
“There’s no way I can talk you into going home to your girl and resting?” He shifts in his chair, crossing his foot over his knees.
“Nope,” I say, popping the “P” and dropping into the chair across from him.
With a heavy sigh, he pulls out his phone, scrolling through it before he looks up and continues. “I have a meeting with Victoria at 11 a.m. to secure the bottle of GHB as evidence, along with her journals.” He scratches his jaw, pausing like he’s not sure how much to say. “Those probably won’t be admissible, but I’ll study them to see if there’s anything we can use. She also has an old phone that I’ll have my tech guy scrub for any other evidence.”
“When do you talk to Miller?” My knee bounces rapidly as I roll my shoulders, trying to loosen the tension that’s settled there. It doesn’t work and I’m not sure anything will.
Rich tilts his head to the ceiling like he needs to gather his patience before he speaks to me again. I know I’m pushing my luck, questioning every step of the way. “I might not. If we get enough evidence, the case will get turned over to the police and they will bring him in.”
“How long before—”
“You need to let me do my job. I promise you, I’m going to do everything in my power to help you get justice for Jarrett. If I have to explain each decision, or update you on every detail as it happens, it’s going to slow this down.”
My head drops to my hands. “I know, Rich, but I need to be here. I’ll try to give you space to work.”
“I get it. Let me meet with her this morning. Then, give me some time to look over her journals and the phone. I’ll update you tomorrow on what’s next. I don’t want to keep you in the dark, but if we are going to nail Colby Miller, I need to be focused on that.”
“Okay. I’ll get out of your hair.” I push up from the chair and head towards the door, leaving it in Rich’s hands.
“And you’ll go back to the hotel and rest.” The tone in his voice tells me not to argue with him. A memory of the way Delilah looked when she was begging me not to leave flashes in my mind.
“Yeah. I’ll go back and take it easy,” I concede before opening the door to leave.
Chapter 40
Crying over Sticky Buns
Present
When I wake up in my apartment, nothing feels right—and I’m not just talking about the empty bed or the scratchy, swollen eyes. Both suck, but it’s the hollow feeling inside my chest for the last five days that still takes me by surprise each morning.
Being away from Cruz isn’t new. He’s traveled since we first met and I’ve been through road trips since I started to have feelings for him, but this is different. I don’t just miss him because he’s not here. I hate the way we left things. There was so much we didn’t say to each other. I let him go, not forever, but for now, and until he comes back, I don’t think I’ll feel whole.
When I walked out his door, I may as well have left my heart in his suitcase.
It’s still dark outside when I step out of my apartment to openBuns & Roses. I don’t bother to turn on my radio during my short drive. The coffee shop has always felt more like home to me than my apartment or anyplace else. But when I step inside the space and flick on the lights, the luster is gone.
