Page 71 of Playing With Forever

I think my heart had stopped when I saw the blood bloom from her neck.

Josie knew what happened in the Hope Center after she’d gone into shock and passed out. She knew I’d shot and killed Saul, she knew that Tyler had witnessed his father’s death. What she didn’t know, and what I didn’t tell her, was that Saul Trapp was the only man I’d ever killed that I hadn’t felt a twinge of remorse over. I’d gladly take his life again if it meant Josie was breathing.

Diane had called Josie three times before I finally answered and asked her to stop. I went as gently as I could—the woman had one dead son, a dead ex-husband, and two traumatized kids—one more than the other. I felt compassion for the woman, but I still didn’t want her calling. Josie would tell her it was okay and it wasn’t her fault, and while that might be the case, it was her son who had hidden a backpack full of drugs in the Hope Center and led that motherfucker there.

“I didn’t lock the door.”

I wasn’t tracking Josie’s abrupt change of topic. “What door?”

“That night. I watched Anita walk to her car, my phone was ringing, it had been a crazy day, and I didn’t think. I should’ve locked the door.”

That night had been the perfect storm.

Phil had left early. Josie’s car hadn’t been there, which was why Tyler decided to go in. I was on my way to get her, but there’d been an accident and the door wasn’t locked. If one of those things had been different, there was a possibility Josie wouldn’t have been stabbed.

Or maybe she would’ve been.

“We’re not playing that game, baby. It leads to nowhere. You’re home and recovering, and that’s the only thing that’s important.”

“And Lindy.”

And Lindy.

My girl didn’t leave Josie’s side for the five days she was in the hospital. She ate there, she showered there, she sat with Josie and refused to leave the room. Josie had been home for twenty-four hours, and it was like a switch flipped and she wanted to be nowhere near any of us after not wanting to be away from not only Josie but me, Kane, DJ, and Carrie.

“Josie, please listen to me. I know my girl. She doesn’t respond well to being pushed, in the past, when I’ve tried to make her talk, she shuts down. We’ll talk with her tonight, see how she does, and back off if she starts to retreat. We’ll try again in a few days.”

“Okay.”

“Now, tell me what’s really bothering you.”

“I think she’s mad at me,” Josie blurted out.

I twisted carefully so I didn’t jostle her injured abdomen and took her in fully.

Fuck, she was serious, she thought Lindy was mad at her.

“Lindy’s not mad at you. She spent those four hours the same as the rest of us, scared out of our brains that we were going to lose you. And right now she’s feeling out of sorts. DJ and Kane lay claim to you, they’re your sons. Carrie, by extension of DJ. Logically she knows you’re ours, too, but right now she’s coming down from four hours thinking she was losing the family we’re building and three days where you were in and out and barely conscious. You’ve been fully awake three days, two of those in the hospital. She’s coming down off the roller coaster, baby, she’s not mad.”

“I hate that you all felt that.”

I would give just about anything to wipe those hours and the last six days away.

“That’s the price of love. Those hours were pure hell, but they were torture because we all love you so much.”

“We have food!” Kane called as he walked in the front door. “And cherry Jello for you, Mamalious.”

Kane came in first, juggling bags of food, next up was DJ with drinks, and Carrie brought up the rear with a pink baker’s box.

“Where’s Lindy?” Carrie asked.

“In her studio,” Josie answered. “You’ll be my favorite daughter-in-law forever if you tell me there’s a brownie in there.”

“Of course there are double chocolate brownies in this box,” Carrie smiled at Josie.

“I’m telling my future wife she’ll never be your favorite because Carrie is.”

“Like you’re ever getting married.”