16. CHAPTER 16
CHAPTER 16
GRANT
My mind is too busy to fall back to sleep.
The sun is barely starting to filter through the blinds; much too early to get up on a Saturday morning. Especially when I have a warm and naked Scarlett draped across me.
Her head is pillowed on my chest, her soft breaths feathering across my skin. Silky hair spills across my shoulder and arm, still carrying a hint of the citrus-scented shampoo she used last night. Her lashes are a brush of golden-brown on her cheeks, fluttering slightly as she dreams.
Hopefully, about something good this time. The nightmares have diminished over the last couple of weeks, but they make a nasty reappearance every few days; waking Scarlett on a strangled gasp and leaving her shaking.
But this morning, her body seems relaxed—snuggled up against me with one slender leg thrown across mine, her hand resting just over my heart.
With one arm wrapped around her, I cuddle Scarlett to me and press a soft kiss to the top of her head. As my lips touch her hair, she lets out a soft sigh and snuggles into me.
My chest squeezes and expands simultaneously.
It’s the craziest feeling. But it’s also the most incredible.
In my thirty-seven years, I’ve never felt like this before. Not just happy, but complete. Like all those years I was just waiting to find that one perfect person who fits me. Who takes my broken pieces and puts them back together again.
It’s one of the reasons my mind keeps spinning.
Not because of anything bad, but because I’m conflicted.
The longer Scarlett stays here, the harder it is to imagine her leaving.
There are no plans for her to move out yet—not with the police and Blade and Arrow still actively investigating her case. The two men in custody haven’t given us anything to work with—just weak excuses or stubborn silence. As for all the research into the Cunninghams and Scarlett’s contacts, nothing solid has emerged. There are no red flags waving towards evidence that will help solve this.
It’s maddening, really. So many people involved—trained professionals, no less—but there’s still no definitive proof whether Scarlett is in danger or if what happened to her was just a terrible coincidence.
There’s been rumbling from the police station the last few days that crimes were unrelated and that further investigation would be a waste of time. Like Officer White said the other day when I stopped by for an update, “Yes, Sleepy Hollow seems like a safe little town. But we’re less than thirty miles from the city. It’s not a shock that criminals would make it here. Or that we’d have two B and Es that are unrelated.”
I really don’t like that guy.
Fortunately, Oliver and Cole disagree, and they’re both pushing to keep on this. Oliver is using all his law enforcement contacts to search for information, and Cole has promised he’s not giving up until he’s one-hundred percent sure Scarlett is safe.
So that’s good. And I do believe we’ll solve this; whether it takes days or weeks. In the meantime, I’ll be doing everything in my power to keep Scarlett safe.
But this is where I start to feel conflicted. Not about Scarlett’s safety, but what happens after.
It’s not that I want her to feel like she has to stay here. I want her to go back to her regular job, go shopping in town with Maya, have drinks with Ari and Thea and Rose at the Hop-less Horseman—to do all the things she used to do without having to worry.
But that also means she can go back to her apartment, and I selfishly don’t want her to leave.
I want to keep things as they are. Cooking dinner together—well, Scarlett cooking and me helping—and snuggling on the couch and making love before bed. Talking about our days. Sharing stories. Walking Jasper and Wilson around the property or throwing tennis balls for them in the backyard. Getting to know her family—albeit through FaceTime and text—and Scarlett getting to know mine .
Logic says to give her time. Once this is all over, to let her go home and adjust to regular life again before asking her to make such a big commitment.
But my heart wants to ask her to stay.
I think it’s weighing on me even more than it has been because of the conversation I had yesterday. While I was driving to pick up Scarlett from Blade and Arrow, Zack’s mother called to check in. Usually I call her, so it was a bit of a surprise.
Even more of a surprise was her reason for calling. “I just had this feeling, Grant. Like Zack was telling me to reach out to you.”
From there, she gently prodded at me until I told her about Scarlett. About everything that had happened. How important Scarlett has become to me.
I was practically at Blade and Arrow when she said something that really shocked me. With a smile in her voice, she said, “Grant. I’ve known you for almost ten years now. And I have never heard you sound this happy. Maybe I’m being a busybody, like Zack always teased me about. But she sounds like the one. I could hear it in Zack’s voice when he met Allison. And I can hear it in yours.”
Is she right? Is Scarlett the one?
“I want to meet her,” she demanded. “As soon as this trouble is over, you bring her to visit. Okay?”
Of course I agreed. How could I not ?
And honestly, I’d love to bring Scarlett to meet her. I want everyone I care about to meet Scarlett. To fall in love with her just like I have—
Shit.
I jolt, all my muscles tensing as the truth slams into me.
Scarlett makes this cute little sound of dismay and burrows her face into my chest. But a moment later, she raises her head to look at me. The sleep quickly fades from her eyes, replaced by a worried awareness. “Grant. Are you okay? Did you have a nightmare?”
“No, I’m fine,” I hurry to reply. “Sorry I woke you. I was just thinking, and…” Trailing off, I wonder how I should finish that.
I was thinking I want you to move in with me? I was thinking about introducing you to everyone important to me? I was thinking I’m not just falling in love with you; I’m already there?
Her brows wing into a concerned V. “Grant, you can tell me. If something’s wrong… I don’t want you to feel like you have to be the strong one all the time.”
“I don’t think that.” Much.
She raises her eyebrows at me.
“Well,” I amend. “I’m working on it.”
Scarlett rolls onto her side, so she’s facing me. Her bright blue gaze holds mine. “Is everything alright? Do you want to talk? Or was it really nothing?”
What do I say?
The truth?
Or a watered-down version of it ?
As Scarlett watches me, her features soften. She strokes her hand across my cheek. “I can tell you’re trying to decide whether to tell me something or not.” A small smile plays on her lips. “And you’re debating whether it’s the right thing, because you’re trying to protect me like you always do. Am I right?”
Damn. She’s good.
“Yes.” Sitting up, I pull her into my lap and wrap the blanket around us. “That’s pretty much exactly it.”
“Then just tell me,” she says. “Whatever it is, I can handle it.” A pause, and then with a worried expression, “Well. Unless. Are you breaking up with me?”
“No.” It bursts out louder than I intended. “Of course not. No. That’s so far from what I was thinking about—”
“Then what is it?”
Logic? Or my heart?
Do I go with the responsible option, or the one my gut is shouting at me to go for?
“I don’t want you to leave.” The heart it is.
Confusion moves across Scarlett’s face. “I’m not going anywhere.”
“I mean, after this. When you don’t have to stay here anymore.” Holding her gaze, I bare everything to her. “I want you to stay here. At my cabin. But it wouldn’t be mine. It would be ours. I want to live here with you. Make this our home.”
She blinks. Silence seems to drag on for an eternity.
Then, slowly, “Are you sure? You would want me to live here with you? For… ”
“For as long as you’re willing to stay.”
Still holding my gaze, Scarlett hesitates, taking a deep breath. Then she asks quietly, “What if I don’t want to leave? Ever?”
My heart thuds hard. “That would be okay with me.”
“Grant…” Emotion darkens her eyes. “Do you really mean that?”
“I do.” I brush a soft kiss across her lips before adding, “I know I shouldn’t ask yet. That it’s selfish. When the police and B and A solve this, you should go home and… I don’t know… adjust. Have some time to yourself after being stuck with me. But—”
“I don’t want that.” It’s quick. Adamant. “I don’t want to go back to that apartment. And I don’t want to leave.” Lines of sunlight leak through the closed blinds, catching the gold and platinum in her hair and catching sparks of sapphire in her eyes. “I’ve been thinking about it, too. Wishing I could stay here.”
My heart does that squeezing and expanding thing again. “You can. If you want to. I’d really love it if you’d stay.”
She kisses my cheek. “I want to stay, Grant. But—”
My hopes dip as she pauses.
“It’s not just staying here. I want all of it. Living with you. Meeting your family. Taking you home to visit mine. Holidays. Trips. I want—”
As she pauses again, fear and uncertainty darken her eyes.
I cuddle her closer to me. “What, baby?”
She blurts the rest out in a rush. “I want this to be real. Not just dating. But real, real. Not that I’m saying we have to get married. I know it’s much too soon for that. But the way I feel about you… I love you, Grant. Not just falling, I’m in love with you.”
Oh.
My eyes burn. Emotion makes my throat thick. “I love you, too.”
“You do?”
“How could I not?” I stroke my hand down the length of her hair. “You are everything, Scarlett. Everything I ever wanted. Everything I didn’t even know was possible. And I want to do all those things with you. Holidays. I want to celebrate Thanksgiving, and Christmas, and birthdays. Fix up this cabin so it’s yours, too.”
Her eyes are glassy. “I love this cabin.”
“But I could build a library for you. Or a screening room to watch all your shows. Anything you want. I’m in love with you. And I’ll do anything to make you happy.”
“ You make me happy.” Scarlett frames my face with her hands and leans in to kiss me. “You don’t have to do anything other than just be yourself.”
She turns in my lap, straddling me, trailing light kisses along my jaw. “I love you, Grant Collins. I didn’t know love felt like this. Like you’re a part of me, and I’m part of you.”
This is a romantic moment, and I’m overjoyed, but with Scarlett sitting naked on top of me, the two of us so close I could be inside her right now…
As I harden beneath her, my voice goes low and rough. “I love you, baby. So much. And—” I stifle a groan as she moves, her heat searing into me. “Maybe we should celebrate that. What do you think?”
Desire tightens her features. “I think—”
So of course, Wilson picks this moment to jump onto the bed, interrupting the moment. A moment later, Jasper makes a flying leap—very impressive, given his size—and tries to wiggle his way between us.
“Jasper!” Scarlett scolds, but she’s laughing as she does it. She gently pushes him away and he gives her a soulful look. “You’re ruining the moment,” she adds as she gives his fuzzy head a pat. “This is a very romantic moment, and now you and Wilson are interrupting it.”
Wilson’s snuffling around in the covers, but when he hears his name, he raises his head and I swear he has a triumphant look in his eyes.
I kiss Scarlett, nipping gently at her lower lip. “I can put them outside the bedroom. Give them some food and their bully sticks. That’ll keep them occupied for a while.”
Scarlett’s face lights with interest. “That sounds like a good idea.”
“Okay.” Lifting her off me, I set Scarlett back against the pillows and tuck the blanket around her. “Give me five minutes. Then I’ll be back, and we can pick back up with this very romantic moment.”
She grins at me. “That sounds perfect.”
Just as I’m getting out of bed, my phone buzzes from the nightstand. My immediate thought is to ignore it—it’s still early, I gave the crew the weekend off, and I have plans to make love to my girlfriend? Woman I love? Is there a word that means more than a girlfriend but isn’t a fiancée?
Calling Scarlett my fiancée sounds pretty nice, though.
But I have to at least check to see who’s calling, in case it’s an emergency. One of my parents could be ill or hurt, my sister or her husband, or God forbid, my little nephew, Dylan.
Fortunately, it isn’t any of them.
But.
It’s not a call I can ignore.
I just hope Cole is calling at eight A.M. on a Saturday morning with good news. News he couldn’t wait to tell us because he knew it would be a weight off Scarlett’s shoulders. And mine. Like the truth came out and Scarlett’s completely safe and was never an intended target.
“It’s Cole,” I tell Scarlett as I pick up the phone. Sitting back down on the bed, I tap to answer it.
“Grant.” From his tone, I already know it’s not good news.
“Cole,” I reply. “How are you?”
“Well.” A heavy pause, and now I really know I’m not going to like what he has to say. “I have news. And I know it’s Saturday morning. But I wanted to let you know right away.”
The same sense of foreboding I used to get on occasion in the Army—the one that told me to fall back, or proceed with extreme caution—settles over me. “What is it? ”
“I wasn’t happy with the progress we were making,” he explains. “And I knew at least one of the suspects in custody wasn’t telling the police everything. “So I was able to pull some strings and get Rylan in to see Eamon Swell—the one who broke into Scarlett’s house—first thing this morning.”
Rylan is one of the nicest guys I know, but from some stories I’ve heard, he’s also their best interrogator. And the Blade and Arrow guys don’t have to follow the same rules as the police—not that they do anything illegal, but they work more in varying shades of gray than strict black and white.
Setting my jaw, I ask, “And?”
“Rylan convinced Swell that there could be some very unpleasant consequences if he didn’t cooperate. And the potential for some protection inside prison if he does. So—” He pauses. “We got some more information.”
Why is Cole dragging this out? He’s usually much more straightforward. “Cole. What is it?”
“Swell said he was paid to go after Scarlett. It was all anonymous through the dark web.” Anger seeps through Cole’s voice. “He wasn’t just paid to attack her. He was hired to kill her.”
Fuck.