Chapter Thirty-Three
AJ
I stand at the counter, throwing together a salad to go with the pizzas Parker ordered when she left the station. “Ugh,” she says as she twists the top off a bottle of Shiner. “Delivery’s running late. Still fifteen minutes out. You need help in here?”
“Nah. Go sit down. Grace is probably gettin’ tired of only havin’ me to talk to.”
Parker scoffs, but heads for the overstuffed recliner next to the couch, kicks off her boots, and settles in. “How’s the PT going?” she asks.
Lifting her left hand, Grace taps her thumb and pinky finger together. “I couldn’t do that two days ago. Belle’s happy I can throw a tennis ball for her now. Since I can’t take her running anymore…”
The anguish in her voice breaks me. Dr. VanHorn doesn’t have all her test results back yet, but she sent us a preliminary report yesterday morning.
The cartilage in Grace’s right knee is almost completely gone. Her left is only marginally better.
Even though the idea of her running scared us both, when I told her we could go out together once she was stronger, she’d been excited to try. Learning something she’d once loved had been taken from her was devastating.
Belle hops off the couch and beelines for the doggie door. She’s finally comfortable leaving Grace’s side for short periods of time, but she still won’t let me put her in her crate—even when we’re only in the next room.
Parker toys with the end of her braid. “So, when you can go out in public again, what do you want to do first?”
Grace hums as she flips through several photos on the tablet in her lap, landing on one of my favorites.
A selfie of the two of us at one of Austin’s more unique spots—a vintage arcade in the middle of an outdoor shopping complex.
“Maybe the Punch Bowl? We look so happy here. It’s…
almost familiar. I don’t remember it, exactly, but sometimes when I look at this picture, I think I can hear the pinball machines. ”
Leaning forward, Parker nods. “Good choice. The Punch Bowl is a hoot. I sent Hardison there a couple of months ago after he said there were no good first date spots in this town. He changed his tune right quick after that.”
Grace laughs, the sound lighter than I’ve heard in days.
“I do want to go to the art supply store. I’m sure all my paints dried up a long time ago.
” Her smile fades as her fingers skim her cheekbone.
“Much like my skin. Wherever I was, I clearly didn’t have moisturizer.
AJ saved everything of mine in the bathroom, but…
” She wrinkles her nose. “I didn’t know eye cream went bad. ”
“Oh, shit!” Parker says. “That’s half the reason I came over tonight. I stopped at Niemens after work. Got you all the good stuff. But I left the bag in the car. Give me two shakes.”
She tugs on her boots as I carry the salad bowl to the dining room table.
The front door opens, but the soft sound is quickly followed by a sharp crack, and a voice that sends ice flooding my veins.
“Stone! Get your lyin’ ass out here!” Chief Harris bellows.
The salad bowl hits the table, and I race for the living room.
“Chief, stop!” Parker shouts. She grabs his arm as I skid around the corner, but he shakes her off and stalks over to Grace.
“Well, it truly is a blessed day,” he says, his voice so sharp, it could cut granite. “Grace Stone, as I live and breathe.”
All the color drains from Grace’s cheeks. She scrambles off the couch, but her feet tangle in the throw blanket, and she stumbles. Her knee slams into the coffee table, and she crumples to the floor with a whimper.
“Grace!” I shove the chief hard enough to send him tumbling over the back of the sofa, and crouch down next to my wife.
She curls in on herself, arms over her head, her entire body shaking. “I’ll be good,” she whispers, the words fractured and broken. “I promise. I’ll be good.”
“Grace, darlin’. It’s me. It’s AJ. Come back now, okay?”
She doesn’t hear me. She can’t, wherever she is. Do I dare touch her? Every other time she’s had a panic attack, I’ve been able to get her back with a few whispered words or my arms around her. But this feels different. More somehow.
“You’re safe. You’re home. You’re loved,” I murmur. She stares straight ahead, her eyes glassy, lost in a nightmare only she can wake herself from.
Fuck it.
I slide one arm behind her back, the other under her thighs, and gather her close. She’s shaking, her tiny cries tearing at my soul.
“Stone, are you tryin’ to get yourself fired?” Harris rounds the sofa, but Parker gets right in his face.
“Chief, I reckon you’re two steps away from AJ beating the ever-lovin’ shit out of you. Step back. Now.”
“Lieutenant Elmore, you’re suspended. Out of my—”
Parker’s punch hits him square in the jaw.
His head whips to the side, his eyes round with shock. Before he can do more than wipe the blood from his split lip, Belle bounds into the room, teeth bared, growling at Harris like she’s just met the devil.
“She’ll rip your throat out, Chief,” I say, keeping my voice measured and even, hoping Grace can at least take comfort in the tone if she can’t make sense of my words. “And I ain’t inclined to stop her.”
“You owe me an explanation.”
In my periphery, Parker sidles up to Belle, and I’m not sure which one of them is more lethal.
“He doesn’t owe you anything. Not tonight, anyway.
If you actually give a shit about AJ and Grace, you’ll shut your goddamn mouth, walk out that door, and keep this quiet. He’ll call you in the morning. Maybe.”
Harris huffs out a breath and backs away, cradling his jaw. Belle doesn’t stop growling until the front door closes softly. The house stills, filling with an unnatural quiet broken only by Grace’s ragged breathing.
“He’s gone, darlin’. Come back to me. Please.” I press my lips to her temple, rocking her gently as Belle tries to wriggle onto my lap next to her.
One of the dog’s massive paws lands only a fraction of an inch from my dick. I jerk and hiss out a breath. The movement is enough to pull Grace from her trance, and her eyes flutter closed.
“AJ,” she whispers. “Don’t let go.”
“Never.”