Chapter 2 #2
“That’s great news. Let me message Dr. Meadows. Should I give her your contact details?”
“Yes. That would be great.”
Ava took out her phone and sent a message to both him and the doctor. He just watched her typing on her phone. Her hair had been braided but she’d missed a strand that was sticking up a little toward the back of her head. She’d turned her shirt around and well, hell, she looked so damned cute.
Putting her phone down, she caught him staring at her. Raised both eyebrows at him, meeting his stare squarely.
“I could hang around for an hour if you want to grab a nap,” he offered. He knew she was tired, and a baby took a lot of energy.
“Do I look that tired?”
“You look great,” he said, keeping it real. “But I know how it is with babies. You know I’m an upstanding guy. I’ll sit in my truck with the monitor if it makes you feel safer.”
“I feel very safe with you,” she admitted. “I’m not a good napper, but I could use a shower. Would you mind if I grabbed a quick one?”
Still buzzing from hearing her say she felt safe with him, he nodded.
He hadn’t dated in a while, and really, with his job and his grandmother he had a full life…
well, sort of full life…okay, not full at all, but he was content with what he had.
Being interested in a woman who lived almost an hour from him wasn’t a smart idea.
But there it was.
“Take your time. I’ll have another cup of coffee and wait here for you,” he said.
“Thank you!”
She left the room quickly after he poured himself another mug and sat back down, looking down at his notes. The investigation wasn’t moving forward for him, and he’d hoped to be able to rule out Diné involvement in it, but so far nothing.
Dr. Meadows messaged back her contact where he could share the database, too.
That baby…was she related to him? His mom had been a troubled woman.
Grandmother had reiterated that more times than Chay had needed her to, but as he’d gotten older, he realized she’d done it so he’d know it wasn’t him. He hadn’t been what had made her leave.
Which was a nice message for a child, but for a man who made his living watching people and looking for the truth, it was uncomfortable. His mom had left because being on the reservation wasn’t the life she wanted. Having a kid wasn’t for her, either.
He hoped she’d found what she’d been looking for in Atlanta, but given that she’d died of an overdose, he was pretty sure she hadn’t.
Ava couldn’t get Chay out of her mind all afternoon. Gracie had a good nap, and then when the baby woke up she was in a better mood. Ava put the Navajo blanket on the floor and let the baby roll around on it and play with the soft toys that Ava hadn’t been able to resist buying.
Watching Gracie, she had the local country music station playing in the background. The baby was trying to roll over but seemed to do it accidentally, which always surprised her and made Ava laugh.
The next few days were similar. While she was at work, they had a day-care center in the hospital where she left Gracie.
Fern was starting to get stronger and was willing to talk more, but not about what had happened.
Ava knew that each of her patients took their own time to talk about their trauma, so she just kept showing up so that Fern knew she wasn’t alone.
Dr. Meadows asked her to come by her office. Ava was a bit surprised when she got there and Chay was in the office.
“The DNA results are in. Gracie is one-quarter Diné and shares DNA markers with people in the region.”
“That’s wonderful. Officer Benally also thought her blanket was familiar. Could he be related?”
“It’s hard to tell from the just the DNA. Do you have any siblings?” Hannah asked Chay.
“None that I know of. If she’s Diné, I think she should be raised with her people,” Chay said.
“I agree. It’s probably a good idea to get Marg in here so she can start working with tribal authorities.”
“I’m happy to facilitate that. Thank you for calling me in with the results. Did she share markers with anyone else?”
“Just you and your grandmother,” Dr. Meadows said.
“Oh, wow,” Ava said. Chay had said no siblings that he knew of. So, there was a possibility he had relatives he didn’t know about…
Chay just nodded. His face told her it was a closed subject, and she was happy to leave it be for now. Marg would work with the tribal authorities to find a home for Gracie. Which was a good thing. The little girl deserved a happy, solid home life.
“Any more information on Annie Ross?” Ava asked.
“Not much. The sheriff has an open investigation. Now that we know Gracie was Annie’s daughter, we can maybe help piece together more of Annie’s story.”
Everyone agreed that would be good.
“I’m done for the day if you want to come and hang out with Gracie,” Ava offered as she and Chay left the office.
“I’m…not sure she’s related to me,” he said haltingly.
“Well, I guess the DNA isn’t conclusive and that blanket might be tied to your family.”
“Maybe,” he said.
“You’re pretty good with her. I think she’s been missing you,” Ava said. Sort of making that up, but there had been times when Gracie had seemed to look around the house as if expecting to spot Chay.
“Sure she has. I have to get back to the office, but I’ll stop by tomorrow if that’s an open invite,” he said.
“It is.” Ava wanted Gracie to know her relatives, even if she was placed in another home—knowing Chay going to be a good familial bond for the baby as she grew up.
“It’s a date,” he said.
“A date?”
“Yup.”
“Okay, bring some coffee cake or doughnuts to go with the coffee then,” she said.
“Not doughnuts…that’s a cliché for a cop. But I’ll bring something for you,” he said, putting on his hat as he walked away.
She just watched him leave, smiling to herself. She liked him, which totally surprised her, because it had been a while since she’d really felt anything for a man.
Going to pick up Gracie from the day care, she bundled the baby up and headed home.
Once again she thought she felt someone watching her but put it down to paranoia.
After reading the police report with the details of how Fern was abducted earlier that day, Ava knew she was processing some leftover anxiety from when her college boyfriend had stalked her.
Just that sense of not being safe. The same thing had happened after she watched a psychologic thriller.
It had been so creepy and chilling she had to sleep with her light on for weeks after that.
Her mom had pointed out that thirteen was too young, but a boy that Ava had liked had invited her to go see it.
Woman, take warning.
But Chay wasn’t asking her to see a movie or really to do anything except help in his investigation. It was all on her.
That moment she’d held Gracie, something had shifted inside of her. A longing she hadn’t been aware of had sprung to life, and each time she rocked the little girl to sleep or went to watch her playing in her crib first thing in the morning, the longing grew.
She wasn’t going to struggle to give the baby to her forever home. Which Ava thought was a good thing. It reminded her she was alive. She’d been settling into just existence before she’d started fostering kids. It wasn’t all hearts and flowers or easy at all, but it was what she needed.
Getting home, she made dinner for herself then fed Gracie.
“Ready to watch some reality tv?” she asked the little baby, whose eyes were getting heavy with sleep.
Tucking Gracie close to her, she held her as she tuned into that castle in the Scottish Highlands and Alan Cumming with his outrageous outfits.
This was exactly what she needed to clear her mind and get ready for tomorrow.
Chay was coming over again. He’d said “date,” but she knew it wasn’t a date date. Still, she was looking forward to seeing him again.
More than she’d expected, too.