Chapter 40
Thea
Iwake up cuddled into Pierce, like I have every morning because I’m powerless to fight this man’s appeal even in my sleep.
The room is still dark; it must be early. My bladder is ready to explode from the three cups of ‘calming’ tea I chugged while I talked Aunt Megan down. Clearly the effects didn’t take until I knew I was safe. In Pierce’s bed.
Which is not safe at all for my heart.
I have to put a stop to this obsession with him before he leaves me because I haven’t convinced him to stay. He kissed me, but a kiss is an action, not a promise.
I slip out of his embrace, and he mutters something, reaching for me.
I brush my hand over his, watching his fingers curl into a fist as I leave. Maybe he can’t resist me in his sleep, either.
I crack the door to the room quietly and tiptoe down the hall to the bathroom.
My thoughts turn to last night and all the question marks still hanging around my missing memories. I know only one way to get more answers.
I’ve got to go see Andi. It’s early, but if I know her, she stayed up all night working on something for me. I should go in soon so I can send her home to rest.
I send her a text from my dad’s phone.
Me: Are you at the lab?
Andi: Yes. I’ve almost got something you can try.
Hope soars in my chest.
When Pierce wakes up, I’ll have more memories and hopefully some answers. Maybe while I’m there, I’ll talk to Gavin. If I gave him what he wanted, maybe he has a check written out for me.
That’s reasonable, right?
The nagging fear in the back of my mind is pretty sure he won’t welcome me with open arms. I have to try, though—for my dad, and to figure out what happened in my missing week.
I finish in the bathroom, braiding my hair and brushing my teeth. I can’t get into my room because Pierce bolted the ‘compromised space’. So I find a pair of joggers and a hoodie in the clean laundry basket in the laundry room.
I pad quietly down the stairs. Dad is already awake, watching the morning news report. After a night full of unknowns, his routine is comforting.
“Hey, Dad,” I press a kiss to his cheek.
“You’re up early.” Dad grabs my hand where it rests on his shoulder and squeezes.
“I have something to take care of this morning.”
He takes in my outfit. “Have you decided to start exercising?”
“You know cardio and I don’t get along.”
“Those stitches in your eyebrow prove that.” He laughs. “You got the clumsiness from me, I fear. Did something happen last night? I thought I heard a crash.”
I tense. He didn’t come out, so I’d assumed his sleep apnea machine had kept him from hearing anything.
“Oh yeah.” I feign a smile. “I went to the bathroom in the dark and knocked over that little table in the hall.”
He taps the remote on the edge of the chair. “A table in the hall. Whoever heard of such a thing.”
Mom was the decorator, and though my dad complained about many of her choices, he hasn’t changed one thing since she’s been gone.
“Ridiculous.” I chuckle, squeezing his hand once more. “I’ll be back in an hour.”
“Pick up some cinnamon rolls for everyone. Pierce will love them.”
I don’t have the heart to tell him that Pierce will not love the sugary carbs, but that’s what my mom always did when people came to visit. Cinnamon rolls from Sweet Cheats bakery was a tradition.
“Will do.”
I run to my dad’s lab and open the computer, typing the directions to SciTech’s new location in my dad's flip phone. He never needed a GPS, but I can’t live without one. I head to the garage and input the location into the car’s navigation system.
The car, which used to be my dad’s, is warm and familiar. I buckle in and press the garage door opener.
The sun beams in like a promise. All the answers I need are waiting for me.