Chapter 24 Thayer
THAYER
It was after midnight when Giselle and I finally fell asleep.
Now, she lay tucked against me as an early morning rainstorm splattered loudly against the window.
So many thoughts swirled around in my brain as I lay there trying not to move and wake her.
She’d broken up with Gino for me. I needed to let that set in.
Never in my wildest dreams, when I was crushing on her, did I think she’d ever make such a big decision because of me.
I knew how much she was giving up by not staying with him.
But, thankfully, she had, or we probably never would’ve learned the truth.
Or, at least what appeared to be the truth about him.
But there were going to be repercussions. I needed to come clean with Kason. He deserved to know about Gino and Carlo and Giselle and me.
“Stop thinking so much,” Giselle whispered.
“Who said I’m thinking?” I asked, leaning down and pressing my lips to the top of her head.
“There’s a lot to think about,” she said.
“Yeah.”
“Any word from your dad?”
I reached for my phone and checked it.
Kason
U good?
“Not yet.” I placed my phone back down, feeling guilty for ignoring his text.
She snuggled into me.
“Did you sleep okay?” I asked.
“Strangely, I did.”
I smiled. “I do have that effect on girls.”
“What girls?”
“The only one that matters.”
“Damn straight,” she said.
“Let me take you out today,” I said.
“A date?” she asked.
“I think it’s about time we did something the right way, don’t you?”
“I do,” she said.
“Let’s go by your house and talk to your parents. They need to know what happened in Florida.”
She groaned. “Why is reality always getting in the way of us being happy?”
“Speak for yourself. I’m completely happy.” I turned and pinned her to the bed. “You make me happy.”
She grinned up at me, her eyes dancing with excitement.
“And I love the way you’re looking at me right now. It’s like for the first time you actually see me looking at you.”
“I’m sorry it took so long,” she said.
“Nothing to be sorry about. You’re here now.”
Giselle
“You ready?” Thayer asked, taking my hand as we walked up my parents’ driveway.
“Yeah,” I said as I pulled open the side door to the kitchen.
“Hi,” my mother said as soon as we walked inside, her eyes shooting to our linked hands. “This makes me so happy.”
“You?” Thayer asked with a smirk.
She hurried over and wrapped us both in a hug. When she finally released us, she looked to me. “Are you okay?”
“I have no idea,” I said.
“Can we sit down?” Thayer asked, ready to tell her everything. The good, the bad, and the ugly.
“Yes, of course,” she said.
“Is Dad here?”
“He’s upstairs.”
“Can you go get him?” I asked.
“You’re scaring me,” my mother said.
“We’ll explain everything once Dad’s here.”
As soon as she left the room, Thayer and I sat. He didn’t release my hand, and I couldn’t believe how something so small made me feel so centered.
“Hey,” my dad said, following my mom into the room and kissing my cheek. “Glad you’re back.” He looked at Thayer. “Where’s Kason?”
“He’s still in Big Bear,” Thayer explained.
My dad’s brows furrowed.
I lifted our linked hands.
His eyes widened. “Okay, then.”
We all laughed awkwardly.
My mother leaned against the island beside my father and crossed her arms. “So, what happened?”
“I don’t even know where to start,” I began. “I ended it with Gino.”
“Was he surprised?” she asked.
“He sounded like he would’ve wanted to make it work if I did,” I explained.
“Clearly you didn’t,” my dad said, eyeing Thayer accusatorially.
“Clearly she didn’t,” Thayer said.
“But there’s more,” I said, causing them to all look to me. “I saw the guy who robbed the boutique.”
My mother gasped. “What?”
My father looked unsure about what I’d said. “Come again?”
“He knows Gino,” Thayer explained.
“But…” my mother began, likely trying to wrap her head around it.
“How can you be sure it was him?” my father asked, the same unsure expression on his face.
“When someone does something that horrific to you, you never forget their voice,” I explained.
“Did he recognize you?” my father asked.
I shook my head. “He didn’t even see me sitting there.”
“What did Gino say?” my mother asked.
“I rushed out of there before Gino even knew I was there. There was no way I could face him after learning the truth.”
My parents both looked confused and unsure what the truth was. Hell, I had no idea what the truth was.
“We’re not sure,” Thayer began gently, “if he and Gino were working together.”
My father slammed his hands down on the island. “I’ll kill him.”
“Dad, we need to keep level heads.”
“Did you notify the police?” he asked.
“Giselle never saw his face that night,” Thayer added. “The cops wouldn’t have taken her seriously if she had no evidence other than she knew his voice.”
“This is unbelievable,” my father said.
Thayer’s thumb traced circles on the back of my hand. “Giselle’s been so strong. She could’ve lost it being in Florida all alone when this happened, but she didn’t.”
“That son of a bitch,” my father mumbled.
“Dad, we can’t be sure about Gino yet. Thayer’s dad is working on it.”
“Your father?” my mother asked, knowing about the bad blood there. She’d been close with his mother, and no one liked his father.
“I knew the police might not take her seriously, so believe it or not, he was our only hope,” Thayer admitted.
“What information does he have to go on?” my father asked.
“We know his first name and that he likely grew up with Gino,” Thayer explained. “My father’s looking into similar crimes and Gino’s background, you know, to find out more about Carlo.”
My mother rounded the island and wrapped me in another hug. “That had to be terrifying for you. Seeing him and being so far away from us.”
“I’m okay,” I assured her. “And Thayer met me at the airport.”
My mother looked to him with appreciation in her eyes.
“What’s Kason have to say about all of this?” my father asked.
I winced. “I haven’t told him yet.”
“But Thayer knows,” he said.
“You know Kase would’ve flown directly to Florida.”
“That makes two of us,” my father said.
“I know. I just needed to have a plan first.”
“We have to tell him,” my mother said.
I nodded. “He’ll be home tomorrow, and I’m going to tell him then.”
My father’s eyes moved between Thayer and me. “Do I even want to know how long this has been going on?”
“It’s new,” I said.
My dad looked to Thayer. “And Kason’s good with it?”
Thayer’s eyes cut to mine.
“We haven’t exactly told him that yet either,” I admitted.
“Good luck with that,” my father said.
Luck? We needed more than luck.