Total pages in book: 109
Estimated words: 107352 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 537(@200wpm)___ 429(@250wpm)___ 358(@300wpm)
Estimated words: 107352 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 537(@200wpm)___ 429(@250wpm)___ 358(@300wpm)
That evening, once I’d checked the gas stove—couldn’t be too careful with those burners—made sure the house was locked, set the alarm, and made sure the cameras were all up and running, I got into bed next to Luke.
He was immediately all over me, his hands, his mouth, and I rolled over on top of him, pinning him to the bed.
“You’re thinking something stupid,” I told him.
He refused to look at me, and I saw his throat working and his jaw clenching.
“You’re thinking, If I don’t hurry up and give this man some sex, he’s gonna change his mind, because taking care of sick, barfing people is not what he signed up for.”
He rolled his head on the pillow and stared up into my eyes.
“What you’re missing is, you’re all mine. I’ve never had people who were mine to take care of before.”
Heavy sigh from him.
“I promise,” I said, grinning at him, giving him a quick kiss, “I want you so bad, but getting to sleep next to you and hold you all night…that’s pretty good too.”
He was shivering, and I rolled off him and took him in my arms.
“I’m so lucky,” he murmured when I flipped off the light.
“I’m pretty lucky myself,” I assured him.
I couldn’t remember a better end to a day.
Sunday, Griff was back to cooking, so we had omelets for breakfast with sour cream and avocado, and not only was it good, but his presentation was beautiful. I was also impressed that he cooked the bacon in the oven. It was a new thing he was trying.
Next on the list was doing the shopping for the week, and at the grocery store, everyone was talking about the discovery of a body. When Griff, Tatum, and I returned home, Luke and Darwin were watching the news.
“What’s going on that everyone is losing their minds over?”
“Well, we knew a lot of what was happening because we had all the inside information,” Luke said, then gave me a kiss. “But sadly, this morning, they recovered Mullane’s body in the woods behind Wilson’s fishing cabin in Snoqualmie.”
“That’s terrible.” I sighed, standing there with bags of groceries in my hands and listening to the newsperson reporting from the steps of city hall. “His poor family.”
“It’s better for them to know, isn’t it?” Darwin asked me.
“Yes, but it’s all very final now.”
“Yeah,” he said softly.
The good news was, no one knew anything about Griff, which was how he wanted it, and so did Luke and me. Later that day, Weston Kinney called and spoke to Luke. Now that there would be no new chief of police in Eena, the money that Griff had initially left with the city, for a new police chief and other personnel, would be paid to him. It was to be added to the trust he would receive when he started college.
“He didn’t want to talk to me?” I asked Luke.
“No. Never again,” he replied flatly.
It could never be said that Luke Duchesne was not a possessive man.
At dinner, Darwin asked, “How can Wilson still be at large with everyone looking for him? I mean, how is that possible?”
“Some people stay hidden for years, decades, even,” I told him as I put steamed broccoli on my plate. “It depends on their resources.”
“But with everyone searching for them?”
“Absolutely. You should google how long some criminals have remained at large.”
Silence followed my suggestion, and it dawned on me what the real question was as Tatum asked in a wobbly voice, “What if Wilson comes back to hurt Griff?”
“No, love,” I assured her and everyone else. “He’s on the run, he’s not coming back.”
They all looked better after my assurance. But once they were all in front of the TV in the living room, before I could get up and join them, Luke grabbed hold of my hand.
“Honey?” I turned to him.
“Wilson is on the run, as you said, but he has nothing left to lose, and he’s already killed a man and God knows what else.”
“True.”
“So what’s to stop him from circling back to take his frustrations out on Griff? I mean, between you getting Griff out of police custody, which triggered Newcastle PD’s investigation into Wilson, and then Griff being the one to find James Mullane’s key—is it completely out of the realm of possibility that Wilson might want revenge?”
“Because in his altered perception of the facts, he might be blaming Griff for all the bad things that have happened to him?”
“I know it’s not logical, but—”
“You’re asking if it’s a possibility, because Wilson isn’t being logical, necessarily.”
“Yes. That’s what I’m asking.”
“The truth is, yes, there’s a slim possibility that Wilson abandons all self-preservation instincts, reason, good judgment, and returns for Griff.”
He nodded quickly.
“But honestly, the fact of the matter is, if Wilson is going to blame anyone for his problems, it wouldn’t be Griff.”