“Fucking bastard.” Jed’s face twisted with rage. “I’ll kill you. I swear, I’ll kill you.”
“Hard to do from prison,” Garth said as he stood. “You should have paid for her surgery, Jed. The money wouldn’t have mattered that much to you, but it would have saved her. I would have watched your back for the rest of my life.”
“You think I care about that? You were some kid. You didn’t matter to me.”
“I do now,” he said and then he left.
CHAPTER EIGHTEEN
DANA DROVE FROM LEXI’S office to her own empty apartment. It was the only place she could think to go where no one would bother to look for her. It was a place to be alone. A thousand thoughts swirled through her brain, but the only one that mattered was that the pain wasn’t as bad as she thought it would be.
She’d thought she wouldn’t be able to breathe, that her entire body would ache, that she would want to cry but couldn’t. There was almost nothing. As if every part of her was numb. Maybe it was.
She walked into her apartment and checked each of the rooms. Everything was as it should be, if a little colder. She’d turned down the heat before moving in with Garth. Now she checked the small bathroom and the kitchen, all the windows, then ran out of things to do. Standing alone in the middle of her kitchen, she accepted the truth. Life was nothing, if not consistent. Lead with your heart and you’ll get hit over and over again.
Later, she would go back to the condo and see Garth. She would pretend that nothing was wrong and he would let her. Or maybe he wouldn’t know the difference. He didn’t know what she’d heard. He didn’t know that she loved him. She’d spent her whole life protecting herself only to fall for someone who would never love her back. Talk about irony. Jed would be delighted.
Dana leaned against the counter and kept her breathing steady. If she focused on her breathing, she wouldn’t feel the growing emptiness in her heart. She wouldn’t notice the hollow place in her chest or the ache in her soul. If she worried about standing and not collapsing or screaming, she would be too busy to admit how much she’d lost.
It wasn’t like with her father, she told herself. That was something. Garth would never hurt her on purpose. He didn’t know she’d been standing there to hear his damning words. He’d been good to her, someone she could trust with just about everything but her heart. What made it so hard was how long it would take to heal.
She told herself that eventually she would appreciate that at least she’d put herself out there. She’d given it her all. That hadn’t been enough, but at least she hadn’t held back. She’d gone kicking and screaming into the relationship, but eventually she’d made it. She’d fallen in love with Garth and lived to talk about it.
She’d also learned a lot. She’d learned that love wasn’t easy or fair. That she didn’t get to pick who would be the one. Garth was an amazing man. She was grateful for the time they’d spent together and would enjoy whatever was left. And then she would leave.
She wasn’t the type to make a scene, or worse, beg. He didn’t know what she’d heard and she wouldn’t tell him. As far as he was concerned, nothing had changed. They’d established the rules together-she’d been the one to break them.
Oh, but it hurt. The sense of loss devastated her. Hopes and dreams she hadn’t known she had crowded around her, making her ache for what could have been. For Garth and the life they could have had together.
Her eyes burned and it took a second for her to figure out what that meant. Tears. Foolish tears.
“I’ll save them for later,” she said aloud. For when it was really over. Then she would cry and eventually tell her friends what had happened. She would figure out a way to move on with her life. She would heal and be better for the experience.
All words that sounded so great. If only she had a clue as to how to make it happen.
But whatever the outcome, she’d learned a lot in the past few months and she had changed. Eventually, when she healed, she would start over. No more safe guys. No more boring men who didn’t challenge her. She would find someone who could be important to her, not just someone who was convenient. Assuming she ever wanted to risk her heart again. Right now, that didn’t seem possible.
She left her apartment and drove back to the condo. It was nearly dark. The ride up in the elevator seemed to go by too fast. As if time had started to speed up. She wanted to slow everything down, to make the minutes she had left crawl. She wanted to savor every second with Garth.
He was already home. She knew it the minute she put the key in the lock and pushed open the door. Lights were on. Soft music played. Garth stood in the center of the room, looking both pleased and a little uncomfortable. For a second she thought he knew she’d been outside the room when he’d told Lexi he would never love her, but then he held open his arms.
She walked into his embrace and hugged him. As she held on to him, she breathed in the scent of him. She needed to remember as much as she could so that when this was over, she would have the memories forever. Maybe that was a sign of weakness, but she didn’t care. She loved Garth-she didn’t want to forget anything about being with him. She might not get him forever, but at least she had him for now. There was still time.
He stepped back and touched her cheek. “You all right?” he asked.
“Sure. Why?”
He studied her. “I’m not sure. There’s something.”
She forced a smile. “I’m fine. What about you?”
“I just had a meeting with Jed.”
“Did I know about that?”
“No. I’ve been working on a few things.” His dark eyes crinkled slightly. “Some I haven’t mentioned because you wouldn’t approve.”
So typical, she thought fondly. “We discussed you not breaking the law.”
“I’m not, but there’s gray area and you don’t need to know the details.”
Because he would look out for her. Because despite not loving her, he cared about her.
“It’s a long story, but the bottom line is he has seventy-two hours to come up with a lot of money. If he doesn’t, and he won’t, I’ll own it all. The company and Glory’s Gate.”
So fast? But she’d thought they would have more time. Seventy-two hours? And then what? If he was already confronting Jed, then it was nearly over.
“He can’t have been happy,” she murmured, hoping he couldn’t read the shock in her eyes.
“He wasn’t. Things are going to get ugly. Everyone has to be careful, especially you. He came after you before.”
“I’ll be fine.”
“No crazy stunts.”
She managed a genuine smile. “Not my style.”
“I don’t know. You can be pretty wild.” He touched her cheek again. “I’ve spoken with everyone. Skye’s taking Erin to school and back rather than letting her ride the bus. Cruz won’t let Lexi out of his sight. Izzy and Nick will cover each other. It’s seventy-two hours and then we’re done.”
Three days and then it was over. She would return to her life. Go back on duty. Pick up the pieces and try to forget what it had been like to be in Garth’s world. To love him and have him with her, wanting her.
“I hope everything goes well,” she said.
“Me, too. Jed is cornered and he’s going to lash out.”
“What about your mom? Kathy’s protected, right?”
“Yes. There’s a guard watching round the clock, and I’ve spoken to her caretakers. They’re being extra careful. By this time next week, everything will go back to the way it was.”
“Lucky us,” Dana said softly, reminding herself to ignore the impending doom. She would cry later, when she was alone. When Garth had moved on and their relationship was in the past.
GARTH OPENED DANA’S car door, then closed it behind her. As they walked up to Cruz’s house, he took her hand. While he knew in his head that everything was fine, he kept having a nagging sensation that something was wrong. It wasn’t doom exactly-more like a low-grade worry. He was a man who always took care of details. After years of planning, he was finally going to take down Jed. It made sense that he would want everything to go well.