Total pages in book: 108
Estimated words: 100853 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 504(@200wpm)___ 403(@250wpm)___ 336(@300wpm)
Estimated words: 100853 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 504(@200wpm)___ 403(@250wpm)___ 336(@300wpm)
Hope nodded in agreement. “Definitely. Still, what exactly did he tell you? Griffen wasn’t clear.”
I let out a sigh. “That we have to stay away from each other, I guess. And that everyone has to stay away from him. I don’t know what his plan is. To hide out in the storage room until the security team catches Cole Haywood?”
It seemed ridiculous, but what did I know? I wasn’t a security expert. And they’d clearly known what they were doing by negotiating with a would-be murderer.
“I’m sure they’re working something out,” Hope said. “That’s what they do. In the meantime, we’ve got your back, Paige.”
Maybe sensing that I was done talking about Ford, Hope changed the subject to Stella and the tooth she thought might be coming in. Finally, maybe we’d get a break from the teething nightmare. From there, we went to Christmas, the holiday right around the corner. Savannah strategized decorations with Hope, and I sipped my wine, piping in here and there, feeling the tension and the adrenaline drain out of me drop by drop, the wine soaking into my brain cells until all I wanted to do was drift off.
I set the mostly empty glass on my bedside table and leaned into my pillows, pulling up the blanket. My eyes started to flutter shut. I felt a hand brush my hair back from my face and another tuck the covers around my shoulders.
“Sleep in tomorrow,” Hope said. “It’ll be the best thing to get that arm healed up.” She stroked her hand over my hair once more. “Everything’s going to be okay, Paige. I promise. Come find me when you’re up and about. We’ll figure out the day.”
“Okay,” I said, my eyes heavy. “Thanks.”
“Anytime,” Hope said, squeezing my shoulder and giving a final tug to the covers. “You’re part of the family now.”
They murmured to each other quietly as they left, closing the door behind them.
I felt myself drifting, my heart still aching, my chest still feeling as if it had been caved in. I wanted Ford. I’d gotten used to not sleeping alone, and though my room was warm enough, I felt cold to the bone. And far too angry to think about forgiving him.
Chapter Twenty-Nine
FORD
The days stretched endlessly. It had been a week since I’d talked to Paige or been close enough to touch her. I’d exiled myself, avoiding the family, hiding out in my room or the attics, searching for paperwork that would point to my father’s killer and coming up empty day after day. I found another invoice about the garage renovation in ’86 and finally called the company to ask what they knew about it, but it was so long ago, the woman who answered said there wasn’t anyone working who’d been around that long. I was running into dead ends everywhere I turned.
As predicted, Cole Haywood was let out of prison the day after the shot through my bedroom window. No one had seen a sign of him since. His funds were frozen, and it looked like his bounty was dead. Word had spread quickly that he couldn’t pay. We were braced, but nothing had happened. Those of us who weren’t on the security team were starting to go stir-crazy.
Avoiding Paige was painful. I was hungry for the sound of her voice, the sight of her, of her smile. I’d take her rage if that was all I could get, and I knew she was pissed. Savannah had pulled me aside the day after I told Paige to stay away.
She’d said, “You were an asshole.”
“So I’ve been informed,” I’d responded coolly.
“Well, I’m not going to bust your chops over it. That’s Paige’s job.” She folded her arms over her chest.
“Then what?” I’d asked.
She’d reached up to squeeze my arm. “I’m not saying you’re doing the right thing, because Paige is an adult and you’re not her babysitter. But I get why you did it. I can see you’re thinking of her, and you hate every minute of this.”
“I do,” I agreed, shoving my hands in my pockets. I hadn’t expected understanding from Savannah. “You know what I did to Finn.”
Savannah’s eyes had gone hard, but her face was soft as she nodded. “And I know that at this point it’s hurting you a hell of a lot more than it’s hurting him.”
“I’ll never forgive myself for it,” I said, my voice catching in my throat.
“Maybe not,” she agreed. “I honestly don’t know how you could. But maybe you can accept that the person you were made poor decisions, and the person that you are now doesn’t do that anymore.” That idea was still settling in my brain when she added, “I’ve been working on a surprise for you, but you’re not ready for it yet.”
“What’s the surprise?” I asked, intrigued.
She shook her head. “Later. After you get Paige to forgive you.”