Page 109 of Walkoff Wedding

I nod as he continues. “If anything, tonight just shows you that life is short, and nothing is ever promised. You just cherish every day that you have together.”

I’m taken aback by the Rookie’s insight. He’s right—it’s the same thing that I’ve thought a hundred times since walking away from that burning building.

“Thank you, for coming here and checking on us. For listening to me,” I say.

“Anytime. Anything you need from me, you let me know. I’ve got class in a few, but text me later when y’all get settled.”

We stand from the table, and I reach out to shake his hand, but as his palm slides in mine, he pulls me to him for a hug.

“I know we’re not as close as you and your boys, but you’re still one of my best friends, Grant. I’m here for you, no matter what.”

Seeing this side of Davis surprises me. I mean, I know he’s a good kid, but I didn’t realize he had it in him to be so introspective. And fuck, I’m thankful for it. I didn’t even know how badly I needed this until now.

“I got your back too,” I say. “I appreciate you, man. I mean it.”

He pulls back, a shit-eating grin on his face. “I always knew you’d love me one day. Been waiting for the day.”

I chuckle quietly. “Don’t push your luck. I’ll text you later.”

“Will do.” He gives me a quick wave over his shoulder and disappears out of the kitchen, leaving me alone.

I stand from the chair, walking back to the living room to check on Addie, and see her still sleeping on the couch, not having moved an inch.

Before I can even cross the living room to sit next to her and Auggie, who’s now cuddled up against her, there’s another knock at the front door.

I stride down the hallway and open it quietly. This time, it’s Amos and Earl.

Amos looks like he’s as ragged as I feel today, and I reach forward, giving him a hug. “Hey. You guys okay?”

When I pull back, he and Earl both nod, even though they both look on the verge of tears. I step back inside the apartment, and once they walk through the door, I shut it behind them.

Amos walks into the living room with Earl beside him, and the moment his gaze lands on Addie, he starts to cry. “Oh, cher. My darling girl,” he says quietly, his hand flying to cover his mouth as a muffled sob echoes around the room.

She doesn’t stir as Earl wraps an arm around Amos’s shoulder and pulls him into his embrace, running his palms soothingly down his arms.

These two are the only real, stable, loving parental figures that Addie has had since her mother passed away. She’s told me bits and pieces of her childhood and how, after her mother was gone, they were the only people that she felt even cared about what happened to her. Amos was the one who taught her how to braid her hair and introduced her to yoga. Earl was the one who taught her to ride a bike and would put Band-Aids on her scraped knees. They helped her with homework and were the ones to give her presents on her birthday.

Not the piece of shit that got every bit of what he deserved last night. Amos and Earl are her parents, and I know it has to be hard for them to know how badly she’s hurting. And not just that… but the bakery is a piece of them too.

Amos has been running it since Addie was only a kid. I can only imagine how devastated he is about what happened to Ever After.

“I’m sorry that I wasn’t there. I should have been there.” He crosses the living room to squat down in front of Addie’s sleeping body on the couch. His fingers brush along her forehead, sweeping her hair back from her face. “I’m so sorry.”

There was nothing he could have done to stop what Brent and Dixon did. Nothing any of us could have done. The blame is on the assholes who did this, no one else.

“You couldn’t have done anything, Amos,” I tell him as I sit back down next to Addie. “She’ll be glad to know you’re okay and that you came. You’re the only family she has. You mean everything to her.”

He nods, giving me a small smile that doesn’t reach his eyes. “And she is the world to us.”

I glance up at Earl as he leans against the doorframe with unshed tears pooling in his eyes. Worry morphs his features, and I can’t lie, it tugs at my heart. He’s this huge, quiet guy with a heart of gold who would do anything for my girl.

“Have you seen it?” I ask Amos, who nods.

“They had the fire extinguished when we got there. It nearly killed me, seeing it like that,” he says. “I can’t even think about how Addie must have felt.”

My gaze lowers to my sleeping wife as I rake my teeth over my bottom lip. It was absolute fucking torture watching her devastation as her mother’s dream burned. “She was heartbroken, and it was physically fucking painful to see. But she was so strong, Amos, and I’m so damn proud of her.”

Amos is quiet for a moment, his gaze contemplative as he strokes her cheek, then pushes to his feet, taking a seat in the armchair beside me. “You’re good for her, Grant. I think I knew that from the first moment I met you. Intuitive and all that.” My lip twitches when he says that. He’s the guy who pulls a tarot card every day to see what the day has in store. “She’s always been the most beautiful, thoughtful, creative girl. Full of wonder and curiosity. But she was quiet and shy, never allowing anyone to get too close. She never gave herself the chance to bloom, to experience life. Until you. I’ve watched her come into herself more these last few months, and I’ll never be able to thank you.”

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