Page 126 of The Secrets She Keeps

He was still sitting in the parking lot of the park, just thinking, lost in memories, when he saw Powell and Gunnar pull into the drive and go inside.

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Timothy had just pickedLeena up and tossed her over his shoulder and left like what Brianna wanted hadn’t mattered at all. It had hurt. She was still hurting several hours later.

Leena was his kid, of course, but didn’t it matter that she was Brianna’s sister? He'd left half of her little sister's things behind too. Brianna felt weird. Broken almost. The house felt so empty. Like what was the point of having such a big house just forher?There were twelve bedrooms in this place. She’d never find uses for all of them.

She really hadn't had even two minutes to be lonely lately. Not with Leena there. After she'd put the little girl to bed each night, she'd call and talk to Jack. When he wasn't too busy. He’d been angry and kind of a jerk, saying all kinds of things were going on with his work lately.

He didn’t want a little kid around either. She knew that.

He probably never would. That made her feel a little sick inside when she thought about it. She did want at least one baby, she thought.

But it would never be with Jack.

That made her feel really weird to consider.

She'd found herself calling Bethany too. But her older sister had been so reserved with her. Like Bethany was keeping something from her. She'd been doing that for a few years now. Since...Banks. Nothing had been the same between them since right after Banks had died.

The house felt so empty now. She sat on the chair in the living room. The one that she'd kept showroom perfect ever since she'd first bought this house ten years ago. It felt so empty now.

Leena's doll was there. Herfavoritedoll. The one she said looked like her mommy. Like Timothy's dead wife and everything. Leena loved that doll. And Timothy hadn't given Leena time to get all of the toys and clothes Brianna had bought for her. She'd liked buying things for Leena.

Her little sister had cared about her too.

Brianna forgot Trey and Timothy both telling her to stay home. To lock her doors and not come out no matter what tonight. She just needed to be with family tonight. She wiped tears.

Sheneverthought she would ever miss that kid. She just hadn't.

What if she never saw Leena again?

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Daniel was out there.In front of the park. Gunnar could see him from the window. He looked toward the kitchen. Powell was pestering her mother and stealing bites of vegetables from the cutting board, claiming the baby was starving. She was happier than he’d seen her since…before.

She’d told him that Cara had agreed to consider the position as Powell’s personal assistant. Cara just wanted to talk to her family first—because, apparently, that was how Cara Coleson always did things. He’d seen Cara for himself, all confused and adorable when Gunnar had walked her and Powell to the parking lot, where Powell’s guards had been waiting to follow them back to Hughes Heights and Norm had been waiting to pick up Cara. Waiting and armed with a .45 Gunnar suspected the man knew just how to use. He hadn’t missed the rather large knife at the man’s waist either.

There really wasn’t anythingnormalabout Norman Halson.

There were still nightmares in Powell’s eyes. He suspected they were going to stick around for a long, long time. But she was focusing on the future now. On the baby. On him.

On the question she’d asked him as they’d driven back to Hughes Heights from B-3. That beautiful, wonderful, perfect, loving, phenomenal woman wanted one Gunnar Erickson to move in with her. And stay forever. She’d said rings weren’t necessary, but if that was what he wanted—she’d get her mother planning right away.

And then she had grinned at him. Told him she wasn’t wasting any more time or letting him get away now. That they had nesting to do and everything. And she’d been ordered to get Gunnar’s clothes off as much as possible before the baby came.

If he was up for it.

Gunnar would always remember how she had looked in that moment. He wasn’t entirely certain, but he was almost convinced Powell had proposed to him. As they were driving along Boethe Highway, two bodyguards trailing behind them in a Barratt-Handley Enterprises car.

There had never been a more perfect moment.

He’d told her he was hers. Forever.

She could do with him what she wished.

Her cheeks had turned brilliant red at that. Damn, he loved that woman. Truly loved her.

Her father was in his home office, finishing up a conversation with the mayor—his nephew Turner. Melissa was in charge of dinner. He didn’t know where Powell’s brothers were tonight. They would probably show up eventually. Powell was chattering at her mother about her plans for Cara—and had just made a joke about how, once she got Cara with Alex, she was going to work on Heather with Mac next.

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