Page 88 of Unexpected Love

It’s not fair, but right now, all I care about is keeping Ava safe and out of harm’s way. I know Reid means absolutely no harm, but she shouldn’t have to relive everything.

“Gage.” Ava brings my focus back to her. She looks behind her to the piece of trash lying on the ground before bringing her eyes back to mine. Her eyes are clear and focused when they meet mine. “When he wakes up, he’s going to press charges. They need my statement.” She’s gone into lawyer mode, and while I’m glad she’s not shaking in my arms anymore, I’m worried about what happens when she doesn’t have this to focus on.

I look over her shoulder to see the paramedics lifting him onto a stretcher, Caleb by their side, giving them orders. My focus comes back to Ava, trailing from her toes to her head. But I’m halted at the sight of her undone jeans.

Swallowing the urge to ram my fist into Brian’s face again, I gently reach forward to button and zip her jeans, pulling her into another tight embrace.

“Okay. I don’t think I can stand having you out of my sight anyway.”

“You’ll have to ride in the cruiser,” Reid murmurs in my ear.

I nod, taking another minute to just hold Ava. Over her head, I see Declan step up behind her. Reluctantly, I pull away so he can have a moment with his sister.

Declan doesn’t give her a chance to say anything before he pulls her into a fierce hug.

“I’m okay,” she murmurs against him.

“I don’t believe you.” Declan’s eyes find mine over her head, a look I can’t quite decipher in his eyes. “What happens now?”

“I’m not technically getting arrested, but I have to go to the station.” I might not be getting charged with anything right now, but that doesn’t mean the charges won’t come. No matter what, I don’t regret a single thing.

“Arrested? Why would you be arrested?” Quinn demands from behind Declan.

Ava pushes from his embrace, stepping into my side and holding tight.

“Assault, excessive force, take your pick.” I shrug, trying to play off the seriousness of the situation.

“Let’s just start with a statement. From the both of you,” Reid says.

“We’ll meet you at the station then.” Declan leans forward, pulling Ava’s head toward him to kiss her forehead quickly before bending to meet her eyes directly. “I love you, squirt.”

It takes her a second, but he holds steady until she responds. “I love you, too, big brother.”

It’s hours later,and I’m pacing the length of Lyle’s office. I’m grateful they didn’t put me in an interrogation room, but I haven’t seen Ava since they separated us when we walked through the station doors, and I’m desperate to see her.

I know it’s procedure to separate us to get our statements, but I still hate it more than anything in this moment. I want to besomewhere far away from here. Anywhere would be fine, as long as Ava’s by my side.

The door to the sheriff’s office opens as Lyle and Reid step through. “Well, I have good news and I have bad news.” Lyle steps around his desk to take a seat, gesturing to the two seats in front of him.

I don’t move from my position by the wall.

“All right.” He leans forward, hands folded in front of him on the desk. “Brian Wellsley is going to be fine, but he’s pressing charges.”

My head falls forward. It’s not a surprise, but it doesn’t take the sting out of it. No matter what, if Brian presses charges, I’ll lose my badge. I step up to the empty chair in front of his desk and fall into it.

“Ava corroborated your story. Brian assaulted her in the hall outside the bathroom, and you intervened. Unfortunately, it’s the force you used that’s the problem.” Lyle studies me for a minute, looking for some kind of reaction, but I’ve been trained to keep my mouth shut in the worst situations. I know how to keep everything hidden.

He leans back in his seat, releasing a deep sigh. “Gage, you know I don’t fault you for what happened this evening. And if it were my choice, you would walk out of the station right now, and things would carry on exactly like they always have.”

“I know, sir.”

He sighs again, his gaze flicking to Reid behind me for just a moment. “I don’t want to do this, but I don’t have a choice. The mayor will have my head if I don’t follow the letter of the law. Especially with what Wellsley is threatening.”

“I understand.” I stand from my seat. “I don’t regret it. I would do anything for that woman.”

Lyle stands and moves around his desk, placing his hand out to shake mine. “You would have done it regardless of the person in that situation. It’s what makes you a damn fine man.”

Turning to Reid, I offer him a tight smile. I know he hates what he’s about to do, but I don’t blame him for a second.

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