Page 100 of Hushed

When the door opened and two other men stepped in, she tried to slow the flow of tears, but they still fell.

“Sorry,” she said when she got control of them enough to speak. “It’s been an emotional day.”

“Understandable,” the older of the two men said. “I’m Peter Mercer. We met once a long time ago when you were a kid.”

Kenzie smiled. “I remember. Gage talks about you a lot.”

She turned to the other man. “And that must make you Boomer.”

The man groaned. “Ripley. My name is Ripley.”

“No, it’s not,” Reggie said with a snort.

Ripley glared at him. “You don’t get a say. You’re dead.”

Kenzie winced. “It had to be hard for these men who had grieved his loss all these years to be sitting here with a ghost. One who didn’t seem to have a great explanation for why he was in hiding all this time.”

“I’m sorry, fellas. I really am. If I could have done things differently, I would have.”

Kenzie stood. “Did Gage say where he was going?”

Peter nodded. “He’s in his office. Said you can come see him if you want.”

She bent and kissed the top of Reggie’s head. “I’m going to let the three of you catch up.”

Chapter 20

Gage

Gage paced his office and did his best to breathe. He’d sat in the Library with Kenzie and Reggie and managed not to completely fall apart, but now all the emotions were crashing in on him at the same time. Anger at his friend for putting them through this. Pure joy that he was alive. Uncertainty about what his resurrection meant for his future with Kenzie. Frustration with the government for not reading him in. Thought after thought ran through his mind faster than he could process them.

He’d never been prone to anxiety or panic attacks. Is this what they felt like?

Fuck.

He’d spent years grieving Reggie. Years that he would never get back, and now he had to get used to the fact that he was stillalive. That was the best news ever, but it still felt like a punch to the gut, and he didn’t have the capacity to process it.

He wanted to get in his truck and drive, but that didn’t seem fair to anyone.

Before he fell down another rabbit hole, a knock sounded, and he barked at them to go away.

“Gage, it’s me.”

His heart slowed at the sound of Kenzie’s voice, and he unlocked the door, pulling her inside.

She wrapped her arms around him, and he inhaled her scent. Then he realized she was crying against his chest, so he pulled her over to the small love seat and sat with her and let her cry.

“I shouldn’t be crying because he’s home.”

“Shh. It’s a lot to process. I’m having the same trouble. It’s going to take some getting used to.”

They sat in silence for several minutes before she finally sat up and wiped her eyes with the side of her arm.

“Tell me what happened,” he said when she looked calmer and ready to talk.

She inhaled sharply and closed her eyes.

“I walked to the store to get Maggie some pregnancy tests while she slept on my couch. On my way home, I bumped into a man. Now I’m sure it was Reggie. Actually, come to think of it, I’m fairly sure I’ve bumped into him a few times over the last couple of years. He really has been watching out for me. Maggie had to go to work, and after she left, he knocked on my door and talked to me through the door. At first, I thought someone had to be playing a cruel joke. I was so shocked when I opened it. But he barged in and started looking around. Then he went into my bathroom and came out holding the tests.”

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