Page 129 of All I Have Left

I agree and we head back. Frankie goes inside the house saying she’s hungry, and I stand in the driveway staring at the place where his truck had been parked, and the tarp lying on the ground.

“How’d he even find the keys?” I ask Wyatt as he folds up the tarp.

“I left them on the counter the other day.” Wyatt frowns, shaking his head, his shoulders slumped forward as he sets the tarp on the bench inside the garage doors. “I’d called the wrecking yard to come pick it up since Grayson told me to get rid of it.”

For being a guy that seems not interested in anything around him, Grayson’s sure perceptive, isn’t he?

Ten minutes later, Sheriff Hicks pulls up.

Wyatt and Julia come outside, their eyes wide. Julia’s eyes narrow on the driveway. “Did you find him?”

“No, but he might have.” I shake my head, watching Hicks open the back door to his cruiser, smiling.

“Oh, great,” Wyatt groans. I’m sure this is a familiar sight to him. It’s certainly not the first time Hicks has brought Grayson home.

“Picked this one up for arson,” he says, letting Grayson out, his eyes on mine.

“It’s not arson when it’s your property,” Grayson tells him, emerging from the car, shaking his head.

Wyatt snorts. “I’ll be inside.”

I run up to Grayson and wrap my arms around his waist. “I was so worried about you.” He smells like smoke. It burns my eyes.

Grayson sighs, tangling his arms around me and briefly pressing his lips to my forehead before pulling away. “I’m fine.”

“What did you do?” Julia asks, stepping down from the porch.

He has his left side turned to her and struggles to hear what she asked. “What?”

She steps in front of him, her hands on his shoulders. “What did you do?”

“Nothing.” Grayson flashes her a grin, and for a moment, it touches his eyes but fades easily. “Mama.”

She shakes her head, smiling. He used to call her mama when he wanted to get out of trouble.

I look to Hicks. “What did he do?” Hicks remains quiet, traitor, so I snap my eyes to Grayson, who’s leaning against the hood of the cruiser, his arms crossed over his chest. “Where’s your truck?”

“It caught on fire.”

Hicks smirks. “Uh-huh.”

“Grayson.” I gasp. “Did you set it on fire?”

Julia walks back inside. Grayson smiles at me, and though I want to be mad at him, that fucking smile I’ve seen less than four times in two months tears down any wall I want to build up. “I think she’s mad at me.”

“Well, yeah.” I scowl, trying to stand my ground, my hands on my hips. “Youweren’tsupposed to be driving.”

“Arrest me then.” He holds his wrists up to Hicks.

“Something tells me leaving you here is punishment enough.” Smiling, Hicks dips his head to get inside his cruiser. “Have a nice night, ya’ll.”

Grayson stands up straight, taking the two steps toward me. He reaches out, using a finger to lift my chin up so that my eyes meet his. “I love you,” he states simply.

It’s then I realize this,thisis how I fell in love with him. He has an incredible ability to make you forget you’re mad by the warmth of his eyes. He’s good at it.

“Why’d you burn your truck?”

Irritation flashes in his eyes. “Why do you think?”

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