Page 88 of The Moments You Were Mine
Parker tugged me to him, and I went with ease. I wrapped my arms around his waist and rested my cheek against his chest. His warmth bled into me. His strength held me up.
A sob escaped before I could catch it.
He sat, pulling me into his lap, and I let him. He grabbed my chin, forcing me to meet his gaze. His was steel glazed with fire. “We’re going to figure this out. We need to widen the list of suspects, anyone in San Diego who you might have had a beef with, not just JJ and Ace. Whoever this is doesn’t just want to hurt you. They want you arrested. They want you to lose everything.”
“Celia.” Her name was out before I’d really even thought about it. But once it was, I realized it was a very real possibility. “No one has seen her in months, but she stalked me, Parker, everywhere, including the stables where I kept Daisy. She was nearly feral when I testified against Ace. They had to remove her from the courtroom.”
Parker was quiet for a moment. “I’ll ask Cranky and the guys to find out what Ace knows about her whereabouts when they have theirconversationwith him and JJ.”
“Excuse me?” I frowned, pushing up so I could see his face. “You can’t have them beat up. If you do, everyone will definitely think I was involved and that you’re my accomplice.”
He guffawed. “My guys won’t leave a mark, but we’ll getwhat we need out of those two douchebags.”
Parker wiped the tears from my face with gentle thumbs, and it made my stomach bottom out. Not only from the tenderness of the move but from the look in his eye. The one I’d always wanted to see that was full of promise. Full of much more than just affection.
I dragged myself away from him, and he watched me with narrowed eyes.
“Fallon—”
A knock on the door had us turning in that direction. The room spun with it, and I had to grab onto the arm of the couch to stop myself from falling. I hated it. Hated the weakness almost as much as I’d hated the nausea swamping me for days now. I needed it to stop. I needed full use of my faculties to figure out what the hell was going on.
Through the wavy glass on the front door, I caught a glimpse of Teddy. I made my way over and opened it with Parker grunting his disapproval behind me.
Theo ran in first, straight for Parker, his face all smiles.
“I rode a pony!” he screamed, dancing around. The tiny voice smashed into my skull, but I still smiled. How could you not when faced with so much excitement?
Parker picked him up, and his lips broke into a smile as large as Theo’s. “Did you? I can’t wait to hear all about it.” Then, he stuck his nose in Theo’s neck, snuffling, and the little boy laughed. “Man, do you smell like a horse or what? I think you need a bath.”
“Teddy says if you don’t smell at the end of the day, you didn’t do your job right.”
Parker looked over at Teddy, who barely hid his smile. “Maybe Teddy needs to be the one to dunk you underwater and do your laundry.”
Teddy had left the door open, and I watched as the ranch van pulled up behind him—the one we used to transport guests back and forth to the airport. Kurt was behind the wheel, and Lance was in the front passenger seat. As the vehicle came to a stop, the side door slid open, and more of my management team, including Andie, Francois, and Olivia, piled out.
I hadn’t figured out what to say to them yet. I’d beensideswiped by Wylee and his accusations. I needed to get my arms around all of this before it blew up in ways that were more permanent and lasting than the loss of a cabin. Before it ended the legacy my parents had worked so hard to save for me.
My head hurt. But the pain in my chest, the throbbing in my heart, was worse.
For the first time in as long as I could remember, I didn’t want to face any of it. I wanted to tuck my head under the covers and forget everything that had happened since graduation.
? ? ?
Somewhere in the last fifteen minutes, my body had started to give out. The angry spike of adrenaline Wylee’s visit had given me had disappeared, leaving me even more exhausted. I felt like I was drowning, an undertow pulling me under.
Except, I didn’t have the energy to fight it. I just wanted it to take me under.
“With the resort shut down, what will happen to the Fourth of July festivities?” Andie asked. I hadn’t taken a bullet today, but I still felt as if I had a hole in my heart that grew with every decision we’d made since my staff had arrived at the house.
We’d agreed to officially close the resort for the next two weeks. It was in the middle of our busiest time, but it was the only thing to do. I wouldn’t keep guests on the ranch if I couldn’t guarantee their safety.
With a gut clenched tight, I’d also told Andie to refund all the current guests their money and offer them a future complimentary stay. For those on the excursion with me today, we’d provide additional compensation for pain and suffering. Some of the guests had already left, and I’d call each of them tomorrow. For the guests who were still here while rearranging their travel plans, I’d meet with them before they departed.
The hole inside me grew, knowing we’d also have to break the tradition we’d started eight years ago. Since the resort opened, we’d hosted the town’s Fourth of July events. Rivers’s residents and guests had mingled on the ranch, participating in various sporting competitions, shopping at craft and food booths, and dancing in the twilight by the lake. The night always endedwith a fireworks display watched from temporary bleachers assembled on either side of the lake.
Calling the celebration off was just one more failure weighing me down.
“I’ll call the mayor tomorrow,” I said. “We might be able to move everything downtown and hold some of the events at the county park.” I watched while Andie took meticulous notes and then met each of the staff’s concerned gazes. “We’ll need a skeleton crew to maintain the resort and care for the animals. Any suggestions?”
