Page 105 of Fresh Tracks
This isn’t how I go out, because this morning will not be the last time I see him.
CHAPTER 45
TJ
HAS TO BE PERFECT
I tipmy chin to the hostess at Gloria’s and walk to my normal seat at the counter. Dinner isn’t for half an hour, but I was restless at home, pacing around. Despite what I told Grace earlier, I'm still slightly terrified of seeing her whole family under these circumstances. Admittedly, neither of her hulking, brooding brothers has tried to kill me and if they haven’t by now, I’m probably safe. Her dad and grandparents have also been nothing but welcoming. With the childhood I had, it still brings up such a tangled mix of emotions for me.
I’m so happy Grace grew up with a loving family and I’m gracious they’re starting to treat me the same way she does, like just another guy. They don’t mention my money or act weird about it around me. I knew her family was good people, but it’s still refreshing to see. I just want her to be happy and to never feel like she has to choose between me and them. That’s why I wanted to have dinner with everyone tonight, to make it clear that I will always be in this with her. I want it to be clear that we’re partners. We’re always going to be on each other’s side.
Looking back into the kitchen, over the counter, my knee bounces as I still struggle to keep my nerves in check. Sutton’snormally glued to his perch right behind the counter, in the open kitchen, and I still haven’t seen him yet. Finally, the door to the back office opens and he steps out, looking down at the floor as he walks through the kitchen.
“You had me worried there. Thought I was going to have to send a search party for you,” I joke, trying to get my nerves in check. He looks up at me and his eyes widen in confusion.
“Why the fuck are you here?” he asks, his tone showing no signs of his normal jovial, always cheery self.
I rear back slightly, furrowing my brow in question. “I have a reservation? The big family dinner I’m nervous as fuck about, remember? The one I said has to be perfect? Please, don’t tell me you forgot.”
“Josie and I have been trying to call you for half an hour.”
Shit. Grace is my only contact that has emergency bypass and I’ve had my phone on silent all afternoon because I’ve been worried about tonight.
“Tanner was here earlier,” he continues.
“So why isn’t he here now?” I interrupt.
Sutton’s eyes flick to the ground and his tone softens. “Tommy.”
The hair on my neck instantly stands on end. In the years I’ve known Sutton, he has never once called me Tommy.
He finally looks up at me and I see the pained expression in every striking feature of his face.
“Tanner was at the bar, having a drink with Veronica about half an hour ago. They got a call from Josie.”
“What call?” My jaw clenches so tight I can barely get the words out.
He shakes his head, but not before I see the look of sympathy in his eyes. “Grace and Kayleigh are in the hospital.”
I rushin the doors of Jackson’s small hospital, right into the emergency room. My throat and lungs sting from breathing in the frigid winter air after running the five blocks from Gloria’s here. It’s nothing compared to the gut-wrenching, heart-shattering pain I’ve felt with every single second that passed since Sutton told me she was here.
The one constant thought that ran through my mind the entire way here wasno.
There’s no fucking way that she comes into my life, adding color, passion, and love to very single minute of what was my boring routine just to be taken away from me. There’s no way someone so vibrant gets cut short.
No, this morning wasn’t the last time I saw her.
I scan the waiting room, looking for any sign of her or someone I know. My pulse pounds and it’s like I can feel each, single, painful beat of my heart as I look for something to grasp onto before I break down into full on panic.
Finally a nurse walks past me and I step in front of her.
“Where is she?” I ask, barely able to think straight and realize I’m not exactly being clear.
My voice cuts through the seemingly calm, quiet ER in the small town hospital.
“Who?”
I barely register her question when I spot all six-foot-four, impossible to miss, Tanner Chapman, over her shoulder. I waste no time brushing past the nurse to head down the hall.
