Bailee chuckled. “Yep, that time. You reminded me of all the men in my life who thought I was weak and incapable of taking care of myself. I refused to let you get to me. I was an idiot.”
While their teasing banter was a nice change from their recent conversations, he was done kidding with her. “I knew you were someone I wanted to get to know. I knew you would be worth my time. Turns out I was right.”
“You’ve changed my life. You and your brothers. Mostly you though. You want people to think you’re a player, but you’re not like that. I see the person you are, Easton Hargrove. The person your parents didn’t bother to love. The person your chosen family sees. I like that person, Easton. I like him a lot.”
“Just like?” He had no idea what possessed him to ask, and he wasn’t sure what would happen if her answer wasn’t one he wanted to hear.
“Maybe more than like. Does that freak you out?”
He grinned. “Nope. Not even a little bit.”
“I think I might love you, Easton. It’s too soon, but it feels right. That’s what makes what I have to tell you so hard.”
He already knew what she had to say. It was the conversation they anticipated from day one. She was returning to her life in Louisville.
“When do you leave?”
“Today. I told Corinne I wanted to see you first before Roxy and I headed back.”
He released her hand to stroke her cheek. “I’m glad you did. I’ll miss you, Bailee Anne. If you need me to come and kick some ass at the Louisville PD, just say the word.”
Humor. It was his default setting. When people left him, as they often did, he clung to humor like a lifeline. In this case, what he hoped was a charming, devil-may-care response fell flat. He wasn’t sure he convinced Bailee that he was fine with her leaving. He sure as hell didn’t convince himself. He wasn’t ready to watch her walk away. Sure, she would return to visit Darby Anne, but he didn’t expect that to happen often enough for them to continue any kind of relationship, not even a fling.
“It won’t be necessary.” She leaned her head into his palm. “I’m not staying.”
His brain didn’t register the import of her words right away. Once he realized what she said, he dropped his hand and moved to sit up straighter in bed. She had to assist him, propping pillows behind him to support his back. Once he was up, he studied her face, looking for signs that she was playing him. He saw nothing but warmth in her expression.
“I’m going to need you to explain that.”
She chuckled at his reaction. “Well, over the last few days, Gran helped me to realize something. Louisville is not where I’m meant to be. I’m not accepted there, and to be honest, I’m better than that precinct. If I stayed, it would only be to stick it to the other detectives who don’t want to work with me. Now that they know Jimmy is the guilty one and not me, I don’t see a reason to do that anymore.”
“They’ve always known Jimmy is the guilty one. You had the evidence to arrest him.”
Bailee nodded. “But they wanted to believe I framed Jimmy. Now that he’s confessed and turned state’s evidence, they can’t deny the truth anymore.”
Easton blinked, feeling like he missed a lot of pieces to the conversation. “He did what?”
“Corinne called me. B Diggs died as a result of the attack at the prison. Word about Sabra’s arrest and Melvin’s death reached the prison, and Jimmy approached the ATF. He agreed to testify against the Blood Disciples in exchange for a lesser sentence. Corinne wants me back to sit in on the meeting between her and Jimmy and his lawyer.”
“Damn,” Easton said. “I didn’t see that coming.”
“No one did. I’m anxious to see his face when he sees me at the meeting. I want to hear him admit what he did to Shantayle.”
Easton shook his head to clear his thoughts. “So what does this mean for you?”
“The Chief didn’t want to accept my resignation from LPD at first, but he finally agreed it was the best thing for me. I didn’t know your brothers were checking him out as a possible suspect in all of this, but I was relieved to hear he was clean. I hate to think my instincts about him were wrong. Anyway, Corinne found out about my decision and offered me a job with the ATF. Chief Tatum told me if I was willing to go back to patrol, I was welcome at the Fire Creek PD. He said I’d be a top contender if he had a detective position to open.”
“Have you decided what you want?”
“With my career? Not yet. With my life, hell, yeah. I want you, Easton. I don’t know what my future looks like yet, but I want you to be a part of it. Does that freak you out?”
Easton hesitated. He waited for the tightness in his chest that came when he felt his freedom being threatened. He waited for the dread that came in trusting someone who would likely leave him.
What he felt was something akin to hope. What he felt was the happiness that had been in his life since Bailee came into it. What he wanted was to relieve every moment with her and to create new ones with her by his side, with his family, and in his bed.
“Hell, no, I’m not freaked out. I don’t want you to turn your life upside down for me. Whatever you decide to do, we’ll figureit out. If we have to do the long distance thing, we will. I want to be with you, Bailee. Whatever it takes.”
Her smile was radiant, and when she leaned forward, he met her halfway, the aches in his body be damned. Their lips met in a fiery kiss that short-circuited his brain and made any discomfort he felt totally worth it. He snaked a hand through her hair to hold her head in place.
