Part 26 (1/2)
Thank you, Jesus, for sparing her.
Losing Becca had been devastating; losing Kayden would have destroyed him.
29.
Jake opened the door to Kayden's room, his heart in his throat. Why was he suddenly so anxious again? Doc Graham had a.s.sured them she'd be just fine. No, these nerves were coming from an entirely different place. He was excited to see the woman he loved, and the fireb.a.l.l.s rumbling through his gut proved it.
”There he is,” Gage said, catching sight of him first.
Kayden sat up in the bed, a white bandage fastened across her forehead, a cast on her right leg. She looked battered, but beautiful, as always.
”Hey,” she said, a soft smile curling on her lips.
Man, what that smile did to his insides. ”Hey.” He tried to ignore the fact that everyone in the room was fixated on their interaction. ”How you holding up?”
She s.h.i.+fted and winced. ”I've been better, but it could have been way worse if you hadn't been there.”
”I didn't do much.” Other than fear the woman he loved was about to be ripped from his life and regret that he'd never even told her how he felt. Though he suspected she knew. He glanced around the room at everyone watching them. They all knew.
”We both know that's not true.”
”If you weren't there, who knows how long it would have taken someone to find her,” Reef said. ”She could have . . .” He stopped and shook his head. ”It could have been really bad. Thank you.” He shook Jake's hand, and all the McKennas and their loved ones thanked him in turn. But none melted his heart like Kayden's thank-you. Two simple words and a world of meaning.
”Anything for you.”
Color infused her pale cheeks. Had he actually said that out loud? Heat rushed his cheeks.
He caught Gage grinning, but to his shock, Gage left it at that.
”Well, I should, um . . .” He cleared his throat. ”Let you get some rest.” She needed rest.
She nodded, the slight smile still hovering on the curve of her supple lips.
He backed up, straight into something solid. Gage.
”You all right there?” Gage grinned.
”Fine.” He tried to look and sound as fierce as possible, but Gage wasn't buying any of it.
”Can I talk to you?” Landon asked as Jake stepped past Gage.
”Absolutely.”
”Let's go outside.”
”All right.” He followed Landon down the flight of stairs and back out to the parking lot where they'd stood several hours earlier.
”What was that all about?” Landon asked with a gigantic grin.
Not him too. ”Nothing.”
”'Anything for you' doesn't sound like nothing.” Landon folded a piece of gum into his mouth, the scent of spearmint wafting in the air. ”I saw the way you two looked at each other.”
Two? As in Kayden was looking back at him the same way? No way. He knew she was intrigued by him now that she knew his past, but looking at him with love . . . ? No way.
”I know you don't see it, but she's as into you as you are into her.”
”Yeah, right.”
”Trust me.”
The thought engulfed him with audacious hope.
”Want a piece?” Landon offered him a stick of gum.
”Thanks.” He took a piece and popped it into his mouth, realizing it was the first food he'd eaten since breakfast, if gum counted as food.
He turned to toss the wrapper in the trash can, and a woman caught his eye. She was leaning against the grill of a car, her legs crossed genteelly. Her dark-brown hair was pulled back in a twist. She wore a navy-and-white polka-dot blouse, tan A-line skirt with matching heels, and tortoisesh.e.l.l sungla.s.ses.
She slid the sungla.s.ses down her nose momentarily and smiled when he caught her eye.
”Jake, you okay?” Landon asked.
”Yeah.” He looked back at his friend, his mind racing. ”She just looked familiar.”
”Who?” Landon scanned the parking lot.
”That woman by . . .” He looked back to where she'd been standing, but she was gone. ”Never mind. That's not important. Any news on Patty Tate?”
”Yeah.” Landon rubbed the back of his neck. ”I'm sorry, man, but Patty Tate has a solid alibi for the rockslide.”
”What?”
”She's been at the station all day long. Th.o.r.eau said she's been sitting around, refusing to leave. Visiting with Shane during the approved hours and hara.s.sing my deputies to let him go the rest of the time.”
”Then she staged it ahead of time.”
”Shane's defense lawyer said he was with her all day yesterday, going over Shane's defense. She took him around to every witness he wanted to interview. He bunked in her guest room last night. Besides, even if she'd set it up ahead of time, she would have to have been there to trigger it just as Kayden reached the ledge. She couldn't have done it.”
”No. There's got to be some mistake.”
”It could have just been a freak rockslide. These things happen.”
”There's more to it. I can feel it.”