The both of us step inside and I hear a slight intake of air. Her room is decorated in pink, her favorite color. There are mounds of pillows piled high on top of her bed, but it’s the bear that grabs my attention.
“Where did you find that?” I ask him.
“It was in the storage unit.”
“I always wondered where I lost it.”
Chloe walks over and picks it up. Her fingers rub over his eyes, ears, nose, and mouth before she sits down on her bed and stares at him. I can’t help but wonder if she’s remembering him or if she just knows it was her toy.
Tucker sets her suitcase down, but doesn’t say anything as he leaves the room. I want to stay and watch Claire with her toy, but know I should follow him.
When I step into the room, it looks like ours, except it’s different. I was in the process of updating our bedroom before he deployed and had shown him a comforter I liked. It was white with an array of purple flowers. The one on the bed now is purple with white flowers cascading over half the material. I know he did this for me because no man would want to sleep in this, unless he has a girlfriend. The thought of him being with someone else hurts and makes my stomach turn. I know I have no right to ask, but I have to know.
I catch him taking a picture off the dresser and sliding it into the drawer.
“What’s that?” I ask.
“It’s nothing, just a photo.”
“Of your girlfriend?”
Tucker turns around and I can see that I’m wrong. His face is pinched and his cheeks are red. He reaches blindly for the frame and shows it to me. It’s our wedding photo. I’m dressed in a flowery summer dress and he’s in his dress whites.
“I’m sorry. I thought—”
He doesn’t let me finish my sentence before he’s standing before me. My heart is thundering in my chest, the sound clearly audible in the room. The moment his lips touch mine, I’m a heap of nothing as he takes me in his arms to hold me up. This is unlike the kiss we shared a while back; this one is full of passion and heat. My toes curl when his tongue traces the outline of my lower lip and when I sigh he uses it to his advantage by letting me taste him. With his hand on my back and the other pressed against the nape of my neck, Tucker kisses me with abandon. Our lips move together, in sync and with rhythm, making up for all the time lost during the past seven years. That’s how long it’s been since this man kissed me like he owns me.
And he does, heart and soul.
“Don’t be nervous,” Tucker says as he hands me a cup of coffee. I can’t stop the jitters and my legs bounce up and down. I’m nervous and slightly freaked about seeing Lawson in court today. On the way over here, the guys mentioned something about telling him to plead guilty, but they don’t know what he’s going to do. River assures me that I will not be getting on the stand if he can help it.
Claire is spending the day with Ryley, EJ, and her parents at their house on the lake. Tucker bought her a bow and arrow and suggested she take it over there. When we arrived to drop her off, her mouth dropped open when she saw targets spread around for her to use.
I wanted her to be comfortable while I was away and Tucker promised that Carole and Jensen would take great care of her. Having Ryley at the house helps, though, because she knows Claire.
This was also the first time I got to meet her son. He just had his birthday and is a spitting image of Evan, except for his hair. That is all Ryley. Claire took an immediate liking to EJ and didn’t even care when I left.
A group of reporters come into view and I quickly realize that they are surrounding Lawson. We make eye contact and I freeze. His little finger wave causes my stomach to roll and then he’s out of sight because River is standing in front of me.
“I think I’m going to be sick.” I stand up and cover my mouth. Tucker is right behind me, guiding me to the ladies room. If I expected him to wait outside, I’d be foolish. He follows me in and holds my hair back as I release the contents of my stomach into the bowl. I stand and start to cry, collapsing into his arms. He kisses my forehead and tries to soothe me, but it’s to avail.
“I can’t do this,” I tell him as I weep into his shoulder. “I can’t go in there and look at him, knowing what he did to our baby.”
“You won’t have to. I promise.”
Tucker holds me for a moment longer before he takes me to the basin to rinse my mouth out and fix my make-up. When I feel somewhat presentable, he takes my hand and guides me out of the restroom and back to our friends.
“It’s time to go in,” Nate says, leading the way. He waves at Cara, who is seated up front. We choose to sit in the back, with River, Evan, Nate, and Rask sitting in front of us, blocking our view. I don’t want to see Lawson and I definitely don’t want him to see me.
When the judge enters, I refuse to stand up. I’m small enough that the bailiff will never notice anyway.
“Be seated,” the judge says and I hear the faint sound of papers being shuffled. “It seems we have something to discuss, Mr. Reyes.”
“That’s Lawson’s attorney,” Tucker whispers in my ear.
“Yes, your honor. My client has decided to change his plea.”
There’s a collective gasp from the galley and my heart soars. The only thing I want to hear is for him to say he’s guilty. If he pleads insanity, I still have to testify.