“T.A.’s in the living room. It’s been everything I could do to keep her here after she woke. She wanted to see you last night, but when Reaper texted, he said you were exhausted from your trip.” Dalton’s eyes were on her face as he talked, making her anxious that he could see the bruises under the makeup she put on.
“I feel much better today.” Walking forward, Ginny made a left to see Trudy standing there, waiting to be noticed.
“Ginny ….”
Ginny ran into her sister’s arm, and both of them burst into tears trying to talk at the same time.
“I’m so sorry. I wanted to tell you, but I was afraid you would have talked me out of going to Sherguevil,” Ginny blurted out.
“Don’t you ever scare me like that again! If you scare me like that again, I’m going to lock you in my spare bedroom.” Trudy fussed at her like a mother hen, giving her a small shake, then enfolding her back in her arms to start crying louder.
“Trudy, stop. You’re going to give the baby hiccups.”
Trudy stopped crying. “Is that true?” she asked, riveted at the thought, moving her hand to her baby bump.
“I don’t know, but it got you to stop crying, didn’t it?”
Trudy made a face at her. “I had another few minutes in me. I’ve been trying to talk Dalton into ordering Chinese for us for lunch. He won’t let me have it,” she complained as her husband wound an arm around Trudy’s waist.
“Chinese makes her blood pressure too high,” Dalton revealed. “I’ve made us some avocado, grilled chicken wraps.”
Trudy mouthed, “Help me.”
Ginny burst out laughing. “That sounds amazing to me.”
“Good, then you can have mine.”
As Dalton, Trudy, and she were about to go into the living room, Gavin interrupted them. “I have a few things I need to take care of.”
Ginny wanted to sink to the floor when Gavin gave Dalton a steely-eyed look.
“I’m going to leave Ginny in your care.” The way Gavin looked at Dalton left no doubt who he was talking to. “Turn the alarm on once I leave and don’t let them go outside. Allerton will do everything possible to get out of the charges brought against him. Anything happens to Ginny, it’s his get-out-of-jail-free card until the FBI can gather more evidence.”
“What about the beating he gave Agent Collins, or him ordering his men to kill you?” Ginny disputed, not wanting to frighten Trudy when she’d just settled down.
“He can say his men acted on their own,” Gavin hypothesized. “I don’t want any chances taken with your safety.”
“I’ll keep the alarm engaged,” Dalton assured him. “Go take care of what you need to. I have no plans to go out today.”
Ginny wiggled her pinky at Gavin when he hesitated leaving just to give her a threatening glare, reminding her of the promise she had made to him.
“Take your time,” she encouraged, waving him off.
Ginny grinned when Dalton and Trudy looked confused at the byplay. Exasperated at Gavin’s behavior, she explained, “For some crazy reason, Gavin thinks I have a knack for getting into trouble.”
Trudy lifted her eyes to the ceiling. “I wonder why he thinks that?”
“I know, right?” Ginny shrugged lightly. “Gavin can be so uptight sometimes. I think it comes from him being in the military.” Ginny gave her a polite version of what she really thought, since she didn’t want Trudy to find out Gavin was a big jerk.
Ginny cleared her expression when she felt Dalton studying her a little too closely, afraid he read her thoughts.
“You two go sit down. I’ll get lunch ready, then come get you,” Dalton told them as he went to the alarm box by the door.
Arm in arm, they went to the living room. Smiling at her sister, Ginny ran her hand over Trudy’s baby bump.
“You’re lucky I’m too far along to kick your ass.”
“Do you really think I would have been able to stay away when you went in labor? Or not being here to babysit? We’ve missed out on so much, Trudy. I couldn’t take losing another minute.”
“Something is better than nothing. You could have been killed, Ginny! What if Reaper is right, and Allerton does try to kill you?”
“No one is getting by Gavin,” Ginny reassured her.
Trudy reached out to touch her cheek. “Someone already did.”
Ginny pressed her hand over Trudy’s. “He was busy saving his own life. We don’t have to be afraid of Allerton anymore.”
“That isn’t exactly what Reaper was saying.”
“He’s just being overprotective.”
“Are you really sure?”
“I’m positive.”
Trudy searched her face. “What happened while you were there?”
Lowering their hands, Ginny kept Trudy’s hand in hers as they sank down onto the couch.
“First things first, what’s wrong with your blood pressure?”
“Nothing, my readings are slightly higher than normal. I’m watching it carefully.” Trudy made a comical face, but it didn’t eliminate Ginny’s concern.