Page 90 of Daybreak

“Everyone, this is Holly Dillon…soon to be Kingston. Once the best bat girl on my high school baseball team, and now a hotshot Realtor here in Dallas. Holly, this is Cliff Beale, my homicide partner. And Frankie Adams, the only female detective in Homicide with enough patience to put up with us.”

“I’ve heard nothing but good things about both of you,” Holly said.

Frankie rolled her eyes. “She must really love you if she’s willing to lie for you, too.”

Gunner started to laugh, then caught himself. “No jokes. My jaw is barely hanging on my face.”

The huge purple bruise on the right side of his face was evident.

“Well, you look like hell,” Cliff said.

“Good observation. I feel like hell, too, but Holly is taking really good care of me.”

“Clearly,” Frankie said. “When we didn’t know the password, I wasn’t sure she’d let me in.”

Holly grinned. “I always wanted to say that, and it’s a pleasure to meet you. Can I get you anything to drink? We have coffee already made.”

“No, but thanks,” Cliff said.

“I’m good,” Frankie added, then poked Cliff on the shoulder.

He nodded, then took a deep breath in an effort to calm down. “Everybody in the department is proud of you, Gunner, but they… We…are also ashamed of the raw deal you got. Greg Rance is an ass. He caught hell from all of us after you left. I confronted him in his office afterward, and I might have recorded the conversation we had. And I might have sent it to Captain Edwards. Nobody contacted me personally, but as of yesterday, we have a new lieutenant.”

“And I came just so you could razz me about the new hair color,” Frankie said.

Cliff frowned. “She’s lying. She’s the one who said you needed to hear that from us. And she made me come because I didn’t have the guts to face you on my own. You have been my rock. My advisor. My best friend. And I acted like an ass because of the mess I’d made of myself. I’ve been going to Gambler’s Anonymous for a while now. I wanted you to know that. And you also need to know that after that video went viral, I claimed bragging rights to having been your partner. I’m really sorry.”

Gunner smiled. “You’re still a doofus, and thanks for that, Cliff. It means a lot. And thank you, Frankie, for coming with him.”

“You’re welcome,” Frankie added.

Gunner saw the tears in her eyes. “I should probably confess that some days, your bullshit was the best thing that happened in that department. Thanks for making this happen, and I appreciate you both.”

Frankie shrugged. “I can’t help being superb.”

In that moment, Holly saw the adoration she had for Gunner. Frankie was in love with him, and Holly couldn’t blame her. He was a hard man to ignore, but an even harder man to love. She didn’t know why he had, but she was glad he’d trusted her enough to let her into his life.

Cliff slapped his knees and stood. “Okay… Confession time is over, and I can tell by the way you’re not blinking that you hurt like hell. We’re wishing you and Holly happy ever after and a safe journey home.”

When they left, Gunner felt the cord between them breaking. He no longer belonged in their world.

Holly closed the door behind them, then held out her hand and helped him up.

“Bed now.”

He didn’t argue, and when he stretched out and finally got comfortable, Holly pulled up his covers and then lay beside him and closed her eyes.

Gunner reached for her hand. “Love you, baby.”

She threaded their fingers together. It was the only way she could hold him without hurting him. “Love you more. Close your eyes and sleep away the pain.”

* * *

Around midnight, she brought him a cup of soup in bed. He sat up long enough to drink it, then made his way to the bathroom and back. Holly was waiting for him with a pain pill and a glass of water.

He moved in slow, measured steps to accommodate the aches, took the pill, and chased it with water.

“Did you set the security alarm?” he asked.