Page 13

Chapter Thirteen

Present Day

Logan slapped some mayonnaise on his slice of bread. This apartment brought back so many memories. Ones he wished he could go back to and stay in. Little of the furniture was the same, and AJ must have put on a fresh coat of paint when she moved back in. But these walls had held them for a bit of their life together. Where they’d brought Bree home.

“Logan?”

He snapped his head toward AJ.

“Are you done with the mayo?”

“Yeah, sorry.” He handed her the knife. Their skin brushed. The warmth of her touch was magnetic. Maybe coming for lunch was a bad idea.

He let the other three own the conversation while they ate. Occasionally he’d contribute, but he didn’t have much to say. Being near AJ and in the apartment was pushing his sanity.

After they ate, the women cleaned up and told the guys to pick out a game. It was stupid hot outside, so being in the air conditioning was preferable. He wasn’t sure he had any desire to stick around and play. He wanted to down a bottle of whiskey, but he’d settle for a nap before four days of working the night shift, which started at ten o’clock tonight.

He wandered across the room with Will to the bookshelf that had a few games, along with AJ’s ever-growing library. On the shelf sat a photo frame. Without thinking, he picked it up and stared at a picture of Bree from a few weeks before her third birthday.

Zara came up beside him. “I’ve been meaning to ask AJ who that is.”

He didn’t look up at Zara; he kept his eyes on Bree’s face. “Our daughter.”

Zara took in a quick, sharp breath. “What?”

“Her name was Bree. She was three in this picture.” He held the photograph to his chest. Moisture blurred his vision. He missed his little girl.

He set the photo down and wiped the moisture from his eyes. Turning back, he caught AJ’s gaze. They simply stared at each other.

Logan finally found his voice. “I should go take a nap before night shift starts. Stay safe, AJ. Let me know if I need to beat anyone up, okay?”

She nodded. “I will. Thanks for coming over.”

He darted out before his emotions got the better of him. As he strapped on his helmet, he could barely get his lungs to work.

Granny came out the back door and waved to him. He wasn’t sure he could handle talking right now, but it was Granny, and one didn’t not talk to Granny.

She walked right to him. “It’s good to see you, Logan.” She squeezed his arm and continued on her course toward her backyard.

Instead of driving away, he turned off his bike, removed his helmet, and followed AJ’s grandmother. She sat at the little wrought-iron table and chairs.

“Granny?”

“Yes, Logan? Join me.”

He sat, not sure what he wanted to say.

“What is it? What’s on your mind?”

“Everything, and nothing. I’m not sure.”

“Heavy heart?”

He nodded.

“You came to me, and you know I say it like it is. Are you ready to hear it?”

He shrugged.

She chuckled. “Oh, dear boy. You have always been full of passion and love. But when you suppress that love under unforgiveness, it sours and festers like a cut that didn’t get cleaned out.”

“I can’t forgive. What happened with AJ and Daryl … I just can’t.”

“You will never be happy if you live under that lie. Do you believe Jesus forgave the two of you for your impropriety before you got married?”

“Yes.”

“How is this different?”

“She betrayed me. That’s a whole different level.”

“Sin is sin.”

Thor’s hammer to the chest might have felt better. Logan stood. “Pray for me?”

“Every day, Logan. You’re my grandson by marriage. And I love you. Always have.”

“Love you too, Granny.” He leaned down and kissed her cheek before leaving.

His entire body shook as he remounted his bike. Helmet back on, he peeled out before the words he didn’t want to hear, but needed to, sank in.

Without Zara’s music playing, the apartment was quiet while AJ got ready for her day Monday morning. She went to the bookshelf and picked up the picture of Bree Logan had held yesterday. How one person could look so much like both of her parents was a mystery.

She kissed the frame. “I miss you, baby girl.” Grief was a strange thing. Some days felt impossible, other days were numb. Then, on occasion, AJ felt normal. Today seemed somewhere between normal and numb.

Setting the frame back on the shelf, she went to the kitchen. Coffee would help her wake up. Of course, in the process of waking up she may fall into the impossible. Waking up to the reality that she needed to pursue her husband and mend that relationship made her feel overwhelmed more often than not lately.

She popped a K-Cup into the coffeemaker and let it gurgle.

“Jesus …” She didn’t have the words. But He knew her heart, and she rested in that.

She grabbed the steaming cup of joe and added stevia and half-and-half. “I need you, Lord. Soften Logan’s heart. Give me words—the right ones. Heal our hearts.”

Leaning back against the counter, she took a slurpy sip of the hot coffee.

A knock.

She nearly dropped her mug. Gah! She was not normally this jumpy.

She glanced through the blinds. A grocery delivery? She didn’t order groceries. Maybe Zara did, knowing AJ would be home. She checked her phone and the spot where they left each other notes. Nothing.

“Be right there.” She ran to her room and grabbed Harry from her nightstand. Holding the Smith & Wesson behind her back, she cracked the door open and snagged the groceries from the landing. They looked like things she would order.

“Hey,” she called after the delivery guy. “I didn’t order groceries.”

He turned and came back to the bottom of the stairs. “Are you”—he pulled it up on his phone—“AJ Jackson?”

“I am.”

“Well, they’re yours regardless of who sent them. I can’t take them back.”

“Okay. Thanks.”

She took half the groceries inside and set the bags and the pistol on the kitchen table before retrieving the rest.

She unloaded them on the table. Every single item was something she normally bought, or had bought last week. What on earth? In fact, these were the exact groceries she bought last Sunday when she ran into Logan. Had he … no, he wouldn’t.

It didn’t make any sense, and it felt off. Surely, she didn’t order them in her sleep last night.

She checked her watch. It was nearly nine o’clock. If Amelia wasn’t already at the station, she would be soon. This would be worth mentioning.

After tossing the frozen and refrigerated items where they belonged, she went to her bedroom to get dressed.

Her phone dinged with a new text. It was from him .

I noticed you didn’t make it to the store yesterday so figured you’d need a few things.

The message concluded with a kissy-face emoji.

A shudder rippled through her body. Should she throw those groceries away? Now she really needed to talk to Amelia.

AJ hustled to finish making herself presentable and dashed out the door as soon as possible.