Page 175 of Stay With Me

“I’ve never been more panicked in my fuckin’ life. I was drivin’ so fast, my tires were barely touchin’ the pavement.”

I knew he’d flip out, but this side of him has my emotions in overdrive. I want to kiss him so badly but in front of Landen andthe sheriff isn’t the time to make the first move after over three months of staying platonic.

“I’m fine too, by the way. Thanks for askin’,” Landen calls out with a smart-ass tone.

Tripp cups his shoulder, meets his eyes, and an understanding passes between them. A look of appreciation and love.

“I dunno how to properly thank you for protecting her, but I’m eternally grateful.”

Landen pats Tripp’s hand with a nod. “You could make me the godfather of your kids?”

Tripp glowers at him, and I fight back a laugh.

Landen’s lips twitch into a genuine smile. “You know I woulda taken a bullet for her. Woulda hurt like a bitch, but I woulda been a man about it and kept her safe through my last breath.”

“Landen.” My bottom lip trembles. “That’s so sweet. But please, no more talk of gettin’ shot on my behalf.”

“There’s still the situation with Travis,” Sheriff Wagner interrupts us. “I’ve alerted the other departments in the state. We’ll find him.”

My gut threatens to bottom out at the mention of Travis. As much as I hate him for how he’s treated me, I just want this to be over. I want him out of my life for good and to stay gone.

“Detective James on line two,” Wendy says through the intercom. “He says it’s urgent.”

The sheriff picks up, and his face pales after ten seconds of listening to whatever the detective is saying. It’s unnerving to see his expression change so quickly and then his gaze meets mine for a split second.

“Alright, I’ll ask if she wants to identify him or I’ll send a deputy to his mom’s,” Sheriff Wagner tells him, and my whole body goes cold.

He hangs up and brushes a hand over his bearded jaw. “They found a body in the back of Emilio’s Denali. They sent him to the morgue, but they need someone to identify if it’s Travis or not. We haven’t informed his family, but I can send someone to tell her.”

My knees buckle out from underneath me, and Tripp quickly directs me back to my chair. His hands squeeze my shoulders as he leans down to my ear.

“Breathe, Sunny.”

How? I was just wishing he’d go away for good and now he could be dead.

“His mom shouldn’t have to see him that way,” I tell him. “I’ll do it.”

“I can drive y’all over there if you want,” the sheriff offers.

“We’ll take her,” Tripp says.

My mind spins out of control as he takes my hand and leads me to his truck. Travis was a shitty person who did a lot of bad things, but that doesn’t mean I wanted him to get murdered.

When we arrive, Landen takes the lead and speaks to the detective waiting for us.

“He’s not been cleaned up yet, so prepare yourselves,” he says.

“I change my mind. I don’t think I can do this. Maybe you should check,” I tell Tripp. He knows what he looks like just as much as I do, and if I have to see Travis’s dead body, I might collapse.

“Sure, love. Stay back here.” He kisses my temple.

I stand next to Landen and watch as Detective James leads him to a table on the opposite side of the room.

He pulls off the sheet and Tripp’s spine straightens. Tripp gives the man a quick nod and then the corpse gets covered back up.

When Tripp returns, he drops his head. “I’m sorry, Sunny. It’s him.”

My eyes flood with tears, but I refuse to let them fall.