I rest my head against his and close my eyes as I nod, and he pulls me into him, his arm around me as he leads me inside and up the stairs.
“Go take a shower, Doc. Parker will be back with food by the time you’re done.” Kissing me with more love than I ever thought existed, he reminds me of exactly who he is when he squeezes my ass before slapping it. “Get.” He leads me toward the bathroom, leaving no room for argument, and I’m happy to go because he knows me and yeah, I need a shower.
The door closes behind me and I take a few minutes, resting my hands on the basin and staring at my reflection in the mirror.
Stealing the rig isn’t even the most illegal thing I’ve ever done, so why am I having such a strong reaction? Because nobody’s ever called me out like Bryson did in the office today. And of course it’s happening now.
That’s how life works, isn’t it?
When everything’s going well…
I have Grinder.Finally. I have the bonus addition of Parker. My best friend is a badass. My nephew is the cutest. I’m so close to my exams before I can begin my internship at the hospital to become a real doctor, credits to my name and all.
Now, some self-important know-it-all with a penchant for trouble is sniffing around something I am very much responsible for and screwing with my happiness.
I knew there were risks, but for this to be the thing that unravels everything feels like fate is fucking with me.
Eventually, I pull myself together, shower, and it feels like no time at all before the scent of fresh pizza wafts through, dragging me from the steamy bathroom.
“Thought you fell down the loo, you were in there that long.” Parker already has one of the pizza boxes open on her lap as she leans back against the headboard of the bed. The slice in her hand is almost as big as her face, but she doesn’t let the size deter her because she easily devours it in a few huge bites.
“Come, sit.” Grinder pats the bed where there’s an open space for me beside him. He hands me a slice of pizza and watches as I take a bite. “Now spill.”
“What’re we spilling? Hopefully not actual, real-life, liquid tea, because you know I can’t—won’t—go to sleep without it.” Parker scooches forward and twists on the bed so she’s facing both of us, her brows raised as she waits expectantly for an answer.
“I think someone at the station knows I took the rig.”
“You think…?” Grinder questions me in a way that doesn’t feel judgey, more like fact-finding.
“Yeah, I don’t know for sure, but Bryson was asking some things about it and it didn’t feel like he was simply asking. More like probing. Testing the waters.” I take another bite of pizza because it’s clearly from Mario’s and letting it get cold would be a sin. There is no other pizza like it.
“Do I need to kill him to silence him?” Parker speaks like she’s talking about the weather as she finishes off another slice.
“He might not know anything.” I shake my head and huff a laugh.
“I’ll rephrase…canI kill him to silence him?” Her grin is devilish, and if I weren’t part of this polycule dolphin trio, I’d definitely be scared.
Rising to his knees, Grinder leans forward and kisses pizza sauce from the side of her mouth.
“Can’t believe I’m about to say this, but let me take it to Church tomorrow before making a move.”
Pouting, she sighs and glares at him through her lashes. “Fine.”
With Grinder’s attention back on me, I catch the mischievous grin stretching across Parker’s face that is clearly intended for Grinder to miss.
She has a plan…but I can’t—and won’t—rat her out to our man.
I just hope it doesn’t end with me winding up in prison.
Chapter Thirty-Six
Parker
“How’re Maribel and the gang?” A fresh cup of tea appears on the table in front of me as I sit with my feet up on the old sofa.
The bar room is mostly quiet, as it usually is on a Monday morning, and with Sledge’s question, I realize I probably should have actually gone to Maribel’s for a few hours’ sleep. That really would’ve helped my alibi, but I plan on telling Grinder and Spencer the truth anyways, so fuck the alibi. It was just my excuse to leave last night.
Although, for Sledge to know I “slept” at Maribel’s…shit really doesn’t stay secret around here.