Page 27 of Finally

“Where’d he go?”

“Outside. The light popped on in the backyard so he went to see if he could find the person who did this,” I explained.

My voice cracked and my eyes filled with tears as it hit me how close I’d come to losing my best friend. Maddie stopped petting Charlie and reached for my hand, lacing our fingers together. Feeling the warmth of his skin helped reassure me that he was going to be okay.

“What happened?” I whispered.

“I was asleep upstairs, but I woke up when Charlie started growling and barking. I thought maybe she just needed to use the bathroom one more time. We came downstairs so I could let her out and she was just really going crazy, whining and barking and doing this really low growl thing in the back of her throat. I came through the living room and went to turn on the light, but before I could, someone came at me and clobbered me in the head with something heavy. That’s the last thing I remember until I woke up and saw you.”

“I’m so sorry, Maddie. This should’ve never happened to you. It’s all my fault,” I said, my face crumpling as a fresh wave of tears hit.

“Shh! Hey, none of that. I’m fine and I don’t blame you for any of this. I only blame the asshole who did it. I hope Greg finds him and rips his balls off so he can feed them to him,” Maddie said more vehemently than I’d ever heard him speak.

“I’ll keep that in mind when I do find him. Unfortunately, he was long gone by the time I got out there.” We both turned at the sound of Greg’s voice and I felt the tension bleed from my body. I felt safer just knowing he was in the house with us.

Greg did a quick sweep of the house, checking all the other rooms to be sure there was no one else inside. When he came back, he brought a warm, wet washcloth and kneeled down beside Maddie, looking over his wound and gently wiping the dried blood from around his eyes. My heart did a crazy little somersault at seeing Greg care for the man who was like a brother to me.

I jumped when there was a sharp rap at the front door. “It’s just the police,” Greg said calmly. He set the washcloth aside and I helped Maddie up onto the couch while Greg went to let them in.

“He’s a good man,” Maddie whispered as he leaned back in his seat.

“Yeah, he is,” I said with a sigh.

The emergency medical team began checking Maddie over and taking his vital signs while he recounted his story a second time to an officer who jotted everything down in his tiny spiral notebook. When the officer was finished asking questions, he and his partner followed Greg outside so he could show them the route the perpetrator had taken.

“Your vitals all look good, but we need to take you to the hospital for further testing and to keep you overnight for observation. It’s possible you have a concussion from the hit you took to your head,” the EMT explained. Maddie nodded his head wearily.

“I’ll go with you,” I offered.

“That’s not a good idea. I think we should get you out of town for a few days,” Greg said, walking back into the room with the two officers.

“What are you talking about? I can’t leave, I’m going with Maddie. He shouldn’t be alone right now,” I insisted.

I turned to look at Maddie as his hand landed on my shoulder. “I think Greg is right. Think about it, Christopher, whoever was in here tonight was here for you.”

I winced as guilt slammed into me all over again. “I’m so sorry.”

“I didn’t mean it that way. All I meant was that whoever was in here came here looking for you. Greg’s right, you need to go away for a few days. At least until they can dust for prints and try and figure out who did this. Besides, I won’t be alone, I’ll be surrounded by hospital staff. Maybe, if I’m lucky, I’ll get a sexy male doctor.” He waggled his eyebrows at me, but immediately regretted the motion, letting out a hiss of pain.

“Seriously, though. I can’t stand the thought of anything bad happening to you. Please, promise me that you’ll let Greg keep you safe,” he pleaded.

I looked from Maddie to Greg, who was listening with his arms crossed, his eyes fixed on me. “I’ll guard him with my life. You’ve got my word.” A chill swept through me, but instead of fear, this time it was from the promise I saw in Greg’s eyes.

“Fine. I’ll go with him, but I’ll be checking in with you constantly and you have to promise to call me if you need anything at all. I’ll come back right away. No matter what.” I shot a look at Greg, daring him to argue with me. His lips were curved downward in a frown, but he gave me a reluctant nod.

I watched as the EMTs had Maddie sit down on a gurney and strapped him in. The fact that he didn’t argue with them about it only proved how poorly he felt. When they had him secured, I walked alongside him out to the ambulance and kissed his cheek, promising that I’d call and check on him as soon as he got settled.

Behind me, I could hear the two police officers talking with Greg. They assured him that they’d be in touch after their specialist had a chance to dust my home for fingerprints and that they’d also go over the security video footage that Greg had given them.

The officers got in their car and followed the ambulance carrying my best friend. Through watery eyes, I watched them until they’d pulled out of the driveway and disappeared down the road. I knew Maddie didn’t blame me, but I couldn’t help but feel guilty that he’d been hurt because of me. With a heavy sigh, I turned to head back into the house, but froze when I saw Greg standing at the bottom of the steps.

His jacket and tie were long gone, the top two buttons of his shirt undone, and his sleeves rolled up, revealing a light dusting of black hair along his forearms. He was stunning. His hands were shoved in his pockets and his gray eyes looked soft as they watched me. I felt shaken and vulnerable after everything that had happened. I would’ve given anything to be able to go to him and have him wrap me up in the safety of his arms, but I couldn’t risk it. My heart couldn’t take it if he were to reject me.

“I usually pride myself on being able to keep calm under pressure. My job requires it actually, but tonight, I was a total mess. I have no idea what I would have done if you hadn’t been here,” I admitted, my voice wavering with emotion.

“Cut yourself some slack. I’ve seen you handle things just fine when it comes to budgeting issues or dealing with city hall. This was different; this was your best friend and it happened in your private home, a place where you should feel safe. That would be enough to shake anybody up.”

I brushed away the few tears that had managed to escape and drew in a cleansing breath. “So, what do we do now?”

“Now, we pack a few things and head to my company’s safe house.”

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