Page 17 of Jaime's Story

Dad slips over to get Zack, bringing him up to the front as we slide over towards Mom and Jennie who has Daisy on her lap while Jasmine rocks Faye who will be one later this month, while Daisy will be three. Despite Jennie only wanting one baby herself, she does love all of the ones that come along. Even if she doesn’t babysit them, she still loves on them at family dinners.

“Detective Taylor,” Jasmine says noticing us first, her eyes twinkling as they glance my way.

“It’s Bryan,” he states as Dad comes up behind Mom and Jennie with Zack.

“So do we take this to mean that the two of you are official since he showed even if he is late?” Jeffery asks and I swallow hard as a hint of color hits my cheeks.

“We are together even if we haven’t announced it loud and clear to all and sundry,” I state and Bryan gives my hand a squeeze pulling my gaze up to his, and it’s a relief to see the same softness that’s always there when he looks at me.

“I wish that was the only reason I was here tonight,” Bryan says, making Jeffery tense while Maia glances our way with worry mounting on her face. “I’m still on duty though. I’ve been covering for the night detective that covers the traffic division. I was called out to one tonight,” he adds, glancing towards Mom and Jennie. “This is the part of my job I hate most.”

I squeeze his hand that’s still wrapped around mine, taking note of the looks shot towards Bryan and the quietness of the room.

“Jennie, it appears that Troy was on his way into town when he hit a patch of black ice,” Bryan says and a shocked gasp falls from her, but also several others around the room. I see Dad’s hand tighten on Zack’s shoulder as well and fight to contain my own emotions as Mom wraps her arms around Jennie. “I’m so sorry, there was nothing the paramedics could do. He was gone before they arrived on the scene.”

The look on my sister’s face breaks my heart. I can’t even imagine what she’s feeling. The last two weeks when Bryan was barely responding to my messages broke my heart. If something happened to him…I don’t know if I’d be able to keep going.

“You’re sure it was him?” Jesse asks as he holds Maddie and Tabby even closer to him.

“Yes, I didn’t leave until the medical examiner took him from the scene,” Bryan says, his tone as gentle as possible as he glances at Jennie who’s sitting with that same broken blank stare as Jasmine slips Daisy from her lap watching our sister with a worried look. It’s shared by Jackie, Julie, and Jillian as well.

“Our job required a background check with fingerprints,” Ethan says and Bryan nods as Jackie turns further into his hold, her cheeks wet making it hard not to let my own fall.

“If there is anything I can do, please let me know,” Bryan says looking from Mom and Jennie, up to Dad and Zack. “I let Chief Davidson know on my way here so he should be by shortly to help as well. The examiner’s office won’t release anything without consent, and I’ve requested that the vehicle be removed from the scene as soon as possible.”

“Thank you,” Dad states and it hits me that it’s so reporters don’t get hold of the story and print it in the morning paper. Being part of the Cartwright family would make it headline news here in town and that’s the last thing Jennie needs now.

Zack slips around settling in next to Jennie and the blank look falls, bringing on tears as she hugs him tight. Seeing my sister cry makes my own break free. I can’t fight it any long and I sink into Bryan’s arms as he pulls me into his chest and holds me close.

Chapter 6

Bryan

The funeral home is crowded when I arrive after work. My feet take me straight to Jaime, needing my arms around her now. Two weeks away from her was pure torture. No matter how much I swore I was doing the right thing for her by staying away, I hated every minute of it.

The second I got her text Sunday, I wanted to head straight for her, but I still had hours of work left. I couldn’t ignore that message, not when it hit me that she thought I wasn’t responding because I was having problems with work, rather than that I was trying to give her space to see if that Chase person was who she wanted in her life.

We haven’t had a chance to discuss him, not with everything that happened with Jennie’s husband, and it’s the only thing keeping me from rushing forward now. My heart nearly hit the ground when I saw the car involved in the crash I was headed towards was registered to Troy and Jennie Lawson. I knew that was Jaime’s sister’s name, knew she lived on Meadow Lane from things we’d discussed and the note that there was one fatality had me hurrying there as quickly as I could.

Finding it was Jaime’s brother-in-law, while still not a good thing, was far better than if it’d been her sister, or even her nephew, because Jaime loved all of them immensely. Having to break the news to her was hell, let alone breaking it to her sister that she was now a widow, and to Zack that his father was dead.

I can’t walk away from her again. I don’t want to in the first place, and second, I don’t think I could do it. So I’m going to keep her as close as she’ll let me, for as long as she’ll let me, and just pray that it’ll be forever and not just a few months.

I slip up next to Jaime as she’s talking to someone, pressing a kiss to her cheek, loving how she sinks into my hold. “Hi princess.”

“Hi,” she says, looking up at me with a soft smile.

“I didn’t know you were married, dear,” the woman she was talking to says looking between us with a smile.

“We’re not,” Jaime states a little blush in her cheeks as I look down at her.

“Not yet, at least,” I add and the light that fills her eyes tells me she’s willing to let me have all of her and I’m damn happy about it. I’d take and make her mine tomorrow if it wouldn’t seem insensitive to Jennie right now.

“This is Ms. Russell, she was Johnnie’s housekeeper originally and now she keeps the place clean for Jeffery when he’s there,” Jaime says, and I give the woman a nod. “This is my…”

“Boyfriend if you ignore the fact that I’m not much of a boy anymore,” I offer for her, putting another blush on her cheeks. “Bryan Taylor,” I add shaking the woman’s hand gently.

“You girls seem to pick good ones. It’s so sad what happened to Jennie’s husband. I don’t want to intrude any but please let her know if she needs any help around the house to give me a call. Jeffery’s rarely at the condo so I don’t have much to do.”

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