Page 85 of Catch Me When I Fall

I sucked in a breath.

“You and the cat are a package deal, I assume. That makes him mine too.”

“He’s a stray,” I blurted once more, wondering why in the hell I’m talking about the cat instead of last night. “I’ve been trying to get him to warm up to me for weeks,” I added after a few seconds of silence.

We both turned to find Tic-Tac curled up in the middle of the bed now, snoozing. “How did you get him inside?” I asked. “I was worried about him, but I hadn’t seen him in days.”

“He was on the porch. I just picked him up,” Grayson answered bluntly.

I knew I would have to take him to the vet, wash the sheets, and get his shots updated today. Then, I’d need to get him a collar with his name on it. “His name is Tic-Tac,” I stated, staring at the orange baby.

Grayson’s rough fingers slid under my chin, tilting my head back to look at him. Our eyes met, and I felt like I could breathe easier again. “Not having a cat named after a piece of candy,” he told me softly, holding me in place.

“He’s my cat,” I argued back, just as softly.

He bent down, bringing his lips inches from mine as he held my eyes. “And you’re my woman,” he returned.

My woman.

“Grays—”

“Never leaving you again,” he murmured, cutting me off.

I shut my mouth in an effort to keep my bottom lip from trembling.

He continued. “Six months ago, I left here thinking I would be back within a week’s time.”

My eyes widened, and then something he said last night came back to me. “You said you were in hell—”

“Gray!”

I jumped at the sound of the booming voice that came from downstairs, my hands latching onto the sides of Grayson’s shirt. His hand at my chin shifted, going to my face, cupping it as I looked up at him.

“That’s Jake,” he said softly. “He needs to run some tests on you.”

I leaned away from him; eyes wide. “W-what?” I breathed. “There are people here?”

Grayson left me there, walking to the door and saying something to the man—Jake—downstairs. I would’ve been able to hear him if not for the sound of my heart pounding in my ears.

And you’re my woman.

When Grayson was back in front of me, I looked up at him. “What the hell is happening?” I breathed.

He sighed and squatted down so he was eye level with me. “Sunshine, I’m going to be very honest with you right now, but you need to answer something for me.”

I nodded slowly. “Okay.”

Grayson’s eyes bounced back and forth between mine for a few moments, as if he was deciding whether to give me the truth. “Carrie, what happened to Leo?”

A chill ran slithered down my spine as the memory of the gun firing echoed in my ears. “You.”

He nodded once. “What did I do to Leo, baby?”

My answer came out as a weak whisper. “You killed him.”

“Yeah. I killed him,” he repeated, his voice hard. “I killed him because he was going to—” He cut himself off, bending his head. “Fuck, if I say it out loud, I’m going to want to kill the bastard all over again,” he said, more so to himself than to me.

I shifted, bringing my legs over the edge of the bed. “I owe you my life,” I told him.

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