Page 137 of Wish You Were Mine

I almost laughed. Only the recollection of how much it had hurt last time stopped me. “Don’t like the tables being turned?”

“Not even a little bit.”

I tapped my cheek, and he rolled his eyes but dropped a kiss on it.

The rest of my family was close behind. They gathered around me, and this time, nothing I could do would stop the tears streaming down my cheeks as they fussed over me. I loved this crazy bunch. They were everything to me. And right now, they didn’t hesitate to let me know that I meant everything to them too.

My heart was full.

“You two need to be more careful,” Liam said gruffly. “Asher—”

“Hey.” I cut him off, not willing to take any shit in my current mood. “No more being angry at Asher, okay? I know you guys had this idea of me being with a particular type of man—and the less said about that, the better—but Asher was asked to choose between saving himself and saving me, and he chose me. So, I don’t care if you think you know better. No one else could possibly love me more than he does.”

The corner of Liam’s mouth twitched, and he held his hands up defensively. “All I was going to say is that you’re two of my favorite people, and I expect you to take better care of each other, so we don’t have to do this again.”

I deflated. “Oh.”

Asher laughed, his whole face lighting up. “I love you, Summer.”

I smiled at him. “I love you too.”

Liam wrapped his arm around Kennedy, who’d appeared at his side. “I had some concerns, but it seems like I was wrong about them. I’m happy for you.”

“Thank you.” Something settled inside me at his acceptance of our relationship.His disapproval wouldn’t have prevented me from being with the man I loved, but I know the discord between them bothered Asher. Hopefully now, they could move on.

“You might be brothers one day,” I teased. I turned to Kennedy. “Thank you for flying everyone here.”

“Anything for you,” she replied, her lips pressed together tightly as if she might cry too. “But only once, all right? I can’t keep visiting my best friends in hospitals after they’ve been shot or stabbed.”

I rested my hand on hers. “I’ll do my best.”

She sniffed. “You’d better. Destiny Falls is supposed to be peaceful.”

I snorted. Yeah. So much for that.

64

SUMMER

“So, tell me everything,” I said to Grace, who was perched on the side of my bed back home. The overhead light illuminated the room, casting out the shadows. The sun had set within the last hour, and I was grateful she’d dropped by to visit. I didn’t feel like being alone in the dark.

Grace tucked her brunette hair behind her ear. “Nate interviewed Robert Warner’s family and friends. According to them, he wasn’t himself after he was released from the hospital. He became obsessed with Asher because he blamed him for his wife’s death.”

“But why Asher?” I asked. That had been bothering me, but I hadn’t wanted to raise it with him. He was already struggling to move past it without me chasing him around with unanswered questions. “Maia was there too.”

Grace shrugged. “I think Asher was the first to approach the Warners’ vehicle and speak to Robert, so in his mind, everything that happened after that was Asher’s responsibility.”

I shook my head. It was nonsensical, but then, everything Robert had done after getting out of the hospital was illogical, so perhaps that just spoke to the frame of mind he’d been in—either that, or an underlying brain trauma.

“He followed Asher around, just to distract himself at first, but then it became more than that.”

I nodded, recalling the movement in the shadows I’d thought I’d seen outside Drunken Destiny what felt like a lifetime ago. Perhaps that had been Robert, watching Asher even then.

“So, Robert poisoned Cookie?” I asked.

“Yes. Apparently, that was just a crime of opportunity. He saw the house was empty and he happened to have rat bait in his garden shed. He found the spare key and slipped some of it into her food.”

“Who would hurt a sweet animal?” I was disgusted. I’d suspected foul play, but to have it confirmed made me nauseous.

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