Page 88 of Shifting Gears

Touma

Will do. Thank you for letting us know.

I closed my eyes for a second and put my phone away. I wasn’t far from the docks now. I just hoped AJ had made it back in one piece.

Only one way to find out.

I continued on my drive, coming to a stop in the parking area across from the warehouse. It looked pretty dark inside. Maybe he hadn’t made it back.

I’m an idiot. I can text him.

I pulled out my phone and opened our messages.

Sydney

Hey, did you make it home?

A soft buzz of a phone vibrating drew my attention to the glove box. I leaned over and opened it.

You’ve got to be kidding me.

I reached inside and grabbed AJ’s cell phone. I couldn’t believe he’d left it inside the car, but then again, he hadn’t dropped it into the duffel bag with his keys at the match.

I closed the glove box, and my eyes hovered over the gun on the floorboard. I’d forgotten it was even there with everything else that had happened tonight.

“Shit. I need to get rid of that.”

I grabbed it but then noticed there was blood on the floor mat in the car. I sighed and got out of the car and walked around to the passenger side. I opened the door and dragged the mat out of the car, walking both it and the gun to the side of the docks. The water was pretty deep here since cargo ships needed to park alongside these areas. So, I knew the chances anyone would discover these items would be slim, and even then, by thetime they were found, the blood would be washed away from the saltwater.

I held them out over the side and dropped them, watching as they landed with a splash on the ocean’s waves and slowly dipped beneath the surface of the dark waters.

I took a deep breath. My body was tired from the night, and this outfit was still damp. The icy breeze off the water made me shiver. I decided that crashing in the car would be my best bet for the night, and so I made my way back over to it.

When I rounded the corner of a wall that equipment was locked behind, I was surprised to see AJ leaning against his car. He was shirtless, and his black joggers hung low on his hips.

“You’re all right,” I whispered as I walked up to him.

What a relief.

He didn’t look too excited though when he saw me.

“So, you kinda left me back there,” AJ said. His tone was light, but he looked up and down my body, almost as if he was making sure I was still in one piece.

“Yeah, I’m really sorry about that. But I couldn’t wait for you. Everything happened so fast. I had to act quick,” I said.

AJ pushed off the car and walked over to me. His fingers brushed my hair off of my face. “You’re all good, right?” he softly asked.

I nodded.

“Yeah, I am. I promise,” I said as I leaned into his hand.

His fingers stroked my cheek as a light breeze picked up, causing me to shiver.

“Look, you’re freezing, baby. We can continue this inside,” he said as he gestured to my wet clothes.

“Okay, sure,” I said. Then I reached inside the car and grabbed the folder with the title papers. No way was I letting this get out of my sight.

I relaxed slightly as he wrapped his warm arm around my shoulders. We walked around the car, and that was when I finally noticed just how much damage I’d done to it.

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