police officers and emergency personnel.
Ava and I had watched EMTs wheel an unconscious Jada away before officers corralled us to separate corners of the ballroom to give our statements. At some point in the evening, David Allen had even braved his innate fear of authority and joined us, sitting with his arm around Ava as she gave her statement to one officer after another of apparently escalating ranks.
I did much the same, probably mostly incoherently to the first woman who asked me what happened. Though, by the time I was with the third person up the food chain, the adrenaline was ebbing enough that I was beginning to make actual sense.
I'd just about gotten through one coherent narrative of all that Jada had confessed to me, when I heard a deep voice behind me.
"I can take it from here, Officer."
I turned to find Grant striding across the room, his jaw tense, eyebrows drawn down over a pair of dark eyes that gave zero emotion away.
The officer nodded, clearly sensing he was outranked, and quickly scuttled away to join the other guys in blue uniforms a few paces away.
I cleared my throat, trying not to do a repeat of the blubbering mess thing at the comforting sight of him.
"Hey," he said once we were alone. He sat down on the wooden chair beside mine so he was at my eye level. "You okay?"
I swallowed down tears. "Fabulous."
The corner of his mouth hitched up. "Good." His eyes moved to the growing bruise at my temple, and his right hand followed a beat later, fingers gently brushing my hair away. "You're one tough cookie," he said.
That was it. I lost it. The tears burst out of me on a messy sob, and once they were free, I couldn't hope to hold them back.
"I-I-I'm not a tough c-c-cookie. I'm a m-m-marshmallow!" I cried.
Grant chuckled, though his eyes were full of more sympathy than humor. "Oh, Emmy." His arms were suddenly around me, shielding me from everything the big bad world might have thrown at me over the last twenty-four hours. They were strong, warm, and I never wanted to leave. I burrowed deep into his chest, creating wet spots on his shirt as I bawled like a baby.
I had no idea how much time passed before I ran out of tears, but when I did, I finally pulled back and managed to get ahold of myself.
"You really okay now?" he asked, his thumb wiping wetness from my cheek in an intimate gesture that made me feel like we were the only two people in the world and not sitting smack in the middle of a crowded crime scene. Again.
I nodded. "Sorta."
"Can you tell me what happened?" he asked softly, taking one of my hands in his.
I took a deep breath. "I think so." And I did. This time spilling everything, including all of my not-so-shining moments that I'd previously glossed over. I told him about the glass emerald, the fact that the real one was apparently in my camera bag, and that we might very well owe not one but two pawnbrokers money now. By the time I was done, the little gold flecks in his eyes were moving in a frenzy, but his expression was still not giving anything away. I wasn't sure if he was about to arrest me or kiss me.
But if I had to guess, I'd lean more toward handcuffs.
"I'm sorry," I finished, swiping at those pesky tears again. "I'm so sorry I didn't just tell you everything sooner."
He nodded slowly. "You should have," he said, his voice thick with unexpressed emotion.
"I'm sorry," I repeated again, hoping that if I said it enough times, he might believe it.
He gave my hand, still cocooned in his, a squeeze. "I know," he said softly.
I opened my mouth to expound on my apology, but he continued right over me.
"And I know I don't always make it the easiest for you to come to me with these things."
I shut my mouth with a click. Well, that was unexpected.
He gave me a sheepish grin. "What I'm trying to say is I'm sorry for blowing up at you the other night. And after you baked me pie, too."
I couldn't help an answering smile. "Well, Conchita baked it."
He shrugged. "Okay, then I don't feel quite so bad."
I laughed in earnest. "But I'm sorry I blew up too," I added. "I guess we were both kind of tense."
He nodded and sighed deeply, his gaze going around the room.