If We Dare - J.H. Croix Page 0,67

and Dave.

“Dave mentioned you called for some advice about Jade the other day.”

I nodded. “Why do you mention that?”

“Because you’re a good man, Walker. I hope you follow his advice.”

“I will,” I replied, my throat tight.

The door opened again, and Dave’s parents entered, followed by his brother and the medical team. When I saw the priest filing in behind the others, my heart seized for a minute.

Dave had never been the most devout guy, but he’d been raised Catholic. The hours ticked by, and I could hardly focus on anything except one moment at a time. Dave’s mother had second thoughts about taking him off life support, so that was a thing to process.

I was surprised Jenny was so steadfast. However, she was a nurse and told me she knew what those brain scans meant. He was brain dead. Dave had a living will, something he’d set up years back. Although I hated, absolutely hated, that he was dying, I knew him. He would not want to live out an indefinite existence hooked up to a machine.

Meanwhile, I didn’t even think about anything else, much less where my phone was.

Chapter Thirty-One

Jade

“Oops!”

I looked over to see Rylie had taken about four steps after coming through the front door. She was frozen in place and was presently looking down at the muddy footprints she’d left behind her.

Her wide eyes whipped to mine. “What do I do?”

“Stay right there,” I said as I wiped my hands on my apron and hurried from the kitchen into the living room.

I grabbed the rubber shoe tray by the door and set it beside Riley. She put her muddy boots in there and scampered down the hallway to change. I glanced over at the clock above the sink in the kitchen. Lucas and Valentina wouldn’t be home from work for several hours.

After returning the shoe tray to its place by the door, I walked back into the kitchen just as Rylie came out from the hallway. “Should we clean it up?” she called as she looked down at her muddy boot prints.

“We’ll wait until it dries and then vacuum it up.”

“But I want it to be clean before Valentine and Dad get home.”

I looked into my niece’s earnest face and smiled. “I know. We’ve got plenty of time.”

Rylie gave a last look at the mud and skipped into the kitchen. “What are we making?” she asked when she stepped onto the small stool Lucas had gotten just for her in the kitchen.

She liked to cook with Valentina, and they often did projects together, just like she did with me when I was babysitting.

I pointed to the two eggs on the counter beside a bowl of flour. “You can crack those eggs into the bowl. We’re making peanut butter cookies.”

I was relieved Valentina had called me in a pinch. She often worked from home, but Shay needed her on short notice for help with an ordering problem. I’d needed something to do. After the other night with Walker and those sleepy sensual moments the following morning, my heart felt full to bursting. Feathering along the edges of my thoughts had been the idea that maybe, just maybe, I could relax and have faith in Walker.

Then, I’d gotten that cryptic text from him. I’d tried calling and texting. And got nothing. We were on day two now, and I still hadn’t heard anything from him.

The only conclusion I could come to was Walker must’ve regretted his insane impulse to tell me he was falling in love with me. Because I was constantly prepared to tolerate the abrupt ripping away of trust, it made perfect sense.

I was a mix of angry, hurt, and painfully disappointed. Because, dammit, I had gone and fallen in love with him like an idiot. Even worse, I’d let myself have faith in him, and in us.

Although it was hard to keep my mind off Walker and just how stupid I’d been, I did my best to throw myself into making cookies with Rylie. If anyone could keep me sort of distracted, she could.

I reached for my phone again, spinning it around on the counter and tapping the button to see the screen. Still nothing from Walker. A big, fat nothing.

Apparently, he’d decided he didn’t need to explain anything to me after all. “That’s just fine,” I murmured to myself.

“What’s just fine?” Rylie’s voice reached me when she appeared from the end of the hallway. She’d been building a fort in her playroom.

“Oh, nothing, sweet pea.