Garrett shook his head. “No clue. I just know I’m not where I used to be.”
Tanner nodded. “Then you know—you of all people know, Garrett—from what didn’t go down with Mia that turned out right to what you encouraged to go down with me and your sister, you know the way it is. And you know you gotta do one thing.” He hesitated, drew in breath, and finished, “Proceed.”
Garrett had given Tanner that same advice, and the road was bumpy, but the results were worth it.
Fuck.
The anger slid out of him, but it left frustration behind.
“Ryker made a difficult job a lot harder today, big man,” Garrett pointed out.
“Dig deep and decide if it’s worth the effort, Garrett. You make the decision—cut her loose or make that effort. Only you can decide,” Tanner replied, then shook his head. “That last isn’t true. She’s a good woman. It’s worth the effort. You wouldn’t charge in here, pissed as shit, if you didn’t know it. You just gotta know, for her sake and for her kid’s, that your shit’s together before you go for it.”
Garrett drew in another breath, dropped his arms, and lifted his chin.
His message relayed about Ryker, with no reason to be pissed other than being pissed at himself, a ton of work on his desk, and a new problem with Cher to sort, he had no purpose being there.
“Gotta get back to the station,” he muttered.
“On your walk, think about how Cher had occasion to have a chat with Ryker.”
Garrett’s attention turned acute on Tanner.
It came to him and he whispered, “Fuck.”
Tanner laid out the realization that belatedly hit him.
“What I heard just now from you, she’s thrown up her shields, fightin’ you off. She knows you’re diggin’ in with her shit and she might’ve been lookin’ for reinforcements to help her out with that so she could untangle you from it. So she’s got no call to be pissed Ryker knew when she was gonna tell him herself.”
Garrett grinned at his brother-in-law.
Tanner grinned back.
“Thanks, buddy,” he muttered.
“Don’t mention it,” Tanner replied, turning toward his desk.
Garrett moved toward the door.
He stopped when Tanner called, “Merry.”
He looked back to see the man sitting behind his desk.
“Rumors fly. Don’t wanna piss you off, but just sayin’, before some asshole asks and earns your fist in his face, and straight up, ’cause I’m curious, gotta know so I can shut it down before it blows: Word is, that rack she’s got isn’t all hers.”
“Lots of gifts God gave Cher she doesn’t recognize, that’s one of them. If it isn’t, her surgeon was a master. But, big man, if Cher ever had money to blow on somethin’, she’d use it to give good to her boy. She wouldn’t use it to get her tits done.”
Tanner grinned again. “I’ll take that to mean it’s all hers.”
“Don’t give a fuck how you take it,” Garrett told him. “Cher and me ever get down to sharin’ medical histories, that in itself would be cause for celebration considerin’ how things are right now. But, seein’ as it’s no one’s business, you can warn every fuck who might open their trap to me or her about it to keep it shut or they won’t be able to open it since their jaw’ll be wired shut.”
Tanner didn’t miss a beat before he stated, “I’ll take that as you already havin’ your shit together about Cher Rivers.”
Garrett shook his head and muttered, “Whatever.”
He turned to leave again when Tanner called his name again.
He looked back.
“Jesus, brother, what?” he asked.
He asked it before he caught the look on Tanner’s face.
He braced when he caught that look.
“It’d be good to see you happy. It’d be good to see you give what you got to give to a woman who deserves to get it. And it’d be good Cher’s son has a man in his life who isn’t an ex-junkie but is a staple and can offer him a shitload of things he needs to grow up and be a good man. That might not be the end for the three of you. But if it is, man, I’ll be happy for you.”
Garrett fought back clearing his throat before he asked, “You done?”
Tanner grinned yet again. “Yep.”
“Rocky’s made you soft,” he returned.
“That is one thing your sister has never made me.”
Garrett felt his lip curl. “Christ.”
Tanner burst out laughing.
Not even close to that mood, Garrett muttered, “Later,” and took off.
* * * * *
Cher
After my shift, I left out the back door with Darryl opening it for me to keep an eye on me on the way to my car (like he always did, or Morrie did, or Jack did).
I moved down the alley toward my Equinox.
I heard the door close and it did this earlier than Darryl would normally do it.
I knew why.
“Goddamned shit,” I muttered under my breath, seeing Merry leaning against my driver’s side door, his Excursion pulled in against the wall in front of my Chevy.
He didn’t move as my heels clicked their pissed off staccato on the pavement. He just watched me come to him, ankles crossed, arms folded on his chest.
Shit, it totally, seriously sucked he was so hot.
I was five feet away when I snapped my question, “You lose the ability to read?”
The left side of Merry’s lips curled up, but that was the only movement he made.
Asshole.