Hour of Need (Scarlet Falls #1)(83)

“No.” Ellie set the clipboard on the desk, stood, and stretched. “I have to run home for some clothes, and Julia needs clothes for skating practice tonight.”

Grant went hard as his mind played a reel of their last visit to her house. They shouldn’t do that again. Ellie didn’t deserve to be hurt, but the solace he found with her was difficult to resist.

“I’m coming with you.” Grant stood and picked up the baby monitor on the desk. “I’ll let Hannah know.”

“I’ll tell Julia and Nan and see if there’s anything else either of them needs from our house.” Ellie left the office and headed upstairs, where Julia was finishing her homework before skating practice. Worn out from another night of little sleep and an outdoor play session with Grant and the dog, Carson was out cold.

Hannah was in the kitchen working on her laptop. Grant poked his head through the doorway. Piles of papers were spread out on the table in front of her. The baby was sleeping in the corner.

“Maybe the kids are actually vampires who don’t like daylight,” he said.

Hannah sighed. “That would explain a lot.”

“Work or estate stuff?” he asked.

She lifted her head. “Yes.”

“Where’s Mac?”

“He went upstairs. Said he’d get some sleep now and take the first baby-walking-night-watchman shift.”

“Good.” Grant nodded toward the baby. Her screaming fits had been spaced further apart the last two nights. He prayed the colic was easing. “Want to risk putting her in her crib upstairs?”

“Hell, no.” Hannah grimaced. “Haven’t you heard? Never wake a sleeping baby.”

“I’m running next door with Ellie for a few minutes. She needs some things.” He set the baby monitor on the corner of the desk. Since the baby wouldn’t sleep in her crib at night, Grant had put the baby monitor base in Carson’s room. The house was so big, he couldn’t hear the boy from downstairs. “Can you listen for Carson?”

Hannah nodded. “Sure.”

“Text me if either of them wakes up.”

“All right.” She bent her head over her papers again.

Stepping in front of Ellie, Grant scanned the outside through front and back windows before turning off the alarm and opening the front door. Locking the door behind him, he reset the security system with the fob on his keychain.

At Ellie’s house, Grant went in first, Beretta in hand. A quick trip through the house verified they were alone. He ended the tour in the upstairs hall.

“It’s clear.” He holstered his weapon.

Ellie went into her bedroom. Grant followed, leaning on the wall while she set a small tote bag on a chest at the foot of the bed. She left the room for a few minutes and came back with an armload of clothes.

His phone buzzed. He read the display, hoping it wasn’t Hannah. He really needed an hour off. At a swipe of his finger, a message from Mac displayed on the screen: Medical examiner released the bodies.

His mind resisted the news.

“Is everything all right?” Her eyes searched his.

He put the phone down. “Yes.”

“OK. I’m just about done here.” Her brows furrowed. She didn’t believe him, but he didn’t have the energy to explain. Exhaustion weighted his body, and he eyed the bed. Late nights with nightmares and crying children were taking their toll. “Would you mind if I closed my eyes for a combat nap?”

Ellie looked up from her packing, a folded sweater in her hands. “Not at all. Do you want me to leave the room?”

Grant stretched out on the bed. “Actually, would you mind lying here with me?”

“Not at all.” She eased onto the bed next to him.

He rolled over, put an arm over her body, and buried his nose in her hair. She smelled like flowers. “Wake me in thirty minutes.”

With years of practice, he slipped into a combat nap in seconds.

“Grant?” Ellie’s whisper pulled him back. “It’s been an hour, but you can sleep more if you like.”

He opened his eyes. “You were supposed to wake me in thirty minutes.”

“You were out cold.” Her face was inches from his. Her hand rested on his shoulder. Contentedness washed over him. The moment felt almost painfully ordinary in the quiet bedroom. That was the most restful chunk of sleep he’d gotten since he came home. He could get used to seeing her when he woke.

He reached up and touched a lock of hair that fell over her shoulder. He twirled it around his finger. Every moment since he’d received the call about Lee had been filled with worry, grief, and fear. He didn’t want to let this peaceful moment end. Just for a few minutes, he could pretend that waking to a beautiful woman was his normal. What would it be like to have moments like these all the time? Instances of intimacy that were earth-shatteringly common.

“Do you want to sleep more? You’re up most of the night.”

Sleep? That was not anything close to what he wanted to do right at this moment. He dropped her hair and curled his hand around the back of her neck, tugging her down to lean across his chest. Suspicion and desire darkened her eyes. Both emotions sent Grant’s blood rushing south. He lifted his head and touched his lips to hers. The soft moan that slipped from her throat pulled his hips off the bed. Her mouth opened. He slipped his tongue into her heat, wishing for more. Ellie could heal him. But it was selfish to ask for her help. Whatever transpired between them couldn’t be permanent.