Grim Expectations (Aisling Grimlock Book 5) Read online

  “And let’s pretend that she only goes after bad people, shall we?” I continued. “What kind of bad people? If they shoplift do they make it to her list? Are drunks and druggies fair game? Is it only murderers? How about gang members? How about the wrongly convicted? Tell me, Jerry, who gets to make these decisions?”

  “I honestly didn’t think about that,” Jerry admitted, dragging a restless hand through his hair. “I just … believed her when she said that.”

  “I think you want to believe her, Jerry,” I challenged. “The sad thing is I want to believe her, too. One of us has to keep our wits about us, though. If she ever touches you … .”

  “She would never do that,” Jerry scoffed. He seemed certain of his assertion. “I don’t pretend to understand everything about your family and what you do. In truth, I’ve never wanted to hear the details because it frightens me and I don’t want anything to ever change the way I feel about you.

  “I believe in soul mates, Bug,” he continued. “I believe I have two of them. You’re just a different kind of soul mate, and you’ve been my life mate for as long as I can remember. You’re so mean to your mother, though. She only wants you to love her.”

  I felt tears prick the back of my eyes as I locked gazes with him. He was so earnest and sweet. That was one of the reasons I loved him. He was also catty, gossipy and a great cook. I loved him even more for those reasons. I understood where he was coming from. That didn’t mean I could accept it.

  “Jerry, I love you, too,” I said. “I can’t trust her, though. You look at her and see my mother. You want to see a happy ending. That’s a nice thought, but I don’t believe that’s where this road is going to take us.

  “I also love my father and brothers, and I don’t believe for a second that she has their best interests at heart,” I said. “Should I give up the rest of my family to appease her? Is that what you’re asking?”

  “No, Bug.” Jerry rubbed the back of his neck. I was so used to his expressions that the torn one he bore – which was entirely new – managed to cut through my headache haze and hurt my heart. He was always ready with a happy smile and hug. Now he was struggling, though. “I guess it was a mistake to invite her.”

  “I guess so.”

  “I’ll get rid of her,” Jerry offered. “We can keep shopping, just the two, of us once she’s gone. How does that sound?”

  That sounded like a terrible way to spend an afternoon. “I have a better idea,” I said. “You go get rid of her and then we’ll go to the spa. We’ll get massages and pedicures and eat as much chocolate as we can find.”

  Jerry visibly brightened. “That sounds like an even better way to spend the day.”

  “I thought so.” I managed a real smile. “I’ll wait by the front of the store while you dump Mommy Walking Deadest and then we’ll get out of here.”

  “I’ll be right back.” Jerry was happy as he headed in my mother’s direction. I was sure she would try to manipulate him, but I would only have to tackle that problem if she managed to change his mind. Instead of dwelling on it, I shuffled toward the front of the store and sent Griffin a text alerting him about our change in plans. He seemed relieved when he texted back.

  I leaned against the wall to wait for Jerry. It was hard to get comfortable, and I didn’t get more than a few minutes of peace before I heard a security sensor go off. I lifted my head to see what the commotion was, doing a double take when I saw a blond girl with distinctive green eyes racing through the store. A chasing security guard caught her before she hit the opening and potential freedom.

  “Gotcha!”

  “Let me go!” The girl fought against the guard’s efforts, but he refused to release her. That’s when I decided to get involved.

  “What’s going on?”

  The guard glanced at me as the girl widened her eyes. She clearly recognized me, and I couldn’t decide if it was fear or anger I saw moving across her face when we locked gazes.

  “Do you know this girl?”

  “That depends,” I replied, forcing a smile. “What did she do?”

  “She stole this,” the guard replied, rummaging through the girl’s purse and coming up with a T-shirt. It was simple and black, and it didn’t look expensive. “She’s a thief.”

  I studied the girl for a moment. She looked sheepish and embarrassed. “Are you sure it wasn’t an accident?” I challenged. “Maybe it fell into her purse.”

  The guard shot me an incredulous look. “Really? Come on, girlie. You’re coming with me. We’re going to call the cops.”

  I didn’t miss the look of panic on the girl’s face as she doubled her efforts to escape. The guard was too strong for her, though. “Oh, please, no,” she begged. “Take the shirt back. Just let me go.”

  “Someone has to pay for this,” the guard argued. “You’re never going to learn your lesson if you don’t face some consequences.”

  That was a universal truth, yet I still took pity on her. “What if I pay for it?” I suggested, reaching for my wallet. “I’ll pay for the shirt and you can release her to me. I’ll make sure she’s punished.”

  The guard didn’t look convinced. “And who are you?”

  “I’m her … cousin,” I answered. No one would ever buy us as sisters. She was much too light and fair. “I brought her here for a day outing, but I guess she got a little too big for her britches. If you let me pay for the shirt, I promise to make sure she faces … consequences.”

  The guard considered my offer a moment and then curtly nodded. “It’s fifty bucks.”

  “For that?” I rolled my eyes when he nodded, and dug through my bills until I came up with enough money to pay for the shirt. He took the money without another word and shoved the girl in my direction. I steadied her so she wouldn’t trip, and adopted my father’s “you’re in big trouble” look in an effort to frighten her. “Do you want to talk to me now? You left before we got a chance to compare notes yesterday.”

  The girl shrugged, sheepish.

  I handed her the shirt. “Why don’t you go outside with me and we’ll talk there?” I suggested. “I don’t think either of us want to do it in front of a crowd.”

  The girl studied the shirt for a moment and nodded. I took a step toward the door that led to the mall and then watched in stunned disbelief as she broke into a run and bolted out the entrance. I moved to give chase, but she rounded a corner before I could call out to Jerry and she was gone before I could follow her.

  What the hell?

  10

  Ten

  “There’s my girl.”

  Griffin opened the door to the townhouse and pulled me in for a hug. I was still confused from what happened at the mall so I only halfheartedly returned the embrace. Despite everything, I managed to have a fun day with Jerry at the spa. I asked him how my mother took the news that we were cutting short the shopping trip and he said she took it well. He couldn’t make eye contact when he said it, though, so I had my doubts.

  “There’s my boy,” I said, basking in Griffin’s warmth before following him into the townhouse. I pulled up short when I saw the influx of new furniture. I’d forgotten his stuff was going to be delivered today. “Wow.”

  “It’s not put away yet,” Griffin cautioned. “I had to work so I haven’t had a lot of time to put everything in its place. I thought we could order pizza and work together on that. Unless … was your day too difficult?”

  I considered lying so I could sit in a chair and watch him work – preferably shirtless – but I shook my head instead. “I can help,” I said. “Pizza sounds good.”

  “Okay.” Griffin took my lone bag from me and opened it, smirking when he saw the contents. “You spent half the day shopping and all you bought was kitchen towels?”

  I shrugged. “I wasn’t much in the shopping mood,” I replied. “To be fair, I’m not a big shopper. Jerry loves shopping and always drags me along, but it’s not my favorite pastime.”

  “What is your favorite p
astime?”

  I grinned as I rolled up to the balls of my feet and kissed him square on the mouth. “I’ll show you later.”

  “My day is looking up,” Griffin said, tossing the bag of towels onto the kitchen counter and leading me toward the couch in the middle of the room. “I thought we could move the mattress into the bedroom and sleep there tonight.”

  “Okay.” I agreed, but something odd occurred to me. “Are we already living here?”

  Griffin stilled. “Would that bother you?”

  “Not particularly, but … I’m going to want a final night with Jerry at the other townhouse,” I admitted. “I promised we could have a night with just the two of us where we would put on face masks and make fun of people on reality television.”

  “I’ll make that happen,” Griffin said. “I promise.”

  “Okay.”

  Griffin rubbed the back of my neck as we settled on the couch. Jerry and I bought the bulk of the furniture in our townhouse together. Aidan bought out my half of it when he and Griffin cooked up the plan to buy the townhouse next door. We both knew Jerry would never part with the furniture he spent so much time selecting. We also didn’t want to send Jerry around the bend when the change became too much for him. Luckily Griffin had a few decent pieces of furniture and we were going to shop together for the rest.

  “What’s going on?” Griffin asked, drawing my attention to him. “You seem … troubled. Did things go poorly with your mother?”

  “Yes, but that’s not why I’m distracted,” I replied. “I saw that girl again.”

  “What girl?”

  “The one from the co-op farm,” I said. “She was in Macy’s and the security alarms went off. When I looked up I saw her. She was running from a security guard.”

  “She was shoplifting?” Griffin arched an eyebrow. “That’s odd. Who goes from killing a wraith to shoplifting?”

  “That’s a good question,” I said. “I talked the guard out of pressing charges and paid for the shirt. I was hoping to get a chance to talk to her, but the minute I suggested that she took off.”

  “Did you chase her?”

  I made a face. “I’m hungover.”

  Griffin snorted. “I take that as a no,” he said, linking his fingers with mine as he pushed out his lips and ran the story through his head. “Who do you think she is? Do you think she was following you?”

  That hadn’t occurred to me. “I don’t know,” I said finally. “I think it would be one heck of a coincidence for us to end up in the same store within twenty-four hours of her killing a wraith on the other side of town. I don’t understand why she’d draw attention to herself by shoplifting, though. It makes no sense.”

  “It sounds weird,” Griffin agreed. “You said she stole a shirt. Was it at least an expensive shirt?”

  “It was just a black T-shirt,” I answered. “It cost me fifty bucks, though. I feel like kind of a schmuck. I should’ve let the guard take her.”

  “Why didn’t you?”

  “Because she looked panicked,” I replied, opting for honesty. “There was something about her face … she was terrified. I couldn’t let him take her.”

  “You have a good heart, Aisling,” Griffin said, squeezing my hand. “When I first met you, I thought you were all mouth and snark. I like that, mind you, but I also thought you were a little cold. It didn’t take me long to realize that was all a front.”

  “Oh, I’m cold.”

  “No, you’re not,” Griffin argued. “You’re warm and sweet when you want to be. Granted, you only show that side when we’re alone, but you’re still a good person. You helped that girl. I don’t blame you for doing it. It’s not your fault she fooled you.”

  “I’m not sure that she fooled me,” I admitted. “I think part of her wanted to talk to me but she got scared. I think she wants to trust me – or at least confide in me – but she’s not ready to do that yet.”

  “Do you think you’ll see her again?”

  I was betting on it. “Yeah. There’s something familiar about her. I can’t put my finger on it, though. I feel I should recognize her.”

  “Do you know her?”

  “I’m pretty sure I’ve never seen her before in my life.”

  “Then why do you think she’s familiar?”

  “If I could answer that I wouldn’t be in this predicament,” I said, pushing the worry out of my mind and putting all of my focus on him. “So, should we order pizza first or do some manual labor?”

  Griffin grinned. “Manual labor.”

  “I knew you were going to say that,” I grumbled. “Just be prepared, if you’re expecting me to sweat for a boring reason then you’re going to have to make it up to me with a better reason when we go to bed.”

  “And that’s only one of the reasons I love you,” Griffin said, grinning. “Let’s get to work.”

  “MOVE IT over another two inches.”

  Griffin groaned but did as I asked, using his thighs to nudge the couch to the spot I indicated. When he was done, I glanced around. The living room was entirely put together – other than the pesky decorations and art, of course.

  “Perfect.”

  Griffin grinned as I threw myself on the couch, sliding around the side so he could join me. I placed my head on his shoulder as we looked at the empty entertainment center and rested our feet on the coffee table.

  I was happy to bask in the moment, but Griffin’s restful attitude lasted only a few minutes. He furrowed his brow as he gave the room another long stare.

  “What’s wrong?” I asked. “Do you want to put the couch back where it was?”

  “The two inches doesn’t bother me,” Griffin replied. “The fact that you’ve arranged the living room exactly how your living room with Jerry was set up is another matter entirely.”

  That couldn’t be right. “Uh-uh.” I let my gaze bounce around and then bit the inside of my cheek when I realized he was right. “Whoops.”

  “Whoops.” Griffin tweaked my nose and shook his head. “Are you telling me that you didn’t do this on purpose?”

  “I’m telling you that I unconsciously did it,” I clarified. “I didn’t realize that’s what I was doing until you pointed it out.”

  “I’m not sure I believe you.”

  I’m not sure I would either if I was in his position. “We can change it around,” I offered, licking my lips. We had taken a break an hour earlier for pizza and I was completely full … and ready for bed … so there wasn’t a lot of energy behind my offer. “How do you want to arrange it?”

  “I don’t know,” Griffin answered, rolling his neck until it cracked. He obviously wasn’t keen on engaging in more manual labor either. “We could put the couch against the wall and move the entertainment center over there.” He pointed for emphasis but I immediately started shaking my head.

  “The sun comes in from the sliding glass doors,” I pointed out. “If we put the television there we’ll have to shut the blinds when the sun is setting because we won’t be able to see the screen.”

  “And I thought you were directionally challenged,” Griffin teased, tickling me. “You know what? This is fine. Everything doesn’t have to be perfect today. We’ll try it out like this for a few days and see if we change our minds later.”

  “You just don’t want to move the furniture again.”

  “You’ve got that right,” Griffin said, refusing to be ashamed. “You’re not much help when it comes to moving furniture. You know that, right?”

  “I told you, I don’t like to sweat unless it’s for a fun reason.”

  Griffin cocked an eyebrow. “You did tell me that,” he said, causing me to giggle when he grabbed my legs and yanked me down so I was flat on the couch. “Do you want to do something fun?”

  “I guess,” I said, feigning disinterest. “I’m tired, though, so you’ll have to do all of the work.”

  “What else is new?”

  I had a feeling he was insulting me. “Oh, yeah?”<
br />
  “You heard me,” Griffin said, chuckling when I pushed his bare chest away and flipped him over so now he was at my mercy. “Oh, no! Are you going to prove me wrong? That will teach me.”

  “I just might,” I said, licking my lips and leaning over to kiss him. “I might make you beg me to stop.”

  “Oh, baby, for someone who grew up with four brothers you have no idea how a man’s mind works,” Griffin said. “I’ll never beg you to stop.”

  I could think of a few ways to make him change his mind, but I was legitimately tired. “Let’s go to the bedroom,” I suggested, rolling to my feet. “We’re never going to be comfortable on this couch, and after sleeping on the floor last night I think comfort is important to both of us.”

  “That’s definitely true,” Griffin said, moving to the kitchen so he could shut off the light. “I didn’t realize how old I was getting until my back started screaming in protest this morning. You need to drink in moderation from now on, little missy.”

  “I’ll consider it,” I said, shuffling toward the light by the sliding glass door. “I think it was good for you. It proves you’re a tough guy.”

  “I would rather be a marshmallow than put up with that again,” Griffin said. “Check that door to make sure it’s locked.”

  With the light off, I could see outside to the back patio. There was no furniture because winter was coming, but Griffin had big plans for the space once spring hit. I tugged on the sliding glass door, frowning when a hint of movement along the back fence caught my attention. I narrowed my eyes and peered closer, waiting to see if I could see the shadow again, but everything outside was still.

  “What are you doing?” Griffin’s voice was barely a whisper when he moved up behind me. He was warm and his body being in such close proximity sent shivers up my spine as he ran his hands up and down my arms.

  “I thought I saw something,” I admitted.

  “Where?”

  “Over there by the bushes.” I pointed and glanced at Griffin as he stared in that direction. We both watched for a few minutes, but the night was still. It was too cold for anyone to be outside. Well, except for a wraith, that is. If it was a wraith, though, I had no intention of finding out.