Page 26 of Gunner

Once through the door, the place opened up into a series of offices, one of which Autumn was working in with baby Maggie on the floor at her feet. Lacey gave her a little wave, and Autumn waved back. Then she passed a gym with a full fitness suite including a treadmill, weights, benches, a climbing wall, and a massive boxing ring which was empty.

A smell of food hit her, and she remembered she hadn’t eaten since last night. It was a regular occurrence for her to forget to eat, and then she would eat loads to catch up. It wasn’t great, but she’d always been the same.

Still holding her hand Gunner walked her into a break room that was way more luxurious than any break room she’d been in. It had tables for eating, as well a couch, a television, and games station.

Lacey grinned when she saw Pax with Blake and Evelyn and Astrid sitting together.

“Hey, Lacey,” Pax said, standing to greet her with a hug. Lacey hugged her back and let go of Gunner to sit.

“You okay to hang here while I talk to Jack a minute?”

“Yes, of course.”

Blake stood suddenly making her jump. “What you want with Jack?”

“Blake!” Lacey caught the warning in Pax’s voice as Blake moved in on Gunner.

Blake glanced back at Pax and then returned his glare to Gunner. The tension in the room had skyrocketed, and she didn’t really understand why but suspected Blake had some sort of beef with Gunner still.

Blake looked at her, and she could see the anger burning him. “He tell you what he did?”

Pax stood, and the chair she was sitting on fell to the floor. “Blake! Enough.”

Blake looked at the woman he clearly loved, and she could see he was torn.

“No, Pax it’s not. It will never be enough. He watched while two men beat you and left you for dead and he did fuck all to stop it happening.”

Lacey felt bile burn her throat at the words and her eyes shot to Gunner, wanting him to deny it, but she could see by the guilt in his eyes and the fact he made no move to defend himself that it was true.

“Is it true?” Lacey hated that her voice shook like it did and the quiver in her bottom lip as she barely held herself together. She could feel other people behind her and knew more had walked in the room and were watching her humiliation.

“Yes.”

A sob burst from her, and she turned to Liam who was behind her. “Can you take me home, please?” She saw him look at Gunner, and then he nodded. “Sure, sugar, let’s go.”

Lacey kept her hand on her stomach to try and hold the sickness at bay until she could get some air. The room felt stifling and hot, and she knew it would only be minutes before she broke down.

Shouting from behind her made her turn to see Pax storm from the room with Blake following after her, but all she could see was the look of hurt on Gunner’s face. It broke her heart that he was hurting, but she couldn’t be with a man who could allow that to happen.

Liam guided her into his car, and she instantly missed the familiar scent of Gunner’s ride.

Liam was silent until they got to her house. “Life is rarely as simple as black and white, Lacey. Blake was wrong to do what he just did.”

“Was he lying?” Lacey desperately wanted Liam to say yes, but she already knew the answer because it was plastered on Gunner’s face.

“No, but…”

Lacey shook her head. “No buts. I can’t be with a man who would allow that. End of story.”

Liam’s jaw ticked, and she could see he wanted to say more, but he kept quiet. “Let’s get you inside.” Liam walked her in, and she turned at the door once he’d done a sweep of the house. “I’ll be outside if you need me.”

“Thank you, but I think I might try and get some sleep, it’s been a busy week.”

Liam shoved his hands in his pockets. “Okay, Lacey.”

As soon as the door closed, she could feel the tears overwhelming her and barely made it upstairs to her bedroom that still smelled like Gunner before the tears came. She cried for what might have been, for Pax, for Milla, for herself and what she’d been building with Gunner that was now lost. Mostly she cried for him. He had so much good inside him, so much to give, but that was the one thing she couldn’t forgive.

Her hand moved to her belly, and she wondered if a child grew inside her that would be dragged into this mess. She wished that she could say she didn’t want that, but the truth was, no matter what Gunner had done she couldn’t be with him. The stark truth was she loved him. Sometime in the last ten days, she’d fallen in love with a man she now realised she hardly knew. She’d thought he was a protector, but no protector would allow what he’d allowed to happen.

Lacey felt nausea bubble up again, and the pain in her head make her feel worse as she cried herself to sleep, allowing blessed exhaustion to render her unconscious from the pain and the grief.