Chuck took his second beer out of the fridge. Popping the top, he drank long while returning to the living room. Last time he'd had a drink, Thad had gotten married, and he'd cut the celebration short to go meet Erikka. He was long past due for a cold one or six.

A commercial came on the flat screen. He picked up the remote beside him and flipped through the channels until he found an MMA match.

He drank his beer and watched two men try and beat the shit out of each other. Chuck had let more fists fly growing up because of Rich poppin' off on someone bigger, stronger, older, and had to join the fight to save Rich's ass. He exhaled loudly. Starting tomorrow, he'd put in extra time to search for Rich, now that the search for Rachel was over. Maybe dig deeper around the motorcycle clubs on the west coast for any sign of his MC brother.

His already bad mood grew worse.

He let his head fall back on the couch. The alcohol was doing nothing to help him calm down after believing Erikka was lost to him. Lost to him like Rich, like Thalia, and the hundreds of other missing persons he'd searched for and never found.

It frustrated him off that she'd followed all the police cars away from her house when they hauled in Stoddard and Rachel. She couldn't do a damn thing at the station while they went through questioning. She should've come home with him. He finished his beer and set the empty bottle between the couch cushions. Just knowing she was in the same fucking building where Markham was jailed and could see her if she wandered downstairs pissed him off. Not to mention, she disregarded him telling her not to go.

Pissed off enough, he refused to go, and instead had Gomez promise to see Erikka to her car in the parking lot when she finished and give him a call when she left. Nobody could convince him otherwise that Markham couldn't still control his men from the inside of the jail cell.

He picked his phone up off the couch. It was already seven o'clock. She'd been at the police station all damn day.

His doorbell rang. He gritted his teeth and got up from the couch. If that was Erikka, and Gomez hadn't called to update him, heads were going to roll.

He opened the door. Gracie stood in front of him.

After several seconds, Gracie frowned. "Is this a bad time?"

He stepped back without saying a word and motioned her in. The extra force he put behind closing the door made Gracie jump, and he inhaled deeply. It wasn't fair of him to take his mood out on her.

"What's up?" He walked into the kitchen, grabbed two beers, and returned to the living room. "You're out late."

"It's still light out. I have forty-five minutes until dark." She plucked the empty bottle out of the couch and sat down. "I was over at Wayne's house earlier having lunch with Clara when he came home and filled us in that Erikka was safe and her sister was back. He mentioned you were home while Erikka dealt with family business, so I thought I'd come over and visit you. It feels like we haven't had time to talk all summer. I miss you."

He opened both beers and passed her one. Sitting beside her, he put his boots on the coffee table.

"You're doing good?" he asked.

She half turned on the couch. "Yes, but you're ignoring what I said. I've missed you."

"Miss you, too, sweetheart," he mumbled. "I've had a lot going on."

She pushed his upper body, and her slight weight couldn't budge him. "I know that. But, how are you?"

She wanted a rundown of his life over the last two months. He stopped partying. He stopped fucking other women. He stopped getting in fights. He stopped beating himself up every day because he'd forced Rich away from the club.

"I'm good." He drank. "Really good. Work is the same thing day after day and brings home a paycheck. There's still time left of summer to get some decent rides in if we get a break from searching for missing persons. Erikka's falling in love with me."

"Boom," whispered Gracie, stretching her fingers out wide in front of him. "So, why are you here and not with Erikka?"

"She's at the cop shop."

She shook her head. "That doesn't answer my question."

"I told her not to go."

"Ah, I see." Gracie leaned back against the couch and patted his leg. "So, you're upset with her."

"Nope." He burped and took another drink. "I doubt if she's given me a second thought because she's busy helping her sister."

"I would help Clara if we were in the same situation, and if you remember, Clara dropped everything—even Wayne, so she could be with me round the clock," said Gracie.

The understanding in Gracie's voice only made him feel guilty. There was nothing he could've done differently. He wanted to protect her. That was more important than anything, and he had that covered with Gomez helping him out.

"It was different with you and Clara." He took another drink.

"Maybe," she said. "Are you planning to get drunk?"

"Nothing else to do tonight."

She slouched down on the couch and put her feet on the coffee table beside his boots. "Then, I'll keep you company until I have to leave."

"I don't need anyone."

"Of course not. You're Chuck Parker. The greatest man I've ever met. You need no one." She stared at the television.

When she pretended to stay interested in the fight on television, he relaxed. They'd spent many nights exactly like this. Except, he was the one egging her on, trying to get a rise out of her. While everyone babied her, he'd taken a different approach and forced her to get angry. Then, he'd been there when she broke. Somehow, she'd dug deep and pulled herself back up.

Gracie was only halfway to where she needed to be, and she might never make it, but she was living life, getting up every morning and sleeping through half the night now.

She finished her beer and looked at him. "Do you love her?"

"More than anything," he whispered, putting his empty beer bottle on the coffee table.

They fell into comfortable silence. When he received a text from Gomez letting him know Erikka was on her way to his house, he watched every minute change on his phone. He'd give her fifteen minutes, and then he'd go looking for her.

It was the longest fucking time of his life.

When the soft knock came, and the door opened, Erikka rushed in looking more beautiful than ever. The smile she wore lit up her eyes and her flushed cheeks couldn't contain her happiness as she came into the house. He stared as she set her purse beside his helmet on the floor. She made him ache.

"Chuck?" She turned around, searching for him, and found him on the couch.

The light left her. One second, she was happy. The next, everything dimmed.

She stopped beside the chair, not walking closer to the couch. "Sorry, I didn't know you had company."

"Gracie's not company," he said, earning himself an elbow in the side.

Gracie held up her beer. "He makes a good hostess though."

Erikka's eyes narrowed. He could see her working through her issues with Gracie and failing. "It's been a big day. If you'll excuse me, I'm going to go upstairs and go to bed."

She walked through the room and up the steps. Three beers weren't enough to let her get away with thinking something was going on with him and Gracie. He could be patient. He had been patient. Tonight, he was anything but laidback about her continual attitude toward Gracie.

"I need to get going." Gracie slapped his leg, stood, and picked up all the beer bottles.

Chuck remained on the couch. "No reason to rush off, sweetheart."

Gracie studied him. "There actually is. It's dusk out."

He nodded, understanding. She never went anywhere alone in the dark.

"Want me to escort you?" he asked.

With her arm full of bottles, she shook her head. "No, I want you to go upstairs and explain to Erikka that there's no reason for her to hate me before I lose you."

"You're not going to lose me." Gracie was a part of his life, his family.

"I love you enough to know when to step back so you can be happy." She paused. "Tell her."

He rubbed his head. "It's not my story to share."

"I'm telling you it is, so it's okay." She leaned down and kissed his cheek. "I'm going to put these in the recycling bin on the porch on my way out. Go talk with Erikka and let her know what you're feeling."

Gracie walked out of his house. Alone downstairs, he grunted. To go up to Erikka, he'd have to trust himself and right now, he still reeled thinking he'd lost her forever when she went missing. He couldn't see through to her happiness at having her sister back, though he understood her emotions. Hell, he even understood her wanting to help her sister. He'd help any one of the Notus members.

Only when the shower turned off upstairs did he get off the couch and lock up the house to head up to bed. His mind had slowed down, but his body remained tense and agitated. He rubbed a hand over his closely shorn head. He was an asshole because he wanted to touch and hold her.

In his room, Erikka was already snuggled in for the night. He stripped and set his boots off to the end of the bed, and slipped under the covers. She had her back toward him, and he rolled, spooning her from behind.

She remained silent when he cupped her breast and moved her until her back fit against his chest. After several minutes, he broke the silence. "Have the police updated you on your sister?"

"Lieutenant Gomez is keeping her in jail overnight. She's exhausted from all the questions. I'll be able to post a bond for her tomorrow morning." She paused. "He says if Tony Stoddard can hand over proof on Mr. Markham, there is a good chance that cooperating with police and helping them get a steeper conviction against Markham, well, it would make the judge look more favorably upon him. As for my sister, it depends on the charges for Tony. They both agree they feared for their lives and there were threats from Markham and his men. There's a chance she might not see any jail time after the initial hold if things work out. For tonight, everything is pending, but it's something."

"That's good."

"Yeah," she murmured.

He continued holding her like he had for the last two months, except she never turned to him. She never kissed him goodnight.

"Chuck, I think with everything going on and all the help I want to give my sister, we need to slow things down," she whispered.

"I'll go as slow as you want." He kissed the back of her head.

She shivered. "I need to...figure things out," she whispered.

Eventually, she fell asleep.

He stayed awake and held on to her because he was scared of losing her.