My mom meets me at the door when I return with tears in her eyes. “She woke up briefly. That’s a good sign, I’m sure. George is a wreck. He’s completely devastated and torn apart with guilt.”

Clenching my jaw, I hold back all the things I feel about this man right now because my mom doesn’t need to hear them.

“He’s not looking for sympathy, Heath. And he’s doing a bang-up job of beating himself up. I just thought you need to know that he understands the extent to which he’s fucked up in his relationship with Georgia.”

Hearing my mom drop an F-bomb makes my breath catch. I can count the number of times I’ve heard that word cross her lips on one hand and not even need all the fingers.

As I walk through the door, I see she’s awake and I let out a small sigh of relief.

“Hey you,” I say as I walk toward her bed. Georgia looks over at me, and her face lights up despite the swelling and bruises.

I hold out one of the cups to George. “I got you some coffee.”

“Thanks,” he says as he gets up from his seat next to the bed and takes the cup from me. “I’ll leave you two alone for a bit. I could use a leg stretch along with the coffee.”

I take his seat and stroke the back of Georgia’s hand with my fingers. “I’m so glad you’re awake. I won’t ask how you’re feeling, because I think it’s pretty obvious.”

“Did they catch him?”

“Yeah. There’s security footage of him in the lobby, the elevator, and the hallway which shows him entering and leaving your apartment.” I don’t tell her you can also see his arm wind up for the punch before he goes in and the cocky swagger he has when he leaves. She doesn’t need that. “So, there’s no question he was there. I’ve been assured there’s plenty of forensic evidence to prove he was the one to assault you. The dumbass must have thought he wouldn’t get nailed. He made no effort to eliminate evidence.”

“Good. That means Katie will be safe.”

I nod but remain silent. Just because Miller is behind bars, that doesn’t necessarily mean he doesn’t have buds in blue on the lookout for Katie. I make a mental note to talk to Georgia when she’s feeling better about moving Katie somewhere out of the way for a while. My first thought is to send her to Dair. He’s the lowest profile of us all, and the most well-equipped to keep her safe.

“They want to keep you here for a while. But when you get out, you’re going to need someone to care for you while you heal. I’d like you to stay with me, so I can be that person.” I shoot her an evil grin. “And let’s face it, if you don’t, I can guarantee your only other option is going to be convalescing at the parental abode, because whether you like it or not, if your dad doesn’t pull the parent card, my mom sure will.”

“Jesus, fuck. You guys would really bully an injured woman into submission?”

“Georgia, we’ll do whatever it takes to make sure you heal in a safe place. As for submission, I very much look forward to the day you’re ready to give that to me.”

Her eyes sparkle as she gives me a slight, crooked smile. “I guess you’re going to have to put up with me for a while.”

“I thought that’s how you’d roll. You look tired, so I’m going to go for a bit. I’m betting your dad will be back in to sit with you, whether you’re awake or not. He’s barely left your side since he got here.”

“I know. We’ve talked some.”

“Good. Now get some rest, and I’ll be back later. Is there anything you want me to bring?”

“Not that I can think of right now.”

I lean down, lightly brush my lips over her forehead, and turn to leave.

“Heath?”

I stop.

“Thank you for coming when you did. In my head, I screamed and screamed for you, but was sure you wouldn’t because you were on your way to Toronto.”

“My heart must have heard you, then, because I had this desperate need to see you that I couldn’t ignore. I just wish I’d heard you sooner.” Guilt fills my chest, making it hard to breathe. If I hadn’t been so fucking high-handed with her… “Rest, so you can heal and I can bust you out of here. I’ll see you soon.”

George and my mom are in the hall as I leave Georgia’s room. “Everything okay?” Mom asks.

No.

“It’s fine. It’s just so hard to see her in there like that. With all the security measures I put in that building—there was no way for me to prepare for a cop being the bad guy.”

“You can’t take that on,” George says, giving my shoulder a reassuring squeeze. “You did the best you could with the knowledge you had. I’m sure Georgia doesn’t blame you, so maybe you should stop beating yourself up over it. She’s going to need you, and you won’t be able to give her your all if you’re wallowing in misplaced guilt.”

“It’s not just the security, we had a fight. It’s my fault she was there instead of my apartment.”

“Do you hear yourself?” my mom admonishes. “It’s done. Nothing can change it. All you can do is move forward and learn from your mistakes.” She turns her attention to George. “That goes for you, too, my love. You can’t fix the past, but you can work making things better between you both from now on.”

George kisses my mom on the lips. “Thank you, Franny. You are a wise woman, and I’m the luckiest man alive to be married to you. I’m going to go sit with Georgie for a while, would you care to join me?”

“You go ahead. I’m going to get some things together for her to help make her stay less depressing. Heath, can you take me to her apartment?”

“Of course. She said she didn’t need anything, but I have an idea of at least one thing she might want,” I say, thinking about that photo of hers.