Fourteen days. No word. No message. No call. Just silence.
Erin was unraveling. Cass tried to helpādistracting her with Broadway, baby plans, pizza, anything to keep her from breaking. But every night, Erin curled up with Detective Chuckles, whispering a prayer she was scared no one could hear:
āPlease be okay, Jay.ā
And then⦠š± āHey babe⦠still remember me?ā
A breath. A sob. A trembling video call. Heās alive. Heās tired. And he missed her.
But the light in his eyes? Dimmed. The smile? Fragile. And under the teasing⦠Erin can feel itāheās not okay.
So she pushes. She listens. She fights to keep them in the light.
Until the truth comes out: š§ A mission that changed him. š§ø A bear thatās seen too many tears. š¬ A confession: āYou werenāt part of the equation⦠and now I donāt know how to be without you.ā
And just when her heart starts to steady, Cass knocks on the door. Erin sends her away. Because tonight? She needs Jay more.
But even with love burning across the distance⦠Even as they talk about kids, about laces, about somedayā The pain is still there. The ghosts. The guilt. The past.
She wants to help. But heās still holding back.
š Do you think Jayās ready to open up fully? š§ø What do you think Chuckles heard during those 14 days? š Did you catch how much Erin's starting to hope for more?
š Read Chapter 10 now:
š Read on AO3 š Read on FF.net š Read on Wattpad




