Singed by Kaylea Cross

eyes and laid her head back on the seat with a sigh. “I know, but I’m still mad at him. Part of me wishes he was still here so I could shake him.” But Danny had probably known that. He’d made it very clear he knew what a disappointment and burden he’d become to her and their father.
    She ran a hand over her face, stared through the windshield without really seeing anything. “I know I’m at least a little to blame in all this.”
    “Don’t say that.”
    “No, it’s true. I made no secret about what I thought of his behavior, especially toward the end. And you know what the worst part is? There were many days when I wished he’d do it. Just fucking do it and get it over with so the rest of us could move on with our lives.” She let out a bitter laugh, shook her head at herself in disgust. “Careful what you wish for, Claire. God, what kind of person thinks that about their own brother?”
    “Stop beating yourself up. You went through your own hell with all this for the past two years. Everyone’s got their limit. You’re human, and that means you’re not perfect and never will be. None of us are.”
    She turned her head to look at him, guilt an oily film coating her insides. “Do you think he knew I was thinking it?”
    “Doesn’t matter whether he did or not. Taking his life was his choice to make and no one else’s. Maybe that’s why he did it. It was the only control he felt he had left over anything.”
    Yes, she could see Danny thinking that, and it made her feel sick. Needing the connection, she reached out and took Gage’s hand, laced her fingers through his and squeezed. “I’m so glad you never gave up when things got hard.”
    It wasn’t meant as a double entendre about their relationship as well, but maybe that was a subconscious slip on her part. Gage nodded once, squeezed her hand in return and didn’t let go. “Me too. Still have my moments though. PTSD is such a piss poor term because it means a million different things to a million different people and everyone’s experience of it is unique. What we see and do in the line of duty, it leaves a mark. It did on me. I don’t think it’ll ever go away completely and in a way I don’t want it to. Good and bad, what I’ve been through helped shape me into who I am today.”
    “You mean a former master sergeant with a foul mouth and a habit of ordering everyone around?” she teased.
    The corner of his mouth tipped upward in a self-deprecating grin. “Yeah, that too.” Slowly, as though he had to force himself to do it, he pulled his hand free from hers and turned the key in the ignition. “So, where to now?”
    She folded her hands in her lap and chided herself for being disappointed that he’d severed the physical contact. What did she expect when nothing was resolved between them? She definitely didn’t have the energy for that conversation right now, nor did she want to go to Danny’s place yet. “To my dad’s, I guess. But look, if you’ve got things to do with the team, I totally understand. Just take me home and I’ll drive there myself.”
    He cut her a sharp look and she fought back a smile at the outrage on his face before he spoke. “I told Tom and Hunter I needed a few days off unless something important comes up where they need me. If they do, they’ll call. If not, I’m staying with you.”
    “Okay.” She stopped herself from saying thanks just in time, remembering how annoyed he’d been with her for that earlier.
    He not only took her to her dad’s and helped them go through all the legal paperwork, he stayed through an incredibly awkward lunch when her mother and stepfather came over. The whole time he stayed at her side but didn’t touch her, a steady, solid presence while they discussed and finalized funeral arrangements. They all wanted it over and done with as quickly as possible, and managed to organize everything for the following afternoon. Claire would host the reception after the short