Chapter 74

"Jake!"Anger coursed through Dana as she watched him storm away from her. She followed him down the hall as he disappeared into her bedroom. She wasn't sure if he was sulking or packing but she was certain this conversation wasn't over.

She was moments from barging in after him when her phone rang again. This time it was Hartwell's name on her caller ID. "This is Dr. Gray."

"We're back on," he said, skipping formalities. "How soon can you be here?"

"Where? What happened?"

"FBI forensic lab. Just got word from the BAU. The D.C. Reaper case got bounced to them, and they've asked Metro for joint assistance. I got you on the team as an expert witness." Dana paused, staring at the closed door in front of her, then said, "Give me twenty."

"No, this is dangerous,"Jake argued. "I'm not comfortable with you going alone."

"I don't have a choice," Dana replied.

"Yes, Dana, you do. You're the one with all the choices here. I'm suspended and that's my fault, but I signed up for this life. You didn't. I dragged you into it, and I regret it every day."

"You're wrong, Jake, I signed up for it, too. It was my choice to work with you on that first case. It was my choice to continue working with you. Everything that's happened to me, it's on me. I made the decisions that led me here. And this is me, choosing to sign back up, for us, for Claire, for whatever lies ahead. I need to know you can respect that."

Jake growled as he paced away from her. He looked like he wanted to punch something. Thankfully for the sake of all the irreplaceable antiques in Dana's home, he didn't. When he turned to face her, his pain was obvious, etched across his face like a scar.

"What am I supposed to do?" Jake implored. "Stay here and do nothing while you put yourself in harm's way, again?"

"You're supposed to trust me."

"I do. You know I do. That's not the issue here."

"Then what is?"

"If something happens to you …" he threaded his hands behind his head and blew out a breath before sinking down to sit on her bed. Jake looked up at her, his blue eyes a storm of sorrow. "It's not supposed to be this way."

She moved close enough to stand in front of him. Jake let his arms circle around her waist, hanging his head to rest on her stomach. "I know," she whispered, running her fingers through his hair. "I can't promise you nothing will happen. You know that."

He looked up at her, his expression a mirror of misery.

"Each day we wake up with the knowledge that it might be our last. The challenge is pushing past that fear and finding a way to live anyway. What you've helped me learn is that it's a whole lot easier to do when you don't have to do it alone." Dana knelt down until their faces were level. "I don't want to do it alone anymore. I want to live this life with you, Jake. But I want a partner who will back me up, not fight me every step of the way."

He stroked her hair away from her face. "Dana, that's what I want, too. Tell me you believe that."

"I do," she whispered, letting her lips graze his.

Jake drew her in for a kiss she wished never had to end. But she tore herself away. "I have to go."

"And I have to stay," he said, morosely.

She dropped one more kiss to his lips. "Jake, Claire needs you more than I do right now. Protect her. You're the only one who can." Then she pulled the dog tags and Post-it note from her pocket and pressed them into his hand. "You may not agree with my methods, but this means something. Look into it … for me."