Murder in the Magic City: A Micah Brantley Story, G.P. Sorrells [reading comprehension books TXT] 📗

day. This was not a side of her Micah had seen before. If he were being honest with himself, he was a virgin in this sort of situation in its entirety. He hadn’t the slightest idea how best to go about consoling the woman who held his heart in her hand, but he knew enough to realize standing still and watching simply wouldn’t cut it.

Micah walked over and kneeled in front of Valerie. Her eyes, soaked, were a shade of red that struck him as almost unnatural. Whatever had happened, it wasn’t good. She took one look at his concerned face and welled up. Her tear ducts threatened to burst with whatever liquid remained inside them.

“Hey, Val, it’s ok,” Micah said. He brushed a few strands of hair out of her face and kept her head cradled gently in his hand. He stared into her eyes, hoping that he could somehow find the words to make things right. “Look, babe, I don’t know what’s going on, or what’s got you all upset, but I’m here for you. Right now. I’m not leaving your side until I know that you’re going to make it past whatever has you feeling this way.”

Valerie stared into his eyes. It took everything she had not to burst into tears. Somehow, someway, the waterworks would wash over all that had happened. Make it nothing more than a dream. “Micah, I,” she started. Her voice caught, and she felt the tears ready to make their advance. She had to get a hold of herself.

“Valerie, you don’t need to talk about whatever it is right now. Just try to relax. Take a deep breath. Maybe see if all those yoga poses you keep trying to teach me can help take your mind off things.” Micah immediately regretted the joke, but he was at such a loss about how to handle it all that he just got progressively more nervous. “If you want, I can just stay right here and hug you. Or hold your hand. Whatever feels best.”

“I, I’d like that,” Valerie said. She sat up gingerly, wiping away tears on the sleeve of her shirt. Micah smiled at her, an awkward grin that had a Cheshire Cat vibe to it despite his best efforts to come across as even keeled. I don’t know what he’s going for with that look, but it’s hard to stay upset when you’ve got that grin staring back at you, she thought. Before her mind processed anything else, Micah leaned forward and hugged her tightly. There was nothing especially intimate about the hug. He didn’t provide it, hoping she would reciprocate with something risqué. It was an embrace formed from a hearty mixture of love and genuine care. She leaned her head onto his shoulder and wept softly.

“Whenever you’re ready to talk about it, whatever it is, I’ll be here for you. I’m not going anywhere.” He leaned back and kissed her forehead before staring into her eyes. “If you decide you’d rather not discuss the issue, and prefer to keep it bottled for a while, that’s okay too. I’ll support you no matter what.”

Valerie felt her heart drop at the noticeable depths of his devotion. She wasn’t sure when he’d reached that sort of clarity about their relationship, or if she could approach something resembling it at any point in the future. She tried to choke out an apology, but all she could muster were more tears.

“Hey, hey, it’s okay,” Micah said, consoling her. “I want to apologize.”

“You do?” Valerie wiped away tears, hopelessly trying to prevent a further deluge.

“Yes. I should’ve told you the truth last night. About the money, about Jimmy, about everything. It wasn’t fair of me to keep it from you. From now on, I’m going to be more open. For everything that happened, I’m sorry. I hope you can forgive me.”

“Micah, about Jimmy,” Valerie explained what had transpired since they last saw one another but found herself at a loss as to how best to put it all into words. The truth wasn’t always easy to divulge. Sometimes, keeping it locked away in one’s own mind provided the chance to act as though the truth had never actually happened. But she couldn’t do that to Micah. Not now. He had shown her something she didn’t realize she had needed, and she wanted to do everything in her power to keep it. If she were being honest with herself, holding back the truth was no simple task.

“I’m sorry, I shouldn’t have acted like you wouldn’t know who he was, or the things he was involved in. It wasn’t fair to you.”

“No, it’s not that,” Valerie said, staring off at nothing. “Well, it was, but not anymore.”

Micah found himself genuinely concerned in a far different manner than he had been only moments before. The conversation had somehow taken a turn down a road he never expected to be traveling. “What’s going on?”

“Last night, when I left, I was pissed at you.”

“Yea, I gathered as much.”

“I didn’t really have a plan when I stepped outside, I just knew I couldn’t stay inside these four walls any longer. Not for a little while anyway.” Valerie stole a glance at Micah and could sense the confusion slowly coalescing with an undercurrent of anger. She had to get to the point soon, but she still wasn’t sure what to say. “It’s just sort of how I am when I let my emotions get the best of me. I just have to get away from everything and vent. But, but that’s not what this,” she gestured at her tear-streaked eyes, makeup smeared in a manner that made her look almost as though she had attempted to put it on for the first time that very morning.

Micah wanted to say something, to gain some clarity, but he let Valerie continue talking instead. They were in a better place now than they had been a few hours before, and he didn’t want to throw it