CHAPTER 29

Elijah woke to Christmas songs, laughter, and singing. It took a minute to understand where he was… He groaned… This was Starlight’s bed, alone, covered in blankets.

A shout of laughter made him grin. Starlight and Meghan, from the sounds of it. He kicked back the blankets, ran a hand through his disheveled hair, and glanced at the clock. Elijah covered his face with his hands and groaned again…

It was almost 6:00 p.m.

He had an hour before he needed to be at the station.

Elijah turned on the bedside lamp and stretched. It had been a long time since he’d slept a solid five hours without waking. It made sense that he’d done it in Starlight’s bed. It was the one place he could truly relax and just… breathe.

He glanced around the room, taking in the many changes made by her and Meghan. The pom-pom and trophies were gone… The walls were bare. Even the curtains had been pulled down.

Swallowing hard, Elijah remember