He seemed to drift off to sleep pretty quickly, but I couldn’t shut my brain down. I’d texted the chief to ask if there’d been any thought as to the origin of the fire, but he’d insisted I get some rest and we could talk it through later the following day.
I’d already known he’d call in an arson investigator simply because of the coincidence of the little blaze behind Jolie’s house. The investigator we used was a woman named Teresa who worked out of a neighboring county. Luckily, we didn’t have enough arson in our county to justify having a specialist on staff full-time. I knew the chief was well trained in arson investigation, but for something like this, he’d be sure and cover all his bases with an expert.
I closed my eyes and retraced my steps as I’d entered the house, begging my subconscious to present some kind of explanation for my parents’ house burning down. It had been hot, yes, and dry too. But my parents’ house was surrounded by nice, old hardwoods that gave plenty of shade to the house on and off throughout the day. It wasn’t like any part of the house burned in the sun all day. Not only that, but it had withstood the Texas summer sun for over thirty-five years and never caught fire before, so what could have possibly changed?
The only thing I’d learned from my quick trek through the house was that the fire seemed more pronounced in the back bedroom on the main level and all along that corner of the house. As I raced up the stairs, the blaze seemed to be moving outward and upward from there. Had there been accelerant? Had there been lines or flames in unusual formations? I racked my brain to remember what I’d seen, but I couldn’t make out anything of note.
I must have finally fallen asleep because when I awoke, the light in the room was completely different. I looked at the clock on Walker’s bedside table and saw it was quarter past noon. The sheriff himself was clinging onto me like a baby koala, and I took the opportunity to run my fingers up and down his muscular back to the rounded top of his ass.
He had a gorgeous body. I thanked my lucky stars he hadn’t spent the past ten years in clubs being fondled and fucked by any man who found him attractive. If I pictured him with other men, it made me feel stupidly protective and snarly, which wasn’t exactly fair. I hadn’t been celibate during those same years. Maybe he felt that way about guys I’d hooked up with.
“Why are you frowning?” His sleep-muffled voice blew warm puffs of air across my chest.
“Hm? Oh, just picturing you fucking random strangers in a club,” I confessed.
His eyes opened wider. “Why? That make you hot?”
I chuckled and dropped a kiss on his head. “No. Not so much. Quite the opposite, in fact. More like it makes me homicidal.”
“We could always go into Dallas one night and test it out. See if the reality makes you hot or homicidal. I’ve never been.”
I turned to look at him more fully. “You’ve never been to a dance club?”
“Not a gay club, no. I went to a country music dancing place once because Jolie made me go. That hardly counts.”
“I’d love to take you to a club in Dallas. I’ll bet we could get Saint and some of my other siblings to go with us. Hallie loves to go dancing. Cal’s legal now too, come to think of it. Too bad he’s not around. Hudson won’t go. He doesn’t like to dance or stay out late for that matter. We made him go one time and he got hit on the whole time.”
Walker’s face turned serious. “You heading into the station today?”
I nodded. “Evan was calling in Teresa what’s-her-name, the arson lady from Valley Cross. I want to see what she has to say.”
Walker sat up and turned to put his feet on the floor, revealing all of that satiny-smooth skin I’d been fondling on his back. I wanted to taste him again and felt my mouth begin to water at the thought.
“Hop in the shower, Wilde Man. If you’re a good boy, I’ll let you suck me off before you go.”
He looked back over his shoulder and winked at me.
God, I loved him. The man was a fucking mind reader.
And I was prepared to be a very good boy.
By the time I got to the firehouse, it seemed an investigation was in full swing. I met the woman from Valley Cross, who’d asked me to call her Teri.
“Lieutenant Wilde, may I ask you a few questions about the nearby incident a few days ago and your recollection of events last night?” she asked.