Evie:How did you get my number?
Jake:Police database. What are you doing right now?
Evie:I’m busy doing things that are none of your business.
Jake:It’s about the case. We have a suspect identified.
Evie:No way.Color me shocked.Where are you?I’ll come now.
Jake:I’ll meet you at your house.
Ten minutes later Evie pulled into her driveway. She was loaded down with shopping bags full of groceries.
“Let me help.”
“I’m fine,” she said stubbornly.
I ignored her, taking the bulk of the bags from her trunk, and following her into her house. It was a cute little cottage style house, about six blocks from the beach. The yard was neat, the grass freshly cut. Inside she’d decorated in mostly whites and dark blue colors, with the occasional pop of red. It was comfortable and cozy and a little quirky, just like Evie herself.
I remembered Marci saying that the only thing Evie got out of the divorce was the house and wondered if she’d lived here with her husband. I couldn’t resist asking as I trailed her to the kitchen.
“When did you buy this house?”
She frowned over her shoulder. “Five years ago, after my divorce. Why?”
“Just curious.”
We entered the kitchen, which was small but bright, decorated in shades of yellow and dark green. I set the groceries down on the kitchen counter, glancing at a picture on the refrigerator. A younger Evie sat on the beach, a little girl standing between her legs as they both smiled for the camera. They were both wearing swimsuits and sunglasses.
“Your daughter?” I guessed. I wasn’t a cop for nothing.
“Yeah, that’s Nicole. I think she’s about five there.”
“It’s a great picture. How old is she now?”
“Twenty-seven. She lives in Charleston. She’s a social worker.”
I could tell by Evie’s face that she was proud of her daughter.
“What about you?” she asked curiously. “Do you have kids?”
I shook my head even as my heart warmed at her asking me a personal question.
“No, I was never married.”
“You don’t have to be married to have kids.”
“Oh, I know. But I was in the military for twenty years, and I saw how hard that was on marriages, so I stayed single and always kept everything wrapped up. I was religious about contraception my entire life.”
“Until last night,” she reminded me.
Just the thought of it had me half-hard. I wanted nothing more than to push Evie down over the counter and fuck her from behind, but I was on duty. I had a job to do, so I moved farther away from her and put the kitchen island between us.
“You said you had news for me?” she asked.
“Yeah. Do you know of a former cop named Brian Peterson?”
She wrinkled her forehead, no doubt trying to interpret my question.