He kissed her quick and hard. “Youareimportant to me. Damnit, Cyn, this is no idle threat. He hit you once. We think he killed your sister and possibly his own baby. He knows we found the car and are on to him. I spoke to Officer Reid, who interviewed him last night. Rad made a mistake. He knew we found the car in the water without Officer Reid mentioning it.”
“Did they arrest him?”
“No. It’s not enough. We need more evidence, not just what we think happened.”
“You can’t let him get away with this.”
“He won’t. There’s nowhere he can go that this won’tfollow him. Then there’s the other thing I’m investigating that led me to him, too.”
“What other thing?”
“I’m still looking into it. It’s an open investigation. I got distracted by your sister’s disappearance, but if I’m right, Rad is facing even more charges.”
Cyn shook her head. “It doesn’t surprise me.”
“He knows he’s about to lose everything, including his freedom. If he has Lana, there’s no way he can just bring her home and raise her without a lot of questions about Angela.”
“Okay. I’ll contact a lawyer tomorrow and get started on whatever needs to be done for me to have custody of her when we find her.”
He rubbed his thumb over her cheek. “I don’t know how you stay so positive and take this all in and keep going.”
“For my sister. For Lana. And because I want that asshole to pay.” She squeezed his shoulder again. “But I will be careful and tell you before I rush into danger again.”
He half frowned and shook his head at her. “At least you’re honest that you’ll be putting me through hell again.”
“I hope you think I’m worth it, because you asked me to stay here with you tonight. I haven’t dated in quite a while. Truthfully, I’m tired of not getting what I want.”
“And what’s that, Cyn?”
She looked at him, her eyes filled with uncertainty about revealing her needs. “What Shelby has with Chase. A committed, exclusive, all-in relationship. Not let’s-have-fun-and-see-where-this-goes, like most of themen I’ve seen think is what I want, and yeah, maybe that’s my fault for not being clear up front. So I’m doing that now, because Shelby is my best friend and she’s marrying your brother and that could get complicated, but I hope it won’t because I’m interested in a lot more than just getting naked with you. The last few days, you’ve shown me that you care about me and want to be with me.”
“I do. I’m not a serial dater anymore. Haven’t been in a long time. When I go out with someone, I’m looking for a connection. I feel that with you. Yes, you’re beyond beautiful and I want you desperately, but I also want to know you.”
“You said something like that before, and I appreciate you letting me hear it again, because it’s important to me to start this with a clear understanding that there’s a level of commitment between us.”
“You have my undivided attention and understanding that this is a monogamous relationship and that, like you, I hope this turns into something deeper and lasting.”
“Then we’re on the same page.”
“Honey, I’ve been waiting for you to catch up.”
“Well, you weren’t exactly sending out the I-want-you vibes when you issued me those tickets, and I did get hit in the head.”
He chuckled. “I was being professional while having a dozen fantasies about you. And I’m sorry you got hit in the head. I should have never let you go into the water.”
“You know you couldn’t have stopped me, right?”
“I know. Still...”
Cyn sat back in her seat and reached for the door handle. “You ready to go in and see what happens next?”
“I know what’s going to happen. You’re going to sit on the couch and rest in front of a fire.”
“Sounds cozy.”
“It will be,” he promised, because he couldn’t wait to hold her close and just enjoy some normal quiet time with her.
They both got out of the truck. He held her bag in one hand and wrapped his other arm around her waist just in case she got dizzy again as they walked up the stairs. Plus, he just wanted to keep her close.