Lowering my eyes when I feel the prick of tears in the corners, I don’t know how to explain what his words and actions do to me. How they encourage me to believe I can trust him.
“Can I entice you with hot dogs, ice cream, and a sunset walk on the beach?” It’s a childish date. Something teenagers would do. And I find my young heart desiring it more than a fancy restaurant and expensive wine.
“I would like that.” More than I can express, it seems.
Leaving on foot, the boardwalk is only a mile away from the beachside bungalow we’ve been living in, and when I don’t see a car in the street, I wonder, “How did you get here?” And then another thought occurs to me. “How did you know where I live?” I never told him, and I’m not sure Lauren did either.
Staring up at him, something flashes across his face, but I don’t decipher it before it’s gone. “I walked from my brother’s house. He’s just a few blocks over, and uh, I got your address from Ophelia. I texted her this afternoon asking for it.”
“Oh.” I’m not sure why I was expecting something more sinister, but it was sitting there below the surface, waiting to pounce and scream at me that he was a creep. I hate how much I’m looking at him like he’s just another Mason. “Have you lived here long?” I need to get out of my own head.
“My whole life.” His grin is back as he watches me, his thumb drawing soothing circles on the inside of my wrist. “My pops is a retired fire chief. Torque, my brother, is a lieutenant in his engine station.”
“And you’re a cop?”
“I am. A lieutenant. Recently promoted, actually. I come from a long line of first responders. My mom is a retired nurse. I have aunts and uncles and cousins who were or are paramedics, officers, firefighters...a couple of doctors too.”
“That’s impressive.” I can tell from his tone that he’s proud of his lineage.
“What about you? Where are you from? What do your folks do?” My entire body freezes because I know I’m not supposed to tell the complete truth but a variation of it.
Being put on the spot wasn’t something I anticipated. “A small town in Wyoming. My family has owned the only grocery store in town for over a hundred years.”
“I like that. You must be deeply rooted in the community then.” It’s an innocent observation, but one that hits me square in the chest.
“We are. Everyone’s like family.” A family I miss deeply.
“What brought you out here then? You’re pretty far from home.” Stepping onto the wood planks of the boardwalk, I don’t have a rehearsed answer to this question.
Lying feels wrong, and I hate that I’m about to do it. “An adventure.”
We stop walking long enough that he can stare at me. “In Jacksonville? Interesting choice. Found anything yet?”
“Well, I haven’t been here for long. I’ve mostly just been working at The Cup and going home.” I have to bite my tongue to keep from saying more.
“You only work there a couple days a week, right?” I nod. “You should be getting out then. We’re not as big or busy as Miami or Tampa, but there’s plenty to do here.”
“I will.” I wonder if he can see how phony my smile is. How I have to force it.
Hale
Her answers were vague and standoffish. If that didn’t tip me off that she’s hiding things, the way she froze when I asked where she was from would have. Laken is hiding a bundle of secrets, and I hate that she can’t or won’t tell me the truth. She knows what I do for a living; I can help her, no matter what it is.
Time. I keep reminding myself that I need to give her time. She isn’t the one following me around and lurking behind buildings and bushes as she trails me home; that’s me. I’m the fucking stalker. And after touching her, feeling the heat of her flesh in mine, I’m not likely to stop any time soon. There’s a desperation inside of me to claim her as my own.
After catching the murder in the forest, I spent night and day combing over evidence and working theories with Dorian before we finally called it quits around dawn, deciding to give ourselves a day to recharge and come back at it with fresh eyes. I crashed at Torque’s for a couple of hours because Jesse was spending the night with him, and when I woke up, I immediately sought Laken out.
The fact that I convinced her to go on a date is a minor miracle. Although it wasn’t her that said yes, it was her friend, Lauren. Which brings me to my next set of questions.
“Is Lauren family?” The woman is too much older than Laken to be considered a childhood friend. And even though I don’t know Laken’s actual age, I’m relatively good at guessing, and I’d say no more than twenty-three.
“Cousin.” The clipped response tells me it’s a rehearsed answer. Which only makes me want to ask a thousand more. Especially because I don’t know Laken’s last name, and Ophelia is mum about a lot of information when it comes to her young employee.
“You’re on this adventure together, then?” I doubt that’s why they’re here. My instincts are too good to be wrong about what’s happening with the woman at my side. If I had to guess, she’s in protective custody of some sort, and Lauren is her bodyguard.
“I guess.”
Time for another change of subject.