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She didn’t know what to make of his withdrawal. He was as attentive as ever, doing his job to the best of his ability, but there was a definite distance between them now, a wall she couldn’t penetrate. Only Bud was still the same adorable dog. He acted like a buffer between the two of them.
Truth be told, her early disappointment and puzzlement had turned quickly into anger: if he was going to ignore what happened, then so could she. She would be damned if she’d beg for any man’s attention. If nothing else, her mother had taught her that.
“Cute dog,” Elise commented, hoping for Kane to hear but he was too involved with his conversation. “They say the owners take after their dogs, that’s definitely true in this situation.”
Damned or not, however, Lexi wasn’t quite ready for another woman to move in.
“Yes,” Lexi replied before she could give much thought to what she was saying. “A shame that he’s not into women. What a waste.”
Elise blinked, startled. “Him?Really?”
“Oh yes,” Lexi affected a conspiratorial tone. “I caught him in Mickey’s down in West Hollywood. His heels were higher than mine had been.”
All the wind seem to leave Elise, she deflated right before her eyes. “That is annoying.”
Lexi looked over at Kane, sighed wistfully. “Still, we can look.”
“Hell yes we can.”
Lexi took her clipboard back. “Are we good here? I’ve emailed through this list but just wanted to make sure we were on track.”
Elise nodded, tearing her eyes reluctantly from Kane.
Lexi slid the clipboard with the checklists into her oversized boho bag and they left, Elise staring sadly after Kane as her dreams and libido came dashing to the ground.
“Lexi…” Kane’s tone was serious, underlined with a layer of disappointment. She was so surprised to hear him actually address her that she almost stumbled.
He looked her in the face, his expression troubled. “That was the lab calling. They pulled good prints off the soda can but unfortunately, they didn’t match anything in the database.”
She didn’t know whether to be relieved or not. “So this is the first crime they’ve committed?”
“Or they haven’t been caught before.”
Neither thought was of comfort.
“What about the photographs? You mentioned the other day that you had someone making enquiries?”
He nodded. “I’m still waiting to hear back. Clara works for my boss. She has a few contacts that might be able to dig out some info on how the photographs were sent to the gossip sites.”
He looked as if he wanted to say more, but something stopped him. Dropping his gaze from her, he proceeded to study the row of cars beside them.
“Was there anything else?”
Like an apology or explanation for what happened the other night?
The question popped out without her meaning it to. His eyes flicked back to her, concerned but still with that impenetrable wall.
“What do you mean?”
She’d given him an opening, but he wasn’t going to take it. She had to fight to quell the wave of crushing disappointment.
“Nothing.”
They continued with Lexi’s tasks, working their way through her never-ending checklist.
After the florist, they visited the caterers, a family owned business in the valley that Lexi had initially met via PAWS when they had catered an event there. She performed a last-minute taste test of the delicacies — which Kane keenly noticed — she did not offer him, despite his knowledge and love of food.
He knew she was angry at him, could see it in the bristly way she answered his questions. She never quite met his eyes, unable to stare him in the face for fear that she would reveal her true emotions. At times he felt himself weaken, but there wasn’t anything he could do about it.
