His gaze darts down the hallway, and I laugh and press a kiss to his jaw.
“I didn’t mean the bedroom,” I say. “Not yet.”
“So we’re going on a mysterious adventure?”
“Yes.”
“Do I get to ask questions?”
“Of course, but I won’t be answering them.”
He runs his finger over my lips before pressing another kiss to them. “Does this mean you’re driving?”
“You’ll have to get used to it sometime.”
He tucks hair behind my ear. “Okay. I’ll put my life in your hands, Nora. Let me just get Cookie settled.”
While he hunts down a bone for her, I grab my other gift from the refrigerator.
In the car, he steals several glances at me, possibly because my driving is making him nervous. (I did learn to drive from an asshole.)
It seems like a good time for a distraction, so I say, “Guess what? Jonah got arrested. You know, the?—”
“I know who he is,” he says with a dark look.
From the way he says it, and his complete lack of surprise, the truth dawns on me.
“Didyoudo this?”
He gives me a sidelong smile. “How could I have? I was in San Francisco.”
“Not an answer.”
“Okay, I did it.” He watches me cautiously as he speaks, as if he’s worried I might be pissed. “I’m not even sorry. He’s a terrible person, and he obviously shouldn’t have stolen from old people. But he had to pay for what he did to you and your friends.”
“You did it for me?” I ask, still reeling.
“Of course.”
“Could you have arranged Pansy’s downfall this easily?”
He sighs and scrubs a hand over his head. “Probably. Yes.”
“So why didn’t you?”
“I wanted to keep being your secret fake boyfriend.”
Jerking the wheel, I pull the car over onto the side of the road and come to a sudden top amid the scrubby bushes.
His eyes widen as he turns to me. “Nora? Look, I should have?—”
I tug the collar of his shirt toward me and kiss him hard.
CHAPTER THIRTY-SIX
CORMAC
That went better than I’d feared it would.
