“Forget something?” Isaac asked.
“I…”
“The mug and thermos,” he reminded him.
“Right! Yeah.”
“Something else?” Isaac asked once he’d retrieved the items, harkening back to the night before, with the same static charge between them and so much laid bare without anything really having been said.
Isaac didn’t think he could be the one to say it, not if he was wrong that Andrew wanted the same thing.
“There’s a lot we can’t know until this is over, so… ask me again after?”
“If you forgot something?”
“Yeah. After.” Andrew smiled.
And then he was gone.
After.Isaacdidn’tknowwhat came after, because there was still a chance that someone he knew and trusted had betrayed him.
If the thief was one or more of his people, those who balked at a criminal doing security consulting would finally get to say, “Once a thief, always a thief.” Everything Isaac had built would be for nothing.
He’d never lied when he said, “What else would I be good at?” but now, he might honestly have to think of something else to do. He couldn’t go back to being a thief, just another criminal like the one who was screwing him over. He’d lose everything. His new life. Dalton.
Andrew.
That thought haunted him as he showered, cleaned up the conference room, and tried to stay busy for the rest of the day. It was late when he finally wandered into his living quarters, assuming the others had all left, but there Luke and Kathleen were at his kitchen table, finishing dinner with Dalton, like they all lived there too. Dalton’s hand was still wrapped, but there really had been nothing broken.
“Where you been?” Luke grumbled. “You’re lucky we saved you some. Dalton was about to go in after you.”
“Still kicking yourself over that thief’s getaway?” Kathleen asked.
Isaac didn’t answer.
“Dad?” Dalton pressed, walking away from the table that the others started cleaning up, but there was still a place set for Isaac.
“I’ll heat it up later. I’m not really hungry.” He’d tried for so long to ignore the part of him that wanted a home for himself, but lately, it kept staring him in the face—with his same blue eyes. “Can I talk to you alone for a minute?”
“Sure,” Dalton said.
Isaac led him out to the living room and sat on the sofa, leaving Luke and Kathleen to do the cleaning, which served them right for adding to his dishwasher load again.
“What is it, Dad? Are you still that worried about me?”
“Always. And I’ll be just as worried once the thief is caught, but that’s not what this is about.” Isaac faced him, staring into the sparkling blues that echoed his own, unsure why now was the moment he had to confess, but he knew he did. “I need to tell you how Andrew and I really know each other.”
“He arrested you.”
Isaac startled. “You promised you wouldn’t look into my past—”
“I didn’t. It was just obvious. Wait, does that mean you never dated?”
Isaac nearly laughed by how surprised Dalton seemed by that. “We did not.”
“Being so quick to lie about it then was more… wish-fulfillment?” He grinned. “You’re so obviously into each other.”
“It’s complicated.”
