“Housewarming gifts?”
He headed to the kitchen area, Liam with him. And sure enough, tucked behind the counter’s edge, next to the sink, was a giant basket with a bow.
“Who is this from?” Reece said incredulously.
“Isn’t it obvious?” Jamey said. “Who knows you’re moving today, knows you would want a basket made of ethically sourced sustainable bamboo from a locally owned business, and has the kind of Southern manners that require giving housewarming gifts?”
“This is why she’s the detective.” Liam glanced at Jamey, pushing his glasses back up his nose. “Wasa detective,” he corrected, “and now is going to do some other super-badass thing,” he added, which drew a little smile from Jamey.
Reece reached for the basket and pulled it over to himself. “You think Agent Grayson sent this?”
“A peace lily and vegan candy.” Liam took the plant from Jamey. “I could see myself buying these for another man.”
Reece side-eyed him. “You could?”
“Sure. If he was myboyfriend,” said Liam, which made Jamey snort.
Reece huffed. “You can get each other plants and candy even if you’re just friends.” Or frenemies, or mortal nemeses, or whatever he and Grayson were. He ran gloved fingers over the basket’s bow. “I mean, obviously you don’t actually believe there’s a chance Agent Grayson is even, like, bi or whatever. Um. Do you?”
“Where on earth would I have gotten the idea that the two of you have a relationship that’s not completely straight?” Liam said dryly. “Could it be the giant hoodie he gave you? Or is it that he calls youCare Bear?”
“Heloanedme that hoodie,” said Reece. “I’m going to give it back.”Lie.Well, shit. “And Agent Grayson probably calls all empaths Care Bear,” he hurried to add.
“Gay, straight, bi, none of the above, it doesn’t matter,” Jamey said. “Grayson is literally the most emotionally unavailable man on the planet. He is the last person an empath would get involved with; he doesn’t have feelings.”
Possibly ironically, the reminder gaveReecefeelings.
“He could be into Reece for non-feeling reasons,” Liam said.
Reece furrowed his brow. “Like what?”
Jamey and Liam gave him identical stares.
“Oh. You mean—oh,” said Reece. “Look, that’s not the first place my empath brain goes, okay? But yeah, lust and all that can be separate from emotions. Not that that’s the case here,” he hurriedly added.
“He’s still the Dead Man,” said Jamey.
“Still an empath hunter—and you’re an empath,” Liam said. “Would the two of you be against the rules, like ano fraternization with the enemytype of thing?”
“Whoa whoa whoa, how did we get from peace lilies to taboo hookups?” Reece said. “He needles me about the empath sweet tooth and it’s an easy-care plant. That’s all this is.”
“What’s Grayson up to right now, anyway?” Jamey said.
Reece shrugged lightly, like he wasn’t usually wondering the same thing at any given moment these days. “Classified Dead Man business he thinks I shouldn’t know about, probably. Why?”
“Aisha Easterby asked if I could give her a ride to the airport at an illegally early hour tomorrow,” Jamey said. “I got the sense it’s for something related to their whole—” she waved a hand, faux-casually “—investigating empathy-related crimes, protecting the world, whatever she and Grayson do on that whole super-secret Vanguard team.”
Jamey was trying to play it off like she didn’t care, but Reece caught the note of longing underneath, how much she missed detective work. A pang of guilt hit him; if it hadn’t been for him breaking and entering into Stone Solutions in November, trying to learn how another empath had been twisted into a killer, Jamey would still be a detective. “It doesn’t really seem super-secret when we’re talking about it over caramel corn made with plant milk,” he said, trying to match her casual tone. “But I still don’t know who to thank for the new gloves or the therapist, so maybe they are pretty secret.”
“You have a spot on that team if you ever want to join,” Liam said.
“So Grayson said.” Jamey’s gaze had gone to the gift basket. “But I’d have to trust him to work with him, and that’s never going to happen.”
“Not like you trust Lieutenant Parson anymore either,” said Liam. “The force wants you back, though. Stensby keeps asking me about both of you.”
“Aren’t they all just glad I’m finally gone?” said Reece. “The only thing Lieutenant Parson ever said to me wasyou need to learn to keep your damn mouth shut.”
Liam coughed.
