He didn’t dispute this fact.
“Why would you lie about that?”
“I can’t tell you.”
“Are you married?”
He dragged a hand down his face.“No, I’m not married.”
“Are you a cop?”
His terse shrug wasn’t quite an acknowledgment, but it confirmed what she already knew.
“How did you get shot?”
“I can’t talk about it.”
Vanessa crossed her arms over her chest.She wanted to fly at him, to slap his hard face.“You mean you won’t talk about it, because it’s too disturbing?Or you can’t talk about it because there’s an open investigation?”
A muscle in his jaw flexed as he considered his response.In the end, he said nothing.He wasn’t going to give her a single crumb of information.
Bastard.
“Did you kill someone?”she asked.
His eyes cruised over her and veered away.
Vanessa attempted to piece together a story based on their previous interactions and her understanding of law enforcement.“So you got shot on duty, and you returned fire.A guy died, which is upsetting, even if he deserved it.You came here to recover in peace.That doesn’t explain the need for an alias.Was there a public scandal?Did a stray bullet hit an innocent bystander?”When he didn’t answer, she tapped her fingertips on her arms.She hadn’t seen any negative press about Paul McPherson.It was almost as if his personal details had been erased.“Are you working undercover?”
He scowled at the question.
“That’s it, isn’t it?”
“No, that’s not it.”
“Would you tell me if it was?”
“No.”
“Why are you using an alias?”
“I can’t talk about it.”
She froze in her tracks as another idea occurred to her.“Who did you kill?”
His gaze cut into her.“That’s enough.”
Vanessa ignored his attempt to silence her.She was getting closer to the truth.“It must have been someone important.”
He walked to the window and glanced out.
“You’re not on edge because of the trauma,” she said.“You’re on edge because you’re in danger.You’re inhiding.”She studied his profile, stunned by the realization.“I can’t believe you didn’t tell me.”
“Maybe you don’t understand the concept of a cover story,” he said in a low growl.“If you tell someone, it’s broken.”
“Maybe you don’t understand the concept of ethical behavior,” she shot back.“When you assume a fake identity, you keep to yourself.You don’t start screwing a single mom and making nice with her kid!”
“I didn’t twist your arm,” he said coldly.
