Hope floods my system like an avalanche. “Seriously?”
“He wants us to come down to the station.”
“Done.” I turn off the stove and sprint down the hall to my bedroom. Without thinking, I shove the door open to tell Sawyer, my mind only on delivering what could be the best possible news.
And then I see him.
Standing in my bathroom, wearing only a pair of shorts, his skin still damp from the shower. He turns toward me, gaze heating when he sees me clearly checking him out.
I mean, who could blame me?
I may be determined to be celibate until marriage, but I’m definitely not dead. And Sawyer Maddox is built like a battle-hardened soldier. Every inch of his body is toned muscle.
“Everything okay?” he shrugs into his shirt.
“I—yeah. Wow. Sorry.”
He grins. “You’ve seen me shirtless before.”
“Sure, but—” I take a deep breath and shake my head, pausing for a moment and letting the full weight of what Weston said sink in.
Because if Leopold is right, then this is about to all be over.
I can go back to church on Sundays.
Sawyer and I can officially go on dates.
Life can resume.
I level my gaze on Sawyer, hoping that Leopold is right and this guy finally slipped up. “They think they caught him, Sawyer. They think they got the guy.”
Chapter 27
Sawyer
I’ve never been a “tied up with a neat little bow” kind of guy. There are too many loose ends. Too many threads that are left dangling when a mission is wrapped up. I learned at a young age that, when things seem too good to be true…they usually are.
Which has to be why the pit in my stomach has only grown since Anastasia gave me the news that Leopold believes he’s caught the guy after her. She’s giddy beside me as we walk up the steps into the police station. Practically overflowing with joy at the mere thought that this has all come to an end. Weston and Jack are both unusually quiet as they follow close behind, and I can’t help but wonder if they’re not thinking the same thing I am.
It’s too easy.
For a guy who has been completely off the radar—how did he get caught now?
“Hey!” Gen, the night secretary at the police station, greets. “I’ll let him know you’re here.” She smiles, her greying hair in a bouncy ponytail as she heads through a door behind her and into the back side of the office.
I glance over at Weston. The grim set to his mouth is evidence that he’s not feeling too sure about this either. Ryker is on his way over to Linda’s house to sit with her so Zane can come here, but even he’d seemed off about it.
This isn’t sitting well with any of us. And that speaks volumes…doesn’t it?
My fingers flex at my sides as desperation to feel Anastasia’s hand in mine takes over. But Jack is here, and flaunting the fact that I got the girl just doesn’t seem right. Especially after the guy nearly died.
So, I keep my hands to myself.
The back door opens, and Leopold comes out, a grim look on his face. He nods for us to come back, and we do, each of us silent as we make our way through the precinct. Fluorescent lights bright overhead, I struggle against my desire to turn and sprint out of this place. It doesn’t matter how many years pass; being inside a police station still makes my skin crawl.
Leopold pauses outside the viewing room, set directly off the interrogation room. “We found this guy after a call was made to one of our tip lines.”
“Tip lines?” Weston questions.
