“I’m right behind you.” He was behind her and a little bit to the side so he could block her using his body should anything come flying at them. A stalker made more and more senseas they walked. She turned the second corner, looked at the window, and froze.
“The window is cracked open.” She pointed. “See that?”
“I sure do,” he said. “Do you ever leave them like that?”
“Not usually. I don’t normally leave the house without checking.”
“You had Rue with you. Right?” It was possible she might have forgotten.
“True.” She shook her head. “I’m probably searching for something that just isn’t there, you know? My mind is tuned to finding something because of the trash can. You’re most likely right about it. The storms were fierce. It’s highly likely the wind tossed it around while I was gone. It wouldn’t be the first time that happened.”
“We’ll check every inch of the house before we let our guards down,” he said.
“Sounds like a plan.” She walked to the back door, opened it, and entered the kitchen. The place was simple, orderly, and clean. It looked like she put everything in its place with care. AYou Had Me at Merlotdish towel was draped over the oven handle. Under different circumstances, he would have chuckled. Right now, he was focused on ensuring no one was hiding in a closet somewhere.
Room by room, he cleared the house. The bedroom window—the cracked one—was last. “No one is hiding here. I’ve checked every nook and cranny.” That was the good news. Her unsettled feeling had him concerned. It was never a good idea to ignore intuition. “If someone was here, they’re gone now.” He stopped short of saying they were safe. “Does anything look out of place?”
The living room consisted of a small sofa with a matching chair, a coffee table with a book on top, and a side table with a lamp. A blanket had been tossed onto the couch, and the pillows were messy. It looked like someone had been sittinghere, relaxing, and then had to get up in a hurry with no time to straighten up. The Rue effect?
“I don’t remember. It’s hard to say. Everything is usually in its place, but having a little one around really changes things.”
He let himself smirk—Rue effect.
“All I could think about was her and how pitiful she sounded,” she said. “Hearing a baby cry and being helpless to stop it is the worst possible feeling in the world.”
“Agreed.”
“I’ll just grab a few things, and we can head out,” she said before disappearing through a doorway in between the living and dining room.
“Okay.” He took a step and heard a rattle. He withdrew his foot as though a snake bit him. A memory punched him. Damned if he hadn’t suppressed it until now. Until looking down and seeing the baby’s rattle on the carpet. He bent over and picked it up, studied it. Moisture pooled in his eyes. He’d been so focused on Lynn that he’d forced the memory out of his mind, pushed it down somewhere deep where it couldn’t surface without the right trigger.
“Hey.” Carys’s voice caught him off guard. He didn’t realize that she’d walked back into the room.
Blaize grunted, set the toy on top of the coffee table, and then headed toward the front door. “Lock up so we can get on the road.”
He didn’t look back. Didn’t want her to see the emotion pooling in his eyes, threatening to spill over.
Dammit.
Blaize walked right past Carys, not stopping until he was seated on the driver’s side of his Jeep. He turned the engine on, and waited. She took a few minutes to appear. For a second, he wondered if he’d offended her.
When she set her bag in the back seat, she didn’t make eye contact. Her demeanor was calm. Too calm? Part of him wanted her to get mad. Hell, cuss him out.
Instead, she took the passenger seat and said, “Ready when you are.”
He banked a U-turn after setting the GPS toward Austin.
They drove for a while before she cleared her throat and asked, “What about the baby’s rattle upset you?”
“Nothing.”
“You don’t have to tell me,” she said. “I’ve been picking up on something…call it a vibe. And it’s been causing me to wonder how you feel about starting a family.”
“What do you mean?”
“The way you look at Rue when no one is watching,” she said.
Blaize clamped his mouth shut rather than bite out a retort. She was spot-on with her observation. The rattle dislodged a memory. One he’d been holding in for a long time. Too long?
