Page 51 of Nothing At All

“Like I’m tired of explaining to Mrs. Milson that she lives in the county and we can’t help her.” I lifted my chin in greeting. From the mirror in the men’s room, I knew I looked more human, with the swelling subsiding and the bruises shifting from mottled purple to more yellow and green. “What’s up?”

Dix stretched his legs out and crossed one ankle over the other. “So Dougherty County PD is doing this new thing, putting an investigator in the car with a patrol officer.”

I nodded. Josh and I had talked about it over lunch earlier in the week, after he’d come back from a joint training exercise with DCPD I’d missed because Jim Ed Reese was a piece of shit. He was still in a patrol car over in Haynes County, too. “You thinking about it?”

“Thinking about piloting with you and Vic.”

I darted a quick look at him. “Yeah?”

“Yeah. She’d make a hell of an investigator.” Dix shrugged, gaze steady on my face, measuring. “And it would give you some exposure to investigations.”

Leaning back in my chair, I turned the idea over. Sharing a car with Vic wouldn’t be awful. She was smart, and I could learn from her.

“You didn’t know the answer yet when you interviewed, but now you’d have some time.” Dix pulled my attention back to him. “What are you thinking career-wise?”

I paused, bottle of water halfway to my mouth, and shrugged. A hint of heat touched my face. “I don’t know. Might depend on Lila.”

“Yeah?” Dix lifted both brows, still watching me. “You’re serious about her.”

“I am. I like patrol work. But if we go the distance . . .” I wasn’t thinking about the alternative to that. “I have to consider her.”

“I get that.” Dix scuffed his palm along his jaw and shifted to his feet. He clapped me on the shoulder. “And you’ve got time. Don’t have to know everything today.”

The day crawled by, and my eagerness to see Lila made it slower. We’d taken some space after that conversation the night after I’d been injured. I didn’t want her to feel crowded, and I meant what I said – I needed her to think about us. Normally, we didn’t live in each other’s pockets, either, so going two or three days without seeing each other was normal.

This time, we’d stretched that to six, although we’d texted and Facetimed like normal.

Tonight, Chuck and Deanne had invited us for dinner. Not exactly a hot date night – hell, I couldn’t even consider this a date. But I was ready to see her, to be close to her.

And if nerves sat like a lump in my gut, that was my problem. I would not make it hers.

Once I finally made it home, I showered, although I’d done jack squat at work to actually need a shower, and pulled on jeans and a gray t-shirt. That lump of nerves shifted to a buzz of anticipation as I made the drive over to pick her up. My phone sat in the console, screen dark, and I scowled. I still felt weird since Allison “found“ it in the ER. Didn’t like her touching my stuff, and I was damn glad she hadn’t been my nurse that night.

At least she’d left me alone about Nicole. And I hadn’t seen Nicole in days, either.

That didn’t bother me at all, considering the last time I’d helped her, I’d ended up with a concussion and my face busted up.

I strode to the door and knocked, gaze trailing over the front of the house. Really didn’t like how high those shrubs were against the windows. If she was okay with it, I’d ask Shane if he cared if I cut them. Her landlord had been a few years ahead of me in school, and he was an okay guy.

Her trash can still sat next to the garage, too, and pickup was tomorrow–

“Hey!” Her breathless greeting slid over me. One step forward, and I dropped a kiss on her lips. She gripped the edge of the door, not quite looking at me. We’d been awkward like this all week over FaceTime, too, but it made sense.

We weren’t where we were, and neither of us quite knew this new place yet.

“I’m running late.” She gestured at the hot rollers still in her blonde hair. “Give me just a couple of minutes.”

I caught her wrist – man, her skin was so damn soft – and tugged her back to me, the warmth of her along my chest and belly. I lowered my head to kiss her for real, toying with her bottom lip, letting my other hand rest just above her ass at the small of her back. She melted into me, opening her mouth to kiss me back.

Lifting my head, I smiled and gently touched the tip of my nose to the side of hers. “I never mind waiting for you, baby.”

She froze, and my stomach tightened up again before she patted my chest. “Five minutes.”

That meant ten, but who cared? Not Chuck and Deanne, whose invitation had been along the lines of seven-ish.

She bustled away, and I caught the door. “Hey, I’m taking your can to the road.”

Smiling at her muffled thank you, I closed the door behind me and grabbed the receptacle and wheeled it out to the curb. On the way back, I glanced over her car. Tires looked good, but she’d need wiper blades soon. I made a mental note to pick those up from O’Reilly’s.