Page 117 of D for Dead

Back inside, Amy stormed off to her bedroom, slamming the door hard enough for Jake to know she was pissed. He went to the kitchen, made a fresh pot of coffee, deciding to let her simmer.

It was his own damn fault; he should never have told her he’d seen Shinnick professionally. Now she knew, she was never going to let it drop. As far as he was concerned, the past was the past and he intended for his to stay there.

Amy hasn’t had that luxury. Hers has come back to haunt her.

And she would deal with it. Get past it. Telling her about his own problems and why he had seen Shinnick weren’t going to help her.

But she wants to trust you. Let her in.

Annoyed, he took his coffee to the couch and grabbed the TV remote. He was channel hopping when Amy emerged some twenty minutes later. She still looked sulky, but the initial hot wave of anger had evaporated.

‘I’m hungry. Do you want something to eat?’

‘Sure.’

He watched her as she searched the contents of the refrigerator. ‘I have some leftover chilli I can heat up. That okay?’

‘Sure,’ he repeated.

She warmed up the food and they ate in silence, Amy accompanying her chilli with a large glass of wine. Jake watched her drain it empty, refill the glass again, and bit his tongue to resist pointing out that alcohol was not the way forward. Amy wasn’t in the mood for any more of his advice. He sighed in frustration, realising he was going to have to open up if he wanted to get her back into Shinnick’s office.

‘Why do you want to know about my past so badly?’ he asked. She looked up, surprised by the question.

‘I told you. You know everything about me. I want to know something about you.’

‘You already know stuff about me,’ he pointed out lightly. ‘You know I have a dog called Roxy. You know I come from Arden, Georgia, that I have two sisters and a brother. What else do you want to know? I’m a big Falcons fan? I have a thing for Mexican food? I almost quit the force a few years back to buy a horse ranch?’

‘Really, you nearly quit?’

‘I thought about it for a while. I love horses; used to work with them back on my parents farm.’

‘Is that why you saw Shinnick, because you nearly quit?’

Damn it Amy. You won’t let it drop.

He sat back in his seat and studied her.

‘Okay, I will tell you why I saw Shinnick, but if I do I want you to promise me you’ll go back and finish your sessions. Deal?’

She was silent, and he could see the conflict as she wavered between wanting to know about his past and not wanting to go back to the doctor. Eventually she caved.

‘Okay, deal.’

Jake drew in a breath. He would tell her what had happened, but only hoped he wouldn’t live to regret it.

* * *

Rebecca sat in the passenger seat of Hickok’s car, the giant pizza box on her lap and the aroma of melted cheese and pepperoni attacking her nostrils.

He had insisted on stopping for a takeaway and then made her hold the damn thing, and she knew it was all part of a ploy to get inside her front door. The pizza was huge. No way was he planning to eat the whole thing himself. No, he knew Alan was out of town again and was banking on inviting himself in for dinner.

She told herself when the time came she would summon up the willpower to send him on his way. His dirty little pizza trick wasn’t going to work.

And neither were his continual digs about Alan and insinuations that he might be cheating on her, which he had stepped up now he had her trapped in his car. Alan wouldn’t cheat on her. He wasn’t the type. Was he?

‘Has your mom met him yet? I’ll bet your mom loves him, doesn’t she?’

‘Yes and yes.’ Rebecca rolled her eyes.