Page 23 of Sinner’s Game

“She’s staying with me.” He met Lamar’s eyes. “You work the investigation. I’ll make sure she stays safe.”

For a moment, Ronan thought Lamar would argue. Then the detective nodded, his attention returning to Brandy. “You keep that Ruger in your purse, do you hear me? And you keep your purse with you.”

“I’ll keep her safe,” Ronan said.

“I believe you,” Lamar replied. “But I still want her armed.”

Ronan nodded. Under the circumstances, he couldn’t argue the point. “All right. But just so we’re clear, she’s staying with me.”

“Right. She is,” Ellie said, so quickly that Ronan assumed she had matchmaking on the mind more than protection.

“You’re all talking like I’m in danger,” Brandy said.

“Not while I’m around,” Ronan said. “We’re just being careful.”

Ellie frowned at both of them, then shifted her focus to Brandy. “Do you really want to stay alone after finding a body in your living room?”

“No,” Brandy admitted.

“That’s not the only thing,” Lamar said. “You’re probably perfectly safe. But there is a body, which means there’s a killer. And that’s not something I take lightly.”

“Me either,” Ronan agreed.

“Fair enough, but I’m really not worried,” Brandy said. “Freaked, yeah. Worried, no. I mean, why on earth would anyone want to hurt me?” Brandy looked around the room, her eyes stopping on Ronan.

“I can’t think of a single reason,” he said. “But until we know you’re in the clear, you’re not leaving my sight. And that, angel, is non-negotiable.”

Chapter Nine

“Anything else before I call this in?” Lamar asks.

Devlin and Ellie have already stepped outside, and we’re following them, clearing the scene around the body before the cops arrive.

I look to Ronan to see if he’s going to say anything about the fact that he inspected the body. But he just shakes his head. Apparently, the trust isn’t as warm and fuzzy as it sounded a moment ago.

“Okay, then,” Lamar continues. “Are we clear? I’m going to tell them I arrived only minutes after you did. You hadn’t even seen the body yet, and we all found it together.”

“We know,” I say.

“Just making sure,” he says with an apologetic shrug as he taps his phone. I only half listen as he speaks with the dispatcher. The fact that Lamar’s now standing in my entryway in full-blown detective mode is a little too surreal for my taste.

As Lamar moves toward the open front door to get a better signal, I turn and find Ronan watching me. I flash a quick, awkward smile, then blink back tears when he comes even closer.

“Sorry, sorry.”

“It’s okay,” he says.

I scoff. “I managed to keep it together all this time, and I have no idea why I’m starting to melt now.”

“Adrenaline fade,” Ronan says. “All your emotions are screaming for attention. It’s hitting home what’s happened. And that’s going to be especially hard for you.”

His tone is gentle but firm, without any sugarcoating. And he’s right.

“So basically, you’re saying I’m a mess.”

“Pretty much,” he retorts, making me laugh and cry at the same time. “Definitely a mess,” he adds. He grabs a tissue from the box on the entry hall table, then holds it out to me. I take it, then wipe my eyes.

“You’re going to be just fine,” he says gently. “And we’re going to get to the bottom of this.”