Page 170 of Taken Away

“That didn’t sound like a no.”

She glared.

“It’s not a boyfriend. It’s a menace.”

“Ah. One of those.”

He leaned a hip against the desk.

His gaze drifted to the screen.

A notification still glowed there.

Did you ever figure out where those coordinates lead?

Bennett’s mouth curved.

"Wait," he said. "Your friends still talking about my tattoo?"

Aubrey felt heat rush back into her cheeks.

"Machelle doesn't let anything go."

He laughed softly.

“I knew you were checking me out when I was asleep on that couch.”

“You were snoring,” she said. “It was hard to miss.”

“You were looking,” he said. “You wanted to know where they led.”

She opened her mouth.

Closed it.

Because again, unfortunately, he was right.

His smile turned lazy.

“If you still want to know,” he said, straightening, “I could meet you at the house for lunch.”

Aubrey’s heart gave an unhelpful little kick.

“That’s specific,” she managed.

“Professional courtesy,” he said. “Keeps expectations low.”

She huffed out a laugh.

“Go do your job, McCrae.”

He tipped an invisible hat.

“Yes, ma’am.”

He started toward the door.

Chloe passed in the hallway, caught the look he and Aubrey traded, and made a soft, low whistle.