Page 65 of Dark ’N’ Deadly

“Lay off, will ya, Mags?” He pulled a chair from the table and sat across from her. “It’s work related, and she’s only staying here a few more days until her brother gets out of the hospital.” As he said the words, his heart felt heavy. His house would be empty without her.

“Her brother? Her brother’s here, too?”

“He got himself into a jam, and I’m only helping them as a favor to Nick and Andi. You remember Andi? Tess is her best friend up in Springfield.”

“Tess,” she repeated, her expression becoming thoughtful. “What’s she like?”

The corners of his mouth lifted as he thought about how to answer that. Before he could stop himself, he was grinning like an idiot. “She’s colorful, vibrant, full of energy, drives me crazy, and—”

His sister leaned back in the chair, her expression softening.

“What?” he growled, realizing he’d stupidly said too much, and from the look on her face, Maggie was about to latch onto his words and never let him hear the end of it.

“It’s finally happened,” she whispered.

“What’s finally happened?” He so didn’t like where this was going. “Look, we’re friends. Let it go.” She snickered. “Didn’t you come here to tell me something?”

“Yes. I did.” She cleared her throat and gave him a sarcastic smile, telling him she still wasn’t buying a single ounce of what he’d just said. “There are two noteworthy items I arrived on your doorstep to impart in person.”

“Impart away.” He waved a hand in the air, urging her to continue quickly. The last thing he wanted was for this conversation to drag on and for Maggie and Tess to actually cross paths. “I have to get to the office.”

“Fine. Your investigative powers of observation must be dulled by the presence of your friend.” She held up her left hand, waggling her fingers. Only then did he catch the huge rock on her ring finger. “Tom and I are engaged.”

“You’re what?” Now it was his turn to be shocked.

“Engaged,” she repeated. “As in, planning to commit to that holy state of matrimony for the rest of our lives.”

Speechless, he stared at the enormous, glittering diamond. It wasn’t that Tom was a bad guy, not at all, but after the hell his and Maggie’s parents had put them through as children, they really had sworn never to get married or have kids.

“I know it’s a shock,” she said. “But I love him, he loves me, and I want to give it a chance. Things change. Look at you. You have a girlfriend, and you actually gave her a key. Doesn’t that tell you something?”

Another bead of sweat trickled between his shoulder blades, and yet… For the first time in his life, the phrase didn’t give him heart palpitations.

My girlfriend.

Could he really do a total one-eighty in his personal life and let someone share it with him? His sister was doing it, but that didn’t mean he could.

Images of Tess in his life, his future, sent a bolt of unease shooting up his spine. Just as quickly, those images were replaced by ones without her, and the unease he’d felt seconds ago was replaced by emptiness and a panic that had him fisting his hands on the table.

Maggie leaned in, covering one of his fists with her hand. “Think about it.”

For one long heartbeat, he did. Then reality kicked in, and his thoughts fast-forwarded to Gant, Pritchard, and nailing their asses to the wall before anyone else got hurt.

“You said there were two things.” He pulled his hand away. “What else did you come here to tell me?”

“Your perspective may not be ready for this much change, but someone else’s is.” She grinned. “Mom is divorcing Dad.”

“What?” The world as he knew it had just imploded.

“Seriously.”

He shook his head in utter disbelief. “It’s about time.”

Now they were both grinning. Neither of them had stayed in touch much with their parents. It had been too difficult and too emotional, but Maggie occasionally spoke with their mother.

“Good for her.” He nodded, although inside he worried the world as he knew it was changing for the better and leaving him behind.

Soft footsteps came from the stairs, and a moment later, Tess stood in the kitchen doorway. Tiger scrambled to his feet, shoving his snout in her hand, pushing at it until she knelt and kissed the top of his head.