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His brow crumpled even as his mouth turned up at the corners. “That’s a terrible way to greet a man who comes bearing burgers.”
“I’m sorry! You just look tired.”
“Fair enough. I am.”
Tired, but still hot and strong. So she kissed his cheek as she took the bag from his hand and led him into her lair. “Red wine with burgers, do you think?”
He raised an eyebrow.
“I don’t want to think about beer tonight,” she explained.
“Red wine, it is.”
Half a bottle and two burgers later, they were sitting snug on her couch with the music turned down to a whisper so they could talk. “So tell me why you look so beat up today. Big murder case?”
“You’re determined to turn me into a TV show, aren’t you?”
“Well, for a minute there, you were headed into Jerry Springer territory. I’m trying to steer you back toward CSI.”
“Oh, right. That.” The tightness around his eyes told Tessa that this was what had been weighing on him.
She raised her eyebrows and waited.
“I don’t really talk about it.” He paused as if that would be enough, but Tessa didn’t let him off the hook. “My partner. It’s complicated.”
“Complicated as in…you’re in love with her and she has a boyfriend?”
“No!” He shook his head. “But you put it in perspective, I suppose. Complicated as in, she’s pregnant and she won’t talk to me about it.”
Tessa felt the exact moment when her heart began to melt. She could actually feel it go warm and squishy inside her. “I’m sorry, Luke.”
“She’s not married. There’s no boyfriend. She’s alone.”
“Maybe she’s okay with that.”
His frown turned angry for a moment. “That’s the thing. Simone would be okay with that. So why the hell isn’t she?”
“She won’t tell you anything?”
“Nothing. And I…” He raised a hand as if he were going to make a point, but his fingers hovered, half curled, before he dropped his hand to his knee. “I just want to fix it.”
Aw. Tessa took his hand and curled her feet beneath her to scoot a little closer. Men were such adorable creatures. He was going crazy because he couldn’t fix everything for his partner.
She stroked his fingers until they curled around hers. “How far along is she?”
“Seven months, I think.”
“And she wasn’t dating anyone last year?”
“No. Not that she told me.”
She wove her fingers between his and stroked his thumb with hers. “Is she… Is it possible she, um, went to a clinic and did it herself?”
Luke sighed, and his body relaxed back into the couch as if someone had cut his strings. “It’s possible. I’ve never asked her if… She doesn’t date much, so there was talk. Stereotypical bullshit, and it’s nobody’s
business but Simone’s.”
Tessa squeezed his hand.
