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He chuckled. “Why, thank you.” His eyes bounced to mine. His gaze was warm and felt intimate, as if he was unwrapping the layers around my heart, right here, in a matter of seconds, in front of my daughter. “Coffee?” he asked lightly.
“Yes, please,” I managed, lifting my chin and crossing over to slip into the chair across from Quinn. My eyes landed on the paper bag from the restaurant last night. “Did you like the pie?”
Quinn’s eyes brightened. “Yes. Next time you go, I want one of the savory and sweet ones. How come that’s not an American thing? There are surely enough English people who settled here,” she offered between oatmeal bites.
I felt Noah sit beside me and push a cup of coffee over. My heart flipped over again. I curled both hands around the mug because I needed something to hold on to.
I took a swallow as Noah replied, “Next time we go, you could go with us. We can even go this weekend if you’d like.”
Quinn looked back and forth between us. I sipped my coffee and tried to act like this was no big deal. Ever since she was born, I’d told myself I wouldn’t get serious with someone until I trusted them completely. I knew what my heart wanted, but, sweet hell, I was diving into the deep end on this with Noah.
“Okay,” she finally said. “But I don’t want to crash a date.”
My cheeks got hot, and I gulped my coffee, relieved when she took another bite of oatmeal. I felt Noah’s hand slide on my thigh and give it a gentle squeeze. God, I could really get used to waking up like this.
“You’re not crashing a date,” Noah said calmly. “How about this weekend? Norma would love to meet you.”
Quinn’s eyes were sharp when she looked up, her gaze flicking back and forth between us. “Who is Norma?”
“One of the owners,” I replied. “Norma and Norm own the place if you can believe that. I didn’t have the pleasure of meeting Norm, but Norma was very nice.”
She thought that was hysterical and burst out laughing. The morning rolled on. Quinn left for school, and Noah offered to take me to work, adding, “Plus, we need to pick up Quinn from school so Dallas can talk with her. I’d like for us all to be there.”
My lips were saying “okay” before I could even contemplate it. It was a practical suggestion, but then I worried that Noah would be bringing me home, and I’d want him to stay. My mind loved debating anxiety-fueled topics. It often felt like a tennis game in my brain.
ChapterTwenty-Five
NOAH
My brother eyed me from across his desk, a sardonic glint in his eyes. “Do you want to sit in?” he asked dryly.
“Yes.”
“I think it’s best if you don’t,” he said, his words measured as his gaze sobered.
“Not as an agent, just a supportive—” I cut myself off abruptly.
Dallas’s lips curled into a sly smile as he chuckled. “A supportive what?”
Leaning back in my chair, I let out a low chuckle and ran a hand through my hair. “Friend?” I offered helpfully.
“If you think you’re just Sasha’s friend, you’re more of an idiot than I thought,” my brother countered, all humor leaving his eyes.
“I know I’m not just her friend. Is this officially an interview, anyway?” I pressed.
Dallas shook his head. “I just want to take a look at that email. Sasha forwarded it, but since Quinn’s willing to let us look at the laptop, I want to see what else I can trace from it. Since you’re wondering, I’ll let you know. It doesn’t look like Quinn’s father has been involved. As far as we can tell, it looks like his ID was stolen. He’s not a criminal, but he is in a bit of a jam.”
“What do you mean?” Unease slithered down my spine.
“He likes to gamble. That’s all. Nothing sinister, nothing even illegal. Unless remarkably poor judgment combined with a propensity to bet when he doesn’t have the financing to do so is criminal.”
“Fuck,” I muttered. “Do you think this means Quinn and Sasha are unsafe?”
Dallas shook his head quickly. “Oh no. If they had money, perhaps, but they don’t. I’m more curious to see where Quinn’s father’s trail will lead us as far as getting more on the guys running this massive laundering scheme. I’ve already interviewed him. He knows he made some dumb decisions, and this may be the first time in his life that he’s facing actual accountability for them. He’s fully cooperating.”
I didn’t realize how tense I was until I sagged into the chair, the tension bundled in the muscles along the back of my shoulders loosening for the first time in days. “Why do you think he reached out to Quinn?”
“He claims he didn’t. So your guess was right. Someone’s using him, not to get to Quinn, but to rattle him.”
