AllFreeNovel
Share Us
It was none of his business, despite his detective’s mind gnawing at him, he managed to keep his lips together.
Keeley kept staring at him, reading whatever expression he couldn’t control.
“A bereavement … you know I can’t say any more.”
Chad lifted his hand. “And I wouldn’t want you to, but she’s gonna be okay, right?”
“She has her sister, and her children, and me. She has a supportive unit around her, but as I said, it’s still raw. It’s small steps in the beginning, you know that.” Keeley sighed. “I’m sorry about the delay.”
“It’s fine. I found something to read.”
“I saw.” The edge of her mouth quirked. “You’re not thinking about getting a dog, are you?”
“The universe seems to be pushing one at me.”
Keeley prepared two cups of coffee, but paused to look over her shoulder. “They do say dogs can help with anxiety and depression.”
“There was an article about that.”
“Although, if I was you, I wouldn’t get a puppy. There are so many dogs in rehoming centers, it always makes me sad that they get overlooked. They deserve to be happy as much as any dog.”
“If I was to get one, it would be from a rehoming center.” Chad scrunched his eyes shut. “Not that I’m thinking about getting one at all.”
He groaned, and inwardly cursed Josh for putting the idea in his head.
Keeley smiled and passed him a coffee. “So, Chad, how are things since we last spoke?”
Any good feeling over a potential dog evaporated. He rested his coffee on his knee.
“They’ve gone downhill quite dramatically.”
“How?”
“I’ve been suspended from work.”
Keeley opened her mouth, but said nothing. She shook her head, snapping out of her shock. “Why?”
“I made a mistake.” He slumped. “I did something I shouldn’t have, knowing full well I shouldn’t have, and it got found out.”
“That’s … vague.”
“Comes with the territory.”
“This thing that you did … why did you feel the need to do it?”
“I felt like I was being forced out of the case, unfairly punished … and I thought maybe if I could find a piece of evidence, I wouldn’t be shut out of the investigation.”
“Is this to do with your overprotective sergeant we talked about last time?”
Chad nodded. “Kind of. I didn’t like that she had control over how much of this investigation I was involved with, so I reacted, and now I’m off the case. I have no control whatsoever. So your advice about asserting myself didn’t work in my favor.”
“Well, it wouldn’t.”
“But you said—”
“I said in terms of your romantic relationship you should be able to assert your wants or un-wants. You’re both equal. But Ally is your sergeant. There’s an imbalance. Working relationships from my experience can be a lot more challenging than romantic ones.” She paused and took a sip of coffee. “Did you speak to your boyfriend?”
“About what?”
