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But that was what Sadie did to me.
Always had.
From the moment I saw her photograph when she was missing to seeing her in the warehouse tied up by a vicious woman with a vendetta.
I cleared my throat and walked down the hallway to the kitchen, where Sadie had a pile of diced peppers in a bowl and a tissue in her hands, dabbing her eyes as a half-cut onion lay on the chopping block.
“Gets you every time,” I said, laughing softly as she blinked her teary eyes open to see me.
“If you’d just do my trick of keeping the onions in the fridge, we wouldn’t have this problem.”
“Man, I missed you,” I teased, shaking my head while taking over the task of slicing the onion.
She didn’t say anything, and I didn’t expect her to. I needed to remember that this wasn’t personal.
Her being here was business.
Sadie leaned against the granite counter and smiled. “Things were always easy with you.”
I nodded silently and finished slicing the onion. “I have to keep reminding myself that you’re here for professional services, nothing more.”
She let out a soft sigh and walked over to the coffee pot. “Made you a fresh pot.”
Sadie poured herself a cup and added some nonfat milk.
“Thanks.” I set the knife down and glanced at her. “I sent some photos of what we found at your apartment to the prosecutor. Neither of us believes it’s Carmella, obviously. But we wouldn't put it past her to have someone on the outside trying to intimidate you.”
She laughed nervously and took a sip of coffee. “Well, it’s working.”
Sadie moved over to the stove and turned on a skillet with oil already in the pan.
“I don’t believe that for a second,” I said softly, glancing outside to see the dimmed light filtering through the trees as the sun set into the night sky. “Very little ever intimidates you.”
Sadie grabbed the vegetables and sliced sausage and dumped them into the oil with a sizzle. She shook some garlic and onion powder over the mixture.
“I think my tough-girl façade is starting to crack, Zack.” Her arms crossed her chest, and she let out a deep sigh. “It’s one of the many reasons I knew I needed… space.”
I nodded. “And now you’re stuck with me again.”
A wry smile spread across her lips, and I felt that pull that lit every cell in my body like a Christmas tree.
She shrugged and chuckled. “Could be worse.”
I took a step closer without thinking. “Yeah?”
Sadie nodded, her eyes connecting to mine as she swallowed back something she wanted to say. I could see it in her eyes.
“You’re…” She eyed me suspiciously. “You’re what every woman dreams about.”
“Not the woman who counts, though.”
Her gaze dropped to the floor, and she spun around to stir the food.
Damn it. I needed to cool it.
“My brother’s stopping by tomorrow morning.”
“Okay, but I need to be at the coffee shop at five.”
