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Her brows lifted. “No pressure.”
“None. Heather would have been angry with me, waiting for all these years. But I wasn’t ready. Until I looked up one day and saw you.”
She kissed him again, long and lush and languid, before sliding back down to rest her head on his shoulder. “I think I can sleep now.”
He tightened his hold. Not enough to hurt her, but enough to satisfy his need to protect her. “Val?”
“Hmmm?”
“You told me that one of the men was dead. What about the others?”
“They committed suicide, one after a dishonorable discharge and the other after he was released from prison, also with a dishonorable. The Corps tried to convince me to let it go, to let them deliver punishment, but I said no. I pushed back. There was... DNA evidence for two of them, but not the third. He was the one who came after me when I got home from Iraq. He blamed me for causing trouble for his two friends.”
Causing trouble. Kaj bit back what he wanted to say because this was not about him. “So you moved.”
“Yes. I knew he wouldn’t go away and I wasn’t willing to kill him. So I moved.”
“You said that you didn’t tell your folks.” He couldn’t imagine how lonely she’d been.
“I told Van, but my parents have never been able to deal with harsh truths. It would have broken them. Telling Van was enough, because then someone in my family knew. He helped me pick Albuquerque for my new home.”
“You must miss him.”
“Every day.” She sighed. “I’m glad Dewey Talley is dead. But I wish I’d been the one to do it.”
“I understand.”
She curled into him, molding her body along his side. “I didn’t expect that Corey would be planning to kill Bella Butler and her family to silence her testimony. That was... whoa.”
“I know. I’ve had cases intersect in the past, but never like this.”
“It’s weird that you had both cases. Is it more than coincidence, do you think?”
“I don’t know,” he admitted. “But my boss and I have been taking on most of the new cases because the rest of the prosecutors are busy sorting through the mess left by the old ADA.”
“I guess his being corrupt means that y’all have to check every case he touched.”
“Exactly. So from that viewpoint, it’s not such a big coincidence. At least Corey’s desperation to remove the spotlight from himself makes a lot more sense now.”
“Poor Jace,” she murmured. “He just rolls with it. Like nothing Corey does is a surprise.”
“I know. I hope he’s not involved in any of this. I really want him to be innocent.”
“I really believe he is innocent.” She sighed. “I need to call Van’s old friend first thing tomorrow. He had to have known Aaron when he was at the firm. He might know Sandra, too.”
“I can sit with you when you call.” In case she heard things that she didn’t want to hear.
She kissed his pec. “I’d like that. Thank you, Kaj, for listening. And being willing to hold me. That’s not always a given thing.”
“It will be with me,” he promised. “Now sleep. Rest your brain.”
“You won’t leave for a while?” she asked, sounding vulnerable.
His heart squeezed. “Not until you’re asleep. Sweet dreams.”
She huffed softly. “Can’t have any nightmares. Your son has claimed my dog. I’ll have no one to wake me up.”
“I’ll wake you up if you have a bad dream. I’ll even lick your face if you want.”
