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It sounded so crazy, Mia couldn’t hold back her laughter. “He does not.” Oh, he so did, and she always ignored it.
“Mm-hmm. You keep telling yourself that, girl. I see you look at him the same way, but you don’t think anyone is looking.”
She was not getting into a conversation about Jaxson. Nope. No way.
When she didn’t immediately respond, a cue to Jezebelle the conversation was over, Jezebelle started to whistle a fairytale tune, as if she could conjure the magical animals to come help woo her prince.
But Jaxson wasn’t her prince.
He couldn’t be.
Even if she wanted it with every breath in her body. Where was her fairy godmother when she needed one?
* * *
Jaxson peeked at his phone,then at Gabby, who had finished talking to the responding officer. Armed robberies were never fun. They were even worse when someone got killed. Luckily, this case seemed cut and dry, as the suspect who walked into the jewelry store never walked out. Even after shooting the store owner in the chest, who bled out and died before help could arrive.
The perp was sitting in the back of the officer’s patrol car. They were doing routine questions and checking the surveillance video to wrap it up in a pretty bow.
“Just gotta check the videos and this is pretty cut and dry.” Gabby glanced at the young kid—only twenty-two—sitting in the back of the car with his head hanging down.
Based on all statements, the gun accidentally went off. Probably from the kid’s nerves, and he froze from there. A customer had called nine-one-one while the kid stood there until the responding officer arrived and took the gun away without incident.
“Why can’t all our cases be this easy?” Jaxson said with a smooth grin, then lifted his phone. “Gotta talk to someone real quick. I’ll meet you in the back.”
Gabby narrowed her eyes as if contemplating whether to question him about who he had to call. Boy, she’d been doing that a lot to him this morning. He was almost sick of getting the stink eye from her. Yeah, they were always getting up in each other’s business. Almost could consider them brother and sister. They were close. He’d take a bullet for her. He’d do anything for her. He knew she’d do anything for him.
But sometimes, he had to keep things to himself.
“Don’t be long.”
“Nope. Real quick, like I said.”
Her eyes squinted even more, then she nodded and walked away.
He slipped outside and walked down the block and turned the corner. Rolling his eyes at Dane, who paced back and forth, he swore he’d get back at him later for this. He didn’t necessarily lie to Gabby, but he hadn’t told her the whole truth about why he was stepping outside. And if there was one thing he hated with a passion, it was lying—especially to his best friend.
“Okay, what is so urgent you needed to text me to ask where I am to talk to me in person?”
“How’s Gabriella? She was…acting weird this morning.”
Oh, geez. Were these two having issues? Because he was the last person who wanted to get into the middle of whatever argument they were having.
“She’s fine. Hasn’t said anything about your dumb ass.”
Dane folded his arms and gave him a look that said he wasn’t amused. Well, whatever. Jaxson wasn’t amused to be pulled out of a crime scene—one already solved, mind you—to deal with whatever Dane had a problem with.
“Her birthday’s coming up.”
“It is.”
Jaxson had to come up with a brilliant gift this year. He and Gabby always loved to give each other ridiculous, outrageous gifts. Sometimes epic gifts that made the other person salivate and covet it for themselves. The gift she had given him for his last birthday would be hard to top. Front-row seats behind home plate at New York’s first playoff game. He knew it had been a pretty penny, too. Although she never confessed, he had an inkling she pulled a favor from one of the other guys in the precinct and got a deal on the tickets somehow. Hell, he didn’t care. He got to see his team win the first playoff game—behind home plate! First row, baby. They didn’t win the World Series, though. That had been a blow to the heart.
It wasn’t as if they were keeping score, but damn it, he wasn’t going to give her a lame gift.
“She’s been mentioning my birthday some and…” Dane shrugged. “I’m not big on birthdays. I’ve been blowing it off a bit. But I don’t know if she’s big on stuff like that, but since she keeps mentioning my birthday, I thought it’d be nice to throw her one. I want to throw her a party to show her it’s not birthdays I have an issue with. It’s just mine.”
And if Dane’s brother, Champ, was the reason behind that sentiment, Jaxson wasn’t surprised. The man was a grade-A jackass of the worst kind. He still couldn’t get over the fact he cheated on Mia. Sweet, beautiful Mia.
