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Tears leak down my cheeks and I wrap my arms around his middle, burrowing into his hard chest.
He murmurs soft words of comfort, stroking a hand down my hair, and it’s all I can do not to melt in his arms. It feels so good to simply be touched, to connect with someone, warmth gradually replacing the worry.
This is what friendship should be. Someone to help you in times of crisis, not yell at you and accuse you of God knows what. And even if Austin had that accidental moment in the club when the dancing and the atmosphere got to him, I have no illusions he’s actually attracted to me.
Despite Joel’s insinuations otherwise.
CHAPTERSEVENTEEN
TESSA
My front door opens,the police officer joining us in the hallway again, and I let go of Austin, scrubbing at my eyes.
“No sign of anyone inside,” he says. “Doesn’t appear they took anything of high value, either. TV and laptop are untouched in the living room.”
I breathe a sigh of relief. Thank God. “Why would a robber leave those?” Especially the laptop. That’s easy enough to grab.
“Could be they heard a noise and got spooked. Or they didn’t plan on taking anything at all.”
“What do you mean?” Austin asks.
“Two scenarios come to mind—someone might have been looking for you specifically or they could have been trying to scare you. Anyone you can think of who fits the bill?”
Like an enemy? “No.”
The man shrugs. “It’s probably a run-of-the-mill break-in gone wrong. But there’s no real way for us to know with no surveillance or obvious motive. Anything else someone might have been looking for?”
“No, I don’t own anything valuable.” The TV and laptop would have been it since my phone has been on me all night.
“Keep an eye out for any suspicious activity, then. No reason to get forensics out here if nothing was stolen. Here’s my card if you need anything.”
I take the card from him and pocket it.
“You staying with your boyfriend until your landlord can fix this door?”
I glance up at Austin and back at the cop, my mouth opening and shutting, but nothing comes out. He thinks Austin is my boyfriend? Yeah, he caught us hugging, but do we really look like a couple?
“She’s staying with me, yes,” Austin answers when I take too long to respond.
“Good. Check out the place tomorrow with fresh eyes and give me a call if you find anything missing. Same if you notice anyone hanging around that shouldn’t be here.”
“Thank you, Officer.”
He returns to his patrol car and Austin leads me into his apartment, holding the door open for me. I settle on the couch next to Boots, a wave of emotion washing over me when she crawls on my lap and purrs.
Petting her gently, I glance over toward Austin, finding him watching me, an unreadable expression on his face. “What is it?”
“Nothing.” He shakes his head, breaking eye contact. “I’m glad you’re here, is all.”
He is? I’m inconveniencing him so much, though. “Thank you again.”
“Of course. Anything you need.”
“I—” I swallow hard, shutting my eyes. “I need to get some stuff from my apartment. Toothbrush, pajamas, that kind of thing. But I… I don’t think I can…”
“I’ll grab whatever you need. Make a list.”
Tears well in the corners of my eyes at the kindness in his voice. “Thank you,” I whisper. “I swear, I’m not normally this emotional.”
