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“Please, hurry.”
26
Lark
I drove up to a cute, cottage-style house at the edge of town. The siding was painted a beautiful sage green with white shutters, and if I wasn’t worried out of my mind, I would’ve swooned all over the adorable home.
August stood outside in the driveway, leaning against a black SUV. His muscled arms were folded over his chest, his face pinched in concern.
I threw my car into park and leapt out.
August pushed off his vehicle and straightened.
“What’s going on?” I asked as I approached.
His jaw hardened. “First,” he held up a finger, “I want you to know that I can count on one hand the number of times I’ve seen my brother even remotely drunk.”
My heart thudded. “Um…” I pressed my lips together. I’d never known Reid to drink much either. “Okay?”
August glanced at the house. “He’s been working too much on this missing woman case,” he murmured, almost to himself.
I gasped as it all clicked into place. “They found the body of a woman last night,” I said, my voice barely above a whisper.
August’s gray eyes cut to mine. “Yeah, I know.” He pressed a palm against his temple and massaged it. “Look, Reid is a good guy. A great one, actually, and I love him. But it’s been hard for him the last nine years. He buried himself in his work, letting himself become consumed with it. Until he had a case like this that finally broke him.”
My throat thickened. “Broke him?”
August’s hands dropped to his hips. “He’d kill me if he knew I was talking to you about this, but I don’t care.” He shook his head. “Not right now. A few years ago, a little girl was abducted from the local park. Reid was determined he was going to find her.”
My heart constricted. “But he didn’t?”
“No. He didn’t. The mother had filed for divorce and the father abducted the little girl for revenge. They ended up finding where he was hiding out, but by that time, it was too late.”
I pressed my hand against my aching heart. “Oh, God,” I breathed.
“Reid was the one who found her body.”
I closed my eyes, stunned at how much trauma one man could hold in such a short life. “That’s—” I let the statement fall flat because there were no words for what that was.
“That’s when Reid quit working for the department, at our urging. He was in a rough place after that.”
“I can’t imagine…”
“He’s in a rough place now, too,” he said, his voice low. “That’s why I called you.”
“Why would you call me?”
His eyebrows shot up. “Are you serious?”
Sure, Reid and I had been getting closer recently, and yes, we kissed last night, but I didn’t know that was common knowledge. I didn’t know what any of it meant, or whether it meant anything at all. I was supposed to be here temporarily. Falling in love wasn’t on my radar.
My heart stilled as that thought sunk in, as if I’d surprised myself with it.
Was I falling in love with Reid Ramsey?
“Lark,” August said, snapping me out of my quiet introspection. He laid a heavy hand on my shoulder as his eyes leveled with mine. “Even though Reid has been consumed with his work, he’s also been consumed with something else… You.”
“Me?” I squeaked.
