Chapters (36)
For a moment, the weight of his gaze keeps me rooted in place, and I hate that I feel the flicker of heat rising in my chest. I hate the way my body reacts to him, to the confidence, to the challenge, to the way he looks at me like he already knows exactly how I’m going to respond. He’s frustrating, condescending, and entirely too attractive for his own good—or mine.
Bennett interrupts the moment, stepping between us. Not that I was about to let it turn into anything.
“If you think Aubrey had anything to do with this, you’re wrong. She wouldn’t hurt anyone.”
The agent shifts his focus to Bennett. It’s like watching a predator shift its attention, assessing a new variable in the equation.
“I don’t think anything yet. I’m here to find the truth, not jump to conclusions,” he says. “But the more people keep secrets, the harder that gets.”
“She’s not the only one with secrets,” I snap, my patience thinning. This man isn’t the only one that can push. “Cassie’s behavior has been shady as hell. Have you looked into Josie Lyon or anyone else in town? Maybe you should start there instead of barging in here and accusing us of—what, withholding information?”
The agent’s lips quirk into a half-smile. It’s a smile that says he’s enjoying this. That he likes a little fight.
“Noted,” he says. His tone is unreadable, making me wonder just how much of what I’ve said he buys. “But for the record, I’m not accusing you. Yet.”
Yet. The word lingers like a quiet promise.
“I’ll let you get back to your night, but don’t go far,” he adds. “I’m going to need more than what you’ve given me if I’m going to be able to keep my family safe.”
His family. The words catch me off guard for half a second. He’s not just some detached fed, cold, and calculating. This feels personal somehow. I just don’t know what it is.
As he turns to leave, the tension in the air doesn’t dissipate—it lingers, electric and unsettling. Like the static before a storm.
Bennett and I exchange a look, but neither of us says a word until his car disappears down the road.
“You think he’s trustworthy?” Bennett finally asks.
I shrug, still feeling the weight of the agent’s gaze on me. Still hearing his voice in the back of my mind, the way he looked into my soul and stared at my lips. “Trustworthy or not, he’s not going away anytime soon.”