“Ah, it’s not crap. It’s life, my friend.” For all of Cooper’s jovial air, his eyes were hard and shrewd as they turned on Gideon. “You can learn a lot from watching these shows. They show humanity at its worst. See that fella there ignoring his responsibility?” He waved a hand in the direction of the television. “That’s too often the case. Men just don’t come through and fulfill their obligations.”

Funny, Cooper wasn’t looking at the screen as he said this. He looked straight at Gideon. Clearly, he wasn’t talking about society. Gideon had to force himself not to fidget. Slow, even breaths.

A long moment passed. They stared at one another. Cooper finally cut to the point of his visit. “Where you been? I haven’t heard from you since Friday night’s call.”

“Busy.”

“Yeah? Doing what? ’Cause it sure as hell isn’t what you’re supposed to be doing. I called all weekend. I had some tips on a new location I needed you to check out. Where’ve ya been?”

Gideon averted his eyes from Cooper’s piercing gaze. Damn. He shouldn’t have looked away.

Gideon covered the slip by snagging the remote and clicking on the channel guide. “Just busy.”

Cooper shook his head from side to side. “You wanted this, remember? I warned you. About the demands, always being on call, always available. But you wanted in—”

“Hell, I’ve been at it for almost fifteen years. I’m no rookie,” he snapped. No. Not a rookie. Maybe just burned out? What other explanation could there be for why he wanted to protect Claire Morgan when it was his job to destroy her? He shook off the thought and continued, “I had some deliveries for my grandmother. Not to mention a few orders to finish up,” he lied smoothly, nodding toward the door leading to the garage where he did his carpentry work.

Cooper snorted and tossed a handful of Cheetos in his mouth, his jaw flexing as he chewed. “What? Slaying lycans doesn’t pay the bills?”

“I need something legit to show the IRS.” Thinking the interrogation over, Gideon clicked the channel to ESPN.

“Saw the Dodge parked out back,” Cooper commented mildly, referring to the old pickup Gideon used to haul furniture. “I didn’t think you could cart armoires, chairs, and the like in the back of that Jeep. Guess you weren’t running deliveries today, huh?”

Gideon smiled easily despite being caught in his own lie. A mistake he wouldn’t make again. He might owe Cooper a lot, even his life, but that didn’t include a play by play of his every move.