“Gotcha. My brother’s waiting for you at my place, and you can just unload it all into my garage. He’ll help with the bigger things.”
“Great.” Evan reached into his back pocket to verify the address on his phone. And found it empty. “Shit.” He double-checked the vehicle to make sure he hadn’t left it inside. Nope. Not there either.
“What’s up?”
“My phone’s missing.” The same phone he’d had in his back pocket when he’d helped the boy who’d tripped over his own feet.
That freakin’ kid.
“What color is it? I’ll check the house.”
“It’s a red iPhone.” Evan went with him. Nothing turned up.
“Man. That sucks.” Will shook his head.
Evan would strangle the boy when he found him. “You ever see a tall teenager hanging around here? Light-brown hair, brown—maybe hazel—eyes?” He frowned. “Good-looking kid, seems friendly. Lives a few blocks down in a red house.”
Will shook his head. “Red house? Never seen him.”
“Well, he apparently knows all about the crazy lady who lives next door.”
“Kenzie?”
“I don’t know, but I need my phone. My life is on that thing.” At least he’d password-protected it.
“I know what you mean.” Will shrugged. “Might as well see.”
They walked next door and knocked at the back entrance. Will shouted to be heard over raised voices, “Yo, Kenzie. I got a problem.”
The door opened, and Evan’s angel appeared…holding a knife.
Evan gaped. “Holy shit. The kid wasn’t kidding.”
She stared from them to the knife in her hand and blushed. “I was just making a salad. Cutting vegetables.”
“With abutcher knife?” Evan had a tough time believing that. Then he met her striking gaze, that color in her eyes an intriguing mix of green and brown that seemed to change as he watched her. All thought left his mind.
Her blush intensified. “All the other knives are dirty…” She threw over her shoulder, “Since someone hasn’t done the dishes like he was supposed to!”
No one answered, though Evan heard Rachel and Lila talking in another room.
Kenzie stepped back. “Come on in.”
Evan knew it wasn’t smart, but drawn to Kenzie and needing his phone, he followed her into the kitchen, Will behind him. Rachel and Lila joined them.
“Hey, babe.” Rachel gave Will a kiss, the petite woman comfortably enfolded by the larger man hugging her so tightly.
“Lunatic.” Will grinned. “Oh, and Lila. Didn’t see you there, Lunatic Junior.”
Lila flipped him off.
“What’s going on?” Kenzie asked Will while studying Evan with an odd look on her face. He couldn’t tell if it was fear, disdain, or curiosity because the expressions flashed by so fast and she refused to meet his gaze. Probably a good thing, considering a smart guy shouldn’t want to be on this woman’s radar. No matter how fine she might be.
He couldn’t help noticing her long, slender legs or the curves under the thin cotton of her T-shirt. Or that she must be reacting to the cool breeze that suddenly blew through the room because her nipples had turned to hard little points.
Forcing himself to glance away before he embarrassed himself by leering, Evan saw a surprisingly neat and orderly kitchen, something he wouldn’t have expected of the supposedly unstable woman.
Will explained, “Someone took Evan’s cell phone. Some teenager who lives a few doors down in the red house.”
