I grinned even though my eyes were closed. “He’ll be up the stairs as soon as the door locks behind you.”
I couldn’t see him, but I could feel Micah’s frown even through my closed eyelids. I kept smiling. The next thing I felt was his lips on my temple before I heard his light footsteps moving away from the bed. The lights went out, and within a few minutes, I was back asleep, but not before I heard Hound enter the room and lay down on the floor by my side of the bed.
If I didn’t know any better, I’d say that Micah had encouraged Hound to come up to the bedroom to be with me.
Chapter Thirty-One
“This is such a long fucking drive,” I complained into the speakers of my truck.
Sy chuckled. “You’re used to long drives.”
I nodded, even though we were only on a phone call and not a video chat. “It’s different without Hound to keep me company,” I admitted.
“He’s not with you?”
“Didn’t I say … No,” I answered shortly. I didn’t need to explain that since Jodi insisted on not staying with Joel for the duration of my trip, I decided to leave Hound with her for safety measures. That was one precaution I took to ensure she’d be okay while I was gone. In addition, I had New Guy drive past my house every few hours to make sure things were on the up and up. I also had Joel going over there to keep her company later in the day. He’d been a pain in my ass, teasing me about the lengths I went to protect her while I was away.
Bastard.
He laughed when I called him that.
“Don’t you forget it either, boy,” he came back with. “Yeah, I’ll look after the filly for ya,” he’d conceded.
“She’s not a damned horse,” I shot back, only causing him to laugh and tease me some more. Still, it was either ask my father or Ace. Unfortunately, my brother had training flights scheduled on the nights I’d be out of town. Since Gabe was still out of town, Joel it was.
My team was up to the task of protecting Jodi, but there was a certain level of comfort I was afforded by having my family there. They knew my home inside and out, and knew that if I called on them to do something for me, it wasn’t bullshit. Which, I’m sure, is why Joel agreed.
“Boss, are you still there?”
I blinked. “Yeah, what were you saying?”
“We’re still checking into the Harlington deputies to see if any of them have ties to Arlington. So far, we’ve only come up with one.”
“Who’s that?”
“Uh, Deputy Schaefer. He has an aunt who lives up there with her family. But it looks like they only moved out there about eight or nine years ago.”
“He wouldn’t have been born and raised there. And no ties to the foster system, it doesn’t sound like.”
“Nope,” Sy admitted.
“It’s not him. Keep looking. I’ll be in Dallas in about ninety minutes. If anything comes up before then, ring me on my cell.”
“Will do.”
I disconnected the call and turned up the sound on the country playlist I’d been listening to for the majority of my drive. Somehow a song by Lena Clarkson made its way through the speakers, causing me to smile. I’d forgotten Jodi added new songs to my playlist. Clarkson didn’t sing the kind of music I usually listened to, but she did have a voice like silk. More importantly, listening to her reminded me of the woman who’d introduced me to her.
Once I began thinking about Jodi, the remainder of the ninety-minute drive was a relatively short one. I thought about the last moments I spent with her before hopping in my truck to leave. I had been dressed and halfway out of the bedroom before turning around. I couldn’t take my eyes off of her as she rested, peacefully in my bed. The panties she wore were all that stood in the way of me and her nakedness.
My mouth watered, and I quickly discerned that I couldn’t walk out the door without tasting her. Needless to say, that led to even more, which hadn’t been my intention. But hell, once we got started, it was anybody’s guess as to when we’d stop. I’d come close to canceling my damn trip and trying to get Oliver Jr. on a video call, but the psych facility he was at didn’t allow it. Plus, I was likely to pick up on more details if I sat with him face-to-face instead of via video.
I reminded myself that this trip was for Jodi’s case. To add one more piece to the puzzle of who killed her grandfather and possibly took Amy Cherny. I also intended to have a conversation with Jodi when I got back. I wanted her to stay longer. Past the three month timeframe she’d given herself. Hell, possibly even …
Forever.
The word whispered from the back of my mind, reaching the forefront, causing me to sit up straight. That word had never occurred to me in past relationships. Yet, there it was. Taunting me.
What if I asked her to stay forever?
