“They sent Max. Max, who was the sister of the woman that I’d dated when I was in New Orleans.”
“Oh,” I said. “Did you have to break up with her to come to Dallas?”
“No,” he answered as he shifted from foot to foot. “She and I wouldn’t have worked out. She wanted more from me than I was willing to give. She was a good woman, but just not for me.”
“And the sister?” I asked. “What’s her story?”
“When I left, she’d been trying to get into the FBI, and had gotten her final notice that she hadn’t and wouldn’t make it. When I left, she didn’t have a kid, either. Apollo did some digging and found out that she’s now working as an independent contractor with the FBI. They chose her because of her connection with me. Through Bernie.”
“Bernie?”
“Bernadette Waters. My ex.”
“Oh,” I said. “And they’re all here now? Trying to get you to say or do something incriminating?”
Before he could answer, Jasper’s phone rang, and he answered it on speakerphone. “Find anything?”
“Regular bug. She’s about half a mile down the road in her truck listening in. She doesn’t know that you found it, though. So she’s sitting there like a dummy with her headphones on waiting,” he said. “The sister skipped town. It’s just her now.”
“Good,” he said. “At least one of them is smart.”
“Agreed,” Apollo said. “You got another delivery vehicle heading your way.”
“That one we actually ordered,” Jasper said. “Thanks, Apollo. I’ll keep an eye out for her.”
“You do that,” he said. “Also, when the fuck were you going to tell me that you knew the best goddamn baker in the United States?”
My lips twitched.
“What are you talking about?”
“I was surveilling your house earlier and saw a man come up and deliver some cookies to you. I looked him up online and found out that he’s A. Winthrop. He’s owned several bakeries all over the world. He has a damn award-winning chocolate chip cookie that’s won accolades all around the damn world. And you’re hiding him from us?”
“Technically,” Jasper said, “Calli knows him. And she’d ordered cookies and invited him to the party, but it was canceled.”
“Dammit,” he muttered. “I would come get some, but Sutton already lost her shit when I suggested we go out to eat. She’s terrified of the ice.”
“Feel like she’s lost enough, buddy,” Jasper pointed out.
My stomach sank.
They’d all lost a lot.
Even Jasper.
“Why you gotta go make it make sense like that?” he grumbled. “I’m going to scramble her transmissions here in a minute letting her know you found the bug. I don’t want her staying on that block and not leaving with the storm on the way. Your ass would probably let her in.”
I snorted. “Hardly.”
That bitch wasn’t coming anywhere near my house.
I didn’t care if it was negative ten out.
“You’re with Calli?” he asked.
“Yeah,” Jasper confirmed.
“Hmm,” Apollo hummed. “Interesting.”
