Maybe not. He was trying to place her, thinking they’d met at Athena’s nursery. So… his theory might not hold water.
As if reading his mind, Isaiah said, “Just because you arrested her—if you arrested her—doesn’t mean she’s a bad person. Lots of people find themselves in desperate situations.”
“True,” Kendrick said, remembering some sad stories from his days on the force. There were people who broke the law—and were technically in the wrong—but they were just trying to survive. It wasn’t as if they were hurting anyone.
But the law was still the law, and he’d been bound by it, having to arrest people he wanted to let slide.
That was one of the many reasons he didn’t miss being a cop.
Sometimes you just wanted to help people, but it seemed like the system was stacked against them. As a biracial man, he knew that all too well. He’d had plenty of situations in life where someone didn’t trust him simply because the color of his skin.
He knew Isaiah understood that all too well, too.
“You feel a connection to this girl, huh?”
The question snapped Kendrick from his thoughts. “I guess. Sounds stupid, huh?”
Isaiah shook his head. “Not at all. When you know, you know.”
“I wouldn’t go that far,” Kendrick said. “I don’t know anything.”
“Okay. But you suspect, at least.”
Kendrick thought it over for a moment. “Yeah.”
Isaiah gave him a very pointed look. “Then it’s worth following up. If there’s the slightest chance she’s your babygirl, you’ve got to do something.”
“What can I do?”
Isaiah grinned. “You know where she works. Go for pie.”
Kendrick nodded. “Yeah. I guess I could drop in. I mean, that diner isn’t really close to us. But… worth a shot.”
“You know she’ll most likely be there at some point, unless she quit.”
Kendrick nodded. The thought of seeing her again was nice. And patronizing the diner was the only way that would happen. If that meant eating mediocre burgers or pie, then so be it.
“In the meantime,” Isaiah said, “I think you and I are working Auntie Athena’s today.”
Kendrick nearly spit out the sip of coffee he’d just taken. “Oh man. I forgot all about that.”
“Do you have other plans? I bet I can handle it. You know it’s no big deal. And Trevon is more than capable of handling anything that comes his way. They don’t really need us.”
Kendrick chuckled and bobbed his head in agreement. Auntie Athena’s was pretty secure, but due to the nature of the place, she liked to have extra security on hand besides Trevon—the resident guard.
Trevon was a mountain of a man, towering nearly seven feet, with muscles to spare.
Only an idiot would start trouble under his watch.
But Kendrick and the other Guard members didn’t mind working security at Athena’s. It had started when they were cops, picking up extra shifts when they were off duty to make a little extra income.
It got them around the Littles, which was a wonderful bonus. In fact, Kendrick would probably do it for free just for that reason—but the extra income was nice.
“Nah. Nothing going on. Unless a call comes in for the Daddy Guard. I’ll go get ready,” Kendrick said.
Getting out of the house would be a good thing.
Besides, he thought as he drained the last of his coffee, it would be the perfect time to visit the diner after leaving Athena’s house that evening.
