She eyed the ceiling.God, the wood just glowed.“How long is a while?”
“Almost two years.”
“Wow,” she said again, and dropped her gaze to look at him.“It’s amazing.”
“Thanks.Here, let me take your coat.”
“Oh, that’s okay.”She kept her hands tight in the pockets.“Um, is Knox around?”
“He’s in his office, going over some plans for a meeting tomorrow.Rehab on an office building downtown.He should be down soon, though.”
“He’s busy.”Grasping the excuse like a lifeline, Chloe edged toward the door.“Maybe we should do this another time.”
“Do what?”Knox asked from behind her, and she turned to see him coming down a narrow spiral staircase around the corner from the front door.
“Where…?”she began, looking up.
“Bell tower,” Jesse explained as Knox descended the last few steps.“We converted it to a small office.”
“Very small,” Knox put in drily.He wore a crew neck sweater in a heathery green, black jeans and an easy smile.“But it works.Hi, Chloe.”
“Hello,” Chloe managed.He looked just as good as Jesse, and it wasn’t helping her nerves situation.
“Chloe said she needed to talk to us about something,” Jesse offered.
Knox’s smile turned curious.“Okay.Do you want to sit down, have a glass of wine?”
“No, no, I’m fine.Bailey and Gwen are waiting for me in the car, and I don’t want to take up too much of your time.”
“Okay.”
They were watching her, concern in Jesse’s brown eyes, curiosity in Knox’s smokey hazel ones, though as the silence dragged on curiosity began to turn to worry.
“Chloe?”
“Okay,” she said, forcing the word out, bracing herself.“Remember last Thursday, when I saw you in the diner?”
Something flickered in Knox’s eyes.But it was gone so quickly she thought she might have imagined it, and his voice when he answered was easy.“Sure.”
“Um, the guy I was with.Sawyer?”
Jesse darted a glance at Knox, then looked back at her.“What about him?”
“Do you know him?”
“Why do you ask?”Knox answered, still easy, while Jesse, his poker face not as good, started with surprise.
“Because it was weird,” Chloe blurted out.
Jesse glanced at Knox again.“What do you mean, weird?”
“I mean weird,” Chloe said, impatient.“Strange.Nonsensical.You were angry.”
“I wasn’t angry,” Jesse protested.
“Not you,” Chloe clarified, her gaze shifting to Knox.“You.I wasn’t imagining that.”
Knox’s eyes were glittering, much as they had at the diner.“No, you weren’t.”
