“If you go in there, we grieve two dead officers today instead of one.”
I clench my gloved hands and remember that Ellie needs her father.
I’m the only family she has.
I stare at the burning building as my long-term partner burns to a crisp.
Two months after that incident, I was finally coming to terms with Gareth’s tragic yet heroic passing when I heard that the fire was done to claim insurance.
Gareth died and left his family heartbroken, all because somebody wanted money.
He died on account of selfishness.
When he had been nothing but selfless.
“And how are you handling the mortgage payments as a single parent?” James Taylor’s corporate voice filters back into my consciousness.
I step forward and intervene. “The woman lost her house and all of her belongings only two days ago. Give it a rest, why don’t you?”
James shoots me a snakelike look that I’m more than happy to return.
“Certainly.” He bows his head like he suddenly gives a fuck, and offers his hand to Piper. “It was nice talking with you, Ms. Hart. I will be in touch next week when I’ve completed the first round of assessments on your home.”
“Okay,” Piper says, clearly itching to shut the door in his face.
She slams it as soon as he disappears.
“Thanks.” She offers me a half smile. “I didn’t mentally prepare for an insurance assessor to bombard me with questions at ten AM on a Sunday.”
“Hm.” I huff. “Sounds like someone needs to get a life.”
Piper smiles, but it lifts only one side of her face, like the assessor’s sudden presence has troubled her.
It would trouble all normal human beings. Sunday is a day of relaxation for those who don’t work weekend shifts.
James Taylor is clearly trying to investigate more than damage. He should kick up his feet and relax like the rest of us. Piper doesn’t have a hidden agenda. Small-town folk don’t. It’s the reason I moved up here to raise Ellie—people are transparent. What you see is what you get.
Piper has been more guarded recently. She hesitates, not out of nervousness like before, but because she now understands what happens when you fall too far in love.
Thatis why she’s acting guarded.
James Taylor’s visit has nothing to do with her acting tense.
I analyze her tense features and pray for another moment outside on the porch again. It was the first time I’ve seen her acting like her old self again since our reunion. But it was a fleeting moment, and she quickly reined in her personality as soon as she caught it slipping.
Too much has changed.
We can’t go back there.
It stings. Coffee dates were always our thing.
“First round of assessments,” she repeats. “How many rounds does he have in mind?”
I study the lines of tension under her lip and wonder if this is about money, or having to stay under my roof longer than she needs to.
“Insurance people are always strange,” I say. “But their line of work is important. They expose the villains living among us.”
“What do you mean?”
