Crossing to the elevator, she waved at the security guard behind the front desk, pushed the button and headed up to her apartment. The quiet struck her the moment she stepped inside. The big man who had filled so much of her life wasn’t there. No hot glances, no possessive touches. It surprised her how quickly she missed him.
With a sigh, she tossed her purse on the sofa. She’d had boyfriends, had a live-in relationship after college, practically lived with Andrew, spent almost every night with him at his house or hers. But when the men were gone and she was alone, she had mostly felt a sense of relief.
Today, even the hours she had spent at her office later that afternoon hadn’t helped. She was home again now. It was getting dark, and she just felt more and more lonely.
And worried. Jase would be in Waco by now, trying to track down a hardened criminal. A killer. She reminded herself that he was with Ryker, a former navy SEAL. The two of them had worked together before. He trusted Jax. Together, they would bring in Randy Harding.
But Harding wouldn’t be captured easily. He had murdered a woman, had shot two deputy sheriffs. If Jase brought him back to face justice, he would likely go to jail for years. He’d fight to stay free no matter what it took.
Nerves made her stomach queasy, reminding her she hadn’t eaten anything since morning but a power bar at the office. A tired sigh escaped as she went into the kitchen, though she didn’t really feel hungry. When her cell rang, she ran back into the living room and hurriedly dug it out of her purse, hoping it was Jason.
She felt a flicker of disappointment when Cece’s name popped up on the screen. It was followed by a trickle of guilt, since Cece Jacobs was one of her closest friends.
“Hey, Cee, what’s up?”
“I got your text about Chrissy’s funeral. It’s tomorrow morning?”
“That’s right.”
“You don’t think we’re going to let you go through it by yourself, do you?”
“Well, I—”
“Lani and I are coming with you. I’ll drive so you don’t have to worry about getting there or getting home.”
Relief trickled through her. She’d been prepared to go alone. Knowing her two best friends would be standing next to her at her sister’s graveside brought the sting of tears.
“Are you sure?”
“We’re going with you. No discussion.”
Her throat tightened. “Thanks. It means a lot.”
“The service starts at ten, right?”
“That’s right.”
“It’s almost a three-hour drive. We’ll pick you up at six thirty. That way we’ll miss the traffic.”
Kate wiped moisture from her cheeks. “Okay.”
“Listen, on a far more pleasant note, how’s it going with your hot bounty hunter slash detective?”
Kate found herself smiling. “He’s off to arrest some criminal. I’m kind of worried about him.”
“Duh...bounty hunter? Hunting men is what they do.”
“I know.”
“So I guess that means you two are getting along.”
“He works for me, remember? Plus, we’re...um...friends.” She tried not to think of the deep kiss in the parking lot. “We’re making some real progress on the case.”
“I was hoping by now you’d decided to let the police handle it.”
“The police have done squat. I don’t think they’re that interested.”
“Just be careful, okay?”
