"They're going to keep looking for me, aren't they?"
Cade wanted to say something to erase that expression from the other man's face.
"I know it's scary, but you're safe here."
"I may be safe, but Nat isn't."
"We'll find her. Don't give up."
"I'm not giving up, but every day this drags on is another day she suffers," Tristan said, his voice cracking at the end.
Heart squeezing, Cade offered in a softer voice, "I get it. But try to have faith. We will find her, Tris."
Tristan pinned him with a fierce gaze for a few heavy heartbeats, then stood and positioned himself in front of a window, gazing silently into the yard, introspective and sullen.
After taking their dishes to the sink, Cade sat stiffly at the table, fighting the urge to tap his fingers on the wood. Tristan's complete stillness prickled at him, and he was about to stand, to move his body in some way to lessen his agitation, when Tristanturned and asked in an impassive tone, "Do you want to play backgammon?"
Cade agreed, thankful for the distraction and the shifting mood that lessened his unease. Competition also seemed to rekindle Tristan's energy, and by the time he lost the first game, he was back to his normal, inquisitive self.
"Why does Tag call you 'King'?"
Cade's jaw clenched as he thought about one of his least favorite people on the planet — a remarkable achievement, really, considering the human garbage he regularly encountered.
"Because he knows I hate it, and he gets off by provoking people," he bit out with thinly veiled hostility.
"Isn't it just a shortened version of your name?"
"Not when he says it."
Those big, amber eyes fixed on him, bright and pleading, and he somehow knew that whatever Tristan asked next, he wouldn't hold back.
Saying no to this man was becoming a challenge.
"So why then?"
Hesitating slightly, Cade admitted, "Because I usually work alone while the others work with partners, and I don't hang out with them outside of work. Tag says I think I'm better than them."
Tristan studied him again with that thoughtful look. "It's not true, is it?"
"No."
"Why do you work alone?"
Moving his pieces gave Cade a chance to find his words. He usually hated talking about himself, but Tristan was dangerously different, always getting too close and breaking down his barriers. For the first time in his life, someone had slipped past his defenses, and instead of fleeing, he found himself wanting to let them in.
"I guess I'm used to doing things on my own. I don't like to rely on anyone."
Tilting his head, Tristan gazed at him, while Cade shifted nervously in his seat.
"Is that just for work or your personal life too?"
Before Cade could respond, Tristan rushed to add, "I know you're going to say I ask too many questions, but I can't help it. I'm a reporter. Questions are how I find the puzzle pieces and put them together to make a story." He added a self-deprecating smile and a shrug that Cade found adorable.
"And you're trying to do that to me?"
"I'm curious about you."
"I told you, I'm not very interesting."
