Naomi linked her arm through his again. “Well, we’ll leavethe two of you be. Behave yourselves, kids. Don’t stay out too late, don’t drink and drive, and above all, don’t do anything I would do.” She gave one last little wave over her shoulder as they disappeared back into the crowd.
I couldn’t help but note that they looked good together. Comfortable in a way new couples usually weren’t, like they’d already managed to settle into each other’s rhythms.
“I like him,” I commented. He seemed like someone who fit well with Naomi.
Detective Sawyer hummed noncommittally. “How long do you think this one will last?”
“Detective, that’s a rude thing to say,” I chided—then paused, considering. “I give it three months.”
I liked Naomi, but I also knew she didn’t have the best track record when it came to relationships.
“No way. One month, tops,” the detective countered, sounding absolutely sure of herself. “I bet you ten bucks.”
“You’re on.”
The music began to ease into something slower, a soft, crooning melody perfect for slow dancing. A few couples had already migrated to the middle of the room, swaying against each other with varying degrees of grace. I continued to watch them for a while before asking on a whim,
“Do you have anything special planned for the holidays, Detective?”
“Same as every year. Stay in. Avoid phone calls. Microwave something vaguely edible while watching shitty holiday movies. Clean up my living room, if I’m feeling particularly adventurous.”
I chuckled. “You certainly know how to live on the edge.”
“I do try,” Detective Sawyer said, voice dry as bone. “Actually… maybe I’ll skip the frozen meals this time around. My dad used to make the most amazing honey-glazed ham. Maybe I’ll give that a try.”
There was a certain tenderness in her voice that I was unaccustomed to hearing. The use of the past tense told me everything I needed to know. Nothing dredged up old ghosts quite like the holiday season, did it?
“What about you?” Detective Sawyer asked, seemingly shaking off whatever moment she’d been caught in.
“Honestly, probably something along those lines as well.”
The holidays had never been a good time for me. Even now, I could feel the cold creeping in, the sharp chill biting at my skin. The darkness. Raised voices behind a closed door. Plates shattering against the wall. Soft crying. Small hands gripping mine like a lifeline, fingers cold and trembling. Then… silence. The kind that rang in your ears long after it was over.
“Where did you go?”
I heard Detective Sawyer ask, bringing me back to the present. Her eyes were on me, studying my face with a quiet kind of curiosity that felt almost intrusive.
“Just… remembering my childhood,” I said, like it was nothing worth noting.
“Yeah? Did your parents spoil you rotten? Did you have a big Christmas tree, a mountain of presents, the works?”
She was smiling now, in a playful sort of way that made me forget, just for a moment, what we were in the middle of discussing.
It seemed that I was more tired than I thought. Itwasgetting rather late.
“Yes. Something like that,” I said, after a small pause.
Detective Sawyer nudged her shoulder against mine, thecontact warm and unexpected. “Hey, look at us bonding. Are we gonna share our deepest secrets now or what?”
While her tone was teasing, I was starting to recognize a pattern. Any time the conversation veered too close to anything resembling an actual emotion, the detective deflected, usually with a joke. It was like she was allergic to vulnerability, especially if it was her own.
“Alright. Do you want to go first, or should I?”
“I don’t think so, Hayes.” She chuckled at the question. “No offense, but you don’t seem like the trustworthy type.”
“Detective, you wound me,” I said, placing a hand over my heart. “You’d be hard-pressed to find a more sincere person than me.”
Detective Sawyer gave me a light pat on the chest, as if she’d heard it all before. “Sure, Hayes. Whatever you say…”
