Chapter Six
This was the longest day Connor had worked in a long time. He hated death calls. They were terrible, especially when the deceased was a young person. Twenty years old was too young to die. He’d had training on coping with these types of calls. He knew how to compartmentalize. But sometimes, it just wasn’t possible. There were times he felt the trauma, no matter how hard he tried to block it. He was only human.
By the time he’d cleared the scene, he had his hands full with follow up work. Tara had overdosed on fentanyl, a potent and dangerous drug that was taking too many lives. He’d turn over what he knew to Jake, the head narcotics detective, and pray they’d find the source before another person took their last breath due to the drug.
He pulled into his driveway. Exhaustion reached every extremity of his body. All he wanted was to go inside, take a shower, and crawl into bed. He didn’t even care about eating. But getting out of his unit proved a tougher obstacle than he had expected. Funny, how emotional upheaval could exhaust a person and drain them of all their energy.
Leaning his head against the seat, his neck rolled slightly to the left. He wished he hadn’t because he saw Tiffany’s car in Mrs. Leola’s driveway. He’d forgotten that she’d have to pick up Lilly. He’d also forgotten for a few hours the horrible comments he’d made to her.
It seemed where she was concerned, he’d forever be sticking his foot in his mouth.
He saw movement, realized she was in her car. Not only that, but she was crying.
Should he go to her? After what he’d said today, he was probably the last person she’d want to see. He reached for his phone, intent on calling Mrs. Leola. He’d let her know that Tiffany was in her driveway crying, and let his neighbor go to her.
Chicken.
Dark clouds moved in. If he was going to go to her, he’d have to be quick to beat the rain. He raised his eyes toward the heavens. “Was Mrs. Leola, right? Are you trying to tell me something here, God?”
Groaning, he pushed his door open. He might get his head bit off, for good reason, but he’d go check on her. If she heard him approach, she showed no signs of it. He knocked on her window and she jumped.
She wiped tears from her eyes with her fists, but it didn’t stop the stream. “What do you want?”
The harsh tone should have raised his defenses. Instead, they had the opposite effect of softening his heart. She’d had a terrible day, one he’d helped contribute to, and he could only imagine the emotions she battled. “I saw you from my driveway, wanted to make sure you’re okay.”
“I’ll be fine.”
As in, she wasn’t fine now. “Did you get Lilly?”
She pointed to the backseat where he saw the carrier and Lilly inside. “I wasn’t going to forget about her.”
“I didn’t think you would.”
“Well, you seem to think the worst of me.” She wiped her eyes again, oblivious to the fact rain poured into her car.
The sky opened, sending torrents of rain straight for him. He was soaked before he had time to move. All the protective feelings he’d once carried for her reignited. “Let me take you home. You shouldn’t drive in this rain when you’re upset.”
“I know how to drive in bad weather,” she snapped, her voice frayed with pain and weariness.
“I’m sure, but you’ve had a rough day by any standards. You can leave your car here. I’ll explain to Mrs. Leola, and she won’t mind.”
A long, heavy sigh pushed between her lips. “I have to work tomorrow.”
“Tell me what time, and I’ll make sure to pick you up and bring you back here in plenty of time.”
Her teeth grazed her bottom lip. The left side of her was soaked from the rain beating in. “Why, Connor? Why are you being nice now?”
He couldn’t tell her the real reason. He wasn’t sure he fully acknowledged it himself. “It’s the right thing to do.”
A sad light lit in her eyes. “Okay.”
“Okay, you’ll let me take you home?”
She nodded.
“I’ll pull my truck directly behind your car to keep your rain exposure minimal. Grab Lilly and be ready to run.”
He did as he said, and minutes later, Tiffany was giving him directions to her apartment. Despite being May, he turned on the heat in the truck car to ward off the chill from their sopping clothes.
