She snorts. “It wasn’t pass or fail, but let’s just say I didn’t hate the answer.”
I watch as she drains her glass, then reaches forward and places it in the sink. She straightens, then flicks her gaze up anddown my body, shaking her head a couple of times. She begins to walk away from me, then stops and looks over her shoulder at me.
“I love Millie. Truly. The last thing I ever want is for her to be hurt. Protect her, Axton…” Heidi’s words trail off, then she clears her throat. “All of her.”
She slips out of the kitchen, and I hear her move through the apartment and into Millie’s room. The door opens, then closes. I don’t hear the lock shift into place. I won’t be going in there, even if I wanted to. As much as I want to push it with Millie, I have a feeling it wouldn’t go over well.
I think in this case, I’m going to have to wait for her to come to me. I know she will. If there’s anything I am certain about when it comes to Millie, it’s that if I make myself available, if I’m in her space—if I stay there and don’t go away, no matter how hard she pushes, no matter how pissed she pretends to be—she will fucking break for me.
And it will be glorious.
CHAPTER TWENTY-TWO
PIGGY
I kick my shoes off,cross my feet at the ankles, and turn the television on. Resting my beer on my stomach, I lie back and start looking for something to watch. Millie’s algorithm is so fucked. It’s a bunch of crime documentaries and a bunch of 1800s romance shows. I don’t know what the fuck this woman is watching.
Finding the sci-fi section, I scroll through and settle in on a show calledVikings. I could use some good blood-and-guts fighting scenes. I press the play button, lift my beer to my lips, and take a pull.
I’m only about halfway through the first episode when my phone buzzes next to me on the couch cushion. Shifting my beer into my other hand, I reach for my phone and frown at the name flashing across the screen.
Garcia.
I don’t know why the fuck he would be calling me, especially at this time of night. He works days, so there shouldn’t be a reason for him to call me, not that there ever would be anyway.I almost ignore the call altogether, but my curiosity takes over, and I slide my thumb across the screen.
“Colter,” I grunt as my greeting.
There is a moment of silence, and I almost check to see if he’s ended the call. But then he begins to speak. I’m not sure what the fuck he thinks he’s going to accomplish by his threats, but I’m not scared of him, not in the fucking slightest.
“Are you ready to just quit and walk away?” he asks. “You know I have you by the balls.”
I could play with him, but I honestly don’t have the time or inclination for it right now. I just want him off my back and gone. More specifically, fucking gone. My lips press together in a thin line, and I inhale deeply through my nose, then let the exhale out of my mouth before I respond.
“I don’t know why you’re calling me, and I’m sure you think you have me by the balls, but you indeed do not.”
He lets out a short laugh, and before he can say anything else, I decide I’m going to pop the fuck off. “How’s your wife?” I ask.
Ivy’s report was very detailed, and I know that he somehow hid it from the department. I’m not sure how, and as much as I want to ask the chief what the fuck is going on, I’m going to ask this fucker first.
“What?” His voice comes out as a hissed whisper.
He’s shocked. I can tell he is. It takes him a few beats to gather his thoughts. Obviously, he didn’t expect me to have that kind of information on him. I’m not sure what he thinks happened to those reports. Even if nothing came of it, they still exist.
“Did you think that kind of shit just disappears?” I ask. “Even if it isn’t ever prosecuted, it never completely vanishes.”
What a dumb motherfucker.
“I don’t know what you’re talking about,” he grinds out through gritted teeth.
It’s hilarious, so hilarious in fact that I almost burst out laughing. I have to bite my tongue for a moment to keep from doing that. I’m going to save my laughter for when he’s fired. And then laugh again when he’s blackballed and can’t ever be a cop again.
That’s when I’ll belly laugh.
“Three years ago, when you beat the fuck out of your old lady. Ring any bells? I could send you copies of the pictures, if you’d like?”
There is a long moment of silence.
I can practically hear the wheels inside this asshole’s head turning over and over as he thinks about what I’ve just said to him. I wish he were sitting in front of me so I could see his face. I have no doubt he’s completely fucking dumbfounded.
