Her determined gaze shifts up to mine as she digs her heels in.
Her and those fucking eyes.
She gets to her feet but doesn’t pack up. Instead, she retrieves her coffee from the counter, spinning to face me.
“Look, can we just forget the past and focus on the present?” she asks.
“I forgot about you the moment you walked out that door.”
The hurt in her eyes almost makes me regret my harsh words.
Almost.
She recovers quickly, as only her cold heart can.
“Why are you being such an asshole?”
“Why are you such a heartless bitch?”
She flinches as if I slapped her, and I instantly hate myself for going so low, but this woman is bringing out the worst in me right now. My emotions are all over the place. I drag a hand through my hair, anger and frustration warring inside me.
“If I’m so heartless, then why the hell did I risk my job to help you?”
I throw my arms out to the sides. “Fuck if I know, but Ididn’t ask you to do that.”
“Well, it’s already done.” She slams her coffee cup down on the table. “So how about we work together to figure out who’s behind all this?”
I blink several times, trying to wrap my head around what she just said. “You quit?”
“Resigned,” she says.
I stare at her in disbelief. “Why would you do that?
She releases a long breath. “Because, despite what you might think of me, I care about what happens to you, Benson.”
Her revelation is like a punch to the chest. My heart twists, aching to close the distance between us, to pull her in my arms and never let her go.
Why?
Why would she do that? She’s always guarded her career as if it were the only thing she truly loved, and now she’s thrown everything away.
For me?
I want to ask her why. Demand it. But the words lodge in the back of my throat because therealreason doesn’t matter—not anymore. Whatever we were, whatever we could’ve been died a long time ago. There can never be anusagain, no matter how much a part of me still wants to believe otherwise.
I inhale a deep, controlled breath, reining in my emotions. If we’re going to work together, I have to keep it professional. I can’t let her back in, no matter how bad I want to. But I do need her help. Karmen is sharp and quick on her feet and can be a force when she wants to be. God knows I need every weapon in my arsenal, and I can’t trust her with my heart, but I can trust her with my life.
“Fine, but we do it my way,” I relent.
She laughs, the familiar sound I’ve missed so much, anchoring like a hook deep inside my chest.
So much for ignoring my emotions.
“I expect nothing less,” she says.
***
We spent the next several hours reviewing every personnel file within my department and outside of it. Although my clearance and access were blocked due to my suspension, I called my brother Reid, who works for the FBI, and we were able to secure the files that way. It’s unethical and illegal, but it’s good to have family in high places.
