Carson felt a surge of satisfaction. They’d done it. Caught Shaw in the act. Documented his corruption. Proven the network existed.
Justice for those twelve women—and probably dozens more they didn’t know about yet—was finally within reach.
But as he packed up his surveillance equipment, all he could think about was Nora. The hurt in her eyes. The way she’d asked him to stay and he’d left anyway.
He’d chosen the case over her. Again.
And he didn’t know if she’d still be there when he got home.
***
Nora’s client meeting went better than she could have hoped.
The startup founders loved her approach, her ideas, her professionalism. They hired her on the spot—a six-month contract worth more than she’d made in three months at Morrison & Associates.
“We’ll send over the contract tomorrow,” the CEO said, shaking her hand. “We’re excited to work with you, Nora. You really know your stuff.”
She should have been thrilled. This was everything she’d wanted. Her own business. Her own success. Proof she could build something independent of anyone else.
But walking out of the meeting, all she felt was empty.
Because the first person she wanted to call was Carson. To share her excitement. To celebrate with someone who understood what this meant.
But Carson was at a surveillance. Choosing the case over her. Like he always would.
She called Lila instead. “I got the contract.”
“That’s amazing! Congratulations! We’re definitely celebrating this weekend.”
“Thanks.” Nora tried to inject enthusiasm into her voice. Failed.
“Still thinking about Carson?”
“I can’t stop thinking about him. About whether I’m being unreasonable. Whether I should just accept that this is who he is and either stay or go.”
“Do you want to stay?”
Nora thought about waking up next to Carson. About his arms around her at night. About the way he looked at her like she was everything.
When he was actually present.
“I want to stay with the Carson who exists when he’s not consumed by a case. The one who makes breakfast and asks about my day and holds me like I’m the most important person in his world.” She stopped at a red light. “But that Carson only shows up in the spaces between cases. And I don’t know if that’s enough.”
“Then you need to tell him that. Give him one more chance to change. And if he can’t—if he won’t—then you have your answer.”
Nora drove home, practicing in her head what she’d say. How she’d explain that loving him wasn’t enough if he couldn’t meet her halfway. That she deserved more than scraps and promises.
The apartment was empty when she got home. Carson was still working the case.
She made dinner for one again. Ate alone again. Waited again.
At eight PM, her phone rang. Carson.
“Hey,” she answered.
“We got him. Shaw. We documented everything. He’s meeting with criminals, taking payments, running the whole operation out of The Brew & View. Captain’s getting arrest warrants right now.”
“That’s good. I’m glad you caught him.” She was happy for him, truly, but she couldn’t summon the excitement into her voice.
