“You’ll be surprised to know it was not, in fact, Will. He did try Will first, but he didn’t answer. A quick call to the right people, and we found out he was on a job. Quinn got distracted by it—he shouldn’t be allowed near Google—and it turned into a whole thing involving the rookie—don’t ask. Eventually, Sebastian came and dropped off some stuff from the Noodle Bar. He had rice for me, but I made him eat some first in case he poisoned it. He’d find a way to get out of the murder charge because he’s a crafty fuck.”
“You had way more adventure than me.” To be a fly on the wall for some of that.
Riley stares at Grady like he’s never seen him before. It was a lot of sentences for the man of few words. Grady catches him staring and frowns. “It’s getting late. Once you finish eating, I’ll take you home.”
Riley’s hand clenches around his fork. “Why do I have to go home?”
“Because that’s where you live?”
“Why can’t I stay here?”
“That’s not how it works,” Grady says gruffly. “Won’t your parents be worried about where you are?”
“They’renotmy parents,” Riley snarls, dropping his fork and loudly shoving his chair back. “They won’t even notice I’m not there.”
I exchange a glance with Grady. Why is Riley so reluctant to go home? I study him carefully, from the tense line of his neck to the bruise on his cheekbone. He never said where he got it from. “Riley, is there a reason you don’t want to go home?”
“It’s not my home,” he replies stubbornly.
He’s been at his new school for about six months, so he can’t have been with this new “family” very long. Does he get shuffled a lot? He’s got a bit of a chip on his shoulder, but he doesn’t seem like a bad kid. Just in need of some guidance.
Riley stands abruptly and folds his arms over his chest. “Fine, whatever. I’m ready to go.”
Grady leans back in his chair, totally relaxed. It shows off his impressive chest, and my heart thumps unsteadily. I don’t think there will ever be a day that I look at him and don’t feel some degree of lust.
“Your phone is in your bag, still at the station,” Grady says conversationally. “Why haven’t you asked to go get it?”
Where is he going with this? It’s always fascinating, watching him question people. He goes routes I’d never think of. Do they get training in the force or something?
“I don’t fucking need it.”
“I’ve told you to watch your language. Don’t you need to contact your boyfriend?”
“We’re not attached at the hip,” Riley says stiffly. He looks uncomfortable, and it reminds me of when a soldier just out of training is getting a dressing down. It takes a while to lose the deer-in-the-headlights feeling.
“Don’t need to scroll your social media, check their Facebook pages to see what your friends had for dinner?”
Riley’s face scrunches up in disgust. “What the fuck? No. And I already told you I don’t have friends.”
Grady nods and stands, seemingly satisfied with the answer. I have no clue what he just concluded from any of that. “Take your dishes to the sink. Do you want to wash or dry?”
“Excuse me?”
Hades barks and runs around Grady, tail wagging. Probably thinks they’re about to go outside and throw the ball.
“Do you want to wash the dishes, or do you want to dry them?” Grady repeats patiently.
Riley looks between us, then at the table, and back at the kitchen sink. If he’s trying to work out the puzzle, I hope he tells me the answer because I have nothing. “Wash,” he eventually says, wariness in his voice.
Grady gestures with a hand. “Get started, then, and I’ll come dry. Everything you need is under the sink. There are gloves, too, if you want them.”
Riley’s slow to gather the dishes, like he’s waiting for the punchline. For Grady to tell him, “Psych, get in the car.”
I wait until he’s out of earshot before saying, “You want me to make up a bed for him?” Just in case that’snotthe plan. I don’t want to get Riley’s hopes up only to have them be dashed.
“Yeah, for tonight.” Grady sighs. “Something’s going on at his place.”
And other places. “Do you think he broke up with his boyfriend?” Most teenagers have their heads glued to their phones, don’t they? Especially if they’re in the throes of “young love.”
