“I get it.” He nodded, knowing she was right. “It’s okay.”
Nate bent forward and pressed his lips to her forehead, battling the maelstrom inside of him. He was losing it. It was whacked out to care so much about someone so fast. Someone who wasn’t wild about letting him care, letting him know her.
“It’s okay,” he repeated, “but I should probably get you home.”
11
“Thanks again for allowing me to come with you,” Nate said to Chief Mendoza as the two of them and Penn Griffin, the arson investigator on the case, rode the elevator up to Sophie’s floor Tuesday evening.
“It’s not the norm,” the chief said.
“She doesn’t have anyone who’s really there for her,” Nate said.
“No family?” Penn asked.
“Not that she talks about.” Of course, she hadn’t mentioned the brother, and Nate was still trying to swallow her lack of trust in him.
Small fish, he decided as the doors opened and the three of them stepped out.
The chief knocked on Sophie’s door. Nate stood off to the side and tried to prepare himself to lay his eyes on her again. It’d been four days. They’d texted a few times since their date Friday that had ended on a … well, not a particularly high note. Just casual messages, a half dozen in total. He was smart enough to realize when he’d been coming on too strong. And yet he had to be here for this.
The door opened and Nate’s heart hammered. It’d taken all his willpower to stay away from her for ninety-six hours. He drank in the sight of her. Her hair was pulled sloppily back, with several pieces hanging down and framing her face. She wore black yoga pants and another heavy zip-up sweatshirt that hit her mid-thigh. Her eyes turned warier than usual when they landed on the chief and Penn, but he thought she warmed a few degrees when she spotted him. Wishful thinking?
“Hello again, Chief Mendoza, Penn. Hi, Nate. What can I do for you?”
“Can we come in, Sophie?” Chief Mendoza said. “There’s been a development.”
Sophie’s eyes veered to Nate’s, and he wanted to pull her close, tell her everything was going to be okay.
“Of course.” She stood to the side and let the chief and Penn walk in. Nate paused next to her, rubbed her upper arm. “What’s going on?” she asked him in a quiet voice.
Nate nodded at the other two. “They’ll explain. I’m just along for the ride.”
“Have a seat,” she told the others.
Chief Mendoza and Penn seated themselves on opposite ends of the gray couch. Sophie went to the adjacent love seat, and Nate sat next to her, several inches away, on the edge of the cushion.
“Is there a new lead in the case?” Sophie asked.
Penn and the chief exchanged glances. Chief Mendoza nodded, giving Penn the go-ahead, and Penn cleared his throat.
“More than a lead, Sophie. There’s been a confession.”
Her eyes widened, but that was her only reaction. No, Nate decided as he watched her with hawk-like focus. Not the only reaction. She was holding her breath, waiting. He put his hand on her thigh to convey his support, suspecting she was going to be blindsided.
“A man came in earlier today and admitted to starting the fire at the office building on Garcia Avenue.”
She pressed her lips together, moistening them, and her eyes darted to Nate for a moment. “Why? Why did he do it?”
“He claims he didn’t know anyone was in the building when he started the fire,” Penn said. “He was going for property damage, apparently. Shock value, as well, in my opinion.” Penn paused, and Nate tensed, knowing what was coming. “Sophie, the man who confessed is Robert Alexander.”
“What?” She grabbed Nate’s hand, dug her nails into his skin. Her face turned ashen, looking like she had right after the fire. “My brother?” When she glanced at Nate, she explained, “Estranged. I haven’t talked to him for years.”
Nate nodded, signaling that he wasn’t worried she hadn’t mentioned him — at least not at the moment. If Robert Alexander was the kind of guy to torch his sister’s office, Nate could understand why she’d neglected to talk about him. It did make him even more curious about her family’s history, but he shoved that aside.
“He didn’t know you were inside,” Penn repeated.
“That doesn’t make it okay!” Sophie stood and took several steps.
