“Lilly knows that I’m in law enforcement and that I carry a weapon, especially when we’re outside of the house. All cops do. And she knows I have a safe where I lock my weapon up when I’m in the house. I have one in the kitchen, high in the cabinet over the top of the fridge, and a second one next to the bed. My weapon’s always within reach. I don’t feel compromised by having my weapon locked up. A press of my finger to the biometric lock and it pops open, two additional secondsto respond if something were to go down. I have the same biometric gun safe everyone else on the team with kids has.”
“Is Rae afraid she’ll get a hold of it?” Burke said.
“Nah, Rae knows I’d never let that happen. Besides, we’ve both told Lilly repeatedly that it’s not a toy. I’ve also told her that she cannot ever touch a gun, period and full stop. I did promise her, though, that when she’s older, I’ll teach her gun safety and how to shoot if she wants to learn.”
“So back to your question about Donna, yeah, if she wasn’t in my life, I’d miss her too. We talk or text almost every day. There’s a close friendship there. But I survived without anyone in my life before last year, I’d be fine.”
“And what aboutherwithoutyouin her life?” Wilson posed.
That was why Burke continued the relationship. “Yeah, it’s not the same for her. She’s had a shitty run with men. They’ve all left her, proving she can’t count on any man, not that her father dying was his conscious choice to leave her like the other assholes. I want to be the exception. I thought being just a friend would keep me in it for the long haul to prove to her that she’s worthy of a committed man in her life, but if I’m honest, we step over the friend’s line slightly from time to time.”
“But you haven’t slept with her,” Wilson said, trying to understand if Burke was even sexually attracted to her.
“I’ve stopped it before it’s gone too far, but damn, it could very easily,” he admitted.
Wilson clasped him on the shoulder. “It seems to me you’re deep in this relationship with her, whether you want to be or not. Denying a physical relationship isn’t keeping anyone from getting too involved like you think it is. I think you need to stop preventing that natural progression and you’ll probably be a hell of a lot happier. And talk to her about everything we’ve talked about. Keep re-iterating what the job is and what that means if you two are together. And Lassiter will tell you to call her out when she acts like she’s not handling it well.”
Burke burst out laughing. “Jimmy Wilson, relationship expert!”
Wilson grinned. “I have some experience with a woman and a kid, you know.”
“Thanks,” Burke said sincerely.
“I’m going to my room; I'll try to get some sleep. You should do the same. I have a feeling we may be relieving Rogers and Tessman later tonight.”
“Couldn’t you get a tracker on the salon owner’s car?”
“No, it was right out front of the shop all day, and one of them was in the window at all times.”
“Do you think they made you while you surveilled them?”
“No, there’s no way they did.” He shook his head. “They were paranoid, very paranoid. Even though we know Oliveira drove Zoe away from her dorm and he’s a Bona fide prepper, there’s definitely something wrong with the salon owners. If they hadn’t acted as they did, we probably would have halted our surveillance.”
After Wilson left, Burke checked the time on his phone. It was nearly twenty-one hundred hours, much later than he thought it was. Time had gotten away from him. He’d meant to call Donna hours ago, so he’d be able to say goodnight to the kids before they went to bed. Unfortunately, they’d been in bed for hours. He hit dial. “Hey,” he said when Donna answered. “How are you tonight?”
“Good. It’s been quiet, no visitors,” she reported. “The kids were hoping you would have called before they went to bed.”
“Sorry, we got hung up. Anyway, I’m glad it’s quiet. Whenever he drops by, just dial me and play the long-distance girlfriend.”
“I will. I have to wonder, though, if he buys it,” she said.
“Won’t matter in a few days. You’ll be out of there. I received confirmation on where you all can stay when you’re in town. You can borrow a friend’s three-bedroom house.”
“That is so nice of whoever owns it,” Donna said. “I promise, I’ll make sure my kids don’t mess it up or anything.”
Burke laughed. “Don’t worry about that. The place is child proof.” He wouldn’t tell her why. “I want to give you my credit card and have you book the flight tonight. I figure you have everyone’s info to enter. Just book one-way flights for now. We’ll figure out the return date after you’re here. And Donna, don’t worry about the cost. Just book a direct flight that has four seats open at a time that’s convenient for you. Jeriah’s still young enough to be considered a lap infant.”
“Rich, it isn’t going to be cheap.”
“No, it isn’t. That’s to be expected when booking a last-minute flight at Christmas time.”
Donna felt terrible about the amount of money he’d spend on it.
“Donna, I’m serious. Don’t worry about the cost.” He knew her well enough to know what her silence meant.
“Okay.” She was quiet for a few more moments. “You worked late tonight.”
“The later we work, the faster we’ll make it back. But I probably won’t be there when you all land. Laura Lee’s job probably won’t be finished either, so Dupont will pick you all up at the airport and get you settled in where you’ll stay.”
