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God, I wish it were only about that.

“We can get through whatever it is together—” she adds.

“There’s no we,” I snap, anxiety getting the best of me. It stuns us both. “In our jobs, our reputation is everything. Last I checked, you have a stellar one. Don’t let me tarnish that. Stay out of this while you can get away unscathed.”

“Nothing about this life lets you get away unscathed.”

“Let’s just…” I pinch the bridge of my nose and spit out the words I wish I didn’t have to say. “Let’s let the heat die down. I need to stay focused and figure out a few things on my end.”

Scarlett and I have seen each other every year. She’s helped on missions related to the Icicle. She can’t get roped into this.

She sighs, her words taking on a frustrated edge. “Couples are supposed to face things together. So that’s what we’re going to do. Please promise you won’t disappear on me again.”

“I… I can’t…” I say, trailing off. I don’t know what I can promise, now or ever. There’s no telling what this investigation will lead to.

“We’re a team. I’m going to help—”

“Jesus, Payne!” I bark. After the last four days we’ve had together, calling her by her last name feels wrong on so many levels. She’s Scarlett. My Scarlett. But right now, I can’t get carried away by emotions. “We don’t even work at the same office. I don’t need help. As much as you try to, you can’t save everyone. You can’t always save me.” It comes out harsh—way too harsh—given her past. But the outburst feels good. It’s a release. Pushing Scarlett away isn’t what I want, but it is what I deserve.

And she’s not going to let this go unless I put up a wall she can’t climb. Which means it needs to be one hell of a high wall.

“Don’t do this—”

“Can you stop being so damn stubborn for just a second?” The words are sharp on my tongue.

There’s a long silence before she speaks again. “I don’t think I can. You’ve been sleeping on a chair. I’ve been shot. We’re both tired, and we might say something we’ll regret.”

“I’m not tired,” I lie. “We just shouldn’t be seen together. Let’s go back to the way we were. Colleagues. It’s for the best. I’m wrapped up in this, but you’re not. Your role in this operation is over.”

Scarlett never should’ve been brought into the operation in the first place. She nearly died because of me.

It’s better this way. I’ve already let her down. Scarlett should be with someone who won’t.

“You know what? Fine,” Scarlett says with an undercurrent of aggravation. She turns away from me to face the paper snowman whose tape has come unstuck from the whiteboard. “I’ve tried, but if that’s what you want, I’m not going to force you to be with me. Stay out of my lane, Lambros.”

“Good,” I say, feeling the exact opposite. “And stay out of my life.”

“A lifetime’s too long. I’ll give it a few months.”

I stand. “At least a year.”

“Fine!”

“Great,” I say. “Glad we can finally agree on something.”

I don’t leave just yet. I should, now that she’s agreed. But I don’t want to say goodbye. I want to prove my innocence, clear my name, and become a man who’s worthy of her. I can’t do that in the middle of an investigation with endless interviews and polygraphs. This relationship will have no chance of lasting if this is how it starts.

“You don’t want any part of this, of me. Trust me on that.” My words come out weak, sad, pathetic. “You deserve better.”

She looks back at me. “Let me decide that,” she says. Another long pause. “And you’re wrong about this.”

If I can spare her, I’m really not.

“How do you know?”

“Instinct,” she says, her voice catching. “My gut tells me that you and I are good together, and it’s rarely wrong. I just know it, and you’ll have to trust me on that.”

I don’t agree either way. After a long moment, just when I think we’re past the worst of it, she says something that splits my heart cleanly in two.