Page 44 of Law Of Love

I yelped, taking a few steps back, only for him to drop his gun and run his hand down his face. “Fuck, Freya. You know better than to sneak up on a cop who has someone out to get him.”

He looked as if he hadn't slept. The Will situation was definitely getting to him.

“Sorry,” I said, holding my hands up. “Maybe that’s a lesson to turn the volume down so you don’t burst your eardrums.”

Kaleb sighed, flopping back down on the couch. “How was class?”

I chewed on the inside of my cheek. I couldn't actually remember anything the lecturer had said. I was supposed to have been making notes, but the neurons connecting my hand to my brain weren't working properly today.

I shrugged, settling down on the couch beside him, ensuring I left a gap. Just because we flirted didn't mean we could overstep the boundary into deeper water.

Kaleb cocked his head at me, the light streaming in from the living room window catching his sharp jawline. “Are you okay? You don't look so good.”

I scowled at him.

“Not like that, but you just look tired today. Didn't get much sleep?”

I shook my head. “No, not really. I just… I don't know.”

I didn't want to have to tell everyone that my father had decided I wasn't worth having in his life. It was playing with my insecurities and making me doubt myself, and I also didn't want the pity. Being babied wasn't something I enjoyed.

“Brent and I spent most of the night working out how to deal with Will,” Kaleb told me. “He's on his way over now. He says he has an idea.”

He was wearing a T-shirt I'd never seen him in before, and I knew that because I always found myself staring at his pectorals through the fabric. It hugged his biceps perfectly, and I studied his tattooed arms, narrowing my eyes at a few dates inscribed into his flesh.

Kaleb took notice of my staring and turned his arm over to give me a better view of the ink. “It's Brie's birthday.”

I offered him a warm smile. “What's that one?” I pointed at the tattoo further down his arm. The snakes on his flesh glared at me, looking like they wanted to pounce.

“They're cobras—my mom's favourite.” He released a chuckle. “Don't ask me why. She's fascinated by them—likes how they can survive months without eating.”

It made sense. There were many snake-themed things around the house—including paintings and sculptures. The small wooden statue in the middle of the dining room table was rather off-putting, though, and my mother had to move it aside every time we ate. Snakes were her worst nightmare. No wonder they were friends. Opposites really did attract.

Kaleb had moved closer to me, having shuffled further along the couch to give me better access to his arms, and the only thing that separated us was his handgun.

The sound of a fist knocking against the front door caught my attention, and Kaleb flung it open.

Brent waltzed in—a pretty, tall blonde following him.

“Who is this?” Kaleb asked, crossing his arms over his chest as he studied the girl. “I don't take kindly to strangers in my home.”

“This is Kaylee,” Brent said, gesturing to her. “She's going to help.”

Kaleb huffed, pushing his dark hair back. “You told her everything?” He didn't look impressed.

Kaylee stood smugly next to Brent, appearing proud to be in with a cop, and frankly, if I were in her position, I would have been too. She felt like she knew a secret that she shouldn't, and that, to a woman, was exciting.

Not everything, Brent mouthed when Kaylee wasn’t looking.

“We're going to the shooting range. Will should be there,” he said, turning to me. “Freya, you're coming too.”

“What?” Kaleb grimaced. “No. No way. Brent, are you out of your mind?”

“Kaleb, we're so close to getting enough evidence on this guy to send him to the slammer. He's suspicious of us right now, and that could jeopardise everything.”

My eyes narrowed. Where had the bubbly and aloof Brent gone?

“He needs to see us as normal guys, and what's more normal than bringing our girlfriends along with us for some kind of fucked up double date?”

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