Page 49 of Unexpected Redemption

Mia’s face perks up like she’s been struck with a bug zapper. “Is there any chance you’d be open to letting us ask you some questions about your time in the house?”

My tongue pokes the inside of my cheek as I feign annoyance. “Do you often answer questions with questions?”

She and Klein catch eyes for a brief second before she focuses on me. A playful grin dances across her features. “The box...” She glances at him once more, and this time, her gaze lingers longer. The peaks of her brows arch faintly.

If I didn’t know better, I’d think she was seeking his permission. My suspicion is confirmed a breath later when he lowers his chin in a swift nod.

Mia immediately launches into an explanation. “There was a box inside the house. Shoebox-sized.” She holds her hands out in front of her to approximate the shape.

Does she think I don’t know what a shoe box is?

“Tasha’s box?”

She shrugs, adding, “When Tomer and Shep visited Savin and his girlfriend before they entered WITSEC, Savin told Tomer exactly where to find it. And he went there to get it, but none of us know what it means. Now that Savin’s off the grid, it’s a blank spot for us. Any chance you know why he’d want us to have it?”

“No clue.” My mind sorts through all she said. “That must have been the night Tomer burned—” I cut myself off mid-sentence.

Mother of Macaulay Culkin. I almost ratted him out for arson.

Mia’s expression flashes with devilish charm, eyes twinkling and mouth rounding. “Don’t worry. I’m well aware of what he did. And I don’t blame him one bit. In fact, I’m the one who wiped the cell tower data to ensure Shep and Tomer’s phones weren’t pinged in the area. I also helped him purge nearby traffic cam footage from that night.”

Aww. She’s a great teammate for my guy.

“Impressive,” I admit. “Kri was right when she said you were good.”

“Mia’s the fucking best,” Klein chimes in, suddenly entering the conversation. “By the way, we’re five mikes out.”

He leans close, capturing her lips in a chaste kiss. When he pulls back, they make goo-goo eyes at each other for a hot minute, causing a high-pitched laugh to crawl up from the depths of my belly. “I can’t believe I—” I snicker into my hand, hoping I can stop this silliness before my new boss comes in and sees me cackling like a hyena.

It’s not eventhatfunny. No clue why I’m this amused.

Gah. Stress and tension release, most likely.

Wearing a smile as wide as the day is long, Mia asks, “What’s gotten into you, girl?”

Still fighting back the mirth, I drag my palm over my forehead and flop my head onto the chair back. “Before all this shit happened, I thought Tomer was cheating on me with you.”

“With which one of us?” Klein asks from behind a dopey grin.

I level the joker with a teasing glare. “Duh. Obviously with you,” I jest. “It’s so silly because I look at you two together, and Tomer wouldn’t have had a shot even if he wanted one. Which now I know he doesn’t.”

I tap my purple necklace.

My collar.

Still feels weird to say it, even internally. It’s an odd feeling to have this on all the time. Not in a bad way, but in a million years, I’d have never thought something like a collar—what we put on animals’ necks—would mean so much to me. But it’s so damn sweet to feel claimed by him. And the promises he made when he gave it to me were everything I never knew I needed.

Speaking of animals, a sudden rumble comes from Klein. Is he... is hegrowling?

Mia rolls her eyes with a flourish. “Ignore him, Lettie. He suffers from an incredibly sexy form of jealousy.”

My eyes flash wide, and my lips part.

She adds, “It’s a little ironic that you felt that way because Klein did too.” She reaches under the desk and squeezes his upper thigh. “Same as I told him a million times, I’ll tell you too. Tomer is like a big brother to me. We just clicked, but it’s not anything beyond friendship. There was never any attraction. Just a mutual appreciation of the other’s skills. As a hacker, there aren’t too many people who understand how my brain works. I think it was the same for him.” She lowers her voiceto emphasize her point. “Neither of you have anything to worry about.”

“Oh, I know thatnow. Back then, things were a little bizarre. In retrospect, I believe it was a case of him hiding other things which are now out in the open.” Realizing I’m oversharing again, I snap my mouth closed.

One sweet day, I’ll learn to stop while I’m ahead.

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