Page 84 of Rules of Engagement

"I never thought you would. It would get a second chance at first place. A do-over." He sighed again and my heart lurched at the sadness I caused and failed to heal. "I'm glad Solomon's safe and I think he will wake up and be fine. I'm glad you are okay too," he said.

"Yeah," I said, wondering if I really were okay, or was just pretending.

"It's four in the morning," he said. "We need to get some rest."

I glanced at the couch, and raised my eyebrows, glad he couldn't see me. I thought he couldn't anyway. Maddox seemed to sense a lot so he probably sensed my eyebrows rising.

"You take one of the bedrooms," he said. "I'll take the couch."

"There're two bedrooms."

"I think it's better if I don't think about beds right now."

I leaned in and kissed his cheek. His breath caught and I wondered if he knew about the tear that rolled down my cheek. "Good night," I said before I got up and walked out of the room. I went into the closest bedroom, knowing it was absolutely the right thing to do. I unstacked the linens, spread out the pillow and comforter and got in, still fully clothed. I lay there a long time, staring at nothing and thinking about everything but when I finally slept, I dreamt about Solomon.

I awoke with a start, fully alert and ready to leap out of bed to tackle whatever woke me up. I sniffed. Coffee and bacon. It was those delicious scents that pulled me from sleep, not an attack. My stomach gave a little grumble and I stretched, blinking the sleep away before I froze. This wasn't my bedroom, or the hospital room. And why was I wearing my clothes in bed?

Recent memories flooded me and I squeezed my eyes shut as my face flushed red.

I was in the safe house, I accidentally kissed Maddox, and I awoke in my clothes because I crawled into bed wearing them.

On the bright side, getting dressed would be a breeze.

I pushed back the comforter and swung my legs out. I folded the linens, and when I had nothing left to do to procrastinate any longer, I walked out of the bedroom, aiming for the kitchen. Maddox had his back to me, but two cups were out on the counter, and the coffee pot was blinking.

A floorboard creaked under my foot. Maddox turned and smiled. "Morning," he said before turning back to the stove.

"Hey," I replied, just as awkwardly.

"Someone stocked the freezer with a few items. There isn't much but I made us bacon rolls and some coffee. I think we'll survive."

"That's good to know. Any news?"

"Not yet." Maddox took the skillet from the stove and slid the bacon onto the bread, folding the tops over. He passed a plate to me then poured a cup of coffee. "There's a bag of sugar over there and I think I saw some creamer if you want it."

"This is perfect," I said, blowing the steam from the top of my cup.

Maddox reached for his roll and bit into it just as his phone rang. "Yes?" he said, answering in a pause from chewing. "We're both here. It's Garrett," he said to me before continuing, "Really? With an actual bow around his neck? Any ideas who did that? Sure, we'll be there in thirty." He hung up and bit into the roll again.

"What?" I prompted.

"That was Garrett." Maddox shook his head and laughed. "The strangest thing happened this morning. Some guy was hogtied and tossed onto the sidewalk in front of the police station. He was gift-wrapped with one of those big, fancy, ribbon bows and a sign that said 'I'm Mooch'."

I froze, unsure whether Maddox was playing with me. "Are you for real?"

"I swear on my life that is what Garrett told me. We're needed down at the station. Finish your breakfast and we'll go. I think Mooch is willing to wait for us."

I was still trying to picture tough guy Mooch gift-wrapped when we walked into the police station. "This way," said Garrett, ushering us through quickly. "You look like you slept in those clothes."

"I did."

"Huh."

"What, huh?"

"I never saw you so disheveled before. You're usually so..." He waggled his hands around his head like a puppet.

"Sesame Street?" I guessed.

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