Page 39 of Into the Shadows

Like how Lottie lights up the entire room with only a smile. She doesn’t even care that I acted a bit like a caveman. In fact, I think she kind of liked it. I might have to follow up on that later.

“Well, I’ll let you finish your lunch. Thank you for the rescue.” Lottie tries to get away with only pecking me on the cheek, but I don’t let her. I kiss her straight up, not caring in the slightest that Noah is sitting right in front of us. I might want his approval, but I want the entire town to know that Lottie is mine even more. Consequences be damned.

I turn back to Noah as Lottie floats out of the café.

He’s grinning at me. “This is going to be entertaining.”

I have no idea what he means, but I’m ready to find out.

Chapter 23

Lottie

“Hey, kiddo.”

The voice makes me jump. “Dad! What are you doing here?” I pop out of my office chair to wrap my arms around his waist. His navy police uniform sits a little tighter around his middle than it used to, while his brown hair is peppered with grey. He’s always felt larger than life to me, and even though he’s a little softer now, he can still take down a fully grown man in a few seconds.

“I texted first. Guess you didn’t see it. Thought I’d try to fix that sink in your guest bathroom.”

I narrow my eyes at him. “At”—I check my watch—“one in the afternoon while you’re on duty?”

He blusters for a second while I continue to stare at him. He folds like a house of cards. “Okay, fine. I want to know about this boy you were seen with at Jimmy’s the other night.”

My eyes revert to my teenage years as they roll to the back of my head.

“I did bring my tools to fix the bathroom, though. I thought I could do both.” Dad gives me his charming grin that always makes everyone swoon.

I point at him. “That won’t work on me.”

His face drops into his natural smile. “It’s one of the many things I love about you, baby girl. You’ve never been swayed by manipulation. You get that from your momma.”

I soften at his compliment. “Come on, old man. Grab your tools. If you’re going to wheedle information out of me, you might as well be useful.”

Dad barks out a laugh. He turns back to the front door and grabs his red toolbox. It’s beat to hell and heavy as shit. All the memories I have of following in Dad’s shadow as he fixed anything and everything hit me when I look at that metal box. I would ask a million and one questions while he worked. How he continued to have patience with me is a miracle.

I follow Dad to the bathroom between mine and Gia’s office. The faucet hasn’t been working right for the past couple of weeks. I can fix a lot of things on my own, thanks to Dad’s instruction, but this is out of my wheelhouse.

He squats under the sink and starts to fiddle with the pipes. “Okay, you’ve put me to work. Start talking, missy.”

I don’t have to see him to know he’s smiling. “His name is Teddy. Well, William. William Kavanagh.”

Dad’s head pokes back out from the sink with a frown marring his eyebrows. “The former Marine? Uriah Kavanagh’s grandson?”

“Oh, yeah. I forgot you met him at the gym.”

“Did that little asshole have his sights set on you while he was talking to me?”

I roll my eyes. Again. “No, Dad. He would never disrespect you like that. Especially when he barely knows you. It wouldn’t be proper.”

“Sarcasm doesn’t suit you,” he says drily.

I grin. “Yes, it does. You taught me everything I know.”

Dad cracks. “And I regret it every day.” He winks and thendisappears under the sink. “How did this punk get you to go out on a date?”

“Technically, I asked him first, but the night you met him at The Warehouse, he accidentally snuck up behind me while I was getting in my car. I reacted accordingly, taking him down to the pavement and knocking the wind out of him. He asked me to go to dinner after that.”

“Huh.” Dad grunts.

---