Page 3 of Whatever It Takes

I didn’t like how he looked at her. His stare was too focused and too intense.

She rolled her eyes and grumbled, but thankfully, she let go of my leg. The drama queen in her had taken over, and sometimes it felt like she was six going on sixteen.

Heat bloomed in my face, and I pressed my sweaty palms together, trying to hide the fact that they were trembling. “I really don’t want to talk about any of this in front of my daughter,” I said to Detective Rubin as Emery disappeared into the house.

“We understand and we won’t take up much of your time.” He gave me a reassuring smile, spotting Emery over my shoulder. “If you want, we can wait until she’s taken off to school?”

I looked down and took inventory of what I was wearing. I certainly wasn’t dressed to impress in a simple gray top and black leggings. But at least I had showered this morning, so I was thankful for that.

I opened the door and gestured for them to come inside.As soon as Quinn’s body got close enough to mine, everything around me stopped, especially my breathing.He paused for a brief second as he passed me; the scent of his familiar cologne caught me off guard. It was the same damn cologne that he always wore. The one that I would put in his stocking every year on Christmas Eve.

He stepped inside, paying close attention to everything as we moved from the foyer to the living room. His eyes seemed intrigued as he studied the photos of Emery lined along the wall. His steps faltered, and he hesitated at my wedding picture on the mantel, a frown formed on his face. I turned my gaze to the ceiling, wishing I had more time to prepare for this. Maybe then I wouldn’t be so anxious.

The sound of our footsteps echoed down the hall as the two men followed me into the kitchen. I walked over and placed Emery’s lunch in her backpack and zipped the pouch shut.

“All right, sweet pea, you’re all set.” I turned to put her empty plate in the dishwasher. “Go wash your hands. The bus will be here any minute.”

Her nose scrunched up as she looked curiously at the two large men standing in the middle of our kitchen. A little line formed in the middle of her forehead. “You guys are friends of my mom’s?”

Detective Rubin’s expression softened. “As a matter-of-fact, we are.”

She rested her chin in her hands. I could see her inquiring mind working overtime. “What are your names?”

“I’m Marco and this is Quinn.”

Emery tilted her head to the side and focused on Quinn. “You know, the sun isn’t shining in here. Why do you still have your sunglasses on?”

“You’re right. Sorry about that,” he said with a wobbly voice as he pushed his glasses up to the top of his head. “Nice to meet you, Emery.”

His familiar voice stirred up things inside of me that I didn’t want to remember. Memories of broken promises and declarations of love came rushing back, creeping into places where they didn’t belong. While it had been more than seven years, it still felt like time stood still. I never imagined that seeing him again would be so painful.

“Emery.” I swallowed nervously. “It’s time to go. You don’t want the bus to leave without you.”

“Why does the bus always have to come so early?” she griped while taking one last bite of her toast.

“Maybe if you went to bed earlier, you wouldn’t be so tired in the morning.”

She gave me the stink eye letting me know what she thought of my suggestion as she stalked over to grab her backpack.

I fastened the strap along her shoulder and pressed a kiss to her head. I could see the bus pulling up at the curb through the window. “You have a good day. I’ll see you when you get home.”

“Love you, Mom.” She smiled and waved goodbye to the two men. “Bye, Marco and Quinn.”

Detective Rubin laughed, while Quinn stared at her across my kitchen table with a stoic look on his face.I wanted to know what he was thinking, but then reminded myself that it didn’t matter what the bastard thought.

I walked over and grabbed two coffee mugs out of the cupboard. I turned to Detective Rubin. “Would you like a cup of coffee?”

“Yeah, that would be great. Thanks.” He nodded as he made himself comfortable and pulled out a yellow notepad and pen.

Quinn remained standing with his hands bunched along the back of an empty chair. I could feel his gaze on me as I poured the coffee into the mug. My hands shook as I reached over and grabbed the cream and sugar off the counter. I walked around the table and handed Detective Rubin his coffee. Not wanting to be rude in front of his partner, I slid the other mug over to Quinn. The coffee was black, just the way he liked it.

Detective Rubin leaned back in his chair, his eyes were wary. “I know this is difficult for you, Mrs. Anderson, but we need to ask you a few questions.”

“I already told you everything I know. I have no idea where Grant is, and I have no idea what that package was about.” I was beyond frustrated with the situation and having Quinn here in my space didn’t help.

“We’ve read over the reports. We have no doubt that you’re telling the truth.” His body shifted, and I saw his expression change. “We are very concerned about the people he was involved with. Not knowing who they are makes things a lot more difficult on our end. Grant is unpredictable at the moment. So, if he or anyone tries to contact you in any way, do not hesitate to call us.”

I laughed, even though there was nothing about this current situation that was funny. “Call you? Hell, I’ll do better than that. I’ll pay for his Uber ride downtown myself.”

---