Page 100 of He Who Sleeps

Chapter 34

Petra stepped downto the street with a smile on her face and a spring in her step. Thanksgiving had been amazing with her guys, and while she was dreading them leaving for the Solstice, she was looking forward to the few dates she had lined up with them before then, not to mention the surprise meet ups they were enjoying doing.

They had been home four days from the holiday trip and she had been surprised by Easton at work for lunch, Jack and Leo at her apartment bringing Italian, and Finn taking her to the night show at the museum.

And today, today was a trip to meet Leo at the coffee shop, before she went to the gallery to help with the boxing of a show that was heading to New York.

"Petra!" Officer Douritz greeted her as she came down the steps from her front door. "How are you? I didn't see you around over Thanksgiving. Did you go away?"

She nodded, a bright smile greeting her. “With friends. How was your holiday?”

"Friends? Where? I thought your friends usually came here to see you," he said, frowning.

“Oh, we rented a house a bit farther north since it was easier for all of us to converge and pay a cleaning bill,” she laughed. “I hope your holiday went well. No baddies out on these streets keeping you from turkey and pumpkin pie?”

He brushed it off with a laugh. "It's all part of protecting and serving," he told her. "We miss out on holidays so that you can have a safe one." He paused and she thought he was going to let her pass, but then his gaze narrowed. "You noticed anything up in the neighborhood lately? I've been seeing a lot of unsavory-looking guys visiting your building."

“Oh! No... Um...a few co-workers have popped by recently, but not that I’m aware. Maybe someone new moved in?” she said slowly, though the comment rubbed her the wrong way.

"Uh uh...co-workers from the gallery or the shelter?" he asked. "If they're going to be visiting you at home, I could run background checks on them for you?"

“Both actually, one of them is the head Animal Control officer, though what are you implying?” she asked, her smile not reaching her eyes. “You think I don’t have a good sense of people?”

"Of course not." He clearly realized he'd overstepped the mark because he cleared his throat. "I'm just looking out for my people. This is my beat, you know?"

“Of course!” she said with a nod. “Well, I’m going to be late. Have a great day, yeah? So much to do today! They are moving one of our biggest shows to the sister gallery in New York!”

"I'll wave if I pass by," he said with a broad grin, moving aside to let her pass. "Have a great day!" He stood there and waved, watching as she headed down the street. Because that wasn't creepy at all...

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