Page 18 of By The Book
She and Tommy had gotten into arguments plenty of times, but he’d never laid his hands on—
“Coffee’s on.”
“O-okay, thanks!” she called, taking a breath and forcing herself to her feet.
She fixed the bed once more and hurried down the hall toward her bedroom, locking herself inside. She needed a long shower and some time to think before she faced her father again.
Not to mention her son.
Denz was sittingon the steps leading up to the apartment with his coffee and a real estate guide he’d picked up at the gas station that morning when he spotted Claire’s son tearing out of the house like it was on fire.
He started to stand and go see what was up, but the kid stopped near his mom’s Jeep and started crying. Sobs racked the kid’s shoulders, and he hid behind the vehicle, obviously not wanting to be seen.
Remembering his own reaction at that age to people seeing him lose his cool, Denz stayed silent and still and hoped the kid wouldn’t notice him.
After a few minutes, the kid pulled himself together and took off around the garage, still carrying whatever it was he’d run out of the house with.
Denz used the opportunity to quietly go inside, taking a few discreet glances out of the windows around the apartment. He finally spotted the kid placing the game system bag inside one of Tom’s outside storage boxes. The kid’s head jerked all around as though to see if he was being watched while he worked to cover it up and close the lid.
When the kid skulked away, Denz tracked him from within the apartment once more. Tommy stood outside the back of the house long seconds before heading inside as quickly as he’d emerged.
Interesting happenings this morning, he mused.
All of which reminded him of his talk with Claire about her relationship with her father. Something had picked at him ever since, and he inhaled and pulled out his cell, scrolling through his contacts until he found the right one.
He stared at the name, at the number, his thumb hovering over the digits. Another inhalation had him swiping the contact list away and shoving his phone back in his pocket.
It was early yet. Too early to call.
And definitely too early for whatever had just taken place to send Claire’s son tearing outside in his underwear and tears.
Back in the kitchenette area, he dumped the last of his coffee in the sink, gazing out the window toward the house once more.
It was Saturday morning in a beach town with summer kicking in. Time to go find some sand.
He changed into swim trunks and grabbed the towel he’d picked up at one of the tourist traps last week.
Tom had told him to borrow whatever he needed from the supplies below, so once he had sunscreen, earbuds, and a small cooler filled, he tossed a book into the backpack with the towel and other items and headed out to find a chair.
While wandering around the garage, he relocated the bag carrying the game system to his vehicle and locked up it up until he got the full story.
That done, he rounded the rental, found a chair, and went back to the steps to retrieve the backpack he’d left there. That’s when he saw Claire standing on the porch. “Morning.”
“Good morning.”
Okay. Yeah, something was definitely off. One glance told him Tommy wasn’t the only one in tears that morning. “You okay?” he asked, moving toward her.
“What? Oh, I’m fine.”
He wondered how long it would take her to realize simply standing outside looking like a kicked puppy was a little telling. “Lose something?” he asked instead.
Her gaze met his, eyes wide.
“I saw him stash it. It’s now locked in my car. Do you want me to get it for you?”
“No. No, if you don’t mind, just leave it.”
“Okay.”
