Page 4 of Love Undercover
“How long have you known him?”
Hicks sauntered toward the window, and she wondered if his movements were supposed to put her at ease. But it was impossible when Richter stared at her so incisively. It felt like his gaze would cut right through her.
She shifted, folding her arms across her chest as if he were seeing through her clothes, which reminded her that she wasn’t wearing her best bra. Not that he could actually know that. She mentally slapped her forehead, flinching as if she’d done it in real life.
Answer the question, Sadie, she scolded herself.
“Um, two years? But he’s not my boyfriend. Not anymore.”
Hicks turned, raising a brow. “But you have been in contact with him.”
“No. I—“ She stopped when she realized that wasn’t actually true. The memory of their earlier interaction flashed into her mind. “I mean, yes. But not reallyin contact. I ran into him on my break.”
Hicks and Richter exchanged a look, a sense of doubt simmering between them.
She thought back to their conversation, wondering if there was anything out of the ordinary, aside from his feigned altruism in the moment and his nervousness. “I don’t get it. He’s an accountant. What could he—“
Both men stared at her as she worked through what exactly an accountantcoulddo. With the kind of information he encountered, he had access to a lot of financial records and accounts for some big names.
He made decent money, but he had expensive taste. Definitely a bit hoity-toity for her. He’d been bothered that she was merely a kindergarten teacher even though she held a master’s in psychology and had been about to start her doctorate. But it was what she enjoyed. Her undergrad in child development and education had led her to teaching, so she’d opted to pass on the doctoral program.
“You could have been a doctor, Sadie,”he’d once said.
She shook her head as if someone had repeated the words aloud. Sadie never put stock in his snobbery. He’d found her lackof waver infuriating. There was no doubt in her mind that he’d hoped to convince her eventually.
“It was random.” She shook her head. “He was at a coffee shop I go to sometimes.”
“What shop was that?” Richter asked, while Hicks pulled out a notepad.
She gave them the name. “He didn’t act like he’d done anything wrong.” She wasn’t sure why there was a defensive note in her voice. It didn’t matter that he wasn’t her boyfriend anymore, or that he’d been a crappy one in the first place. She apparently felt some twinge of loyalty.
He had told her he loved her once.
She clenched her teeth together. Looking back, she could see how it might have been insincere, though. There was no need to protect him.
“Actually, he did seem a little nervous,” she amended, subdued.
“In what way?” Hicks this time, his pen hovering over the page in his notebook.
She shrugged, face twisting as she thought back. “Just anxious. Like he was waiting for someone to arrive, though he followed me inside and paid for my drink. All he did was ask me how things were and then left.”
“Did he mention having a meeting with someone?”
Her eyes were on the glossy surface of the desk, her mind reeling back to two hours before, so she didn’t register who had asked the question. “No, I don’t think so. I honestly didn’t care. We didn’t exactly end our relationship on the best terms.”
She pictured the way he’d fidgeted, his eyes traveling everywhere but her face for a few minutes. He hadn’t even said anything biting like usual. So maybe he’d been more nervous than she thought.
Blowing out a breath, she shook her head. “I’m sorry. I can’t give you much more. We barely talked. Just the usual pleasantries exchanged between acquaintances.”
“Or exes.”
She jerked to look at Hicks’ wry smile.
“Do you know where we can reach him?” Richter asked.
She turned a questioning look on him. “What do you mean? Don’t you have his number? His address?”
“Yes.”
