Page 47 of Run to Ground
“Sorry.”
His expression softened as he studied her. “I don’t mind.”
Jules wasn’t quite sure how to respond, and his careful regard was making her jittery—although in the best way possible—so she glanced around as an excuse to break eye contact. Hugh was giving her hungry-puppy face from their usual table, while Otto looked on in long-suffering, yet tolerant, amusement. “I should get back to work.”
Theo followed her gaze to his partner. “He can wait. Kids okay with going back to school?”
“The kids, yes,” Jules said with a grimace. “I’m the one who’s freaking out. They’re ready—more than ready. I keep watching for signs of trauma, but they’re not there. The kids are sick of me asking if they want to talk about it. Dee finally said she didn’t need to, but she would ifIneeded to.”
Theo made a sound that might have been a laugh if it hadn’t come from Theo.
“It was so hard not to lock them in the basement this morning so they couldn’t get on their bus.” This time, he choked a little on his latest bite of biscuit. “Not that I would do that…especially since the basement door doesn’t have a lock on the outside. It’s just tough not to keep them home, where it’s safe.”
“You want to protect them.” He said it like it was a good thing, an admirable thing, like she was trying to be a good sister rather than the unstable, clinging-to-the-edge mess she felt like she was right now.
Officer Theodore Bosco was a shockingly good listener. Jules gave him a sideways look. Such a short time ago, he’d seemed like the enemy. After he saved her life, and her sister’s life and her brother’s life, though…after he fixed their porch and said he’d like to be a dog and then snored on their couch, everything about him had turned in her mind. Now, it felt as if he was on their side.
That wasn’t good. No matter how big a hero he was, he would still arrest her if he knew what she’d done—what she was still in the process of doing. Theo was a good cop. He wouldn’t have any choice.
“I really should be getting back to work.” Although she tried to make the words sound casual, Jules must’ve failed, because he gave her a sharp look. She slid toward the opening in the booth that was blocked by his solid form, thinking he’d shift out of her way. He didn’t. All Jules accomplished was getting her body close to Theo’s—very, very close.
“You know,” he said quietly, tipping his head toward hers so they were the only ones who could hear his words, “this doesn’t give me much incentive to move.” His gaze dropped to where her thigh touched his. Heat radiated from him, warming her entire side, making her want to get closer. Theo’s gravitational pull had activated again, drawing her in until their planets collided.
Thinking about colliding with Theo made her flush, and she guiltily raised her gaze to his, hoping desperately that he’d missed how she’d just ogled him. By the humor and heat in his eyes, she knew he could read every lustful thought in her head.
Jules could feel her face burning in embarrassment…and for other reasons.
Megan hollered across the diner, “Quit holding my waitress captive, Theo! Indulge in your bondage fantasies later, when there aren’t hungry people to feed.”
There was a bark of laughter from Hugh. Although Theo looked annoyed, he didn’t seem to be at all embarrassed. Jules, on the other hand, felt her skin burn from her chest to her hairline. Worst of all were the images instantly flooding her mind. The heat wasn’t all from humiliation. There was some excitement brewing there, as well.
Luckily, Theo was too busy scowling at Megan and sliding out of the booth to notice Jules’s embarrassment. Ducking her head, she stood and grabbed what little remained of her biscuits and gravy. Before she hurried to the kitchen, though, she couldn’t stop herself from sneaking a quick peek at his face.
He wasn’t looking at her. Instead, he stared, expressionless, over her shoulder. Jules turned to find out what had put that look on his face, but she moved a little too quickly and bobbled. Theo caught her upper arm, steadying her. She automatically put out a hand, and it landed on his belly. Her breath stopped as soon as her fingers landed on his solid belly, only a T-shirt blocking skin-to-skin contact.
“Theo.” The woman’s voice was sweet and feminine, and it yanked Jules back to the present in a disconcerting rush. Turning toward the speaker, she dropped her hand too quickly, blushing as hotly as if she’d been caught fondling his naked stomach. Her embarrassment increased when she saw the woman was insanely perfect, enough so that her beauty melted Jules into an insecure heap. “How are you? I heard about the shooting. How terrible! I’m so glad you’re okay.”
Theo’s response was more a grunt than a word, and his tension was so obvious that it made Jules intensely curious. Was she an ex-girlfriend? Or—and her heart dissolved at the thought—maybe acurrentgirlfriend? Jules could easily see it. The woman was gorgeous. Tall and willowy and even-featured, like a model who specialized in the girl-next-door look.
“Who is this?” The too-attractive stranger turned to Jules with a friendly smile and held out a hand. “I’m Sherry Baker.”
Off-balance from imagining Theo and this woman together, Jules automatically accepted the handshake but waited a second too long to answer. “Oh, I’m Jules! I mean, um…Julie Jackson.” She tried to hide her wince. The last time she’d bungled her new name so badly was when she’d been interrogated by Theo. It made it worse when Sherry gave her a sympathetic smile, as if she knew too well what it was like to act like a babbling idiot. It’d have been much easier to hate Sherry if she hadn’t seemed so stinking nice.
“Sherry,” Otto said, startling Jules, who hadn’t noticed his approach. For a big guy, he sure moved quietly. He must have taken Sherry by surprise, as well, because she quickly twisted around.
“Hey, Sherry.” Hugh swung up on his crutches. “How’re things?”
Glancing between the two newcomers, Sherry laughed. “What a reception! Hi, Otto, Hugh. I didn’t see you two when I came in. Oh, Hugh—I can’t believe you were shot! I think I must’ve left the lieutenant fifty messages after I heard. I was going crazy with worry until he finally called me back yesterday to tell me you were going to be okay. How’s the investigation going? Any idea who it was?”
“Thanks,” Hugh said lightly. “I’ll be fine. We’re following up some leads, but there’s nothing definite yet.” Jules studied his face, pretty sure the tension in his expression wasn’t from pain—not all of it, at least. She wondered if she’d guessed wrong about which cop was interested in Sherry.
“Jules!” Megan bellowed from across the diner. “If you don’t get back to work right now, I’m never going to offer you a break ever again, and by ‘never’ I mean ‘not until the end of time’!”
Jules took a step toward the kitchen. “I’d better get back,” she said. “It was nice to meet you?” To her embarrassment, her voice rose at the end, turning the pleasantry into more of an insult. Sherry’s smile faltered, and Jules felt like a rude toad. It wasn’t Sherry’s fault that residual, unwarranted envy still churned in Jules’s stomach, making her regret eating the biscuits and gravy. She gave Sherry an apologetic grimace, and the other woman’s expression brightened again.
“You, too, Jules.”
Jules started to take another step away from the group, but Theo caught her hand, squeezing it briefly before releasing. That was the second time in less than an hour that Theo had held her hand, Jules realized, and her smile grew huge as she met his gaze.
