Page 10 of Barbed Wire and Burglary
“Not true. You’re the only one doing that.” She eyed him bleakly. “As much as I love Uncle Cary, he rarely ventures outside our home office.” All he did was give orders and dole out assignments from the safety of his swivel chair. Some of his demands were downright unrealistic, too. Aaron didn’t yet grasp how much of a problem the man wasbecoming, because he didn’t have to work as closely with the guy.
Her brother merely shrugged.
She ground her teeth in frustration. “Because of him, I no longer have a life,” she fumed, “and neither do you. We’re constantly on the move, constantly looking over our shoulders…” She didn’t know how much more of it she could take. Now that she had A.J. in her life, she was considering making some drastic changes, like settling down in one place and working remotely. If she did, Diamondback would be forced to finally bring some fresh blood on board instead of continuing to work her into the ground.
Her brother leaned back against his desk. “Next topic. Why did you show A.J. the diamond ring your goofy cat swiped?”
“I didn’t.” Did he really think she’d be so careless? “He was there when I found it. The better question is how Bandit ever got his paws on it.”
Aaron gave her an annoyed look. “I was going through some files in the safe when he jumped inside and had a heyday with the jewelry boxes—something we wouldn’t have to worry about if you hadn’t brought a stray cat home.”
Being outwitted by a cat didn’t sound like the brother she knew, but it wasn’t worth arguing over. Instead, she changed the subject. “You’re exhausted. Maybe you should be resting instead of swapping shifts with the other deputies. Don’t even get me started on how bad working evenings is for your love life,” she joked, knowing he wasn’t dating anyone. It wasn’t that women didn’t notice him. The problem was that he didn’t noticethem. He was too fixated on getting justice for their parents.
“My nonexistent love life,” he muttered.
“Which you could easily do something about,” she suggested playfully. “I just found out there’s a line dancing class in town on Monday nights.” He was two years older than her, wore a badge, and packed heat. The single ladies would go nuts over a guy like him.
He looked at her as if she was crazy. “Are you forgetting what we do for a living?”
“Not at all.” She wasn’t sure what it would take to make him understand. “I’m just reminding you that we’re real people.”
“Real? Yes. Normal? No.” His voice was clipped. “Which brings us back to A.J.”
She wasn’t in the mood to hear more of his objections about them dating. “I’m in love with him, Aaron. I think he’sthe one.” Though it wasn’t the best time to have this conversation, it was long overdue.
Her brother looked alarmed. “You just met him.”
“No, it was over a month ago,” she corrected.
He glared at her. “Same thing.”
“No, it’s not.” She lifted her chin. “This isn’t a fling, Aaron. I’m in a serious relationship.”
His glare deepened. “What exactly are you saying?”
She bit her lower lip, choosing her next words carefully. “I want to cut back on my hours.” Way back. “And maybe work remotely. I know it’s something you, Uncle Cary, and I would need to discuss first, but I’ve already put a lot of thought into it. This is what I want, Aaron.”
His jaw dropped.
“Not right this second,” she said quickly, “but soon.”
A nerve in his jaw ticked. “How soon?”
“Ideally, my assignment at Modello’s will be the last one of its kind before I make the aforementioned changes.”There. She’d finally said it. She could barely breathe while she waited for him to respond.
He cleared his throat. “How long have you been planning this?”
“The better part of a year.” She ignored the choking sound that came out of him. “You’d be lying if you said you like the direction our company is headed any more than I do.”
“Like every business, we have our ups and downs.” He gestured between them. “What makes Diamondback extra special to me is that we’re a family business.”
“Mostly,” she returned bitterly. For her, it no longer felt that way now that their parents were gone.
“Uncle Cary is family,” he reminded quietly.
“Yes, he is, though his many eccentricities get on my last nerve sometimes.” She blew out a breath. It didn’t help that he’d kept her father’s personal assistant on board—a woman Aaron had dated for a short time. Elise Hathaway should’ve been let go after they’d broken up.
“Mine, too, but he’s trustworthy.” A crooked smile curved Aaron’s mouth upward, reminding her how handsome he was when he wasn’t snarling and growling at her. “That counts for a lot in my book.”
