Page 145 of Deep Tide

“I don’t know.” She blew out a sigh. “We haven’t talked about it.”

“No?”

“I’ve hardly talked to him at all in three days. He’s been slammed with work, and so have I.”

“Does he know how you feel?”

She lifted a shoulder.

“If you’re in love with him, maybe you should tell him.”

Tears burned Leyla’s eyes. That was the whole problem. She was terrified. Not only of her feelings, but of telling him and finding out he wasn’t on the same page.

Leyla shook her head. “Part of me thinks it’s crazy to even be thinking about moving. Especially because I feel like we’re drifting apart.”

“You do?”

She nodded. “I felt so close to him when he was here.” Leyla had never experienced anything like it. It was like he could anticipate everything she wanted. And read her thoughts. “But now I’m worried. I mean, it was great in person, but what if that doesn’t translate to a long-distance relationship? What if he doesn’t want that level of commitment?”

Miranda tipped her head to the side. “Well, I don’t know him that well. But he doesn’t seem like someone to run from a challenge. Besides that, Joel respects him, and he’s a good judge of character.”

“Joel hates him.”

Miranda smiled. “No, he doesn’t.”

“Doesn’t he? I thought everything that happened caused a rift between them.”

Miranda shook her head. “I don’t think so. Or if it did, they’ve worked it out. The fact that Sean saved your life probably helped.”

Leyla sighed. Hearing that was good, but it didn’t lessen her stress. She wiped her eyes, annoyed with herself for getting weepy yet again today.

“I hate all this emotional drama,” she told Miranda. “It’s so not me. This is why I never wanted a long-distance relationship. It’s a lot harder than I thought it would be, and I thought it would suck.”

“Do you guys talk on the phone a lot?” Miranda asked.

“Not regularly, no. I didn’t want to get into that, where he feels obligated to call me every night, you know? I didn’t want to put that kind of pressure on everything. So we agreed to keep it to a few times a week.”

Miranda pursed her lips.

“Anyway, he’s been really busy. And I’ve been totally in the weeds. I’m buried with catering jobs right now. I’ve been staying late every night and working weekends.”

“Is that by design?” Miranda asked.

“Probably. I mean, yeah, it is,” Leyla admitted. “I refuse to let myself sit around moping. But he’s swamped, too. Especially this week. He’s been supporting a tactical team and working round the clock.”

The timer beeped. Leyla grabbed her mitt and turned to check the oven.

“It’ll get better, I’m sure,” Miranda said. “Joel says things should settle down after the raid tonight.”

Leyla got a cramp in her stomach as she pulled the baking sheet from the oven. She looked at Miranda.

“Joel is with Sean?”

Miranda’s eyebrows arched. “Oh... I’m not sure. Maybe?”

Leyla struggled to keep her face blank as she set the sheet on the counter.

“I’m sorry,” Miranda said. “I thought you knew.”

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