Page 76 of An Unexpected Home

“Did you find Will?” Her eyes went wide.

“No.” How the hell did he tell her about him hiding in the shed and the gas, knowing that it would break her spirit.

“It’s bad, right?” She was picking the nail polish off one of her nails, something he’d seen her do when she was nervous. Wanting to comfort her, he slid forward in his chair and took her hands in his.

“It’s come to our attention that Will has been staying in a shed on someone's property and he has stolen gasoline from the shed.”

Her brow furrowed. “What does that mean? That he stole gas?”

“It could mean nothing.”

“But you don’t think that?”

“No,” he shook his head. “I think he plans to use the gas to start a fire. I just don’t know where.”

He watched her face carefully looking for any indication that she would revert back to her previous self. It never came.

“What do you need me to do?” Her voice was strong and confident.

Confident that he would be able to keep her safe. And that was the problem. He had no idea if he could.

“I know you guys still try to go places in groups and spend as little time as possible alone, but it has to be even more now.”

“Okay.” She nodded. “What else?”

“I...I don’t know.” He answered honestly. “I’ve never done an investigation like this. I’m flying by the seat of my pants.”

Her face softened. “After my dad and my uncle devastated our family by stealing from their clients and friends, I thought that trusting someone meant giving them control. And I swore that I would never do that again. But then I met you. And I realized something. Trust doesn’t equal control. And Brandon, I trust you, with my life. And part of the reason I trust you is that you don’t ever try to control me. You let me be crazy and insane when I need to be. But because I trust you, I almost never am crazy or insane anymore.”

He was floored by her words. “I’m going to do everything in my power to not let this guy get near you. But what if it’s not enough?”

“It will be. You aren’t the bad guy here, Brandon. You are the one who is doing everything he can to make sure I am safe. Please don’t forget that.”

He was just going in for a kiss when they both jumped back from a loud siren.

“What the hell.”

“That’s the alarm,” Leah said and pointed to a panel on the wall where it was flashing red.

Brandon stood and pulled his gun out. “Stay here,” he said and left the office.

He turned the corner, gun pointed out only to find Carly and Melanie arguing and trying to shut off the alarm.

“What the hell you two,” he said and re-holstered his gun.

“Thank God,” Carly said. “Do you know how to shut this thing up?”

At the control panel, he punched in a code and the alarm stopped blaring. “How did you set it off?”

“We both had our hands full and couldn’t hit the code in time,” Melanie said.

“Leah, it's okay!” he called out. “It’s just Carly and Mel.”

Leah came out of the office. “Thanks for scaring me to death.”

“Sorry,” Carly said, handing her a bag. “But I brought lunch.”

“What are you doing here, Bran?” Carly asked as they all walked back to the office.

---