Page 3 of F Is for Honey Bee

“Come in,” Jonah said, interrupting Flint.

Flint visibly tensed as the pair walked in. Jonah moved deeper into the living room when the entryway became crowded. He should have felt a sense of relief with a police presence in his home. Instead, Jonah kept glancing at Flint and wondering if the deputies would fall for his innocent act and leave.

If the cops left, Jonah would once again be forced to handle Flint’s aggressive behavior alone.

“What are your names and socials?” Deputy Tenshi asked as he pulled a pen and small notepad from the shirt pocket of his uniform.

Jonah stared at the intricate tattoos that covered both pretty brown arms, trying his best not to be intimidated by the man’s sheer size.

“Jonah Konopa.” Then he gave his social security number, the deputy writing it in his notepad. Although Jonah had never been in trouble with the law, he suddenly felt a strong urge to admit to a crime he hadn’t committed simply because of the intimidating presence of the officers.

What’re you going to confess, that you cut the label off of your mattress?

Flint gritted his teeth as he gave his name and social. Though they had argued before—too many times to have ever considered their relationship healthy—not once had there been any indication of physical aggression until tonight.

Jonah really needed to reconsider his taste in men. Perhaps a pet was the better solution to his loneliness. At least a dog would bark at all the losers he kept attracting.

“Mind telling us what the disagreement was about?” Deputy Tenshi’s question pulled Jonah from his thoughts.

“It was a private issue.” Flint’s voice held a sharp edge as he spoke. “We’ll make sure to keep it down in the future.”

What future? Even though Jonah was afraid of Flint’s unpredictable temper, now more than ever, he was hanging a “closed” sign on their relationship and moving on. It was time to give Flint the boot, and not the fashionable kind.

“Why don’t we talk in the kitchen.” Deputy Tenshi’s gaze swept the room like he was taking everything in.

At the same time, Deputy Kingsman walked outside onto the porch. Was he running background checks on them?

Jonah wasn’t even sure that Flint’s name would come back clean. The guy was too hostile not to have had trouble in the past.

“The kitchen is this way.” Flint took a few steps before Deputy Tenshi’s deep voice stopped him.

“I was referring to Mr. Konopa.”

“Me?” Jonah pointed at himself.

“Yes,” Deputy Tenshi said.

As if the evening wasn’t already frightening, Flint gave Jonah a glare that silently warned him to stick to the story that their argument had been nothing more than a disagreement.

Screw him.

Jonah didn’t owe Flint a damn thing, especially after he’d turned things physical. Jonah had an urge to give Flint the middle finger in response to his silent warning.

“This way.” Jonah gestured for the deputy to follow him as he led the way through his kitchen and out into his backyard. After drawing in a deep breath of fresh air, Jonah started to feel better. “I know you said the kitchen, but Flint would have overheard us.”

Deputy Tenshi nodded understandingly. “This works just as well. Can you walk me through what happened tonight?”

Jonah’s gaze darted toward the back door.

“He won’t come out here,” the deputy reassured him.

“How can you be sure?” he asked. “Your partner is on my porch, which means he isn’t watching Flint.”

“Deputy Kingsman might be on your front porch, but he’s also keeping an eye on your boyfriend.”

“Ex-boyfriend.” Jonah emphasized the word to make it clear that they were no longer together. “That’s what the argument was about.”

Regardless of the deputy’s reassurance, Jonah couldn’t rip his gaze away from the back door, afraid that Flint would make an appearance at any moment.

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