Page 33 of No Sweet Goodbyes

“I lied.”

“Did you sleep with her?”

Suddenly, getting the fourth degree from my boss feels a hell of a lot like I’m getting it from Emma’s dad instead. There’s heat rising up the back of my neck, finding its way into my face and I’m struggling to breathe through it.

“Why does that matter?”

“Because.” I can see the wheels turning in his head. “If you slept with her while you hold a position of power over her, it not only complicates things on a personal level but also on a professional level. You could be putting the department in a position of liability. Not to mention the fact that she’s my goddaughter. So yeah, if you slept with her, it’s an issue.”

“No,” I tell him honestly. “I haven’t slept with her.”

“Good.” My boss waves me off. “Means the department doesn’t have to fire you. But her father might have to kill you. That’s his problem, though, not mine.”

Two can play at the asshole game. “But I’m going to sleep with her.” He doesn’t need to know that Emma is most likely going to reject me. And that I’m going to have to grovel to earn my way back into her good graces. That’s a conversation for me and Emma. “Which is why I can’t be her training officer.”

“You’re a pain in my ass.” Alex pushes his chair back. “Do you know how much paperwork I’m going to have to do for this shit?”

“I don’t care.” I turn on my heel. “That’s why you’re the chief of police.”

12

EMMA

All I wanted was to torture Dom just a little bit by wearing the shirt I stole out of the back seat of his truck. And maybe to go for tacos after work.

After accomplishing the first, I decide that I should get to reward myself for a job well done and eat the tacos that I want and deserve after depriving myself all week in an attempt to get ready for the academy.

What I don’t plan on is sliding into Kennedy’s usual booth at Lucy’s and having six women join me within five minutes.

Kennedy and Parker, along with Violet and Alta and Alta’s other daughter Alicia, and Bee. Oh, and Nox pops out from behind his mother at the last second. So my quiet afternoon of tacos and torture turns into my own personal hell.

Not only that, but we won’t all fit in the booth and no one seems to notice it except for me. Parker, who runs Lucy’s, has a whole other table brought over for us, and everything turns into a party. All before I ever get to say a word.

“What are you guys doing here?” I ask loudly when Kennedy plops down next to me, pushing me into the booth and eliminating any chance for me to escape.

“Linc called.” She shrugs. “And I guess Remy called Parker. The guys are getting together at Dom’s house, so we’re having girls’ night.” She stares at my chest, which makes me realize that everyone sees whose shirt I have on, and I flush.

“It’s not what you think,” I stammer. “Seriously.”

I should have just gone home and gone to bed instead of trying to enjoy the victory.

“Sure, it’s not,” Vi offers from across the table. “I steal random guys’ shirts all the time, and it doesn’t mean anything.” Her words are comforting, except that she is being completely sarcastic. That, mixed with the rolled eyes, has the adults cackling in laughter.

“Mom,” Nox announces loudly. “Before you guys all get adult drinks, Bee and I need our usual.”

“I don’t have a usual,” Bee corrects him shyly. “I’ve never been here.”

Gasps from around the table draw the attention away from me, as Bee becomes the focal point. Usually, I’d feel bad and try to protect her, but since Bee’s been staying with the Ortiz family, she’s flourished.

Enough that she doesn’t cower from the attention. In fact, Bee has really come to enjoy being the center of attention. And honestly, she deserves it.

“We’re family,” Nox informs her. “That means we get usuals. Mom makes sure that we always get a special drink and we always get food. That’s what family means. No one gets left behind or goes hungry.”

“That’s not what the saying is,” Parker tells her son. “But close enough. He’s right, Bee. You get your favorite drink and food.”

“What’s yours?” She stares at Nox like he’s the most important person in the world, and my heart isn’t the only one around the table that starts to melt with the way he handles her.

Like we don’t even exist, he turns his body so she has his full attention. And it’s not even my overly romantic imagination at work. It’s the adorable way Nox makes sure Bee knows she has options.

---