Page 51 of Broken Halo

Her brow puckers. “Why are you here then?”

“I have a meeting with Eli, which I’m late for, and since he stayed to see me, I need to get going.”

“Why are you meeting with Eli?”

“There you go again, thinking everything’s about you, which it’s not. For once,” I verbally prod. I might need to kiss her ass, but I’m definitely going to do it on my terms. And there’s no way I’m telling her what my meeting is about. She, of all people, does not need to be worrying about my father.

“Well. Yay, me.” She exhales and actually looks relieved, which she wouldn’t be if she knew the truth. “I guess I’ll see you in court.”

“You might want to take a shower,” I suggest, making her glare and I have to work at keeping my smirk at bay. “Right now, you look like a weed-smoking-workout-fanatic. I can take you shopping if you need me to—I’ve had to do it before. Mostly when I was donating my time as a public defender in Orange County.”

She looks taken aback. “You were a public defender?”

“No. I was a defense attorney. I served on a panel and donated my time to those who couldn’t afford it. I’ve bought a lot of suits off the racks for my clients. If I need to take you to Walmart, let me know.”

She knows I’m giving her shit and rolls her eyes.

“And,” I add, “make sure your bra isn’t hanging out. Just because I like it, doesn’t mean the judge will. You definitely don’t want to look like a bra-flashing-weed-smoking-workout-fanatic.”

Her face almost cracks into something besides constant annoyance, but she’s still hanging onto it by a fraying thread. Instead she tips her head and states, “I know how to make a good impression.”

“Looking forward to that, angel.” I glance at my watch. “Now I’m really late. You have a good night.”

“Yeah,” she mumbles as I move around her to get to Pettit’s office.

I take the stairs two at a time and call back down to her. “Maybe I’ll bump into you tomorrow. Can’t wait to see what bra you’re wearing.”

I don’t look back, but I do hear her push the door open with more force than necessary.

When I enter Statum Security and Investigations, Eli is at the desk in the lobby looking at his phone.

“Sorry I’m late,” I apologize and offer him my hand. “You can thank your fiancée. She’s a slave driver.”

“Don’t I know it. I’ve got information on your dad and on Ellie’s in-laws. Which do you want first?”

He’s in a hurry to get this done and I am, too. “Does it matter? I’m sure neither are good.”

He tips his head and slides a file that’s sitting on the desk my way. “Depends. I think all information is good news because it’s more than we knew before. Let’s start with Ellie. The Kettemans have booked flights to Dallas. They’ll be landing in the Lone Star State tomorrow night.”

I flip open the file to read over his notes and their itinerary. “Interesting that they’re coming for a visit now when Ellie is having legal issues.”

“Exactly my thought,” he confirms my fears and flips over the first paper, pointing to the next page. “They’ve also been in constant contact with this number. I ran it and it’s a burner phone. The drawback of being a PI and not a federal agent is I can’t tap a line or ping it. Not legally anyway.”

I look up and hitch a brow, wondering if he’s capable and willing to tap it in an illegal way.

“Sorry.” He shakes his head. “But I am going to have the Kettemans followed while they’re in our backyard. Has Ellie had any additional contact with them?”

I pick up the paper and study the details. “Not that I know of, but I barely have contact with her, so you never know.”

“Yeah, Jen told me about you two.”

Without moving my head, I angle my eyes to his with an annoyed glance before flipping through the rest of the file. I have nothing to say to him about Ellie and me. “What else?”

“They’ve also been in contact with a local attorney.”

I give him my full attention this time. “No shit?”

“I would not shit you. It’s in the paperwork.”

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