Page 29 of Close Quarters

“Jesus, Katie, you must be freezing.” He walked over to the couch and picked up the afghan she used earlier and wrapped it around her shoulders.

“Thank you.” She curled her fingers over the edge and clutched it close, welcoming its warmth, then glanced at Seb. “So, what now? This was supposed to be the safest place for us. If he could get this close with Alex’s alarm, my place would be a piece of cake.”

“I thought about that on my way over here. You could come stay at the inn—”

“No.” Katie cut him off. “I’m not putting London’s business in danger. She went through that with Marsters. We’re not doing it again.”

“Yes, but the security is much better than it was then. Plus, most everyone around here knows I live there now.”

“Doesn’t matter. Pick a different place.”

Seb frowned. “Okay. What about the Broken Bow? My house and Thomas’s are vacant. Both have alarm systems.”

“Don’t your parents have the kids you found staying with them, though?” Alex said.

Seb nodded.

It was Alex’s turn to frown. “I don’t like the idea of bringing more danger to them. Especially since it seems to be connected to their case. We could just stay here. Not tonight, since the windows are broken, but we could get them boarded up tomorrow and then come back. I mean, what’s the likelihood they’ll strike here twice?”

“Better than you’d think,” Seb said.

“But where else can we go, then?” Katie asked.

“What about a hotel?” Alex suggested. “Pueblo is an hour away. The commute would suck, but it’s doable.”

Seb sighed. “I guess that would work, if you two don’t mind the drive.”

“It’s fine,” Katie said.

Alex gave a quick nod. “We’re agreed, then.”

“Okay. I’ll make the reservations just in case someone gets ahold of one of your credit cards.” He gave a sudden grin. “Am I booking one room or two?”

Katie flushed to the roots of her hair and glanced at Alex. He stared at her, his eyes darkening, then glanced at Seb.

“One. But with two beds.”

Seb laughed. “If you say so.” He took out his phone. “Go get dressed and pack. We’ll swing by Katie’s place to get some of her things on the way to Pueblo.”

Face still flaming, she scurried past him and Alex to go find her clothes. This situation just kept getting better and better.

Chapter 6

Smothering a yawn, Katie blinked to bring her computer screen back into focus. She picked up the tepid coffee on her desk and took a sip. Even a Big Gulp full of the stuff wouldn’t be enough to wake her up today.

After Seb left them at a hotel in Pueblo, sleeping hadn’t been a problem anymore. Katie had dropped onto one of the beds and passed out. But by that point, it was already after three, so she’d gotten only a couple hours of sleep before they had to be up to drive back to Silver Gap for work.

Her phone rang, and she picked it up, smothering another yawn. “Forensics. This is Katie.”

“Hey, it’s Jackie. Girl, you’re never going to believe what I found.”

Katie perked up at the sound of her friend and fellow criminologist’s voice. Jackie Bollen worked for the adjacent county where Seb sent the evidence from Alex’s house.

“What did you find?”

“Is that handsome M.E. there? He should hear this, too.”

Katie glanced up, looking around the room. She didn’t see Alex, but his door was open.

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