Page 24 of Trouble

As I wait for Lily to finish with her client, I glare down at the last message Cade sent me. Have I given any thought to it?

Ha. What an absurd question. It’s all I’ve thought about.Share the bed with them.What the fuck does that even mean?

Why can’t I get the image of what it could mean out of my head?

And why am I actually considering it?

“Hey, Dec. I’m ready for you.”

I blink a few times, bringing myself back to the moment. Back to the woman standing before me.

Lily Reilly. The wife of one of my best friends. Or rather, his widow.

Kyle was so much more than just a friend. He was my chief. Lily never calls me chief, likely for that reason. Sometimes I wonder if it hurts her to see me like this. I come in every other week for a cut. I’vebeen doing it ever since we lost him. Before that, I always went to the barber downtown.

Guilt has a way of molding a person’s every move, even the most mundane activities.

“Hey, Lil. How’s Benji doing?”

Her son is one of the cutest kids around. The guys all make sure to spend ample time with him, and that includes bringing him to the station, so I see him often.

Her face lights up in the mirror as she gets me settled in, already pulling at my hair, likely realizing it’s much more out of control than normal. “He’s good. Spending time at Jules’ Bakery today. Helping Jules and Shawn make donuts.”

I dip my chin. “That’s good.”

“What’s new with you? I hear you have a famous guest staying with you through the holidays.”

She gets to work on my hair, and I find myself making conversation with her, because like I said, guilt forces a person to do things they wouldn’t normally do. And for me, that includes talking.

“Seems like you really like her,” Lily says as she stands in front of me, stopping to really study my reaction. With her scissors in one hand and her fingers holding the hair that hangs over my forehead, I find it hard to lie.

“She’s a sweetheart. What’s not to like?”

“Life is short, Dec,” she says in the way only a woman who’s lost her husband can. In a way that doesn’t feel like lip service. A way that feels more like a punch to the gut. “You should enjoy the good things.”

I don’t smile, even though she’s smiling at me, because her expression isn’t a happy one. No, it’s pained and brutal.

But it does make me think.

And when I get called into a fire right after my appointment, when I feel the lick of flames singeing my skin as I run into the building, I realize I never replied to Cade. And if I never come out of here, that last question will be left unanswered. Will he always wonder about how I would have responded?

Track 4

FUN

CHAPTER 13

Melina

“Why can’tyou take a bodyguard? Or take Ford. He’d love to get out of the house and see a game in person,” Lake says over the speaker as I finish up my makeup.

It’s been a long, quiet week, and I’m itching to get out of the house.

There was a fire in an abandoned warehouse, and that kept Declan pretty busy. Not that he told me about it. I heard about it from Ford when I was over at their house.

While difficult to admit, it hurt not to hear about it from Declan. I crave his attention, even if all we seem to do is fight. It makes zero sense.

Even though I barely saw Declan, his control was still felt. I swear a patrol car drives by on an hourly basis. Each time I see it, my unease grows. It feels like I’m being watched. Like I’m the one who did something wrong, rather than the one who needs protection. Like rather being there to keep people out, the police are monitoring to ensure I remain in the house.

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