Page 58 of Unforgotten

“But—”

“If I’m taking you out, I’d like to pay,” he said in a tone that proved he didn’t want to debate the topic. “Besides, taking you around hasn’t been a chore.”

She felt like it had been something much more pleasant than a chore. Against her better judgment, she blurted, “I’ve loved being with you, Ryan.”

He swallowed. “Candace.”

The cab of his Blazer was dark except for the dim light coming from the dashboard. It was both a blessing and a curse. It hid her reactions, but it also shadowed his thoughts. All she had to go by was the strain in his tone.

There were two ways she could play this. She could pretend that she had no idea what was giving him discomfort, or she could confront it and try to speak openly and honestly. One might ease the discomfort, but it would only be a temporary thing. She now knew that she wanted something morebetween them. A real relationship. That meant she needed to go the other route and simply let Ryan know what she was thinking. If he didn’t feel the same way, at least she’d know.

“I think we need to talk,” she said.

“There isn’t anything to say,” he said as he drove out of the diner’s parking lot.

“So, you’re saying that I’ve completely misread what’s been going on between us?” She hated how insecure and worried she sounded.

Ryan darted a look her way. Again, his face was shadowed. She had no idea if there was a flicker of weakness in his expression or not. “I just don’t know if any good will come out of this conversation—at least right now. It’s late. I’m going to take you home. We can talk about this another time.”

“It’s not that late.” Seeing the park on the right ahead of them, she said, “Can you pull into the park up here?”

He glanced at her again. “Why?”

“So we can talk.”

In the glow of a streetlight passing, she saw his jaw tighten. “You’re serious.”

“Yes.”

Muttering under his breath, he put on his turn signal, turned right into the parking lot, and then headed toward the back parking space. It was next to a stand of trees and partially obscured from the road by the corner of the park’s pavilion. “Ten minutes,” he said. “I need to get you home.”

She had a feeling he was giving himself that time limit. “Fine.”

He turned to face her. “Candace, I’m not going to lie. You’re a great woman. If our situations were different, I could see something happening between us.”

Warmth filled her. She hadn’t been misreading him this whole time. But as the rest of his statement sank in, she feltoff-kilter again. Treading carefully, she said, “What’s wrong with our situations?”

“First? Our ages. We’re six years apart.”

“I can do the math. Six years is nothing. The difference doesn’t matter to me.”

“How about this, then? Our spending time together has been part of my job. It’s supposed to be, anyway.”

“Maybe so, but that doesn’t mean we can’t have feelings for each other, does it?”

He grimaced.

“Or is there some kind of police department policy that doesn’t allow for a relationship between an officer and someone he’s spending time with while on duty?”

“Probably.”

“But you don’t know for sure?”

“Candace, it’s not like I’ve been combing the employee handbook about the possibility of dating a woman I’m supposed to be keeping safe.” Before she could comment on that, he lifted both hands. “What would I tell Chief Foster?”

“I don’t know ... that you like me?” Then realizing he hadn’t actually come out and said such a thing, she blurted, “Wait. Did I just imagine that—”

“Candace.”

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