Page 35 of Fate's Unseen Shadow

“About the same.”

“Do you need to remove your pants to let me see it again?” Her grin turned a little mischievous. “Or are we late for our not-date?”

He’d been reluctant to acknowledge her comment about this being a date. He’d love to take her on a date. But tonight wasn’t the best timing. Especially after all the flirting in the bathroom, he needed to keep a little distance and his mind clear.

“Maybe later. I’m starving.”

“Me, too. Can I drive?”

Damon hesitated, locking his apartment door. “Why?”

“Because I want to drive your car.” She touched his arm. “Please. Just to dinner. I promise I’ll be careful. It would be best if you didn’t drive anyway. Blood loss.”

It could be a good distraction for her. “How about I trade you? You drive and answer all my questions.”

She walked backward, her blue eyes lighter in the late afternoon sun. “Are they like truth or dare?”

He liked this side of her personality. Lighthearted. Not worried about anything, it seemed. Happy.

That was it.

He liked seeing her happy and knowing he had put a smile on her face.

“No. Unfortunately, the questions are serious—about what happened to you.”

“Too bad. Truth or dare might be fun.”

“I know it would be.” He held out his key. “Deal?”

She lifted her chin, leaning close. “Deal.”

Something in her had come alive between yesterday and today. But her panic still rode right there, underneath thesurface, based on what Ryker’d said. If distracting her with driving his car helped ease the fear, she could drive it everywhere they went.

She took his key. “Might as well be miserable in a nice car. Can I go fast?”

“Do you want to risk a cop pulling you over?”

“My excitement for driving this to our non-date is slowly dissipating.” With a slow shake of her head, she unlocked the car. “But it’ll be easier to go back through everything if I do something else.”

He sat down, more worried about upsetting her than her driving his car. He typed in the address for dinner. “We’re going here.”

“This says you have ten minutes for questions. Is that enough time?”

“For now.”

This was one of the reasons he didn’t want Slater asking her questions. Slater pushed and pushed. He wasn’t heartless—the opposite. He cared so much about justice and rescuing victims that he sometimes became oblivious to his bluntness.

“When was the last time you saw the man before Teddy’s death?” Damon began.

She squared her shoulders and sat up straight, like she was answering formal questions. “Going to and coming home from Pilates class that Thursday.”

Damon studied her profile, trying to read her. “You saw him twice?”

“That day I saw him three times. When I left my condo, he stood across the street, watching the building. I don’t know if he saw me or not, but he had to, because when I got out of Pilates, I saw him again. He pumped gas at the gas station across the parking lot from me. I saw him when I drove by.” She took a slow breath. “We locked eyes.”

The stalker had tormented her on purpose. That’s the only explanation for someone being that out in the open. How close had he gotten to Teddy before killing him?

“What was the third time?”

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