Page 13 of Haunted

“Nothing that made any damn sense.”

Obviously, the excuse of wanting to find her in order to return her license wasn’t fooling anyone, myself included. Ihad no idea what I’d do when I actually located her, I just knew deep down in my soul that Henley was placed in my path for a reason, and I wanted to know why.

“Over here,” Sammy yelled out over the clatter of the dinner crowd.

Giving her a wave, Noah and I stood in line at the counter to place our order. He reached for his wallet to pay, but I waved him off, then requested my sandwich be made “to go.”

“Seriously, man? You’re already here. The girls are worried about you.”

“Only the girls?” I smirked.

“Whatever. Stay for a while or don’t.” He shrugged. “It’s not like you’ve got somebody waiting for you at home.”

“Ouch. Do you want some salt to rub into that insult?”

By rule, I was cautious about dating, which was why it happened so infrequently. I loved women—all shapes and sizes—but the idea of having to share my grisly past with someone I was intimate with was nauseating. In my opinion, there was no quicker way to send a girl running than to tell them you’re the son of an infamous serial killer. Not exactly sweet-dreams material.

My team didn’t agree with my philosophy. In fact, it was a point of contention in many late-night arguments around the office. We were close, like family, which apparently gave them the right to interfere with my love life, or lack of one. I swore if any of them tried to set me up with another one of their friends, I’d scream the roof down. To make matters worse, they roped Waverly and Duncan into the shenanigans. It became a game. They’d even taken bets on how long it had been since I’d gotten laid.

Two years, fuckers. I win.

Picking up the brown bag off the counter, I joined ourgroup across the room. Sure enough, Lanie laid into me as soon as she saw the bag in my hand. I understood their concern, truly I did. If the roles were reversed, I could guarantee you I’d be all up in their business, which was the only reason I’d shown up in the first place.

Tonight, though, the only comfort I needed was a steamy, hot shower and my thousand thread count Egyptian cotton sheets.

There were two things I’d allowed myself to splurge on; my car and my apartment. Otherwise, I lived off the salary I made working for the FBI. I still received a ridiculous amount of money from Renshaw International every month; half of which was placed directly into several investment funds while the other half was redistributed to various charity organizations of my choosing.

Pulling my black BMW X4 into my reserved spot at my complex, I spied the same blue rust-bucket parked in the corner of the lot I’d first seen a few weeks ago when I drove Lanie back to her townhouse a few blocks south of me. She’d had one too many drinks after a night out celebrating our latest takedown. I lived closest to her, so I volunteered to get her home. Since then, I’d noticed it a few other places; mostly large lots in ungated communities.

Stepping out of my SUV with my sandwich stuffed in my briefcase, I started walking toward the front of my building, then veered to the right when I saw movement coming from inside the back of the car. The last thing I needed was to worry whether there was someone freezing to death in my parking lot. I wasn’t being a dick; it was more self-preservation. At least that’s what I told myself when I tookthe flashlight out of the side pocket of my bag and tapped the end of it against the back window.

“You can’t sleep here. Move it or I’ll have this piece of shit towed.”

The vehicle rocked as whoever was in it climbed over the seat into the front. My hand automatically went to the service weapon on my hip, while I shined the light through the glass. When the window rolled down about four inches, the first thing I saw was a set of tired, emerald eyes. Then I looked closer, nearly stumbling backward when I recognized her face.

“It’s you.”

All this time I’d been chasing my own tail trying to locate this woman, and she’d practically landed on my doorstep.

“Do we know each other?” she questioned, her voice trembling slightly, most likely because I’d scared the shit out of her.

“Sort of?”

“Are you asking me?”

“Look. Why don’t you come out here so we can talk?”

“I’m not in the habit of communing with strangers in dark parking lots, so you’ll have to forgive me when I respectfully decline.”

“I saved your life almost two weeks ago,” I blurted.

The squeak of the car door opening was the only indication she’d heard me. From her license, I knew she was five five and a hundred thirty pounds, yet as she stood less than three feet from me, she appeared so much smaller…more vulnerable. And she was gorgeous. Unbelievably gorgeous.

Not wanting to make her feel cornered, I took a giant step backward, then grinned when I saw the small switchblade nestled in her shaking hands. The knife was no matchfor the Glock on my hip, however the simple fact she’d armed herself filled me with pride.

“You won’t be needing that.” I pointed to the blade. “You’re a hundred-percent safe with me.”

“Says the guy carrying a gun,” she huffed, her eyes darting quickly to my side, then back to my face.

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