Page 18 of GAF Factor

“But you want her. Man, that’s a tricky situation. Who will she pick?” he asked like a game show host.

“Are you trying to get on my nerves?”

“No, but I find I do a pretty damn good job of it no matter where I go.”

“How about you leave before I break my fist on your face?”

“How about I put a bomb under her house and then wait for the chaos to unfold?” he grinned.

“Why the fuck would I want you to do that?”

“Well…isn’t it obvious?” he frowned. “The bomb is there, you rush in and save the day, she chooses you.”

“Shouldn’t you want Kavanaugh to get the girl? He’s one of you.”

“Eh, it’s not gonna work out,” he shrugged, going back to his spying. “You actually stand a chance. You know, if you don’t fucking blow it.”

“How would I do that?”

“Well, I could be wrong, but sitting outside her house like a stalker might not be the best way to go.”

“And putting a bomb under her house is?”

He cut me a look. “Hey, I was providing you with a legitimate way to contact her without needing a desperate reason. It would have worked for you.”

“Thanks, but I think I’m fine on my own.”

“It’s your funeral.”

I shifted in my seat, trying to get comfortable. Despite my time resting in the hospital, I still felt pretty damn crummy. My shoulder was killing me, along with my head. But even though I desperately needed sleep, I couldn’t shut off the gears in my brain. I knew Kavanaugh caught who was behind thekidnapping, but something still wasn’t right. Who fired the shots at the house? Was it really her husband? Was he really behind the bombing? I knew Kavanaugh thought so, but I wasn’t entirely sure about that.

“How’s Jane?” I asked, trying to change the subject.

“Good. Writing another book. She actually kicked me out of the house last night because I was distracting her.”

“What were you doing?”

“Sitting. I was literally sitting there.”

“Just sitting?” I asked, glancing over at him.

He shrugged. “Okay, I may have been eating chips. Is that so wrong? I can’t even eat chips in my house anymore?”

I chuckled, taking another sip of my coffee. “You were distracting her.”

“I don’t need to hear you say shit like that. It makes me think you were around a little too often before.”

“Yeah, well…”

I paused for effect and caught him staring at me expectantly.

“Yeah, well, what?”

“Huh?” I asked, turning to face him, pretending I didn’t know what he was saying.

“You can’t just say something like that and leave it hanging. Either you were there or you weren’t.”

“Why does it have to be one or the other? Why couldn’t I have been there and also not have been there?”

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