Page 15 of Shadows of Before

The memory came roiling back to him.And don’t even think of sleeping with that guy…I don’t like to share.

Why the hell did one statement he made to Katie cause him to give up a night of sex with a beautiful, sophisticated woman? He was crazy!!

Chapter 3

“Hi, Katie. How about tonight?”

Geez, why was he using her name in the text? That wasn’t the deal.

Nonetheless, she wrote,“Hi, Will. I’m on duty till 8 a.m. tomorrow.”She was pulling mostly nights now.

“Tomorrow then. Between 9 and 10?”Then there were dots… “You can sleep after.”

He never worried about her sleep.

She was tired though, so maybe that’s why his texts seemed off.

“Sounds good.”

Fortunately, the rest of the night was active. A group of kids drinking in the park. A car accident. The women in expensive clothes who were caught smoking pot in their car. Morning came faster because of their busyness. And the stoned women were a hoot!

She got her stuff from her locker and headed to the car. The morning air refreshed her and she turned her face up to the sun. When she reached her vehicle, she was thinking how Landry and Lawrence had left her alone for the last two shifts.

But…what the fuck? Her back and front tires were flat. Fearing the worst, she circled the car and saw those two were also flat. Now, what were the chances that all four tires gave out at the same time? They weren’t the best quality, but there was something wrong with this.

First she called a tow truck.

Then she called Will. “Kirkland.”

“It’s Kate. I’m not sure I’m going to make it home in time. My four tires are flat.”

“All four?”

“Yep. I called the tow truck.”

“I’ll be right there.”

“Will, no I can handle this.”

“I want to see for myself.”

She fumed until he arrived. He seemed…angry. Well, so was she. “I told you not to come.”

He ignored her protest and bent down. He did the same for each of the tires. Then he faced her. “You should be glad I came. They’ve been slit by a knife.”

“I couldn’t tell that.”

He said smugly, “The Secret Service trained me to check tires.”

She sighed. She kept forgetting he was part of the elite PPD.

“You’ve got to report this. Let’s go inside.”

She hated when men took over for women without asking for their help. “I can take care of it.”

“Call the tow truck company and tell them to come later.”

She knew she was rattled when his autocracy didn’t make her angrier. Giving in because he was right, she phoned the company as they walked back to the precinct together. She was struck again how tall Will was, how wide his shoulders were. When they got inside, she went to the desk. “I want to report that my tires have been slashed.”

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