Page 79 of Silent Is The Heart

I don’t understand. Is he panicking about finances now that he’s been robbed? “I told you…I didn’t want to accept the things you brought over. I could have done without all that furniture.”

Snickering an ugly sound, he shakes his head.

“You’ve seen my office. You know where my safe is.”

What? Oh, God. He can’t possibly think it was me.

“Is that what you think?”

“I don’t know what to think,” he mumbles, closing his eyes and burying his face in his arm like he’s exhausted. “You needed money. Jason shows up—notdead. You fuck with my head about opening up. You get me to fall in love with you. Was that your plan all along?”

It’s the first time he’s said the actual words, declaring his feelings for me. What I would have done to have prevented it from being like this.

“You can’t possibly think that,” I choke out around a painful lump in my throat. “Please tell me you don’t think that.”

Scrubbing his face, he shakes his head like he’s battling demons. “It doesn’t matter. It’s just money.”

“What did the police say?”

“They interviewed the most likely suspect.”

“Your father?”

His bitter laugh has me regretting how quickly I came up with that assumption. “Yeah. I guess his parole officer saw the news and remembered where he was staying—myfather. The ‘murderer.’That one, remember?”

I’m shocked he almost sounds defensive about him after all the hatred he had inside years ago. I didn’t think he’d ever be able to forgive the man.

“I’m sorry I said that the other day. I was just worried about you. I know what a hard time you had with it when you were at Hampton.”

“Don’t,” he snaps.

First, I accuse his father, then I say one of his trigger words, ‘Hampton.’ This is going fantastic.

“Is he still at the station?”

“They let him go. He checked into a halfway house just like he said he would after I kicked him out the other day.”

“That’s good,” I offer supportively, but he levels me with an appalled look.

“How is it good?”

“It’s good that he didn’t do it after you already had trust issues with him. I couldn’t imagine dealing with that if he had.”

Grimacing, he seems to sit in that for a moment. I hope it means he believes I have no ill will toward his father and that my only concern is for him. Clearly, he’s conflicted about the man. I’m honestly so proud of him for being brave and strong enough to take him in. Not many people could do that.

“I went to see him,” he says absently. “He had a theory about who might have done it.”

I wait, hoping there’s some lead that can help him restore what he’s lost. I keep waiting when he glances over at me until I feel the suspicion in his gaze. I think it cracks my heart in half, imagining how he must feel right now if he believes what he’s accusing me of.

“Easton…I told you. I would never.”

“Maybe not you,” he adds gravely. “Maybe someone who knows your boyfriend does all right financially. Where is old Jason, by the way?”

Jason? Why would he think Jason had anything to do with the robbery?

“I haven’t seen him since…like Thursday.” I try to wrap my head around the possibility, but I never even told him what Easton does for a living. “He wouldn’t,” I assure him. “He’s not a thief. And besides, how would he have even known that was your shop? I never told him where you worked.”

He rises rigidly like he can’t deny the effects of the cold. “How did he know where to find you?” he asks, sounding tired,almost like he’s figured something out that I haven’t. “And don’t you think it’s odd that he took two years to contact you?”

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