Page 82 of Deception

“I can only imagine.” Jason turned toward her, tilting his head. “You look tired.”

“I guess you could say it’s been a long day.”

“Talk about an understatement.” He threw her a knowing look before pausing. “Thank you for all your work on this, Ollie.”

The low tone of his voice caused her cheeks to flush again. “Of course. I only hope we can find some answers for you.”

“You will.”

She cleared her throat, trying to forget just how attracted she was to this man, even after all these years. Time had only filled him out more and made him more handsome—something she shouldn’t be thinking about.

She cleared her throat again. “How long are you sticking around for?”

Jason shrugged. “I’ll probably play it by ear. I took the rest of the week off, and I don’t have to be back at work until Monday.”

“Are things going well at Conglomerate?”

He let out a breath. “As well as can be expected.”

Something about the way he said the words made Olive pause. Last she heard, he loved his job. Had something changed?

She wanted to ask. But she didn’t. She could stay up all night catching up with him. She couldn’t afford to do that, however. Plus, she needed to keep her distance, no matter how hard that was.

Jason seemed to sense her exhaustion and rose. “Listen, it’s getting late, and I’m going to let you get some sleep.”

Olive stood also. “Where are you staying?”

“Actually, I’m staying here too.” He flashed a smile. “It’s the best of all the hotel options in the area. I could stay with Chelsea or Dominic, but I thought this would be easier.”

A sense of relief washed through her. It would be good to have him close, although she wouldn’t admit it.

“If you want my help in the morning, call me, and I’ll be there. But I didn’t come here to get in your way or to cramp your style.”

More relief filled her. “I appreciate that.”

She didn’t want Jason to feel obligated to help her. But since he’d offered, she wouldn’t turn down having another set of eyes—especially given the danger that had arisen.

His gaze lingered on her a moment longer, almost as if he wanted to say—or do—something more.

Olive licked her lips, trying not to think about what it would be like to kiss him right now.

Honestly, kissing him right now would simply be painful—and she wasn’t just talking about emotionally. Her lip was busted, and her cheek hurt.

She would need to think of how to explain her injures to people later.

For now, romance was the last thing she needed to think about.

Her phone buzzed, pulling her from the moment.

She stepped back and glanced at the screen.

Reid Harrison’s name appeared.

“Who’s Reid Harrison?” Jason squinted as he glanced at the screen.

Olive shrugged and quickly clicked off the call. “Just someone I worked with on my last case. He calls me on occasion to catch up. I can call him back later.”

Jason suddenly felt a little cooler. “I see.”

---