Page 41 of Mine to Keep

He shrugged. “Also to see if it escalated. We wouldn’t have jumped in—if we saw something we’d call the cops.”

Chuckling, I added more veggies to my pan. “But you showed up here instead of doing that.”

“You’d already called.”

True. “I see, and you want to know what I got.”

“Yes.”

I explained the present and the note. Told him how Mendez was going to check for fingerprints and see if the person was in the system.

“Clever, but I’m not sure it’ll work.”

“Why is that?”

“Because this person isn’t stupid. There’s no way they left anything behind.”

I huffed and pulled down two dishes. “How do you know that?”

“They’re watching you, Matt. Do you think they don’t know you went to the police?”

I was certain they knew. They’d gotten mad when I’d showed them the gifts. “So, expect a dead end, then?”

He watched as I split the veggie stir fry between two plates. “You might as well stay for dinner.”

The corner of his mouth kicked up. “I’d love to, thanks.”

“Beer, wine, or water?”

“Water, please.”

He sat at my table, hummed as he shoveled the stir fry into his mouth. I watched him; he was so fucking gorgeous. My eyes were locked on his Adam’s apple as he swallowed.

“Not hungry?”

I lifted my gaze to where Nick had a smug expression on his face. I was totally busted.

“I am.” I concentrated on my meal after that.

CHAPTER NINETEEN

Nick

I hadn’t knownwhat to expect as I’d walked into Matt’s apartment. I’d seen the officer arrive and had panicked. I’d gotten into my car and driven to his building without much thought or plan. I’d waited in my car for the officer to leave, watching the Ring feed. He’d left holding a box and I had to know what was so bad it had warranted him calling the cops.

It was a crazy feeling seeing that Matt was actually okay when he opened the door. The relief that washed over me was unexpected. The man was affecting me in ways nobody ever had.

Then he invited me for dinner, and I was once again calm because he wasn’t tossing me out. If I had it my way I’d stay here until this mad person was no longer a problem. Ideally, I’d love to wrap Matt up and bring him back to the house, where I knew he’d be safe.

“This was really good.” I wiped my mouth and put my napkin on my empty plate.

“I’ll take that as a high compliment, since I know for a fact that Shepard is an outstanding chef.”

“He’s good, but we all contribute. Shep’s specialty lies in baking. It’s why Saintly Sweets works so well.”

Matt stood and gathered the plates. I followed him to the kitchen, where he started filling up the sink.

“I’ll wash. You cooked, after all.”

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