Page 61 of Diamonds & Deception

Drake looks up at me and scowls. “I’ll call someone up to take care of her.”

“I’m more than capable of bringing my dog for a walk without having a mental breakdown.”

He does that open-and-close thing with his mouth as if contemplating if he should say what’s on his mind. Daisy’s claws tap on the hardwood and she whines at the door.

“Unless you want her marking her territory all over your fancy penthouse?”

Drake turns off the stove and reaches into the cabinet for two thermoses and fills them with coffee, adding my favorite creamer to one. It’s the attention to detail—details about me—that has my throat swelling. Forcing the tears away, I close my eyes and take a deep breath.

“Here.” He hands me a mug. “Let’s go.”

Before I have time to process, he has Daisy hooked on her leash and the front door opens.

“You’re coming with us?”

“Yes.”

“Why?”

“Because.”

I don’t move and stare at him in surprise. Why is he being so nice to me? Is it out of guilt? Pity?

Daisy whines and pulls at the leash.

“Are you coming?”

“Yeah. I can walk my own dog though.” I snag the leash from him and march across to the elevators.

We ride down in silence, Daisy leading the way as if she has a clue where she’s going. I take a left, and Drake grips my elbow, steering me right.

“This way through the employee entrance. There’s a patch of grass by the parking lot.”

As soon as we’re outside, Daisy lifts her snout and sniffs the air, then beelines it for the grass. She marks her territory quickly. I don’t ask Drake if he wants to join us for a walk and start toward the direction of the park. He keeps up with our pace as we slowly jog down the path.

The late September morning is cool and crisp. I was cold when we first stepped outside, but now I’m warm from our brisk jog. When the streets start to fill with commuter traffic, we head back to the casino. It’s quiet inside, as I’d expect on an early Sunday morning.

We still haven’t spoken a word by the time we get back to his penthouse. I fill Daisy’s food and water bowl and wash my hands at the kitchen sink. Drake returns to his place at the stove and points his elbow to the coffeemaker.

“Feel free to make another pot if you’d like.”

I guzzled the first cup quickly, needing the jolt of caffeine. I open the cabinet above the maker looking for coffee grounds.

“I keep them in the freezer.”

It feels so domestic, Drake making breakfast and me making coffee while Daisy lays in the middle of the kitchen like this is our morning routine. He doesn’t complain when he has to step over her to get the plates and syrup out of the cabinets.

He sets a platter of French toast on the counter and a plate of sausage he had warming in the microwave. “Is this okay?”

“I’m not one to complain about having a meal made for me. Thank you.”

We eat in silence, as has been our morning. There are so many elephants in the room. Our relationship. Me pretending to be someone else, and him tying me up and blindfolding me, allowing three other men into the room to torment the truth out of me. Carly’s murder and his possible connection, which I no longer believe. Lenora’s murder and if it’s connected to Carly’s.

Drake’s phone vibrates on the counter. He glances at me and answers it.

“Good morning, detective... yes she is.”

I look up at him expecting him to hand me his phone. He stares at me and nods at whatever the detective is saying.

---