Page 61 of Liberating Love

Releasing a sigh, I grab the papers I found and wheel my chair over to Jovany’s desk. “Yesterday, I found a document from evidence allowing, uh, your cousin Cappi to sign out evidence. It caught my eye because it was a release for the murder weapon in a big case I remember everyone talking about, you know? So I read it over and noticed the Chief’s signature on the release form. I did a little digging, and the gun never made it back into evidence, so the murder charges were dropped, the suspect—a known drug dealer—got away, and Cappi only got a slap on the wrist for losing the evidence. So I started researching cases that were dropped due to missing evidence, and I found two others with similar circumstances.”

Jovany takes the papers I pass him from three different cases over nine years, and he starts looking through them.

“Jovany… in every one of these cases, your uncle signed off on removing evidence, then the evidence went missing and the officer involved got away with it without repercussions. And the suspects, all drug dealers, got away.”

I watch him take a deep breath before he glances up and meets my eyes. “So my uncle, the chief of police, is at the top of the police corruption.”

“You don’t seem surprised,” I say.

He nods. “I’ve suspected him for a while.” He glances at the papers, shaking his head. “This is the paper trail we’ve been looking for, Aiden. This is exactly what we need to take him down.”

“Really?” I clear my throat. “You’re not upset?”

He shakes his head. “Nah. I’m actually relieved that I’m not crazy.” He offers a small smile. “You know what this means, though, right?”

I shake my head.

“IA is gonna take this over. We’re going to be taken off the case.”

I sag in my chair. “Seriously?”

He nods. “Yeah. They’ll come in to finish the case.”

“That… sucks.”

Jovany nods again. “It does, but… I’m glad I got to work with you on this, Aiden. It was great getting to know you better.”

That makes me smile. “Thanks. Same to you.”

He grins. “Now I get to tell everyone I worked with my step-daddy for a few months.”

I laugh loudly and throw my pen at his head. “Watch it or I’ll get your dad to ground you.”

He barks out a laugh. “No you won’t. I’m the good step-son.”

I shake my head while we laugh, and I know without a doubt that I really am going to miss working with him.

* * *

Hands wraparound me from the back and Delaney hums as he kisses the side of my neck, but I still see one hand sneak out and snag a piece of the bruschetta I’m plating. With a laugh, I give him a little push and say, “Stop stealing all the food.”

“This is so good,” he mutters around a bite.

I roll my eyes. “I couldn’t tell by the ten pretend hugs you’ve given me just to steal some.”

He chuckles, swallows his bite, and leans in to plant a kiss on my lips. “They’re not pretend anything. The food’s just a bonus.”

“Mhm.” I wipe my hands off, then pass him the plate. “Can you be trusted to walk this from here to the table?”

With a laugh, he takes the plate and walks out of the kitchen, but not before I smack his ass for good measure. He’s back beside me a minute later, asking, “What else needs to go out?”

“Uh… just the salads from the fridge, I think. I didn’t want to set them out too early, but I think people will start arriving soon. You started the grill, right?”

He nods. “I put the first batch on right before I came inside. Come here.” Delaney grabs onto my hips and pulls me away from the fridge, stuffing his face against the side of my neck again, brushing his soft lips over my skin. “I feel like I haven’t seen you all day.”

I laugh. “I’ve been home the whole time.”

“Yeah, but you’ve been slaving away in the kitchen, and I’ve been running around taking care of stuff around the house.”

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