Page 43 of Chasing Infinity

Charlie rubs his neck, clearly considering what I’m saying to him. “You really think there’s something there?”

I shrug. “I don’t know, but I think it’s worth checking out.”

“Fine, I’ll see if I can work that out, and I’ll let you know.”

“Thanks, Sully. I appreciate it.”

He exhales in resignation, and I’m glad to see there’s no hard feelings from our little tiff earlier at the diner. “You’re the lead here, Noah. If you say you gotta hunch, then we have to follow through with it.”

We head out to where Eli is waiting for us. He’s at the counter looking at a new gun but hands it back when he sees us walking towards him. “You two done canoodling back there?”

Charlie rolls his eyes, and I have to wonder again why they’re as good of friends as they are. My buddies rib me plenty, but not on the level that Eli does, Charlie. Eli has an abrasive attitude and a hot head. He always has. That’s part of why he and I have never gotten along since day one. But for some reason that I’ll probably never understand, he and Charlie are the best of friends.

I watch the two of them converse as we drive home. They’re talking about nothing important, so I ignore the subject matter and focus more on their tones and facial expressions. It’s clear to me as I observe them that they’re on the same page. Even when Eli is being a dipshit—which, to be blunt, is more often than not—Charlie never gets irritated with him. He might roll his eyes at his friend’s nonsense, but I have yet to see Charlie not take Eli’s side on things.

When we make it back to the diner, Charlie thanks me for coming, and Eli dips his chin at me. I have to mask my surprise at his almost cordial goodbye. As soon as I’m out of the car, they drive off. I watch the car drive away for a minute, thinking about how I actually had a decent time with the dynamic duo today. At that thought, I wonder if I might finally be coming down with Addison’s illness.

I turn and walk into the diner with a shake of my head. It’s pretty dead, with only one older customer hanging out at a table with a cup of coffee and a muffin, his attention focused solely on the Sudoku puzzle in front of him. It seems like Addison is the only one at the helm, and she smiles at me when I walk in, tucking a piece of hair behind her ear.

“You guys have fun?” Addison asks me when I walk up to the counter.

I settle into a stool and cross my arms over each other, leaning towards her. “Your boyfriends might not actually be that bad of company to keep.”

She laughs and purses her lips at me teasingly. “I’ve only been telling you that for years.”

“Yeah, yeah. I’m not saying we’re all besties now, but I didn’t have the worst time today.”

A wry grin tugs on the corners of her mouth. “You don’t know how happy that makes me.”

I run my hands over my face and groan. “Don’t go getting too many ideas. I have a maximum limit of how much I can handle those two in a day.”

“You seem to get along with Charlie better now,” she says, narrowing her eyes. “You used to hate him as much as you did, Eli.”

I could tell her that Charlie and I have a similar outlook on life these days or are working together to end the tyrannical reign of my father. But instead, I offer her a shrug and look down at the counter. I absently brush away a few lingering crumbs before saying, “Yeah, I guess it was about time that we put our differences aside. There are more important things.”

“Like what?” she prods, and I suddenly get the sense that Addison is savvy about what goes on around her much more than I give her credit. She must’ve seen the heated discussion between Charlie and me this morning.

I shrug again and give her a wry smile. “Like you. You’re important to Charlie, and you’re important to me. Make love, not war, right?”

“You’re making love with Charlie?” She teases.

“Well, maybe not. But you understand what I’m saying, right?” I ask her.

“Yeah,” she whispers, her gorgeous hazel eyes tracing the features of my face as if she’s trying to read a hidden message. “I think I do.”

“Well, I’m going to head home and take a nap. I’m wiped out from dealing with Tweedle Dee and Tweedle Dumber all morning,” I tell her, pushing away from the counter and heading towards the doorway that leads upstairs.

“You’ll tell me the truth one day, right?” she asks, stopping me in my tracks. I turn around slowly, looking at her with the unspoken question in my eyes. Addison is staring right back at me, her arms crossed over her chest. “You’ll tell me why you’re really here and what you’re really doing with Charlie one day, won’t you?”

I hesitate, trying to find the right words, but finally settle on replying, “Of course, Parks. You know I can’t keep secrets from you.”

Her lips thin but she nods. I’ve appeased her for now. I take a moment to appreciate the woman she is. I know it’s killing her not being in the know, but she’s putting her trust in me that I’m doing what’s best. And I am.

I love Addison Parks with everything in me, and the thought of something terrible happening to her makes me sick to my stomach. It’s what drove me to leave in the first place, and it’s what’s leading me in every decision I make regarding how I deal with this case. If keeping this secret from her is what keeps her safe, there’s no limit to how long I’ll be willing to hold my tongue. Like I told her last night, she’s my top priority—despite my desire to take down my father and his shady business, I want to keep her safe. And if keeping secrets is how I do that, then so be it.

Chapter 12

Addison

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