Page 25 of Falling for Carla

“Look at you,” she said, gesturing to me with a sweep of her eyes taking me in from head to foot and back again, “you’ve got to be bringing women home. You’re probably having to fight them off.”

Flattered, I shook my head, “Not at all,” I said.

“Guys then? I shouldn’t have assumed you liked women,” she said apologetically.

“I like women,” I assured her, “but if you hadn’t noticed, I’m not in my twenties anymore. I don’t go out and pick up one-night stands. It was—too impersonal. And the relationships I’ve been in, which haven’t been very many, have been nonstop drama. Part of that was down to my schedule as a detective, which would drive anyone out of their mind. I was never around, had to go to work at two in the morning, that kind of thing. But I guess you could say I’m not out there, not dating right now.”

“Are you on Tinder?” she asked.

“What? No. Are you?” I inquired, and the thought of her bio on a dating app with a cute selfie and some dipshit swiping left on her made me feel a comical rage.

“No. Brenda is though. I should call her. I need my phone battery.”

“I’ll get you a phone you can use. I got a box of burners when I left the force, just to have on hand. Sometimes I do consulting for the department and they need a secure line to reach me on.”

I fetched one and activated it. “You know her number?” She nodded. “I’ll give you some privacy.”

I took the cups back to the kitchen and washed up the dishes so she could talk to her friend without an eavesdropper.

CHAPTER 20

CARLA

There was no point fighting him on this. I could argue for hours and it wouldn’t change the fact that he was right, dammit. I couldn’t risk traveling to New York after my dad was assassinated.

Every airport and train station and car service would be staked out while they hunted me down. I had to go underground and stay hidden until the heat was off. I knew that. I’d stayed in a safe house in Jersey with my mom and brother when I was ten…it had taken three months before it was viable for us to go back home. We had to be homeschooled by my mom then. She taught us both to cook that winter, and our guards loved her piccata. I wondered if she was as scared then as I was now, and how she’d had the strength to be cheerful and warm and make it fun for her kids.

I chafed against the idea of giving up my independence, but I recognized the risks were too great to be stubborn about it. For lack of a convenient safe harbor, I’d have to bunk in my professor’s apartment for the time being. Close quarters could be challenging. Not only would it be too personal, too intimate for comfort, but the powerful chemistry we had was bound to get in the way. I sighed and dialed Brenda’s number.

“Hey,” I said. “It’s me.”

”’Where are you calling from? What’s up?”

“My phone’s out of commission right now. You need to stay in San Jose until I give you the all clear. Our apartment got busted into. My dad’s dead and some people are coming after me.”

“Oh my God! Where are you? Are you safe?” she asked.

“I’m fine. I’m staying at Drake’s for the time being.”

“Who the fuck is Drake?” she asked, her voice still laced with concern.

“My professor.”

“Uh, the hot one?” she asked.

“It isn’t like that. He was a cop. He knows how to go off the radar and keep me hidden until things cool down. I’ve got to talk to Dom, too. I’m sorry to make you stay gone, but you’re better off there for now. I don’t want you hurt.”

“You be careful. I don’t want anything to happen to you.”

“I will, I promise.”

“I’m also sorry for your loss. I know you weren’t close to your dad, but he was still your dad. I’m sorry,” Brenda said.

“Thanks,” I said, and finished our conversation before hanging up.

My chest hurt and I caught myself sniffing. I had started to cry. Even though I hadn’t liked my father’s methods or how he’d treated my mom, even though I didn’t want him in my life, he had been my only surviving parent.

I had thought a hundred times how unfair it was that she had been the one to die, not him when he deserved it and she was innocent. It was a vicious thing to think, but that didn’t make it feel less true to me. Now he was gone, and I wouldn’t have the chance to ask him things about her, ask him why he made the choices he did in spite of the dangers to his family that he claimed to love.

---