Page 56 of What We May Be

Chapter Fifteen

“What happened to staying at the Sand Dollar last night?”

Charlie glanced up from the stack of files on her desk to find Trevor standing in her office doorway. Dressed in sweatpants and a T-shirt, he held his duffel in one hand, a tray of coffees in the other, and wore an unamused expression to match his unamused voice. “You were supposed to stay somewhere safe.”

Charlie closed the file she was working on and laid her pen on top of it. “I was safe.”

“Charlotte—”

“I slept there.” She pointed at the couch to his right. “Safe and sound.”

He tossed his bag onto said couch and crossed the office to her. “You pulled an all-nighter?” He rounded the corner of her desk and rested a hip beside her, unloading the coffees to a spot she cleared for him. “Did you get any sleep?”

“A few hours.” She spread her hands, indicating the files on her desk. “This Shakespeare case isn’t our only one. It’s summer season.” She gestured at one stack. “I’ve got half a dozen break-ins.” At another. “DUIs.” At a third. “Couple domestic disturbances.” At the tallest teetering one. “And that hodgepodge of mostly teens behaving badly. Needed to catch up.”

“You should’ve called.” He snuck a foot under her chair and gave it a teasing push. “I would’ve kept you company.”

She hooked her ankle around his, keeping herself from rolling too far and keeping him close. “I’m not sure how much work I would’ve gotten done with you here.” Their eyes clashed, held, and heat tumbled in her belly, remembering again that moment yesterday in the cell downstairs, remembering all those moments from a decade ago when Trevor used to try to distract her—with tickles, touches, and tastes—during tutoring sessions. She still felt bad about that C he got in calculus. If his mouth hadn’t been so damn tempting…

Then and now, turning up in a sexy grin. Charlie suspected he was remembering the same moments she was, confirmed as he reached out and traced his fingers up her thigh. “I’ll try not to distract you too much today.”

She tangled her hand with his but didn’t move it away. “That’s a lie if I ever heard one.”

He shrugged, not the least bit sorry, and took a gulp from one of the coffees. “You can send me back to the motel, but fair warning, if I have to stay another hour in that room next to Craig’s as he bitches and moans about all the work he has to do, poor Wally is gonna quit from having to play referee. I can’t tell you how many times I banged on the wall the past two nights.”

She leaned back in her chair and laughed, only righting herself when the scent of freshly brewed coffee wafted close to her nose. “Probably didn’t help your headache.”

“Not at all.” Trevor handed her the coffee. “Think you can get this case done today?”

“Someone’s in a hurry.” She lifted the cup and took a sip of ambrosia.

“Sean told me about DC.”

And nearly scorched the back of her throat. She’d expected another quip about Craig; not that revelation. How did he know? How long had he known? Was he pissed she hadn’t told him? Once she was sure she wasn’t going to choke, she set the cup down, reclaimed his free hand, and started with her last concern, the most important. “I’m sorry I didn’t—”

“It’s fine, honey.” He squeezed her fingers. “I’m sorry I didn’t say anything either. He told me Monday night, but I didn’t want you to be biased going into the interview.”

“And then yesterday got away from us.”

“There’s a lot going on, but when this case lets up, we need to talk. All of us.”

Her gaze shot from their entwined fingers to his face, her heart jumping from her chest into her throat. “Trevor, what are you saying?”

Shifting, he set aside his cup and brought his warm hand to her cheek. “I think we need to consider all our options.”

She angled her face into the warmth, into the hope his words offered. And offered some of her own. “Then we’ll solve the case today.”

A knock came at her door, and Trevor lowered his hand. She rolled in the chair so she could see around him and spied Diego poking his head into the room.

“Got a lead, Deputy.”

A good start. “I’ll be right there.”

As she stood, Trevor lifted his hand and snapped his fingers. “Abracadabra.”

She rolled her eyes and grabbed their coffees, shoving Trevor’s against his chest. “Shut up and drink your coffee.”

Laughing, he slid off the desk without the proffered cup and grabbed his duffel off the couch. “Take mine to the conference room. I’m going to duck into the locker room and shower. Hot water at the motel is iffy.”

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