“Dad, I’m going to cancel that PO box,” I blurted out.
“What? Why?”
“He already knows where I live, and it’ll just be more convenient to be able to get my mail here,” I reasoned.
I heard him sigh and knew I had convinced him. “All right. We’ll keep the utilities in our name.”
“Thank you, Dad. Really. I appreciate all you’re doing for me,” I told him, hoping he understood how important it was to me.
We said our good-byes, and I hung up the phone. I started walking back to the house, feeling a little bouncy while I still rode the high of my good news. I noticed a police car slowly coming down the road and paused to look. It was Cameron behind the wheel. He rolled down the window and stopped beside me.
“Hi,” he said in a friendly manner that was unlike him.
Cameron was either hot or cold. The guy saying hi like I was a simple acquaintance was the cold Cam. Hot Cam would have been devouring me with his eyes talking in a husky voice. We hadn’t spent a lot of time together, but I had come to know him well enough.
“Hi,” I said coolly and kept walking.
He kept pace alongside me in the car before he pulled into his driveway and got out. He walked to meet me on the sidewalk. I had hoped to escape to the house without having to go through the awkward conversation he seemed desperate to have.
“How’s it going?” he asked in an easy voice, but it wasn’t the same familiar way I had come to appreciate.
“Good,” I replied, feigning interest in the mail I was carrying. “What are you doing home in the middle of the day?”
“I’m on lunch. I needed to come home and throw another load in the washer,” he said, clearly uncomfortable.
I could tell he was lying. “Are you checking up on me?” I asked with a smile, pretending not to know he was bullshitting me.
He smiled. “Maybe. Is that okay?”
“Yes. Thank you. I really appreciate it. I’m sure the entire neighborhood appreciates you keeping a close eye on things around here.”
“Have you heard anything more from him?” he asked, warming up a little more.
“Nope. Not a peep,” I said, not hiding my relief. “I’m sure he was running on liquid courage that night. He isn’t usually so aggressive. I mean, to me, yes, but not to other guys.”
“Good,” he said, nodding his head. “No phone calls or anything?”
“Nothing. He’s probably back home. I don’t think there’s anything to worry about. I’m keeping my doors locked and the music down,” I assured him, not interested in another lecture.
“Actually, I wanted to talk to you about that. I saw you come home yesterday. You weren’t aware of your surroundings. Just now as well.”
“What are you talking about?” I asked irritably.
“You were looking down at the mail. Before that, you were on your phone. I watched you for several minutes, and you didn’t even know I was there,” he said in a tone that made me want to hit him.
I rolled my eyes. “Big deal. I was on the phone with my dad. I told you, Asher is back home. If he wanted to talk to me, he would have made it clear he was here. Maybe you didn’t notice, but he isn’t exactly subtle,” I said with sarcasm.
“I understand that, but you know the man is a threat. I want you to be safe, Savannah. Just being a little more aware is all it takes. It gives you time to run or fight back. I don’t want him to catch you off guard.”
“Fine. Whatever. If that’s all, I have phone calls to make.”
We stood there staring at each other in awkward silence.
His shoulders sagged. “I’m sorry. I’m being rude. I don’t mean to be. I’m worried about you.”
With just those simple words, he managed to defuse my anger. “It’s okay. I know you’re trying to keep me safe. Thank you.”
He smiled. “It’s a cop thing. Actually, no, it’s a Marine thing.”
“Do you want to grab some lunch together? I haven’t eaten yet,” I blurted out, hoping we could forget all about the awkwardness from earlier and pick up our old relationship.
It had been brief, but I’d really liked hanging out with him. I wanted things to go back to the way they had been before Asher had butted his big ugly head in.
I saw Cameron actually cringe and immediately jerked away as if I had been slapped. His reaction to my invitation physically hurt.
He looked down at his shiny black shoes. “I’m sorry. I have to get back on patrol. I just came by to throw that laundry in and grab a quick sandwich. Maybe another time.”
“Sure. Okay. No problem. Don’t let me hold you back. I’ll see you around,” I said, turning and heading toward my house.
I wanted to put as much distance between us as possible. I felt like a leper. He didn’t want anything to do with me. Asher had won again. Cameron was pulling away from me like I had some horrifying, contagious disease. I would never be able to have a normal relationship. It was a somber thought that deflated my earlier happiness.
“Savannah, I’m sorry. I’m just real short on time,” he said. “Please don’t be mad.”
I waved a hand. “It’s fine. You’re busy. Take care,” I said and kept walking.
I didn’t bother looking back. I walked into the house and slammed the door behind me. I didn’t need Cameron. I’d moved here with no friends. I had accepted it then, and I could deal with it now. I was going to be starting a new job and would make friends there—friends who were closer to my own age and shared my own interests. Cameron could go back to his perfect little life.
I tossed the mail on the table and flopped back on the couch and called Emma.
When she answered, I dove right into my news for the day.
“Well, Asher wins again,” I blurted out.
“What did he do?”
“Cameron wants nothing to do with me,” I wailed.
“What? He isn’t actually afraid of Asher, is he?” she asked with astonishment in her voice.
I let out a long sigh. “I don’t know. I don’t think he is afraid of him. He’s afraid for his daughter, and I don’t blame him for that. Asher is a loose cannon.”
“Asher is such a punk,” she growled. “I really, really hate that guy.”
“He is, but that isn’t the only reason I called.”
“I’m afraid to ask.”
“I got a job.”
“What!”
“Yep. At the music studio I told you about. I start next week.”
“That’s awesome! I’m so happy for you. Good job, Savannah. I knew you would kick ass.”
“Thank you. I’ll let you get back to work.”
“I’ll call you tonight when I get off. We need to make plans to celebrate.”
I hung up and felt a little better. I was starting my new life, and it looked like I would be doing it alone. That was fine. I could do that. I was a lion. Hear me roar.
Chapter Twenty-One
Cameron
As soon as I pulled into the designated area for officers, I could tell something was up. There were way too many official government cars behind the locked gate. I walked into the station and saw it was buzzing with activity. There were a lot of DEA jackets milling about.
I found Adam right away.
“What’s going on?” I asked.
Adam let out a long whistle, shaking his head. “The shit is going to hit the fan.”
“Why? What’s with the DEA?”
“That meth cooker I told you about. They think they know where he is. Well, they’ve narrowed it down to three locations,” he said.
“Wow. So are they going in with our narcotics unit?”
“I’m not sure. We’re on the list for the special briefing,” he said in a voice filled with hesitation.
“We’re what? Who put us on that?” I growled. “I’m not a detective or SWAT.”
I hated these operations. Technically, I loved the adrenaline rush and I loved doing something new and exciting, but I hate
d the risk that went along with the excitement. I couldn’t put my life at any more risk than it already was when I put on the uniform. I took a few deep breaths. I would do the job I was asked to do. I would never let my brothers in blue down. I had a will in place and knew that if something were to happen to me, my parents would make sure Lily was taken care of. I just hated the thought of her losing another parent.
“It’s going to be fine, man.” Adam clapped me on the shoulder. “I’m about ready to ditch this uniform anyway. Don’t you want to get into the narc unit? That’s what you used to say.”
I shrugged. “That was before.”
“You can’t let all that keep you from living your life. Shit happens every single day. You could be driving home or sitting in your backyard and something drops out of the sky. You have to trust fate. I, for one, am tired of seeing your ugly mug in that ugly uniform. I know it’s a real panty-dropper and the ladies love the sexy cop thing, but it’s time to move on from street patrol,” he said.
It wasn’t anything new. He had said it before. My parents had as well. Hell, even I was always thinking about it.
“Let’s just get through this op and we’ll see.”
We headed into the briefing room that was packed full of street cops, narc cops, DEA, and members of the SWAT team. I wasn’t going to lie; my heart was racing with excitement.
Adam and I were put on different teams. We wished each other luck and safety and headed out. I must have checked my vest a dozen times, making sure it was in place. I slapped on the SWAT-issued hard hat and made sure the chinstrap was on tight. It gave me flashbacks to heading out on patrol in the desert on the other side of the world.
“This is it!” the team leader hollered out to those of us lined up on the benches in the back of the van. “Stay alert! This guy isn’t going to make this easy! Head out!”
We climbed out of the van, took our positions surrounding the house, and watched as another small team tried to make contact. In a flurry of motion, things escalated. There was a lot of shouting and demands for the occupant of the home to exit. He refused.
The team leader came over the com. “Sit tight, everyone. We’ve got ourselves a standoff.”
The first hour stretched on with nothing happening. The guy on the loudspeaker demanded the guy in the house come out. The dude wasn’t budging. By the end of the fourth hour, I was ready to go in, guns blazing, just to bring an end to the damn thing.
“We’ve got movement!” someone called out over the com.
My finger hovered over the trigger of my rifle as my heart kicked up and then slowed with the training the Marines had given me. I took a few deep breaths and prepared for things to get crazy.
The man came out, his hands raised. In a flash, four agents were on him, taking him to the ground. Another team searched the house, declared it was empty, and just like that, it was all over. I was relieved and disappointed. It hadn’t exactly been the action I was anticipating.
When I got back to the station, Adam was already there.
“What a day,” I said on a sigh.
“No kidding. At least you guys got a guy. We sat outside a house for hours only to find out it was vacant. The only criminals inside were the family of mice. It was disgusting,” he complained.
“We sat outside for five hours, guns trained on a house, only to find out the dude holed up inside was just one of the minions. The Cooker outsmarted us again. The DEA guys were pissed. I think they need to scrape together better intel. This is getting old.”
Adam chuckled. “Don’t let them hear you criticize their operation. They’ve got this idea they are gods in the law enforcement world.”
“I thought that was the Feebees?” I joked.
Adam laughed again. “We measly beat cops are just along for the ride.”
I shrugged a shoulder. “I’m cool with that. The chief said I was done for the day. What about you?”
Adam nodded. “Yep. Easy day. I’m going home, opening a cold beer, and watching whatever I can find on TV.”
“I get to be home in time to eat dinner with Lily. Hopefully my mom made one of those casseroles for us.” I grinned.
“You’re such a mama’s boy.”
“Don’t be jealous.”
We grabbed our stuff and headed for the parking lot.
“I’ll see you tomorrow,” I told him, waving before climbing into my truck.
When I pulled into my driveway, my gaze automatically drifted over to Savannah’s house, checking to see if she was home. I saw her car in the driveway and thought about knocking on the door to check on her. I knew I had offended her yesterday when I brushed her off. She was a smart girl and had quickly picked up on it.
I walked into the house and heard her voice. What the hell?
“Mom?” I called out.
“In here!” she replied.
Savannah was sitting at the breakfast bar, Lily beside her, watching my mother make dinner.
“What’s going on?” I asked.
“You’re home early. Everything okay?” my mom asked, as if it were completely normal for Savannah to be in my kitchen.
“I should get going,” Savannah mumbled, clearly uncomfortable with my presence.
“Are you going to come?” my mother asked her.
“Come where?” I asked, wondering what the hell was happening.
“I’ve invited Savannah to dinner at the house tomorrow night,” my mother replied casually.
“Oh.”
Savannah looked as uncomfortable as I felt. Things were a little tense between us.
“She’s promised to bring a bottle of wine from her parents’ winery!” my mother said with a great deal of excitement.
“Are you sure I can’t bring anything else?” Savannah asked timidly.
“No, dear. You just come along with Cam and Lily,” my mom assured her.
I looked at Savannah again. This time, she met my eyes. I was immediately reminded of how beautiful she was. Her hair was pulled up in a loose knot on top of her head, exposing her face. Her pretty green eyes looked more remarkable with her hair pulled back. She looked casual in a pair of skinny jeans and a flowing shirt. The woman could have been a model. Well, maybe not one of the tall, super-thin kind of models, but she was stunning nonetheless.
“Thank you. I’ll see you tomorrow,” Savannah said and stepped around me to head toward the door.
“I’ll walk you out,” I murmured, ignoring the look my mother gave me.
She was playing matchmaker. I didn’t think it was my place to explain Savannah’s story and why a relationship with her could be dangerous for Lily. However, if she kept pushing the issue, I was going to have to explain why it wasn’t a good idea.
“I’m sorry,” Savannah mumbled at the door. “I didn’t mean for her to invite me, and then she did. I tried to come up with an excuse, but your mother is a persistent woman.”
I grinned and shook my head. “You have no idea.”
“I could tell her I have to go home,” she said, looking at her hands.
“No. It’s fine. Look, Savannah, about yesterday—”
“You don’t have to explain. I understand.”
I gave a brief nod. “Have you heard from him? Any flowers or phone calls?”
She shook her head. “Nope.”
“That’s good.”
“Yes, it is. I hope he got it out of his system, and now that he’s seen you, and me with you, he’ll back off. Thanks again. I really do appreciate you being there.”
“Savannah, I wanted to be. I’m still here if you need anything,” I said, reaching out to grab her shoulder. “Please, don’t take any of this the wrong way. I like hanging out with you.”
The moment the words crossed my lips, I knew I had fucked up. It was the classic “it’s me, not you” line. I hadn’t meant for it to come out like that.
“Thanks,” she said, and I could practically feel the daggers jabbing into my chest.
She walked out t
he door before I got another chance to try to explain what I meant. It was probably for the best. I had already inserted my foot into my mouth. Trying to explain it would only make me look like more of an asshole.
I watched her walk across the lawn and waited for her to go inside. I stood outside a few more seconds to make sure she didn’t come out of the house screaming because Asher had ransacked it again while she was out. I wouldn’t put anything past the psycho.
I went back into the kitchen to find my mother smiling like the cat that ate the canary.
“What?” I grumbled.
“Oh, nothing. She is such a pretty woman.”
I shrugged. “I suppose.”
She smirked. “You can admit when you’re attracted to someone.”
“Mo-o-o-m,” I said, making wide eyes at the back of Lily’s head.
My daughter was way too smart and turned to look at me. “I know you like her, Dad. Remember, we already talked about this,” she said as if she were my mother.
My mom smiled and raised an eyebrow. “Which is exactly why we invited Savannah to dinner. Lily enjoys her company, I think she is great, and I’d like to get to know the people in your life a little better.”
“She’s not in my life, Mom.”
She waved a hand at me as she slid the lasagna she had made into the oven. “You can say that, but Lily tells me she’s been here for dinner and a very early breakfast.”
She shut the oven and turned to look at me with one hand on her hip.
Busted!
I ignored the suggested accusation and quickly changed the subject. “We’ll be there tomorrow. Since Savannah is bringing wine, does that mean I’m supposed to dress up?”
“Wear whatever makes you feel comfortable,” she said in a nonchalant tone, which translated to don’t you dare embarrass me by looking like a ragamuffin.
“Got it. Thanks for the dinner.” I kissed her on the cheek before she grabbed her purse to leave.
I headed for my room to change, and once again my thoughts turned to Savannah. If Asher was really out of the picture, there was no reason Savannah and I couldn’t date. I liked her, and it felt right. Other women had never truly attracted me to them beyond the bed. I actually enjoyed spending time with Savannah, and Lily liked her as well.
Hot Cop Next Door: A Second Chance Romance Page 13