by Paris Hansen
Cade was a handsome man, that was something she couldn’t deny. Having a moment to really appreciate the fact, was nice. Sitting so close and in the bright light of the porch light, Sloane could see the hints of silver in his well-manicured facial hair and at his temples. It gave him a distinguished air that was at odds with the newly discovered tattoos but made him hotter than she originally thought. She really needed to figure out a way to get her hormones in check.
“I can’t believe Cooper proposed. I was just starting to feel comfortable, and then he’s down on one knee, and I’m back to feeling like some random guy crashing an intimate family party.”
Sloane smiled. “Join the club. Emily might be my best friend, but it’s not like I’m around a lot. I only just met Cooper tonight. I’m ecstatic for her, though. She deserves a man who will put her and Tally first, that will love them both with everything he has. Cooper seems to be that guy.”
“I’m sure it’s not all that easy hanging out with your ex and his girlfriend either...especially when he’s staring at you wishing he could shoot daggers out of his eyes.”
“Oh, you noticed that, huh? Yeah, that’s been a real treat, too,” Sloane laughed. “Not sure what his deal is. It’s obvious he’s not a big fan of yours either. Sorry if that has anything to do with me.”
“His disdain for me started long before you got here, but it’s nothing I can’t handle. I’m used to not making many friends wherever I go.”
“That must get a bit lonely.”
Cade shrugged, then took a sip of his beer. “I just remind myself that it doesn’t matter if people like me as long as they don’t stand in my way. I’m there to help solve a case. That’s what’s important.”
Sloane looked over at the man sitting next to her in appreciation. Most people were worried about other people liking them. They focused on it more than what was truly important. Ass-kissing was just as vital to moving up in the bureau as an agent’s solved case rate. If she was honest, it might even be a bigger deal. Sloane knew that was also the case in the outside world, and it made her really glad she’d never have to deal with that kind of BS again.
Moving up was usually the ultimate goal. It was for Reid, which was partially what led to the demise of their marriage. Not that cutting her loose and throwing her under the bus had done much for his career. He was still exactly where he’d been when she left.
Part of her was happy about that fact, but mostly, she felt bad for him. They were friends once, they loved each other once, and despite him not standing by her when she needed him the most, she didn’t want to see him fail.
“That’s the way I always looked at it too.”
“Yeah, I heard you used to piss people off a lot back in the day.”
It was Sloane’s turn to shrug.
“Tiptoeing around bullshit isn’t my thing. I don’t have time to worry about hurting someone’s feelings or, worse yet, their ego. I never had grand plans for myself. I’m not leadership material, especially not in a place where yes-men are what’s desired. And I have a huge problem being told what to do when I don’t believe in what’s happening. I’d say ask my dad, but that’s why he’s dead.”
“What?”
Sloane moved her left hand closer to Cade so he could see the scar in the middle of her palm. Slowly she turned it over so he could see the fainter scar on the back of her hand. It was a reminder of the first turning point of her childhood. The day everything changed, and she learned exactly who the people she loved truly were.
He took her hand in his, running a finger over the raised skin of her palm. The sensation was odd, foreign. She couldn’t feel some of it, the nerves never regenerating around the wound. But what she could feel sent a shiver through her entire body. It was far more intimate than she’d been with anyone in years, and she wasn’t sure how she felt about it.
“When I was thirteen, my dad tried to get me to join the team. It was actually when I first learned what they were and what they’d been doing. He was pissed I didn’t want to play their kind of games, so when he tried to kill me, my mom killed him. And in return, I turned her in and got her killed.”
“You’re not the reason either of them is dead.”
Sloane ignored Cade’s attempt at assuaging her guilt.
Not that she had any, not in the usual sense anyway. Her parents were terrible people. They killed more people than the authorities probably realized. Neither of them deserved to be alive. But Sloane wished they would’ve been forced to pay for their crimes, maybe give the families of their victims some closure. Sloane knew there had to be bodies buried all over the country that belonged to them but would never be found.
“You know I still expect her to show up out of nowhere like one of those bad TV villains. No body means there’s no proof of death. They kept telling me that no one could survive that fall, especially not after having been shot, but none of them knew my mother.”
“It’s been over twenty years, Sloane. Don’t you think if she were coming back, she would’ve by now?”
She’d been asking herself the same question for years and the short answer was still no.
Every day she woke up expecting to find out her mother was still out there killing. When it didn’t happen, she didn’t feel a sense of relief like most people would. Instead, she still waited for what she thought of as inevitable. She just never really talked about it to anyone, and she certainly didn’t admit her biggest fear to anyone, especially not a virtual stranger.
Yet, here she was, letting Cade in on a secret she’d vowed never to talk about. As a profiler, he was probably having a field day getting into her head. More power to him if he could figure her out.
“Not unless it benefited her in some way,” she finally answered, though she decided not to elaborate any further. She’d said more than enough already.
Neither of them said anything for a long while. Sloane stared up at the stars, waiting for Cade to say something, anything, even if to just point out she was crazy. She mentally kicked herself for opening her big mouth. Why would she ever think someone like Cade would want to listen to her paranoid rambling?
“I never liked that they never found her body either.”
Sloane’s head whipped to the right so she could look at Cade. Was he serious? Or was it a trick to get her talking more about her family and her childhood?
When she didn’t say anything, he looked over at her. “I don’t know if I believe she’s out there waiting for the right time to make her presence known. I’m just saying I’m not a fan of loose ends.”
Sloane nodded. “I’m not either. There’s no closure in loose ends. I know my dad’s never coming back because I saw his dead body. Rosalie’s an entirely different story, and she’s always scared me far more than he ever did.”
“Even though he was the one that tried to kill you?”
“My mother isn’t just a heartless killer; she’s charming and manipulative. She can get just about anyone to do anything she asks them to. If she’s still out there staying under the radar, it’s because she’s managed to get other people to keep her hidden and safe, probably even had them get her money.”
“You’ve really thought this through.”
“Figuring out how criminals think has kind of been my job for the last dozen years or so. Even after leaving the FBI. The bad guy and their motivation are pretty much the two most important parts of a good suspense novel.”
Cade laughed, his eyes meeting hers. “I’ve read your books. They’re quite good.”
“Thank you. Though, I wouldn’t have pegged you as much of a fiction reader.”
One of Cade’s eyebrows rose as he considered her words, then he gave her one of those smiles that threatened to knock the wind out of her.
“Is that right? In the short time we’ve known each other, you’ve given my reading habits a lot of thought, have you? So, what do I like to read then?”
A flush crept up Sloane’s cheeks. “I may or may not have thou
ght a bit about what makes you tick last night after I got back to Emily’s. You seem like you’d like to know a lot about a lot of different things. I’d take you for a nonfiction reader. True crime for sure, but also books dealing with history.”
Laughing, Cade shook his head. “You’re not entirely wrong. I do enjoy nonfiction books, but it’s not all I read. Should I comment on the part where you admitted to thinking about me?”
“May or may not have...I didn’t admit a thing.”
“Didn’t you?” Cade asked, his brow raising again.
Sloane opened her mouth to protest but was interrupted by the back door opening. They both turned to find Reid standing in the doorway, a scowl on his face. Sloane fought back the urge to roll her eyes.
“Emily wants to head to bed, and we’ve got a case to get back to bright and early.”
She could tell Reid was doing what he did best with her, which was to be passive-aggressively bossy. He knew she hated being told what to do. So instead of coming out and telling her to get away from Cade and go to bed, he attempted to frame it in a way that made it seem like he was just reminding her of their plans for the next day. Then if she did it, he’d play it off like it was her idea to do whatever it was he wanted her to do. She’d gotten wise to his underhandedness early on in their relationship.
Sometimes, she’d let Reid win just because she didn’t want to argue with him. But they weren’t married now, and she didn’t have to listen to anything he said. She’d hang out with whoever she wanted and stay up as late as she wanted. But it was Emily’s house, and if she wanted her guests gone, then she at least had to make Cade leave. Trying not to laugh, Sloane stared at her ex-husband and said the one thing she knew would piss him off the most.
“Okay, dad. We’ll be right in.”
Before Reid could respond, she turned back around so she could take in Emily’s well-manicured backyard. She finished off her wine while she waited for Reid to leave them alone. With a huff, she heard the screen door close, then the heavy back door after that.
“Oh, he did not like that,” Cade said as he turned back around. “You should’ve seen the look on his face. It got so red; I thought he might pass out.”
“Good. Mission accomplished then. He knows I hate it when he tries to tell me what to do, especially when he’s passive-aggressive like that.”
“I should probably go, though,” Cade looked down at the phone he’d pulled out of his pocket. “It’s later than I thought, and he’s not wrong. We do have to be back at the office bright and early. Would you like a ride in the morning?”
Sloane thought about it for a moment. Would she enjoy spending more time alone with Cade? Absolutely. Should she? Probably not. They’d have plenty of time to sit in a car together the next day when they headed back out to Danielle Zimmerman’s neighborhood to finish their interviews.
“I’ll order a car. It’ll be easier than you coming out here, just to head back into the city, especially during rush hour. I appreciate the offer, though.”
Cade smiled at her, and her breath caught. It took her a second to recover, but then she gave him a smile of her own.
“You should do that more often.”
She furrowed her brows, unsure what he was talking about. “Do what more often?”
“Smile. You know the real one, where your eyes light up, not the polite one you give to most people. And before you give me some lecture about being a man telling a woman she needs to smile more, it’s not like that. I think your scowl and your serious, ‘I’m trying to figure this puzzle out’ looks are sexy as hell too. But the real smile...that one’s heart-stopping.”
Sloane didn’t have a chance to respond or even react before Cade was standing up and walking toward the back door. His unexpected declaration threw her off, causing her to falter as she tried to respond to his retreating figure. He laughed as she stuttered but didn’t turn back to look at her. She watched him walk into the house, leaving the back door open for her. She could see him saying goodbye to Emily and Cooper, and even Sara. He did one of those head nod things to Reid, who was still scowling at him.
As she stood up to walk inside, Cade finally turned toward the back door. He smiled at her one last time, then opened the door and walked out. Once he was gone, Sloane felt like it was safe to go back into the house. As she entered, she could feel four sets of eyes on her. Ignoring them for a moment, she went about rinsing out her wine glass and the beer bottles near the sink. She put her glass in the dishwasher and then put the bottles in the recycling bin next to the counter.
“What was that all about?” Emily asked from the other side of the island, where she stood wrapped in Cooper’s arms.
“He’s bad news, Sloane. You shouldn’t trust him.”
Reid’s comments popped the bubble she’d been floating in since Cade left her on the deck.
Who the hell did Reid think he was telling her she shouldn’t trust someone? She was a grown-ass woman and could make her own decisions. Had he forgotten how untrusting she was? Like she’d just suddenly forget all the shit she’d been through just because a hot guy, with a great smile, complimented her. Whirling around, she glared at her ex.
“Thanks for the advice, dad, but we already acknowledged I haven’t changed much over the years, so I’m not sure why you bothered. I still don’t trust people, especially after making that mistake with you. It takes a long ass time to get behind these walls. You don’t have to worry about me suddenly giving James Cade all of my secrets. But if I want to...that’s my damn business. Not yours,” she said with one final look in Reid’s direction. “Now, if you’ll all excuse me, I was rudely reminded I’ve got to get back to the office bright and early tomorrow. It was really great meeting you, Sara. Cooper, thank you for loving Emily. Em, I’ll see you in the morning.”
Without waiting for anyone to respond, she made her way down the hallway to the guest room she’d taken over. As she angrily changed into her pajamas and went through her evening routine, she tried to conjure up something to take her mind off of the jerk she used to be married to. Now that Cooper and Emily were engaged, he’d probably want to move in, which meant if Sloane wanted to stay longer, she was going to need to figure out different living arrangements. That was a distraction she could get behind.
Slipping in between the sheets, she closed her eyes, thankful when her tired brain conjured up Cade instead of Reid. Hopefully, dreams of him would keep the nightmares at bay, and she’d be able to get a good night’s sleep. She had a feeling she was going to need it if she was going to have to deal with not only the case but with her asshole ex as well. The current day hadn’t even ended yet, but she was already certain the next day would be a long one.
Chapter Twenty-Four
He should’ve known this was the way his day would end.
Instead of curling up in bed dreaming about his future with the beautiful blonde, he was struggling to stay awake while he drove to Sacramento at three in the morning. He’d gotten cocky. Planning a life he had no business even thinking about. Not when his life wasn’t his own.
She deserved his full attention. Well, her and Rebecca and the new baby, whenever he found the right one. They were his life. His devotion was to them and their happiness. Finding that for them should’ve been enough to keep him content. He shouldn’t need to find someone or something outside of their little family to bolster his happiness.
Then why did he suddenly feel otherwise?
The damn blonde was to blame.
Watching her, daydreaming about her, had put foolish notions into his head. Instead of paying attention to what was right in front of him, he allowed himself to envision something he had no business even thinking about, let alone considering.
If he’d been in his right mind, he would’ve realized sooner that he should’ve gotten rid of the first baby before bringing home the second. He didn’t know what he thought was going to happen having two infants in the house. Especially since she had no interest in the
first one. It wasn’t like she was going to suddenly change her mind about the first when he brought home the second, but he’d been too damn distracted to put it all together. And now he was paying for it.
He rubbed at his right eye and then peaked at the babies in the back seat using the rearview mirror. They were both still fast asleep, so he sent out a silent prayer they’d stay that way for the next forty-five minutes. At the same time, he sent out another prayer that he could stay awake for the next forty-five minutes without the aid of cold air blasting on his face or music blasting in his ears. Neither of which he could use while the babies were still in the car.
He’d barely gotten any sleep the night before, given how long the situation with the last woman had taken. Then he’d had to drive back and forth between the farm and the other house so he could drop the baby off, then head back out to take care of his mother. Taking her to the park had been stressful, but it was quicker and easier than taking her closer to her home like he had the others.
Checking the speedometer, he backed his foot up off of the gas when he realized he was going nearly eighty. Besides the babies waking up, the last thing he needed was to get pulled over by the police. While it wasn’t completely strange for a father to be out driving his infant sons around in a car in the middle of the night, he didn’t want to take the chance or have to answer any questions. Neither child looked anything like him, which could easily be explained, but with two infants recently taken from their mothers, he would expect most cops in the area wouldn’t just take his word for it.
Maybe he should’ve dropped the boys off at a fire station closer to home instead of driving an hour and a half out of his way. He’d hoped taking them somewhere away from his home base would keep the cops off of his trail, but it was proving to be more stressful than he’d anticipated. Odds were they’d already pinpointed his comfort zone or whatever the hell they called it. But that didn’t really matter in the long run. Once he found the perfect baby for her, they’d move out to the farmhouse and live out the rest of their existence in peace and quiet.