Page 41 of Tough Justice
Duke worked his jaw back and forth so he wouldn’t argue. What Spencer said made sense. There was no clear evidence that Chrissy was responsible and for all he knew, she was long gone. But in his mind, there was no other option. His gut told him everything he needed to know, and if he couldn’t prove it, at least he could keep Suzy safe until someone else did.
“Do you need anything else from us?” Suzy asked. “I don’t want to be here longer than necessary. It’s tainted, the energy off. I want to go.”
“I’m all done,” Spencer said. “I’ll head to the station and see what else I can uncover. I’ll keep you posted if I find anything, but until we have more answers, I recommend staying under the radar as much as possible.”
“That’s the plan,” Duke said.
Spencer dipped his chin and left.
“You have everything packed?” he asked, facing her.
She nodded. “I wasn’t sure how much to bring.”
“As much as you want. I don’t want you to run out of stuff or feel like you don’t have something you wanted. I mean, we can always come back here, but it’d be better if you grab it now.”
A small smile touched her mouth, and she smoothed her palm on his cheek. “Thank you.”
“For what?”
“For everything. For being here with me through all this. For offering me your home and your protection. I can’t imagine going through this without you.”
“If it wasn’t for me, you wouldn’t be going through it at all.” He couldn’t help but laugh at the irony. “I’m sorry for that.”
“I’ll tell you the same thing I told your sister. None of this is your fault, and you have nothing to apologize for.”
He appreciated the sentiment, but it didn’t do much to extinguish the guilt eating him alive.
“No matter, we should head to my place. I’m still starving.”
She jumped to her feet. “Oh, that’s right. We were going to order lunch to take with us. We can head to the Dusty Armadillo and get something quick.”
His stomach growled at the thought of his favorite burger. “I’ll call ahead so they can start the order. What do you want?”
“I’m in the mood for some comfort food. I’ll take the mac and cheese with a side salad.”
“Is that enough food?”
“Have you seen the size of their mac and cheese? I’ll probably have leftovers.”
“I don’t know. I might have to finish anything you don’t.”
“Go for it. I’m going to get my things.” She laughed then dipped down the hall.
He took out his phone and found the number for the local restaurant. When the hostess answered, he spat out both their orders then added a few appetizers for the hell of it. She assured him the meal would be ready in fifteen minutes. By the time he put his phone back in his pocket, Suzy stood in the living room with a bag at her feet. “Ready?”
Standing, he collected her bag then put the strap on his shoulder. “Ready.” He followed her out the door and down the stairs. Cold air kissed his cheeks as he stepped outside.
Not wanting any space between them, he claimed her hand. “We have a couple of minutes before the food’s ready. How about we head back to the candy store and grab some desert? I hear the chocolate covered peanuts are the best.”
She grinned up at him. “Mac and cheese and chocolate? Sound like a great date.”
Staring down at her, he wrinkled his nose. “Not exactly how I wanted to wine and dine you.”
“No? You didn’t plan this whole situation just so we’d both finally admit our feelings?”
“I don’t recall you telling me too much about any of your feelings beyond calling your brother a jackass.”
Playing coy, she raised a slender shoulder. “It was important you knew right away that Lane’s opinion doesn’t matter to me—at least in this circumstance. The rest of it…we have time to get into all of that.”
