“Baz took me to eat,” she said, although she didn’t look up at him.
“Really?”
Her eyes flipped up to his. “It wasn’t like that. A business dinner, that’s all.”
“Business.” He smirked. “Right.”
JJ glared his way, making him laugh.
“What do you think of him?” he inquired.
“Nice guy. Smart.”
“Handsome,” Brantley inserted.
JJ grinned. “Sure. Some might think so.”
Some? Brantley had watched her interaction with the man. She was more than a little smitten if he had to guess.
“I think it’s time to call it a night.”
She’d been going nonstop since she returned and now she looked as exhausted as he felt.
“You need to head home,” he ordered. “Get some sleep and we’ll start again in a few hours.”
Her eyes swung up to the second floor. “It’d be easier if you’d put a pull-out couch up there.”
Brantley looked up at the hayloft. “So what? You can camp out there at night?”
“The thought did cross my mind.” JJ’s gaze scanned the space around them as she frowned. “Where’s Reese?”
“I sent him inside. He was hungry.”
“I take it the two of you made up?” She eased back in her chair, stretching her arms over her head.
“Yeah.”
“That’s good, B. I’m happy for you. I saw him at Moonshiners Saturday night. He looked miserable.”
Brantley strolled over, perched on the corner of her desk. “Why aren’t you goin’ home?”
A half-hearted shrug was the only response.
“JJ?”
“What?”
“Somethin’ goin’ on?”
“Besides us tryin’ to find Dante’s missing sister? No.”
“Talk to me.”
“Nothin’ to talk about,” she mumbled as she got to her feet.
“This have to do with Dante?” He couldn’t imagine it was easy for her to have to deal with him on this case considering the fallout they’d had recently.
“He’s been callin’ me,” she told him. “I asked him to leave me alone, but now he’s usin’ the case as an excuse.”
“Tell him to call me if he has questions.”
“I tried. This is Dante we’re talkin’ about.” She sighed heavily. “He’ll use any advantage he has.”
“I thought you broke it off.”
“I did. And he was in agreement. But Dante’s not the sort to like to admit defeat.”
Brantley narrowed his gaze on her face. “Meaning?”
“Meaning he used that woman as a way to get a rise out of me. He was hopin’ to piss me off, to hurt me. When he realized it didn’t…”
“He’ll continue until he can.”
“Unfortunately.” She stood. “I just don’t want to find him waitin’ at my house when I get there.”
Although he held in the frustrated growl, Brantley’s molars clamped together. That sounded like Dante. High and mighty Dante Greenwood stalking his ex-girlfriend in an attempt to get her to admit she had feelings for him only so he could turn around and dump her. Some people never changed.
“It’s fine,” she said quickly.
“Maybe we should put up some cameras,” he suggested. “That way you can monitor your house when you’re not there.”
Her eyes cut to his. “I’m not opposed to that idea.” She grinned. “On the outside only.”
Brantley winked at her as he stood. “Outside only. Now scoot. Go home and get some sleep.”
“Yep. Headin’ that way now,” she said, getting to her feet. “I can grab a couple hours’ shut-eye. That way I can be back bright and early.”
“You want me to drive you home?”
She wrinkled her nose, offered up a pffft. “I’m quite capable of drivin’ myself home, thank you very much.”
“Then text me when you get there so I know you made it safely.”
“Fine. Slave driver.”
Brantley smiled, glad she’d lost that morose look. He hated to think of JJ getting beaten down emotionally by the likes of Dante. Maybe the guy hadn’t hit her all those years ago, but that didn’t make him a stand-up guy. Emotional abuse was as significant as physical. He only hoped she knew that. Unfortunately, it didn’t really matter that she’d broken things off with him, either. Some guys didn’t know when to quit.
After walking JJ to her car, Brantley went into the house, found Reese in the kitchen. He had showered and wore only a pair of athletic shorts as he worked at the island preparing something that smelled fantastic. He was quite fond of seeing Reese in this state of undress. Relaxed, all that naturally tanned skin on display. The man truly was a masterpiece, made even more so by his height and those long limbs and sleek musculature.
“Hey,” Brantley greeted, coming up behind Reese and sliding his arms around his trim waist, feeling his abs contract when he pressed a kiss to his neck. “Makin’ dinner?”
“I am,” he said easily, leaning into him. “Salisbury steak, mashed potatoes, and peas. You’ve got about five minutes before it’s ready.”
“Plenty of time for a shower.” He kissed Reese’s neck once more, then released him.
His time in the military had made him fast and efficient when it came to hygiene. He was back in the kitchen in the allotted five minutes, finding that Reese had finished preparing their meal, had it dished up on plates at the island with iced tea to go with it.
