Chapter 7 #2
She unintentionally tucked her lip between her teeth as she gave him a once-over. He was rocking a white T-shirt, gray sweatpants, and matching socks this morning. One hand was casually tucked under his shirt, allowing her a glimpse at what she knew was a well-sculpted six-pack.
Realizing she was staring, Nahla looked away quickly and cleared her throat.
“Good morning. I made breakfast.” She tried to hide her face by turning back toward the stove and picking up the spatula she had been using to cook. She felt Cannon approaching her from behind. Standing over her, he looked at the bacon, sausage, eggs, and pancakes she had prepared.
“I see. It looks good as hell.”
Taking a deep breath, Nahla turned to face him. He was closer than she thought, and her body brushed against his as she whipped around.
Because she was eye level with his chest, she had to look up to meet his eyes.
“Have a seat,” Nahla said softly. “Let me make your plate.”
She half expected him to protest, but he just turned around, headed toward the barstools, and took a seat.
Once she had made his breakfast, she set it in front of him and watched as he paused, closed his eyes, and silently blessed the food.
She then made herself a plate and joined him at the island.
He was already digging in, and if the rate at which he was eating was any indication, he enjoyed her cooking.
Confirming that, he said, “This is good as hell, Nahla.”
She smiled softly. “Thanks.”
They ate in silence for a while, and Nahla remembered that she hadn’t texted her sister back.
“Uh, Cannon?”
The nervousness in her tone made him focus on her instantly. They’d only known each other a short time, but he’d already learned that she wasn’t the timid type. She said what she felt, so whatever had her voice wavering had him immediately concerned.
“What’s wrong?”
“Nothing, really. It’s just that my father is sick. He has congestive heart failure and has monthly appointments . . .”
“I’m sorry he’s not doing well,” Cannon said, feeling truly sorry.
His grandmother was doing much better now, but about a year ago, she had gone through some serious health challenges that really tested their little family. Cannon and Capri had been scared as hell that they might lose her, so he could only imagine how Nahla felt about her father going through it.
“Thanks. He has an appointment today, and even though it’s my sister’s turn to take him, she can’t get off work, and she asked me to fill in for her.”
Cannon nodded. He didn’t know why she was nervous to tell him that. Family was everything, and he would never get in the way of Nahla seeing about hers. As long as she knew he was coming with her.
“I don’t have a problem chillin’ wit’ you and your pops today, La. My job is to protect you, not to stop you from caring for your people.”
She smiled a little and glanced at the countertop before looking at Cannon again.
“I appreciate that, but . . . my father’s cardiologist is in Lyle. That’s where I have to take him.”
Oh.
Well, . . . that was a problem for him. He was not feeling the idea of her going back to the same town that was coming for her. Not so soon after she had been threatened.
“I see,” was all he said as his mind tried to come up with a plan that worked for him.
Of course, he would be driving them, but he would prefer it if none of the people gunning for Nahla even knew she was in town.
They wouldn’t take either of their cars.
He doubted that the two men he’d handled saw what he was driving, but whoever pulled up to her house the day before definitely had.
To be on the safe side, they would swing by his home and switch to his other truck before picking up her father.
“Okay, cool. We’re going straight to the appointment then straight back to Jasona.
If your pops needs to eat before, we’ll eat here, but I’on wanna linger in that city.
I’m sure the sheriff has officers stationed all over the city who might catch a glimpse of you.
I need you to do what I ask while we’re there. Aight?”
She nodded silently. “I can do that.”
“Good.”
Nahla then opened her laptop. Cannon glanced at her plate and saw she was done eating, so he grabbed his plate and circled the island to her. As soon as he was standing behind her, an email popped up on her screen. He didn’t mean to be nosy, but the subject line had him suspicious.
The Truth About Lyle_Restricted Access
Before he could tell her not to open it, she did.
The body of the email read:
They took more than land in Lyle, and these documents prove it. I wouldn’t ignore this if I were you. Download before the information vanishes.
As he suspected, the email contained an encrypted file. He noticed her cursor hovering over the file and stopped her just in time.
“Don’t open that file.”
Looking up at him, she frowned. “Why not?”
“Because you don’t know who it’s from. Encrypted files can contain all types of shit, and it could be someone trying to gain access to your computer or location.”
“Hmph.”
“Yeah,” he said, walking toward the sink with their plates.
“But what if it isn’t that? What if it’s someone trying to help me?”
Cannon began washing their dishes before he responded.
“That could be the case, but I ain’t willing to take a chance about no damn email.”
He heard her sigh dramatically. “Cannon, I told you I’m not letting go of this case.”
“And I told you that that’s okay with me, as long as you stay inside my boundaries. Opening that email right now is a boundary, Nahla.”
She paused. Then, just as he was turning off the faucet, she said, “I like La better.”
“What?”
“Earlier, you called me La. I liked the way it sounded, so let’s go with that.”
This made Cannon laugh, because it must have rolled off his tongue. He didn’t notice it at all.
“Aight then, La. Leave that email where it’s at for now. We’ll pick up a hard drive from my office and look at it on another device.”
Nahla groaned. “I’m not good at being patient.”
“Well, take a minute. Pray about it. Patience is a fruit of the spirit. Either way, you ain’t opening the email right now, so this will be good practice for you.”
He approached her, lifted her laptop from the countertop, and closed it.
“I’ma hold on to this for now, because I know your hardheaded ass is bound to piss me off if I leave it with you. I’ma go get dressed, then we can head out.”
With that, he exited the kitchen, leaving Nahla frustrated and turned on beyond belief.
She loved his take-charge attitude, even though her hands were itching to read that email. After yesterday’s incident, however, she decided to do things his way—for now at least.
Grabbing her phone, Nahla texted her sister back.
Nahla:
I’ll be able to take Dad to his appointment.
The reply was almost instantaneous.
Sissy:
Thanks, sissy! I owe you big!
Nahla rolled her eyes but smiled. She loved her baby sister something serious. She just hated when Nia teamed up with their brother to cut her out of shit. Nia was right about one thing, though.
She did owe Nahla.