Chapter 30 An Ending of Sorts
AN ENDING OF SORTS
Three weeks later
Andi had just put the last full stop on the report about how they had solved the case of an old woman murdered in her own home ten years ago—it had been her nephew, who had owed the wrong people money and needed the inheritance—when George came back from his coffee run.
Or, in their case, tea and a full-grain bagel run.
After their stint in Spartanburg that had cost Andi two pounds, his partner had become even more obsessive about feeding him right.
Andi secretly thought it also had to do with the visit from his family.
No matter how many times he explained to George how little he cared about Miranda’s attitude or Ayden’s silence, George wouldn’t or couldn’t believe him.
The silence from their end—except for one call from Daniel—didn’t help either.
Andi had done some soul searching, and he could say with absolute confidence that other people’s opinions still didn’t affect him in the slightest. What he did care about was George’s well-being, which seemed to be better when he had a semblance of peace with his family.
Since this wasn’t in the cards right now, he let his man hover as if Andi were a fragile chick.
To be absolutely honest, he kind of enjoyed being pampered and would continue doing so until his self-reliant streak reared its head again.
George put the bounty from the coffee shop down on their connected desks and slumped into his chair with a sigh. “I’m done for today. Did anything come up while I was away?”
Andi reached for the bag of bagels. “No. Report is done as well.” He looked up at the clock on the wall. “I think it’s justifiable if we go home. I mean, we just solved a ten-year-old murder within three days.”
George thought about it for all of two minutes, which, given his man’s dedication to duty and propriety, was lightning fast, then nodded vigorously. “Yeah. Let’s eat at home.”
They packed their stuff as well as the tea and the bag full of bagels and left the precinct before anybody could stop them with something urgent they just had to give their attention.
At home, George transferred the bagels to plates, and they went out on the back porch to enjoy their snacks in the shade of the two Angel Oak trees flanking the house.
When the bagels were gone and the tea almost empty, they spent some time silently contemplating.
Andi was just getting ready to take a nap when his lover’s electric field fluctuated.
“I think we can both use a distraction.” George got up. When Andi motioned for him to follow, George shook his head. “Wait here. I’ve got a surprise for you.”
His man took the empty plates and mugs back into the house and came back out only a few minutes later. Andi looked up and saw something orange and yellow in George’s hands. It took him a moment to recognize what it was.
“Oh. You found Gran’s camera.”
“I did.” George held the clunky piece of plastic out.
It was still as ugly as it had been back then.
A flood of memories assaulted Andi—all of them happy.
The fun he and Gran had had with that camera!
“I brought it to a store where they specialize in old machinery. They cleaned it and said it’s fully functioning again.
I’ve bought film for it, and now it’s ready to go.
Do you want to take some bad pictures with me? ”
The smile Andi felt forming on his lips was broad and happy and beaming.
“I’d love nothing more.”
THE END