Chapter 1 #3
“Not at all,” Tyler said, because going with, “Sorry, but your little sister and I have been avoiding each other ever since we became tipsy tongue buddies a couple months ago” was a straight path to being murdered.
“Guess I’m just still getting my head around the new timeline, that’s all. No big deal.”
Chloe must have wanted to sell it, too, because she amped up her smile. “God, Ry. You worry too much. We’ve got this. Everything is totally fine.”
“Excellent. I knew you’d make a kickass team.” Ryan grinned, and at least he’d been easily convinced. “Annnnd now that you’re both on board with the wedding, you two can go to breakfast and figure out the details.”
Chloe’s eyes widened in surprise that matched Tyler’s. “Wait, what? I thought you and I were going to breakfast.”
“We were, but the tailor had an opening for my suit fitting this morning, so I’ve got to raincheck you.
But Addison sent you all the stuff for the party last night, right?
” At Chloe’s nod, Ryan continued, “So, you can fill Tyler in over breakfast, and I’ll catch up with you on Sunday at Mom and Dad’s. Sound good?”
Guilt picked a fight with the unease in Tyler’s belly.
Yeah, he needed to keep Chloe at arm’s length, but Ryan had already picked up on the awkward undercurrent running between them.
Plus, this was no big deal. For Chrissake, he had breakfast every day, and with any luck, they’d only need one in-person planning session to figure out these party details.
Strong-arming his expression into its most neutral setting, Tyler said, “Sure. How does the Fork in the Road sound, Chloe?”
For a split second, he thought she’d balk, even though the Fork was the best diner in Remington. But then, she plastered on a prim smile. “It sounds just fine. I’ll wait for you out front?”
“Sure.”
Tyler took only the time he needed to sign off on his shift change and swap his uniform for a pair of jeans and a light blue T-shirt before shouldering his duffel bag and heading back to the engine bay.
Chloe was sitting on the bench in front of the fire house with her back to the bricks.
Most people, Tyler included, would probably kill the time by checking email or casually scrolling through the news or social media.
Instead, Chloe’s phone was nowhere in sight as she sat, relaxed but alert, and watched traffic start to thin out on Washington Boulevard.
The sunglasses she’d pulled from the bag on her shoulder made her eyes unreadable, but that was fine, because A) Tyler was so hyper-aware of her, he’d learned to read her ages ago, and B) she wore her emotions like a party banner, anyway.
He could see the second she became aware of him in her peripheral vision—impressive, since he was a solid two dozen paces away from her still—his stomach tightening with some unnamed feeling as her shoulders stiffened and her lips pressed together just a little more tightly.
“I talked a lot of the party plans out with Addison at dinner last night, so we should be able to get this over with pretty fast,” she said, and before he could guard against it, the words slipped under his skin and stung.
In the pre-kiss times, Chloe probably would have been bubbling over with excitement at the prospect of teaming up to plan this party.
They’d have spent hours at the Fork, laughing and working together and betting each other who could eat more home fries.
But this was their new normal, which served him fucking right for thinking he could have her, even for just one kiss.
“Okay. Right. Sure.” Tyler took a slow, deep breath. Keep. Your. Cool. Jackass. “I can drive, if you want.”
“That would be fine. Thank you.”
Thankfully, his Mustang was parked nearby, and they got in and got moving without the silence getting too weird. Two minutes later, though, and that was no longer the case, and Tyler took a grab at the only safe topic he could think of.
“How’s work?”
A tiny flicker that Tyler would bet was involuntary moved over Chloe’s face, the excitement there, then gone. “Work is good.” Long pause. Then, finally, “How’s your mom?”
At least this smile, he didn’t have to work for. “Great.”
Silence stretched out between them again. Might as well rip the Band-Aid off, he guessed. “So, um, you said you already talked to Addison about this party?”
Chloe nodded, another strand of coppery hair unloosening from the knot on her head and falling to frame her face.
“Yes. The venue is set—thank God—and she and Ryan confirmed the new date for two weeks from tonight. Almost everything else has been handled. Honestly, I can probably just do the rest of the party stuff on my own and let you off the hook until the wedding.”
“No.” The word dumped past Tyler’s lips, but he didn’t wish for it back. He might want Chloe at arm’s length, but not at the expense of being a dick. “I promised I’d help. I’m good for it.”
“I don’t mind. It’s really no big deal,” she pressed, but oh, look. He still wasn’t a dick.
“Great. Then, we should be able to divide up the work easily.”
She opened her mouth—to protest, if he was going to guess—but she was cut off by the chime of her cell phone.
“Sorry, this is Addison. I should answer, just in case,” she said, tapping the icon to take the call and shifting the phone to her ear.
“Hey! If this is about the bachelor and bachelorette party, you don’t have to worry, I…
what?” Her brows tugged downward behind her sunglasses.
“Okay, rewind. That doesn’t make any sense.
I’m a pastry sous chef, not a detective. Why would you need me for a case?”
Tyler’s pulse moved faster as Chloe listened, the confusion on her face turning to concern at whatever Addison was saying. “Okay. I trust you,” she finally said. “Yep. I’ll be there as fast as I can.”
“Is everything okay?” Tyler asked as she lowered her phone to her lap. There was no point pretending he hadn’t heard the conversation—or, at least, half of it.
Chloe nodded. “Everything’s fine, but I have to bail on breakfast.”
“Okay.” Tyler drew out the word just enough to turn it into a question, and to his surprise, she bit.
“Addison asked me to come to the precinct. Something about a case that would benefit from my expertise and that it’s time-sensitive, but she couldn’t get into it over the phone.”
A pang of worry unfolded in the center of Tyler’s chest, although he didn’t let it near his face.
Addison was a detective in Remington’s Intelligence Unit.
They only went after the most dangerous criminals in the city, and they’d been the ones to take down Myles Bishop, the man who’d stalked Chloe two years ago.
He’d died in a shootout after the Intelligence Unit had tied him to five serial rape/murders, so at least whatever Addison needed Chloe for wasn’t connected to him hurting someone else.
Still… “That doesn’t exactly sound fine.”
Chloe simply shrugged. “I’m sure it’ll be fine. Anyway, I’m sorry for wasting your time. I’ll make it up to you by taking on some extra party planning. If you could just drop me back at my car, that would be great.”
Tyler shook his head. “I can drive you to the Thirty-Third.”
Chloe shook her head right back. “Oh, no. That’s really not necessary.”
“You’re right,” he said, “it’s not. But it will save time.
Look, I can take you back to your car if that’s what you really want, but it’ll mean doubling back.
I can get you to the precinct a lot faster.
” He eyed the intersection in front of them, then did a quick mental scan of all the shortcuts and side streets between here and the Thirty-Third. “Fifteen minutes, tops.”
Going back to her car would double that. Which she must have realized, because she said, “Okay.”
“Okay.”
They lapsed into silence, yet again, but it was probably for the best.
All he needed to do now was drop Chloe off at the precinct and be on his merry way, and then he could go back to keeping his distance from her.