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“Can you tell me one more time?”
“What?”
“That you’re stayin’,” I said as if he should know by now. This might have not been the first time I’d made him do this. I was still just alittlemuch, remember?
He dropped his head. “Really? Not only have we been over this, but we’re literally setting up my office right now. I just paid for a year’s lease in advance. What more do you want from me, woman?”
I laughed at his teasing tone, still gruff, but I loved the side of warmth it always carried when he spoke to me.
“Fine, fine.”
“Wait… I could add something else.”
“What?”
“That I love you.”
My eyes flared. “I know.”
His grin was fast and devastating, even as he tried to give me a flat look. “Really?”
“Duh. You moved here for me.” I flipped my hair in an exaggerated gesture, making his smile deepen. “I figured you did since you were willin’ to do that. Plus, you’ve been my chili guinea pig for the last month to prep for the chili cookoff, and when I lost by a mile, you didn’t even give me crap for it—unlike everyone else in my life. If all that ain’t love, I don’t know what is.”
He shook his head, cupping my cheeks with his large hands. “No, Wildcard, that’s now how I love you.”
Remembering the old exchange in a slightly different way, I smiled softly. “Oh, yeah? Then how do you love me?”
“I love you deeply, like you love your roots. I love you because you’re the first person who made me want to belong somewhere. To linger. In a world where I always felt like a drifter, you’re the one who made me want to stay.”
The way my heart fluttered at those words was ridiculous, but I couldn’t help it. It had hurt so much to imagine what life would look like after he left—how I’d handle it, how I’d move on.
And now? I didn’t have to. He was here.Wewere here.
The door to the office creaked open, and Colt walked in, carrying another box. “Hey, you two done with the mushy stuff? We’ve got work to do.”
I grinned at Colt, who had somehow become like yet another annoying big brother during all this. “Almost done. Why, you jealous? Wishin’ you and Hope could have the office to yourselves for your our own mushy moments?”
Colt shot me a look but didn’t deny it.
“I think I’ll wait until we’ve officially solved the next few mysteries before I make my move,” Colt said, setting the box on his desk. “Can’t have people thinking we’re only solving cases to get girls.”
“Aren’t we, though?” Tucker surprised me by asking.
I swatted his chest with a laugh. “Hush.”
“Anyway, I thought it might be slow around here… but now I’m not so sure. I’m thinking something strange will crop up soon.”
I raised an eyebrow. “You mean like continuting to hunt for that treasure with or without a client?”
They scared glances, but I knew that was the plan and I was more than a little on board.
When they didn’t respond, I sighed. “Oh, were you thinkin’ more along the lines of Mrs. M hirin’ you after losin’ her cat again?”
“That, or maybe the bakery will hire us to recover their stolen recipe book,” Tucker added. When I slid him a questioning look, he shrugged. “What? It’s my job to keep my ear to the ground, and the word is, that book hasn’t been seen in a week.”
I shook my head, laughing. “Y’all are gonna fit in perfectly around here. But yeah, seriously, Colt. I think you’ll have your hands full now that the office is up and runnin’.”
Tucker pulled me closer, a teasing grin on his lips. “And if you happen to get yourself mixed up in any of them...”
