Page 40 of I’ll Be Watching You

Tess tried not to act surprised. She knew that Margo and Cal had gotten serious, but she didn’t realize it was that serious. Every time Tess tried to talk to Margo about Cal, her sister would just make cryptic comments like “they’re having fun,” “taking it one day at a time,” “it’s not serious.” Maybe in planning her wedding Tess hadn’t been paying enough attention to what was going on in her sister’s life.

“I have Gabriel,” she said.

“A doctor.”

“So?”

“Does he own a gun?”

She opened her mouth then closed it. “I don’t know.” She doubted it. “I have one.” But it was at her condo. She decided not to mention that to Nate.

“You’re above average on the gun range, but you’re an analyst. You have no practical tactical training.”

She resented his blunt honesty. She’d taken advanced self-defense classes and went to the gun range once a month. Sure, she wasn’t obsessed with guns like Margo or obsessed with physical fitness like Luisa, but she could hold her own.

You couldn’t get out of the grip of a gun-toting jerk last September.

Her fear had gotten the better of her then. Maybe Nate was right. Maybe she needed more training.

“Tess, I’m not trying to make you feel bad,” Nate said. “I just want you to assess your skills and situation honestly because I don’t want anything bad to happen to you.”

She heard the door open from the garage into the kitchen. “Gabriel’s home.”

“You don’t know that,” Nate said. He left the room. A moment later he returned, right behind Gabriel. “You’re right,” he said to Tess and winked.

Gabriel had a frown on his handsome face. She loved him so much and every time she saw him, her heart skipped a beat. “Hey,” she said, forced a smile.

“You didn’t text me that we had company.”

“You remember Nate?”

“Yes.” But he was looking at her for more than an introduction.

“Remember how I told you that Margo was still investigating Dr. Klein’s murder?”

“Of course.”

“It was on the back burner until yesterday.” She told him what happened. She hadn’t wanted to tell him about the murder, but he’d find out eventually and be angry she hadn’t told him. She didn’t want a wedge between them when their wedding was right around the corner. She focused on her dad’s unexpected transfer and how Jack wanted everyone to take precautions until they had more information. “Nate’s doing a security assessment on your house and is going to stick with me for a couple days.”

Gabriel didn’t say anything for a long minute, and she was worried. Really worried. She was constantly thinking about all the ways her relationship could fall apart. Sometimes, it paralyzed her.

Then he walked over to her, drew her into his arms, and held her tight. “You are the most important person in the world to me, Teresa,” he whispered in her ear. “If this is what must be, I understand.”

“I love you,” she said, sighing in relief.

He kissed her lightly, looked down at her notes. “What are you researching?”

“Mom doesn’t know who killed Dr. Klein, but said he was concerned about a PTSD drug trial with several of his patients because there was missing or false data. Mom and Aunt Rita are going to Colorado tomorrow to talk to Dad, see if he has more information.”

Gabriel was reading one of the reports she’d printed out, a slight frown on his face.

“What? Do you see something?”

“No, nothing specific. I’m just . . .” He paused, cleared his throat and glanced over at Nate. Tess had almost forgotten he was in the room. “I may be able to offer some insight, at least in how to read these reports.”

“I didn’t want to ask.”

“Why?”