Page 31 of Shadow Justice

“That sounds like Lincoln Fleming reincarnated in you.”

“I’ll never live up to him, but I like to think he rubbed off on me in the best way.”

Blue doubled back, leash sweeping around Reid’s legs. Reid stepped over it neatly and shortened the line before the dog could tie them both to a parking meter.

Holly watched him untangle the leash with patient hands. “Is Shadow Point like that? You have a clear role?”

He looked toward the courthouse. “Not always. SPS works in the gray more than I expected.”

“That bothers you?”

“Sometimes.” He handed the leash back when Blue returned to her side. “Sometimes it feels more honest.”

Reid had always carried himself like a man trying to be fair to everyone else before he admitted what he wanted. Maybe that had made him good at law. Maybe it had also made it easier for him to leave her.

“And being home?” she asked.

His steps slowed slightly, then evened out. “That part’s good.”

“Even with Roni meddling?”

“Roni came out of the womb meddling.”

“She did.”

“And Granddad needs more help than he wants to admit.” Reid’s gaze moved over the quiet street, the courthouse, the old storefronts, the mountains beyond town still wrapped in low cloud. “But yes. It’s good to be around them again. Good to be home.”

Home. The word fit him strangely and not strangely at all. Holly had spent years thinking of Reid as someone who belonged elsewhere because he’d chosen elsewhere over her. Hearing him say home while having spent the night on her couch made the old story less clean around the edges.

“I’m glad,” she said and meant it.

He angled his head toward her as if surprised. “Me, too,” he said.

They walked the rest of the block in quiet. When they reached Sanctuary, Holly felt steadier than she had since the loyalty card had appeared. Reid hadn’t fixed anything. Nell was still in the hospital. The FBI still had more questions than answers. Someone may have watched her customers from the street or sat under her lights and pretended to belong.

But Reid had stayed. He’d slept on her couch, made coffee without destroying her kitchen, and talked about the Navy and Shadow Point and home.

Before she could unlock the back entrance, Blue’s ears perked. A second later, a familiar voice called from the front. “Blue Bristol, your chariot has arrived.”

Holly closed her eyes briefly. “Roni.”

Reid lowered his voice. “Today’s daycare day?”

“Yes.” Holly glanced down at Blue, who’d begun vibrating with joy. “And apparently his social calendar remains the most stable thing in my life.”

They rounded the building to the front, where Roni stood under the awning, a leash looped over her wrist, and a pink rain jacket bright enough to wake the entire block. Her dark hair was piled on top of her head, and her eyes widened dramatically when she spotted Reid.

Her gaze immediately shifted to Holly, then down to Blue, who lunged toward her with shameless affection.

A smile spread over her face. “Well,” Roni said, drawing the word out as Blue wriggled against her legs. “I knew I was picking up my favorite nephew this morning. I didn’t realize the two of you were…together.”

Holly unlocked the front door. “We’re not together, Roni. Reid is my new employee. He’s learning the morning routine.”

“What?” Roni said, her mouth nearly falling open.

Reid reached for Blue’s leash when Holly handed it over, then passed it to his sister. “I’m helping Holly for a while.”

Roni’s eyes narrowed. “Temporary coffee employment. Very normal career move for a former Navy lawyer.”