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Their approach drew his attention and his head went up. He hissed in their direction and picked up the sardine like he was going to run.
They both froze just as the back door suddenly opened and Mrs. Dolowitz stuck her head out. “Hello? Is someone—”
Before she could finish her sentence, Oscar raced into the safety of the house, bringing his treat with him.
Reynolds couldn’t have planned it better.
“Oscar? Is that you, baby?” Mrs. Dolowitz asked in surprise and delight.
Waverley took a step forward and opened her mouth to speak, but he quickly put his hand on her shoulder. She turned to him in askance, and he held his hand to his lips and shook his head, signaling for her not to speak.
Her brows furrowed but she didn’t argue.
When the back door shut and Oscar was safely secured inside, Waverley turned to face him. “Why wouldn’t you want Mrs. Dolowitz to know we were here looking for Oscar? Isn’t it a good thing he’s back?”
“It’s a great thing. Even better that I don’t have to take responsibility for it,” he said, scooping up the can of sardines and heading to the garbage by the side of the garage. “The last thing I need is to have every pet owner in the town of Blue Haven calling me to search for Fluffy or Mittens whenever they disappear. I’ve got a reputation to protect.”
He lifted the lid to the garbage and was about to toss in the can when she jumped forward. “Wait. Don’t throw that away.”
He slowly turned to face her, raising his brows in question.
“No, they’re not for me. Just…a friend. May I?” she asked, holding her hand out for the can.
“Knock yourself out.”
They continued to creep quietly along the side of the house. He waited until they reached the sidewalk to speak again. “I have a lot more to say about you going out on your own and taking on cases without my permission. I should fire you right now.”
Her mouth opened in shock.
“But…” he continued before she could start to argue with him, “we’ll table it until tomorrow. For now I just want to shower and get some sleep.”
She seemed relieved as she smiled and nodded at him. “Great idea. We’ll talk tomorrow. Night, Reynolds,” she said brightly and scurried down the sidewalk as if she wanted to get away before he could change his mind.
He watched her, not able to stop staring at her curves in those jeans or the snug jacket that emphasized her cinched waist. The white sneakers were a nice touch. They seemed to almost glow in the darkness, and his lips twitched as he fought back a smile.
He waited to see her go to one of the cars and get inside, but instead she was still walking. At the corner, she crossed the street and kept walking.
Did she still not have a car? And if she didn’t…how had she gotten here? It was easily three miles from her place.
Let it go, Reynolds. You smell rank and you’re exhausted. It’s not your business.
He got inside his car and started the engine. She was halfway across the next block.
A minute later, he was slowly driving next to her, his window down. He noticed a couple of cats drawing closer to her heels, their sense of smell no doubt on overdrive with the sardines held in front of her.
“Do you mean to tell me that you’ve walked over here alone and in the dark from your place for the past three nights?”
“No,” she said sweetly, still walking.
“It sure looks like that to me.”
She still hadn’t turned to look at him, her attention on the path in front of her. “No, it wasn’t dark when I walked here from my place the past three nights. It was only dark as I walked back to my place.”
Ah. Semantics. He loved that.
“Do you know how crazy that is, not to mention unsafe?”
She’d grown up around Denver. She couldn’t be that naive not to know the risks of being alone at night, even in a small town.
