Hot Winter Nights (Heartbreaker Bay #6)(35)

She looked up, caught his expression, and paused. “Do I want to know?”

“If you knew, you’d be running for the hills.”

She paused, as if she was debating pushing him on the issue.

Do it, he thought.

But she shrugged it off and pulled open a drawer. “Oh boy.”

He moved to her side in time to see that every drawer she pulled out was empty, including the cabinet file.

“Think he cleans out every night?” Molly asked. “Or was that for our benefit?”

“I don’t know. But we’re going to find out.”

She nodded and did a slow circle, her eyes running over the entire place.

No paper trail. No computer.

Nothing.

“What now?” she asked softly.

“We come back,” Lucas said. “Your next shift. There’s got to be some point in the evening where this office is left unattended. Maybe during bingo. I’ll get in then.”

She looked over him. “Sounds dangerous.”

He shrugged. He’d been in far worse circumstances.

She just looked at him.

“What?” he asked.

“I don’t like the feeling that I’m putting you into a dangerous situation.”

He let out a low laugh. “You know the nature of some of the jobs we take on. This is nothing.”

“You’d better not get hurt. Not on my watch.”

He was torn between laughing again and fighting a sensation he didn’t quite recognize, but whatever it was, it sent a warmth through his chest. Been a long time since someone had worried about him. Well, okay, his family worried about him, but he did his best to keep them in the dark on the actual danger level of his job.

Molly knew. And she understood.

And she worried about him.

And it wasn’t just tonight either. Four nights ago, she’d caught on to the fact that he’d been out of commission after stupidly mixing pain meds and alcohol, and she’d personally taken on the matter of his safety by getting him home.

That was new for him. And not entirely unwelcome. He’d been feeling off since getting shot. Off and alone. But actually, if he was being honest, it’d been longer than that, a lot longer. He’d cut himself off from feeling too much after losing Carrie and then a few years later, his brother, Josh in an arson fire.

But he was feeling again now and he knew that was Molly.

What he didn’t know was what to do about it.

Back at the car, Molly closed her eyes with a tired sigh. “You’re staring,” she murmured.

When she’d climbed into the passenger seat, the little elf costume had crept up her thighs again. A very nice view, but mostly he was hoping she wasn’t in pain. She was, though, he could see it in the tightness around her mouth and eyes, but God forbid he reveal an ounce of empathy; she’d likely kill him. “Does it make me an asshole to tell you that I like the way you look in that costume?” he asked.

She let out a low laugh. “Well you’re honest at least.”

He started to ask what the “at least” meant but her phone rang. She answered and listened a moment. “Joe, I can’t take tomorrow night for you. I told you that already, I’m working on something—” She paused and sighed. “So let me get this straight. You’ve got a really great girlfriend and she’s taking you on some fantastic mystery surprise date tomorrow night with the promise of God knows what afterward and you figured what the hell, Molly doesn’t have a life, I’ll get her to take my night. Is that it?”

Lucas winced for Joe.

“No, really,” Molly said in that same conversational voice. “By all means, let me help you make your already awesome, amazing life even better. I’ll handle it.” She disconnected and leaned her head back, closing her eyes. “Don’t,” she said quietly.

“Don’t what?” Lucas asked.

“Tell me I’m not nice. I already know it.”

“I wasn’t going to say that.”

“Because I am nice?” she asked dryly.

“Because you already know you’re not nice.”

At that, she snorted.

“And Molly? You do so have a life.”

She opened her eyes and met his. “You think so, huh?”

“Yes. You have a lot of good friends, and you’re always doing things like girls’ night out and shopping and spa stuff. And you have a good job that keeps you busy, and a family you care about.”

“I do have good friends,” she agreed. “But I don’t let any of them too close because I’m bad at that. And my job isn’t fulfilling me, which has me chasing down a bad Santa that no one but me thinks is bad.”

“I think he’s bad,” he said.

She sighed. “Thanks.” And then she closed her eyes again.

“And your family,” he said carefully.

“What about them?”

He didn’t know much and he wanted to know more. In fact he was surprised by how badly he wanted that. But prying with Molly had never worked. She didn’t like questions. “You say you don’t let anyone too close. But you’re close with Joe, even when you’re yelling at him.”

“We’re close because we’ve had to be, you know?”