Out of Love(7)

He smiled at me. For real. My mom used to show me pictures of Gunner smiling at her. She said only the people German shepherds loved the most could recognize their subtle smile. I refrained from breaking the news to Slade that his dog already loved me more.

“Fine.” Slade’s one-word response shifted my attention to his cell phone heading toward his ear. “I need to report a trespasser on my property. The perp refuses to leave. Yeah, the address is 803 Sun—”

“Oh my god! I’m leaving …” I held up my hands in surrender while taking two steps sideways before pivoting and pounding my feet down his driveway. The nerve … I was not trespassing. And perp?

I didn’t glance back until I made it up the street and crossed over to my house, where I had a good view of the firehouse. Slade and Jericho were nowhere in sight. My jaw continued to hang open, and I choked on the shock of him calling the police on me.

“What’s that look about?” Missy asked, tossing her phone beside her on the espresso-colored leather sofa by the front window.

I inspected her gray fitted tee. It was mine. “Nice shirt. And … no look. Well …” I dropped my bag by the stairs. “Psycho Slade caught me on his property and called the police.”

“Seriously.” Missy sat up with wide brown eyes unblinking and messy brunette bangs swooping across her forehead.

Sprawling out on the plush, gray and white area rug, I pulled my knees to my chest to give my lower back a stretch. “Total dick move. There’s no way he really called the police. I didn’t see his phone screen, but I did hear the mumble of someone on the line with him. Probably an equally asshole-ish friend playing along.”

“Do you think Slade Wylder has friends?”

My body vibrated with laughter. “Good point. Talk about personality deficit. Maybe his brain is damaged from shooting shit up his veins, or maybe his parents didn’t love him. I don’t know what his issues are, but they are severe.”

“Why were you on his property anyway?”

“Duh … because he lives in the firehouse. He takes a dog to class, but aside from his obvious personality disorder, he doesn’t seem to have a solid reason to have a dog in a college lecture hall. But mostly … I’m just curious. And pissed. The more he acts like an asshole to me for no good reason, the more I feel the need to figure him out.” Straightening my legs, I laced my hands behind my head and stared at the ceiling. “I mean … what if he’s another Professor Dickerson? My curiosity could save lives.”

“Or end yours. You read too many thrillers. He’s not a plot to solve. He could actually be a dangerous person. For. Real. Did you ever think of that?”

“I walked around his house. I didn’t go inside.”

“Because the door was locked or because it was a bad idea?”

“Yeah.” I grinned.

“Yeah to which one?” She chuckled.

“I mean …” I rocked up to sitting and folded my legs. “The garage door was locked too. And that’s fine … whatever. Maybe he keeps important stuff in his garage. But the side door’s window is painted black. All the shades are down in the house. All. Of. Them. That’s not normal. He’s hiding something.”

“Drugs!” Missy ran her fingers through her hair. “If you had drugs in your house … maybe meth residue on the coffee table and bongs haphazardly discarded on the sofa—you’d shut your blinds too.”

I returned an easy nod. “True.”

The doorbell rang, and Missy jumped up to answer it. I craned my neck to see who was there, scrambling to my feet when I made out the two police officers.

“Uh … Livy?” Missy turned just as I came up behind her. “They’re asking about someone in this house who was trespassing down the street.” With her back to the officers, her eyebrows crawled up her forehead. “I’ll leave you to it.”

I slapped on an innocent smile as Missy skittered off to the kitchen. “Hi.”

“Miss, we received a trespassing complaint, and—”

“Whoa …” I shook my head, crossing my arms over my chest. “I was just seeing if he was home. When no one answered the door, I checked the garage. He caught me trying to look in the garage door window. That’s it.”

The female officer bobbed her head several times. “Well, he said you’ve been harassing him on campus as well. So maybe it’s best to keep your distance.”

“I …” My head shook. “I can’t believe he reported me. You should give him a warning for wasting your valuable time. There’s probably some real crime going on right now, but you’re here because my asshole neighbor upped his dickhead game. His dog likes me more. That’s why he’s mad. And if you want a real tip … I heard he’s dealing drugs.”

They gave me two pained expressions. I couldn’t read if they were feeling sorry for me, like the poor obsessed, stalker girl or because they realized how ridiculous it was for them to give his prank call the time of day.

“Do you have a credible source?”

I shrugged. “No. But that doesn’t mean it’s not true. You should search the premises … but I know … you’d need a warrant and a credible source.”

The stocky officer with a graying goatee smiled. “Yes. For now, just watch yourself and keep off his property.”