Until Cobi (Until Her/Him #7)(29)

“Maybe.” He shrugs before grabbing my hand and pulling me into the house. When I’ve cleared the door, he closes it behind me. He lets my hand go and heads toward the kitchen, leaving me staring after him.

“I think you might need some help,” I tell him as he drops his duffle bag near the door to my bedroom.

When he turns to look at me, he smiles like he thinks I’m joking. “Baby.”

“No, really, who does that? Who does any of the stuff you’re doing?” I toss my arms up in frustration.

“A man who is interested in a woman.” He shrugs then pulls out his phone. “Now, what do you want to eat? I was thinking Indian food, but really I’m good with whatever.”

Looking into his eyes, I know for certain that he’s not going to see how crazy he’s acting, how irrational his actions are. Not having the energy to confront him and convince him that he might be insane, I go to the island he’s standing near and set down my purse. “Indian sounds good.”

He smiles before asking, “Do you know what you want?”

“Cheese naan, not plain, and butter chicken.”

“Got it.” He lifts his chin toward the cell phone still in my hand. “You might wanna call your girl back. I’m sure she’s worried.”

As he puts his cell phone to his ear to place our order, I shake my head and walk toward my bedroom, dialing Brie as I go. She answers on the first ring and doesn’t even give me a chance to say hello before she shoots off a rapid succession of questions. I answer each one the best I can, but tell her that I will have to talk to her in person about all things Cobi, since he’s only a room away. Reluctantly, she agrees after making me promise to do dinner tomorrow just her and me.

After we hang up, I change into different clothes, putting on a pair of leggings and a baggy shirt before going to the living room. Cobi is on the couch with the TV on, not watching it. Instead, his eyes are on a laptop he has resting on the coffee table in front of him. I study him for a few moments, taking in his relaxed posture and the look of concentration on his face.

He must feel me watching him, because he turns to look at me and does a head-to-toe sweep. “Everything okay with Brie?”

“Yeah, but as usual, she’s worried and has questions. I promised her that I’d have dinner with her tomorrow evening.”

“Are my ears going to be burning?” he asks with a small twitch of his lips.

“Probably.” I shrug, and his lip twitch turns into a grin. “Do you want some water or something?” I ask, needing to do something with myself so I don’t jump him.

“I’ll take a beer.”

“Coming right up.” I go around the island to the fridge and grab him a beer then pour myself a glass of wine. When I make it back to the couch, he’s shutting down his computer. “How was work?”

“Work.” He shrugs, taking the beer I hold out to him. “On TV, my job seems exciting. In reality, it’s a lot of paperwork and sitting behind my desk or behind the wheel of a car.”

“Did you always want to be a police officer?”

“Yeah, since I can remember. What about you? Did you always want to be a social worker?”

“Yeah, in a way.” I take a sip of wine before continuing. “I didn’t know what a social worker was growing up, but I did always want to help kids who couldn’t speak up for themselves. When I went to college, one of my counselors told me the best way to do that was to work in social services, so that’s what I decided to major in.” I take another sip from my wine, trying not to let the way he’s looking at me affect me. “Why did you want to be a cop?”

“To protect the people I love.” Those simple words and that easy statement make my chest feel like a weight has settled on it. “I thought about playing ball after high school, even had a few offers for full rides. But in the end, I knew I wouldn’t be happy, so I joined the military and became an MP.”

“An MP?”

“Military police officer.”

I smile. “So you weren’t a sharpshooter?”

“No.” He smiles back. “I know the rumors. None of them are true.”

“Mmm.” I take a sip of wine. The rumors might not all be true, but I have no doubt there’s a lot he’s not saying.

When there’s a knock on the door, he gets up to answer it. I expect it to be the food he ordered, but when I hear him ask, “Can I help you?” I turn to find Tom standing in the doorway.

“Hey, Tom.” I get up and head around the couch. I look up at Cobi when it seems he’s blocking me from the door, and explain quietly, “Tom’s my landlord.” Jerking up his chin, he lets me by and I shake my head.

“Got the note you left in my mailbox,” Tom says shortly when I reach the door. “The answer is yes, just as long as you clean up any and all shit and pay the three hundred dollar deposit.”

“Thank you,” I say softly, and he grunts in response.

He turns and walks away without another word, I watch him go wondering exactly what he did for the Mob, then I smile.

“What was that about?” Cobi asks, seeing the smile on my face.

“I’m getting a dog, or maybe a cat. Either way, I’m getting an animal.” I look up at him while he closes the door.