Free Secrets and Ink by Lou Harper Page B

did it, but Tyler must’ve suspected something. However, I don’t think he’d be seeking revenge after all this time. Have you guys questioned the redheaded roommate yet? I bet he’s up to no good.”
    Parallel grooves of disapproval appeared over the bridge of Nick’s nose. “I don’t think Riley was a good influence on you,” he said.
    “Now you sound like my sister.”
    “She’s a smart woman. Promise me you won’t do anything stupid like trying to talk to the witnesses.”
    “Are you crazy? Why would I want to do that?” Where did he get these strange ideas about me?
    “You’re impulsive.”
    “Don’t worry. I have no intention of getting involved.” A loud growl from the direction of my stomach added punctuation to my words. I hadn’t eaten since lunch. Something had to be done about that, so I pushed myself up. “Why don’t you stay for dinner?”
    “I should go,” he said but didn’t move.
    I gave him the figurative nudge he needed. “Oh, come on. I’ll make chicken fajitas; they’re quick. You must be hungry too.”
    He grimaced and scratched his head. “Well, I am. Yeah, okay, what the heck.”
    Over dinner, I told Nick about the time I kidnapped Charly’s dolls and switched Ken’s and Barbie’s heads. In exchange, he shared a story about a speeder who refused to pull over.
    “So he finally stopped, and we were right behind him. I was about to pull a gun on him when he jumped out of the car with a duck under his arm,” Nick said, wiping his fingers.
    “A duck?”
    “A real live duck. He ran straight into a building, and that’s when I saw it was a vet’s clinic.”
    The mental image of the whole scene with sirens, flashing lights and a duck cracked me up. Then I remembered that someone I’d been close to was dead and laughing seemed wrong. Disrespectful and selfish.
    Nick read my sudden silence. “Let’s see what’s on TV,” he said.
    That was how I found myself on the couch watching Back to the Future with Nick. He loved “the classics,” as he’d put it. He kicked his shoes off and we both put our feet up on the coffee table. He not only let me cuddle up to him but even put his arm around my waist. With my head resting on his shoulder and the scent of him, the sound of his breathing and the warmth of his body enfolding me, I felt more content than I had in a long time. Also, slightly horny. Contentment won, and I dozed off in the middle of a squaring-off between Marty and Biff.
    My pillow trying to escape woke me. “Hey, sleepyhead, I need to go,” he whispered.
    I cracked my eyes open and grumbled, “You could stay.”
    “Not a good idea.”
    I thought it was an excellent idea, but my recent experiences had taught me that arguing with cops was pointless. So I pushed myself up and saw him out.
    “See you later,” he said and melted into the night.
    I dreamt of Nick that night and woke up with a stiffy. Not till after I’d taken care of it did I realize I’d forgotten to set the alarm and had to put my ass into gear to get to work on time. I skipped breakfast, speed-showered and yanked on whatever clothes were handiest—a pair of jeans from the bedroom floor and a random shirt from the top of the basket of clean laundry. I really should’ve put those away already.
    At the store, we had one of those crazy days where everything goes wrong, people call in sick, customers throw hissy fits, and you’re run ragged. My lunch consisted of power bars and a salad, and I didn’t get another breather till close to the end of my shift. It was only me and Olly in the break room when I pulled my phone out to check my mail. As I did so, a piece of paper fell on the table between us. I had no clue what it was first but broke out in sweat realizing I’d worn the same jeans when I last saw Riley, and torn pieces of the smutty picture were still in the back pocket.
    Olly snatched up the loose piece before I could stop him. “Hey, what are you doing ripping up pictures of Clay