Free Meant to Be (RightMatch.com Trilogy) by Kathryn Shay Page B

told the man to back off; their lawyer had written a letter stating the same, but now Carrie was worried he’d gotten on to the site with an alias and connected with her. His phraseology and some similarities in his background led Carrie to worry this new suitor, Alonzo, was Ernesto, her stalker.
    The doorbell rang, pulling Cole out of his work, and in walked Joe. He’d asked his cop brother to stop over sometime today. Spence thought Cole was making too much of this one incident, but Joe didn’t.
    Heading for the kitchen he said, “Hey, buddy. I’m getting a cola. Want one?”
    “Sure.”
    In a minute, Joe dropped down beside him.
    “Snazzy suit,” Cole commented as he took a can of cola from Joe.
    “Dana picked it out. For some reason, she likes to go shopping with me.” There was a time, Cole knew, when Dana had hated stores, hated to be in unfamiliar places. For all she’d done for his brother, Joe had helped bring her out of her shell, too. “Besides, as a lieutenant, I should look better.” Joe had been promoted last year.
    “And how is my lovely sister-in-law?”
    “Don’t ask. I’ll just embarrass myself.” He rolled his eyes. “I get teary eyed whenever I feel the kid kick.”
    “It’s nice to be part of it, though.”
    Joe took a bead on him. “You never had the opportunity with Ellie.”
    “Nah, Johanna didn’t want contact with me, but she did let me call once a month to see how she was doing. I think she didn’t want to make a big deal of the baby.” He shrugged. “Small price to pay for getting my bundle of joy.”
    “You want more kids, Cole?”
    “Nope.”
    “You sure? Or are you just saying that because of Beth.”
    Cole leaned back and sipped his brew. “Does it matter? If it works out between us, I’d never ask her to have another baby. She’s past that phase in her life. Everything’s a compromise, bro.”
    “Yeah, I felt like that before we were married, too. But now we never fight. We’re always on the same page.”
    “I’m glad, Joe.” And he was. He’d envied Joe and Spence having found true love but not to the point of wishing they hadn’t.
    “So, tell me about you and Beth. The last I heard she said she’d try a relationship with Ellie as part of the equation.”
    “We’re doing better. It’s strained because I lied. Then even more so because of what I lied about. But I think we’re making progress.”
    Joe socked him in the arm. “Spence and I told you to tell the truth.”
    “That you did.” In an effort not to think about the mistakes he’d made, he gestured to the computer. “Now, help me with this asshole.”
    When Cole had called his brother, he’d briefed Joe on the situation. The newest thing needed more attention.
    “Why does the Lawson woman think it’s the same guy?”
    “Similar speech patterns in writing. Won’t talk to her on the phone. He’s demanding, like Ernesto got, too. My psychologist analyzed some of the emails and she sees similarities between the two guys.”
    “Why doesn’t the woman just ditch him?”
    “She tried that and it didn’t work the first time. She did start sending his emails to spam, and never writes back, but she’s concerned.”
    “She could go to another site.”
    “She feels safer with us. Ironic, huh?”
    “No, you’re dealing with safety issues more than most sites. I did some checking. You take more precautions, different precautions, than most dating services.”
    “We do our best. But no system is foolproof.”
    “Why don’t you send me all the information you have about the two guys and any emails the woman saved. I’ll check out a few databases. Talk to a captain I know that everybody goes to for stalking situations. If I deem it necessary, we can call the FBI.” Who was responsible for Internet crime.
    “Hey, that’d be great.” He rolled his eyes. “This is all I need to be dealing with now.”
    “See, I knew you were holding back.”
    “No, I’m just preoccupied with