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Lucas covers my hand with his. “You still need to eat something.”

“I can’t get Billy Jade’s face out of my mind.”

“Seeing the aftermath of a violent death can be traumatizing. I completely understand, and for what it’s worth, it’s a normal way to feel. I’d be more worried if you were stone cold about it,” he chuckles softly.

“Do you ever get used to it?”

“The bodies?”

“Yes.”

He thinks about it for a moment while I admire his finely designed profile. A handsome man with a heart of gold and a character made of steel—his sculpted physique only completes an already perfect picture. Had I met Lucas years ago, my life would’ve been much better.

But there’s a time and place for everything.

“Not really,” he sighs deeply. “It doesn’t get easier. You just learn to roll with it, to compartmentalize it so you can do your job.” He pauses to look at me. “You belong here, Tassia. Don’t doubt yourself.”

I feel my lips turn up in a smile. “That’s a one-hundred-and-eighty degree turn I did not see coming.”

“You’re probably wondering if you’ve got the stomach for it.”

“I do wonder, sometimes, but there’s nowhere else I’d rather be. I like the evidence room gig, it gives me structure. And I love helping you guys out on your cases. It gives me purpose. And that’s in short supply when you keep stumbling over your past mistakes.”

Lucas turns slowly and pulls me into his arms. I welcome the warmth of his body and the safety I feel when I’m with him. “Tassia, our past doesn’t define us. Everything we do is a stepping stone, a lesson for who we are becoming. I’ve been around you for a while now, and I know for a fact you’re anything but a criminal, no matter what your record says.”

“That is such a long and tedious story to delve into.”

“Then we won’t delve into it until you’re ready,” he says and kisses me.

My lips part gleefully as our tongues play. I taste a hint of coffee as I abandon myself in his embrace. I just want to forget all about today, about Billy Jade’s slit throat, about Sherry’s harsh words.

Ah, Sherry. An intrusive thought that refuses to leave on its own.

Lucas can sense it. He stops and looks at me with worried eyes. “What’s wrong?” he asks, his voice low and sweet.

“Honestly, it’s stupid.”

“Tell me anyway.”

“I had a bit of a run-in with Sherry today.”

He shakes his head, unbothered. “Mitch warned me she might try to get under your skin. I apologize, Tassia.”

“There’s nothing to apologize for. Obviously, you two have a history?—”

“I wouldn’t call it history, really. Just a fling when we first settled back in Frost Valley. Sherry wanted more, but I told her from the beginning I couldn’t give her what she wanted. That’s all. I let the department hire her as my PA because despite her abrasiveness, she’s good at her job. And she needed the financial stability.”

“Look at you, always helping folks,” I whisper and smile, finding him more and more endearing. “You really are a good man, aren’t you?”

He lowers his gaze. “I have my dark side, too.”

“Don’t we all?”

“What did she say to you?” he asks.

“Again, it’s stupid.”

“I don’t care, I want to know.”