Page 9

When we leave Rhonda’s hospital room, I ask Ian to wait in the hall for a moment. I step back into her room, close the door behind me, and approach the bed. I keep my voice low, not wanting Ian to overhear what I have to say, as I level my best don’t-fuck-with-me gaze on her. “Rhonda, I’m all for redemption and second chances, but if you hurt him, you will answer to me . Is that clear?”

Her eyes widen slightly, but she surprises me with a small smile. “I meant it when I said Ian was lucky to have you in his life. He has his own personal guard dog.”

“I’ll take that as a compliment.”

Her smile widens. “Good. Because that’s how it was meant.”

I rejoin Ian out in the hallway.

“Everything okay?” he asks as he peers around me and through the open doorway at his mother. “Is she okay?”

“I think she’s going to be just fine.”

Once we’re back in the car, I call my mom to check on the babies.

“They’re fantastic,” she says over the speaker phone. I can hear the joy in her voice. “They just had their bottles and diaper changes, and now they’re both sleeping. Beth and I are just staring at them in awe.”

“Do you mind keeping them a little while longer?”

“Of course not, sweetheart. Take your time.”

“Thanks. I’d like to take Ian out for lunch.” I glance over at him to confirm he’s on board with the idea. Okay? I mouth to him.

Nodding, Ian lays his hand on my thigh, and I link my fingers with his. He smiles at me like I just performed a miracle.

“Where would you like to go?” I ask him after I end the call.

He grins. “Can we go to the fondu place?”

I groan, as he knew I would. “Do we have to?”

“Just think about it—food dipped in melted cheese. Strawberries dipped in chocolate. What could be more divine?”

“Steak and a baked potato.”

He hits me with his puppy dog eyes. “Please? We haven’t had fondu in a while.”

“Fine.” I squeeze his hand. “We’ll go to the fondu place.”

“Yes!” I think he just mentally did a fist pump in the air.

I shake my head as I pull into traffic. “You are so easy to please.”

* * *

Lunch at the fondu place is actually not bad. Ian’s delighted with his charcuterie board featuring a variety of cut-up breads and veggies with a variety of sauces for dipping. I go for the meat lover’s option, which includes a few different cuts of beef, pork, chicken, and potatoes. We each have a glass of wine. Or rather two, in Ian’s case, as he’s not driving.

For dessert we share an assortment of cut-up fruit and cake to dip into melted chocolate. Ian dunks a bright red strawberry into the chocolate and feeds it to me. Of course I return the favor because I know it’ll make him happy.

After our meal, we head back to my mom’s house. Mom and Beth are seated on the sofa, each one cuddling a baby.

“Did you have a good visit with Rhonda?” Mom asks.

“Yes,” Ian says. “She seems to be doing well, all things considered.”

We visit for a while longer with my family. Then we pack up the babies and take them home. After I help Ian get them into the house and settled, I head across the driveway to the office to check on things there.

I find Kimi sitting at her desk, laughing as she scrolls through one of the social media apps. “Kittens lip-syncing,” she explains as she shows me her phone screen. “At least there’s one good thing about AI.”

“Let me know when AI can wash my car.” And then I proceed to update her on Gary Sharp’s status.

“Good,” she says. “I’m glad he’s behind bars—the prick. Hey, we had two new client inquiries this morning. Are you interested in taking on some new cases?”

“Sure. Forward the information to my e-mail, and I’ll read through them.”

Kimi salutes me as I walk past her desk. “Will do, boss. How’s Ian?”

“He’s holding up well.”

I’m sitting at my desk going through my e-mail inbox, checking out potential new client inquiries. One woman wants me to get proof her husband is cheating on her so she can take him to the bank. A man thinks his wife is cheating on him with her yoga instructor.

My phone chimes with an incoming text message from Ian.

Ian: I’m taking the babies outside for a walk.

Me: Don’t go far. I’ll join you shortly.

I read through a few more e-mails and spend a few minutes cleaning out my junk folder. It seems I get far more spam e-mails than legitimate ones.

I reply to the proposed new clients and suggest we schedule initial phone calls to start. I’m happy to take on new cases, but right now, I mostly want to stick close to home until this incident with Gary Sharp is settled.

Even though Sharp is behind bars, and I don’t believe Rhonda is a threat to Ian, I still have an uneasy feeling. I can’t pinpoint exactly why, and that bothers me, but I feel like there are loose ends that still need to be tied up.

After two decades as a homicide detective, I’ve learned to listen to my intuition.