Page 103 of Devoted in Death

“It’s just a thing.” She muttered it, couldn’t figure how to avoid the presentation. Get it over with, she decided, and gave Summerset the fish-eye. “Vehicles out front?”

“Of course.”

She narrowed the fish-eye until he glided—like more smoke—away.

“Go pile in,” she told the rest. “Feeney, give me a minute?”

Banner unfolded himself from his crouch, giving Galahad one last stroke along the way. Peabody nearly turned her head in a one-eighty to keep Eve and the box in view as they went out the door.

“It’s a thing,” Eve repeated, and pushed the box at Feeney. “For you.”

His hands went directly into his pockets; his face fell into wary lines. “Why?”

She often thought the same when it came to gifts, so only shrugged. “Just a... you know,” she mumbled, and shoved it at him.

He looked puzzled, mildly embarrassed, but ripped the paper away. Wanting to keep it moving, she snagged the paper from him, balled it up, and tossed it on the closest table. Then got busy putting on her coat.

“Well, fuck me sideways.”

The stunned pleasure in his voice gave twin tugs—that mild embarrassment, and quick satisfaction. She turned back, pulling the scarf out of her pocket when he dumped the box on the floor, pulled out the coat.

“Son of a bitch!”

He grinned as he held it up. Shit-brown—she’d chosen the color as it was his usual choice of hue—the coat with its protective lining would, she saw, hit him about mid-thigh.

She’d left the design to Roarke, saw he’d gone roomy, simple, and had added the flash of captain’s bars as buttons.

“You got me a goddamn magic coat.”

“Well, Roarke—”

“Son of a bitch.” Still grinning, he punched her in the shoulder, then immediately pulled off his old shit-brown coat, dumped it on the floor.

“Bastard fits, too.” He folded it back, studied the lining with a shake of his head. “Freaking genius is what it is.”

More comfortable discussing the body armor aspect, she relaxed a bit. “No bulk, no weight, and it works. Deflects a full stun—I can attest. Sharps, too, though I haven’t personally tested that one.”

“Son of a bitch,” he said for a third time, and met her eyes. His ears had gone faintly pink. “’Preciate it.”

“Sure.”

He bent to gather up his old coat, the box, and looked at her again. “Really appreciate it.”

“Really sure.”

“Wait till the wife gets a load of this.” He skimmed one hand down the leather. “Let’s go get some bad guys, kid.”

“It’s what we do.”

They walked out. She heard him murmur “son of a bitch” yet again as they peeled off to their separate vehicles.

The instant she was in the car, Peabody leaned forward from the backseat she shared with McNab. “Is that a magic coat? Did you get Feeney a magic coat? Awww!”

“What’s a magic coat?” Banner demanded. “What kind of magic?”

“It’s totally frosted. See?” Peabody opened her pink coat to show off the lining. With some relief Eve let them ramble about body armor while she drove.

McNab slid up, spoke quietly near Eve’s ear. “That would’ve meant a lot to him, coming from you.”