Page 37 of Isolated (Harper Security Ops #21)

In fact, once I finished at work and was on my way home for the day, I called her.

Unsurprisingly, she didn’t answer. But, like always, I left her a voicemail.

“I talked to Flora, and I know you don’t want me to call you right now, but I don’t care.

I’m going to do it. You’re my sister, Eleni.

If you don’t want to speak to me, you need to have the guts to at least tell me why.

So, I’m going to keep calling until I hear from you. ”

After disconnecting the call, I shifted my focus to the one thing I knew was going to make me happy—my night ahead with Landen.

Except for the text he’d sent me around three o’clock this afternoon confirming that we were still on for tonight, I hadn’t spoken to him since yesterday. I couldn’t wait to see him.

That probably explained why I made it home, rushed inside, and dashed up the stairs to shower and get myself ready for a night in with him.

Once I’d accomplished that task, I got started on preparing dinner.

Since I didn’t want to be standing over the stove when he arrived, I decided on something that I could pop into the oven that would be ready not long after he showed up. I decided on lasagna.

Once it was in the oven, I went about setting the table, but something was missing. Something that would set the mood.

Even if I was aware that we wouldn’t be taking things past a certain point tonight, I still wanted it to feel romantic.

So, I lit some candles before marching outside to pluck some flowers from the garden.

They’d be perfect in a vase on the table, and I had about ten minutes before Landen would be here.

I’d gotten a few stems trimmed when I heard Walter’s voice. “You’re doing yard work on a weeknight?”

“Oh, hi, Walter.” I grabbed a couple more blooms before I stood up and walked toward him. “No, I’m just waiting for my dinner to get finished in the oven, and I wanted to put some flowers in a vase. I haven’t seen you outside in a few days.”

He lifted his hand to the back of his neck and massaged it. “Oh, um, I’ve been working on a few projects in the house.”

“That sounds like fun. Are you painting or redecorating?”

Walter shook his head. “No. No, nothing like that. Just… well… cleaning things out. Yeah, that’s it. Sometimes, you don’t realize how much stuff you accumulate, and the next thing you know, there’s not an empty spot anywhere. Nothing exciting at all.”

“Oh. Well, if you need any help, that’s something I’m capable of. I can’t do water heaters, but I’m pretty good with organization.”

He nodded, a slight smile spreading across his face. “I’ll keep that in mind. What are you having for dinner tonight?”

My stomach growled, forcing laughter out of both of us. “Lasagna.”

“That sounds great. It was one of my favorite meals that Gertie used to make.”

The tone of Walter’s voice was such that I couldn’t help but believe he was hoping I’d extend an invitation.

If Landen wasn’t coming over, I’d have done it in a heartbeat.

But I’d been looking forward to having this time alone with Landen since we’d decided on it Monday morning.

Perhaps if Landen and I were in a different place in our relationship, I might have reconsidered declining to invite Walter, but it was still so new between us.

We deserved to have this time alone together.

But just because I wasn’t going to invite him over didn’t mean I couldn’t share. “Well, I’m not sure if I’ll ever be able to top hers, but if you want, I’d be happy to?—”

“I’ll just close up the house.” He turned and began walking back toward his house.

“What?”

Walter stopped and turned to face me. “You wanted me to come over for dinner, didn’t you?”

“Oh, well, the thing is, I already have plans for dinner.”

Walter didn’t have a chance to respond, because just then, Landen pulled into my driveway. Our eyes flew in that direction, and when I looked back at Walter, I could see the disappointment etched into every feature.

“I see. Don’t let me keep you.”

“Walter, wait,” I called out.

He waved his hand in the air dismissively. “I’ve got to get back to cleaning.”

A heavy sigh escaped. Walter was so lonely. I should have just invited him over to eat with us, but there wasn’t a chance he’d come now if I did.

Landen parked, got out, and made his way toward me with a smile on his face. Seeing it, I couldn’t help but send him one in return.

As he closed the distance between us, I opened my arms. Landen didn’t hesitate to wrap his around me and lift me clean off the ground as he held me close. “I missed you so much.”

My arms were over his shoulders, but I squeezed as hard as I could. “Same here.”

Landen’s mouth found my neck and began peppering kisses there before moving up along my jaw and to my lips. He gave me a kiss that couldn’t make up for all the time we’d spent apart, but it certainly was a good start .

After setting me back down on my feet, he asked, “Is everything okay with Walter?”

I shook my head. “No. He didn’t realize you were coming, and when I was about to tell him that I’d bring him some of the lasagna I made, he assumed I was extending an invitation. You pulled in a minute later, and he walked away disappointed.”

“Do you want to invite him over?”

It surprised me that Landen wouldn’t mind. “He wouldn’t come now anyway. I’ll take some leftovers to him tomorrow.”

He dipped his chin. “Lasagna?”

“Do you like it?”

“Love it.” His eyes shifted to my hands. “Flowers?”

I licked my lips and batted my eyelashes. “I wanted to set the mood.”

Laughter spilled out of him. “You do that without a single flower, sunshine.”

“I have a question.”

“Yeah? What is it?”

Hesitating for just a moment, I searched his face. “You don’t have any kids you haven’t told me about, do you?”

He jerked back, looking both surprised and amused. “No. What would make you ask that?”

I tipped my head toward the house. “The lasagna is almost done. I’ll tell you inside.”

With that, Landen lifted me off the ground again. This time, I wrapped my legs around his waist as he carried me back inside.

What I didn’t know was that Walter was watching us the entire time.