Page 167 of Protecting What's Mine

And the pillows on the couch looked different.

Sunshine was busy nosing around the perimeter of the room, some mystery scent catching her attention.

Mack put her bag down inside the door and flicked on the lights.

It had been a long day thanks to flu season. Dehydrated patients and exhausted caregivers had kept them hopping all day long. She was probably just imagining things.

In the kitchen, things looked the same. Except for that coffee mug in the sink. Mack hadn’t had time for tea that morning. She’d gone through a drive-thru on her way to the clinic.

Maybe Linc had been here on some boyfriendy mission. Maybe he’d helped himself to a cup of coffee.

Sunshine’s snuffling at the back door caught her attention. The worn sliding door was unlocked and askew on its track. There was a tiny pile of wood shavings on the floor.

“Shit,” Mack muttered.

She dialed Linc.

“Hey, beautiful,” he answered.

“Hey. Were you in my house today?”

He shifted gears from playful to serious. “No. I slept at my place, worked out, and then came straight to the station.”

“I think someone’s been here.”

“Mackenzie, go to my place and wait there,” he said.

“I don’t think they’re still here,” she complained.

“My place. I’ll be there in five minutes. Go now and stay on the phone.”

“You’re overreacting.”

“And you’re underreacting.”

“Fine. Sunny, come on.” The dog trotted into the kitchen, a dust bunny stuck to her nose. “We’re going to Daddy’s house.”

She could hear Linc saying something to someone on his end and then the slam of a car door. “I think we’re overreacting,” she insisted, opening the garden gate and stepping into his backyard.

“Better safe than sorry,” he said.

She heard a faraway siren. “You better not be coming in hot. I’m fine. I’m walking into your house right now,” she said, opening his back door.

“Are you in? Is the door locked?”

Mack rolled her eyes at the dog and mouthed “overreacting.” She flipped the deadbolt. “I am officially locked inside.”

The sirens cut off.

Linc arrived two minutes later and found Mack sipping tea on his couch, her feet pulled up under her, Sunshine wriggling on her back on the floor.

“Don’t you feel silly now?” she said as he barreled in through the door.

“Nope.”

A police cruiser pulled up in front of Linc’s place.

“Oh, come on, Linc. The police?”