Page 50 of Smoky Mountain K-9
He looked up from chopping a green pepper and smiled. “Hey, yourself. How was the rest of your day?”
“Uneventful. Yours?”
A look she couldn’t decipher crossed his face, but it quickly cleared, and he shrugged one shoulder. “The same.”
Mara set her purse down on a dining chair and took off her coat, hanging it on a hook by the door. “I thought we were making dinner together. It looks like you’ve got it all handled.”
“Not quite. I figured I’d chop up the vegetables now and just get a head start.”
“What are they for?”
“Steak sandwiches.”
“Oh, yum.” Her mouth watered just thinking about it. “What do you want me to do?”
“You can start frying stuff. I’m about done chopping these peppers.”
“Sounds good.” Mara turned to the cabinet where she kept her pots and pans and took out a large skillet. She set it on the stove and added some butter before turning on the burner. Grabbing the bowl of chopped onion, she dumped it in the pan once the butter melted. Her stomach growled. It smelled divine.
Side by side, they made dinner. Their conversation stayed light, and they avoided the topic of their relationship for now. When the food was done, they plated everything and carried it to the table.
Mara lifted her sandwich and took a bite. Flavors burst over her tongue, and she held back a moan of delight. The food was good, but she’d been hungry too. Hungrier than she thought.
The light conversation continued until they finished eating. After carrying their plates to the dishwasher, they retreated to the living room. Mara tucked herself into the corner of the couch. Carter sat down next to her, and an awkwardness filled the room.
Her heart skipped a beat at the hesitation on his face. Why did he look so reluctant to talk? Did he have something else on his mind besides what they’d implied earlier?
“So, I’ve been giving what we talked about at lunchtime a lot of thought.”
She hummed a non-answer, wanting him to continue. At least he hadn’t kept her wondering long what that look was all about.
“I really like the idea of us making this”—he swirled a finger and glanced around the room—“more permanent.”
A smile started on her face.
“But—” He broke off and glanced away.
Mara’s smile died with that one word. “But what?”
His silvery eyes met hers. “Until we figure out what’s going on with the vandalism and now with your mystery donor, I think we should slow things down.”
A wrinkle formed between her eyes. “What? What does that mean?”
“It means that once my house is clean tomorrow, Maverick and I are moving back in. And we should probably limit our contact to phone calls and texts.”
The wrinkle smoothed out as her eyebrows shot up. “You don’t want to see me anymore?”
“No. Yes! Dammit!” He stood up and paced to the window, staring out at the street.
Mara’s gaze followed him, taking note of the rigidity to his shoulders. His spine was ramrod-straight. When he turned to look at her again, his jaw was like granite, and there was a flintiness in his gray eyes she hadn’t seen before. He’d closed himself off from her.
“Whatever is going on—it’s about me. And it’s putting you in danger. I probably shouldn’t even be here now. Until we figure out what’s going on—who’s behind all this—you need to distance yourself from me.”
Concern and anger warred within Mara’s chest. She’d wondered, too, if all the incidents were connected. Hearing him say it out loud brought back her fear that someone could get hurt. But she was pissed that he thought pushing her away was the right way to keep her safe. Getting up, she walked over to stand in front of him, her eyes flashing with the fire he’d ignited. “Don’t you think it should be up to me whether to continue to be seen with you or not? Since it’s my safety we’re debating and not yours? And how do you know this is all about you? Two of the incidents had nothing to do with you. And speaking of, you haven’t mentioned if you learned anything by looking up my new donor.”
Carter’s forehead wrinkled as he gave her a deep scowl. “Keeping people safe is my job, so no, I don’t think it should be up to you. Not entirely. You’ve never seen what it looks like when a situation like this goes south.”
If she’d been a cartoon, smoke and flames would have shot out her ears. Cop or not, she was still capable of gauging the risks of their involvement.