middle of trouble. I’m not used to being the last to hear about it.”
“We just found out last—” She stopped as she realized what Maya was referring to. Not Dylan’s mess…her own. She squeezed her eyes shut. Time for her to face her friend. “Did Emma fill you in?”
“While you were gone. She was worried.”
Kate tilted her head back with a groan. “I should have told you everything. I was just…embarrassed.”
“Embarrassed?”
“My father’s always been a grifter, but not some hardcore criminal. And I defended him. Well, I represented him. You’re a police officer, you protect and serve, and you’re great at it. And meanwhile I’m…” She shuddered to demonstrate her own disgust at herself. “Repping a lifelong scam artist.”
“He’s your father.”
“I don’t need reminding.” Kate still couldn’t manage to meet Maya’s eyes.
“I’d probably do anything for my dad too.”
“That’s different. Harris is a prince among parents. He’s a gem.”
Maya got to her feet and came around her desk. “Kate, you’re not your father. Would your father quit his job to protect you?”
Kate screwed up her face, trying to imagine such a scenario. “He wouldn’t even stay in the same town so I could finish out a school year.”
“Exactly. You’re one of the best, most loyal people I know. You always act like you’re some bad seed. I was there for Naughty Kate. You were never bad. You sure as jeebus aren’t bad now. Ever think maybe you should stop seeing yourself that way?”
Finally Kate allowed herself to look her friend in the eye. The easy acceptance she saw there made her want to cry. Of all the people she’d ever known, Maya was one of those she respected the most. They used to have so much fun together, laughing until they cried. Her biggest teenage regrets were the times she’d gotten Maya into trouble with her father.
“Would I be best friends with a bad seed?” Maya demanded.
“Very unlikely,” Kate agreed with a smile. “If you were, you’d straighten her out before she got out of high school.”
“Oh no, that wasn’t me.” Maya shook her head firmly. “You did that, Kate. Stop beating yourself up. And start confiding in your goddamn friends. Trust us.”
Kate tapped a finger on her chin. “Funny, Darius said almost exactly the same thing. Except he wasn’t dressed when—”
“Okay, you don’t have to confide that much.”
As they walked through the corridor after she’d left Maya’s office, Dylan let out a breath of relief. “Whoa. She’s such a badass.”
“That she is. But she has a fun side too. She’s one of my best friends. Do you want to see where Darius works? The fire department is in the other wing of this building.”
He made an uneasy face. “I don’t think so. The other firemen…”
They reached the exit and pushed out into the sunshine. A yellow fire engine filled one side of the lot, drying in the open air. It gleamed in the bright midday light.
“That’s the one that came to the farm last night,” Dylan said.
“Is it?” The fire engines all looked the same to her.
He bit his lower lip, looking even younger than fifteen. “It was terrible, what I did. S.G. thinks I should do something to say I’m sorry. She offered me her knife to carve something but I don’t know how.”
“That doesn’t sound like a good idea,” Kate said quickly. The last thing she wanted was Dylan in possession of a weapon when he was already on thin ice. “What else could you make? Or do?”
“I’m pretty good at cooking. I used to work at my stepdad’s restaurant.”
“Well, one thing I know for sure is that firefighters love to eat. What else?”
“I play guitar.”
“Really? Did you know that Darius is a fantastic bass player?”
“He is?” His pale face lit up until he looked almost like a regular excited kid.
“Oh yeah. And let me tell you, there’s nothing quite as attractive to the girls as a guy playing music. Just something to think about.”
“I don’t want a girlfriend. My life is very complicated right now.”
His serious tone nearly made her burst out laughing. That line could have come straight from the mouth of a twice-divorced fire chief.
Maybe it was another thing that ran in the family.
But she knew Darius better now, and she understood that his wariness came from being a romantic at heart. A wounded romantic.
She was the jaded one who’d never really allowed herself to get close to someone.
But now she was getting drawn in, bit by bit, day by day. Body part by