it. If you insist on staying close to me, you should understand that I’m not going to change my whole life because the two of you take your jobs too seriously.”
“Hopefully by Thursday we’ll know more.” Hutch closed up his laptop. “We should get going. Kyle, looks like you’re driving.”
“Uh, I don’t actually own a car right now,” Kyle explained. “I gave mine up because I didn’t want to have to store it. I haven’t replaced it since I came home. I got a ride in with Jamal.”
“So we’re three Gen Zs with a single car between us at the moment and only two beds.” Hutch sighed. “Yeah, we’re not telling Tag that.”
“Agreed.” Kyle shook his head. “I have no idea how my stepdad survived growing up with him. You want to rock-paper-scissors for the bed?”
“Is the bed in front of the door? Where the bodyguard should be?” Hutch was a wily one.
Kyle growled a little. “Fine. I need a sleeping bag.” He brightened slightly. “Hey, MaeBe’s got a car. She can drive us. I’ll go ask her.”
“He definitely has a thing for her.” She was aware she was now alone with Hutch. In his office that she’d been exploring before he’d walked back in. At that time it had seemed pretty big. Now it was way too intimate.
“Really?” Hutch stared at the door like he’d never thought about it. “He’s definitely not her usual. Her usual is all piercings and tats and shouldn’t we look up his arrest record. Kyle’s a little all-American for her. Your muffins are fantastic.”
It took a moment for her to realize he was talking about baked goods and not some body part. What would her muffins be? Boobs? She probably had a muffin top, but she wasn’t wearing jeans, so he shouldn’t be able to see that. It was the way he said it. Low and sexy, like he was thinking of something that brought him great pleasure. Yep. He was talking about the muffins she’d brought. “Thanks. I’ve been perfecting the recipe. I like to bake. But I don’t cook a lot. I usually pick up a sandwich on my way home. I’ve got some frozen dinners.”
“Aren’t you in luck then because I’m a halfway decent cook. I learned young.”
“Did your mom teach you?”
“No, my mom died, and my dad wasn’t big on doing things he considered feminine tasks. I learned to cook, or I didn’t eat.” He sat back, his chair moving with him. “I’m not a brilliant chef, but I have some skills. I’ll stop by the grocery store before Kyle and I head to your place. Anything you don’t eat?”
He slipped that tragedy in like it didn’t matter, like it was nothing more than a factoid on a report. She wasn’t sure what to say so she simply answered his question. “I eat pretty much anything.” She felt horrifically awkward. Moments before she’d been angry with him, and now she wanted to ask about his childhood. It was better to focus on the job. “Do you really think this is necessary?”
“Can you honestly tell me you weren’t going to investigate the accident in the lab?”
“I don’t like to ask for help.” She didn’t like to feel small. She’d felt it much of her life, had learned exactly how fragile it all was at a young age. She’d also learned that the minute she asked for help was the minute everyone around her started thinking she needed it all the time.
“I can understand that. I need you to understand that despite my earlier impression, I don’t tend to underestimate people. I don’t judge a book by its cover, though the cover might be awfully pretty.”
He’d obviously decided to go the charming route. It wouldn’t work on her. “Sure. The first thing anyone notices about me is that I’m pretty.”
“Well, if I’d noticed the cane first, I wouldn’t have made an ass of myself,” he pointed out. “So you need to understand that you probably manipulate a lot of men with those eyes of yours, but it won’t work on me.”
Outrage sparked through her and then she caught a ghost of a smile on his lips and realized the jerk was fucking with her.
No one fucked with her. Not like teasing. No one in her world treated her with anything but the utmost respect. Except Madison. God. Was that why she wanted to investigate? Because Madison had at least respected her enough to play rough. Madison was the kind of woman who