Revealing Annie - Freya Barker Page 0,35

I tell him, my voice sounding strangled. “But maybe you could’ve told her that last part.”

He grunts again, but it’s without a lot of conviction.

I leave him to stew in his chair and pull a few things out of his fridge to make him a quick sandwich. He should be able to manage that by himself, but he clearly doesn’t, and it’s too important with the medication he’s taking that he eats regularly.

“She’ll come around.” I hand him the plate and set a glass of water on the side table where he keeps his meds. “When she does, make sure you tell her what you meant.”

I leave him to it and check to see if Hattie’s home—maybe I can lay a bit of groundwork for Edward—but she’s not there.

Probably for the best. I have a sense theirs is a relationship I’m safer to stay out of.

Sometime late afternoon I see Hattie’s little blue car driving by, and when I go to pick up Blossom for her evening walk, the two of them are playing cards at the kitchen table. I head to bed early because I’m working tomorrow, and every so often I can hear them laugh through my open window.

The next morning I step out of my door and find a decapitated bird on my step.

Sumo

“Are we bringing food for Dee?”

I turn to see Bryce coming down the stairs, who’s changed into some of his new clothes. It’s on my lips to make a comment about it, but at the last minute decide it’s probably wiser to keep my mouth shut. Who cares if he gets them dirty? That’s what I have a washer and dryer for.

Over breakfast I’d suggested to Bryce we take the dog on a hike in the mountains, an idea that went over well. While we were clearing away the dishes he was more animated than I’d seen him, asking about local wildlife. He seemed a little disappointed when I told him the chances of running into any large animals were slim in the middle of the day in summer, but he perked right up when I said we could hunt for tracks.

“I filled some water bottles and brought a few treats for her. She’ll be fine,” I assure him, grabbing the backpack I’d dropped by the stairs.

Bryce clips the leash on Daisy while I open the door, only to find a pissed-looking Blue standing on the doorstep. She glares at me a moment before her eyes glide to Bryce and her face crumples. The poor kid throws a panicked look my way.

“This is my partner, Blue,” I explain to him. “I’m guessing she just found out you were here. I have a feeling this is gonna get messy. You may wanna take Daisy for a walk so I can straighten this out.”

He nods and slips by her, the dog barely acknowledging my partner.

“It’s Dee,” he calls over his shoulder, as he beelines it to the river.

Both of us watch him go, then suddenly she swings around, landing a hard fist in my gut.

“Fuck, Blue. That hurt.”

She pushes her way into the house, giving me a smack to the back of my head as well.

“Hey! Knock it off.”

She’s standing in the middle of the living room, her hands in fists on her hips, angry tears rolling down her face.

“I had to find out from the chief? You’ve got your kid here…” She gestures wildly at the door I just closed. “And apparently you got a dog too? Fine partner you are, hell, fine friend you are. I’ve been on maternity leave for how long? And already I’ve been forgotten.”

Shit. I know how important her place on the team is to her—she’s fought hard for her spot as one of the guys—and I just managed to make her feel like an outsider. She’s right, some friend I am.

I walk over and pull her into a hug, wrapping my arms tightly around her struggling body.

“I’m sorry.” I wait for her to stop struggling before I release her. “I should’ve called you,” I tell her, as she agitatedly wipes at her face.

“Yes, you should’ve.”

“Look, a lot of stuff has happened in a very short time span and I’ve been flying by the seat of my pants. Can I make you a coffee?”

“Fine.”

I head into the kitchen and hear her pull out a stool while I put on a pot. The hike will have to wait.

“She called last week. Chanel. She was heading for rehab and wanted Bryce to