Seth (Casella Cousins #2) - Kathryn Shay Page 0,20
throaty. “Mostly, I never needed any friends because I spent all my free time with Seth. Even in high school, he was my whole world.”
“I see.”
“We broke up several times. For good, now.”
A wry smile, that Julianne could see in the lights from the house. “Yeah, I have that in my past, too.”
She cranked open her door and Julianne did the same. They headed into the house. She didn’t have the garage door opener so they walked to the front. Her hands trembled when she unlocked the door. “Go ahead. I’ll wait here.”
Anabelle drew her gun. God, was that standard practice? She crept inside. And Julianne distracted herself by wondering what it was like to be a female cop. Did she have a personal life? Did she date other cops?
Anabelle returned in five minutes. “All clear. Come on in.”
Julianne stepped into the foyer. “Thank you, Anabelle.”
“You’re welcome. Would you like me to stay for a while?”
“Are you on duty?”
Checking her watch, she said, “Not as of now. Though detectives work the case, not hours.”
“Let’s go to the breakfast nook.” When they were seated, Julianne said, “Before you clock yourself off, what did you find out about the guys I dated online?
“I got the report today but it isn’t complete. I didn’t want to bring it up tonight after what happened. You sure you want to do this now?”
“Yes.”
Anabelle took out her phone and scrolled through it.
“Your first guy, Tristan Marshall, was home the afternoon of the break-in according to his GPS and phone records. Mitch Preston, the middle school music teacher, was away for a week in South Carolina. That’s confirmed.
“Carlo Monti, the Italian one, the possessive one, didn’t show up in any data bases, so I had to talk to him. His alibi was his girlfriend. He was surprisingly cooperative but just in case, I’ll check on where he was tonight. The last three are still being investigated.” She sighed. “There’s one disturbing thing. We can’t find anything about Jason Zyzeri. You said he’s texted you in the last week?”
“Yes, wanting another date. I did like him and would have seen him again if it wasn’t for this mess.”
“We’ll need to get your computer to try to access his IP address.”
“It’s on my laptop here. You can take it tonight. I have another one in the studio and a desktop here if I need it.”
“I’ll return it as soon as I can.”
“I’m impressed you got all that in four days. You must be an excellent cop. Thank you, Anabelle.”
“You’re welcome. Now, I’m officially off.”
“In that case, would you like a glass of wine?”
Anabelle yanked the tie out of her hair and the blond mass fell to her shoulders. She shook it out with a toss of her head. “Love one.”
Julianne enjoyed their camaraderie, but when Anabelle left, Julianne dropped down onto the couch, thinking about what she’d said in the car. You’re a sweet person. Don’t you have a friend or family you could call to stay with you?
She remembered thinking the same thing when Seth was stabbed, feeling the loss…
“Julianne should go in and see Seth, now that he can have visitors in the ICU.” The remark came from Rafe.
“I don’t want to infringe.”
“Families don’t infringe, darlin’. Go on, take a turn.”
When she walked into the room, and saw him lying there, she started to cry. Rushing to the bed, she sat down, and took his hand. She kissed it then laid it on the mattress. Oxygen tubes had been inserted in his nose and IV lines poked in his arm. Machines beeped and buzzed, monitoring his vitals.
“I miss you so much, Seth. I’m trying to hide it, but I can’t tonight.” She swallowed hard. “I have no friends, other than you and your family. I need you.”
He stirred, and she waited. Nothing.
“Maybe we can try again. Maybe one more time.”
Her comments sounded like a deathbed confession. But she didn’t care.
“I always wanted your children. Can you imagine how blond and blue-eyed they’d be? As handsome as you, or pretty as me.”
The one-sided conversation lasted until the nurse came in and told her he needed to rest. Leaning over, she kissed his cheek and left the room…
When he was better and she was clear-headed, she never fulfilled her promise to him.
But now, one thing was clear. She wouldn’t live her life in isolation any more. To that end, she picked up the phone and punched in a number.
“Hello.”
“Hey, Alessia, it’s me, Julianne. Do you have time to talk?”
“You