Tied Bond (Bonded Duet 2)

I grinned and winced as my eye throbbed. “Hey.”

“What happened to you?”

“I erm…I got into a fight.” It was the best explanation I could come up with on the fly. I had no doubt both he and Cade would be filled in on everything I’d told the team had happened, but I didn’t want to tell him, not right then anyway. I hadn’t seen Asher for so long, and I just needed a hug from my little brother, so I stood and opened my arms.

His brows flew high on his forehead as he continued to stare at me. “Holy fuck,” he breathed out.

“Language,” Mom reprimanded, but from the sound of her tone, she loved the shock from Asher.

He pointed at me, his gaze flicking down to my stomach. “Did you eat all of my cookies?”

I couldn’t help but snort at his answer. If there was one thing Asher and I had in common, it was our love of cookies. “Maybe.” I shrugged. “Are you gonna stand there all day or come and hug me?”

At my words, he darted across the kitchen and wrapped his arms around me. My head rested against his chest, and I knew then he’d grown again over the last six months. He wasn’t much shorter than Dad now, and I had a feeling he would be taller than him when he finally stopped growing.

“I can’t believe you’re home,” he whispered, squeezing me against him. “But you owe me cookies.”

I pulled back and stared up at him. “I’ll replace your cookies.”

He grinned down at me and swayed us back and forth. “I’m gonna be an uncle?” I nodded and smiled up at him. “My niece or nephew already loves me.” I frowned, wondering what he meant. “I can feel the baby kicking,” he said chuckling. “Obviously, we all knew I’d be the baby’s favorite.”

I shook my head and pulled away. “You’re such a nerd.”

He shrugged. “Just telling the truth, sis.”

Asher continued to stare at me, and the longer he did, the more I saw the sadness in his eyes. I hadn’t just run away from my own emotions. I’d run away from the people I loved most. And I knew I had some making up to do, but instead of dwelling on it, I pushed my shoulders back and asked, “Want to watch a movie with me? We could have lots of snacks.”

He tilted his head to the side as he pretended to think about it. “Okay. But no chick flicks.”

“Fine.” I stepped back and placed my hand on the top of my bump. “Fast and Furious marathon?”

“Fast cars, snacks, and my big sister?” Asher held his arm out for me, and I placed my hand in the crook of it. “Sounds like a perfect night.” He stepped toward the living room door but then halted. “Wait. I need to message my girlfriend and tell her I can’t meet her.”

He rushed across the kitchen and plucked his cell up off the floor, and I turned to face Mom and Dad. They were both sitting there with smiles on their faces, and although I had more to tell them, I decided it could be saved for another time. Right now, all I wanted was to watch films with my little brother and escape to a land where I hadn’t taken someone’s life.

Chapter Seven

FORD

I pulled into my usual parking space and stared at the building in front of me. I’d worked here for twenty years. I’d come in and out of it, sometimes being gone for nearly a year at a time when I was on an undercover case. But it never felt the way it did right then.

I dreaded going inside. Part of me hadn’t wanted to come, so I could save myself the pain, but I knew I had to hear what had happened to Belle. And once I had, I’d ask to be put on assignment so I could go undercover again. At least that way, I wouldn’t have to stick around and watch it all unfold before my very eyes.

A knocking sounded on my window, and I turned my head to see a grinning Ky. “You coming?” he asked, and in answer, I pushed my door open. Lottie rushed out of the car after me, heading right for Ky. I was glad she was with me today because I needed the moral support.

I slammed my car door shut and kept my mouth closed as we all filed into the building and then into the elevator. Lottie sat between us, her tongue hanging out the side of her mouth as the numbers above the door got higher and higher, and finally, it stopped on our floor, and the doors whooshed open.

Neither Ky nor I said a word as we walked down the hallway, past the interview rooms, through the main area, and then into Brody’s office. Jord and Ryan were already in there waiting for us, and as soon as we were inside, I closed the door.

“Morning,” I greeted, my voice rough. I hadn’t spoken to a single person since I’d found out Belle was pregnant yesterday. I’d gone home and right to bed and hadn’t gotten up until an hour ago. If I didn’t have this meeting to attend, I’d have probably stayed at home and not left the house all day.

Brody let out a big breath from where he was sitting behind his desk as Ky sat next to Jord on the sofa. Ryan was standing next to the window in his usual position, and I leaned against the opposite wall.

“I’m gonna go over everything, so we all know the ins and outs,” Brody started, his gaze drifting over all of us and then back to the paper on his desk. “What Belle said happened seems to match with the evidence we found. The first body was that of Leopold Shander, a local resident who owned the general store. The second body was the person she was staying with, Curtis—”

“What?” I ground out, pushing off the wall. “Curtis? As in, her friend from college?”

Brody frowned at me. “Yeah. They were living in the cabin together in Five Oaks.” He tilted his head to the side as if he didn’t understand.