Fucking hell.
Somehow, I know it’s Antony even before I head into the living room, grab the phone, and see his name on the screen. I consider throwing the phone into the sink and turning on the garbage disposal, but it’s only a fleeting thought.
Antony O: We got a problem boss.
“What else is new?” I mutter under my breath.
What?
Antony O: Im at the house. Where you at?
What’s going on?
Antony O: Better you hear it in person
“Jesus, Mary, and Joseph. Can’t you just spit it out?” I mutter softly.
I’ll be there in a bit.
I drop the phone and head back to the bedroom to get dressed. Cherry’s gaze drops to the floor when I tell her I have to leave, and I hope soft, gentle kisses will make up for it in some way.
“You could come back.” The lo
ok of disappointment on her face burns through my soul.
I continue to apologize on my way out the door, promising to call her in the morning. As soon as I say the words, I regret them. They sound absolutely trite and awful. Again, I have to stop myself from telling her not to worry because I’ve already completely fallen for her.
I’ll have to get back to her soon just to make sure I haven’t screwed everything up.
Chapter 17—Surveillance
Driving back from Cherry’s apartment, I can’t stop smiling. I feel positively elated and even turn up the volume on the radio and sing along with some goofy pop song. I think about my recent trip to the jewelry store, the extravagant purchase I made, and wonder if I should return it and get a bigger diamond.
No, Cherry wouldn’t want something too outlandish.
I can see it in my head. Next weekend is the last day of the Maple Syrup Festival, and I know exactly where I want to be when I drop down to one knee and ask her that momentous question. I can see the expression on her face as she smiles and accepts my proposal. I can hear the cheering from the townsfolk all around us.
When I get home, Antony is standing in my office, leaning over some documents spread out over my desk. He glances at me, his expression grim at first, but then I see a slight smile emerge.
“Well?” I ask as I toss my jacket onto the couch. “What’s going on?”
“You know your shirt isn’t buttoned right.”
“Fuck you.” I glance down at the misaligned buttons. I can’t help but grin a little when I think of the reason why, so I don’t do anything to correct them. “Don’t give me that shit. Why did you call me back? What’s up?
“If you remember, you asked me to follow up on Cherry’s doctored documents.”
“Did you finally find something?” The idea of being able to tell Cherry we made progress on finding her parents makes me smile even more. I can imagine how excited she’s going to be if we have names to give her. Maybe her parents are even still alive and here in town.
“It took a lot of digging, but yeah—I found out a couple of things.”
“What?” I move to Antony’s side.
Antony pushes a document across the desk, and I lean over to look at it.
“What is this?” I ask, frowning.
“This is the original original birth certificate,” Antony says. “This is the birth certificate used as a template for the one we found in the records office.”