“Maddie.”
“Hey.”
She toyed with a strand of hair that appeared freshly styled. And her eyes looked crystal-clear as if she hadn’t yet had a drink this morning. Surprise swept through me as I swallowed the lump in my throat. “You look nice.”
Her hand ran over her hair, a slight tremor in the appendage. “I wanted to make sure I was at my best.”
I arched a brow in question.
My mom smiled—the one that always made me wary. “If you hadn’t been such a brat the other day, I would’ve told you. Your father has a parole hearing. They might be letting him out.”
10
NASH
I pulledinto the parking lot at the station and glanced down at my phone. Still nothing from Maddie. She should’ve been out of her interview by now.
She’d get the job. Only a fool wouldn’t hire her. But anxiety still sat heavy in my gut. I wanted this for her. A sense of purpose. A piece of rebuilding her life. She deserved that—and so much more.
Stepping out of my SUV, I turned at the sound of my name. Lawson was climbing out of his vehicle. I waited while my brother crossed the parking lot. As he got closer, I didn’t miss the dark circles under his eyes. Between raising my three adorable but hellion nephews on his own and all the work he had here, he was burning the candle at both ends.
“You okay?” I asked.
“Fine, why?”
“You look tired.”
“That’s a nice way of saying I look like crap.”
I snorted. “You said it, not me.”
He cracked his neck. “Charlie was up in the middle of the night with a nightmare.”
“Aw, man. How’s the little dude?”
“He was fine after I let him sleep with me, but I got kicked in the ribs, spleen, and junk at least three times each.”
I choked on a laugh. “At least you’ve already got the kids. The family jewels might be done for after that.”
Lawson made a move to cover his groin. “I’m gonna have to start wearing a cup when he sleeps with me.”
“Probably not a bad idea.”
Lawson started toward the station. “How was your night with Maddie? She getting settled in all right?”
I followed him toward the front of the building as I searched for the right words.
Lawson’s steps slowed. “Everything okay?”
“Yeah, it’s fine. She’s good. Had an interview at The Brew this morning.” I wanted to dump everything on my brother’s shoulders and ask him for advice, but that wasn’t fair. This was Maddie’s story to tell, and Lawson had just closed the case from hell when Holt’s old friend, Jude, and one of our fellow officers, Amber, had set out to target Holt and Wren because of some misguided obsession. And lots of other people had also been caught in the crossfire.
Lawson grinned. “She’s got it in the bag. Sue loves her.”
“I’m so nervous I feel like I’m interviewing formyfirst job.”
Lawson laughed. “You always did make Maddie’s problems yours.”
I’d tried to. But I hadn’t always succeeded. If I had, I’d have saved her a world of pain.
