Chapter 41

RILEY

The following afternoon, I heard the stairs behind me creak. "You don't have to tiptoe around me," I told Eric. "I won't shush you if you make a noise."

"How did you know it was me?"

I turned around and smiled. "Alex thumps up the stairs and Sherlock's nails click on the wood."

Eric looked at his bare feet. "I'm glad you didn't confuse me with Sherlock."

"You have great feet." I laughed. "Unless you turn into a hobbit, your nails will never click on the wood." I glanced across the landing at Sherlock. He'd decided the sofa was a great sleeping spot. "Sherlock's been up here with me for most of the morning."

Eric frowned. "If he becomes a nuisance, let me know."

"He could never annoy me. He's a wonderful dog." I checked the time and frowned. "You're usually still writing. Are you finishing early today?"

"I'm having a break. Alex just received another email from the NYPD. They've found Chapman's stepbrother."

My hand shook as I placed my brush on a plate. "What did he say about Leith?"

"Not a lot. He hasn't seen him since he was released from prison."

"Do the police believe him?"

"I don't know, but if it were me, I'd be looking at any phone calls made from his apartment."

I wiped my hands on an old rag and studied Eric. "How do you feel about the police finding Leith's stepbrother?"

"I'm not as excited as I thought I'd be. There are still too many unanswered questions."

"Has Leith contacted your literary agent again?"

Eric shook his head. "He hasn't heard from him since he sent the photos of us at the Cherry Festival."

Even though it wasn't that long ago, our day in Broomfield felt like a distant memory. I rubbed my forehead, trying to make sense of everything that had happened. "Maybe Leith finally got the message and decided to leave you alone."

"We shouldn't count on that happening."

I didn't want to count on anything or anyone, but that hadn't stopped me from falling in love with Eric. "What's next?"

A blush streaked along Eric's jaw. "Do you mean with Leith Chapman?"

I tried to ignore the heat in his eyes, but my brain refused to cooperate. "Yes, I meant Leith." I was proud my voice didn't tremble. Last night, I had a stern talk with myself. I couldn't assume Eric wanted to be anything other than friends. In a couple of months, I'd be in Italy preparing for my exhibition, and Eric would be in Brooklyn.

Eric cleared his throat. "We can't do much about Leith or his stepbrother. The best we can do is keep ourselves safe."

"Something should have happened by now." I didn't need to explain what I was talking about. Last night, we studied the spreadsheet Alex created. In Eric's novel, Aaron Connelly was closing in on the bad guys, making life difficult for anyone who knew them.

In real life, Leith Chapman had stopped harassing us. It didn't make sense. Unless he made the shelter in the forest. But even that felt like grasping at straws. We checked the hunting season schedule for different animals, but none matched the end of July. Someone could have been illegally hunting, but it would be an even bigger coincidence to find their shelter so close to Alex's home.

Eric leaned against my workbench. "I keep telling myself we should be thankful that nothing else has happened. But after six months of being harassed, I'm tired of waiting for Chapman to do something." He frowned at Sherlock, then lifted his troubled gaze to me. "Can we talk about yesterday?"

I stayed awake for most of the night, replaying what happened on the mountain. The last thing I wanted was to complicate Eric's life. And starting a relationship with him was something I didn't need.

After taking a deep breath, I looked at Eric. "I'm sorry if I made you feel uncomfortable. It won't happen again." I didn't expect Eric to smile.

"Are you always so sure about what I'm going to say?"

"It was a lucky guess."

"A wrong guess."

I was confused. "I didn't make you feel uncomfortable?"

"No, I've never felt uncomfortable around you." Eric stepped closer. "When we're together, I feel like nothing's impossible."

I could drown in the longing in Eric's eyes. For a man determined to begin a new life and find happiness, his words should have made me feel like the luckiest person alive. But I was terrified.

Terrified of making a mistake, of reading too much into the gentleness on his face, the smile that always made my stomach twist in knots.

Eric's fingertips brushed my jaw. "I never thought I'd care about anyone again, but I was wrong. When this is over, would you like to go on a date with me?"

"A date?"

"You know… where two people go to the movies or out to dinner. Or we could do something else. There are plenty of river rafting tours we could join or there's a rock-climbing wall beside the community center that's challenging."

"I've never been rock climbing."

"We could do that."

"No. I mean I don't want to go rock climbing." My brain had turned to mush, and nothing made sense. "I thought you didn't want to date anyone?"

Eric's smile disappeared. "So did I. But sometimes life has a funny way of showing you what's important. And you are important."

For someone who was falling in love with Eric, I was suddenly very nervous. "What if it doesn't work out? What if how you're feeling is a reaction to being under a lot of stress? What if?—"

"I'm not asking you to marry me, Riley." Eric's soft voice calmed me in a way nothing else could. "If we don't enjoy spending time together after this is finished, we don't need to see each other again."

"Do you know how depressing that sounds?"

Eric smiled. "Is that a yes to a date?"

I kissed his cheek. "It's a yes to a date that doesn't involve a gun or a climbing wall."

"I'll have to be creative."

I shook my head. "Just be yourself. That's all I'll ever need."