25. Knox

“She’s looking out here,”Larkin said.

I turned my gaze, still holding Larkin in my arms, to find Emily peeking through the window, her eyes wide as the Texas sky.

“I need to go to her,” she said.

I nodded. “I’ll come with you.”

She shook her head. “I need to do this on my own. I’d hate if the kids took their anger out on you. They can take it out on me.” She glanced toward the empty spot where Seth’s car used to be, and a tear slipped down her cheek. “It’s my fault.”

“Larkin.” I took her face in my hands.

“No,” she cut me off, stepping back. “I should have stayed calm, appeased him so the kids could see him. Now I have a heartbroken daughter inside, who doesn’t understand why her daddy was here one day and gone the next.” She looked so distraught, wrapping her arms around herself like she always did when she was close to falling apart.

My stomach sank, for Larkin, for Emily, for Jackson, who could surely sense the tension but wouldn’t know why everyone was so upset. “Listen,” I said to her, drawing her close and holding her. Her back was stiff, but in seconds, she melted into my embrace. “You’re the best mom I know. You love your kids with all you have. They’ll feel that too, even if they’re upset.”

She looked up at me, her chin resting on my chest. “How do you know?”

“I was raised by a single parent who had to handle all my big feelings. I know.”

She blinked, sending more tears down her cheeks, but stepped back and wiped them away. “Can I see you tonight?”

I smiled gently, brushing back a tear with my thumb. “Your porch or mine?”

She let out a tearful laugh. “Let’s try mine this time.” Then she turned and walked back down the sidewalk toward the house, where Emily watched through the front window. I waved at her, and she lifted her hand, returning a small wave. But as soon as her mom walked back into the house, the curtains closed again.

I stood on the sidewalk, feeling torn. I wanted to be there for them, but this closed door was just a reminder of the wall Larkin had built around her heart. And seeing how Seth treated her, I knew he’d laid every brick.

My phone rang, drawing me out of my thoughts. I pulled it from my pocket, seeing the police station’s number.

When I answered, they told me the guy who usually worked on Saturdays had called in sick and wanted to see if I’d cover his shift. With nothing to get my mind off Larkin and nothing to do in my own home, I said okay.

* * *

I thoughtabout Larkin and her kids all throughout my shift, until I was nearing the end. I was driving along the city streets, making sure everything was safe, when I saw a truck rocking with fogged up windows.

I let out a sigh and shook my head at them as I pulled up behind the vehicle. Probably a pair of teenagers who didn’t have the brains—or the patience—to find a private country road. Grabbing my flashlight, I got out of my car, noticing the truck had stopped rocking.

Thank goodness. Hopefully they were decent.

I walked up to the truck, wondering how on earth they got windows to fog in eighty-degree weather, and tapped on the glass. Within a few seconds, the window rolled down, and I stepped back in shock.

These sure as shit weren’t teenagers.

“Tyler?” I said. “Henrietta?”

His hair was messed up, shirt crumpled. At least his jeans were on and he was covered up. Next to him, Henrietta’s chest moved with rapid breaths, and she looked like she wanted to disappear into the floorboards.

“What the hell are you two doing here?” I asked. “You have a house!”

Tyler gave me a guilty shrug. “Sometimes you have to mix it up. Keeps your marriage fresh.”

I held up my hand, trying not to laugh. I felt like a parent who’d caught their toddler doing something bad yet hilarious but didn’t want to encourage them. “I’ll let you off with a warning this time, but next time I’ll ticket you for public indecency.”

Tyler and Henrietta exchanged a look.

“Just get out of here,” I said, making a shooing motion like they were a couple noisy alley cats going at it.

Tyler started to argue, but from the passenger seat, Henrietta said, “We will! Thank you, Knox.”

“I’m on the clock. It’s Officer Madigan.” I shook my head at them and took a couple steps away. Then I walked back and saw the window was still open.

Tyler said, “Yes, Officer Madigan?”

I gave him a stern look. “This is your friend Knox speaking now.” I flicked off my flashlight and tucked it in my pocket, keeping a serious expression.

“Yeah?” Tyler swallowed.

I held out my fist. “Good for you.”

While Tyler fist-bumped me, Henrietta groaned. Chuckling, I walked back to my car and didn’t leave the spot until they drove away.

The looks on their faces had me sporadically bursting into laughter the rest of my shift, but the closer it got to quitting time, the more I thought about Larkin and what I wanted to say to her. I just knew, deep in my soul, there was something more than a crush between us. I was falling for her. And I wanted to do whatever I could to make her smile, to make her laugh.

So on my way home, I made a few calls. And then I walked to her front porch, where she was already sitting under the light’s glow.