I raised my hand, showing crossed fingers for luck. "I feel so guilty she got shot."
"Don't. You couldn't have foreseen it."
"I'm not sure if I feel worse because I originally accused her of being the stalker. At least, I didn't say it to her face."
"You had a hunch. It didn't play out. Don't beat yourself up about it."
"Do you have someone watching the house still?" I asked, grateful he was right.
"Yes, and there's a squad car sitting out front too, but I don't think they'll make a move any time soon. We need to use this window to collate all the data Lucas gleaned, and match Juliet's movements to it."
"Don't you mean, prove there's no match?"
"That works for me too." Solomon passed me a stack of paper and picked up his coffee cup. "I need more coffee. You?"
"Yes, please." I reached for my cup, wincing as my side pulled.
"Stay put and don't move," ordered Solomon, lifting the cup from my hand and landing a kiss on the top of my head. "Don't pull those stitches."
I listened to him stride into the kitchen, turn on the faucet, and rinse the cups. The refrigerator door opened. "You have a lot of food," called Solomon.
"For tonight's family dinner," I replied as I shuffled the papers on my lap. There were hundreds of times and dates for phone calls and texts, with locations listed. Once again, Lucas astounded me; I had no clue how he managed to collate all the data. I just hoped I didn't miss anything while comparing all the pages of computer logs to her phone logs.
"That's tonight?"
"Yes. You didn't forget?"
Solomon appeared next to me and set down the fresh mug. "I never forget."
"You forgot!"
"It might have momentarily disappeared from my memory."
"Tsk. Everyone will be here at eight except Garrett, Traci, and the kids because Sam has chicken pox."
"Sounds like a quiet night."
"With my family?"
"Without Sam."
"It will be nice to get through a family dinner without wondering what he might say. All I need now is for my mom to not mention us getting married or having kids."
"What if moving in together comes up?"
I blinked. Smooth move, Solomon, I thought, great segue into the conversation we so far haven’t concluded. "What if it does?"
"What would you say?"
"I would say I'm giving it serious thought."
"How long would serious thought take you?"
"Depends on how many thoughts arise."
"It's really not that hard a question."
I pushed the papers further down my legs and fixed Solomon with my full attention. "I think it is a big question. It's definitely a big question for me. Can we live and work together?"
"We don't work together. You quit."
"We're working together now," I said, waving a hand over the stacks of papers and our open laptops. "Most couples don't work and live together."
"After this case, you're going back to your office and I'm going back to mine."
I pursed my lips. Solomon had a point. Having rejected his offer, so far, to return to the agency, my point was currently moot. That didn't mean his simple request didn't stir up a lot more questions that would either support or detract from my ultimate decision. "Okay, where are we going to live?"
"My house, or yours."
"Well, yes, obviously, but..."
"Lexi, we spend most nights together. You have a closet at my house, and I have some very nice, padded satin hangers here."
"They are nice, aren't they?"
"The pink ones are my favorite," Solomon deadpanned. "Don't you want a permanent, walk-in closet with enough space for more purses?"
My heart fluttered and my mouth dried. "You know all the right things to say."
"What do you say?"
"My parents wouldn't approve."
"You do a lot of things your parents wouldn't approve of."
"I'd ask you to name one, but I can think of a ton without putting much effort into it."
"What don't they approve of? Living together before marriage? We are as close to doing that as you can get, except we have two houses instead of one."
"They do want to see me married one day, you know that. My brothers are all married."
"Daniel married twice."
"If you ever have the misfortune to meet his former wife, you'll understand why they're divorced."
"Serena is divorced."
"You've met Ted. No explanation necessary."
"I think Delgado is going to propose."
"Shut up!"
"He's nuts about her."
"And I'm not even on my first marriage," I lamented. "Serena wins again."
"First and only," said Solomon.
"Serena will laud it over me that she can score two husbands, and I'm still a spinster. I might learn to embroider."
"Why?"
"Spinsters do that."
"You're not a spinster, and your sister doesn't have the best taste in men, except for Delgado who happens to be an exceptional man."
"I'll tell him you said that."
"Do and I'll fire you."
"I don't work for you!"
"Then I'll fire him." The corners of Solomon's mouth quivered. I tossed a pillow at him. He caught it easily, leaning over to tuck it behind my head. When he lingered, I reached upwards and kissed him.
"What if you moved in here?" I suggested.
"You don't have space for a large closet here."
"I have a driveway. You don't."
"Tempting. I have a huge kitchen."
"Mine occasionally features a food-stealing dog from my neighbor's house."
"Like that one?" Solomon pointed. I twisted slightly to follow the direction of his finger. Barney, my neighbor's hearing dog, was sitting in the doorway, his tongue lolling over his salivating jowls.
"How did he get in?"
"No clue. Every door is shut."
"Ignore him and he'll go away eventually."
"Are you sure? He looks hungry."
"He always looks hungry. He'll be starring in his own obese dog horror story on Animal Planet if he's not monitored carefully, so don't feed him. Besides, it'll only encourage him." I picked up my cell phone and sent a text message to Aiden letting him know his dog was at my house.
"We could get a dog," suggested Solomon. "I like dogs."
"I'd like a dog, too, but having a pet feels like a PI cliché."
"What else is a PI cliché?"
"You being ridiculously hot."
"Hard life," said Solomon. "Lexi, if I have to convince you to live with me, perhaps you're not ready; and if you're not, that’s how it is. Simple as that."
"It's not that. I... I'm..." I struggled to formulate my thoughts. "I've never seriously lived with anyone before."
"Not even when you were engaged?"
"We lived together for a month, and it was a disaster."
"Just because that was a disaster doesn't mean this will be."
"Have you ever lived with anyone?"
"No."
"Really?"
"I raised my brother and sister. When they left home, I was fully invested in a career. I never had time to live with anyone. It's part of the reason why I settled in Montgomery... so I could have a life."
"And you're ready now?"
"I'm ready for a lot of things." Solomon flicked open the top button on his shirt and I temporarily forgot what we were talking about. He smiled and closed the button just as fast. "Mind out of the gutter, Graves. We can talk about this later. Right now, let’s work out if Juliet could have done any of the stuff she's been accused of."