Baltimore 03 - Did You Miss Me?

the ride to her house in silence, Daphne not able to stop herself from wondering what it would feel like to mean everything to someone. To him.
    And then the respite was over, reality intruding in the form of the new snowflakes falling from the sky to the windshield. Please don’t let him be cold . Or in pain . Or afraid .
    Tuesday, December 3, 9.45 P.M.
    Joseph stopped the car on Daphne’s curb, waiting for Hector and Kate to clear her garage. Her fingers were still twined with his, the strength of her grip the only indication she hadn’t fallen asleep in the passenger seat.
    ‘Hey,’ he said softly. ‘We’re here.’
    ‘I know. I’m trying to screw my courage to the sticking place.’
    ‘And we’ll not fail,’ he said, finishing the quote.
    Her eyes opened, regarding him curiously. ‘You quote Macbeth ?’
    ‘Like I said before, I can be taught. Plus it made me the chick magnet of the twelfth grade.’ When the sight of her lips curving minutely made him feel like a king, he knew he was completely lost. ‘I need to tell you something.’ He dropped his gaze to their joined hands. ‘I applied for the transfer to VCET nine months ago. Monday, April eleventh,’ he added.
    ‘The Monday after we wrapped the Muñoz case,’ she murmured to herself.
    ‘I can’t tell if you’re pleased or surprised or thinking that I’m a stalker.’
    Her lips curved. ‘Very pleased. Not really surprised, but only because I heard it from a little bird earlier today.’
    ‘Paige?’
    ‘Who else? Up until that moment, I thought you didn’t notice me.’
    He laughed at that, then saw she was serious and, abruptly, so was he. ‘Daphne, I noticed you the first moment I saw you walking up to Grayson’s front door wearing that lime green miniskirt. Dreamed of you that night. And almost every night since.’
    ‘Then why didn’t you say something before? You’ve been with VCET for months now. I can tell you exactly how many times you’ve seen me and haven’t said a word.’ She rolled her eyes, embarrassed. ‘Because I counted.’
    He let go of her hand long enough to brush his thumb over her lips. ‘You were with Maynard. Every one of those times. Because I counted, too.’
    ‘Clay and I, we’re not—’ She grew flustered. ‘We’re friends. That’s all.’
    ‘I know. He told me today. And I know this is the most horrible time to tell you anything like this, but I find that I’m selfish yet again. I didn’t want you to go to sleep without knowing.’ He laid his finger over her lips when she started to speak. ‘Not now. When this is done, I want to . . .’ He exhaled. ‘Just know that I’m waiting. And if Rivera weren’t ten feet away, I’d be kissing you senseless right now.’
    Her cheeks grew beautifully rosy as he let her hand go and turned to roll his window down. ‘We clear?’ he asked Rivera.
    ‘Yep. Coppola and I will stay the night. Kate’s got the upstairs and I’ve got the main floor. The phone guys will sleep in shifts, too.’ He leaned down so that he could see in the window. ‘Daphne, you’ve got a visitor. He’s with your mom in the living room or parlor or whatever she calls that room with the forty-five-foot ceilings.’
    ‘I think they’re only twenty-five feet. Who is it with her?’
    ‘Hal Lynch.’
    The man who’d been here before. The man who’d been her ex-husband’s head of security. And her bodyguard. Joseph’s neck went tight as he watched her face for a reaction. It wasn’t nearly what he’d hoped for, which would have been utter disgust.
    ‘Poor Hal,’ she murmured. ‘It’s got to be rough having to watch when you used to be in charge. I’ll be there in a minute.’
    ‘Sounds good,’ Hector said. ‘What about you, Carter? You staying?’
    Hell, yeah , he wanted to say. But he knew he couldn’t. He’d just told her he’d give her time and Hector was good at his job. ‘No. I need to tend to a few things at home. I’ll be back in the morning to drive Miss Montgomery into the city.’ Joseph looked over at Daphne. ‘I assume you’re not going to want to stay at home tomorrow?’
    ‘You assume correctly. Let’s go inside now, Hector. The sooner I get Hal taken care of, the sooner I can take off my wi-w-wardrobe.’
    Joseph was careful to keep his lips from twitching until his window was closed all the way. ‘Wi-w-wardrobe?’
    ‘I’m tired,’ she said. ‘I almost spilled the beans and said “wig”.’
    ‘Look, I don’t want to