Cut and Run 4 - Divide and Conquer

splattering across the bar—and him.
    “Aw hell,” Zane swore, standing up and stepping back carefully.
    His hands and arms were wet and sticky with juice, and he could feel it
    soaking through his T-shirt and cutoff sweatpants. He turned his head
    toward the door at the next knock, and then he thought he heard his
    name. After sparing a thought for the cruel humor of fate, Zane stripped
    off his T-shirt, using it to mop off his hands and arms as he walked
    tentatively to the door and cracked it open, immediately shivering in
    the February wind.
    “Zane? It‟s Ryan. From Chiapparelli‟s?”
    162 | Madeleine Urban & Abigail Roux

    Zane blinked in surprise and opened the door a little more, though
    he kept himself behind it. All of a sudden he was very aware of how
    undressed he was, and it wasn‟t just because of the cold morning
    breeze. “Ryan?”
    “Hi, I know it‟s early, but I got to the restaurant to start prep
    work, and Leticia and I got to talking, and, well, because you don‟t
    cook—or don‟t cook a lot, anyway—we made you a care package.
    Since you‟re stuck at home and probably aren‟t up to dealing with hot
    pots and pans and knives.”
    It took Zane a few seconds to parse all that. “A care package?”
    “Yeah. Italian cold cuts, some fresh bread already sliced, a crock
    of minestrone, easy stuff. Oh, and cheesecake, of course.”
    Zane huffed a laugh, truly surprised. “Wow, uh, well. That‟s
    great. Thanks.”
    He heard Ryan laugh quietly. “You‟re blushing.”
    “Must be the cold,” Zane said quickly, dragging the sticky T-shirt
    over his chest and hiding bare-chested behind the door.
    “You could let me in and shut the door,” Ryan suggested, the
    repressed laughter all too clear in his voice. “That might help with the
    cold.”
    Zane squeezed his eyes shut and said a quick prayer. He really,
    truly, honestly had never given Ryan Morelli a single thought other
    than that he was a nice guy. Now Zane hoped he was right. “Ah, right,
    yeah, sorry.” He cleared his throat and stepped back, opening the door.
    Ryan thumped up the steps and walked past him, and Zane shut the
    door firmly before turning around to face blindly into the apartment.
    “I grabbed the mail off the steps too. I‟ll just put this stuff away…
    ah, I see. Well, that explains it.”
    “Explains what?” Zane asked.
    “Why you‟re blushing. There‟s breakfast everywhere. Give me a
    sec and I‟ll get it cleaned up.” Zane tried to object, but Ryan talked
    right over him. “It‟s no problem. Actually, here—”
    Divide & Conquer | 163

    Zane heard a rustle of fabric, then the sink switching on and off.
    He straightened as he heard Ryan approach. Then Ryan‟s fingers
    touched the top of his hand, and Zane flinched in surprise. The touch
    disappeared, and Zane was again conscious of being half-dressed, his
    T-shirt crumpled in his hand. When Ryan spoke, he wasn‟t even an
    arm‟s length away.
    “Sorry, didn‟t mean to startle you. Here, you can clean off,” he
    said, and he draped a damp dishtowel over Zane‟s wrist.
    “Thanks,” Zane murmured.
    “No problem, Zane, really.” Footsteps moved back toward the
    kitchen, and Zane followed as he tried to wipe juice and pulp off his
    arms.
    “So, where‟s your partner?”
    Zane paused in surprise. “What?”
    “Your partner? Ty, wasn‟t it?”
    “Oh, yeah, Ty,” Zane said with a nod. “He‟s at work.”
    “Leaving you all on your own?” Ryan‟s tone conveyed a slight
    disapproval.
    Zane frowned. “No, he‟s just checking in. Won‟t be gone long.”
    “It was nice to meet him. You two must have different shifts
    since he‟s never in the restaurant with you. And now you‟re hurt and he
    still has to work. You must miss him.”
    Zane blinked several times as what the man was saying filtered
    in. “Ah, no, we work together, actually. He‟s my partner at the
    Bureau.”
    “Really?” Zane could hear the surprise in Ryan‟s voice. “Huh. I
    didn‟t get that at all. You said „partner‟, and I just assumed….”
    Zane tipped his head to one side, turning his face to where he
    thought Ryan stood. “Assumed what?” he asked carefully.
    “Sorry.” Now Ryan sounded embarrassed. “You make a
    handsome couple.”
    164 | Madeleine Urban & Abigail Roux

    Zane was at a loss. Ryan had seen him and Ty at one dinner and
    had come to that conclusion? Then he laughed in more than slight
    amazement, and the words came out easy as