“Bad idea. It’s too small. Where would you sleep?”
“We’ll work it out. And if Zachary hears about it, he’ll think I’m sleeping with one or both of them.” He was going through the apartment checking the rooms. “Multiples. That should take his mind off any thought that I might have any time left for you. Right?” He stopped at the front door. “Come down for breakfast. Then we’ll go to your studio and check it out before we go to the field office and see if they’ve found out anything more about Hagstrom.”
“You have our day planned?”
“I’d cancel it in a heartbeat. We could spend it in bed.” He kissed the tip of her nose and added softly, “Ask me.”
“Go away.” She pushed him out the door. “And tell Olivia and Jessie this wasn’t my idea. You do have a home, Lynch.”
“Not until Zachary is history.” He turned away. “Lock the door. See you at breakfast.”
She watched him run down the steps before she closed and locked the door. Then she turned and headed for the bedroom. It had been a frantic and tense day yet there had been a few periods of deep emotional bonding with Ryan. And every hour of the day seemed to bring her closer to Lynch. Both of those exceptions could herald problems. She thought that if Zachary had been planning on targeting the Walkers that she might have stymied it. But Lynch was an entirely different case. He was not about to leave her, and Zachary might—
Don’t think about it, she told herself as she got into the shower. She had done what she could and she would continue to do that. She might do a little too much, but that was okay. Zachary was out there, and she would give everything she had until he was caught or killed.
She closed her eyes as the warm water moved over her body.
She could almost feel him out there.
Not as she had earlier today when she’d told herself it was pure imagination. This was … different … closer. A kind of pressure …
Was Zachary thinking about her? Was that why she was feeling this sense of impending urgency.
Imagination or instinct, again?
She didn’t know which and she didn’t care.
She wouldn’t let either intimidate her.
If something was coming then she had to accept it and get ready.
And something was coming …
*
BREAKFAST THE NEXT MORNING in Olivia’s condo was fast, noisy, and generally enjoyable.
It was only after Lynch had gone down to bring his car around to the front that Olivia stopped Kendra as she was heading out the door.
“No,” she said firmly. “Lynch is not going to stay here, even though it’s convenient to your condo. I’ll call the building supervisor and get him a place near your place.”
“I was going to do that,” Kendra said. “I told him your place was too small but he insisted. He said you’d work it out.”
“And if he had a couple more nights, I’m sure we’d somehow manage to do exactly what he wanted. The son of a bitch is a spellbinder.” She added shrewdly, “But then you evidently know that.”
“It’s occurred to me a few times. It’s not because your condo is too small?”
“It would be a little over-cozy. But we could survive it. He’s just too damn disturbing. I didn’t realize it until I spent the night with him. I like comfort and so does Jessie. If we want Clooney or Brad Pitt wandering around the place, we’ll go knock on their door when we’re in the mood.” She gave her a peck on the cheek. “I’ll call you and tell you when I’ve found Lynch a new place to roost.”
“Do that.”
She was still smiling when she got into Lynch’s car a few minutes later. “The studio?”
“Yep.” He glanced sidewise. “As soon as you tell me why you’re grinning like a Cheshire cat.”
“I’ve just been anticipating telling you that you’ve been evicted. Olivia says she’ll find you another home.”
“What?” He was frowning. “I camped out on the floor. I fixed that breakfast this morning. What did I do wrong?”
“Too much testosterone,” she said solemnly.
“I beg your pardon?” He added warily, “I swear I didn’t touch them.”
She started to laugh. “Evidently you didn’t have to. They thought you might be a disturbing influence. Sometimes no actions are necessary.”
He looked disgruntled, and then he shrugged. “Being irresistible isn’t all that bad. I’ve been called worse.”
“If you were irresistible, they wouldn’t be kicking you out. That’s two condos in one night, Lynch.”
“You’re enjoying this.”
“Infinitely.”
“So am I.” He was gazing at her, his face lit with a gentle smile. “I was a little worried about you yesterday. I’ll let you or any of your friends kick both my ego and machismo into the gutter if it will make you smile like that.”
Oh, shit. What could she say to that remark?
“You manage to take all the fun out of a perfectly good attack strategy.”
“Good. I do my very best.” He changed the subject. “Did you get a call from Griffin this morning? I thought it a little odd that he didn’t follow up later after I hijacked those two agents from him.”
“No call. Maybe grilling Hagstrom didn’t prove as productive as he thought, and he’s waiting to hit me with everything at one time.”
“I could drop you off at the field office and check out the studio myself.”
“I’m not in that much of a hurry. I want to see if there are any hints that I could have been right and not just a paranoid nutso.” She grimaced. “And I’m not certain that you wouldn’t manufacture evidence to make me feel better. I’ve been noticing suspicious signs of softening in you, Lynch.”
He shook his head. “I don’t lie when it comes to creeps like Zachary. Honesty is a weapon in itself.” He said curtly, “I’ll check out the studio itself and then I’ll go cruise the neighborhood. You stay there and I’ll pick you up when I’m finished.”
“I’ll go with you.”
“Nope, I may be doing a little housebreaking or have unfriendly talks with your neighbors. In the interest of maintaining future peace in the neighborhood, you stay and make client phone calls or whatever else you do when you’re not curing catatonic kids.”
“I didn’t cure, I only set the—”
“Close enough. Then call Janice and check on him.” He pulled into the parking lot. “Did I mention having to worry about Zachary getting you in his sights would be a danger to my concentration? You’re all into the values of concentration. You wouldn’t want me to be scattered, would you?”
“You’re never scattered.”
“Want to take the chance?”
“No.” She scowled as she got out of the car. “Manipulation, Lynch.”
“It’s important to me, Kendra,” he said simply as he gestured to the front entrance. “Now let’s check out the studio and get some answers.”
*
NO ANSWERS TO BE FOUND IN the studio itself. The security was just as tight and incapable of being violated as it had been when Lynch had checked it before. Which caused a myriad of mixed feelings in Kendra.
“Paranoid?” she said as she walked Lynch to the door. “Almost as safe as Fort Knox.”