She narrowed her eyes and leaned back against the couch, her arms crossed tight against her chest, her lips in a frown.
Laura bit her bottom lip, unsure of what to say.
Even with his mind set on the latest murder, Aidan knew he couldn’t let it rest at that. With a sigh, he closed the files and set them on the table next to him. Leaving the recliner he sat in, Aidan moved to sit on Cheyenne's left side. He draped his arm over her shoulder. “You know I love you, right?”
“I guess,” she muttered.
Aidan rolled his eyes toward Laura. “Your big sister’s going to kill me one of these days.”
Laura giggled and rose. “I better go ahead and finish packing for tomorrow. You guys need privacy to talk.” She pointed her index finger at Aidan. “You’d better be good to my sister, buddy.”
After she was out of earshot, Aidan pivoted on the couch to see Cheyenne better. “Look, honey, I understand this isn't easy for you. You know, me working this type of job. But I want to do everything possible to be sure you live in a safe world. And these victims...” he trailed off, looking out the window at the rain. “I owe it to these women to find out who took them away from their families. They don’t have anyone else to speak for them.”
“Yeah, I get it,” she replied. “I don’t want to worry about you every day. I don’t want you to be shot at, and I don’t want these memories of cases you haven’t been able to explain destroy you.”
Aidan put a hand on the back of her head and stroked.
“I won’t get shot at,” he promised, “And my memories won’t destroy me.”
She remained silent, her eyes glistening with tears.
“Look.” Aidan pointed to his files resting on the table. “Until Shaun comes over, I promise that will stay right there. Until he comes, I’m all yours. Promise.” He held his hand in a scout’s honor.
Cheyenne glanced sidelong at Aidan. He could see her eyes glistening with tears. Offering a small smile, she kissed him before resting her head on his shoulder.
He knew they’d had the same discussion several times before in the five years of dating and he knew chances were, they'd have it again. Aidan couldn't help but wonder how many more discussions and arguments over his obsession with his job they'd have before she finally gave up and left.
Aidan sighed and tightened his hold on Cheyenne, then kissed the top of her head, which still rested on his shoulder.
For her sake—and his—he tried to push The Carnations Killer out of his mind.
But it wasn't easy.
21
It was still raining when Shaun arrived at four o’clock. They sat in the living room talking while Cheyenne and Laura stayed upstairs. Although Cheyenne and Aidan had made amends earlier, he was still concerned about the choices he was making regarding her in terms of his career.
So, he chose to confide in Shaun, see what he thought. In the short time since they met, Aidan had begun to think of him as a friend and figured it couldn’t hurt to hear an unbiased opinion.
“I understand where she’s coming from,” Shaun said after Aidan finished unloading on him, taking a sip from his beer.
“So can I,” Aidan admitted. “But this is who I am, you know? She knew that when we started going out. Actually, I think in truth, it’s what she liked most about me, although she would never admit it.”
“Well, when you’re young, being with someone that’s a federal agent is highly impressive and alluring.” He leaned over to set his bottle on a coaster on the coffee table. “But when you really start developing feelings, while it may be impressive, it’s not so alluring anymore.”
“So, I guess this is why you prefer to be single, huh?” Aidan asked. “No one to tell you it’s too dangerous.”
Shaun frowned. “No, not exactly.”
Aidan noticed the hint of sadness in his words.
“What exactly is it, then?”
He looked at Aidan, but instead of directly answering, he said, “Sometimes you have to make a choice. The love of your woman or the love of your job. If you do accept the position in Virginia, you will still be in the FBI. You just won’t be investigating, and you won’t be in the line of fire.”
It was Aidan's turn to frown. “So, what you’re saying is I should take the job?”
“I can’t tell you what to do, Aidan. If that’s what prompted you to talk to me, then I’m sorry I can’t be of more help. There will always be consequences. Someone always loses something.”
He picked his bottle up, took another swig, then set it back down.
“Let me tell you a story about a friend of mine.”
Aidan stared at the floor as he listened.
“Years ago, a friend of mine married a woman. She was beautiful, and they were very much in love. He’d already been in law enforcement for some time. But one day, an opportunity came that would force him to choose between the job he loved and the job that would allow him to keep the woman he loved.”
Shaun paused to take another sip. Aidan eyed him.
“What did he decide?”
“Well, after weeks of fighting and decision-making, he chose the job over his woman. So she took his children and left.” Shaun lowered his eyes to focus on his bottle.
Aidan wondered if Cheyenne would really leave him if he refused the job at Quantico. He had tried, but he couldn’t imagine being anything other than a field agent. Even after fighting his demons, the job was embedded in him. However, at the same time, he
