Read Online Her Anchor by Viva Fox - Free Book Online Page A

it was fear or guilt.  Though she had a suspicion it was the former. 
    “I didn’t write it!  Why would I do that?” 
    “Dustin, I don’t think that you did.”  Laura advised him gently.  “But just in case anyone ever asks Detective Lewis or I if we checked with you, we have to be able to say that we made sure that you didn’t.  We just have to do our jobs.”  Dustin didn’t look convinced, but he nodded. 
    “Ok.” 
    Out in the hallway, Laura met Steve. 
    “His parents are on their way.  Did you find out anything?” 
    “I don’t think he really knows anything.”  Laura glanced back into the room.  “But we have to get the parental consent for a handwriting evaluation.  Just to make sure.”  Steve agreed. 
    “Boys will be boys.  You never know if they’re just out looking for attention.” 
    “Exactly.  Especially because he saw the news reports about the other body.” 
    “Oh hell.  Ok. I’ll stay here and wait for the parents.  Why don’t you head back to the hotel?  You’re looking a little…peaked.” 
    Laura lowered her head.  She had a sudden reminder of just why she looked like that.  She didn’t know what had gotten into her last night…besides tequila.  She was working a case.  She couldn’t believe that she had let her professional judgement slip so rapidly. 
    “Um, yeah….ok.”  She was all right with getting away from him.  It was becoming abundantly clear how well they worked together.  It was too natural.  She was letting her guard drop again.  This was the Steve she knew…the Steve she had fallen in love with. 
    “Go.”  He reached out for her, and then stopped.  He used his outstretched hand to awkwardly pat her shoulder.  Laura smiled just as awkwardly, and then turned to head out to her car. 
    ******
    Someone was once again knocking on her door.  Laura lifted her head wearily.  She’d napped, but she felt so dirty she didn’t even know herself.  She’d been thinking of a shower, but she didn’t have the energy.  But out of obligation, she dragged herself to the door. 
    Steve stood on the other side of the door. He was holding a bag from a fast food restaurant, and a drink holder with two Styrofoam cups in it. 
    “Hey.” 
    “Oh…hey.”  Laura’s hostility towards him had dropped since that afternoon.  “What’s going on?” 
    “I…thought you might be hungry.  So I brought you some grease.”  He smiled, holding out the bag.  Laura gave him a soft smile in return. 
    “Ok.  Come in.”  He did so without hesitation.  Laura felt relieved.  They needed to talk.  With everything that had gone on between them, she’d managed to lose herself.  It was all that she had thought about lying in bed that afternoon. 
    Steve was already setting up burgers and fries on the desk in the corner of the room.  He dragged two chairs over, one across from the other. 
    “I guess this is the dating life of cops, huh?”  He put a straw into the cup before offering it out to her.  Laura took it. 
    “I didn’t realize we were still dating.”  Steve sat down.  He began slowly unwrapping his burger. 
    “Laura…. I…. I’m so sorry.  Things with Stephanie…”  He shook his head.  “I don’t know what I was thinking.  She and I were working that one case, and we were spending time together….  She feels as bad as I do.  We know we were wrong.” 
    Laura sat down across from him.  She picked up a French fry, eating it.  It was the first time all day that she was hungry. 
    “What’s the saying?  Once a cheater always a cheater?”  Steve frowned. 
    “Laura.”  He set his burger down.  “Please.” 
    “If I hadn’t seen your text messages, would you even have told me?”  She remembered the day that she had found those all too well. 
    “Honestly,” Steve shrugged, “I don’t know.  Because as much as I wanted to be honest with you, I knew that you would react exactly as you