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This was a bad idea.
Maggie checked the time on her phone. She was setting herself up for another heartbreak courtesy of one Will Sears.
And the worst part? She’d wrestled herself into the tightest full body Spanx she owned, fought the dress zipper by herself, spent a full hour on her hair and makeup, and paid for an Uber, only to sit in this overpriced romantic restaurant all by herself.
Okay, the Uber wasn’t Will’s fault.
That blame fell on the teenager who couldn’t take her eyes off her phone long enough to stop at a red light. One would think a prosecuting attorney with Maggie’s conviction record would’ve been able to negotiate a replacement vehicle, but honestly? She spent all day arguing her case as Assistant District Attorney, and she hadn’t had the heart for another fight.
At least Will had picked a nice place. Candlelight. White linen tablecloths. The couple a few tables away held hands across the table and made goo-goo eyes at each other. Yuck.
Maggie took a sip of her iced tea.
A dark-haired waiter in a black vest and bow tie appeared and refilled the minuscule amount she’d depleted. The guy looked familiar. Had she prosecuted him for a drug charge a few months back?
“Thanks.” She smiled. If it was the same guy, he looked clean. Maybe the court system worked after all.
Because most days it felt like using a bucket to bail the ocean.
Movement across the restaurant caught her attention.
Will.
His dark hair shimmered with wetness. The day’s stubble shaved clean. Instead of his usual off the rack rumpled suit, he wore a blue tailored number that hugged his tall, broad shoulder build.
They’d known each other more than half their lives and her pulse still fluttered at the crooked smile he flashed when their eyes met.
“Here we are, sir.” The maître d’ held Will’s chair.
Will paused. “Wow, you look beautiful.” He had that familiar gleam in his eye and slight tilt of his chin.
Maggie shifted in her seat. “Thanks. So do you.”
He unbuttoned his jacket, held a hand over his tie, and sat. The maître d’ made a fuss of placing a napkin on Will’s lap and apologizing.
Maggie was too distracted by her own thoughts to catch their conversation. Her shoulders relaxed. She was being ridiculous.
Will sears hadn’t been about to kiss her.
There was no need to be edgy.
This was just dinner.
One dinner.
“Yes, sir. Enjoy your dinner.” The maître d’ bowed and left to check on the couple behind her.
Will leaned forward. “Sorry, I’m late.”
Maggie adjusted her fork. “Case?”
“I thought the topic of work was off limits.”
“I never said that.” She touched the diamond pendant at the hollow of her throat. “Besides, we fell in love poring over our cases.” Maggie swallowed. That slipped out without her thinking.
The waiter appeared, carrying a glorious arrangement of flowers. Soft pink tulips. Maggie’s favorite. “From the gentleman, madam.” He placed the flowers in the center of the table.
He must’ve called ahead to have them delivered. Arranged for the waiter to bring them over. “Will...thank you. This is so thoughtful. All of it.”
The waiter took their orders and disappeared.
Maggie slid the vase aside so she could see Will. He’d combed his wet hair back, but it was longer than she remembered, and she liked it. “So, why were you late?”
“Did you hear about the women in the woods?”
“The suicides way out in the Hercules-Glades?”
Will nodded.
She gasped. “Another one?”
He nodded again. “Yes. Same victimology. Same M. O. Found her this morning. Park ranger checking trail cams.”
“That makes...”
“Three.”
Three meant they had a serial killer on their hands.
“Same as before?”
“All three victims presented like a suicide, but we never found fingerprints on the pill bottle. What suicide victim would wipe the bottle clean after downing the pills?”
Maggie nodded. “Yeah, you’re right. Any leads?”
“One. A few drops of blood found on the rope used to secure the bag...” Will trailed off. “You know, maybe this isn’t the best conversation before we eat.”
Probably, but it kept them off the one subject she didn’t want to discuss. “When will you get the results?”
“Should be in my inbox any minute.”
Maggie clasped her hands and leaned closer and lowered her voice. “You’re dying to check, aren’t you?”
Will pressed his lips together and leaned in. “Not even a little. This is where I want to be. In this moment. Right here. With you.” His warm hand covered hers and she didn’t pull away.
Electricity buzzed between them. An energy that never seemed to fade throughout their almost ten-year marriage.
He ran his thumb over hers. “Mags, I—”
Shouting from the lobby cut through Will’s words.
Maggie twisted in her chair.
A hulking man with tattered clothes and scraggly hair stormed through the restaurant. “The Gladiator! We have to stop the gladiator!”
Maggie’s heart slammed to a stop. The hair on the back of her neck went up. “Todd?”
Her brother’s face flushed red. Blue veins protruded from his neck as his vocal cords strained for volume. “He’s going to kill them all! Help them! We have to stop him! Stop him before he kills them!”
Will jumped to his feet. “What’s he doing here?”
“I...I don’t know. I left the name of the restaurant with his live-in caregiver in case of an emergency. Todd must’ve found it.” Maggie pushed back to stand and bumped the table in the process.
The glass vase toppled to the ground and shattered. Tulips lay in a pool of water and glass at her feet.
“Sir. Sir, please...” The maître d’ touched Todd’s shoulder. “I must ask you—”
Todd lifted a chair and flung it across the room with a guttural roar. Dishes crashed and patrons screamed. The maître d’ ducked and scurried away.
“Police,” Will said, showing his badge to the room. “Everyone needs to stay calm.”
That was the wrong thing to say in front of Todd. Her brother, diagnosed with schizophrenia only two years ago, didn’t trust any part of the government—especially the police.
Maggie skirted around the tables and stopped in front of Todd. “Hey, hey. It’s me.” She tapped a flat hand on her chest. “C’mon, let’s go outside. I’ll take you to the gladiator so we can stop him.”
Will was at her side. He shot her a glance. “What’re you doing? This isn’t safe. You can’t be alone with him in this condition.”
“It’s okay,” she whispered. “I think I can calm him down.”
Will put a hand on her shoulder. “Okay, but I’m coming with you.”
“You get away from my SISTER!”
Todd snatched a knife.