13
The buzzer at the exterior door of the lab pulled Sabrina away from the monitor she’d been staring at for the past several hours. Her clock told her it was almost four.
“We’ve got company, Dr. Fleming.” Dave, the officer who’d escorted her to the lab, smiled. “But it isn’t unexpected. Let me go out and speak to him.”
“Okay.” It had taken her over an hour to get her new phone set up. She must have missed something. A phone call or a message maybe. Dave didn’t seem concerned. She’d been so focused on the video surveillance and the files she’d sent to Mike, she hadn’t even realized how late it had gotten.
A few clicks of the mouse and she had a view of what was going on in the hallway. Dave was standing outside the door chatting with a teenager holding a massive bouquet of . . . lavender roses.
No one but Adam would send her a bouquet like that.
She gripped the sides of the desk and pulled herself to her feet. She suspected the blast had pulled every single muscle in her body. She hurt in places she hadn’t known it was possible to hurt.
She shuffled her way out of her office.
“Dr. Fleming, these came for you.” Dave handed the flowers to her.
“Are you sure they’re safe?” She was only half joking.
“Yes, ma’am. I checked them out.”
Apparently, Dave wasn’t joking. Okay then. “Thank you.”
Sabrina carried the vase to her desk and positioned the flowers where she could see them regardless of which monitor she was using. She took several deep breaths, the fragrance soothing a place she hadn’t realized was agitated until it calmed.
There was no card, but she didn’t need one.
Adam had sent her flowers.
Flowers she actually liked, so unlike the garish red bouquet still sitting by the door where Darren had left it . . . had it been only yesterday?
Why would Adam send her flowers? He’d seemed very cold to her this morning. Not that she didn’t deserve it. She folded her arms on her desk and dropped her head. She was incredibly tired. And confused.
Her office phone rang. Adam’s number.
“Hey,” she said.
“Hey.”
“Thank you for the flowers.”
“How do you know they’re from me? I’m sure you have many ardent admirers.”
“It was you. And they are . . . stunning. Perfect. I keep staring at them. And they smell amazing.”
“I’m glad.” The pause that followed hummed with a kind of anticipation that sent a shiver down her spine. “Listen, I hate to be all business, but Gabe is trying to see who can meet here at the office around four thirty to compare notes. We have a lot of moving parts and right now none of them make much sense.”
Huh. Business hadn’t been the direction she’d been expecting their conversation to go. “Sure. I assume Dave can escort me?”
“Okay. I’ll see you then.” She should hang up and let it go, but she couldn’t. “Wait. Adam . . . why did you send the flowers?”
Silence. Had he hung up and not heard her question? “Adam?”
“Hmm?”
“Did you hear me?”
“I’m trying to think of how to respond.”
Adam Campbell at a loss for words? That didn’t happen every day. “I’d go with honesty. But that’s just me. We all know my filter’s weird.”
He laughed. “Your filter is weird. But okay. I’ll tell you, but remember you asked.”
That sounded . . . ominous.
“When we met a couple of years ago, our relationship was, by necessity, professional. But then . . . it wasn’t. And along the way, I messed up.”
“Oh.” What had he messed up?
“I’ve been thinking a lot about what you said last night. And earlier today I was prepared to go quietly and leave you alone, even if it killed me to do it. You’re an intelligent woman who knows her own mind and can make her own decisions.”
In theory. Although at the moment she wasn’t so sure about that.
“But I think it’s important for you to have all the facts first. And the next time I see you, and when you aren’t on pain medicine, I intend to revisit our conversation from last night.”
“The facts?” She liked facts. “Such as?”
“Here’s a fun fact. When my father met my mother, he sent her a bouquet of flowers the next day. And then the next time he saw her, he asked her out.”
He’d sent flowers.
“That’s an interesting fact. Very romantic.”
“I’ve always thought so.”
“So . . .”
“If I hadn’t been too chicken to do it, I would have sent you flowers—these specific flowers—the day after we met.”
A sound in the background filtered through the phone.
“Ugh.” Adam’s frustration was evident. “I’m sorry. I have to go. But I promise we’ll talk—about the flowers—soon.”
“Okay.”
“I’ll see you in a little while. Stick close to Dave. He’s a good guy.”
Sabrina hung up the phone and studied the flowers. Adam said he would have sent these specific flowers the day after they’d met. Lavender roses weren’t cheap. This arrangement had two dozen roses in it and deep green leaves. The vase was crystal, not glass.
Purple was her favorite color, so it would be easy to assume he’d sent them because he knew that.
But he wouldn’t have known that the day after they met.
Lavender roses were unique. They weren’t apology flowers. They weren’t “Let’s be friends” flowers. Adam knew how much she enjoyed discovering the meaning behind different types of flowers and he would know lavender flowers went way beyond “I like you” or even “I’d like to see where this is going.”
Lavender roses conveyed the idea of love at first sight.
That kind of instantaneous infatuation was an idea she’d never believed in, but somehow she had a feeling Adam wasn’t kidding.
Was she okay with that?
Her mind said she shouldn’t be.
But her heart . . . her heart was soaring.
Thirty minutes later, Dave escorted Sabrina into the sheriff’s office. “You’ll be okay from here?” he asked.
“Yes.” She made her way upstairs to the large room where the investigative team worked. The homicide investigators had their own room off to one side, but most of the other investigators worked at desks arranged around the room by area. Adam wasn’t at his desk. She skirted the edge of the room and peeked into the homicide office.
He stood staring at a wall covered in photos and random papers. No matter what her mind thought about the situation, she couldn’t deny the way her pulse quickened at the sight of him.
A low groan escaped as he rolled his neck from one side to the other.
“Are you okay?”
Adam made a slow turn toward her. “Come on in.”
“You didn’t answer my question.”
He grinned. “I have a new appreciation for how the Wicked Witch of the East must have felt when Dorothy’s house landed on her. But at least I’m still walking around and no one stole my shoes. How are you?”
“I . . . don’t know.” Sabrina closed the door behind her.
She’d never been this confused in her life. She cared about Adam. More than she should. More than she’d realized she did until this morning when he’d been so . . . not her Adam. But the fact that she cared that much was exactly why she had to stay away from him. She had to, for his own sake.
But if she was determined to stay away, why was she walking toward him?
He didn’t move as she approached. “Thank you for the flowers. They are . . . I don’t even know how to describe them. It killed me to leave them in my office.”
He swallowed hard and cleared his throat but still didn’t move. “How’s your head?”
“Better than yesterday. Is it soon yet?”
Adam’s eyes widened. “Um . . . I’m pretty sure you still have a concussion.”
“Yes, I do. Which is why it would be cruel to keep me waiting. The stress is making my headache worse.”
He glanced around the room. They were alone, but that could change at any moment. Still, she couldn’t take it much longer. A man who sends lavender roses had better be prepared to back up a statement like that.
“Fine. But this could make things awkward later.”
“I do awkward all the time. I’d rather have awkward than tense.”
He smiled a little at that. He took one step toward her and reached for her hands. He was tentative and unsure. Not at all like he’d been yesterday. He’d definitely heard her last night, but he was still there. Still trying. Still fighting for them. And that made it so much harder for her to be rational.
Especially when her hands slid into his again like there was some sort of magnetic force pulling them together.
“I want you to know I heard you last night. I did. And I get that I’m probably more trouble than I’m worth. There’s a lot of family stuff, and social stuff, and I get that those are huge negatives. But I want to be clear. I’m not looking for someone to throw dinner parties. I’m not interested in someone who can charm investors or make nice with my partners’ wives. I’m not even looking for someone who pleases my family. Those things simply aren’t important to me. And if they were important to you, honestly, that would be a problem for me.”
She had no idea how to respond, so she nodded.
“If you truly don’t want to be anything more than friends, I’ll respect that. But before you decide, you need to know that I’d love to have the opportunity to show you that being with a Campbell isn’t as bad as you seem to think it would be. It might even turn out to be so much fun you never want it to end.”
He might be right about that.
“You don’t have to answer me now. Or even this week. But I would very much like to take you out on a date. And then another and another. Until you have enough information to make an informed decision about me.”
The smile he gave her was so tender and hopeful and nervous that she couldn’t answer him fast enough. “I’d love to go out with you. Thank you for asking me.”
He squeezed her hands. “I should have asked you two years ago.”
“Better late than never.”
Her hands trembled in his. She was saying yes. And everything about her body language agreed with her words, but she was terrified. He didn’t think she was afraid of him but maybe of what going out with him might mean.
He would have to be very careful. Take it slow. Not pressure her into anything. Let her set the pace and have time to get used to what her heart wanted.
Because he was pretty sure her heart and her mind were not in full agreement at the moment. His mission was to get them on the same page.
A sharp rap on the door shattered the moment. Sabrina jerked her hands away like they were on fire. Or like she was going to get in trouble if they got caught.
“Come in,” he said.
“Adam!”
His mother rushed in and threw her arms around him. He couldn’t quite stop the grunt of pain her ferocious hug generated. She released him immediately, but her hands moved to his face and she studied him the way she’d done for as long as he could remember.
Over her head, his father stood in the doorway beside the captain. Both of them wore bemused expressions. Sabrina had plastered herself to the wall. Her expression leaned more toward horrified.
“Thank you.” His father shook the captain’s hand.
“My pleasure.” The captain nodded in Adam’s direction. “You’ll escort them out when they’re ready?”
“Of course, sir.” His mother had stopped examining him and now stood with one hand on his arm.
“Very good. I’m heading out.” The captain caught sight of Sabrina. “Dr. Fleming. How are you?”
Sabrina peeled herself from the wall. “I’m fine, sir. Thank you.”
The captain clucked his tongue. “I think you both should be home in bed, but I appreciate the dedication. Don’t overdo it. That’s an order.”
“Yes, sir,” Adam and Sabrina answered the captain and he left the room.
“Dr. Fleming?” Adam’s mother rounded on Sabrina.
Oh no.
She approached Sabrina, arms outstretched. Awesome. Mom was going for the “we’ve never met but we’re going to hug anyway” move. So much for his plan to ease Sabrina into Campbell life.
“Dear. How are you?” The hug she gave Sabrina was brief and gentle, and Sabrina looked more surprised than traumatized. “We’ve heard so much about you. It’s a thrill to finally meet you.”
“Thank you, Mrs. Campbell,” Sabrina said. “It’s lovely to meet you.”
His father eased his mother to the side and extended his hand toward Sabrina. “Art Campbell. This is long overdue.”
Thanks, Dad.
“It is. Thank you, Mr. Campbell.”
“Enough of that,” Adam’s mom said. “It’s Art and Abby. If you call either of us Arthur or Abigail, we’ll refuse to answer. And anytime someone says Mrs. Campbell, I get a little twitchy.”
“Ha-ha, Mom. Not that I’m not thrilled to see you, but what are you doing here? I didn’t think you were coming home until the end of the week.”
His dad pointed at his mom. “We changed our tickets as soon as Alexander called. We drove straight here from the airport. Haven’t even been home.”
“I needed to see your face, dear.” His mom’s voice quavered.
What?
“Imagine getting a phone call in the middle of the night that your baby boy has been blown up.” His mom shuddered.
“I told you I was fine,” Adam said.
“In a voice mail,” she said. “Not good enough. I needed to see for myself. I know how you are. I wouldn’t have been surprised if I’d gotten home and found you in traction.”
She turned to Sabrina. “This one hates to make me worry. I never had to worry about him getting into real trouble. But I did have to worry about him downplaying his injuries.”
“He’s still doing that,” Sabrina said in a conspiratorial whisper.
His mother ate it up. “You’ll tell me the truth, won’t you, Dr. Fleming? How is he really?”
“First, it’s Sabrina. And second, a big chunk of the roof landed on his back because he was protecting me.”
Was Sabrina getting choked up? His mom certainly thought so, because she patted Sabrina’s arm.
Sabrina kept talking. “He’s hurting more than he’s letting on. His back has some bad lacerations and is probably starting to turn purple by now. But I’ve been assured it’s nothing he won’t fully recover from. And the more he moves, the better off he’ll be. If he lies around, he’ll get stiff and hurt even worse than he does now.”
Leigh must have told her that. He owed Leigh big-time.
“Thank you, dear. I never would have gotten that information from him.” His mom shook her head in overdone sadness. “And how are you?”
As if Sabrina’s scraped-up face and almost-black eye didn’t make her condition clear enough. “She has a concussion and lacerations and stitches in her head,” Adam said.
His mom looked between him and Sabrina. “I think the captain was right. You shouldn’t be working.”
“It’s a big case, Mom. And like she said, sometimes it’s better to keep moving than it is to sit around.”
“I guess.” His mom had a look on her face that Adam recognized. And feared. “How late are you working tonight?”
Where was she going with this? “I don’t know yet. We’re having a meeting at four thirty. It will probably last a couple of hours. We may call it a night then.”
“Excellent. You can come for a light supper at seven.”
What? No. He tried to catch his dad’s eye to get him to help, but his dad was eyeing the wall of photos and papers. “Mom—”
“You have to eat. It won’t be formal. We’ll have chicken salad and chat for thirty minutes and you can go home and crash. Sabrina, this includes you, dear.”
Sabrina’s mouth moved a few times before anything came out. But then an expression settled on her that he didn’t recognize. “Abby, we’d be delighted. But there’s no guarantee we won’t wind up working late.”
“I understand,” his mom said. “You call around six thirty and let me know if you’ll be able to make it?”
Sabrina nodded. “We will.”
We’d be delighted? We will? Where did all this we business come from?
“Abby, if they have a meeting at four thirty, we probably need to have Adam walk us back to the car.”
Oh, so now his dad stepped in. After his mom had invited them to supper.
“Oh, of course. You’re working. We’ll go. See you tonight, Sabrina.”
Sabrina nodded and smiled. Adam ushered his parents out of the room. “Be right back,” he said. Then he mouthed “I’m sorry” as he closed the door.
Sabrina stuck her tongue out at him.
He wasn’t sure if that was good or bad.
His parents didn’t say much as they wound through the office and to the elevator, but as soon as they got outside his mother turned to him.
“She is beautiful. Stunning. Even with her injuries. I can see why you’re smitten with her, dear.”
“Abby.” His father’s laughing reproach fell on deaf ears.
“I love her already.”
“You don’t know her, Mom. How can you love her?”
His mom shook her head. “Because you do, dear. That’s enough for me. Always has been.”
“Mom—”
“Best not to argue, son. Especially when you know she’s right.” His dad gave him a gentle hug. When he pulled back, he looked deep into Adam’s eyes. “Are you sure you’re all right?”
“Yes, sir.”
“Abby Campbell? What are you doing here?” A woman Adam didn’t recognize rushed up the steps toward his mom.
His dad pulled him to one side as his mother and the woman chatted.
“You scared us, but Mother says you were quite brave and you saved your friends’ lives. I’m not sure if I’ve ever heard her be quite so demonstrative in her praise of you.”
“She came to the hospital. She kissed my cheek. She even offered to send Marcel home with me.”
His dad laughed. “She has her moments.”
“That she does.”
“Son, I know you’re tired and you’re hurting more than you’re letting on. But try to come by tonight. It will do your mother good. She’s actually holding it together quite well, but she was a wreck.” He took a deep breath. “Truthfully, we both were.”
“I’ll come.”
“I’ll try. I just got up the nerve to ask her out. I wasn’t planning on subjecting her to a family dinner this soon.”
“This will be family dinner lite. Think of it as a practice run.”
“Great.”
“Tonight.” His mom rejoined them and took his dad’s arm.
“Yes, sir.”
As they walked down the steps, his mom turned back and gave him a soft smile, tears shimmering in her eyes. She would never make a scene. Especially not where he worked. But those tears . . .
“Mom. Wait.”
She released his dad’s arm and ran back to him. Her tears fell free. “I wouldn’t know what to do if I lost you. I don’t tell you that often enough,” she said.
“I know. I’m sorry you were scared. But I’m fine. Really.”
She squeezed him close again. “Okay, baby.”
“I’ll see you tonight.”
She sniffled and patted his arm. “You’d better.”
His dad gave him a nod. The kind that said “Good job” and “Thanks” all in one.
As soon as they disappeared from view, Adam headed—as fast as he could, which wasn’t saying much at the moment—back to Sabrina.
Voices reached him before he got to the homicide office door. Gabe. Anissa. Ryan.
This was going to be awkward.
He opened the door. Everyone was seated around the conference room table except for Gabe, who stood by the wall. “Good. You’re here. Let’s get to work.”