Alibi by Nicole Edwards

Chapter Sixteen

Baz finished typing up his notes andpushed back from his desk. He stretched his neck, moving his head side to side in an attempt to alleviate the tension building. It had been a long day. Hell, a long week, and while he’d spent most of the past few days sitting in his apartment with no water and the electricity flashing intermittently, it hadn’t felt like a vacation. Partly because he’d been stranded with JJ and they weren’t exactly on good terms.

Or rather, they weren’t on the good terms he preferred them to be on. They were getting along just fine. Friends, even. They could talk and joke, but there was still a tremendous gap between where they were now and where they had once been.

As he pushed to his feet, Baz’s stomach growled, reminding him he hadn’t had lunch. He’d spent the majority of the day catching up on a few of the stragglers coming into the tip line. Nothing worth noting, but it had required a follow-up to make that assessment.

He ventured up to the loft, following the sound of busy fingers on a keyboard. When he reached the top of the staircase, he found JJ furiously typing away.

Baz cleared his throat, wanting to alert her to his presence. He wasn’t sure if it was just his imagination or not, but these days JJ seemed jumpier than usual. Ever since New Year’s.

When she turned her head slightly, he asked, “How long you think you’ve got left?”

Since JJ had yet to buy another vehicle, partly delayed because of the weather, Baz was still driving her to and from the office, which meant he stayed until she was ready to go.

JJ glanced over her shoulder, frowning. “What time is it?”

“Six thirty.”

“Holy shit.” She pushed back from her desk. “Seriously?”

“Seriously.”

His stomach grumbled again, this time loud enough for JJ to hear. It pulled a smile from her.

“Thought maybe we could grab some dinner before we head back to the apartment?”

“You’re speakin’ my language, Detective.”

Yes, he was sure he was. For the past couple of weeks, JJ’s attitude toward him had changed. She’d shifted into friendship mode, and he could almost believe she was sincere in it. And while he appreciated the effort, even enjoyed talking to her, Baz couldn’t get past the feelings he had for her. He wanted something he knew she didn’t, and since he wasn’t willing to lose her, he’d adopted the same outlook: they would be friends.

“I can finish this up at home,” she said, undocking her computer.

“The diner?” he suggested while she tucked her laptop into her bag.

“God, yes. I heard they brought chicken livers back on the menu.”

Baz stopped, his nose instinctively scrunching up. “Nasty.”

“Oh, but they’re not,” she insisted. “You’ll have to try them.”

He was shaking his head as they walked down the stairs.

She rambled on about chicken livers, French fries, and cream gravy all the way to his truck. Once inside, she moved on to dessert while Baz listened with half an ear.

He had to admit, he had grown fond of this new development in their relationship. It was nice to not have JJ looking at him like she wanted to singe him with laser beams coming out of her eyes. But at the same time, he got the feeling there was more to this than she was letting on. More than them merely moving past his indiscretion.

Ever since the night she was attacked in her house, JJ hadn’t been the same. She found one excuse after another not to be alone, and he was beginning to think she was scared.

Not that he necessarily blamed her. She had been through a serious ordeal, one she had pretended at the time was nothing. Being bashed over the head and knocked unconscious, then drugged and doused with blood was not nothing. It was major but she still wouldn’t discuss it, keeping it all inside. He figured that was the main reason she was focusing so much on him.

His cell phone buzzed on the center console, the screen lighting up.

JJ looked over at it at the same time he did, but she quickly looked away. Baz tapped the button to send the call to voicemail.

“You’re not gonna talk to her?”

“Not right now.”

JJ was silent for a minute, maybe two, but then the questions began.

“She doin’ all right after the storm?”

“Seems to be.”

Truth was, Baz hadn’t gone to see Molly in a couple of weeks. He didn’t care to see her, didn’t want to spend time with her. The only reason he was doing it at all was the fact that Molly was pregnant. And according to her, the baby was his.

In fact, she was exactly seven weeks pregnant, a fact he knew because Molly had sent him a meme noting it. Every week she sent them with hearts and flowers and Molly + Sebastian = baby as the heading.

The only problem he had was that she wasn’t interested in proving it with hard facts. And since he felt like a shithead for even insinuating she might be lying, Baz had decided to embrace it. No, he didn’t want a life with Molly, but he had every intention of taking care of his child. He had even told Molly he would share the news with his parents after the first trimester.

“I’m gonna start lookin’ for a place soon,” JJ said as he was pulling his truck into the parking lot of the diner.

It was the same thing she said every couple of days, as though she thought he needed to hear it. Usually Baz would nod and offer to help if she wanted him to. This time, he decided to go with the truth.

“I really wish you wouldn’t,” he told her, focusing on the parking lot. “I like havin’ you around.”

And yes, he said it because he knew JJ needed to hear it.

Plus … well, it was the truth.

*

Of all the things they could’ve talkedabout, JJ hated talking about Baz’s relationship with Molly, but she didn’t know what else there was. It was different when they were at work or out and about. When they were at the apartment, they could talk about television shows and movies they liked or hated. They could have lengthy debates over them, even.

Sometimes JJ would get so caught up in the moment, it was as though they were still a couple, still enjoying the getting-to-know-you phase of their relationship. Only that damn phone would ring and Molly’s name would appear and JJ would be reminded all over again that they weren’t. Never would be.

Once they were seated at a table and had ordered drinks, JJ pretended to mull over the menu while giving Baz ample time to do the same. When the waitress returned, she rattled off her choice, then listened as Baz once again ordered a double bacon cheeseburger with a side of fries. That was his go-to meal and he ordered it every time, without fail.

“I’m gonna get you to try somethin’ else one of these days,” she promised, hoping to get his mind off the phone call he had avoided a few minutes ago.

“Not if it has liver in the name, you’re not.”

She smiled, took a sip of her tea. “How’s your dad doin’? I heard you talkin’ to him earlier? They make it through the storm okay?”

“They did. Weathered it in Cancun, actually.”

“Cancun?” JJ’s eyes widened. “Well. How about that?”

She recalled the days of no water and wondering when the electricity would go back off after coming on for a couple of hours at a time. She’d gotten pretty good at predicting it, her electronics plugged in and ready for when it did. The worst part for her had been the spotty cell service since she’d been utilizing her phone’s hot spot to continue researching while she toughed it out.

“They travel a lot,” Baz said. “A trip every few months. He says it keeps them young.”

It kept them something, JJ figured.

“And your mom? You talk to her?”

“Every day through the storm. She’s good. Had to work from home, which damn near killed her.”

JJ watched his eyes light up when he talked about his mother. She envied the relationship Baz had with his parents. It was a far cry from the one she had with her own. Hell, she’d texted them during the storm but hadn’t gotten a message back for a couple of days. From either. Which was saying something considering they hated one another as much as they hated her.

His phone buzzed again, the screen lighting up with Molly’s name.

“You should answer it,” she said, reaching for her own phone as though that might give him enough privacy to have the conversation.

Baz sighed. “If I don’t, she’ll just keep callin’.”

Oh, JJ was well aware of that. The woman called a few dozen times a day. And if he didn’t answer, it was usually once every twenty minutes or so. The only reason she didn’t show up was because Molly didn’t know where he lived or worked. A wise choice on Baz’s part.

“Hello,” Baz answered, head down, eyes on the table. “Yep. I know you called.”

JJ pretended to be skimming her text messages, but there was nothing new aside from some great buys on bedroom furniture at Wayfair.

“And I told you I’d call you later.” He sighed. “I doubt it, Molly. I’ve been workin’ all day and I just want to go home and sleep.”

JJ couldn’t make out what was being said, but she could hear Molly’s voice. Not for the first time, she wondered what the woman looked like. What type was Baz drawn to normally?

“No, I’m out right now.” His head lifted, eyes meeting hers. “Yes. I’m with … a friend.”

She met his stare, held it, hating herself for wondering what he was thinking. Did it make her a bad person to be grateful he didn’t seem to be infatuated with this woman? Hell, he didn’t seem to like her much at all.

The petty side of her wanted to grab the phone from Baz’s hand and tell Molly to leave him alone. That side didn’t care that the woman was pregnant with Baz’s baby, she just wanted to banish her from Baz’s life.

But the rational side said this was how things were going to be. The most she would ever have with Baz was friendship, and she had to be happy with that. Sometimes JJ wished she could be a bigger person, that she could consider having a relationship with a man with a child. Perhaps she could if the man already had children when they met. But Baz … no, she knew her heart would never be capable of sharing him with Molly and her baby.

“I’ll call you later,” he said firmly, then disconnected.

“If you need to go see her, I can call an Uber.”

Baz’s teal-blue eyes darkened. “I’ve told you, it’s not like that with her.”

Yes, he’d explained a couple of times that the only reason he was talking to Molly at all was for the baby.

And yes, it did probably make her a bad person that every time she thought of Baz having a baby with another woman, her insides churned. It was a nervous anxiety, one she wasn’t fond of.

“Any updates on the baby?” she asked, hoping to lighten his mood even though the question left a bad taste in her mouth.

“Seven weeks along,” he said, his tone bland.

“When does she get to find out the sex?”

“I have no idea. She’s not very forthcomin’ with the details.”

No, she didn’t seem to be. From what she’d heard, Molly wouldn’t provide a positive pregnancy test, and she had declined his requests to go to the doctor with her. Which honestly JJ found a bit odd considering how obsessed Molly was with Baz. You would think she’d want him to be a part of it. If for no other reason than it might bring them closer.

Before she could ask another question, Baz spoke up. “If it’s all the same to you, I’d prefer we don’t talk about her.”

Yeah. JJ preferred that, too.

More than she was ever willing to admit.