"Fuck no. He's a dumb fuck. Worthless dog, did nothing but run in circles and lick shit."

I clicked the end of my pen. How dare he talk about Not Brent that way? Some of what he said might have been true-the licking thing-but he was a great dog.

"What should I do with him?" I asked, hoping he'd tell me to give him a glorious life and spoil the shit out of him, even though I didn't know how I'd pull it off.

He scoffed. "Take that asshole to the pound."

I gasped. The pound. Hell no.

"Are you sure? What's his name?" Not that I planned to ever take Not Brent anywhere near the man, but I needed to be sure he wouldn't come for him later.

"I called him shit-head most of the time. I never want to see him again. My advice, lady? Open the back door and let him be free. That's what I did."

I hung up on the asshole and clicked my pen a hundred more times in fury. With a few quick internet searches, I could find out everything about the guy behind the phone number. I'd hunt him down and make him apologize to Not Brent.

I could, but I wouldn't.

Instead, I'd just spoil the hell out of Not Brent to make up for his shitty beginning.

But first I needed to find a place where they'd let me keep him. Mrs. Mets would not allow it, even with his cute puppy dog face and tongue kisses.

I called Katy, hoping to work around to the conversation about me renting her place again. This couldn't be done through text.

"Hey, Von," she said after the third ring. "I was going to text you again because I just talked to Pierce, but this is faster. Also, Anessa says great job on the murder case. Did you put it in the scrapbook?"

The pen stopped clicking, and I laid it on the desk, not sure if I'd broken it. If I picked up Micks habit of clicking pens I'd be pissed. "Sure did. The glue is still drying. How did Pierce like the frog statue?"

"He loved it, but he's so weird. He's not using it as a paper weight but a doorstop for his office."

I laughed. "Yeah, so weird."

"Hey, I'm glad you called, though. We talked and Pierce said you can move in. Rents will stay at six fifty because I'm the best bestest friend ever, but you can't tell anyone you're getting the place that cheap. Tell them you're paying at least fifteen hundred. You should come see the place."

I sucked in a breath of air. "Katy, I can't pay fifteen hundred a month. No one will believe it."

She made a weird sound with her tongue. "Sure, they will. You solve murder cases now. Since the house is right across from the ocean, Pierce says people have to believe you're paying a fair market share or else they might think he's gone soft. His words, not mine."

I nodded, getting used to the idea. "Okay, if anyone asks, Pierce is charging me fifteen hundred." I almost choked just saying the number.

"Great. Come over later and we can talk about move-in dates when you're ready. I still have some stuff to get out, so it might not be available until next month."

I did three major fist bumps in the air and gave a quiet yes. My actions pushed the chair's wheel against Not Brent and he woke. I still had to ask Katy the biggest question.

"Can I bring Not Brent?"

Her home had a fenced-in back yard. It would be perfect. He could run to his little heart's content outside and then pass out for a nap inside.

"Sure, just don't tell Pierce," she said with no hesitation.

"Thanks." I leaned back in my chair and stared at the ceiling, where a slightly suspicious brown stain had appeared in the last forty-eight hours. Regardless, things were looking up.

My office door opened, and a face I hadn't seen in two days walked in. "Hey, Katy. I've got to go. We'll talk dates later." I hung up before she responded.

Apparently, it was a catch up with everyone day and Broadrick just walked into my line of sight.

He took a seat in the chair across from my desk, and I grabbed my broken stabbing pen. "Where have you been?"

I hadn't seen the man in two days. He couldn't keep popping in and out of my life without some kind of explanation. We weren't dating, but that didn't matter. If he had a secret family somewhere, I deserved to hear it from him.

Broadrick gave a quick headshake. "No."

"No?" What the hell did that mean? I clicked the pen twice.

"No, this is my turn to yell."

His comment caught me off guard, and I waved him forward, interested in what he had to say. "Continue."

"I couldn't tell you about the guns because I've been working undercover on a multi-government-organization task force to penetrate the underbelly of criminal unit running products over the border."

I bit my lips so I didn't laugh at his use of penetrate. This was a serious time. Then exactly what he said hit me and I grew annoyed.

"So, you are still in the military?" I knew it!

He shook his head again. "Not really."

Ugh.

He continued talking before I came up with a good argument. "I'm on my way out of the military and no longer acting in the capacity as a SEAL with my previous team. There are some things I can't say, but I promise you that when you saw me with the gun shipment, I was there undercover, acting on the government's behalf."

I narrowed my eyes at his green ones. Unlike me, he was a decent liar. Could I believe him? He'd still never even told me why he broke up with me. I didn't buy his "age gap" reasoning.

"Are you still a spy?" He'd been acting on the government's behalf as an internet spy when we first met. What exactly did Broadrick do as a SEAL? I'd never really asked, and he'd never told.

He smirked that most annoying grin. "Babe, that's confidential, but once a spy, always a spy at heart."

I rolled my eyes dramatically along with my head, so he didn't miss the movement. "What's that mean for us? Where is your next mission?"

If he was still working for the government, it wouldn't be long before they sent him somewhere else.

That stupid grin grew. "I met with my commander yesterday and turned in my equipment. I accepted a civilian job."

My forehead furrowed, trying to process his words. "Where?"

There couldn't be many places where he could use all those sneaky spy skills he learned as a SEAL. If he left Pelican Bay for good, would my heart survive it? I held my breath, waiting for his answer while he drew out the suspense with a devilish grin.

"This morning, Ridge introduced me as the newest member of Pelican Bay Security."