You Belong to Me – 48

 

Corey stopped pacing and leaned against the hallway wall. “Killers, gangsters, drug dealers.”

 

“All of the above.”

 

“That takes more guts than I’d ever have.”

 

“I disagree. You’re the brave one. Dealing with this bastard and still being able to cope with your everyday life.”

 

“Who says I’m coping?”

 

“Me. Don’t forget I’ve been watching you at the shelter. If I didn’t know what was going on, I’d think you were a damned good employee with not a care in the world other than seeing that those men get the help they need.”

 

“It’s just… I’m running on autopilot, nothing more.”

 

“No, Corey, you’re running, as you put it, on the goodness of your heart.”

 

“Will you stop!”

 

Scott laughed. “Am I embarrassing you?”

 

“Yeah. Some.”

 

“That doesn’t mean I’m not right about you. I’m good at reading people. I have to be, to do what I do.”

 

Corey nodded, although of course Scott couldn’t see him. “Since we’re going in for pop psychology, I’d say you…like danger, but probably not to the point of doing anything foolhardy. Just like me, you want to help people. You wouldn’t be a cop if you didn’t. You’re single.” He paused, waiting for Scott to refute that. When he didn’t, Corey continued, “You’re single probably because you have to disappear for long stretches when you’re undercover and you don’t think that would be fair to a lover or partner.”

 

“You’re not half-bad at this, considering you’ve only just met me. You’ve got one thing wrong though. I’m not in a relationship because I’ve never found someone I cared about enough to chance it.”

 

“Unlike me. I’ve chanced it, and it didn’t work out.”

 

“So you’re not willing to try again?”

 

“Hell, Scott, I don’t know.” Corey sighed. “Since I’m not out, it doesn’t seem worthwhile to go looking. Men…prefer someone they can be with and do things with publicly, if you get what I’m saying.”

 

“You go to clubs.”

 

“Only occasionally and to ones where straights go too. Enough of them that if someone I knew saw me there, I could claim….”