The Daydreamer Detective Braves the Winter by S. J. Pajonas

Author:S. J. Pajonas [Pajonas, S. J.]
Language: eng
Format: epub
Publisher: Onigiri Press

Chapter Seventeen

It’d been awhile since I was last at the police station. I burst through the doors, armed with purpose and a fresh idea on what to try next. The police station was so small that only a few staff members kept it occupied at all times. I didn’t recognize the young man at the front desk, but past him in the open desk area, Goro stuffed a large rice ball in his face and stared at a computer monitor.

“I’m here to see him,” I said, pointing to Goro, and he waved to me.

“Sign in please.” The young man twirled a clipboard around to me. I wrote my name in, dug through my purse to find my hanko name stamp, stamped the paper, and twirled it back to him.

The door to the right of the desk buzzed, and I let myself in right past Goro’s partner, Kayo Mitsuwara. She smiled as she looked up from a pile of papers in her arms.

“Hey, Mei-san. How are you?” Kayo’s hair was matted down but pulled into a bun at the base of her neck. I betted she’d been out all morning with a hat on.

“I’m good. You?” I bowed and continued with the pleasantries, though small talk like this killed my momentum.

“Good. It’s freezing out there. Goro-san told me your pipes froze at home. When the weather gets better, I’d be happy to come out to the house and help you thaw them out.”

I blinked and tried not to cringe. This was as likely a story as any as to why we weren’t living at home.

“Sure. Thank you for offering.” I bowed again. “It’s been a cold winter.”

“Are you really living at Suga-san’s apartment now?” She leaned forward, her eyes as wide as her smile. “I’ve heard it’s gorgeous.”

“Yep.” I rocked on my heels and tried to ignore her eager look. She could’ve easily been drooling.

“I can’t believe you guys are dating,” she lamented, shaking her head. This time, the rage boiled up from my toes, through my belly, to my chest, and I had to swallow several times to keep it down.

“No. We’re not dating. We’re just sleeping together,” I deadpanned, but she missed my sarcasm. Sarcasm was a foreign language in Japan, and I only knew it from watching Western TV shows. She blushed and shied away from me, and I immediately felt guilty. “Sorry. Yes, we’re dating. No one seems to believe it. I’m beginning to not believe it.”

“Forgive me,” she said, bowing.

“Kayo-san!” Goro growled from the other room. “Why are you holding up Mei-san?”

She beat a hasty retreat for one of the conference rooms. I tried not to sigh, but I was a horrible person for saying that to her. I should apologize next time I saw her.

I rounded the corner and sat in the chair next to Goro’s desk. He popped the last of his rice ball into his mouth and chewed. “What were you and Kayo-san talking about?”

“Nothing. Did you get my email?”

“Yeah. What’s this Ne

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