Tuesday Teaser 12/2/2025

12/2/2025

Linden stopped and glanced around the inside of the lodged. “Is anyone else here?”

“No.”

“Then why lock your door?”

Tyler shook his head and motioned at the door. “It’s right next to the kitchen doors and looks like this is where we keep the brooms and mops. If I didn’t keep it locked, I’d have all sorts of unwanted guests. It’s a habit. If you’ll feel better, I can crank up the boilers in one of other buildings, but you’ll be damn cold and no hot shower for a good day.”

The way Linden looked him up and down was unnerving. The word intense was the only thing that came to Tyler’s mind as he watched Special Agent Bourne. Linden’s expression and the way he observed Tyler with deep, very dark eyes were unwavering and unsettling.

“I have a hunting knife in a drawer in the coffee table and a shotgun under the couch. It’s not loaded—feel free to check. There is a handgun in my dresser. Both guns are registered to the inn owner. I only have them because I’m out here in the middle of buttass nowhere alone for a few weeks, and the closest help is the park ranger’s station near Devils Tower and the one in Custer.” He tossed the key ring to Linden, who caught it and held it loosely in his hand. “Those keys are to every door in this entire place. Search anything you’d like. Just know I have the liquor inventory memorized.”

Linden chuckled and stared down at the keys in his palm for a few seconds before closing his fingers around them. He closed his eyes and took a deep breath before opening them again to meet Tyler’s gaze, shaking his head slightly and extending his fist. Tyler held out one hand, palm up, and Linden set the keys in it, letting his hand rest in Tyler’s for a split second. The gesture, and Linden’s hand, was warm and oddly comforting. In the next instant, Linden opened his fingers, released the keys and pulled his hand away, stuffing it in his pocket.

“Let me give you the five-cent tour,” Tyler said for something to do. He’d spent three hours with this man four months ago and hadn’t stopped thinking about him since. Now Linden was about to camp out on his couch.

Linden nodded and smiled, making the corners of his eyes crinkle in a pleasant way that Tyler definitely liked. He studied his feet for a few seconds before lifting his head to be met with soft, warm, very dark eyes. “I’d like that.”

Tyler walked backward into the apartment. Spreading both arms wide, he announced, “This is the entryway, and of course the main room is right off of it.”

“Being close to the entry is important,” Linden said. He set his bag on the floor near the door.

“The gourmet Pullman kitchen and dining nook are to your right. Note the stove is close to the dining area for extra warmth and coziness.”

Linden rubbed his chin and put a serious expression on his face. “That’s definitely a sign of good design.”

Tyler turned and grandly motioned to the bathroom. “The elegant spa area is over this way.” Linden laughed at that. Despite the seriousness of the situation and the reason Linden was here, his laugh was friendly and mellow. “Made ya laugh.”

“I don’t suppose the spa has a shower?”

“You bet, and lots of hot water, thanks to the tankless hot-water system.” Tyler crossed to a built-in cabinet between the bathroom and bedroom doors. Pulling out towels, he turned and held them out to Linden. “Do you like chili?”

“Yeah.” Linden took the towels. “You don’t have to—”

“Where are you going to eat?”

“Thanks.” Linden held up the towels, grabbed his travel bag, and headed to the bathroom. “I’m just going to get cleaned up.”

It wasn’t long after the bathroom door shut before Tyler heard the shower start up. He rummaged through his refrigerator, pulled out the chili he’d made the day before, and set it on the stove to heat. While he stirred he considered Linden. He was an FBI agent, a federal officer just like Tyler’s friend Mason, who was a park ranger. The two men were in different variations of the same profession, yet from what Tyler could see, they were polar opposites.

Linden was soft-spoken and, as Tyler remembered from their first meeting, a man who put considerable thought into what he said and did. It was easy to see he was one of those very controlled individuals.

Mason was anything but soft-spoken. Everything about him was out in the open. There wasn’t any mystery about him. Mason also wasn’t someone Tyler had ever been interested in any way other than as a friend. Linden might be a very different story altogether.

Linden was a bundle of mystery. Maybe that’s what Tyler found intriguing. Though if Linden continued thinking Tyler was some sort of possible criminal, it wouldn’t matter. He should stop playing fantasy scenarios in his head about a romance that was unlikely to happen. What he could do was possibly help Linden find clues to catch the real killer of Julius Hernandez.

After giving the chili a few stirs, Tyler checked the flame on the stove and adjusted it lower. The chili would stay at a good temperature but not burn. He turned to the refrigerator again, opened the freezer section, and pulled out a package of frozen Texas toast with cheese and garlic. Those he put in the oven, and a muffled whoosh signaled that the oven was heating as well.

“Smells good.”

Tyler jumped.

“Sorry, I didn’t mean to startle you,” Linden said quietly.

Tyler spun on his heels so fast he had to grab the refrigerator handle to keep from being thrown off balance and into Linden. “It’s… I… you didn’t. That’s okay.”

He was met by Linden’s dark eyes and warm smile. “Is there something I can do to help you?” Linden asked.

Tyler shook his head. He took in the still-damp dark-chocolate-colored skin of Linden’s forearms and neck. Gone was the suit, replaced by faded, worn jeans, loafers, a knit thermal-type shirt, and a button-down shirt unbuttoned and hanging open with the sleeves rolled partially up.
“Ah, no, I don’t think so. We have about ten minutes before the bread is warm, and the chili will be ready by then too,” Tyler said. He paused, considering what he wanted to say next. “Can I ask you something?” Linden nodded and Tyler continued. “What is it about me that makes you so sure I didn’t hurt that man?”