I Have a Secret (A Sloane Monroe Novel, Book Three) (10 page)

Jesse frowned and gulped back some beer.  “Nothing happened, and Doug’s not even alive now, so who flippin’ cares?”

“You don’t need to do this, you know.”

“What?”

“Keep things from me.”  I reached for my drink and took a sip.  “Or maybe you do.  You felt sorry for Doug that night, and it kept you from doing your job.  The question is, why?”

“What does any of this have to do with why he’s dead?  He wasn’t killed from a head-on collision.”

My current line of questioning wasn’t working.  Next.

“Trista said they had a daughter in college.”

Jesse’s face tightened and he cleared his throat.  “Alexa.  Smart girl.  Pretty little thing too.”

 “What can you tell me about her?”

 “Uh, she’s their daughter, she’s in college.  I’m a cop, not neighborhood watch.  What more do you need to know?”

“Seems a little strange to me that Doug and Trista would throw away their scholarships to stick around here and raise a kid when they were still kids themselves.”

Jesse spun his bottle round and round in circles on the tablecloth.  “What did Trista tell you about Alexa?”

 “Long story.”

He winked.  “I’ve got all night.”

I shook my head.  “No—she actually said it was a long story.  That’s all I got out of her.”

“Have you spoken to Doug’s parents?”

“Why would I—what do they have to do with it?”

“Rosalind might be able to shed some light on things for you.”

“Doug’s mother?”

He nodded.  “She’s your best bet.  I don’t know much.  Seems to me you’re goin’ about this all wrong.  You should focus on Doug.  Why you’re interested in Alexa is beyond me.”

“So far you haven’t been able to answer any of my questions,” I said.

He just smiled and shoveled another spoonful of noodles into his mouth.

“If you can’t help me, why are we here?” I said.  

“I got you to go out with me.  I’d say that’s progress.”

Jesse’s words had become monotone, but it was obvious he was feeling me out, seeing what I knew while resisting my questions and not answering anything directly.  He was hiding something from me, but what and why?  I rolled my eyes.  All this time—wasted.  And I’d learned nothing.  If it wouldn’t have been for the incessant growl in my stomach, I would have left.  But I stayed and we finished dinner and chitchatted about stupid things that had nothing to do with the reason I’d agreed to meet in the first place.  My goal was to end the night without it being a total wash, so I tried one final topic.   

“I ran into Heather Masterson the other day.”

He raised an eyebrow.  “Fun girl.  We dated last year for a while.”

“What happened?”

His nostril flared. “Other men happened. She started seeing Nate, and then out of nowhere she developed a thing for Doug.”

“I heard—although, that’s not how she described it.”

He grabbed a napkin and wiped two hours of drool and sauce from his face. “Stalker should be that girl’s middle name.”

Finally, we were getting somewhere. I kept my mouth shut hoping I’d get more. And I did.

“She was his sponsor in AA.”

“Yeah,” I said, “I know.”

“But you wanna know the best part? She wasn’t an alcoholic.”

I choked on the piece of ice I’d been twirling around in my mouth. “You’re kidding, right?”

He shook his head. “She only pretended to have a problem so she could get closer to Doug. And she did.”

“Sheesh, sounds like she attended the Candice school of naughty behavior.”

Jesse laughed. “She probably did. They’re friends.”

“Candice lives here?” I said. 

“No.” He did air quotes with his fingers. “Beverly Hills.”

“As in 90210?”

“As in an ailing eighty-something-year-old husband who’s ready to kick the bucket and leave his millions to her. She’s been around here a lot more lately and has taken Heather on as a kind of special needs project. At least that’s how it seems to me.”

“I walked down Candice memory lane on the cruise,” I said. “And I have to say, I hadn’t missed her.”

He frowned. “Who would? She’s already been with every guy in town, married and single. You wanna know the truth? I always thought she’d be dead by now. A jealous wife, a husband wanting to make sure she kept her mouth shut—it’s crazy to me that Doug’s dead while Candice lives to see another day.”

Enough talk about Candice for the night. “So…where does Heather work, anyway?”

“She’s a nurse at the hospital.”

“Let me give you a ride,” Jesse said. 

I managed a weak smile and tried to keep the I’m-ready-to-get-away-from-you look off my face.  “I’ve already called a cab…so, I’ll see you later?”

He pulled out his cell phone, dialed and cancelled the cab, just like that.  “Looks like you don’t need it anymore.”

I’d played nice with Jesse since I arrived in town, but I wasn’t sure how much longer I could manage being around him without becoming the cause of California’s next major earthquake.  But I didn’t plan on seeing him again if I could help it, so what was another fifteen minutes? 

Because of the recent events at the hotel and the sharp object found lodged in my door, the hotel staff was on edge and practically packed my bags for me.  I decided I needed something a bit more private and splurged on some five-star digs that backed up against the entrance to Tehachapi Mountain Park.  And the best part was all the rooms were detached into free standing one-bedroom cabins—it was my best chance at privacy.  All I needed now was to get there. 

“So how’s Nate?” I said.  “He still lives here, I take it?”

Jesse made a left turn and nodded. “I see him every week at poker night.” He glanced sideways at me. “I know what you’re thinking, and you’re wrong.”

“What?”

“You said before you weren’t sure it was a coincidence two friends in the same clique died within days of each other, but I’m telling you, it’s the wrong direction to go in.  The four of us all lead separate lives now; we have for years.”  

“You mean the two of you?” I said. 

He frowned. 

I continued. “I’m more interested in your lives back then, not the lives you lead now.”

“Why?”

I shrugged. “I’m not sure yet—I feel like there’s a connection between the past and the murders. I just need to find it.”

We drove in silence for a time until I couldn’t stand it anymore. “How is Nate?”

“Single.”

“He never got married?”

Jesse laughed. “Yeah, to his cars…he owns Nate’s Automotive in town.”

“He always was a good salesman. I remember him talking Mrs. Webb into turning his F into an A in History class. I always thought he’d move away from here though.”

“Didn’t need to—why move when you have an established fan base?”

“True. When’d you see him last?”

“Couple nights ago.  Poker was at his house this week.” 

“And where would that be?”

“Stallion Springs.”

He looked over at me. “Nate is fine, Sloane. I’ll call him if you want so you can put this theory of yours to rest.”

I shook my head. “I’m sure you’re right. I’ll stop in and see him for myself.”

Jesse pulled into the parking lot and the car lulled to a stop. I’d already prepared for immediate evacuation by securing my bag over my shoulder and wrapping my fingers through the latch.  I tugged on it and the door swung open. 

“Thanks for the ride,” I said, hopping out, but before I could plant both feet on terra firma, Jesse grabbed my shirt and yanked me back. Apparently he had a plan of his own, and his blacked-out side windows gave him all the privacy he needed. My shirt ripped in two places, and in the few seconds I spent surveying the damage, Jesse had unbuckled his seatbelt and climbed on top of me. 

“I want you,” he groaned in my ear. “Say you want me too. Let’s go back to your room and I’ll show you how much I’ve thought of you over the years.”

His hands forced their way inside my shirt, grappling my breasts. With one foot still out the door, I swung my body to the side, taking him with me. Our bodies fell onto the pavement next to the car. My hands collided with tiny pebbles of gravel, scraping my skin. I reached across, yanked back on his neck, and slapped him across the face. 

He turned, enraged.  “Really—again with the slapping?”

“Is this why you’re a cop—so you can exert your power over women! Is that who you are now, Jesse?” 

I scrambled to get off the ground and was met with resistance as he wrapped his arms around me, trying to hold me down. It was time to teach him a lesson from the Sloane book of what happened to a person who crossed the line. 

“Sloane?” a voice shouted behind me. 

I whipped my head around and stared up at a wide-eyed Giovanni sprinting in my direction. When he got within five feet, he took one look at my torn shirt and exposed bra and locked eyes with Jesse. Not good.

“What are you doing here?” I said. 

But he didn’t seem to hear me.  His eyes were riveted on the palm of my left hand which was now bleeding.  He hoisted Jesse into the air with a clenched hand to Jesse’s neck and thrust him forward. Jesse’s head smashed into the passenger-side window and it shattered, spilling pieces of glass all over the pavement.

In his shocked stupor, Jesse managed a weak, “I’m a cop—I’ll have you arrested for assaulting a police officer.”

It was a line I’d always remember as one of the stupidest comments to be uttered from a person’s mouth. Jesse had no idea what it meant to cross Giovanni, but he was about to find out. For a cop in such good shape, I was surprised how easily Jesse was subdued. I bent over Giovanni and stared into Jesse’s eyes. 

Again he shouted, “I’ll have him arrested, Sloane.”

“No you won’t, or I’ll press charges for that little parlor trick you just pulled on me in the car.”

He looked at Giovanni whose tight grip got even tighter. “I thought she wanted it, I swear.”

I shook my head. “No you didn’t.” 

I tugged on Giovanni’s shoulder. “I just want him out of here. Preferably alive.” 

He eased up on the grip he had on Jesse and then tightened again. “Get in your car and leave—now,” he said. 

Jesse looked at me like he was waiting for me to speak as a witness for the defense. 

“I don’t know what to say,” I said. “I feel like I don’t know you anymore. I remember when I considered you a friend—but now…”  

He averted his eyes and said nothing so I ended the conversation. “I never want to see you again, Jesse.”

When we got inside the hotel room, Giovanni excused himself and made a call. I showered, and when I stepped out, he was back in the room hovering over a laptop sitting on a knotty pine desk. 

I walked over and leaned over him. “Why are you here?”

He stared up at me and his eyes hardened.  “Who was the man you were with tonight?”

“No one important. He’s someone I used to know. I thought he might be able to give me some answers about what’s been going on around here—I was wrong.” I smiled. “Your turn.” 

He shrugged. “Madison thought you needed some company.”

“Maddie called you one time and you decided to fly out here?”

He inserted his hand inside the tie that fastened my robe and pulled me close. “I missed you.”

I closed my eyes for a moment and absorbed those three little words. When I opened them again, he’d stood up, held out his hand and glanced toward the bedroom with all the passion of a kiss between two lovers that hadn’t seen each other for years.  My thoughts drifted away until nothing was left except his hand in mine and a bed that never looked so inviting.