Positively Criminal (6 page)

Then, almost as if she knew he watched, she peered directly into the camera and winked.

“Damn,” Mace repeated.

Brian gave a full, hearty laugh. “That’s code for
everything’s okay here
.”

Jake released the breath he didn’t realize he held. Code, for fuck’s sake. Still, she sat in that chair. Half naked and blonde. Lucky chair.

“Who’s that next to her?”

Mace’s question caught him by surprise. He hadn’t even noticed the other woman, yet she sat next to Bri, just as half naked and blonde. Except he was willing to bet the other woman’s hair was truly blonde and her pale blue eyes were too unique to be fake.

“That’s Sunny,” Jimmy answered. “She’s new.”

Jake took a moment to analyze Bri’s body language and his mood immediately softened. Her gentle smile and the watery cast to her eyes told him she was in therapist mode, desperate to embrace yet another lost soul. He almost shook his head in disbelief. Leave it to Bri to use a gentlemen’s club as her psychiatry couch.

Under severe protest, he dragged his gaze off Bri and back to Jimmy.

“Did you know Melissa is the niece of Joe King, Sheriff of Dexter County?”

“I had no idea.”

“She doesn’t have a brother and she’s still missing.”

“Sonuvabitch!” Brian turned to face them.

“I called the number, I swear.”

“We know Jimmy, relax. Cell phone records back up your story. Obviously someone else had the phone.”

“We’ve always followed up with our girls.” Brian ran a hand across the top of his head.

“You’ve accounted for all of them?”

Jimmy nodded. “Always. Unless we’ve been duped before.”

“Lombardy trusts your research?”

“Yeah, and then he provides a replacement.”

“Where does he find these women?”

Jimmy shrugged. “He doesn’t share that with me. We usually let the girls tell us what they want us to know. Sapphire seems to know the most.”

Jake winced.
Sapphire
had a lot of explaining to do. He stood, convinced he had enough information to process for one night. “Thank you gentlemen, we’ll be in touch if we have any more questions.” He gave the monitors one more glance, partly to catch sight of Bri, but mostly to assure she still occupied the chair and not the catwalk.

“She’s still there, Detective.” Brian snickered. “Except, she’s not dressed to dance.”

Jake moved his gaze onto the other man. “How often does she perform?”

“Never can tell.” Brian folded his hands behind his head. “She does her own thing.”

“Of course she does,” Mace mumbled as he opened the door.

Jake simply shook his head in silent agreement as he followed his partner down the stairs and finally out of the club, now even more suspicious of Bri’s role in this whole screwed-up situation.

“Bri knows something,” he told Mace as they climbed back into the cruiser. “A whole lot of something.”

“So ask Dara.”

“Oh, she’ll tell me everything,” he drawled.

Mace grinned in response.

“You think you can make Bri talk? Be my guest.”

Mace ran a finger under his collar to loosen his tie. “Bri and I are pretty tight, but I don’t think she’ll tell me either.”

“I wasn’t talking about her. Show me how it’s done. Use your charms on Dara and see what you can find out.”

His partner narrowed his eyes. “Is that a challenge?”

“More than a challenge. How about a bet?”

“What kind of bet?”

“Twenty bucks says Dara won’t give you anything useful.”

Mace leaned to the left, extracted his wallet from his back pants pocket and slapped a twenty dollar bill onto the dashboard. “You’re on.”

Jake steered around a corner. “I’ll give you three days to get something.”

“Three days? I won’t need that long.” Mace smirked. “You just get ready to lose your twenty bucks.”

“I’ll believe it when I see it.”

“Hey, pull in there.” Mace pointed at a nearby shopping center.

“What? It’s late and I’m tired. What do you need to buy that can’t wait until tomorrow?”

“Just something.”

“I’ve got a box of condoms you can have.”

“Just park, would ya?”

Jake heaved a long sigh and pulled into a parking spot right in front of the complex, glancing out the window at the store’s signage. “A bookstore? Since when do you read?”

A slamming car door answered him.

He drummed his thumbs against the steering wheel while he waited for Mace to make his purchase. What the hell was his partner up to? The only thing Mace ever read was the newspaper or case reports. He glanced into the store’s window, surprised to see quite a few customers still shopping, finally zeroing in on Mace heading for the back of the building and out of his view. With his curiosity now in control, Jake left the car and went inside.

He entered the store and traced Mace’s path, noting banners along the way.
Cookbooks. Children’s books. Mysteries. Romance
. He blinked twice to clear his vision. Romance? Yet, there was his partner, standing in front of a row of books, reaching to pull one off the shelf.

Jake braced himself against the end of the bookcase on one hip and folded his arms across his chest. “You have lost your mind.”

“Dammit!” Mace jerked his head to meet Jake’s face. The book fell from his grip while his face reddened. “Rawlings, I told you I’d be right back.”

Jake stooped to retrieve the novel and perused the cover. “You looking for pointers?”

“No,” Mace hissed. “Research.”

“Research, huh? Well then, the leggy blonde walking this way might be able to help.”

“I know what I’m —”

“Can I find something for you, gentlemen?” The clerk stopped next to Mace and batted her eyelashes.

“Not me.” Jake gestured with his head at Mace. “Him.”

Mace gave her a pained smile. “Well, I, uh, I’m looking for a book. For my sister.”

“Oh, how sweet! Which one?”

Jake bit the inside of his cheek while Mace shifted from one foot to another. This oughta be good – no way on God’s green earth could Mace bullshit his way out of this.

“She said the author is Dara Hamilton. It’s her newest release.”

Jake lifted one eyebrow, impressed by his partner’s quick recovery.

“
Sinful Rapture
!” The clerk bobbed her head. “It is so good! I read it and couldn’t put it down. Stayed up all night.”

“That’s it,” Mace agreed. “That’s the one she wants.”

“Oh bummer.” The saleswoman stuck out a pouty lip. “We sold out this morning but we’ve got some more coming in a couple of days.”

“Damn. She really had her heart set on having one of her books now. She’s her new favorite author.”

“Well, in that case how about her last release,
Arresting Hearts
? She’ll love it.”

“Great, I’ll take it.” Jake pictured his partner’s silent self-pat-on-the-back while they followed the clerk to the register. He reluctantly gave the guy credit – he’d come out smelling like a rose.

“I never would’ve believed it if I hadn’t seen it myself,” he said as they climbed back into the car.

“You tell anybody and I’ll have to shoot you,” Mace growled. “Like I said, it’s research.”

“Research. Right. And I know for a fact you don’t have a sister. You’re an only child.”

Mace buckled his seatbelt. “Just start the damn car.”

Jake shifted the car in gear and drove back to the station. “I’m sure Dara would summarize the plot if you asked.”

“At least I’m attempting to understand the female brain.”

“What’s that supposed to mean?”

“Women are like jigsaw puzzles; the pieces only fit one way.”

“And reading Dara’s novel will help you put her together?”

“Yep. Think about it. She said she uses psychology when she writes, so I should be able to find something useful.”

“Yeah, good luck with that, Turner. The female mind is a deep, dark, dangerous thing. No man in his right mind would even attempt to
put it together
.”

Mace just chuckled as Jake pulled into the Primrose Police Department’s parking lot and stopped next to Mace’s truck. “We’ll see,” he said as he exited the vehicle. “You just keep your twenty bucks handy.”

Mace shook his head as he watched his partner leave the cruiser, enter his own truck and then drive out of the parking lot. Dude had it bad. Always had – he and Bri had been playing the same game of cat and mouse for the last six months. Why he just didn’t bite the bullet and tell the girl he loved her was out of his realm of understanding.

He unlocked his truck, climbed inside and started the engine. Instinct told him the lovely Dara did have pertinent information. He glanced at the green digits on the dashboard. Late – but something told him it wouldn’t be too late for Dara.

Although he hadn’t had a chance to browse Dara’s novel, he knew enough to be assured the woman was extremely intelligent. Hell, any woman who could write the logistics of sex was majorly talented in his opinion. Yet, it was more than her career that intrigued him. She wore a distinct air of confidence, a shroud of intellect that made him pause. This woman would not fall prey to his usual brand of questioning; she knew far too much about the male brain than the average female. And that could prove difficult.

He’d have to proceed with caution, let her come to him with the information he sought. Once he persuaded her to talk, she’d tell him everything he needed to know. And if he just happened to convince her to let him take her to dinner in the process, well, that was an added bonus.

He pulled into an empty slot in front of Dara’s townhouse, curious when he noticed her porch light still glowed. His brow wrinkled. Maybe she expected someone. He reached to pull his cell phone from his pocket and then paused. Catching her off guard could be the best way to proceed.

He left the truck and headed up the sidewalk until he stood outside her door, his fist poised to knock. The door flew open before he had a chance.

Although he was caught by surprise, extreme anger pushed him to speak. “What the hell are you doing? Never open the door without identifying who’s on the other side!”

Her dark, chocolate eyes widened and a pretty pink blush colored her cheeks as she stood in the doorway, obviously stunned by his outburst. His gaze left her eyes and slowly moved down the rest of her body, a move he knew to be a rookie mistake. Her soft pink tank top covered tight, firm breasts, plumped even further by her arms folded beneath. And if that wasn’t enough to make him drool like a rabid dog, her gray pants rested just beneath her stomach, low on her hips, and then draped her legs, ending at her bare feet. Holy hell, he
really
wanted to question this woman.

She cleared her throat, forcing his gaze back to her face. “I knew you were out here, Detective. I have a peephole.”

“Your light is on. Are you expecting company?”

“Why are you interrogating me on my porch?” she retorted.

He paused for a split second, gathering his wits, and then grinned. “You haven’t invited me inside.”

That same blush deepened the color of her cheeks. “Why should I?”

“I’d like to talk.”

“About?”

“Nothing in particular, just talk.”

“Well, in that case I’ll need to see your badge, please.”

He raised an eyebrow. “Really?”

“Really.”

With a smirk, he unclipped the badge holder from his hip and handed it to her. “Satisfied?”

She lifted a bare shoulder in a slight shrug. “I guess. Come on in, Detective. Would you like a cup of tea?”

“No tea, thank you.” He stepped inside, closed the door and threw the deadbolt. “And Dara?”

“Yes?”

“Since you’re standing in the middle of your living room in the sexiest pajamas I’ve seen in a long time, you can call me Mace.”

“You think these are sexy?”

“Yes.”

She held his gaze with hers for several seconds, confusion written all over her face. “Huh,” she said finally.

He followed her into the kitchen, appreciating the gray pants even further when he discovered they hugged her heart-shaped ass like a second skin. He swallowed a groan. So much for unbiased interrogation.

“Coffee?” she asked over her shoulder.

“Sure.”

She motioned to the bar and several stools. “Make yourself comfortable while you tell me again what you’d like to discuss.”

“I didn’t tell you.”

“Okay then, now would be a good time.”

She moved behind the bar and reached into the cabinet. Once she held two mugs, she set them on the counter, clanging them together as her hands shook.

Gently, he reached across the surface and covered her hands with his. “Relax, Dara, I just want to talk.”