Rock Chick 02 Rescue (13 page)

“Thanks Mom. In a second.”

My brain was beginning to kick in and worry was starting to envelope me.

I turned to Eddie and said, “Can I talk to you a minute?” I didn’t wait for him to answer, just turned around and walked into the living room. I heard him fol ow me.

I needed somewhere private to talk and looked around.

The living room was no good, Mom could hear (and she’d be listening, for certain). The dining room was part of the living room and I couldn’t take him to Mom’s bedroom.

I sighed huge and took him to my room.

My room was boring. My old apartment was part of a big Victorian mansion that had been sliced up into apartments decades ago. It had al sorts of wonky rooms, wood floors and I’d made the most of it with fun little knickknacks, Christmas lights covered in flowers, that kind of stuff. I hadn’t had time to make this new space fun, not only my room but also the entire apartment, al my old stuff was stil in boxes in the corners. The space was boring and depressing and, looking at it through what I imagined were Eddie’s eyes, kind of embarrassing.

He fol owed me into the room and didn’t even look around. He was watching me.

“Can you close the door please?” I asked.

He did as I asked and when he turned back to me, I launched in.

“Listen, Eddie, Mom doesn’t know Dad’s in town and I don’t want her to know. They don’t get along and it’l just upset her. In fact, I don’t want her to know any of what’s been going on. She had a stroke eight months ago and I don’t want her troubled with this. If she knew about al this stuff, she’d be worried sick, her blood pressure would get out of control and I don’t even want to think….” I paused, not wanting to get upset, took a breath and finished, “So you can’t say anything.”

I waited to argue, for him to tel me I was wrong or being unfair or that I should warn her or to disagree with me in some way but instead he said, “Al right.” I blinked at him.

“Al right?” I asked.

“Yeah, al right,” he repeated.

I stared.

He was far more awake, his hair was stil messy but it suited him (in a big way) and he was watching me closely.

“That’s it?” I asked.

“Nope,” he answered.

I knew it. Here we go.

“Okay then, what?”

He took a step toward me, pul ed me into his arms and kissed me. It was a serious kiss including tongue; no brush on the lips this time and there was absolutely no need for a do-over.

It was delicious.

When he ended the kiss and started to lift his head, I pressed my fingers in his hair at the same time I went up on tiptoe, my mouth fol owing his. I didn’t care if it seemed needy or greedy, al I knew was, I wanted more.

He made a noise that sounded an awful lot like a groan and he kissed me again, walking me backwards, his mouth on mine. He shifted us and we were fal ing onto the bed, him on his back and me on top of him. We bounced, our lips disengaged and I was about to say something, trying to cut through my Eddie Daze, when he flipped me on my back and rol ed over on top of me.

He wasn’t messing around, it wasn’t play, this was serious stuff. We were ful -on necking and groping; mouths, tongues and hands everywhere. It was unbelievably fantastic. Al of this was leading somewhere and I wanted to go there. I wanted it
bad
.

Al of a sudden, he pul ed his mouth away and tucked my face into his throat.

“Eddie?” I whispered against his skin, confused at the quick change and not liking it (at al ).

“Your Mom. My eggs,” was al he said.

Damn! I total y and completely forgot.

Furthermore, if I kept this up, I’d be late again for Indy.

I was the worst daughter in the world and the worst employee in the universe. If I didn’t sort al of this out soon, I’d be out of two jobs and Mom and I would be living on the street eating cat food out of tins with our fingers.

I jerked away jumping off the bed but Eddie grabbed a handful of my nightshirt and yanked me back.

“Hang on there,
Chiquita
,” he said and I came off my feet and landed in his lap.

I looked at him and muttered semi-hysterical y, “I have to get going. I have to take a shower. I have to go to work and, after work, I gotta find Dad and sort this mess out.” I was pushing against him to get up and we got in kind of a slapping match with our hands (wel , I was slapping, Eddie was more in control and defend mode). Final y he grabbed my wrists and held them between our bodies.

“Jet, calm down.”

“I can’t calm down. I have things to do, I can’t just—” He interrupted, “Have a life?”

“Exactly!” I was so relieved he understood I sagged against him.

His eyes got weird and he shook his head. “Jet, you are
not
going to find your Dad. If your Dad gets in touch with you, you phone me.”

I glared at him.

I
did not
think so.

It was time for me to take things in my own hands.

“I have to figure this out, Eddie. If I don’t, I could lose my job at Smithie’s and I need that job. Smithie is a good guy but there are limits to the times cops can come and shut him down because of me.”

Then, like an idiot, I forged ahead, planning my day verbal y, “I’l work late for Indy, make up the hours, go out tonight, hit the spots where Dad hangs out when he’s in Denver—”

“Aren’t you forgetting something?” he interrupted.

I stared at him, confused.

“We have a date tonight,” he said.

Damn, I forgot that too.

He looked at my face and his jaw tensed. “Christ, you’re kil er on a guy’s self-confidence.”

I was
such
an idiot. No I was beyond idiot, though I didn’t know what beyond idiot was.

“I’m so sorry,” I said, leaning into him a little.

He let go of my wrists and his arms went around my waist. He tucked his face into my neck and right below my ear he said, “If you’re real y sorry, you can make it up to me tonight.”

Eek!

“Eggs,” I said, trying to stay focused even as a shiver ran through me.

He pul ed his head from my neck and smiled at me, dimple and al .

I was pretty certain he felt the shiver.

Then the dimple disappeared and he looked at me. “I’l take you to work but I have to ask you not to go anywhere without someone with you, it’s not safe. Can you promise me that?”

I thought about it, I thought about lying about it, I decided I could and said, “Sure.”

He watched me for a beat.

“Mom,” I reminded him, thinking to change the subject and coming off his lap.

I grabbed his hand and pul ed him up from my bed.

It was not a picture I’d soon forget, Eddie sitting on my bed. In fact, I hoped it was burned into my memory forever.

He didn’t resist but, the minute he stood, his hands came up and rested on either side of my neck, right where it met my shoulders.

“You wouldn’t lie to me, would you?” he asked, watching me closely.

“About?” I tried wide-eyed and innocent.

He wasn’t biting.

“Anything,” he said.

I took a deep breath and decided to be honest. “Maybe, but only if it was important.”

“Like your Dad being in deep shit, that kind of important?”

I bit my lip.

He sighed.

“You have my card?”

I nodded.

“Program me into your cel . Cal me if you need anything and do not do anything stupid.”

I could do the first two, the last one I wasn’t so sure about.

* * * * *

The line at the espresso counter was five deep but the minute Tex saw me, he pointed the portafilter at me and boomed, “We got rules around here, Loopy Loo!” I’d been working there for over three months and the only rule there seemed to be was that nothing but country or rock ‘n’ rol could be played on the CD player. I didn’t even want to remember the day I put in my Coldplay CD, Al y went berserk.

I figured Tex wasn’t happy with me doing a no-show the day before and I felt like a total heel. I started to say something when Tex continued.

“Next time you get in a bar brawl or wrestle with some guy holding a knife, you cal me.”

Al five customers turned around and stared at me.

I stared at Tex.

“What?” I asked.

“I’m Fortnum’s designated bodyguard,” Tex told me.

I looked at Duke, who was working behind the espresso counter with Tex.

“He kinda is,” Duke said.

I had to say, I was a bit alarmed that Fortnum’s needed a designated bodyguard. I didn’t have time to think about it because Indy came up behind me, grabbed my hand and pul ed me behind the book counter.

“I guess Lee told you,” I said to her when we stopped and I caught a look at her serious face.

“Yeah, he told me. Are you okay?” she asked.

“Sure,” I said, trying to make it sound like I had it al together.

She didn’t buy it and her eyes narrowed.

“Jet?”

“No, real y, I’m fine.”

She moved closer to me and squeezed my hand. Then she said in a quiet voice, “I know you think you’re pul ing the wool over everyone’s eyes but we al know that everything isn’t fine with you. Talk to me, Jet. Maybe I can help.” I didn’t know what it was, maybe the hand squeeze, maybe the quiet voice, maybe because she’d always been so nice to me. Whatever it was, I took a breath, trying to think of some way to evade her question and then, instead, it al came pouring out. Everything. Dad leaving us, Mom breaking down, Lottie going to LA, Mom’s stroke, us making do and the current situation with Dad.

I finished with, “And if al that isn’t bad enough, I’ve got a date tonight with Eddie and I have absolutely no clue what to wear.”

Throughout my story, she looked concerned, sometimes mad, sometimes like she was going to interrupt but, at my final comment, she smiled. “That last bit, I can help you with.

The rest of it, Lee can help you with.”

I knew Lee was a private detective. I also knew that he was real y good at what he did and I knew that he was real y expensive. He drove a fancy car, had a fancier motorcycle, had a huge workforce and had some kind of plush offices in Lower Downtown Denver. I couldn’t afford Lee and I couldn’t afford to owe anyone else a favor.

“I can’t ask Lee…” I started.

“You
can
ask Lee but you don’t have to, I wil ,” Indy assured me.

“Indy, I’d real y like to take care of this on my own.”

“Lee says it’s dangerous.”

I laughed.

“Did you
not
hear my story? I can take care of myself, and everyone else. I’ve had a lot of practice.” Indy looked at me. “I don’t know, I’ve had a run-in with the criminal underworld of Denver and it wasn’t much fun.” I was curious but didn’t ask.

“I’l be safe and I’l be smart, I promise,” I assured her, wishing I was just as sure and knowing I was anything but.

“What’re you gonna do?” She asked.

I shrugged. “I don’t know. Find Dad first. Find out what this is al about. Then take it from there.” Immediately she said, “I’l go with you.” No.

No, no, no.

I couldn’t have Indy coming with me, if something happened to her both Lee and Eddie would be pissed at me not to mention Duke, Tex and the entirety of the Denver Police Department (Indy’s Dad was a cop as was Lee’s Dad and his brother, Hank).

“I don’t think…” I started to say but then Tex was there.

“I’m comin’ too,” he said.

I closed my eyes. This was spiraling out of control. I opened them again.

“Please listen to me—”

“No way, Loopy Loo. You aren’t hoardin’ al the action.” He turned to Indy, “You’re drivin’ because we can al fit in your sil y-ass car. When we see a break in the coffee action, I’l go home and get my shotgun.” My mouth dropped open and I was pretty sure my eyes bugged out of my head.

“Don’t worry, Jet. Just as long as we don’t get into any situations that require grenades, we’l be fine.” Indy said this like she wasn’t joking.

Tex looked at Indy for a beat. “I’l pack a few, just in case,” he said. Then Tex lumbered away and I stared at him, mouth stil open.

Indy looked at me and, bizarrely (I thought), she laughed.

We left Duke and Jane in command of the bookstore after the post-lunch caffeine rush and we al climbed into Indy’s dark blue VW Beetle.

We swung by the hotel where Dad stayed, but they hadn’t seen him. We also swung by a couple of bars Dad went to when he was in town and asked around. No one at the bars had seen him either. Then we headed out to Lakewood, a suburb to the west of Denver, to visit my Dad’s friend Bear.

Bear was nicknamed Bear for obvious reasons. He was nearly as big as Tex (who was incredibly tal ), hairier than Tex (who looked like a demented, gray-blond Santa Claus with a russet beard, Bear looked like he’d been asleep for one hundred years and hadn’t had a shave when he woke up) and both were built to last, as in solid.

Bear was a sometimes plumber but most of the time bum. He was just as fun and crazy as Dad but had more staying power. He’d been married for over thirty years to the long-suffering Lavonne.

Lavonne, on the other hand, didn’t have staying power.

She left Bear at least once a year; however, for reasons known only to Lavonne she always came back.

I hadn’t seen Bear in over a year, back when times were better and he and Lavonne had come to a big picnic in Washington Park that I had for Lottie when she came to visit.