Taste of Passion (Madaris Novels) (10 page)

“I’m fine, Mac. Come on. Let’s see what the police officer has to say.”

Seeing that he wasn’t going to leave her side, she said, “All right.”

Stepping over clients’ folders strewn on the floor, and ever mindful of Luke’s slight limp, they crossed the room to where the others were standing. Sam smiled then made introductions to the police officers. “This is our other partner, Officers, the one this particular office belongs to. Mackenzie Standfield. And this hun—man”—she quickly amended what she had clearly been about to say—“is her friend Luke Madaris.”

After the policemen shook hands with Mackenzie and Luke, Sam’s smile widened as she said, “And because we haven’t been officially introduced, Luke, I’m Samari Di Meglio and this is Peyton Mahoney. We’ve heard a lot about you.”

Mackenzie rolled her eyes when Luke shook hands with the two women. “All nice things, I hope,” Luke said, smiling, presenting both women with a killer-watt smile.

“Of course,” Peyton said, beaming brightly. And Sam’s smile, Mackenzie noted, was just as radiant.

“Luke Madaris?” one of the officers was saying. “Are you
the
Luke Madaris, who’s a rodeo star?”

Luke’s attention then switched to the officer who’d asked the question. “Yes, I’m a rodeo rider.”

“Hey, come on,” the officer said, chuckling. “Stop being so modest. You’re more than just a rodeo rider; you’re one of the best with all those titles under your belt. My dad and brothers are into rodeo big-time. We even follow the circuit. We were there the other night in the arena when you got pinned in with that bull. That was a pretty nasty predicament. Are you doing okay?”

“Yes, I’m healing nicely, thanks. I hope to be back in the chute in Reno in end of September.”

Mackenzie sighed. That’s all they needed, a cop who was one of Luke’s fans. From the hero-worshipping look in the officer’s eyes, she had a feeling she’d have to interrupt if she wanted any answers. “Excuse me, Officer, but do you have any idea who might have done this?”

It was the second officer who spoke since the one who was Luke’s fan still appeared too stunned by having Luke in his presence to answer her question. “No, ma’am, but according to your partners there doesn’t appear to be anything taken. It seems the person just wanted to make a mess for some reason.”

“And I think I know the reason and who that person might be, or who the person could be working for.” Sam crossed her arms over her chest, frowning.

“Who?” Luke’s adoring fan asked.

“In my line of business I hate accusing anyone of anything, but Mac is working on a very important case, one that could cost this corporation plenty of money if they lose. I bet they had something to do with it.”

“And what corporation is that, Ms. Di Meglio?”

It was all speculation on Sam’s part and they knew it. But still, the officer jotted down the name supplied by Sam.

“And what about you, Ms. Standfield, since this was your office and the only one that was messed with. Do you know of anyone who would do such a thing? Do you think
Whitedyer Corporation is involved, like your partner has insinuated?”

Mackenzie shrugged. In all honesty, she didn’t know what to think. “I’m not sure. I know I was somewhat threatened—but in a joking kind of way—by their company attorney. I was told to find another case to work on or I’d wish I had. But I took it to mean in the courtroom.”

“What about your client? Has he reported harassment of any kind?”

“No, but then Mr. Coroni is in the hospital and has been for about two weeks.”

The officer lifted his brow. “What’s wrong with him?”

Mackenzie understood what the officer was thinking and quickly assured him that was not the case. “Mr. Coroni is in his seventies and is dealing with a lot of health issues right now. There’s nothing more to it than that.”

The officer nodded. “My partner and I will check with the restaurant a few doors down,” he said. “There’s a possibility someone may have noticed something when they parked their car.”

Less than thirty minutes later, the officers had left and Mackenzie, Sam, and Peyton, with Luke’s help, began straightening up the office, doing as much as they could. They would have to hire a cleaning company to come and take care of the mess made from overturned plants, the computer ink smeared in the carpet, and the substance the officers used to get fingerprints.

“I can’t believe someone would do such a thing,” Peyton said angrily as she attempted to refile a bunch of their clients’ folders. If Whitedyer is responsible for this, then they will be sorry.”

Mackenzie and Sam nodded in agreement.

On the way back to the ranch Luke noted Mackenzie was pretty quiet and figured she was still upset about the break-in at her office.

Although she had tried to convince him otherwise, he had helped with the cleanup. At the moment all he felt was
a little soreness, although he might pay a price for his stubbornness later tonight. But he didn’t care. There was no way he could have stood aside and not helped.

As he rubbed the back of his neck to ease a bit of the tension he felt there, he couldn’t help but think about Mac’s partners. It was pretty obvious the three women were close. He gathered from their conversations they had met while in college and had remained friends over the years. Samari was the feistiest of the three and he could tell that she’d be quick with an attitude and was the type of woman a man would either tame or let run wild if he was up for the challenge. Tall, with shoulder-length, black curly hair, a caramel complexion, and a pair of dark eyes—that he doubted missed much—she was a mixture of Italian and African-American ancestry and was very attractive.

Peyton was also an attractive woman but she didn’t have much to say and only spoke when she had a specific purpose. She definitely wasn’t one to waste her time with words. She was the tallest of the three women and wore her thick black hair in dreads to her shoulders.

He couldn’t help mulling over what Sam had told the police officers regarding her suspicions about that corporation having something to do with the break-in at Mac’s office.

Luke glanced over at Mac and stared at her for a few moments before saying, “If Sam’s suspicions are true about that company, why would they go to such an extreme just to get a piece of land?”

She glanced over at him. “It’s not just a piece of land. Mr. Coroni owns a huge tract that Whitedyer would like to use to expand their mining business. Some of the people in town are for the expansion because it could mean more jobs and that would provide an economic boost. But others see it for what it really is: another example of how some corporations are not taking steps to protect the environment. When Whitedyer came to town four years ago they promised to work with the community to preserve the ecosystem, but all they’ve done is use under-the-table tactics
with some of our politicians to ease environmental regulations.”

Luke didn’t say anything for a moment and then asked, “But if Coroni doesn’t want to sell what can Whitedyer do?”

Mackenzie glanced over at him when she brought the car to a stop at a traffic light. “At the moment they’re still working under-the-table, trying to get Mr. Coroni’s land rezoned. They’ve already tried increasing his property taxes to an amount he can barely afford to pay. To counteract that, a fund was established by concerned citizens to offer him assistance. Now Whitedyer is trying to force him off his own land by abusing eminent domain. That’s where I come in. My job is to stop them and it hasn’t been easy. Their company attorney, Lewis Farley, is nothing but an asshole, and unfortunately he has several members of the development council and city chamber backing them. They are trying to take the property away under an amendment that allows for the taking of property for private development if doing so can create jobs or raise revenue.”

“If expanding the plant will create more jobs then how can you have a case?”

Mackenzie sighed heavily as she put the car back into motion. “By proving that’s not their intent. Whitedyer just want their hands on the land. We got an anonymous tip telling us that once they get their hands on the property they intend to drop it in the lap of a third party who wants to build a resort; a resort they plan to bring their own people in to run and operate.”

“Do you have proof of that?”

“No, but I still plan on fighting them with the laws we have on the books now.”

Luke didn’t say anything for a moment and then he asked, “And Sam thinks this Farley guy is responsible for what happened at your office tonight?”

“Yes, that’s what she thinks, but I’m not so sure. I can’t see Farley getting his hands dirty by being part of something like that. But who knows? Desperate people will do
just about anything, and I know for a fact they want me to get off the case. However, that won’t happen.”

Nodding, Luke didn’t say anything until they came to another traffic light. “If not Farley, then who?”

Mackenzie shrugged as she stared straight ahead out the windshield. “Who knows, Luke? There are some people who see what we’re doing as a negative because they think it’s stopping the expansion of a company that’s willing to offer needed jobs. To them, we’re the bad guys, not Whitedyer.”

Lost in his thoughts, Luke hadn’t realized they were back at the ranch until she brought the car to a stop. He couldn’t help but recall what had happened around ten years ago to Caitlin, his cousin Dex’s wife. Blade, Slade, and Luke had been away in college at Morehouse at the time but had heard about it when they came home on break.

From what he’d heard, Caitlin had owned a piece of property that a certain developer had wanted, and they had been desperate enough to try just about anything to get it. They went so far as to try and threaten her into selling it to them. Their tactics backfired when they were confronted with the likes of Dex Madaris, who had just reentered Caitlin’s life. The bad guys found out the hard way that Dex was a force to reckon with.

“Luke, are you okay?”

He glanced over at Mackenzie. She sat there watching him. “Yes, why do you ask?”

“Because I’m home and you’re just sitting there and not saying anything. Nor are you making an attempt to get out the car. Are you sure you’re not in any pain?”

He couldn’t help but smile. “Yes, I’m sure. I was just lost in my thoughts, remembering a time around ten years ago when a developer tried forcing Caitlin to sell her land to them. It was land that had been in her family for generations.”

“I gather they didn’t succeed,” Mackenzie said, taking the key out of the ignition.

Luke chuckled as he unfastened his seat belt. “No, they didn’t succeed. They had to deal with Dex.”

He saw Mackenzie’s gaze fill with understanding. Anyone who knew Dex Madaris would appreciate what Luke was saying. Dex, who was almost twelve years older than Luke, was the Madaris who was known not to play—not even the radio. The majority of the time he was as serious as a heart attack, and when it came to anyone messing with those he loved, he kicked ass first and asked questions later.

Moments later Luke was walking beside Mackenzie across the yard to the house. “Nice night,” he decided to say, just to see if her response would be any different than the one she’d given earlier.

She stopped walking and looked up into the sky. The stars seemed to shine brighter tonight. Her voice was low when she spoke. “Considering everything that happened, I would say yes, it’s still a nice night. I refuse to let anyone take that away from me.” She then turned to him. “Do you understand what I’m saying, Luke?”

He nodded. Yes, he understood. If he didn’t before he certainly did now. What happened tonight had made her angry, but it had also made her more determined. If the person behind tonight’s chaos figured that would be a way to get Mac out of the picture, they were sadly mistaken. The memory of how she had looked when she had walked into her office tonight and seen the mess was etched in his brain. She had looked angry, hurt, yet at the same time fired up, fighting mad.

She began walking again and he fell in step beside her thinking it was a good thing she was moving. Otherwise, he would have been tempted to pull her into his arms and kiss her again. And hadn’t they decided earlier this evening, before she’d gotten that call from Sam, that they would just be friends, that they would build a friendship and not a relationship?

Mackenzie unlocked the door and Luke followed her inside. After stepping over the threshold, he tossed his hat
on a nearby hat rack and watched as she headed toward the kitchen. He decided to keep his distance from her for a while. The car ride had been murder on his body in more ways than one. Sharing space with her had caused heat to run through him even when he’d tried not thinking about her. He never wondered how it would feel to have a woman to call his own. A woman whom he could claim as his possession, to do with as he pleased and whenever he pleased. As long as she was willing, of course. And she would be willing, he would make sure of it. That would definitely be an important factor. She would also have to be enticing, provocative, and filled with as much sensuality as any one woman could manage. And all for him.

The thought of having a woman like that had certain parts of him throbbing to the point he could no longer just stand there. But instead of taking the nearest chair he decided to stroll around the room to walk off the need he felt all the way to his groin. After circling the room several times, he began to wonder what Mackenzie was doing in the kitchen. She had been in there for a while now.