“Like I said, I can go back.”
He rose and crossed to the kitchen, retrieving a cold seltzer for himself.
She followed, her lips curling into a pout. “You’re really mad at me.”
“Disappointed is more like it.”
A sly smile curled her lips as she unfastened the button nestled between her breasts. “I can make it up to you.”
“There has to be more to us than sex.”
“Why?” She slid off the shirt.
He found his irritation growing. “If you don’t know the answer, then it’s pointless for me to explain.”
Color rose in her cheeks. “What can I do to fix it between us? I really like you, and I’ll do anything.”
He drank from the can, savoring the cool liquid in his throat. Draining it, he carefully set the can on the counter.
“Do you want more cameras in her house? I can make that happen.”
“I want that and your help with Paul Thompson,” he said.
Her expression stilled. “Him? Why?”
“I want access to his story notes.”
“What makes you think he’ll trust me?” she asked.
Elijah moved toward her and cupped her breast, twisting her nipple until she squirmed. “You have talents that I do not have. You’re clever.”
“You want me to sleep with him?” she asked.
“I want you to talk to him. Get the information any way you can.”
Her brow knotted. “A.k.a. sex.”
He tipped her chin up and stared deep into her eyes. He had assumed she was highly intelligent, but now he wondered if the insecurity that ran deep in her was going to undercut it all. He kissed her on the lips. “Is that a problem?”
“Am I now one of your Fireflies?” she challenged.
“Do you want to be?” There were those who needed a sense of belonging. They wanted someone else calling the shots so they could abdicate responsibility for their lives.
She ran her tongue over her lips. “And if I don’t do this?”
“I only have people in my life that serve a purpose.”
Her eyes narrowed. “What purpose does Ann serve?”
“That’s none of your business.” He tucked a curl behind her ear, noting her hair was blonder than it had been. “Did you change your hair?”
She curled a blond strand around her finger. “Do you like it?”
“I do.”
“I thought you would prefer it if I looked more like her.”
He understood the reference. “I do.”
She slid her hands down his belly to the clasp of his jeans. “And?”
“Plant another camera and get the information from Thompson.”
“And then we’ll be fine?” she asked.
“Yes,” he lied.
“I’ll find him first thing in the morning.”
“What’s wrong with now?” he asked.
“Now? I thought maybe we could go for another round.”
He shook his head, stepping back. “I have things to do, and I need to be alone.”
She shoved out a breath. “Okay. I’ll get what you want, but then you’re going to owe me.”
“We’ll see about that.”
With Nate sleeping soundly, Ann made herself a cup of tea and settled on the couch in the living room. Looking around the uncluttered space made her feel good. No more piles of boxes that required multiple searches when she wanted a pen or a paper clip.
She blew on the hot tea, savoring the sweet clover scents drifting to her nose. As she reached for the notes she had made on the case, her front doorbell rang. She walked to the door and glanced through the peephole to see Maura. Surprised, she opened the door. “Is everything all right?”
“I forgot my phone. I left it on the bookshelf. Impossible to live without it. Can I come in? I’ll be quick.”
“Sure.” Ann stepped aside and watched as Maura walked directly to the bookshelf and then knelt as she reached by a book on the end. She hesitated only a moment and then rose, her phone in hand. “Here it is. Thank you so much!”
“Thank you for your help today, Maura. Have anyone call me for a reference.”
“Let’s not be strangers. I’d love to grab a drink with you sometime,” Maura said.
“Sounds like a deal.”
Maura held up the phone. “I’ve got to get going. I’m meeting a friend at a bar.”
“Have a great time.”
Maura’s gaze broadened. “I always do.”
Maura watched Paul Thompson leave his motel room, and she followed him when he drove to the Silver Maverick bar. She did not approach him but leaned against a wall in a darkened corner. The music pulsed and blended with the chatter of people as he sat at the bar. Elijah wanted her to use sex to get to Thompson, but he had not said she couldn’t use a surrogate.
Maura looked around the room and spotted a woman with dark hair and a tightly fitting red dress. The woman had not the expectant gaze of a woman searching for a man but the hawkish glare of a sex worker hunting for a client.
Maura pushed off the wall and approached the woman. “What’s your name?”
“Carla.” The woman looked her over. “What do you want?”
Out of her pocket, she fished the two hundred Ann had given her earlier and a small vial of white powder. “There’s a man at the bar. I want you to give him a good time and slip him this.”
Carla arched a brow as she followed Maura’s gaze to Thompson as he ordered a drink. “Why?”
“It’s an easy two hundred. And he’s an ex-boyfriend that deserves a little payback.”
“What’s in the vial? I don’t want to kill anyone.”
“Rohypnol. He’ll sleep like a baby and wake up with a hangover in the morning.”
“If he passes out before the sex?” Carla asked.
“Then it’s less work for you. I’ll be watching the room. When you leave his room, leave the door unlocked.”
Carla took the money and the vial. “Okay.”
Maura watched Carla signal the bartender for a drink, and as she reached for it, she brushed Thompson’s shoulder. She grinned at him and leaned over to whisper something in his ear, as if sharing a secret. For a moment Maura thought Carla had sold her out, but he laughed. She laughed. More drinks were ordered.
Fifteen minutes later, Thompson and Carla left. When he was out cold, Maura would copy his notes for Elijah.
“More than one way to skin a cat,” she whispered.
I truly do not like to hurt people.
As I trace the outline of Nena Lassiter’s face, I accept that pain is a necessary evil. It makes us stronger. It makes us better people. And it has been a part of the world since humans first walked the earth. Man discovered fire and inevitably got burned by it. Women have endured pain during childbirth. Athletes have pushed through pain to break records.
I do not like pain, but if great things are going to happen, then it is unavoidable. And as the saying goes, no pain, no gain.
“Don’t worry, Ann,” I whisper as I push open the door. “When our time comes, I promise to end it as quickly as I can.”