Dontay, happy to get out of there alive, quickly turned to leave.
“And Culpepper?” Boone said.
Almost a clean getaway, Dontay thought. “Yes, sir, Chief?”
“Next time I tell you to do something for me, you’d better do it yourself and not send somebody else. Get me those aspirin and get them now!”
Yes, sir! Right away, sir,” Dontay said and stepped out, closing the door behind him.
Boone exhaled and motioned toward the chair in front of his desk. “Please have a seat,” he said to Charly.
He stared at her as she sat down. She wore jeans that highlighted her curves and a tucked-in L.A. Raiders t-shirt that highlighted her sizeable breasts. Boone felt the heat as he sat behind his desk. There was no denying it, he thought. She gave him a rise every time she came near him.
“How can I help you, Miss Johnson?” he asked her. Then he smiled that charming smile Charly knew he used on all the ladies. “Or should I call you Charlene?”
She was surprised he didn’t remember her nickname. And again, she felt unsettled. “Charly will do,” she said.
He nodded. “Charly Johnson. Okay. Alright. I guess I can live with that,” he added, which made no sense to Charly. “What can I do for you?” he asked her.
“I wish to see Amos Yerkson,” she said again.
“Yeah, I know you do. But unfortunately, no. You can’t.”
“May I ask why not?”
“Because he’s a murder suspect. I don’t allow that.”
Charly didn’t understand. “You don’t allow what?”
“My suspects to get too comfortable. They aren’t on a picnic. They’re in jail. Nobody’s visiting Amos Yerkson except his lawyer. And since he doesn’t have one, nobody’s going to be visiting him any time soon.”
“But how is that fair?” Charly asked.
Boone felt a little pissed that she would question his fairness. Who did she think she was? “It’s not supposed to be fair,” said Boone as he leaned back in his chair and began rocking. “But who said life was?”
“It should be,” said Charly.
“But it’s not,” he said.
“But it should be.”
Boone stared at her. Nobody got the last word on him. “But it’s not,” he said again, and with such finality that Charly knew not to push it.
She understood the type. Alpha male who would never be subservient to anybody. Which, she felt, was just a sign of his own insecurity. Which, she knew, was a sign for her to stay clear of him. But she left it alone. She was in no position to psychoanalyze anybody.
“As you know,” she said, “I’m new in this town, and at Saint Christopher’s.”
“I heard,” Boone said with that killer smile again. He continued rocking. He continued staring at her.
“Amos is my direct supervisor,” Charly continued. “He was supposed to be the person to show me the ropes. I need to get some guidance from him.”
Boone could see her frustration, but he also could tell she wasn’t that frustrated. She was trying to manipulate him. She was savvy, which was a good thing in this dog-eat-dog town. She needed to be. But he was savvy too. “Come back on Monday after his hearing. If he’s released, you can see him then.”
They already refused to grant him bail. “And if he’s not?” Charly asked.
“Then you can’t.”
Charly exhaled. This man was so hard! “What about Dalbert Lee?” she asked him.
Boone frowned. “What about him?”
“Two people came to me and said he might be involved with Rita Mae’s death. I would have thought you’d investigate that.”
“I haven’t been able to find that joker to investigate anything.”
“Oh,” Charly said, and then rose to her feet.
But her sudden movement surprised Boone. “Where are you going?” he asked her.
It was a nonsensical question to be asked, she thought. “Home probably,” she said.
“So you found a place?”
The questions this man asked! “The school found a place for me, yes.”
“Oh, yeah? Where?” Even Boone didn’t understand why he was so interested. Yeah, she was cute and had a slamming body. But so what? Around that town, he could get a piece of tail any time he wanted. What was the big deal about hers?
He didn’t know. But something about that face even more so than her body kept him interested. It was as if he needed to know all about her.
Charley didn’t understand his level of interest either. But at least he cared to ask, which was more than she could say about anybody else in this world. “On Rowe Avenue,” she said. “At the Scotland Arms Apartment complex.”
Boone’s hard face frowned. Because he couldn’t believe it. They put her up there? They put their dean of students in that hellhole? A classy lady like her? Those bastards!
His anger flashed all over his handsome face, surprising Charly. “You know the place?” she asked him.
He nodded. “Oh, yeah. I’m very familiar with that place.”
Charly knew what that meant. It was a hotbed of crime over there. But it was what it was. “Anyway,” she said, “I apologize for taking up any of your time.”
“You aren’t taking up my time. Sit down,” he ordered.
Charly looked at him. Who did he think he was to order her about? No thank you, she thought. She turned to leave. “Have a nice day,” she said.
Boone glanced down at her as she turned, and he found himself standing up himself. “Don’t you want to see your supervisor?” he asked her.
Charly, surprised, turned back around. “I thought you said it was out of the question.”
“Have a seat,” he said. He didn’t know why he was so bent on keeping her near him, but there it was. As obvious as the nose on his face.
If it would get her in to see Amos, Charly was game. She sat back down.
Boone sat down too. “Next time I tell you to do something,” he said to her, “I expect you to do it.”
Charly stared at him. The nerve he’s got! “And why would you expect that?” she asked him.
“Because I told you to,” he responded.
“You’re not my boss, Chief Ryan.”
Ryan glanced down at her, and then back up into her soft, golden-brown eyes. “Not yet,” he said.
It wasn’t just odd to Charly, it was downright crazy. Since she wasn’t interested in anymore crazy in her life, she didn’t even pursue it. “Are you saying I can see him now?” she asked.
Boone was rocking and staring at her. What in the world would possess him to change his rules for her? He still didn’t understand it. But he stopped rocking and stood to his feet. He walked from around his desk and motioned for her to rise and, apparently, follow him.
Hopeful that it meant she was about to see Amos and not only get clarity on his situation, but clarity on her job duties, she stood to her feet ready to follow his lead. But he, instead, motioned again. This time for her to go in front of him. But when she moved away from her chair to do just that, he had invaded her personal space and was too close. They brushed against each other. And then looked into each other’s eyes.