by Laina Turner
“Isn’t that the second time today that you have asked me that, King? I am beginning to think you don’t want me around.” Then he whispered to me, just grazing my ear with his lips, “Besides, I told you earlier today that I wasn’t through with you.” Again, with the touching—he really needed to stop. This wasn’t the most appropriate place to lust after him, and I wasn’t at all sure I wanted to in the first place. I was still mad at him about earlier. Or, at least I thought I was. It was difficult to keep my thoughts straight with all this touching. What his simple touch was doing to me—wow. I could feel it all the way down there.
While this exchange was happening, Dirt jumped up from the table as if he’d been bitten. “Sorry to interrupt, but I need to get going,” Dirt said tersely.
“Hey, man…” Chris started to say then trailed off, as he too noticed the stormy expression on Dirt’s face.
“I thought you were going to stay and hang out for a while. You said you didn’t have to go to work until later. Just spot a criminal you need to catch or something?” I asked, confused about why he was suddenly in a hurry to leave.
“Something like that,” he replied as his gaze traveled over Cooper. The air was thick with tension as Dirt made it clear he didn’t want to be around Cooper. Cooper sneered as Dirt walked past him; the feeling was mutual. I noticed that Cooper wasn’t surprised that Dirt was acting this way. “I’ll catch up with you later Pres, Katy.” With that, Dirt strode out of the restaurant.
“What was that all about?” Katy asked to no one in particular. “Dirt doesn’t usually act that uptight.”
“So, do you want to enlighten me about what just happened?” I asked Cooper, eyebrows raised.
“Not really,” Cooper said, blowing me off. Cooper had his issues with Dirt, issues he wasn’t willing to share. “Hi, Katy, haven’t seen you in a long time. My stepmom says your salon’s fabulous.”
The way Cooper quickly changed the subject confirmed that there was a story behind the tension between him and Dirt, though he clearly didn’t plan to talk about it. Little did he know that I was an expert at getting information out of people. I had my ways and he inspired me to consider some new persuasive tactics. That thought was putting my hormones back into overdrive. I took another sip of my margarita to cool off.
“She should know. She’s in every week, one of my best customers. Thanks, though. Presley tells me you’re working for the Senator.”
“Not exclusively. My company, Sands Security Solutions, has provided security for him over the last six months. We do a lot of work with politicians.”
“What could he possibly need security in Alkon for? For that matter, anywhere? He’s a senator for God’s sake, not the President.” I said.
Cooper shrugged. “I’m sure he has his reasons. It’s not my place to ask, nor do I care, as long as I am paid. But even if I did know, I wouldn’t tell you,” he teased, eyes twinkling.
“Why? Is there something called security-client privilege?” I asked sarcastically.
“No, it’s just none of your business, nosey. It’s called being a professional.”
I just looked at him and shook my head.
“What’s your opinion of the Senator, Cooper?”
“Not my place to judge.” Cooper knew that giving me short, vague answers was driving me crazy. He was enjoying it, but also knew that it wouldn’t be professional to give me his honest opinion anyway.
“Surely you have an opinion. After all, you do work for him.”
“I don’t agree with everything he does, but he’s a nice guy. Besides, in my line of work, it’s important to stay objective, and again, as long as he pays me, I don’t really care what he does. As long as it’s legal.”
“Which don’t you agree with, Cooper? The gambling or the womanizing?” I ignored his remark about wanting to stay a professional. Maybe if I asked enough questions Cooper would give an indication about the alleged gambling problem that Dirt alluded to. Instead, he just raised his eyebrows questioningly at me and smiled in a really irritating way.
“So, have you provided security for anyone famous? There has to be some juicy gossip you can tell us about a politician. Or have you ever provided security for an actor?” Katy interrupted, obviously changing the subject. She had a feeling that Cooper and I might be heading into an argument, and she always wanted people to get along. Besides how cool would it be if he did know famous people?
I was enjoying myself. This verbal sparring was a bit like foreplay and even better than most of the foreplay I had experienced. At least with Rick anyway, I chuckled to myself. Men always seemed to be so impatient about it.
“Probably no one you’d recognize,” Cooper answered Katy.
“Besides, Katy, he wouldn’t tell us anyway. There’s that security-client confidentiality.” I couldn’t resist needling him. I could tell he was more amused than annoyed, which rather ticked me off. I wanted him to be annoyed, but I could tell that, under his cool exterior, there was something going on with him. He didn’t seem quite so relaxed. Maybe that was normal for him these days with his job; maybe he had to be vigilant and on edge. Or maybe it was still the conflict with Dirt. I knew I probably shouldn’t even be trying to figure it out. What did I know about him or his personality these days? More importantly, why did I even care?
As we talked, Chris just sat there quietly. I almost forgot he was there. I noticed he kept checking his watch furtively. Eventually I asked, “You got a hot date, Chris?”
“What?” He glanced up, startled, his brown eyes wary.
“You keep looking at your watch. Do you have somewhere to be?”
Chris just stared at me as if in a trance or maybe he didn’t know what to say.
“Are we not interesting enough for you?” I teased.
“Yes. No. Well, actually I do need to go.” He stood up. “Catch you later, Coop. Ladies.” He turned and left. Katy frowned as she watched Chris leave and I looked at Cooper. “Didn’t you two come together?”
“Nope. Just met up in the parking lot. I haven’t talked to him in a long time and thought we could catch up. Guess not.” Cooper shrugged. Cooper stayed and chatted with us while we ate our food. I found myself enjoying his company. Not only was he hot, but he was intelligent and funny as well. He told us some funny stories about clients he had worked with, of course keeping the names private, and I found out that this was the first time in a long time he had been back to Alkon too. He said he had just recently started working with the Senator and that this was his first trip back here with him. He also opened up a little about the Senator, and while he didn’t come right out and say anything bad, Cooper conceded that the Senator wasn’t always ethical, but obviously still legal. I had forgotten how fun Cooper was to talk to and I had to admit that was more important anyway, since, at some point, hotness wears off. In high school, Brian seemed to have the whole package and look how he ended up. I wanted so badly to ask him about that night and about what happened afterwards. It was history, water under the bridge and all that, but seeing Cooper again, made many of those feelings of uncertainty rush back and I wanted an explanation. I vowed not to leave Alkon until I had a chance to ask him about it. I wanted to know. I also wanted to know why such a seemingly great guy was still single. Though I was sure he would reveal his flaws sooner rather than later, Cooper sure didn’t seem to have any now.
We finished way too many margaritas and said our goodbyes. I told Katy I would call her the next day; Katy didn’t work on Sunday and we’d have a bit more time together. We had decided to have a picnic and hang out—catch up on more old times. I had hoped Cooper might ask to join us, but the idea was farfetched. No luck. I was sure he had to be incredibly busy, or he would have jumped at the chance to spend more time with me. Several thoughts raced through my head, but I pushed them out of my mind and just blamed them on too many margaritas clouding my good sense. It was no use getting all excited. He hadn’t shown that much interest. Yet I still giggled to myself
at the thought. As I payed the bill and walked out, I noticed the diner was almost empty. I checked my watch and saw that it was after one in the morning. The place had been closed for twenty minutes. Tomorrow was going to come early and my mom would be sure to wake me early, as usual.
I headed back to my parents, thinking about the argument I had had with Brian the night before. I still felt bad about it. I didn’t have any feelings for him, but I could have handled it better. I knew I acted like a bitch, but his revelation just took me by surprise. Maybe I should swing by his shop and talk to him. That would probably be the right thing to do—try to smooth things over. There was no reason we couldn’t be friends. As I started to turn right on Darby Street, on the way to Brian’s, I saw something strange out of the corner of my eye. I slowed down and pulled off to the side of the tree-lined road.
I glanced in my rearview mirror and saw something completely shocking. It was a train wreck, and I couldn’t look away. I wished I had a video camera. I was looking at Helen Daniels, the Senator’s wife, and someone whose face was blocked from my sight, sitting in a red car I didn’t recognize—making out. Like a couple of teenagers. Holy crap! No one would think she was the one cheating on Senator Daniels. Who the hell was she was with?
I shook my head as if that would clear up my sight and looked again. Nope. It didn’t change anything. I didn’t know what shocked me more, the fact that Helen was cheating on her husband or that she was doing it in someone’s car, where the entire world could see. Was she nuts? Who knew who might come along? Someone more threatening than me could really cause Helen’s reputation some damage. What the hell is going on? I sat there thinking about how this changed my opinion of Senator Daniels just a little. He wasn’t the only one with a roving eye. However, if Helen knew the way he acted then maybe she figured that what was good for the goose was good for the gander. You couldn’t blame a girl for getting even. I tried to change my position to see if I could get a better look at the guy Helen was with. I was dying to know who she was with, but no matter which way I turned, I couldn’t tell. So, short of walking up and knocking on the window, (and I didn’t have the balls for that move), I knew I wasn’t going to be able to identify the person Helen was kissing. Too bad Katy wasn’t here. She would do it.
I sat there trying to process this chain of events; Helen and the mystery man must have gotten tired of their tryst and started the car. I shrank down in my seat as they drove by, praying they wouldn’t see me. I wanted this to stay a secret until I could figure out what the hell to do with this information, if anything. This had to be valuable in some way. I didn’t see the guy’s face, but maybe Cooper, Dirt, or Katy would know who drove a red car and might have the hots for Helen Daniels. Once they were far enough past me, I started the engine back up to continue to Brian’s. But as I started to pull out, I was surprised again. My dad was driving by. What was he doing out here at this time of night? He didn’t notice me either or surely he would have stopped or waved or something. I watched as he continued down Main Street and turned down Easy Street. Hmmm…where was he going?
It only took a few minutes to get to Brian’s. As I pulled in, I thought about what I witnessed and what it meant. I wondered what I should do about it, if anything. This could be a great scoop for my article, but I wasn’t sure I was comfortable with that. Maybe I should ask Trevor what to do, but what if he wanted me to use it? I didn’t want to be malicious. I just didn’t have the stomach for that. I hadn’t suspected these types of dilemmas would crop up in my new career as a writer. It sure had been interesting thus far—much more interesting than the drama of corporate America.
As I stepped out of my car, I saw Brian in the garage working on some old car. It brought back memories of days when I stopped by to visit Brian at his parents’. He always seemed to be working on a car. It was something he did with his dad all the time. He was lucky in some ways to have something he really enjoyed and to be able to turn it into a lucrative business. He had what I had been missing. I had fallen out of love with my job long ago but kept at it because I didn’t know how to get out of the rut. Lucky for me, I was fired. Lucky for him, he really did follow his dreams.
Brian heard someone walking up the drive and quit what he was doing and looked up. When he saw it was me, he scowled. He was none too happy to see me and had no problem showing it.
Noticing his scowl, I decided I better shift gears into my reason for the visit.
“What are you doing here? Do you realize what time it is?”
“I know it’s late, but I wanted to talk to you about last night.”
“What about it, Presley? Last night was a mistake. A huge mistake.”
“Brian, don’t say that. You were being honest and I get that. You just caught me off guard. I haven’t talked to you in forever, and you just sprung that on me.”
“I know. I guess I just was caught up in the moment. I shouldn’t have left you there.”
“You’re right, you shouldn’t have.” I playfully punched him in the arm. “Next time you do that, I will punch you harder. Lucky for you, Dirt happened by and gave me a ride home.”
“I know,” Brian said sheepishly. “He called me after he dropped you off and told me.”
“He did?”
“Yep. After he gave me a hard time about leaving you there in the first place.”
I laughed. “Well, you want to do this over? We can talk while you work. Just like old times.”
“That would be nice. Pass me that wrench over there,” Brian, said nodding his head in the direction of his tools.
Chapter 6Bang, bang, bang.
What the hell? What was that racket waking me out of a sound sleep? I had been late last night trying to smooth things over with Brian. It had gone well, and so I had stayed out much later than planned. Then, I spent all night tossing and turning because I couldn’t stop thinking about seeing Helen. It felt like I had just gone to bed. I just couldn’t handle the lack of sleep like I used to when I was younger. As I tried to use the pillow to drown out the sounds from below, I heard my dad walking toward the front door.
“Hold your horses,” he yelled at the door as the banging continued incessantly. After a pause, I heard him open the door. I could make out the voice of Cooper Sands, but couldn’t tell what he was saying. I sat up in bed, confused. Why was Cooper banging on my parent’s front door at six o’clock in the morning? No wonder I felt like I had just gone to bed—I’d only had three hours of sleep. My dad yelled up the stairs.
“Presley, come down here, please!”
“In a minute,” I yelled back, scrambling to throw on some decent clothes. If Cooper looked half as cute as he did yesterday, looking like I was still half-asleep would not work. I was not one of those glamour girls who could wake up looking properly sleep-tousled and sexy. No sir, not me. I woke up looking like I just went five rounds with Mike Tyson. I didn’t have a lot of time, so I threw my shoulder-length hair into a ponytail and decided to forgo the make-up. I would be fooling no one if I showed up downstairs in make-up. My jeans from last night and a pink Save the Boobies t-shirt to promote breast cancer awareness completed my look. It wasn’t much of a look, but for God sake, it was six in the morning. It’s hard to look good that early.
As I ran down the stairs, thoughts kept running through my head and, no matter how I looked at it, I still couldn’t figure out why Cooper was here. We had a nice time last night, but not enough for him to come courting this early in the morning. Surely, this wasn’t a social call. As I got to the door and saw Cooper, my heart stopped for a minute. Damn, he was even good looking this early. He just set off the butterflies in my stomach. He was definitely the stereotype of tall, dark, and handsome—just the way I liked them. Slim legs turned into trim hips and the cutest butt ever. Yes, I was a butt woman—a shameless hussy, but I loved every minute of it. The more I kept running into him, the more attractive he seemed to be getting. Or maybe my lack of sleep was just clouding my judgment and my ability to con
trol my hormones.
As my gaze traveled upward, I was quickly jolted into the present by the hard look on Cooper’s face. This was most definitely not a social visit. The look on his face made that obvious. Confused, I quickly replayed the evening in my mind. I hadn’t done anything between last night and this morning to piss him off.
“Why are you here?” I snapped, on the defensive without quite knowing why. Just the look on his face took away any good mood I had. Although at this time of the morning, it wasn’t difficult to kill a good mood. Before that coffee hit my system, I rarely had a coherent thought or good mood at all.
Ignoring my tone, Cooper retorted, “Senator Daniels was found dead this morning. You were his last official appointment of the day yesterday, so I need to ask you a few questions.”
“Oh my God!” My hand flew up to my mouth, heart racing. I didn’t know what I expected him to say, but this sure wasn’t it.
My dad, standing with me, also looked stunned. He said, “Oh, Cooper, what a loss. How is Helen?”
“She is about as well as expected, Mr. Thurman.”
My dad, the nice guy. What I had recently seen Helen doing in that car made me a little less sympathetic. Helen Daniels was not such a nice person. I was sure that if my dad knew that Helen was doing God-knows-what in a car on Main Street, he might not be so worried about her. Then again, he probably would. I mentally scolded myself for being so catty. The woman had just lost her husband. No matter what Helen was doing, or who, last night, I should try to be a little more compassionate. “What happened? Who found him? When did it happen?”
“May I come in?” Cooper asked my dad, completely ignoring me, which pissed me off. Who the hell did he think he was? Good looks aren’t everything, mister, when you act like an ass! I quickly forgot what a great guy I thought he was last night.
Cooper walked into the living room, and as I followed him, I again found myself looking at his ass. I couldn’t help myself. As we all sat down, Cooper explained what had happened to Senator Daniels. “After your interview with the Senator, he went back to Helen’s family’s mansion, where he and Helen usually stay when they are in town. He had been splitting time between the house and hotel this trip so he could be closer to his staff to prepare for an upcoming bill. He had stayed in for the evening to work with his advisor, Alex Bailey, and earlier in the day, he had cancelled all of his appointments. At least all but one.” At this, Cooper just glared at me. “Helen was out for the night at the Women’s League dinner. She returned when Alex was leaving and she and Alex spoke for a minute. When she went to bed, the Senator was still in his study working, which wasn’t unusual. She said this was around midnight. The Senator told her he would be up to bed shortly. The next anyone saw of him was at four in the morning, when Maria, the housekeeper, saw the light on in his study and went in to see if he wanted coffee. She found him slumped over his desk and got Helen, who immediately called me.”