Harlequin Romantic Suspense March 2021

by Anna J. Stewart

  “I’m positive. I locked the door after myself. Whoever it was, was already there.”

  “Do you have any idea who it might have been?” Mingus asked.

  “No,” Davis said firmly. “I don’t have a clue.”

  “Who found him?” Ellington asked.

  Parker took up the recap. “We received a 9-1-1 call from an Eloise Harper, who said she heard gunshots being fired in the alderman’s office. Two police units were dispatched to the scene. On entry, Officer Patrick Owens and his partner, Tyson Forde, found Davis regaining consciousness. He had what is presumed to be the murder weapon in his right hand.

  “We’re still waiting for Forensics to confirm that, but two bullets had been discharged and the casings were found on the floor beside the body. Gaia took two shots to the chest, one pierced her heart, killing her instantly.”

  “You said the weapon was in his right hand?” Mingus challenged.

  Parker nodded. “That’s what the officers both wrote in their reports.”

  “Davis doesn’t shoot with his right hand. I always give him a hard time about it when we go to the gun range.”

  Davis nodded. “I do almost everything with my left hand except write. I only write with my right hand.”

  “He’s done that since he was a baby,” Jerome interjected. “He’s always been ambidextrous.”

  “The prosecution will argue that his ability to use both hands equally well negates the argument that because he usually only uses his left hand, the gun being in his right hand doesn’t mean he didn’t fire it,” Ellington said with the shake of his head.

  “You already have them prosecuting me and I haven’t been charged. Do you really think they’re going to charge me?” Davis asked, a look of astonishment on his face.

  “It’s all conjecture at this point. Just relax.”

  “So, right now, everything we know is circumstantial,” Jerome said. “What do we have so far than can refute the evidence the district attorney’s office thinks it may have?”

  “We’ve issued a warrant for any camera footage in a two-mile radius,” Parker said. “And we’re questioning the witnesses who claim to have heard the gunshots.”

  “Claim?” Ellington asked.

  “The officer who spoke with the 9-1-1 caller says there is something off about her statement, but she couldn’t put her finger on what it was. She just said that she didn’t trust it.”

  “See what you can find out about Eloise Harper,” Jerome instructed, his eyes locked on Mingus.

  Mingus nodded. “Get me the names of all the witnesses,” he said to Parker.

  “We need to figure out how Gaia and her killer got into the building. Who else has keys? And I want to know what the deal was with the lights. Who cut them off and how?” Armstrong noted.

  “It’s about the details,” Parker interjected. “It’s too neat not to think that someone didn’t make a mistake.”

  “Do you have any idea who would want to do this to you?” Jerome questioned.

  Davis shook his head. “No, sir. I don’t.”

  “Mingus, find out what you can about Gaia, too. See if you can retrace her steps before she arrived. Maybe this is about her and not about Davis at all,” Armstrong added.

  “Will do.”

  “I need to help. I need to get out of this bed and...” Davis was saying before there was a knock on the room door and Simone pushed her way inside.

  Vaughan followed on her heels. “Hey,” she greeted.

  The two sisters paused to give their father a kiss before pushing past their brother brigade to get to Davis’s side.

  “You look a million times better,” Simone declared. “When we left earlier, you didn’t have any color. I’ve never known you to be that pale.”

  “I’m starting to feel better,” Davis said.

  “We were worried,” Vaughan added.

  “Where’s Mom?” Simone queried, looking around the room. Her hand rested against her abdomen, the first hint of a baby bump beginning to rise beneath her fingers.

  “Your mother had to be in court this afternoon,” Jerome said. “She’ll be back later.”

  “She left about an hour ago,” Davis said.

  “So, have you guys figured out what happened yet?” Vaughan asked.

  Before any of the brothers could answer, there was another knock on the closed door. Mingus stood closest, so he reached to pull the door open. There was a moment of hesitation as he blocked the entrance.

  “Who is it?” Davis asked, everyone turning to stare.

  Not bothering to respond, Mingus’s face blanked as he stepped aside to let Neema enter the room.

  CHAPTER 10

  Neema hadn’t known what to expect, but she hadn’t anticipated walking in on the family reunion Davis was hosting in his hospital room. She suddenly felt like a lab experiment as the Black family stood staring at her. She carried an oversize bouquet of flowers in one hand, so lifted the other in a slight wave, forcing a smile onto her face to hide her discomfort. “Hi,” she said softly. “I didn’t mean to interrupt.”

  “Neema!” Davis straightened excitedly, waving her into the room. “You’re not interrupting at all. Please, come in!”

  She moved closer to the bed, acutely aware of the looks his gathered family was giving her. Simone and Vaughan both swept appraising gazes from her head to her feet, eyeing the casual slacks, white blouse and black-and-gray tweed blazer she wore. A bright scarf in shades of green and fuchsia had been wrapped around her neck. Her shortly cropped hair had been recently cut and she had adorned her face with just a hint of makeup.

  Moving to Davis’s side, she was surprised when he reached out to hug her, the public display of affection moving everyone in the room to eye them both curiously.

  “I tried to call first,” she said as she set the flowers on the table by his bedside, “but no one answered your cell phone and the hospital was restricting your calls. I took the chance that I wouldn’t be intruding.”

  “I’m glad you came,” Davis said. He had hold of her hand, entwining his fingers between hers as he held on tightly. “I don’t have a clue where my phone is.” He pulled the back of her hand to his lips and kissed her gently.

  Smiling, Neema swept the room with her eyes. “Hello, everyone!” she said, self-conscious about being watched.

  Jerome cleared his throat. “Son, aren’t you going to introduce your friend?”

  “I’m sorry,” Davis said. “Everyone, this is my friend, Neema Kamau. Neema, this is everyone!”

  The patriarch shot his son an annoyed glare. “It’s nice to meet you, Neema. I’m Jerome Black,” Davis’s father said, his voice a deep baritone. He held her hand between both of his, gently patting the top of her fingers with one as the other held the appendage firmly.

  There was no missing the resemblance to his children. His sons had not only inherited their father’s good looks but also his height and athletic frame. The patriarch was one distinguished man with salt-and-pepper hair and a full beard and mustache. He reminded Neema of the actor Sean Connery, but with a complexion that was a rich, chocolate brown.

  “It’s very nice to meet you, sir.”

  Parker extended his hand. “I’m Davis’s brother Parker. And this is Armstrong, Ellington, and Mingus.”

  “We’ve met,” Mingus said. He stood with his arms folded over his chest and leaned back against the wall.

  “I’m Vaughan, his oldest sister.” Vaughan stepped forward to shake Neema’s hand.

  Simone was still staring, her gaze narrowed. “Have we met before? I’m Simone, by the way.”

  “I don’t think so,” Neema said. “But your brother has told me a lot about you. Congratulations on the new baby!”

  Simone gave her a slight nod. “My brother hasn’t told us anything about you. How long have you two
been dating?”

  Neema shot Davis a quick look.

  “Don’t start, Simone. You are not about to interrogate Neema.”

  “I just asked a question. Not sure why you want to hide.”

  “No one’s hiding.”

  “Leave your brother alone,” Jerome admonished. “Neema, Davis, we’re going to take off and give you two a moment. I hope we’ll see each other again, young lady.”

  “Thank you, sir,” Neema responded.

  “Well, we just got here,” Vaughan complained.

  “And you’re just leaving,” her father snapped back. “Your brother needs his rest, and we need to get out of the way before the hospital throws us out. You know there’re only supposed to be two people in here at a time.”

  “Maybe for other families,” Simone muttered under her breath.

  “Excuse my sister,” Davis said. “She never acts like she’s had any home training.”

  “Excuse you,” Simone countered. “I just say out loud what everyone else is thinking.”

  “You talk too much,” Jerome said. “You girls come on, let me buy you lunch.”

  “Ohhh!” Vaughan squealed. “Daddy’s buying lunch. My day just improved tenfold.”

  “You buying us lunch, too?” Armstrong asked.

  Their father gave him a look. “You boys have a case to investigate. This is a daddy-daughter adventure.”

  They all laughed.

  “I thought I’d try,” Armstrong said, shrugging his shoulders.

  “Davis, we’ll be back later,” Parker said. “Neema, it was nice to meet you.”

  Neema gave him a smile.

  “I hope we’ll see you again soon, Neema,” Ellington said.

  “Maybe at Sunday dinner?” Vaughan interjected. “I’m sure our mother would love to meet you.”

  “We’ll see,” Davis answered. “I don’t need you vultures trying to scare her away.”

  “Ignore him,” Vaughan joked. “He loves us.”

  Neema giggled. “It was nice to meet you all.”

  Simone was still staring at her intently. “I’m sure I know you from somewhere,” she said. “It’ll come to me.”

  “Goodbye, Simone,” Davis said. “Love you!”

  Simone leaned in to kiss her brother’s cheek. “Love you more, baby brother.”

  * * *

  As the family exited the room Mingus still stood, his expression frozen, his mood unreadable. He and Davis exchanged looks.

  “I’ll be okay,” Davis said, almost reading his brother’s mind.

  Mingus nodded. “Remember what Ellington said. If, and only if, he’s present.”

  Davis’s gaze narrowed and his brow furrowed as he comprehended what his brother was trying to say without speaking the words. He nodded. “I understand,” he said. “Don’t worry.”

  Mingus swung his eyes toward Neema. “Good to see you again,” he said.

  “It’s good to see you, too,” she answered.

  The noise level in the room dropped substantially and Neema and Davis found themselves alone together. He tugged her arm gently, pulling her down beside him on the bed. He still clutched her hand, not wanting to release the grip he had on her fingers. Her skin was warm against his and he hadn’t realized just how much he’d craved her touch until he needed to think about letting go.

  “I’m so sorry about that,” Davis said. “My family can be a bit overbearing sometimes. They can take some getting used to.”

  “They’re protective. That’s not a bad thing.”

  “Spend some time with my sisters and you may change your mind about that. I’m sure you and Vaughan will be good friends in no time. Simone is going to make you work for it. She’s just difficult for the sake of being difficult, and she’s gotten worse since she got pregnant.”

  “They both seem very nice.”

  Davis laughed. “You’re just being kind.”

  “Really, they were fine. It was nothing you won’t have to go through with my family. I have cousins who are worse than my father.”

  Davis pressed his palm to the side of her face, staring into her eyes. “I missed you,” he said.

  “I missed you, too. I was worried to death that something horrible had happened. The news said there was a shooting, a woman was dead and you were hospitalized.”

  Davis took a deep breath and nodded. “Someone killed Gaia.” The words caught deep in his chest and he suddenly felt like crying. He shook the sensation away, wiping at his eyes with the back of his hand. “I’m sorry.”

  “Don’t apologize for how you feel. You have every right to your emotions. And I am so sorry about Gaia. I know how much you cared about her. And how much she cared about you.”

  He nodded again, still at a loss for words.

  “What happened?” Neema asked, genuine concern in her voice. “Was it a robbery?”

  Davis hesitated for a split second, his brother’s warning not to discuss the case ringing in his thoughts. He hesitated and then he made a decision he knew none of his family would approve of, but one that solidified how he was feeling and what he wanted. He trusted Neema. He wanted her to trust him. If they were ever going to build anything significant between them, he needed to be open and honest and vulnerable. There wasn’t room for secrets and lies between them.

  “I don’t know. When I arrived at the office, Gaia was dead. Then someone hit me in the back of the head. When I came to, the scene had been staged as if I was the one who shot Gaia.”

  Neema gasped. Loudly. “That doesn’t make sense. Why would someone do that?”

  “I don’t know. That’s what my brothers are trying to figure out.”

  “They’re investigating the case?”

  “Not officially. Officially, the case has been turned over to the FBI.”

  * * *

  Neema nodded, trying to process what she’d just heard. It hadn’t been at all what she’d expected and, if she were looking for a story, it was everything. But she wasn’t looking for a story. At least, she thought, she didn’t think she was. It definitely wasn’t the priority it had been when she’d first met Davis. In this moment, Davis was everything and more than she could have ever imagined. She couldn’t be that person if she wanted a relationship with him, and she wanted to see what they might be able to make of whatever was happening between them.

  She reached out and wrapped her arms around his neck, hugging him close. “I am sorry about Gaia, but I’m glad you’re okay.”

  “I’ll be fine. Doctors say I have a slight concussion and my blood pressure was high when they checked me in. I was also slightly dehydrated. Hopefully, my numbers are improving and they’ll let me go home tomorrow. I’m sorry you were worried. I would have called, but...well...” He paused. He took a deep breath. “There’s so much I want to tell you.”

  Neema shushed him as the monitor beeped to indicate a rise in his blood pressure. “You just need to rest. We have plenty of time to talk.”

  “I hope so, Neema. You’re something special and I really care about you. I like us together. I like us a lot.”

  Neema’s smile widened. Her cheeks warmed and her heart skipped two beats. She suddenly leaned forward and pressed her closed lips to his. The gesture surprised them both, Neema being forward in a way that was unexpected. Davis kissed her back, his mouth like plush pillows against hers. It was a moment of exploration, an exciting sensual journey that started slow and quickly rose in intensity.

  Davis teased her lips with his tongue, a gentle prodding until she welcomed his ministrations and he danced between her parted lips. They both gasped as he pulled her closer, one hand clutching the back of her head, the other dancing a slow drag up the length of her back. His fingertips teased the round of her buttocks and she jumped. The sensations sweeping through her had her disconcerted and woozy. Bo
th were breathless when he finally let her go and she pulled herself out of his arms.

  “Wow!” Neema murmured.

  “Wow!” Davis echoed.

  “You do that really well.”

  He chuckled softly. “I told you I had finesse.”

  Neema laughed. “I still had to kiss you first.”

  “I have no problems with that,” Davis said as he kissed her again, the intensity as magnanimous as the first time.

  Neema leaned against him, her knees like jelly, her whole body quivering with pleasure.

  The moment was surreal, spinning in slow motion as they traded gentle caresses. In that moment the dynamics of their relationship shifted, both recognizing that their friendship was so much more. More beginning to feel a lot like love.

  * * *

  Hours later, when Davis opened his eyes after a much needed nap, Neema was gone. He found himself thinking about her and the step they had taken in their relationship. He enjoyed her company and was excited at the prospect of their relationship moving forward and their connection becoming deeper. Just thinking about her made him smile.

  What he hadn’t expected was the redhead sitting in the chair by his bedside watching him intently. She sat with her hands clasped together in her lap and her legs crossed. She was dressed all in black and her expression was slightly sinister.

  He jumped at the sight of her and there was no keeping the surprise from his voice. “Ginger! What are you doing here?”

  Ginger smiled but said nothing, tossing the length of her hair over her shoulder instead. She pointed to the other side of the room and the man sitting in the shadowed corner. Davis turned, following the line of her index finger, his gaze meeting Alexander Balducci’s. Davis’s heart began to race and the air caught deep in his lungs.

  Davis gave the man a nod as he stood and stepped closer to the bed. His hands were pushed into the pockets of his wool overcoat. The classic line of the garment complemented by the plaid scarf around his neck. “Mr. Balducci!”

  “What happened to Gaia?”

  Davis shook his head. “I don’t know,” he answered honestly.