Armed and Fabulous (Lexi Graves Mysteries)

by Camilla Chafer

  Vincent's trial, however, generated a lot more interest. The whole thing lasted three solid days. In the end, the only way he was getting out of prison was in a body bag. I figured between Ramos' wife and Finklestein's, it might be sooner rather than later.

  "I'm glad this is all over," said Lily, thoughtfully chewing her last bite of croissant.

  "Me too. How’s your arm?"

  “Better.”

  As for me, well, no serious damage done. Green Hand Insurance's future is currently uncertain, given the scale of the fraud. I didn't even know if I still had a job. I just decided not to go back. So, I was out of a job, plus, I had a small scar on my upper right arm from the bullet. It was a small price to pay for getting to live. As a bonus, I swiped Vincent's concert tickets when I went in to clean out my desk, and Lily and I had an excellent time.

  Solomon disappeared right after Vincent was arrested and I saw him once, briefly, at the trial, but we didn't talk. Although he did stay around long enough to hear my statement. I was told he did his best not to laugh when I burst into tears after telling the court how I had to dye my hair brown. Lily told me she saw him at the hospital, but she was a tad hysterical at the time, after discovering I had been shot. I figured he was checking up on Maddox.

  Maddox, on the other hand, I've seen plenty of. We're dating, and I'm looking forward to finding out where that goes. After undergoing surgery to remove the bullet from his shoulder and some recuperation time, he went back to Montgomery PD to face the wrath of my family. I think he’s hoping he won't have to go undercover again for a while. Unless it's my covers. That sounded fine to both of us.

  "I have to go," said Lily, "But I'm glad you got to tell me what really happened."

  "Me too." She was careful not to squeeze my arm when she hugged me, and I was careful to give her the biggest hug I could.

  ~

  So here I was a month later, no work and nothing to do. I had a coffee, a magazine, a strong resistance to daytime television and a new alarm system for my apartment, courtesy of Lily's parents who were shocked when they heard everything that happened.

  When someone knocked at the door, I took my time answering.

  Solomon was waiting in the hallway, his hands in his pockets, casually lounging like he had nothing better to do than loiter in my hall. He was clean-shaven, and his eyes were soft like liquid chocolate. He wore black pants and a shirt with tonal black stripes, two buttons open at the neck. He looked elegant, strong, smokin’ sexy. After I got over my initial surprise at seeing him, my stomach doing the usual little flip whenever he appeared, I smiled warmly and so did he.

  "Come in," I said, opening the door and stepping aside. Solomon pushed himself off the wall and stepped through, entering the living room. I watched him walk, wrenching my eyes, with a mental sigh, from the way the pants molded to his butt. He was a fine, fine man. Funnily, it hadn’t occurred to me that I would never see him again. I just assumed he’d turn up one day and here he was. With the case wrapped up, I wondered what he could possibly want.

  The apartment was neat and tidy, though I had to replace a few things Vincent ruined when he rummaged through it. Solomon, as usual, saw everything and said nothing, finally turning to me in the doorway. I held still, the sound of my heartbeat echoing in my ears, as he ran his eyes over me.

  "You're still a brunette," Solomon said at last, surprising me as he gave an approving nod.

  I self-consciously smoothed a hand over my hair. I missed the blonde and it had taken some getting used to, but I liked what I saw in the mirror. "I kinda like it."

  "And you're not working?" Solomon asked, glancing at the half-drunk coffee on the table and the open magazine.

  I shrugged. "My temping agency can’t find anything for me right now." Actually, I hadn't asked. I wasn't in dire need of the cash. Maddox ensured that my last couple of paychecks came through, and the taskforce had, surprisingly, made a contribution, given the work I'd done for the case. I earned a commendation too, plus, they covered my excess medical expenses. The only thing they couldn’t do for me was advise me where to go from here out. That was something I hadn’t decided yet either.

  "How about you come work for me?" he said.

  I tried to keep my face passive, but I think a little surprise leaked out as my eyes widened. "Work for you?" I asked, the words slipping from my throat easily.

  "It's part time at first, flexible hours."

  "Doing what? I'm over filing." So, so over filing. Though I wasn't totally sure what I wanted to do with my life, the last couple of months had made it clear what I didn't want to be doing. I didn’t want to be the admin monkey anymore. I wanted more. I owed it to myself.

  "There will be some filing, but only your own stuff,” Solomon clarified before my spirits dropped. “I'm opening a small agency here. Private investigations for individuals and corporations. The usual stuff. Surveillance, tracing, background checks for starters. I could do with another private investigator to work with the team I've put together."

  "I'm not exactly qualified," I pointed out.

  "You don't have to be an ex-detective or have been in the field. You just have to be smart. People talk to you. They like you. And you think like an investigator, only..."

  "Only?"

  "Only different," Solomon concluded and there was the ghost of a smile again. One that told me he believed in me. “I have an ex-detective, two agency men, and a cybercriminal on my team already,” he told me, intriguing me further.

  “So why do you want me?” I waited, breath stilled.

  “Because you’re nothing like them at all.”

  I pondered his offer. My own hours were appealing. A wage was definitely appealing. Not being Serena's sounding board for every aspect of her pregnancy while she waited to pop was appealing too. Working with Solomon? Not so sure about having him as my boss, working beside him every day, but I figured I would never be bored. I might even get a work ethic. Maybe this was exactly what I was waiting for.

  "How about you try it on for size? Give it a few months. See if you like it. If you don't, no harm done." Solomon shrugged nonchalantly. "I'll train you."

  The words were out of my mouth before I really thought about it properly. "When do I start?"

  "Monday. Ten a.m." Solomon pulled a business card from his pocket and passed it to me. I took it, flipping it over to read. Stretched in large black letters across the thick white card was “Solomon Agency.” Underneath: “Investigations.” Then there was a phone number and an address downtown in what I vaguely recalled to be a nice building that had been vacant for a while. I tucked the card into my shirt pocket. "Don't be late," he warned, starting towards the door.

  I followed him. "Solomon?"

  With his hand on the door handle, he turned to me, one eyebrow raised, waiting.

  "What do I wear?" I asked.

  "Whatever you like."

  "What do PIs wear?" I pressed. I had suits, dresses, jeans, but I had no idea what would be suitable and I hated getting it wrong.

  "That's the whole point, Lexi. I don't want you to look like a PI. I want you to be the person it doesn't occur to people to suspect."

  "Hah." Clear as mud.

  He pulled the door open.

  "So you do like me, huh?" I said, following him out. I don't know why I said it. It just slipped out; maybe because I still wasn’t sure. And I guess I missed him popping up when I least expected it, his cool eyes assessing everything.

  Solomon turned to me, just on the threshold, and stepped closer, back inside my apartment. I held my space, unmoving as he leaned in. His lips brushed my cheek, moving a little closer, then landing on my lips for the briefest of moments. "Oh, I like you," he said. Then he was gone. For a long time, I stood in the hallway, my heart beating fast. I shut the door and went back to my magazine. Gossip counted as keeping up with current affairs, right?

  A couple of minutes later, another knock sounded at my door. Maddox smiled broadly when he saw me and I s
tood on tiptoes to kiss him. “Hi, Adam.”

  "I think I saw Solomon," he said, taking hold of my hand, lacing his fingers through mine and kissing me again. He carried a grocery bag in one hand for the dinner he had promised to make me once, a promise I decided to collect tonight.

  "He was here. You just missed him."

  "You know, he was never really with the FBI." Maddox shut the door behind him as I tugged him inside. He shrugged his jacket off, no sign of stiffness in his shoulder, and hung it next to mine on the rack. “He was on some kind of loan due to his financial crime expertise and field experience. I don’t know who the hell he worked for. I’m not even sure Miller knew. I don’t even know if Solomon is his first or last name!”

  I thought about it for a moment but felt no surprise at the revelation. Solomon was quiet, strong, and probably deadly. I didn’t know about romantically, but I did know I would always want him on my team. I also knew his first name. “Strikes me that he was working the right side, whomever he worked for.”

  “I guess. He’s left, anyway. I haven’t seen him in a couple of weeks.” Maddox stepped closer, his hand running over my hair as he smiled down at me. His eyes sparkled.

  "I figured."

  "He never struck me as an agency man," said Maddox, but he didn't expand on that, instead asking, "Did he say what he's doing now?"

  I relieved Maddox of the bag and walked through to the kitchen, Maddox close on my heels. "You really haven't seen him?" I asked, glancing over my shoulder.

  "No. Not since we wrapped the case up. I’m back at MPD now the task force is disbanded. I caught a homicide case. The guy gambled with dudes way out of his league. I’m working with your brother Garrett on this one."

  "Hope you catch them.” I flashed a smile at his pleased face. Catching criminals suited him far better than watching television while he healed. I wondered how working with Garrett would suit either of them. “Well, I guess he won't mind me saying. I don't think it's a secret. He's staying in Montgomery. He opened a business."

  "Doing?"

  I repeated what Solomon told me, "Private investigations.” Dang, if that didn't sound mysterious.

  "He came to tell you that?" Maddox frowned, but he didn't seem overly surprised at the news.

  "Yeah. Offered me a job, too. Private investigator."

  Maddox’s face darkened as he looked at me sharply. That surprised him. "Seriously? You told him no, of course." Maddox stated it simply, like there wasn't even the possibility that I would say anything else.

  I narrowed my eyes and shook my head, feeling strangely possessive of my new job. And, I thought, with sudden amusement, the whole Vincent thing had been the world’s worst interview. "Actually, I said yes." I grinned. A big, excited smile to reflect my inner excitement. Me? A PI? Stranger things have happened. And as for Solomon being on my team; I bet being on his team would be pretty cool too.

  Maddox sidled closer. "Can I persuade you to say no?"

  "Why would I say no?"

  Maddox’s jaw stiffened and he ran a hand over it thoughtfully, before placing it on my shoulder, caressing me right where he knew it didn’t hurt. "Because Solomon is scary. No one really knows him. I couldn’t tell you a damn thing about him and I just spent the last four months with him every day."

  "You worked with him. You must have some idea about his character," I pointed out, turning back to the grocery bag and unloading the contents onto the counter. “And you’re a detective. Didn’t you find out anything?”

  "Only that he was working this job for fun. Miller told me the FBI wanted to give him something to keep him out of trouble until his loaner contract expired. His words, not mine."

  It hadn't been a lot of fun for me, but whatever floated his space cruiser. "What did he usually do when on loan to the FBI… or whomever?" I asked, curiosity biting.

  "Beats me.” Maddox waited. “So...?"

  "I'm going to take the job," I said decisively. Like before, when Solomon offered, I didn't even have to think about my answer. I was intrigued and more interested in seeing what Solomon's world had to offer than ending up as a temp in another office, doing the same thing day in, day out. Frankly, filing could bite me. "I'm not exactly rolling in offers here," I added. “And lounging around was fun for oh, a day and a half, tops. I need to work.”

  Plus, Maddox's warning made it sound even more appealing. Working with Solomon would never be dull. I might even learn a bunch of cool stuff. So long as I didn't get shot again, I was fine with that.

  Maddox inched up to me, his hands snaking around my waist and drawing me to him. Through the open neck of his button-down shirt, I could see the pinkish scar of his wound, now healed, but still fresh and shiny looking. "I could make you a nice offer," he murmured, his voice smoky.

  "It's not a job offer is it?"

  "No, but it'll keep you out of trouble for the next few hours."

  "Mmm," I purred, my arms going around his neck. "I think you better tell me more."

  Enjoyed Armed & Fabulous? Sign up to the mailing list at www.camillachafer.com to find out as soon as the next Lexi Graves mystery, Who Glares Wins, is available in June, 2012.

  Who Glares Wins

  Only a few weeks into her new job as a private investigator and Lexi Graves thinks she may have bitten off more than she can chew with her first solo cases.

  In between going undercover as a plush pony, fending off the advances of a lecherous “Bronie” and following her cheating brother-in-law, she’s got a saboteur turned killer to catch and a missing woman to find. Two of her cases may be connected, but how? There’s no short list of suspects to investigate but as Lexi closes in on the killer, her life is put in jeopardy. Narrowly escaping being framed for a murder she didn’t commit, Lexi knows her luck is running out.

  To make matters worse her boyfriend, sexy Detective Adam Maddox, thinks she’s out of the PI game faster than she got into it and her boss, the mysterious Solomon, wants nothing more than to get her between the sheets by night as well as solving cases by day, and Lexi’s resolve might not be as strong as she thinks.

  All she wants is for them to take her seriously and there’s only one way she can do that—solve the case, whatever it takes.

  About the author

  Author and journalist Camilla Chafer writes for newspapers, magazines and websites throughout the world. She is also the author/ editor of several non-fiction books as well as the author of the Stella Mayweather urban fantasy series. She lives in London, UK.

  Visit Camilla online at www.camillachafer.com to sign up to her newsletter, find out more about her, plus news on upcoming books and fun stuff including book group guides, playlists, deleted scenes and giveaways.

  You can also find Camilla on Twitter @camillawrites and Facebook at https://www.facebook.com/#!/CamillaChafer.

  Other books:

  Stella Mayweather Series (Urban Fantasy)

  Illicit Magic

  Unruly Magic

  Devious Magic

  Magic Rising