She Who Dares, Wins

by Candace Havens

  “Was it sexual?”

  The dean’s eyes opened in surprise again.

  Mac knew Katie had her answer.

  “So you think if Caroline was pursuing a relationship with Macon, then the girl was lying.”

  “My, you are good at what you do,” the dean said. “It doesn’t make sense she would risk her career and tenure to pursue a relationship with a student, especially if she were not of that persuasion.”

  The dean meant a lesbian, and Mac had to stifle a smile. To be honest, she could be a lesbian and he wouldn’t know. He hadn’t even held hands with Caroline. Other than the meals they’d shared, and their work at the university, they had nothing in common.

  He had no romantic inclination toward the woman, and when he’d stopped calling she didn’t seem to mind. He’d occasionally wave to her in the faculty lounge and she always returned the gesture. As far as he was concerned she was a cold fish. Mac remembered asking about her family and where she grew up, but she would steer the question back to her job.

  No one understood that kind of intensity about the work more than he did, but he did occasionally like to leave the lab behind.

  “I’m not sure she even knows I still exist,” Mac said. “Our labs are on different floors and she’s always pleasant. But definitely uninterested.”

  “Hmm. She doesn’t seem so uninterested tonight. I wonder,” Katie said, her finger tapping her chin.

  Those wheels were turning again, Mac could see.

  Caroline moved into the other room, and Katie excused herself. “Gentlemen, I’ll be back soon.” She walked past the dean into the other room, following the same path as Caroline.

  “Do you think she’ll question her here, at the party?” The dean’s face wore a horrified expression.

  “No, sir. She’s a professional, and as you said, she’s undercover tonight. She probably just had to go to the loo.” Mac knew Katie was up to something, but he didn’t want the dean interfering.

  “I’ve been eyeing those hot dogs for a half hour, and I want to try one.” Mac put an arm around the dean’s shoulders and led him to the table. “Won’t you join me?”

  “Hmm. I haven’t tried the food yet. My wife had it catered. Yes, let’s.”

  They picked up their food, and Mac made a good show of enjoying every bite.

  More than anything he wanted to be in the other room finding out what Katie was up to, but that would have to wait. She might be the detective, but he would be the one asking the questions later tonight.

  “Mac, who is that beautiful woman you’re with tonight?” asked David, who worked in the biology department.

  “Yes, everyone is talking about her. Quite striking,” interjected Phillip, whose lab was down the hall from Mac’s.

  “She’s a friend of mine from the States.” He remembered Katie telling him to be as brief as possible when someone asked about her.

  “Well, if she’s just a friend, then—”

  “She’s not available, David.” Mac cut the other man off, irritated by David’s interest in Katie. She was the perfect combination of femininity and strength, and she was his.

  He’d never in his life felt so possessive of a woman.

  It scared the hell out of him.

  Phillip threw up his hands in surrender. “We were only curious, my friend. Did you get the other set of files I left in your box this afternoon?”

  Always the peacekeeper. Mac appreciated the man’s attempt to move to a new subject.

  “Yes, thanks, Phillip. I didn’t have a chance to review them yet, but I will. The numbers you sent over this morning were quite interesting. I’d like to talk to you about them tomorrow if you have some time?”

  “Yes, I have a free lunch tomorrow.”

  “Excellent.” Mac watched as both men glanced behind them.

  He turned to see Katie making her way into a hallway.

  Katie had bumped into his friend Peter, who was most likely telling her made-up horror stories about him. Mac needed to make his way over there before Peter scared her off. It was the way the man’s sense of humor worked and if she didn’t understand…

  Katie laughed and touched Peter’s shoulder. Mac felt the tension leave his neck. Katie wasn’t big on touching, so evidently Peter had genuinely made her laugh. He should have known they’d be fast friends. They both had that dark sense of duty about them.

  “She really is quite remarkable,” David said.

  Mac noticed Phillip putting a hand on David’s arm.

  “I’ll see you tomorrow,” Phillip said as he ushered the man to the other side of the room.

  “He gets everything,” David whispered to Phillip as they walked off.

  Did he? When it came to Katie he prayed that was the truth.

  KATIE WAS JEALOUS. There was no other explanation for the way she felt, which only made her more of an idiot. Mac had said he and Caroline had a few casual dates. The woman was tall, slim, blonde and beautiful. Katie hated her on sight. Neither Caroline nor Mac fit Katie’s stereotype of what a scientist should look like.

  What is this? Do they search for supermodel scientist types at the university?

  Katie had a difficult time believing their relationship had never made it past dinner. Her first meeting with him had ended up in the best sex of her life.

  She leaned against the wall of the long hallway leading to the ladies’ room, and took a deep breath.

  Had the same thing happened with Caroline?

  It made Katie sick to even contemplate the idea of Mac with another woman.

  Oh, Katie, you really care about this guy.

  Damn.

  Katie couldn’t fall for Mac. Not only was he geographically undesirable, but they came from different worlds. He was a brilliant eggheaded scientist, and she was a cop through and through. They had nothing in common.

  That wasn’t true. They’d had a blast the past two days, talking about everything from their favorite movies to food. For the first time in a long time, she’d let her guard down with a man. She’d stopped pretending and allowed herself to want more than a first date. There was no denying Mac had wormed his way into her heart. Being with him was easy, but it shouldn’t be.

  Forcing her thoughts away from the jealousy, she thought about Caroline.

  The case. Was that why she was curious about Caroline? Her gut told her there might be something there, because of the timing. Mac’s troubles had begun around six months ago. He’d received the first letter around the time he would have been dating the other woman.

  Katie worried she was trying to create something out of thin air, because of how she felt. No, the timing of the problem with the student—her instincts told her that was key. There were too many questions surrounding Caroline. Had the woman dated Mac to throw attention away from her natural sexual tendencies?

  She heard the door to the ladies’ room open, and pushed away from the wall. Turning so that it looked as if she were staring at one of the paintings, she did her best to block the hallway.

  “Pardon me,” a woman said behind her.

  Katie turned as if surprised. “Sorry, I was mesmerized by this painting. I don’t know that I’ve seen anything like it.”

  “It is an original Koenig,” Caroline said in her posh English accent, “and is one of the dean’s favorites. He has quite the collection.” She waved a hand down the hallway.

  Katie had picked the painting randomly—the bits of black and white were mashed into odd figures.

  “Interesting,” Katie said, which was true. She didn’t understand the painting, but she still found it enjoyable to look at.

  “I saw you were with Mac. Are you dating?” Caroline cocked her head as she asked the question.

  Well, that was direct.

  Katie laughed. “No, just friends. I’m here visiting for a little while. Do you know him?”

  The professor nodded. “We dated a few times, but he’s not my type.”

  Mac was every woman’s type.
Unless she really was… Hmm. That was a real possibility.

  “From what I can tell he works all the time—I don’t know when he would have time for a relationship.” Caroline frowned when she said the word work. Was there some kind of professional jealousy?

  Katie had studied telltale signs for years, and that was definitely one of them. Caroline wasn’t happy about whatever it was Mac did.

  “Yes, I’m sure his research keeps him quite busy,” Katie said. “And how about you?” Katie asked. “Do you work at the university or are you here with someone?” Katie had to play it as if she didn’t know anything about Caroline.

  “I’m a faculty member. I’m working on a special project, not unlike what your friend Mac is doing. Though I believe we are quite farther along than he is.”

  Oh, yes. There was definitely some professional competition going on. There was a bite to the last sentence.

  “I’m not very scientific minded, I’m afraid,” Katie admitted. “Do you work with food like Mac? Although, to be honest, I don’t really know what he does.”

  The professor scrutinized her. “I assumed you were a colleague of his.”

  Katie shrugged. “I am, I guess, but we aren’t in the same business. You were telling me about your research.” Mac had mentioned she loved to talk about work, so Katie steered her that way.

  “I’m working on sustainable resources. I can’t say much more than that, but it could change how we, and the Americans, support third world countries. We could make monumental strides in just a few years.”

  “Wow. That does sound important. I bet you must work really hard.” She played dumb.

  The other woman nodded. “I do. My work is my life right now. It’s everything to me.”

  Katie smiled. “That doesn’t leave much time for dating or fun.”

  “As I mentioned before, my work is important, but I do find time to date occasionally. I’m just discreet about it. The gossip around here can be nothing short of horrendous.”

  Katie remembered what the dean had said about the girl who’d made claims against Caroline.

  “I’m sure. I’ve been getting strange looks all evening from some of the guests, so I can understand where you’re coming from. I can’t tell if it’s because Mac doesn’t date much, or if I’m American.”

  The woman gave a slight smile. “Probably a little of both. Well, I should get back to the milling around.” She gave a quick wave and left.

  Katie stood there a second longer. Something about Caroline didn’t add up. A thought niggled at the back of her brain. A connection she’d made, but she couldn’t quite grasp it yet.

  Since she was near, she decided to visit the ladies’ room and wash her hands before heading back to the party. It would give her time to think.

  From the outside, Caroline and Mac seemed as though they would make the perfect couple. They were scientists, dedicated to their work and passionate about what they did.

  Katie studied herself in the mirror. She’d worn a white fitted T-shirt to go with her black pants, jacket and boots. She’d worn more makeup than usual and even she had to admit she looked okay. She pushed her hair behind her ears and straightened her collar.

  She needed to see those files about the claim against Caroline. Caroline was mixed up in Mac’s case somehow. Every time she’d said Mac’s name, the other woman’s mouth had gone into a straight line.

  She didn’t like him.

  And who the hell wouldn’t like Mac? Except for his bullheaded, stubborn nature, the man was perfection.

  13

  AFTER DROPPING MAC OFF at his lab with the promise to meet him after lunch, Katie set her sights on the dean’s office. Pieces of the mystery surrounding Mac shifted in her head, and her gut told her she was close to solving the puzzle. One thing Katie always did was trust her instincts.

  “I’m sorry, the dean isn’t in this morning,” his secretary informed her.

  Katie frowned. “I really need his help.” Katie drummed her fingers against her thigh. “Do you know when he’ll be in?”

  “I can’t say,” the secretary replied. “He’s in a Regents meeting and those can go on for hours. Is there something I can help you with, perhaps?”

  Katie’s tapping ceased. Yes, this might work better than her original plan, which was to badger the dean until he gave in to her request. “Uh, I’m not sure. Do you know why I’m here?” She lowered her voice in a conspiratorial whisper.

  “You’re helping with the case involving Dr. Douglas. I’ve been instructed to assist in any way I can.”

  Excellent.

  “Well, I don’t think this will be too difficult. I need a file about the complaint concerning Professor Carson last summer.”

  “Why would you need that? Surely you don’t believe she has anything to do with the trouble.”

  “Confidentially,” Katie said. “I do think their cases might be connected. And I understand the private nature of the file, but I’ve already signed everything the university asked me to for my security clearance, so I don’t think it would be a problem.”

  The secretary was thoughtful for a moment.

  Come on. You can do it.

  “Imagine if you were the one to help me crack this case. The dean would be ecstatic. Maybe I could even talk to him about giving you a raise.” Katie gave her a wink.

  The woman waved her away. “No, you don’t have to do that.” She rolled away from her desk and stood up. Taking some keys from her drawer she went to a row of file cabinets.

  “Do you need to make copies? That will take some extra paperwork on my part.”

  “Oh, no. I’ll just look at them here, if that’s okay.” She glanced down at the nameplate. “Mrs. Gates, I really am grateful for your help. This file might save me hours of footwork.”

  “I’m happy to be of assistance.” She pulled a file from the drawer. “Follow me and I’ll show you to the conference room.”

  “Thank you.” Katie gave the woman her warmest smile. She was on to something. Whenever she was close to solving her cases her stomach did a strange twisty thing, as if her instincts tipped her off that she was on the right track. It was how she solved her cases so quickly.

  Her boss, Mar, at Stonegate swore Katie was psychic in some way, but she didn’t believe it for a minute. She’d grown up around cops and looked at the world differently than other people did. That was all there was to it. She’d decided long ago that the stomachache was a mixed signal from her brain telling her to pay attention to the clues in front of her.

  Katie hoped there was something in the file, because so far she was clueless. Mac didn’t seem to have any enemies. Everyone loved him. She’d seen that at the party. People made a point of coming up and talking to him. He was kind and always introduced her. Even the dean was a fan, though she still disliked the man for not bringing in the police months ago to help with Mac’s case. Then again, if that had happened, she might never have met him. Before her mind could go off on a Mac tangent, one that would send her racing back to his lab, she made herself concentrate on the circumstances so far.

  The only person who’d avoided them was Caroline. As they’d moved through the party, she almost always seemed to be on the other side of the room. The woman’s actions threw up a giant red flag for Katie, especially when she caught her watching them more than once.

  “Here we are.” Mrs. Gates opened a door leading into the conference room. “Would you like a cup of tea or coffee?”

  Coffee wasn’t a bad idea, but she didn’t want to risk being here too long. The dean might have other ideas about her perusing the files and she wanted to get in and out as fast as possible. “I’m great, thank you. I won’t be more than a few minutes.”

  “Take your time,” she said. “Let me know if you need anything else.”

  After Mrs. Gates shut the door, Katie opened the file. The first few pages were forms required by the school. The young woman in question was only eighteen, but there was no name on the first
few pages.

  Then Katie opened a second file. There was the transcript from the deposition taken by both parties—the university and the girl’s lawyer.

  Initially the girl claimed Professor Carson had said that if she slept with her, she would give her an A. There had been some incidents of touching in the classroom, and according to the girl they’d shared several kisses in Caroline’s office. When the girl refused to sleep with her, the professor had failed her on the first test. The girl said she’d passed it but the professor had changed her answers.

  Katie rolled her eyes. If she had been involved she would have tossed the girl out then. Her story didn’t add up. All the professor had to do was provide the test in question, and the handwriting could be analyzed, or they could have looked for excessive eraser marks on the paper. The girl’s lawyer should have asked a proctor to readminister the test. Stupid mistakes all the way around.

  In a second transcript the girl swore she had misunderstood the professor, and profusely apologized. She admitted she had a drinking problem, and that was most likely the cause of the misunderstanding.

  Again, Katie wouldn’t have bought it. This time the story really didn’t add up, and it made her more suspicious of the professor. Had someone gotten to the girl? That’s what it felt like. Katie had run into that more than once in her cases. Witness tampering was something she and the rest of the detectives fought against constantly.

  At the bottom of the last page there was a signature from the girl. The paper stated all charges against the professor had been dropped, and the girl in question would attend alcohol awareness classes, as well as private therapy.

  But it was the signature that made Katie gasp with surprise, and suddenly all the pieces fell together. She flipped open her laptop.

  Something had told her the girl, Megan, the same one who had been harassing Mac, was involved with this case. Was it possible Megan had an accomplice? Perhaps it was this person who was the violent one, since Megan didn’t seem inclined to be that way. Katie had a feeling they were looking for someone older. She’d stake her reputation on it.