For His Daughter

by Dani Sinclair

  “Sorry.”

  “Good evening.”

  Jake Collins appeared at their table. Lee hadn’t seen his approach, but the well-dressed man offered them both a small smile.

  “Kayla, good to see you again. Officer Garvey. Have they recovered your car yet?”

  For a second Lee was surprised by the familiar way Collins addressed Kayla, and then he remembered she was a Realtor. She’d probably sold him this place.

  “No,” Lee said, answering the question. “I understand you think Matt Williams may have taken off in it.”

  The restaurant owner’s expression barely changed, but Lee sensed a subtle altering in the flick of his dark eyes.

  “It’s possible. He was...interested in your car.”

  “And maybe the gun under the seat?”

  The dark eyes deepened. “Not exactly a smart place to keep a weapon.”

  Lee nodded, unoffended. “I suspected he either took the gun or knew who did.”

  “You didn’t push the issue that day in the parking lot.”

  “I didn’t think he’d answer questions in front of you.”

  “You were no doubt correct. Matt was agitated that afternoon. There had been an...incident at summer school. I understand it led to trouble at home.”

  Kayla nodded sympathetically. “Matt has a lot of problems.”

  “True. I’d hoped he was...settling down some.”

  “I think he was. I know he appreciated being allowed to hang around here doing odd jobs and stuff. You helped him.”

  “Not enough, apparently.”

  There was a bleakness to his expression. Lee made a mental note to run a background check on Jake Collins.

  “I’ll be by to talk with you in a few days, Kayla,” Collins continued. “I want to ask you about some other property.”

  “Anytime. Give me a call.”

  He inclined his head and turned to Lee. “I hope they recover your car soon. Enjoy your meal.”

  “Thanks,” Lee said. The waitress immediately stepped forward with their salads.

  “What do you know about Collins?” Lee asked when the waitress left.

  “Not much. He arrived in town one day, bought this place from me and almost immediately started renovations. Rumors ran rampant. They always do in a small town like this, especially with a quiet man like Jake.”

  “What sort of rumors?”

  “Oh, you know. He’s ex-Mafia or maybe a criminal hiding out in town. One person decided he must be in the witness protection program, because he doesn’t talk about himself.” She shrugged. “I like him.”

  “Could his picture have been on Trowbridge’s wall?”

  Kayla looked startled, then thoughtful. “I don’t think so. He’s so quiet and reserved. Not at all her type.”

  “Have I just been insulted?”

  She laughed. “No. It’s just hard to picture Jake Collins with Fay, you know? But he lived at the Bide Awhile off and on until they renovated some temporary living quarters over the restaurant here. Anything’s possible, I guess.”

  “So what’s the deal with him and the Williams kid?”

  “The story around town is that he caught Matt trying to steal some materials from the work site one night. Instead of having him arrested, Jake put him to work.”

  “Mafia type, huh?”

  She knew when her chain was being pulled. “That’s one rumor. Just to be safe, I stay on his good side.” She smiled and Lee smiled back, then grew thoughtful.

  “You know, kids see a lot more than adults credit. I wonder if Williams was hanging around here that night.”

  “Well, if he holds to his usual pattern, we can ask him in a couple of days. He always comes back. He’s really not a bad kid, Lee.”

  “Uh-huh. I got news for you, good kids do not run around stealing expensive cars.”

  “Your car was expensive?”

  Lee nodded as he swallowed a bite of salad.

  Kayla held her own fork poised above her plate as she regarded him steadily. “Elizabeth said Fay was after your money.”

  “Elizabeth was right.” He realized that for all the talking they’d done, they really hadn’t gotten around to a lot of the personal stuff. “I’m rich.”

  Kayla raised speculative eyebrows. “Rich?”

  “You know, as in enough money for expensive cars.”

  “D.C. must pay their officers better than I thought.”

  “Hey, I’m not on the take.” He grinned, but she didn’t smile back. “Most women would be thrilled to be having dinner with a wealthy, eligible male.”

  “I’m not most women.”

  “I’ve noticed that.”

  “You’re really wealthy? As in monetarily?”

  “Afraid so.”

  She set down her fork with a distinct clink. “If you’re rich...”

  “How come Fay got custody?”

  Kayla’s head bobbed. “Well, yes, that too.”

  “I was an everyday police officer when we decided to part company. Then my mother’s brother died. He was the black sheep of the family, and my personal favorite relative. He was actually closer to my age than my mother’s so the two of us always had a great time whenever he came East. He lived in L.A. so that wasn’t often.”

  Lee dropped his voice to a conspiratorial level. “He worked in the movie industry, you see. Quit an exclusive college midterm when he came into some money. His parents were appalled. They never could accept that he would have been miserable as a lawyer. He had other goals in mind and he had some great stories to tell.”

  “I don’t see a lot of movies. Was he a famous actor?”

  “Nope. He was a lighting technician. He loved it. He was also a shrewd investor. Turns out, when he died of a brain aneurysm, he’d converted his inheritance into several million dollars, two of which he left to me.”

  “You’re telling me you’re a millionaire?”

  She looked astounded.

  “Hey, it’s not a social disease.”

  The waitress appeared with the entrées. Kayla barely noticed.

  “No wonder Fay was holding on to Meredith,” she muttered.

  The mention of his daughter brought a return of all his frustrations. He only hoped his sister had been able to catch a plane into D.C. tonight. His lawyer should already have the paperwork under way to have Meredith returned to people he could trust.

  “Merry was Fay’s bargaining chip,” he agreed. “She. would never have divorced me if she’d known about the money. But then, I wouldn’t have divorced her if I’d known about Merry so I guess we were even.”

  Kayla reached out her hand. “I’m sorry, Lee.”

  “Me, too. I wish I’d met you first.”

  “Ha. You wouldn’t have taken a second look.”

  Lee stroked the back of her hand. That only reminded him that her skin was incredibly soft all over.

  “Unfortunately, you could be right,” he told her honestly. Her eyes widened and he tipped his head. “I was pretty shallow back then. Into glitz and glamour, not happily ever after. Fay oozed sex appeal.”

  “I’m happy to say I have never oozed.”

  “I know. Your beauty’s deeper, more subtle. The kind that will last forever. Like your hand.” Kayla looked thoroughly flustered. He really did like the way she blushed so easily.

  “My hand?”

  “It’s a remarkable device. Delicate. Soft.” He caressed it gently. “But also able to grip strongly.” He pressed his thumb into her palm. Her hand automatically closed over it. Subtly he began stroking. Kayla shivered.

  “Your food’s getting cold,” she told him with darting glances around the room to see if anyone noticed.

  “Well, I’m getting hot.”

  Kayla pulled her hand free and tried to look scolding. “Behave yourself.”

  “I am behaving. I haven’t dragged you to the floor yet, have I?”

  “Will you stop that?” Her blush went wild.

  “Do you really wan
t me to?”

  “Yes.”

  “Okay.” He lifted his knife and fork and cut into the slab of prime rib. “I guess it would be a shame to waste this.” For several minutes they ate in silence.

  “I can’t believe it,” Kayla said abruptly. “If you’re rich, why are you still a cop?”

  “It’s what I do. My uncle always wanted to be part of Hollywood. That didn’t stop just because his investments started paying off. I always wanted to be a cop. Same thing.”

  “But it’s such a thankless job.”

  “Not always. Sometimes it’s very rewarding.” Kayla listened attentively while they ate and he described situations that highlighted the side of law enforcement he enjoyed. He tried hard to make her understand the way he felt about the importance of the work he did.

  “You really love your work, don’t you?” she asked finally as they lingered over coffee.

  “Yeah. I do. There’s good and bad in all walks of life, Kayla, but most of us are just out there trying to make a difference.” If there was going to be any sort of future for the two of them, he had to make her see cops like Osher and the jerk who’d killed her father were in the minority.

  “Do you want to go back to my place and practice doing strip searches?” she asked suddenly.

  Lee gaped. Her blush returned, but her eyes held steady. She appeared self-conscious yet determined.

  “I thought since you’re such a dedicated cop and all...”

  “You never cease to amaze me.”

  “Good.”

  But there was something almost sad in her expression. A wistfulness he couldn’t quite understand.

  KAYLA WOKE TO THE DISTANT rumble of thunder. Lee was asleep beside her, the lines of fatigue and tension temporarily smoothed away. She resisted the urge to touch him. That would only wake him and the man was entirely too dangerous to her senses when he was awake. Carefully she slipped from the bed and gathered up fresh clothing.

  As she stood beneath the shower, she allowed herself just a moment of regret for what might have been and was now so clearly impossible. The situation had been bad enough when Lee was just a cop. Now he was a millionaire! She always prided herself on taking people as they came. But she had to admit, she found the idea of Lee being wealthy a bit intimidating.

  Quietly she dressed and went out to the kitchen to call the hospital and check on her brother. Lee’s hands slid around her waist a few minutes later, startling her. She thanked the nurse profusely and hung up.

  “Good news?” Lee asked.

  She turned in his arms, completely aware of the strength of him as he held her. “The best. They’ve downgraded his position and moved him out of ICU. He’s conscious and alert and asking for us.”

  “I’m glad.” Lee kissed her neck, nuzzling her cheek. “Mmm. You taste good. Let me get dressed and we’ll drive up to see him. I can’t believe we slept so late.”

  She returned his kiss with a longing that was soul deep. She would miss him horribly when he left. It was funny, because she’d never shared her life or her home with anyone before, yet it all felt so natural with Lee.

  “Something wrong?” he asked.

  He was too perceptive by half. She pasted a smile on her face. “Yes. If you want breakfast, you’d better let me go so I can get it ready.”

  His hand ran caressingly down her face to linger at her shoulder. “It won’t take me a minute to get you ready for breakfast,” he promised.

  She pushed him away with a laugh, loving the amusement shining in his eyes. Loving everything about him.

  “Go. Shower. Shave. You know the drill.”

  “Yes, ma’am.”

  His kiss left her breathless. How was she ever going to survive when he left?

  ALEX HAD NO IDEA who had jumped him.

  “I left Fay’s by the back door. As I started around the side of the house, something slammed into the back of my head. Everything’s vague after that. They say it may come back, but it may not.”

  Alex rubbed at his temples, his head obviously hurting. One eye was completely closed, a cut creased the other one. His face and hands were a mass of cuts and bruises and the visible part of his taped chest was an ugly blue.

  “You know, you could use a new set of friends,” Lee said mildly.

  “And you can mind your own business,” Alex snapped back.

  Kayla hastily interjected. “Did you find anything at Fay’s, Alex?”

  “Yeah. There were two pills in her medicine cabinet sitting in plain sight.”

  “I found the one in your pocket,” Lee told him. “It’s on its way to be analyzed.”

  Kayla scolded him with a look. “You didn’t tell me that.”

  “Sorry. I mailed it to a friend of mine while we were at the hospital yesterday. He’ll test it, but I don’t think there’s much doubt about what he’ll find.”

  “Neither do I,” Alex agreed. “What about the two of you? What did you discover?”

  “Barney Trowbridge.”

  Alex listened in shock as Lee related the events. Hearing them spoken, Kayla was a little shocked herself by everything that had happened. Her life had been so serene until Lee blew in like a hurricane.

  “You may already know this, but Osher was at the restaurant that night,” Lee said.

  “I didn’t know. I never saw him there, but there were a lot of people. So it’s coming down to him or Ruckles?”

  “Unless Trowbridge killed her. But then, who killed Trowbridge?”

  Alex reached to pull back his sheet. Even that small act made him wince. “I need to get out of here.”

  “Tomorrow.” Kayla braced a hand on his chest. “Trust me, big brother, I have the upper hand right now. You are staying right here until the doctor releases you. He said tomorrow.”

  “I’m fine.”

  Kayla glared, determined to win. “I’m sure you’re fine for someone who went ten rounds and lost, but if you don’t stop moving around I’m going to punch you!”

  His annoyance quickly faded to humor. “How do you put up with her?” he asked Lee.

  Lee, she noticed, was watching the two of them, amused. “Oh, she has her moments.”

  Kayla nudged him in the ribs and a nurse sailed in to take her brother’s vital signs. Lunches were being wheeled down the hall so they took their leave, promising to return later that evening.

  Outside, the rain had stopped, but the sky wore a sullen face and the late afternoon air was heavy with heat and humidity. They got back in the car, thankful for the working air-conditioning.

  “Should we go and talk to the Ruckles?” she asked Lee.

  “No.” He grinned mischievously. “But what the heck.”

  “Wasn’t Chief Hepplewhite going to arrange for you to see Meredith yesterday or today?”

  Lee scowled. “Yeah, until Ruckles told him he was filing a custody suit for her. I’ve got my lawyer working on things. My sister agreed to fly in tomorrow to take temporary custody. Assuming they let her have Merry. You’ll like my sister,” he added. “She likes to run roughshod over me, too.”

  “Poor baby.”

  Lee offered a lopsided smile. As he drove down the interstate, they both kept an eye on the sky overhead. An ugly patch of dark clouds lay on the horizon.

  “Looks like more rain,” Lee commented. “Let’s see if we can find a radio station giving weather updates.”

  They came up on the Fools Point exit before Kayla found what Lee had requested. A severe thunderstorm watch was in effect for Montgomery and several other counties.

  Lee slowed as they passed in front of the Bide Awhile. Kayla repressed a shudder. An air of desolation hung over the place. Oddly enough, that same atmosphere hung over the Ruckles’ expensive house.

  “Looks like an Alfred Hitchcock movie set,” Lee grumbled.

  Lightning flicked across the sky in the distance behind the house. The building itself sat on top of the bluff in an isolated splendor that somehow looked eerie against the strangely
colored sky. A low rumble of thunder indicated the storm was still some ways off.

  “You want to wait and come back?” Lee offered.

  “No. That’s Elizabeth’s car. Let’s see what she has to say.”

  Apparently, Elizabeth didn’t have anything to say. At least not to them. She didn’t answer the intercom, or the door when Lee tried pounding on it.

  “Come on. We usually have more luck out back.”

  “Not with a thunderstorm coming.”

  “Take me any bets?”

  He would have lost the bet. The patio was empty, but both of them stared at the obvious signs of a scuffle. A glass lay smashed on the concrete. The lounge chair had been shoved back against the house at an awkward angle. The glass tabletop was cracked, and wind rifled the exposed pages of a book.

  Kayla’s gaze flew to the swimming pool. The pool was empty, but a single sheet of paper had blown near the edge. Kayla let out the breath she’d been holding and bent to retrieve the paper.

  “What is it?” Lee asked.

  “A letter to some lawyer. It’s dated more than two weeks ago.” She read on, astonished. “Jason was filing for divorce! This is written confirmation to also proceed with the adoption proceedings the moment the DNA samples come back positive.”

  She looked up at Lee in consternation. Cold fury turned his gray eyes to stone. He spun without a word and skirted the damage on the patio, heading for the sliding glass door. Finding it locked, he peered inside.

  “I can’t see anything clearly, but this looks like a family room. I don’t see a body.”

  A rush of cool air swept over them. Kayla didn’t think that’s why she suddenly had goose bumps. Lee thought Elizabeth had been killed? He tried to jiggle open the locked door the way he had at the motel.

  “Guess that method only works if the lock is broken,” he muttered. “We’d better call this in. Do you still have your phone?”

  Kayla dug in her purse for her cell phone and dialed. It took her a moment to realize why the call wasn’t going through. “The battery needs recharging, Lee.”