by Style, Linda
“My big sister always knows what’s best for everyone in the family. But that’s just because she doesn’t know what to do with herself now that she’s celebrated her fortieth birthday and all the kids are in school or gone. Speaking of which, where are they?”
“They’re coming with their favorite uncle,” Maria needled.
Macy knew they were teasing each other, but she wasn’t used to all the kidding around and felt the odd man out. She couldn’t think of a single thing to say and they’d probably all see her as some stuck-up prude. And after seeing Josephine’s perfectly pressed skirt and blouse and Maria’s fancy slacks outfit, she glanced down at her super casual clothes, pretty sure her short shorts and tank top weren’t the right attire for this particular barbecue. Usually she was the one who overdressed.
“It’s about time,” Maria said glancing toward the back door. Macy saw three kids scoot down the steps, followed by another younger woman with dark hair and the face of an angel. With her, a blond man who towered over the rest of the group.
At Macy’s side, Rico placed his hand at the small of her back. “This is Macy Capshaw, everyone.” Then he looked at the smaller children. “And this is Anna, Tony and Michael.” Rico touched each child’s head as he said their name. “And the proud parents of this gang—” he made a wide sweep with his arm “—my middle sister, Angela, and her Viking husband, Eric.”
“Pleased to meet you everyone,” Macy said.
The dog bounded over and the little girl, Anna, squealed. Macy wasn’t sure if the child was excited or frightened. “This is Hercules—” she said quickly, “—and he really likes to play with children.”
Michael frowned. “Hercules isn’t a dog’s name.”
“Michael!” Angela said. “People can name their dogs whatever they want.”
“Don’t mind him,” Eric said, shaking Macy’s hand. Angela hugged her. By then, the children were chasing after Hercules and suddenly a half dozen other people burst through the door.
“Okay, everyone,” Rico said holding up his hands, “I’m only going to do the intros once and then it’s up to you. This is my friend Macy Capshaw, and the rest of this gang are—” he pointed to the new arrivals individually “—my sister Carly, the youngest and the only unmarried female in the group, my brothers Vinnie, Tony and Marco, and their wives, Nancy, Anne Marie, and Delaney. The rest of these rug rats—” he pointed to four or five kids who’d already joined the others in the yard “—are my nieces and nephews, and you might get their names if they ever sit down.”
Josephine came out the door. “Well, that’s enough to confuse the poor girl for the rest of the day. Don’t worry if you don’t remember everyone’s name, dear. I forget most of the time.”
Macy smiled, realizing now where Rico picked up his protective nature.
“Macy has a mind like a steel trap,” Rico complimented her.
“All right,” the youngest brother, Marco, piped up. “Let’s put her to the test.”
Within seconds they’d all gathered around Macy. She felt trapped, but took a breath. “Okay, Marco—” she looked directly at him, then she turned and pointed to each person as she said their name.
“Amazing,” Maria said when Macy finished. “The first woman Rico’s dated who has a brain.”
Rico glared at his sister. “And how would you know what kind of women I’ve dated?”
“I told her,” another voice boomed from the back door and Jordan St. James sauntered over and gave Josephine a big hug. “Hey, Mama Jo. You look as beautiful as ever.”
Josephine waved him off. Obviously he knew the family well. Macy knew Jordan and Rico worked together, but she didn’t have any idea they were this close.
“You talking about me behind my back,” Rico said to Jordan, not as a question but as a matter of fact, and then clapped him on the shoulder.
“Always.” Jordan winked at Maria. The two men did the male bear hug thing, as if testing their strength against each other. She expected them to start chest bumping any minute.
When they stopped, Jordan smiled. “Macy, nice to see you again.”
“Where’s the other Musketeer?” Rico’s oldest brother, Vinnie, asked.
“Luke’s on a call, but he’ll stop by when he’s done.”
The rest of the afternoon and early evening went much the same way, everyone joking, eating and drinking. Everything was done as a group. Rico couldn’t grill the steaks without Vinnie and his father telling him how to do it. Maria couldn’t set the table quite the way Josephine wanted. And all the brothers and sisters chided Josephine and Mario about retiring and turning the business over to Vinnie, who’d apparently been working toward that goal for years.
Macy grinned. So much for Josephine’s lecture on the evils of working too much.
Despite the fact that everyone in the family was as nice as they could be, Macy stumbled with each word trying to participate. They seemed comfortable saying whatever they felt like to each other — the polar opposite of her family. With them, she’d had to weigh every word.
When Jordan went to one of the coolers and pulled out a beer, Macy edged next to him. “If that’s red wine in there, I’ll have some while you’re at it.”
“It sure looks like it,” he said, grinning. “Not the way you like it though, is it?”
She knew he meant it wasn’t room temperature as red wine is usually served. “It’s perfect,” she said, straightening her spine. What did he think? That she was some pretentious snob?
But then he smiled. “Just hang in there. This group can be murder on a newcomer.”
“So I gather. I’m not sure what I should do. Try to blend in or just sit and drink a lot of wine.”
Jordan laughed. “Hey, do what you always do. Schmooze.”
Maybe he was right. While this wasn’t the same type of event she was used to, she knew what to do in a roomful of strangers. She’d done it for years at home and then at all those charity functions she’d had to endure. While it went against her nature, she’d actually learned to be quite good at networking.
Watching Rico dazzle the children, she sat with Carla and chatted about the girl’s major at Syracuse University. She admired Maria’s outfit and Angela’s hair. Rico bounced around as much as she did, coming over to sit with her off and on, always asking how she was doing.
When she gave a hand waggle of so-so, Maria, who’d been standing close said, “You mean you’re not ready to give up everything for a life in the suburbs? Doing the same thing day in and day out? Be the chauffeur, cook, maid, baby-sitter and then switch to love goddess at night?”
Macy laughed. Apparently Maria had some issues being a stay-at-home mom.
Rico looked at Macy, as if curious to hear her answer.
“It’s not even an option. I’m quite comfortable with my life.”
Maria seemed a little tongue-tied by Macy’s response, which was fine with Macy. When Rico left to go back to mingling, she did the same, finding Rico’s brothers and his father, Mario, the hardest to get to know since all they talked about was sports.
When everyone finally left, somewhere around 9 p.m., Macy’s jaw was sore from talking. She sat on the navy blue corduroy sectional in the family room and curled her legs underneath her, thankful that Rico’s sisters had cleaned the kitchen already. “Your sister Maria looked so familiar,” she said. “Something about her—I felt as if I’d seen her before somewhere.”
Rico mumbled a response about everyone having those feelings now and then. He seemed agitated. Macy watched him go to the refrigerator for a soda, check outside to make sure the grill was off and there was nothing left to clean up. When he finally sank into the opposite end of the couch, he flipped on the television and clicked around from one channel to another.
It was almost as if he didn’t want to talk to her — or be alone with her. “What’s going on?”
He looked at her as if she had snakes growing out of her head. “What do you mean?”
“You’re tig
hter than a vise, and you’ve barely said a word to me since your family left. Did I make some kind of major faux pas?”
His expression stilled and he clicked off the television. “You’re right. I’m preoccupied. But not about anything you did. You were perfect as a matter of fact. And they all loved you.”
“Well, what then?”
“I’m worried about tomorrow.”
“Tomorrow? What happens tomorrow?”
“You tell me.”
“Work. What else?”
He slid next to her, dead serious. “Since the man who attacked you is in the hospital, the police may not see a need to do anything. I contacted the investigating officer and requested a watch on your home. But you need to be cautious. At home and at work. The police will make routine checks but they won’t be around all the time.”
She liked his concern. “I have to call someone to fix the door and replace the locks. I’ll get a new security code, too.”
He rested an elbow against the back of the couch, his dark eyes on hers.
“You don’t have to go, you know. You can stay here as long as you want.” His voice was soft, urging her to say yes.
She felt a ripple of excitement. But it was too tempting. Staying here was too comfortable. She wouldn’t have a chance in hell of getting her life back to normal. Did she even want to?
“It would be safer.”
“Thanks,” she said quietly. “But I have to go home sometime.” Home would be safer — emotionally.
He fingered a stray hair before touching her cheek lightly with his fingertips. “It’s a selfish offer. I’m enjoying the company.”
His admission surprised her, and her chest squeezed a little. “I am, too,” she said. “That’s the problem.”
He pulled back. “That’s a problem?”
She nodded. “Yes, it is. We’re two people thrown together because of circumstances. We’re attracted to each other, but…”
“Never the twain shall meet?” he finished for her and gave a wry smile.
“Something like that.”
“Well, I like being with you, you like being with me, regardless of the circumstances, and yes, I’m attracted. Very much so.”
Her pulse raced. “So what should we do about it?”
“We’re adults. We can do anything we want.”
He was right. Who said every relationship had to go somewhere?
“We can,” she whispered. “We can do anything we want.” Almost before the words came out, he kissed her. His hands were in her hair, and all the silent promises she’d just made to herself melted away like ice cubes in the desert.
Rico tasted the wine on her lips and felt as intoxicated as if he’d drank a whole bottle. But it wasn’t the wine that made him feel that way. It was Macy. She was all the aphrodisiac he’d needed.
Right then he knew all those platitudes he’d just spouted were lies. He couldn’t have a sexual relationship with her and not want more. He knew that as well as he knew how to collar a suspect.
Vaguely he heard the doggy door slap shut and was glad Hercules had gone out. He drew her onto his lap, his hands leaving her hair and working down to her waist. He wanted to touch her everywhere and everywhere he touched made him want more. His fingers felt on fire and he was suddenly acutely aware of everything about her, the softness of her hair, the sweet scent that was uniquely hers, the smoothness of her skin, the fullness of her lips.
He wanted her. Every part of her. He slipped his hands under her shirt, her smooth skin like balm on his. He unsnapped her bra and caressed her small but perfect breasts, only vaguely aware when she pulled off her top. As he deepened the kiss, she tightened her arms around him and gave him back even more. He wanted to be inside her. Make her his.
Excitement thundered through him, a rush like nothing he’d ever experienced.
Holding Macy in his arms, he stood, took her hand, and headed for the bedroom.
CHAPTER SIXTEEN
THE EARLY-MORNING SUN shone through the blinds giving Rico a ladder of light to see by. He eased off the bed and looked at Macy, calm in sleep. She was beautiful, he thought, not for the first time. But it wasn’t just a physical beauty. He liked how she fit right in with his family, how she didn’t flinch at helping, even though he knew she’d never done it before in her life. He’d made a 180 in his opinion about Macy Capshaw. She’d surprised him. Caught him off guard and found a place in his heart. And that was the biggest surprise of all.
He headed for the shower, quietly closed the door and turned on the water. As steam filled the room, and even as he smiled remembering their lovemaking, his insides tensed and churned. He’d never been so drawn to someone. In the past, he’d always wanted to run the other direction when things turned serious. But this time, he wanted to keep her there with him. He wanted her to himself.
But true to form, Macy’d been up-front about what she wanted — or more to the point, what she didn’t want — from the beginning. So what was his problem? Most guys would love the idea of a relationship without ties. Hell, that had been his MO most of his adult life.
So, what was different now?
Two things he knew for sure. One was that Macy Capshaw would never give up all her comforts to live on a detective’s salary — and he couldn’t blame her. Two, he knew he’d never be a kept man. Both important points he couldn’t forget just because he was in love with her.
In love with her. The realization hit him like a knockout blow and he was down for the count. And he had no control over what was going to happen next.
Macy was awake when he finished in the bathroom. “Good morning,” she said as she stretched her arms, her body arching invitingly.
So much for the cold shower. “Good morning.” He secured the towel around his waist and went to the closet for his clothes, pulling out a pair of jeans and a black Polo shirt. “I hope you slept well.”
“For the first time in a week.” She stretched again, then pushed to a sitting position, holding the sheet over her breasts.
“Well, stay in bed as long as you want.” He grabbed his underwear from a drawer, dressed and took a sport jacket from the closet. “Just make sure you’re careful. Don’t go anywhere that isn’t safe. Okay?”
“Aye, aye, sir.” She gave a two-finger salute.
“Hey, I’m concerned about you.”
“I know. I’m just giving you a hard time.” He saw a teasing glint in her eyes.
He leaned over the bed and kissed her softly before he shrugged on his jacket. “Would you like some coffee?” he asked. It’s made. There’s stuff for breakfast, too, but I don’t have time to fix it.”
Surprise crossed her face. “I didn’t expect you to. I rarely eat breakfast anyway.”
“Now that’s not good for—” He stopped midsentence. His sister Carly was right. He was too protective. “Never mind,” he mumbled. “I have to go.”
He started to walk away, but turned. “Here’s a key, in case you decide to come back.” Placing it on the table next to her, he added, “For whatever reason.”
***
ALL THE WAY TO the station Rico replayed the image of Macy sprawled in bed. It was true that she couldn’t stay there forever and he couldn’t protect her and still do his job. Pulling into the police garage, he saw Luke climbing from his Escalade. Luke always said he had nothing else to spend his money on, so he might as well enjoy his ride. He waited for Rico to park and they walked in together.
“Sorry I didn’t make it yesterday. I got a good homicide.”
Rico knew the feeling. While he’d teased Macy about never having fun, he was guilty of putting his job ahead of most everything else, too. “Anything on the cold cases?”
“All at different stages. Some are waiting CSU.” Luke opened the door for Rico. “What’s with you?”
“Nothing.”
“You have a houseguest. That’s something.”
Rico looked up at Luke who only had an inch on him, if that, but his fri
end always seemed taller because he stood so straight. Military straight. “Temporary houseguest. She’s going home today.”
“Too bad.”
“What do you mean?”
“All that money…” Luke gave a tsk-tsk sound and shot Rico a glance. “Hey, if you’re not interested…”
Rico’s blood pressure spiked. Joking around had always been normal among Rico, Luke and Jordan, but Luke’s humor seemed crude in reference to Macy. “She’s not up for grabs. So back off.”
“Whoa. No offense meant, buddy.” Luke drew back, then followed Rico to his desk. “I mean it. I didn’t know you were hooked.”
He fell into his chair and drew a deep breath. “I know you didn’t mean anything. Forget it. I’m just irritable. Not enough coffee.”
“Not enough something,” Luke muttered under his breath as he walked away.
Rico saw Jordan come in and bump shoulders with Luke on his way out. “Mary Beth gave me some information for you,” Jordan said as he dumped a ream of papers on Rico’s desk.
“The financial reports for Haven’s Gate.”
“What exactly were you looking for?”
“I don’t know. Haven’s Gate is a nonprofit agency, so the money has to come from somewhere and it has to go somewhere. I thought it might give me something else to go on.”
“Maybe so. I took a look and—” Jordan flipped a couple pages “—and it seems the people who pay the medical care and other expenses are the adoptive parents.”
“How much?”
“It’s not defined. Just lump-sum deposits of several million dollars per year. About a quarter of that is divided between Haven’s Gate and another organization called Family Care Services, which could be the adoption agency.”
“So the question is — where does the rest of it go?” Rico scanned the pages. Two numbered accounts showed a sizable amount of money funneled into both.
“For a nonprofit there’s a lot of money that’s not going back into the agency,” Jordan said.
“Yeah. Let’s get a trace on these two accounts. It’s still within our purview. And I’ll get the financial records for the other agency. They’re probably nonprofit, too.”