“Don’t tell me that.”
“Sorry, sweet cheeks. Lucky for you, we’ve got it under control. With the security we have in place, no one will steal a car from here tomorrow night. That, I can promise you.”
Chapter Eighteen
Billy sat in the war room, his flip-flop-clad feet propped on the fancy table and his arms tucked behind his head while he contemplated the puzzling white board. There were so many connections and yet, he couldn’t hook any of them.
His interviews of the hotel employees regarding who had access to car keys, the drivers’ schedules or anything else transportation related, had turned up nothing. Not even an iota of a suspicion on his part. Good for Kristen that her employees were an honest lot, but bad for his investigation.
Back to Bradley J. Murphy and Donovan Archer. Yes, they were the registered agents for the Jaguar and BMW dealerships. Yes, both those makes of cars had been stolen with the use of keys rather than the antenna. Was it enough to tie these guys to the thefts?
Not yet.
But throw in Jess’s cheating wuss of an ex-boyfriend and Billy’s mental radar went off the charts. Maybe Alex was responsible for picking up the copied keys and delivering the money to the worker-bee at the dealerships?
Old Alex was the middleman.
Did the dealership owner, or owners—assuming it was two different people, which Billy doubted—even know Bradley J. and Donovan were in on it?
Billy sat forward, gave the war board a stare that should have sawed through it.
“Wow,” Manny said from the doorway, and Billy slipped from his trance. “You look mad.”
“Manuel, how are you, my friend?”
The kid looked at the board and Billy sucked in a breath. He shouldn’t be looking at it.
“What are you doing?” Manny asked.
Billy waved his arms to draw Manny’s gaze from the board. “Just working on some stuff. You got off school early today?”
“No school today. Teacher conferences.”
“Ah.” Billy had always hated teacher conferences. In his mind, they’d been the opportunity for teachers to tell his parents he needed to be medicated. Back then, school administrators hadn’t known how to deal with him and his active brain.
“Can I help you?” Manny asked. “With your stuff? I’ll be quiet.”
Not a good idea. Billy grinned at the kid. He didn’t so much mind him hanging around, but whatever was going on with this war board wasn’t for him to see.
“First, you being quiet isn’t possible. That I can live with. I’m afflicted with an anti-silence mode myself. Second, I’m doing grown-up stuff, pal, and I don’t think it’s a good idea for you to be involved.”
Immediately, the kid’s face collapsed. “Did I do something wrong?”
Billy walked to him and got to eye level. “Not at all. Why would you think that?”
“You don’t let me hang out with you anymore. Not since I helped in the parking lot.”
Ah, crap. Dead last thing he wanted was for this heck of a nice kid to feel abandoned or left out. “I promise you didn’t do anything wrong. It’s grown-up stuff, okay?”
In typical Manny style, he swiped a hand across his forehead and smiled the oversized-teeth smile that never failed to entertain. “Whew! I thought I was in trouble because I told my brother.”
Uh-oh. Billy’s ears thumped, but he kept his lips sealed and his stance neutral until the urge to go full throttle passed. “You’re not in trouble. What did you tell your brother?”
The brother Kristen suspects is a gang member.
Manny rocked back and forth. “You know, about helping with the cameras that day. I thought it was cool that I got to help.”
The mild thumping in Billy’s ears turned to a head rush that spun the room and he fought to remain still. Bleeping son of a biscuit. Manny told his brother the possible gang member about discovering the blind spot. Could this be how the thieves figured out that he had adjusted the security?
If not, that was one hell of a coincidence.
He stared at Manny, who clearly thought this revelation might end their partnership. At that moment, the one thing Billy knew, without a doubt, was that he didn’t want to break this kid’s heart.
Not today.
Not ever.
“Listen, Boy Wonder, sometimes things go a little sideways and we have to work around it. It’s not a big deal. Don’t sweat it.”
“Let It Be” sounded from his phone. He snatched it up and punched the talk button. “Hi, Ma. Hang on a sec.”
Billy dropped a hand on Manny’s shoulder. “You’re not in trouble, okay?”
Manny nodded.
“This is my mom. I gotta take it. You know how that is, right?”
Again, he nodded.
“Good deal. I should be done with my work in a couple hours. How about I find you and we grab something to eat or an ice cream? That work for you?”
The kid’s cheeks transformed into happy, grinning bunches and Billy felt a stab in his chest. He’d miss this turkey when he left.
Manny bolted and Billy went back to his phone. “Hi, Ma.”
“What are you doing?”
He rolled his eyes. Even his mother? Could he get a damned break from people always questioning his actions? “I’m still in Florida working on a security issue at Dante.”
Mom clucked her tongue. “Have you met Tom Dante? You know I find him very attractive.”
And people wondered where his filtering issues came from? “Uh, no, I didn’t realize you find him attractive. If you were here, I’d introduce you. He just got back from Dubai.” Right after I got friendly with his daughter in the shower. He blew out a breath because—for God’s sake—he was talking to his mother and thinking X-rated thoughts about Kristen. “Anyway, nice man.”
A knock sounded and Billy glanced up to see the X-rated one in the doorway. He grinned and waved her into the room. “Did I mention I’m crushing on his daughter?”
“Oh, Billy, not her. She’s too wild. I read all about her in the tabloids. She’s loose.”
Tension curled around his neck. His attempt at humor had backfired. What the hell was he supposed to say? Not the slutty daughter, the other one. With Kristen standing a foot away? Not a wise move.
“No. Kristen is the oldest.”
He grinned up at Kristen and she smiled. Very good. Make like his mother asked a question.
“Oh, you mean the other sister. The one who runs the hotel?”
“Yes.”
Mom sniffed. “I’m so proud. Finally. A decent girl.”
“Ma!”
M.H. drew her eyebrows together. This thing was turning into a landslide. He cleared his throat and said to Kristen, “My mother thinks with your brains and our combined good looks, we’ll have exceptional children.”
“I did not say that,” his mother said.
“She did not say that,” Kristen said.
Billy went back to his phone. “Ma, don’t lie. You know you did.”
Too much fun. But one of them was bound to kill him. Still, a vision of Kristen chasing after a brood of kids, his kids, popped to mind. That alone was a shock. Not only the thought of kids, but settling down, staying in one place with one woman had never been on his agenda.
But Kristen, she’d be a terrific mom, just like his own mother, who would support her child, no matter how exhausting that child might be. Kristen’s patience with her sister and him, and her love for Manny, they were proof of it.
“I should smack you,” Mom said.
Speaking of loving mothers. Billy laughed.
“What are you doing about Christmas?” Mom asked.
Christmas? Billy glanced at Kristen and something in his chest opened up. What that was, he didn’t know, nor had it ever happened before, but he liked it. A lot. Suddenly, he knew where he wanted to be for Christmas.
“Not sure yet. I’m due back in Chicago on Monday. I guess I’ll get my schedule then. I’ll let you
know.”
“Well, it would be nice to see you. I know you were just here for Thanksgiving, but…”
“I know, Ma. If I don’t make it for Christmas, I’ll make it there soon. Okay? I gotta go. Can I call you back?”
“How’s the swearing going?”
Still staring at Kristen’s back, fighting the urge to check out her legs in the midthigh skirt while talking to his madre, he winced. “I’m at about seventy percent.”
“Seventy? That’s it?”
He pushed his thumb and index finger into his eyes. All she’d asked was for him to quit swearing and he couldn’t give her a one hundred percent? After all she’d done for him? She deserved more. “I’m sorry. It’s not easy when I’m around guys who swear all day. It’s like being sober around a bunch of drunks. I kinda want to join in.”
That made his mother laugh and he grinned at the sound. He could always make her laugh. Which, he supposed, was part of his problem. The sound of someone’s laughter always kicked him to high gear and the more people laughed, the more outrageous he got.
“Thank you for trying,” his mother said. “I’ll talk to you later.”
Billy clicked off, tossed his phone on the table.
Kristen spun from the war board. “Everything okay?”
“My mom was checking in. Wanted to know about Christmas and my swearing. I think I disappointed her on both.”
Kristen sat in the chair across from him. “But you’re trying. You’re definitely getting better. That’s worth something, right?”
“She’s used to my whacked out schedule. And the swearing, well…” he shrugged. “What are you doing for Christmas?”
“We go to my dad’s on Christmas Eve. It’s always fun to see my extended family. Every year Dad hires some fantastic chef. Then I spend a quiet Christmas Day with my mom.”
Any room for me? But no, he wouldn’t ask. Odd to even be thinking about it. He hadn’t spent a Christmas with a woman outside of his family in years.
“I think I would like doing the same thing every year. I never know where I’ll be. Can’t really make any plans.”
Kristen leaned forward and propped her chin in her hand. “I couldn’t do that. I like traditions. It’s the one time all year we come together and just enjoy being a family. Even Jess shows up. Too bad you’re going back to Chicago. You could have come to my dad’s with me. We always have guests. It’s an open door for wayward friends.”
That got his attention. “Really? Your dad just met me.”
She laughed. “Yeah, but he was amused. He likes your ambition. Even if you did break ten or twenty laws.”
“Don’t start, M.H.”
She held up her hands. “That’s not why I came in here. Jess is on the VIP pool deck. If you want to talk to her, we can go now.”
Billy shot from his chair. “I found some bar receipts in Bradley J.’s files that have a weird drink on them. I want to see if she knows whose drink it is. And, by the way, Manny told his brother the gang member about me finding the blind spot.”
Slowly, Kristen turned to him with a so-that’s-what-happened look.
“Yep,” Billy said. “Another piece to the puzzle. I’m not putting it on my board though. I don’t want Manny to see it. He thought he was in trouble. That kid breaks my damned heart.”
“I know. He’s such a good boy. Did you tell him he’s not in trouble?”
“Yeah, but it proves your point about talking in front of him. Either way, if he told his brother about the blind spot, maybe the brother shared it with our friend the gang member who got busted. It’s a link. I don’t know how the hell it ties back to this car dealer thing yet, but we’ll figure it out.”
The immediate step to that would be talking to Jess about the bar receipts. “Let’s go find your sister.”
* * *
They stepped onto the pool deck, where the hostess stood by the gated entrance checking names on the guest list. Kristen surveyed the area. Gorgeous, long-legged, bikini-clad women outnumbered the men by three to one. Palm trees swayed in the breeze and offered shade to five cabanas holding tables covered with food. Kristen imagined the profits that would stem from this weekend and hummed to herself.
She turned to one of the gorgeous, long-legged women, this one wearing a haltered mini-dress with a Dante nametag. “Hi, Sherry. Busy day up here.”
“Sure is. The senator’s guests are arriving. I just called down for extra lounge chairs.”
“Good. Whatever we need to do to keep the senator happy, just let me know.”
“Yes, ma’am.” Sherry turned her attention to Billy and threw her shoulders back so her boobs took center stage. In the halter dress, it wasn’t hard, but Kristen supposed the cleavage helped Sherry’s tip fund. She couldn’t blame a girl for trying to make a living, but the familiar pang of insufficiency nipped her. The beautiful people of the world wouldn’t understand.
Billy though, he was scanning the pool deck, ignoring Sherry and her boobs. Excellent. That would earn him extra attention that evening. “Is Jess here?”
“By the bar.”
Kristen grabbed Billy’s arm, brought him through the gate onto the pool deck and turned to him. “Thank you.”
“For what?”
“For pretending to ignore Sherry and her perky boobs.”
“What boobs?”
“Exactly. You scored points on that one, Billy Tripp.”
“Working for the nudity, M.H. Workin’ for the nudity.”
“Keep it up and you just might get it.”
Tilting his head close to her ear, he said, “You tramp you.”
A spark of heat unrelated to the blazing sun, whirled in her core. Oh, to bottle that feeling for his eventual departure. She closed her eyes and willed that nasty seed of a thought away. She’d take what she could get and deal with the carnage later. She opened her eyes and spotted her sister in stiletto heels and a bright pink string bikini that was more string than bikini. “Speaking of tramps, there’s Jess.”
Immediately, she slapped her hand over her mouth. What a thing to say.
“Filter,” Billy mimicked.
“I can’t believe I just said that.”
“Eh, give yourself a break. It was a moment of weakness.” He grinned that silly grin of his. “I have them all the time.”
“Don’t I know it?”
Kristen stopped to greet guests, thank them for their business and inquire about their needs. Part of her job was keeping these high rollers happy and if sending over champagne would do it, well, she’d suck it up. Within reason.
Each stop brought her closer to Jess, and a wave of insecurity churned in her stomach. As much as Billy didn’t like Jess, he was a man and Jess knew how to rattle men.
She glanced at Billy, but he kept busy scanning the pool deck.
“Hi, Jess,” Kristen said.
In a well-practiced move, her sister placed her hand on the arm of the older man she spoke with, excused herself and turned to Kristen with a bright, welcoming smile. Jess’s mother was an actress after all. “Have you met Brian Dobson? He’s an aide to the senator.”
After exchanging pleasantries, Kristen borrowed Jess for a private chat.
“What’s up?” Jess adjusted the strings on the bottom of her bikini.
Billy, being Billy, watched with a sort of detached fascination. No. Kristen straightened her shoulders and thought back to her lacy red underwear and the steamy look he’d given her.
He shoved the photo he’d printed of Bradley J. Murphy toward Jess. “You recognize this guy?”
She glanced at the picture, then back to him, her eyes fusing with his in that same flirtatious manner—the do-me look—she reserved for every other man that came within ten feet of her.
Jess nodded. “He’s a lawyer, right? Brad something?”
“Bradley J. Murphy from Smith, Kline, Abrams.”
“I saw him last week.”
“Who was he here with?” Kristen asked.
/> “Don’t know. I only remember him because he had that snake Alex ask me to deliver a drink to Reed Davis.”
“The music guy?” Billy asked.
“Yeah. Reed was in the VIP lounge.” Jess shifted to Kristen. “It was that night Reed went over his credit limit and you had to talk to him. I thought the timing was funny that this guy wanted to buy Reed a drink the same night he shot his credit.”
“What was the drink?” Billy wanted to know.
“A Cabo Cactus.”
A sly quirk of Billy’s lips made Kristen think this Cabo Cactus thing was good news.
“What the hell is that anyway?” he asked.
“Cabo Wabo Tequila, triple sec, club soda and a splash of lime. Reed likes the rim of the glass salted with a slice of lime.”
For the first time, Kristen found herself in a rare proud moment when it came to her sister. People didn’t realize how hard Jess’s job could be. She had to keep straight every high roller’s personal preferences and make sure those preferences were delivered. Every time.
If only Jess realized her job, the one with access to celebrities and the social circuit she so loved, was tailor-made for her.
“Is that the only time you’ve seen him?” Billy asked.
Jess shrugged. “I don’t remember him from any other time. I meet a bazillion people though. Why?”
To keep him from expounding, Kristen put her hand on Billy’s arm. “I’m thinking about hiring him for legal work. Thought you might know him.”
“I could ask around.”
Kristen shook her head. One thing she didn’t need was her already high-strung sister getting in the middle of a car theft ring. “Don’t worry about it. You gave me all I needed.” She glanced around the pool deck. “You’re going to be busy this weekend. Do you need anything?”
Jess puckered her lips. Hesitated. Could her sister actually be afraid to ask?
“What, Jess?”
“Can you raise my budget for the weekend? These big shots are going to be asking for a lot.”
The entertainment budget allowed Jess to offer comps to high rollers, but Kristen approved all charges. They would meet privately each week to set the comps limit. But this would be an important weekend for Dante and Jess’s schmoozing skills could make the guests happy. Extremely happy.
Adrienne Giordano Page 23