“You’re not talking about murder?” I whispered hoarsely.
He didn’t answer me.
“Jake?”
His face darkened. “That guy threatened you with a knife. Now he’s terrorizing you in other ways. He needs to be stopped and chances are he won’t do it; even if I ask nicely.”
“But,” I sputtered, still in shock. “Can’t you just arrest them?”
He raised his hands. “Do you have any evidence?”
I sighed. “I guess not.”
He walked over to me and lifted my chin “Don’t go worrying your pretty little head about it. In fact, just forget about this conversation completely.”
I stared at him incredulously. “Right.”
He turned my chair and then knelt down in front of me. “Lindsey. I’m not going to promise that someone won’t get hurt. What I am going to promise is that it isn’t going to be you, or your children.”
“I just can’t condone…”
He put a finger over my lips. “Uh-uh…forget about everything but the lunch I’m going to serve you.”
I bit the side of my lip, wondering what kind of man Jake really was. Part of me wanted him to do exactly what he was hinting at, while the other side of me knew that I’d never be able to live with the guilt.
“Don’t worry,” he whispered. “I know what I’m doing.”
I leaned forward and stared into his eyes. “Let me get this straight, you’re actually talking about murder?”
“Well, I never really said ‘murder’, now did I?” he answered, with a straight face.
I tilted my head and nodded. “Fair enough. Then you’ll just make sure they leave me alone without resorting to ‘murder’?”
He smiled evenly. “I will make sure that your family is safe and that’s all you really need to know.”
I sighed in relief, still unable to believe the conversation we were having. “Well, thank you.”
“You know, I’m going to expect a reward.”
I raised my eyebrows. “Oh really?”
His eyes drifted over my body. “In fact, now that I finally have you in my lair, I think I’ll collect on it right now.”
Before I could respond, he lifted me out of the chair and set me directly on the table top.
“What are you doing?” I whispered.
“Showing you how ‘good’ being ‘bad’ can feel.”
“I…”
His mouth captured mine, locking my lips so I couldn’t protest. Then he slid his warm tongue into mine and began exploring my mouth. As our tongues began to tangle, I moaned into his mouth.
He released my lips. “You’re driving me crazy, you know,” he whispered, sliding his hands under my top. “You’ve consumed my every thought. This has never happened before.”
The next thing I knew, my shirt was over my head and on the floor.
“Really?” I answered, staring up into his smoldering eyes as he pushed me all the way down with my back against the table.
“Yes, really. Jesus, you’re so beautiful,” he murmured, unclasping the front of my bra. He lowered his mouth and seized one of my nipples, rolling it around with his tongue, sending delicious tingles all the way down to my crotch.
I gasped and slipped my hands into his hair, pulling and twirling the short strands through my fingers as he moved to the other nipple, teasing and sucking the puckered tip.
“Hope you don’t mind,” he whispered, moving his hand to the button of my jeans. “but I need to taste you, all over.”
OhmyGod…
Before I could stop him, he pulled my jeans off.
“Jake, wait…” I pleaded, as he slipped his hand under my panties. “I…Oh,” I gasped, as he slid two fingers inside of me.
“You’re so wet,” he whispered, rubbing the pad of his thumb on my most sensitive spot.
“Yes,” I breathed as he slid my panties to the side and replaced his thumb with his tongue, licking and sucking while I moaned in pleasure. I closed my eyes and gripped the edge of the table with my hands as it began to shake.
Noticing the table wobble, he wrapped my legs around his neck and pulled me closer to his face.
“Oh…God…” I whimpered as his fingers slide in and out of me.
“Say my name,” he demanded, sucking greedily.
“Jake,” I moaned.
“Baby, you taste so good,” he whispered, reaching up to caress one of my breasts.
My body was on fire as his tongue danced around my labia and his fingers continued their glorious assault. I closed my eyes and gripped the muscles of his arms, digging my nails into the skin.
“Fuck, Lindsey, you turn me on.”
Hearing his deep, sexy voice say my name brought me over the edge. “Oh, yes!” I screamed as my stomach clenched up and I came longer and harder than I could ever remember. After a few more strokes of his tongue, it became too intense and I tried pushing him away, but he held me down until he was satisfied with the results.
“Wow,” I breathed as my legs finally stopped trembling.
He raised his head and gave me a devilish grin. “You know what? I guess I can hold my own in the kitchen.”
Before I could agree, someone rang the doorbell.
“Perfect timing,” he grunted, standing up.
I scrambled off of the table and rushed to get my clothes back on. “Were you expecting anyone?” I asked.
He washed his hands and headed towards the living room. “Nope. Wait right here.”
A minute later, he walked back into the kitchen with a grim expression on his face.
“Who was it?” I asked.
“Couple of cops,” he said. “They’re looking for you.”
Chapter Twenty-one
I quickly followed him to the front door where two men dressed in suits stood outside, waiting.
“Are you Lindsey Shepard?” asked the taller of the two, his dark blue eyes regarding me coolly.
“Yes,” I answered, crossing my arms under my chest. “What’s this about and how in the world did you even know I was here?”
“The neighbor from across the street told us,” replied the other cop with a smug look on his face. “We weren’t interrupting anything?”
I stared at nosy old Mrs. Hanson who was watching us from her garden. “We were having lunch, actually.”
The tall detective flashed me his badge. “Sorry to interrupt your meal. I’m Detective Reed Parker and this is my partner, Dave Franklin.”
I nodded. “What can I do for you?”
“When was the last time you spoke to your husband?” asked Detective Parker. “Scott Shepard.”
Scott? Lord, what has he gotten himself into now?
“Last night. Around four o’clock.”
He took out a notepad and began writing.
“So, yesterday around four o’clock was the last time you had any contact with him? Did he happen to say where he was going afterwards?”
I shook my head. “No.”
Detective Parker glanced at Jake again and frowned. “You know, I think it would be better if we interview you alone, Mrs. Shepard.”
“Can you tell us what’s going on here?” interrupted Jake.
Parker’s lips thinned. “We’ll get into that momentarily with Mrs. Shepard, although I’m starting to think we should interview you, too, since you’re their neighbor. What was your name?”
“Jake Sharp.”
Parker frowned. “Jake Sharp? That name sounds familiar.”
“It very well might. I work in Narcotics,” said Jake. “The North Central Drug Task Force, to be specific. We’ve probably crossed paths before.”
Parker’s eyebrows shot up. “Do you have I.D.?”
Jake reached into his back pocket and took out his wallet. “I just moved here a few months ago,” he said, flashing his badge. “Before that, I worked in the Hennepin County Task Force, in Minnesota.”
Parker glanced at the badge and then nodded. “Okay, well I’d defi
nitely like to talk to you some more. First and foremost, however, Mrs. Shepard, can we take a walk back over to your house to speak in private?”
I nodded. “Of course.”
“I’m coming with,” said Jake.
Parker held up his hand. “No offense, but we really need to talk to her alone. You understand.”
Jake nodded, reluctantly. “Fine. But, remember, I’m here if you need me, Lindsey.”
I smiled weakly. “Okay.”
I could feel Jake’s eyes on me as I followed the detectives back to my home. It was very obvious that he didn’t like taking orders from anyone, let alone two other cops.
“Would you like some coffee or anything?” I asked, as they followed me into the kitchen.
Parker shook his head. “No, I’m fine.”
“I’m good, too,” said the other cop. He was a short, squat man with a bulbous nose and beady little eyes. Parker, on the other hand, looked more like a television version of an investigator. He was attractive with dazzling blue eyes, wavy blonde hair, and a five o’clock shadow. There was no doubt in my mind that if Darcy was here, she’d be investigating him.
“Alright,” I sighed. “So, what has Scott done?”
“Why do you think Scott’s done something?” asked Parker.
“Well, then why are you here?” I asked, getting more frustrated by the minute. They were stalling and it was starting to really piss me off.
“Please sit down, Mrs. Shepard,” said Parker, pointing towards my kitchen table.
“Call me Lindsey,” I replied, sitting down.
Parker sat across from me while the other detective leaned back against the center island, watching us.
“Lindsey,” said Parker, rubbing a hand over his chin. “Look, there’s no easy way to break this to you, but your husband, Scott Shepard, was found murdered earlier this morning.”
I felt like someone had kicked me in the stomach. I stared at him in horror as he studied my reaction.
“What did you say?” I asked in a strangled voice.
Parker sighed and took out his notepad again. “He was found in his car, a bullet wound to the back of the head.”
“Oh, my God,” I choked, tears flooding my eyes, making him a blur of blue and gray. I shook my head. “No – I just can’t believe that!”
The other detective grabbed a paper towel from the counter and handed it to me as the tears ran down my cheeks. “I’m sorry,” he said. “It’s true. We’ll need you to come down to the morgue and verify that it’s him.”
“Maybe it isn’t,” I squeaked, my eyes darting from one to the other. “I just can’t believe someone would kill him. Are you certain?”
Parker nodded. “We believe it is. His wallet was left on him, containing his driver’s license. But, obviously, we’ll still need you to I.D. him.”
“Why would someone kill him?” I asked, wiping my tears with the coarse paper towel.
Parker sighed. “That’s what we’re trying to find out, Mrs. Shepard. They didn’t take his wallet, so we can rule out burglary. He had over one hundred dollars and a bunch of credit cards.”
“Not even a robbery?” I mumbled.
“No, it could have been just a random killing or something more. Did your husband use drugs?” asked Parker.
I shook my head. “Not that I know of.”
“We talked with his secretary,” said Detective Franklin. “She mentioned that you two had recently separated?”
“Yes, just a couple of weeks ago, actually.”
Parker nodded. “So, you weren’t getting along?”
I narrowed my eyes. “We were getting along fine,” I snapped, realizing where this might be heading.
“Take it easy,” said Parker with a little smile. “We aren’t accusing you of anything. We have to eliminate you as a suspect and to do that, we have to do some digging. I’m sorry if it makes you uncomfortable.”
I stared at the paper towel and nodded. “Okay. I guess I understand that.”
“It’s just procedure,” said Franklin.
Parker glanced at Franklin and then back to me. “So, if you were getting along fine, why did you separate?”
I sighed. “Because he cheated on me.”
“Cheated? Well, that must have made you angry,” said Franklin.
I nodded. “It was very painful. I walked in on him with two other women. He claimed that he was ‘coerced’ into it.”
The look on Parker’s face was a mixture of shock and amusement. “He actually said he was coerced?”
“I know…right?” I said, managing a bitter smile. “I thought it was a pretty pathetic excuse as well.”
“It’s definitely an imaginative excuse. One I haven’t personally heard before,” said Franklin, shaking his head.
“Here’s an idea, why don’t you question the women he was screwing around with?” I mumbled. “Maybe they have husbands who found out and weren’t too happy. One of them may have flipped out and killed him.”
“Well, we’ll definitely look into that,” said Parker, writing more notes onto his notepad.
“So, where was he killed?” I asked, blinking back more tears as the reality of what had happened was starting to really sink in. I still couldn’t believe he was dead. The man I’d been married to and had loved at one time with all of my heart was gone forever. Even after everything that had happened in the last couple of weeks, I still cared about him. And now he was gone and there was nothing for us to work out.
What in the name of God would I tell our children?
“He was found in the parking ramp at his place of employment,” said Parker.
I nodded. “Well, he was always at the office.”
“So, what’s going on with you and your neighbor?” asked Franklin.
My eyes shot over to him and I could tell by the smug look on his face, he definitely suspected something illicit.
“We’re friends.”
“Both of you looked a little disheveled when we showed up,” he replied, “like we interrupted more than just lunch.”
“He’s a good neighbor and friend who invited me to lunch,” I retorted, glaring at him.
“Calm down,” said Parker. “So, you’re friends. It’s good to have friends.”
“Damn right, it is,” I agreed.
“Mrs. Shepard, did you kill your husband?” asked Franklin, staring at me like a cat would a canary.
Chapter Twenty-two
I knew the question would come but I was still unprepared for the way it affected me. “No!” I choked, staring at him in horror. “I loved Scott and would never hurt him, let alone kill him!”
Parker nodded slowly. “Okay. Can you tell us where you were from around nine o’clock last night until around seven o’clock this morning?”
“I was here, sleeping in my bed.”
“Are there witnesses?” asked Franklin.
I stared at Franklin with something close to loathing. “My children can verify that I was home.”
“What about when they were sleeping? Can anyone else verify that you were around?” asked Franklin.
“No, I guess not,” I said, my lips trembling. “But let me tell you something, Detective Franklin, I loved my husband, even after he cheated on me. I loved him and would never have done anything to harm him. I’m not a violent person, you can ask anyone.”
Franklin and Parker exchanged a look and I fought hard to control my rage. Somehow, I knew I was still a suspect.
Parker stood up. “Well, I think that’s enough for now. We’ll need access to his home computer and then check his office and interview his co-workers.”
“You can take his computer, as far as I’m concerned. I have my own and couldn’t care less about Scott’s.”
Parker nodded. “That would be very helpful. We’ll return it after we’ve gone through it, though.”
“Fine.”
“Would you like a ride to the morgue, Mrs. Shepard?” asked Parker.
The
thought of spending any more time with them left a sour taste in my mouth. “No. I’ll find a ride, thank you.”
“We’ll definitely keep in touch,” said Franklin, still studying me. “Don’t leave town.”
“Of course not,” I replied, coldly. “I want to make sure you catch the person responsible for murdering Scott, even more than you do.”
“We’ll try our best to put that person behind bars. It was nice meeting you,” said Parker, holding out his hand. “Sorry it was under such horrible circumstances.”
I nodded and shook his hand, avoiding Franklin’s outstretched one, as if by accident. The thought of touching him made my skin crawl.
“We’re going next door to talk with your good neighbor, see if he saw your husband leaving last night or noticed anything unusual,” said Franklin.
“Be my guest,” I said, walking them to the door.
“If you remember anything unusual, call us,” said Parker, handing me his business card.
“I certainly will, Detective.”
Parker raised his finger. “Oh, and you’ll probably start getting bombarded by the media. Just tell them ‘no comment’ when they start hounding you. Eventually, they’ll go away.”
I sighed. “Wonderful. I didn’t even think about that.”
Once they left, I sat down in a recliner and erupted into fresh wave of tears, crying for Scott, our children, and all of the precious memories we’d had before everything went to hell. I also scolded myself for messing around with Jake and wondered if Scott would still be alive if I would have only let him back into our home.
As I thought about all of the “what ifs”, my phone began to ring. I grabbed it and stared at the unknown number, almost afraid to answer it. I could barely talk as it was, and I didn’t want to answer any more questions about Scott. But, I also knew there were a lot of people that I had to contact, including his parents, my mother, and our friends. I took a deep breath and answered.
“Lindsey,” sobbed Molly.
I closed my eyes. “You’ve heard.”
“Yes, oh God – my son is dead. I just don’t know what to do,” she moaned.
I sighed. “Molly, is Henry there with you?”
“Yes, he’s on the other phone trying to call the investigators who are handling the case.”
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