Courting Suspicion

by Kimberly Dean

  Josh honed in on the weak link. ‘How did you know the senator was here? And who he was with?’

  ‘An anonymous tip.’ Beiber forgot all about his right to remain silent. ‘We got a call that said Gunderson was here with a high-priced callgirl. The caller even had a room number – and he was right.’

  As if that made everything OK.

  ‘Who did you pay for the room card?’

  ‘The – ow!’ Bieber stopped when Hoodie kicked him in the calf.

  ‘Shut up, dude.’

  The two brainiacs finally pieced together their mistake. At least one of them.

  It didn’t matter. Josh would find out who had given them the key card. If the senator had just stopped to put the chain on the door, his unwanted visitors might not have made it any further.

  Josh gestured at Simons. ‘Have someone take them down to the station for processing.’

  It was an open and shut case. No pun intended. Josh ran a hand through his hair. It was too late for puns, but the two dimwits were right about the tape showing everything. They’d documented their own crime.

  He rolled his shoulders and braced himself. Now for the tough part.

  He crossed the living room to the bedroom. It was more of a suite than a hotel room, pretty expensive for a one-night stand, if the TMI boys were right. The bedroom itself was lit up bright as a dentist’s office, and the atmosphere inside was about as comfortable. Josh’s gaze swept the room as he stepped inside and acquainted himself with the scene. There were two Metro officers, one male and one female, and another couple who were dressed more casually.

  A lot more casually.

  They were both in white robes with the Emissary’s insignia on the chest. They weren’t wearing much more, if the clothes strewn about on the floor and furniture were any indication.

  The senator was one of those silver-haired fox types. His age was indeterminate, but he was fit … probably from working with a trainer in a high-priced gym. There wasn’t a ring on his finger, thank God. Things were going to be messy enough without that.

  And the woman … Josh’s gaze instinctively went to her hands first to check for weapons. There weren’t any – but she packed a punch. She was sitting in the armchair in the corner of the room, toying with the belt of her snow-white robe. The big terrycloth robe should have drowned her, but instead of covering her it gaped open, showing tantalising cleavage.

  Josh was a red-blooded guy. He saw her curves, but his attention was caught by her hair. She was a redhead, a real one from the tone of her skin. It was the kind of deep auburn that attracted attention and stuck in a person’s memory.

  His included.

  His gaze snapped up to her face. He recognised her, and it didn’t take him long to remember from where. Their gazes locked, right along with his jaw. Damn it. She was one of Nina’s employees, the one who’d covered as Luxxor’s receptionist when Rielle had been out. What was her name? Jessica? Joanne?

  Her green eyes widened when she recognised him in return.

  She pulled the neckline of her robe together and focused on the landscape picture on the far wall.

  Josh’s thoughts went in a thousand different directions. It took effort to pull even a few back into alignment.

  He cleared his throat. ‘I’m Detective Morgan. Let’s start at the beginning. Is everyone here OK?’

  He was still watching the redhead and was relieved when she nodded.

  ‘No,’ her date snapped. ‘We are not OK.’

  And here they went.

  Josh turned towards the man at the centre of all the hubbub. ‘Sir?’

  ‘Samuel Gunderson, US Senator.’ The man’s jaw was clenched so hard, it jutted out a like a barracuda. ‘And this is my girlfriend, Genieve Hart.’

  ‘Senator,’ his lawyer hissed.

  Josh planted his hands on his hips. Beautiful. The senator was the chatty type, too. It made things so much easier when he had so little probable cause.

  They had nothing on these two. Nothing. A couple had paid for a hotel room and had used it as a lot of couples did. There was nothing that said any laws had been broken, other than what the reporters had implied. The senator had called Genieve his girlfriend. They’d go with that, even though Josh’s thoughts were still barrelling down too many tracks. He suddenly had an intense interest in what was going on here.

  ‘Are you physically harmed?’ he asked.

  ‘I –’ The politician’s words broke off, and he frowned. He took stock before pulling back on a sleeve of the robe. He seemed surprised by the red mark slashing across his forearm. ‘Those two men broke in, and I tried to push them out. I didn’t know what was going on. I thought we were under attack.’

  ‘Get a photo of that,’ Josh instructed Simons.

  The lawyer stuck out his hand. He’d remained quiet in the room up until that point. Quiet, but coiled. ‘Just the arm.’

  What, the shark didn’t want his client photographed naked in a robe with his hair mussed from sex and his face still red from exertion?

  Probably not.

  ‘Document the evidence,’ Josh said.

  As the camera snapped, he went over to check the door between the rooms. The mark on the senator’s arm was straight as a ruler, much like a door’s edge. Sure enough, there was a scuff mark across it. He peeked around to the other side and saw the footprint of a shoe along the base. He called the forensics guy with the camera over to get some shots of it, too. ‘Dust for fingerprints,’ he instructed.

  He faced the bedroom again. The evidence here was pretty clear. The bed sheets were rumpled, and pillows were strewn across the floor. There were signs of vigorous activity in and out of the bed.

  The senator puffed up when he saw where the attention was now. ‘I want those two charged to the full extent of the law. Breaking and entering … Invasion of privacy … People should be as safe in a hotel room as they are in their own homes.’

  The guy sounded like he was back on the campaign trail now.

  ‘You’ve got your pictures and a statement. We’re leaving now.’ Gunderson’s lawyer was chill as ice, but Josh still sensed a hard, angry energy radiating from him.

  But the man was right. They couldn’t detain these two.

  Even if he still had a gazillion questions …

  The lawyer picked up the senator’s shirt and thrust it into his hands. ‘Get dressed. Sir.’

  The senator had opened his mouth to say something more, but he closed it with a snap.

  Josh watched Genieve out of the corner of his eye as she raked a hand through that waterfall of red hair and swept it aside. Her gaze kept flicking cautiously to the guy in the suit. She was harder to read. Impossible, really. She must have taken some clues from her boss, although he could read some of Nina’s tells now. He’d been studying her long enough.

  Nina. Damn. She was going to flip when she heard about this.

  He swept up the senator’s pants from the floor. They looked as if they’d been taken off in a hurry. He patted the pockets. The lawyer sputtered, but he simply handed the pants to the senator. ‘Just needed to check for weapons before I let him go in the bathroom alone to get dressed. Standard procedure.’

  Simons caught on fast. He turned the light on in the attached bathroom and checked to make sure it was clear. They were doing this by the book – dotting all I’s and crossing all T’s – but picking up all the information they could.

  ‘Can I have my dress?’ the redhead asked quietly.

  Everyone in the room snapped to attention to search for it. The little black number was on the floor, practically under the bed. Josh dug it out. It didn’t have pockets, and there wasn’t much she could hide in it. Dressed or not. He handed it to her and went down on his haunches before her. Her wary gaze met his.

  ‘All you all right?’

  She was a true beauty, and he knew she had a personality to match that bright-red hair. It was all subdued now. She was funny, he remembered that. He didn’t do ‘funny�
�� any more than he did ‘merry’. She was a stunner, but he preferred tough-nosed, blonde prima donnas.

  ‘I’m OK, just shaken.’ She ran a red-tipped fingernail over her bottom lip, and it curled upward in a tentative smile. ‘They came in at a really bad time, if you know what I mean.’

  Her gaze sparked, and the hint of humour told him she’d been a willing participant in the senator’s bed. Maybe the two were seeing one other. Nina ran in some hoity-toity crowds. Genieve could have been introduced to the senator through her.

  ‘Is there anything else you can tell me? Did you notice those men following you tonight? How long have you been seeing the senator?’

  She glanced at the lawyer. He didn’t say a word, but communication passed between them. Her spark faded, and she shifted uncomfortably in the overstuffed chair. ‘I didn’t notice anything – and we’ve been exclusive for a month or so.’

  She went quiet again, and Josh knew he couldn’t press any harder. Tension was vibrating between her and the senator’s representative like a piano wire, even though they were on opposite sides of the room. They couldn’t have been further apart but still in the same room if they’d tried.

  Genieve wrapped her robe more tightly around her legs. Red-painted toenails stuck out from the bottom of the terrycloth. If the lawyer had his way, those would have been covered, too. It was clear in his eyes.

  ‘Do you feel safe with these two?’ Josh asked low enough so only she could hear.

  Her green eyes narrowed in confusion.

  OK, the tension wasn’t about fear.

  The door to the bathroom opened, and the senator came out. He was older than his lover by a long shot, but the hours in the gym probably helped him keep up to speed.

  Josh rose to his feet. He wouldn’t have them around for much longer. It was worth one more shot. ‘Is there anything else you can tell us about the encounter, sir? Has this TMI News contacted you or your office before?’

  ‘I’ve never heard of them,’ the senator said as he put on his cufflinks.

  Cufflinks. In the dead of the night. Josh counted off in his head. Some people had their priorities. He didn’t like the guy. He was too slick, too Ken-doll-like in his outrage. Although Josh had to admit he’d be pissed off, too, if somebody broke in to take pictures of him having sex. Hell, he’d probably shoot first and ask questions later.

  Unless it was Nina.

  She’d have the gun out first.

  He ran his hand over his head. Where the hell had that thought come from?

  ‘Is there anything else you want to tell me before you go?’ he asked.

  ‘It’s enough, isn’t it?’ Gunderson snapped.

  Josh’s eyes narrowed. Not if there was something to the prostitution claim Hoodie and Bieber had made … But one little claim wasn’t enough to stick, not without proof. And proof of prostitution was notoriously hard to get.

  The lawyer cleared his throat, and the senator lifted his chin. Clothed in his armour again, he seemed to remember the face he was supposed to present to the public. He stuck out his hand. ‘Thank you for your efforts here tonight, Detective. I appreciate the work our peace officers do.’

  Josh thought fast. ‘How can I contact you if I have more questions?’

  ‘Call his office.’ The lawyer’s voice was like ice. The guy obviously wasn’t having a good night. How often did he have to clean up after his client?

  Gunderson nodded. ‘I’ll get you my card.’

  The lawyer pushed away from the wall, but the senator was already pulling his wallet out of his jacket, which was draped over a chair. He slowed his movements when all the cops in the room tensed.

  ‘They can get the number,’ the lawyer repeated.

  ‘I’ve got it, Brody.’

  The lawyer’s teeth gritted, and Genieve covered her mouth with her hand.

  Gotcha, Josh thought. It hadn’t escaped his attention that the man hadn’t volunteered his name. Hello, Brody.

  The senator opened his wallet, and Josh watched closely. The leather billfold wasn’t bulging with cash, which turned his dial down a bit. That was what he’d wanted to see.

  The senator pulled out a business card and passed it to him, but something else fell to the floor. Josh knelt to pick it up, but he was slow in standing back up. It was another business card, only this one was made from heavy black paper with gold trim. The writing was in a fancy gold font, but its message wasn’t elaborate. It simply said, ‘Luxxor Limited’.

  Luxxor Limited. Nina’s company.

  His headache came back with a vengeance. He flipped the card over as he held it out to the man. There was only a phone number on the back.

  ‘You dropped something,’ he said. Gravel had somehow found its way into his throat.

  No names, no website and no business slogan. Luxxor Limited, secretive as always. Even their business cards could hide in the shadows.

  A dark, bad feeling settled in his gut.

  Genieve had been moving towards the bathroom to take her turn getting dressed, but she stopped when she saw the exchange. The lawyer reached for her, but she smoothly avoided him.

  ‘May I have my purse?’ Her voice had a lilt that seemed to pull right at a guy’s balls. Again, the officers in the room snapped to do her bidding.

  The female police officer rolled her eyes, but she was the one who found the leather bag. She carried it to Josh.

  ‘Sorry,’ he said as he opened it. ‘Just a quick check.’

  He had just as much right to search through her things before she went in that room alone.

  ‘Here, allow me.’ Taking the purse from his hands, the redhead upended the contents on the bed.

  ‘Jenny,’ the lawyer said softly. His tone was different with her, less stern but there was still a warning in it.

  She didn’t flinch. Instead, she opened her pocketbook and showed its contents to Josh. Smart. It was all he could think as she flipped through the bills in her possession. Looked like about seventeen dollars. If she was a callgirl like the TMI guys insisted, she’d be worth a hell of a lot more than that. This woman was definitely high-end and no dummy.

  ‘Oh, there it is,’ she said sweetly. She picked up a tube of lipstick. ‘This is all I needed.’

  She swished to the bathroom in the over-large robe. She bent along the way to sweep up her bra, but she left all her things out on display as if she had nothing to hide.

  Josh grunted. Really smart.

  She’d just shown him that no money had been exchanged. At least not here.

  That didn’t stop his brain from churning like a lopsided wheel … faster at points and screechingly painful at others. Call girl … Luxxor … their night security detail … the way they’d always given him the bum’s rush out of there …

  The way Nina had shut down all contact with him after that epic kiss – the one that had nearly set his hair on fire …

  He rubbed the back of his neck. He’d always been curious about her work. When it came to Nina Lockwood, he was curious about everything. She hadn’t liked him around, so of course that had made him want to stay. She hadn’t wanted to talk about her work, so obviously he’d looked for clues in everything from what was on their desks to the terminology they used when they talked. He’d tried to guess at the clients that had come through their door. He hadn’t seen much of a common denominator, other than they were all rich and untalkative. Other than Erin Foster.

  His off-balance brain clunked when he thought of the bright, friendly blonde. Innocent as a peach. She’d said she was a client.

  No.

  No, there was no way.

  He’d gotten the wrong idea. He’d made too big of a leap. He had to have.

  Genieve stepped back into the room. The little black dress could have been conservative, if not for her curves and that tussle of red hair. The woman had a look that was constantly sultry and sensuous, right down to her painted red toenails. She didn’t look like a prostitute, though. She looked like a fashion mo
del.

  ‘Here, darling.’ The senator passed along her shoes.

  She held the top of the dresser for balance as she stepped into the heels, and once again the simple act held the attention of all the men in the room. She stuffed her things back into her purse as the senator put on his jacket. The couple wouldn’t be staying in this hotel again, that was clear.

  ‘Let’s go,’ Gunderson told his man.

  Brody wasn’t ready. His face was hard as he stepped to the bed and lifted the covers.

  ‘Hey,’ Josh said.

  The man found what he was looking for under the nightstand. Black silk. Genieve’s panties. He thrust them into his pocket, his face stoic but his eyes burning.

  The guy was smart, too. He wasn’t leaving any evidence of the couple’s activities behind – other than what was probably on the bed sheets.

  ‘That video,’ he said, his voice as cold as his eyes were hot. ‘Anything beyond the breaking and entering portion is not to be used.’

  Josh cocked his head. He didn’t envy the guy’s job, but there was only so far his reign of authority extended.

  And it didn’t cover him.

  ‘I just collect the evidence. It’s up to the DA how to use it.’

  Their gazes locked. Neither of them was satisfied with the night’s outcome, but it was hard to say who was more pissed.

  ‘Ms Hart,’ Josh said, not breaking eye contact. ‘Do you need a ride home?’

  The vein in Mr Brody’s neck bulged. ‘I’ll get her to safety.’

  Josh’s eyebrows rose. Oh, so that’s how it was. The gritty lawyer, not the senator. Interesting.

  Without another word, the party of three exited. Josh followed, watching their interplay. The senator walked down the hallway towards the elevator with his arm wrapped around the curvy redhead’s waist. Brody walked at her other side, his back ramrod straight.

  The lawyer stopped to talk to the hotel manager. The man in the green jacket wrung his hands and nodded anxiously. Josh wasn’t surprised when Brody reached into his pocket and pulled out his wallet. This time the exchange of money was clear and out in the open. Josh knew it was to keep the hotel quiet about the senator’s activities.