Small-Town Secrets

by Linda Randall Wisdom

  “They haven’t yet,” he told her.

  “We had a case where a man killed his wife. A pretty nasty way, too. He spent hours washing the blood off the walls and scrubbing the floor. He even shampooed the carpet. Once he’d finished, he remembered seeing a show on forensics that explained about Luminal, which detects bloodstains even after they’ve been washed away. He decided he wasn’t going to take any chances. So he drove down to the neighborhood hardware store and asked for ‘some of that Luminal stuff that shows where bloodstains are.”’

  Cole laughed so hard he almost choked. “I can easily guess you can’t buy Luminal at your local hardware store.”

  “No, but the store owner knew the guy and his wife had been having a lot of problems for quite some time. He guessed the worst had finally happened. He said he’d have to get it out of the back. He went to the storeroom and called the cops.”

  “You sure came up against some not-so-bright criminals in your career.” Cole chuckled.

  “For every stupid one, we had three dozen clever ones,” she replied. She looked up as the waiter appeared with their dinners. “Some stand out more than others. You must have come across some pretty memorable people.”

  “More than I like to remember. I interviewed this desert sheikh who’d made literally a fortune in oil. He wanted to show off all his new toys, including his four new wives. He also wanted me to know his generosity, so he offered me my choice of one of his wives. He wanted me to be comfortable.”

  Bree rolled her eyes. “I’ve heard it’s very bad form to turn down their offers.”

  “It is, but I found a way around it.” He lowered his voice to a confidential level. “I explained I’d been injured as a young man, and it wouldn’t be fair to any of his lovely wives.”

  She smiled. “Either very ingenious or very embarrassing for you to have to admit to any kind of failing.”

  Cole picked up his knife and fork. “I like the ingenious tag.”

  She stabbed one of her scallops with her fork. “Sneaky might have been a better word. You were trying to dig yourself out of that hole you dug when you brought up a forbidden subject. You did a pretty good job of it, too.”

  “I try,” he said modestly. He sobered. “It might be forbidden, Bree, but it’s not forgotten.”

  “Why do you think I called you the other night? I went over every one of those deaths, Cole. Yes, I understand your need to know the truth. I feel there’s something wrong there, too, but without visiting the crime scenes, I don’t have much to work with. There were hardly any photographs taken, and the ones in the file didn’t show nearly enough detail.”

  “So we’ll have to wait for another death?” He cut into his steak, his motions a little more savage than necessary for the tender meat.

  “Unfortunately, yes. And then you’ll have to hope I’m the one called out.”

  Cole looked off into the distance. “Okay,” he said finally. “But I think I’m going to hope the deaths will stop first.”

  “I agree.” She held up her glass in a silent toast.

  Relieved she hadn’t walked out on him for channeling the conversation in the wrong direction, Cole waited until their desserts arrived before he started coaxing information out of Bree. It was easy enough to get her to talk about her three kids, and in the process, he picked up bits and pieces about Bree herself. He made a mental note to make a point of catching some of the junior soccer games so he could see what she was like as a soccer mom. He had a pretty good idea that Norman Bailey, the referee, wouldn’t know what hit him.

  Cole was amazed that, considering Bree’s workload, she made sure to attend sports games, and any other activities the kids were involved in.

  He could also sense that she’d had a good marriage, and that if her husband hadn’t been killed, she would have still been happily married and fighting crime in Los Angeles.

  The realization that if her life hadn’t changed, he never would have met her, came to mind. He didn’t like that idea at all.

  Not just because he wanted her to help him find out the truth behind the deaths, either. The lady was definitely growing on him. He hadn’t enjoyed himself so much in a long time. Not like this. From the first moment he’d met her, he knew Bree Fitzpatrick was different.

  Finding out about Bree, the person, was proving him right.

  To be fair, he shared bits and pieces about himself at the same time. Not something he was known for.

  Cole never thought there was anything to say. He didn’t have much of a social life because of his work. Being ready to take off for a story at a moment’s notice didn’t bode well for any kind of a love life.

  He revealed that once he’d settled down in Warm Springs, he had more than his share of local ladies wanting to set him up with daughters, nieces, granddaughters, along with female relatives of dear friends.

  “Most of the time I’m told they’re excellent cooks, have lovely personalities, plus other sterling qualities,” he said. “There was once a woman whose sister-in-law’s cousin’s niece was an animal lover.” He grimaced. “It meant that she was a vegetarian, and she believed that having pets was barbaric. I didn’t mind the fact that she viewed me as one of those ‘damn cannibals.’ But our date ended abruptly when she refused to sit on the leather seats in my car. I wished her a nice life and got out of there fast.” He savored his chocolate torte, which he felt was the absolute best in the world. “Any of your co-workers try to fix you up yet?”

  “A few of them tried,” Bree admitted. “Threatening to shoot them if they didn’t stop didn’t work, but threatening to return the favor got them to stop. And the married ones got worried I might divulge a few secrets, so they got smart and backed off before I hurt them. I’ve heard you now go out of town for your social life.” She arched an eyebrow.

  “Hell of a lot safer that way. I guess I won’t have to worry anymore. They’ll be busy finding you someone now.”

  “So you think my being here will take the heat off you?” she asked, amused.

  “Sure it will, since I made certain they realized I wasn’t a good candidate. Not to mention with the kids, you’re the ultimate matchmaking challenge. They love that.” He leaned across the table to advise in a low voice, “Run for the hills if they suggest Brad Grant. His idea of dinner out is the local fast-food restaurants. Or if he’s got coupons for a buy one meal, get the second free, you’ll get lucky and be taken to a nicer place.”

  “And here you take me to a lovely restaurant. I can’t believe the ladies gave up on you.”

  “I had to do a lot of begging, and Mamie stepped in on my behalf. Told them I was the typical sloppy bachelor and would they really want to subject a nice lady to someone as bad as myself?” Cole said with false humility. “They decided it was best to leave me on my own.”

  “Living in bachelor squalor,” she said.

  “I do the best I can.”

  Bree shook her head. “Have you always been this incorrigible or was it just since you moved here?” she asked.

  “I’ve probably always been this way.”

  “You don’t win press awards by being a screwup. Nor do you work for some of the most prestigious magazines by running with the jet set and seducing women all over the world,” Bree said. “You are one big fake.”

  “Don’t let it get around.” He grinned.

  Bree wrapped her shawl more closely about her as they exited the restaurant and waited for the parking valet to fetch Cole’s truck.

  “I shouldn’t have had that cheesecake,” she mourned. “I’ll need to run an extra ten miles to take it off.”

  Cole looked her up and down. “I don’t think you need to worry.”

  “Easy for you to say. Jinx will love it, though. He’s never happier than when he’s running.”

  Cole tipped the valet and helped Bree into the vehicle. He got behind the wheel and immediately turned on the heater so the warm air would reach their legs. He paused before putting the truck in gear. “You
have a curfew?”

  She smiled. “Not really. Why, what do you have in mind?”

  “A view you can’t get just anywhere.”

  Bree noticed that when they reached the highway, Cole turned right instead of left to head back to Warm Springs.

  “I would like to arrive home before dawn,” she said, not sure if his idea of a view had anything to do with taking back roads to Mexico.

  “It’s not far from here, but when you get there, you’ll think you’re worlds away.”

  Bree looked out the window as he turned onto a side road that was nothing more than a dirt path. The headlights bounced off inky blackness before illuminating brush and rocks off to the side. It should have given her an eerie feeling, but she felt perfectly safe with him.

  “Great place for a murder,” she commented. “Nothing around for miles, probably no living things until the off-roaders show up on the weekends. By then a lot of trace evidence would be gone.”

  “Your mind must never leave the workplace,” he marveled.

  “I read murder mysteries for relaxation. Nine times out of ten I can guess the identity of the murderer before it’s revealed,” Bree said, echoing the false humility Cole had shown earlier. “Exactly how far are we going?”

  “Afraid you’ll run out of glow-in-the-dark bread crumbs before we get there?” he teased.

  She chuckled. “I only have fifty pounds or so.”

  “Just be patient, Fitzpatrick. It’ll be worth it. Trust me.”

  “Oh, I am,” she said under her breath, noticing the road they were on was now rising upward.

  When Cole rolled to a stop, he unbuckled his belt and opened his door. He walked around and opened Bree’s door, helping her out. She almost stumbled on the rocky ground and grabbed hold of his arm to steady herself. He reached down and laced his fingers through hers, tucking her arm in his.

  “I hate to tell you this, Becker, but I’m a city girl,” she confessed. “The wide-open spaces aren’t exactly my thing.”

  “That’s because you haven’t seen these wide-open spaces,” he told her, keeping his steps slow to accommodate her stumbling gait in her high heels. When they reached an outcrop of boulders, he stopped. He waved his hand outward. “This is what I wanted you to see. The universe at your feet, milady.”

  Bree exclaimed in surprise as she looked down at strings of lights that glittered in myriad patterns before her.

  “However did you find this?” she asked, unable to keep her eyes off the fairy-tale land below.

  “Took a wrong turn one night and ended up here. Since then I’ve come up several times with a sleeping bag. The lights are almost hypnotic, aren’t they?” His voice was low. “I like to come up here and just regroup.”

  She put her hand on one of the boulders as she leaned against it. The day’s heat still radiated from the stone surface. She turned her head to look up at Cole and thank him for sharing this with her, but the words refused to move past her lips. Maybe there was still a sane part lingering inside her, after all.

  “You’re very welcome,” Cole whispered, lowering his head to hers.

  The man knew more than just how to kiss. He knew how to turn her sizzling hot from the top of her head all the way down to her toes. Even his tongue performed magic as it swept through her mouth, taunting her to enter into the sensual world he created. She gripped the top of the boulder, then slowly released it as she leaned closer to Cole. A lemony scent clung to his skin, while the sharp smell of desert brush surrounded them.

  She dug her fingers into his shoulders as she felt his hands splay against her lower back, pressing her tightly against his aroused body.

  His mouth was warm and seductive against hers, while his hands wove another kind of seduction. She closed her eyes to fight the dizziness that threatened to overtake her. A dizziness that she refused to admit was also due to what Cole was doing to her. The lemony scent she’d noticed before was around her. So different from Fitz, who preferred a spicy scent. The feel of Cole was different. His taste.

  It was all too good. And too dangerous.

  The need for air suddenly swamped her. She broke the embrace, stepping back. Her chest rose and fell rapidly.

  Cole started to step toward her, but she held up her hand to stop him. “Okay, Becker, you’ve proved your point,” she said, drawing in oxygen in hopes it would clear her brain. At the moment, she was sorely pressed to remember her own name.

  In the light thrown by the headlights, which Cole had left on, she could see confusion and desire cross his face.

  Oh my God. Their kiss had affected him as much as it had her. His world had rocked just as much as hers did.

  “I’ve got to say, Detective, you pack quite a wallop,” he murmured. “Right about now, I’m more than willing to confess to any crime you want to accuse me of.”

  “Give me time. I know I can come up with something appropriate,” she retorted, still feeling the world sway around her.

  She didn’t like the slow grin crossing his face. The man was much too sure of himself. Much too sure of his charm on the opposite sex. She knew she’d seen a trace of surprise on his face after he’d kissed her. Surprise that meant she might have given him a shock, too. But all that was gone now, and he was back to his old self.

  “Becker, the best thing for all womankind would be to list you as an illegal substance,” she muttered, grateful when her equilibrium started to return.

  “I’m flattered, Fitzpatrick. They always say forbidden fruit tastes the best,” he said, drawing her back into his arms. “They’re right.”

  Even with a scant second’s warning, Bree barely had time to collect her wits before his mouth captured hers again. Her senses swam as the heat of his mouth sent images through her mind’s eye that were decidedly X-rated.

  If the man could do even a fraction of what her mind was projecting, he was one talented operator. She gripped his arms as she felt her knees buckle, and hung on as his mouth trailed up her jaw to nibble on her ear. He closed his fist around her shawl before it could fall to the ground.

  “If I’d known kissing a cop could be this intoxicating I would have tried it much earlier,” he muttered against her earlobe as he settled her shawl back around her shoulders.

  “Wait a minute,” she gasped.

  “Bree.” Her name sounded like a prayer. “Right about now, I’m wishing we were a lot closer to my place.”

  “And I’m glad we’re not.” She managed to pull away. She braced herself against the boulder purely because it was safer than holding on to him. Even if he felt so good. She turned around to face the lights flickering in the distance, but they did little to cool the hunger coursing through her veins. “I need to get home.” They weren’t the words she wanted to say, but she knew they were the ones that needed to be said.

  “Bree,” he murmured again as he rested his hands on her shoulders. He stood so close to her that she felt his arousal.

  “Cole, this isn’t a good idea,” she lied. She closed her eyes as he began kneading the tension out of her shoulders.

  “I don’t know. I think it’s a great idea.” His breath warmed her nape.

  She took a deep breath and moved away from the seductive feel of his hands on her before she gave in again. “Maybe you do, but I have to look at the complete picture here. I have a little boy at home who I’m sure is doing his best to remain awake until I come home so I can kiss him good-night.” Her mentioning Cody was deliberate. She wanted to remind Cole, and herself, of her obligations. She doubted a seasoned bachelor would appreciate the reminder that she had children.

  He flashed a rueful smile. “You’re right, it’s not fair to the little guy.”

  She didn’t look back to see if he followed as she carefully made her way back toward the truck. She started to reach for the door handle, but the faintest of sounds reached her ears. She didn’t react in any way as she waited for Cole to open the door for her.

  “What is it?” he whispered.

/>   Bree instinctively knew he wasn’t thinking what she was. Or what she was really feeling. His question had nothing to do with the mixed feelings he’d stirred up inside her.

  The back of her neck started to tingle as she walked back to the truck. She didn’t want to think what it meant.

  “It looks like your private little hideaway isn’t all that private after all, Becker,” she said under her breath. “Whoever it is must have been very quiet when they got up here. I didn’t hear a thing, did you?” She deliberately rested back against his chest.

  He quickly caught on to her intent. “Like you said, whoever it was was quiet as a church mouse.” He played along, bending down and nuzzling her hair. “I guess we don’t want our observer thinking we know he’s out there.”

  Bree smiled. She kept her ears wide-open in hopes of hearing something. It wasn’t easy with Cole standing so close against her. She tried telling herself they were doing this for the benefit of their watcher. “You guess right. Let’s see if we hear anything else.” She rested her hands on his wrists, which met at her waist.

  Anyone looking at them would have thought they were enjoying a private moment. Bree kept a smile on her lips. She was aware of Cole so close to her, his breath warm on her skin, his lips moving as if he was saying sweet nothings in her ear.

  Was this watcher indulging in some voyeuristic activity or was it something more dangerous?

  Was there a gun trained on them this very moment?

  She wasn’t finding it easy to keep her mind on what she was doing when Cole was nibbling her ear erotically.

  “Next time I decide to get romantic, I’m choosing the middle of a convention floor,” he announced in a low voice. “We’d have a lot more privacy.”

  She felt a pull deep within her body. It was taking all of her self-control not to turn around and finish what they’d begun. The heat of his body was intoxicating. She could feel the tension, too. She didn’t think it was all caused by whoever was spying on them.

  Minutes stretched endlessly until she felt a slight relaxation in her muscles. It took her a few minutes more to recover her senses.