Watch Me (The Donovan Family Book 2)

by Margaret Watson

  "Yeah?"

  "I told him my neighbor already let me know."

  "I may have had a few words with Schultz this morning."

  "What?" She swiveled in the seat. "What did you say?"

  He clenched his teeth as he swung into a parking spot a block away from Oscars. "Just let him know what a dick he was for not calling you right away."

  "No wonder he seemed a little...odd."

  "Odd how?"

  "Like he was walking on eggs. He was very thorough. Told me everything twice, at least."

  "Good." Quinn slid out of his seat and slammed the door a little harder than necessary, then hurried around to open her door. She was already half out of the car.

  "Did you fight with him?"

  "No. I just pointed out that he was a dick."

  "That's not a fight?"

  "No, it's an observation."

  "Yeah, well, he wasn't a dick to me. He asked me a couple of times if there was anything else he could do for me."

  "And what did you say?"

  "I told him you were taking care of that."

  "What?" Quinn knew exactly what Schultz would have been thinking – yeah, I bet he is. He grabbed her hand and swung her around to face him. "You told him we were seeing each other?"

  "No! I told him you were keeping me updated."

  "Good. That's good." God! Since when did he have such a fast trigger when it came to a woman he was dating? If it had been anyone but Tessa, Quinn would have done exactly what Schultz did.

  Time for some damage control at the precinct, beginning with making sure Mia kept her mouth shut.

  He pulled open the door to Oscars and followed her inside. "Let's sit down and get a beer. There's something I need to ask you."

  Chapter 13

  Tessa slid into a booth, watching Quinn as she settled against the cool vinyl. He looked so serious. So worried.

  Maybe he was going to tell her he had to stop seeing her. That he'd gotten too involved, too fast, and he didn't want to get in any deeper. Maybe he already had a girlfriend he hadn't told her about. Or a fiancee. Maybe he was moving away from Chicago and they wouldn't see each other again.

  "Hey." He reached across the table and took her hand. "Don't look so worried. It's nothing bad."

  "You promise?" The words slipped out before she could stop them. Quinn smiled, and Tessa wanted to snatch the words back. She didn't want to be that needy, clingy girlfriend.

  A tiny voice reminded her she didn't want to be Quinn's girlfriend anyway. That this was casual. A fling. Nothing as serious as boyfriend – girlfriend.

  Seriously, Tessa? Who used those words, other than high school kids?

  "Yeah, I promise. Unless the idea of meeting my brothers and sister and mother freaks you out."

  She drew her hand away from his. "What do you mean?" she asked cautiously.

  Quinn fidgeted in the seat, took one of the napkin-wrapped sets of silverware out of the basket on the table. Lined up the silver. Put the napkin in his lap. Finally he cleared his throat. "I know this is kind of early. And I know we talked about being casual. Nothing heavy-duty. That we're not a big deal."

  "Yeah. And...?"

  Color stained his cheekbones. "My sister Mia heard about the thing with Schultz." He closed his eyes and clenched his teeth. "God! There should be a rule that siblings can't work in the same precinct. But she's there, and she tried to bust my balls about you."

  "You told your sister we were dating?" She stared at him, shocked.

  "No! I told her I'd met you a few days ago and I'd seen you since then. That's all. I swear. But she's off and running and wants to meet you. She insisted that I invite you over for Sunday dinner at my mother's house. We all get together once a month to catch up."

  "You said no, didn't you?" Tessa's heart was racing. Dinner with his family. "That's...holy crap. That's serious."

  He shook his head, but his shoulders were tense. "Not that big a deal. When we were kids, there were usually one or two extra kids at dinner. Even now, our friends come by once in a while. So it's not unusual to have a friend at dinner."

  "Friends you grew up with are different than a woman you're sleeping with."

  "We're not just sleeping together," he said sharply. "We're dating, Tessa."

  Dating was too close to 'girlfriend'. "We barely know each other. And the only dating we've done is in my bedroom."

  "We're sitting here in Oscars, aren't we? That's dating."

  "Dating is when you go to a movie together. Or a play. Or a concert."

  "We just talked about coming here on a weekend to listen to music," he said triumphantly. "So we're officially dating."

  Tessa slumped back against the cool vinyl and laughed. "Are we seriously arguing about whether or not we're dating?"

  "Yeah, we are." He reached across the table and twined their fingers together, rubbing his thumb over the back of her hand. "And I think we're doing it so you can avoid answering me about the family dinner."

  "I have to work on Sunday," she said, both relieved and a little disappointed. And where did that come from? She didn't want to meet Quinn's family.

  "Then it's a good thing that the dinner isn't for a couple of weeks. You have to work then?"

  She could lie and tell him she did. But she knew her face would flame and he'd realize she was lying. Damn the fair skin that went with red hair. "No," she said grudgingly. "I don’t."

  "So will you come with me?"

  "Why does your sister want to meet me, anyway? Did you tell her this was casual? Just a fling?"

  "Come on, Tessa. That's not the kind of thing you tell your baby sister." He rolled his eyes. "Especially not my baby sister. She'd tell my mother and my brothers. It would be the topic of conversation at the next family dinner. There are some things a guy doesn't want to discuss with his family."

  "So you let her think this was serious?"

  "No! God! I told her we just met. That's all. And she's making a big deal out of it." He swallowed. "She's relentless. That's why she's a good cop. That's why she'll make detective sooner rather than later. But it's not so good if you're her brother and she wants something."

  Tessa opened another set of silverware and moved it around on the table. "I don't know, Quinn. I think it would be weird. We hardly know each other."

  "We know each other well enough," he said quietly. "Although I agree it would be a little weird. We have no idea what we are yet. But would it really be so bad? A family dinner, meet a few new people, eat some good food, drink some wine?"

  "I'll think about it, okay?" She moved the silverware again. "Can I let you know next week sometime?"

  "Sure." He squeezed her hand and let it go. "I just didn't want you to refuse immediately."

  "Maybe you'll be sick of me by next weekend, anyway."

  "Not possible," he said quietly. "But maybe you'll be sick of me."

  She'd said it to be funny. To lighten the mood. But the way Quinn watched her made her breath hitch. "Don't think I will be." Her smile was a little shaky. "It's been an amazing few days. So if we're still dating in two weekends, I'll think about it. Okay?"

  "Fair enough." He glanced at the harried-looking waitress approaching their table. "Want a beer? Or something else?"

  "A beer sounds good."

  ***

  A few evenings later at work, Tessa was sitting at a desk in the nurse's station, daydreaming about the previous evening with Quinn. She was reliving the way Quinn's mouth had felt as he kissed his way down her abdomen, her mind so wrapped up in her memories, that she was jolted when someone shook the back of her chair.

  "Jeez, Tessa, what were you thinking about?" Kyle Nolan's voice. "I hope it was where you want to go for drinks after work tonight."

  Tessa spun around in her chair to find Kyle's muddy brown eyes too close. He was leaning over her, invading her space, his minty breath hot on her face.

  Had he spotted her sitting here, absorbed in her thoughts, and popped in a breath mint
before he walked over? If so, that was really creepy.

  "Kyle. I was thinking about what I needed to do for the patient in 1110 B," she said crisply. "And no, it didn't include you, because she doesn't need an x-ray."

  "So how about that drink after work?"

  "No thanks. I'm busy after work."

  Two people appeared at the counter. Dr. Hunter and his intern, James Dietrich. Tessa moved slightly away from Kyle, relieved by the distraction. "Do you need something, Dr. Hunter?" Please say yes. She might not like the surgeon, but she'd use him to escape from Kyle.

  "No," the doctor said without looking up. "I'm fine."

  "Is that it?" Kyle took a step toward Hunter. "You going out with big-shot over there after work?"

  "Kyle!" She stared at the x-ray tech, shocked. "Of course not."

  "You were sure quick to look at him when he showed up. Is it because he's a doctor and I'm just a lowly tech? You think he's better than me?"

  "Kyle, what's the matter with you? I'm not going out with Dr. Hunter. Why would you even think that?"

  "What other guys do you meet, except ones who work here?" Kyle sneered. "You're married to your job."

  "I didn't say I had a date. Maybe I'm meeting a woman friend."

  "Oh, so you play for the other team?"

  Tessa bounded out of her chair. "That's it, Kyle. I'm through talking to you. And if you don't leave right now, I'm reporting you to HR." Nolan didn't move, and with a tiny shiver of fear, Tessa was suddenly aware of his muscled arms and chest. The solid bulk of him.

  "Go ahead," the tech sneered. "We're in a public place. Who's going to believe you?"

  "I will." James stepped between them. He looked at Tessa. "I heard everything he said, Ms. Porter. If you want to go to HR, I'll back you up."

  "Thank you, Doctor. That's very sweet of you." She glared at Kyle. "Leave, Kyle, before I take Dr. Dietrich up on his offer."

  Kyle stared at her for a moment, then spun around and stalked away. Tessa watched him until he disappeared, then smiled at James. "Thank you, Dr. Dietrich. Again. I appreciate it."

  James stared at her for a long moment, his face turning red. "You're welcome. I didn't like the way that young man was talking to you."

  "I didn't either," Tessa said with a shiver. "But he's gone now, thanks to you."

  James ducked his head, his face beet red. But before he could say anything else, Dr. Hunter said, "What are you doing over there, Dietrich? Take a look at this lab report and tell me what you think."

  His face got even redder, and James hurried to the surgeon's side. Tessa watched as they walked away. Hunter was a real prick. She felt a twinge of sympathy for the first year intern.

  Then the buzzer for one of her patients rang. Tessa hurried down the hall. No more fantasizing about Quinn on the job, she told herself. Because she hadn't been paying attention, Kyle had had the chance to sneak up on her.

  Besides, she wouldn't have to fantasize about Quinn in a few hours. She'd be seeing him as soon as she finished her shift.

  ***

  Quinn was waiting for her when she walked out of the hospital three hours later. Even in the darkness, she saw him smile when he spotted her. He leaned across the seat and opened the door, and her heart fluttered just a little. After what happened with Kyle, she was happy to see him. Quinn was normal. Steady. And he'd never hurt or threaten her.

  She was very sure of that.

  It was another hot, muggy night, and she sighed as she shut out the humid air and relaxed into the seat. Quinn had the air conditioning on, and it caressed her skin like cool water.

  "It's so good to see you," she groaned.

  "You mean me, or my air-conditioned car," he teased.

  She shot him a grin. "Both. But I think you win by a nose."

  "Thank goodness." While the car was still at the curb, he said, "Want to get a pizza?"

  "That sounds great. But can we take it home?"

  "Sure. Let me get it ordered."

  It took only a minute or two to order the pizza – half mushrooms and olives, half pepperoni. He'd ordered without even asking, because he already knew what kind of pizza she liked. She knew what he preferred, too.

  For knowing each other only a couple of weeks, they knew an awful lot about each other, she thought uneasily.

  "Is there a reason you don't want to eat in the restaurant?" he asked.

  She turned to face him. "Yeah. There's something I need to talk about."

  "Uh oh. Do I need to be worried?"

  "What do you think?" She slid a hand onto his leg above his knee, let her fingers trail up his thigh. "I had a great time last night. Couldn't you tell?"

  He pulled up to a stop sign and glanced over at her. His eyes were dark and heavy-lidded. "Yeah, I could tell. I think the whole building could."

  She was a little alarmed that she wasn't even embarrassed about being so loud. She slid her hand higher as desire swept through her. All it took lately was one look from Quinn, one touch, and she was gone. She wanted him all the time. She'd been thinking about him at work when Kyle...

  She tightened her grip on his thigh, then let him go. "Nothing's wrong. I need to tell you about something that happened at work today."

  "I'd love to hear about it. We haven't talked much about each other's jobs."

  "We've been too busy keeping my neighbors awake," she said, trying to lighten things up.

  "The one most likely to hear you is the guy across the way. But I don't think he's going to complain."

  "I hope not. Because sometimes he's a little noisy himself."

  "Yeah, it's hard for him to control himself. He's with a woman who is amazing."

  Warmth washed through her. "He's pretty amazing himself."

  He picked up her hand and pressed a kiss to her palm. "I'd love to hear about your day while we eat." His breath fluttered over her fingers. "Do you want me to talk about my job?"

  She stared at their joined hands. "Of course I do. That's what friends do, isn't it? Talk about their jobs? What's happening at their workplace?"

  "Yeah," he said cautiously. "But that doesn't sound like a ringing endorsement."

  "I don't want to make you rehash things like that murder the other day. The one where the kids..."

  "I know. Some things are hard to talk about. But sometimes it helps." He kissed her hand again, let his mouth linger. "You helped that night. More than you can imagine."

  "I'm glad," she whispered. "It was hard hearing about it, but it must be so much worse to have to see it."

  "Yeah." He let her hand go and pulled into a parking spot a block from the pizza place. "Let's go get our dinner. I can't wait to have you alone and hear about your day."

  She suspected he wouldn't be so happy when she told him what had happened with Kyle.

  Fifteen minutes later, when they were sitting at her kitchen table, eating the pizza and drinking a couple of beers, she said, "I need to tell you what happened tonight. I'm not sure it has anything to do with my break-in, but it was disturbing. And I thought you should know about it."

  Chapter 14

  At the word 'disturbing', Quinn dropped his slice of pizza on his plate. His gut clenching, he said, "What? What happened?"

  Tessa picked at a piece of crust on her plate. "There's this x-ray tech on our floor. Kyle Nolan. He brings a portable machine to the patients' rooms if we need an e-ray. He's been bugging me to go out with him."

  Quinn's hand tightened on his beer, then he pushed it away. "Define 'bugging'."

  "Whenever he catches me alone on the floor, he asks me to go out for drinks after work. I've always said no. I've never given him any hint that I'll change my mind. But he's relentless."

  She told Quinn what had happened that evening, how James had stepped in and made Kyle back down. "It got ugly. And Kyle was angry that I said no. Before tonight, he was annoying but he didn't scare me. Tonight, I was really glad that James and Hunter were around."

  "Should I send Schultz over to the
hospital to talk to Kyle?" Anger rose inside Quinn in a hot wave, and he wanted to run over to St. Christopher's and pound his fist into Kyle's face.

  Tessa swallowed and ground a burned piece of pizza crust into black crumbs. "I don't know, Quinn. Would that make him more angry? If he's the one who broke in, he's going to deny it, anyway."

  "I might have butted heads with Schultz the other day, but he's a good detective. He knows how to interrogate people. He knows the tells when they're lying. So it might be a good idea."

  "Could you..." She swallowed again. "Could you do it, instead?"

  "It's not my case anymore." His heart thudded against his chest. She trusted him. She wanted him to solve her problem. "Why do you want me to do it?"

  "I'm not sure Detective Schultz is taking this seriously." She shoved her hair behind her ear. "And I understand why. Whoever broke in didn't leave any fingerprints. It's kind of a dead end. I'm sure he has a lot more pressing cases to deal with."

  "The guy came back, Tessa. So yeah, Schultz is taking it seriously. This kind of case..." He hesitated. He didn't want to scare her, but he wanted her to be aware of what could happen. "Sometimes these guys escalate. No one wants that to happen."

  Her hands gripped the edge of the table. "I'd still feel better if it was you. I know you'll be straight with me. That you won't brush me off."

  "Schultz got the message. He's not going to do that, either." He reached across the table and covered her hand with his. "But if you'd really rather have me check this guy out, I'll clear it with Schultz and come in the next time you and Kyle Nolan are both working. Do you know when that is?"

  "We're both off tomorrow. But we're both working the next day."

  "If it's okay with Schultz, I'll come by then."

  Tessa took a deep breath. "Thanks, Quinn. I appreciate that."

  "I'd do anything for you, Tessa," he said without thinking.

  Her smile faltered a little. "I hope you don't think I'm using our...our friendship to ask for special favors."

  "Of course not!" He grabbed her hand again. "I like that you trust me. That you want me to help you. Okay?" Time to lighten this up. "And I'm not too crazy about sending Schultz to meet with you, anyway. He's a lot smoother than me. Has much better lines."