Only in Texas

by Christie Craig

  He shot off and went into the office to join Tyler and Austin for their daily meeting. Snagging another cup of coffee, he said, “Let’s hurry this. I’ve got a busy day.”

  “Somebody’s in a nasty mood. What, you didn’t get any this morning?” Austin asked.

  Dallas slammed his cup down so hard, half his coffee sloshed onto the counter. He swung around. “Don’t start that shit!”

  Austin held up a hand. “Sorry. I…”

  Tyler leaned back in his chair. “You aren’t going to like what I have to tell you, either.”

  “Then don’t tell me.” Dallas felt like an ass, but was unable to stop himself.

  “It’s about Roberto,” Tyler said.

  “Tell me,” Dallas said, trying to get his bad mood in check.

  “The lead he was chasing wasn’t DeLuna.”

  “And it cost us how much to find this out?” Dallas asked.

  “He’s bringing all but five hundred of it back.”

  “You sure he’s not just playing us?” Austin asked.

  “I trust him,” Tyler said.

  “Me, too,” Dallas added, and his bad mood slipped another notch.

  “Do you think this means DeLuna’s pulled out of the Houston area?” Tyler asked.

  “No,” Dallas said.

  “Do you think he already knows we were behind the last three shutdowns?”

  “I wish,” Dallas said. “But those operations were small time. Maybe he suspects he has a snitch. He’ll show up. Shit like him never completely disappears. It might be a month or two, but he won’t stay hidden too long.”

  They all seemed to take a minute to adjust to the disappointment of losing their lead on the man responsible for their prison time. Tyler spoke first. “When’s your brother going to let you know what Detective Shane’s doing?”

  “I talked to him earlier this morning.” A sense of accomplishment wiggled into Dallas’s mood. “Shane called him last night wanting to know the name and contact info for the witness who’s willing to testify she was with Nance at the park. Tony thinks he’s going to use this to dismiss the charges. He asked us to wait until tomorrow. I told him that was our cutoff date. If we hadn’t heard anything at four that afternoon, we were taking it to the press. Tony assured me Shane is doing the right thing.”

  “You believe him?” Austin asked.

  “Yeah, I do. I think we actually own this one.”

  “Well, damn!” Tyler let out a whoop.

  “If this happens, we should celebrate,” Austin said. “This will be our first case where we really save someone’s ass from being wrongly convicted.”

  “We will,” Dallas said. Would Nikki be around to celebrate with him? Shit. He hoped they’d be celebrating Nikki being let off the suspect list soon as well.

  “Let’s shift gears for a sec,” Dallas said. “I went looking for the busboy yesterday. No one was home. I asked the neighbors and—”

  “And they told you he must be on vacation, right? I went there four times over the weekend,” Austin said.

  Tyler opened a file. “I spent the weekend trying to break into Brian and Sterns files and searching for info on Andrew Brian. The firm obviously has a better computer system than they do phones. However, local rehabs don’t. I found out Brian checked into a Cypress rehab two years ago.”

  “So Rachel Peterson was telling the truth.” Dallas chewed on the new information.

  Austin tapped a pencil on his desk. “I also went back to Jack Leon’s place. According to a chatty neighbor, Leon liked blondes. She swears he had a blonde over a couple of weeks ago. She saw them jogging in the park. Unfortunately, she suggested that it was his ex-wife who killed him. I asked for a description and she said blond, fit and pretty. She said she’d seen the picture of the ex in the paper and thought it was her.”

  “It wasn’t Nikki,” Dallas said.

  “I know, but if Tony finds this neighbor in the same chatty mood, she might tell him the same thing. I’m just telling you what I found.”

  “Looks as if I’m the only one who got lucky over the weekend,” Tyler said, sounding proud of himself.

  “Oh, hell, no,” Austin chimed in. “I visited my nurse again and we know what Dallas was doing.”

  “I mean with the case,” Tyler said. “I spent time looking at the flash drive. It belonged to Leon. I found a few deleted files, nothing of interest. But I found out that data on the flash drive had been downloaded on Tuesday. The day before Leon was killed.”

  “And the day Rachel Peterson heard Leon and Brian fighting,” Dallas said.

  “Right,” Tyler confirmed.

  Dallas tapped a pen on the desk. “I gave this some thought over the weekend. If we still don’t have anything on the busboy by this afternoon, maybe we should give Tony the info. He might be able to find something we can’t. But what I’d like to do is have a long talk with the senior partner, Sterns. Lay it on the table. Tell him I have proof someone was embezzling. He may just be curious enough to work with us.”

  “If you could get me into the office, I could probably tell him which computer this information was downloaded from.”

  “Good idea. I’ll make that part of my pitch.” Dallas stood up. “You know computer forensics should have been your specialty.”

  “That’s boring. I gotta shoot at someone every now and then.” Tyler grinned.

  “Well if you feel the urge, make it Andrew Brian. I think he’s our bad guy.” Dallas raked a hand through his hair. “But add this question to your list,” he told Tyler. “What’s the connection between our busboy and Andrew Brian? If the busboy is involved—and at this point, I think he is—there has to be a connection. And we have to find it.”

  Nikki stopped by the hospital on her way to the gallery. LeAnn was in Ellen’s room, checking on her. Ellen was better, bored senseless but, because of a slight fever, they wanted to keep her another day. Glaring at LeAnn, who stood at the foot of her bed, Ellen reached out and grabbed Nikki’s hand.

  “Please break me out of this place. I hate the white walls, the smell, the food.”

  Nikki pulled out a book she’d brought. “I brought you some entertainment.”

  “I hope it’s hot. I swear I’m still feeling the residual effects of the morphine.”

  Nikki laughed and glanced at LeAnn. “How are you doing?”

  “I’m… coping.” LeAnn fit a blood pressure cuff on Ellen’s arm.

  “Is Tony still staying at your place?” Nikki asked.

  “Didn’t you hear? His apartment is overrun with bedbugs.”

  “Really?” Nikki grinned.

  “Bedbugs?” Ellen asked.

  “It’s a boldfaced lie,” LeAnn said.

  “Hmm, I wonder why he’s lying?” Nikki asked.

  Ellen cleared her throat. “Why is it I feel as if I’ve missed out on something?”

  Nikki looked at LeAnn. “Can I tell her?”

  “Tell me what?” Ellen asked.

  “Oh, hell, why not?” LeAnn said. “Maybe she’ll stop telling me how gorgeous he is.”

  “Okay, now I’m really lost.” Ellen sat up.

  Nikki grinned. “Tony is LeAnn’s husband.”

  “We’re separated,” LeAnn said. “Or we used to be. I don’t know what we are now. Except flustered. The man walks around practically naked. It’s… bad. Really, really bad.”

  “I’ll bet,” Nikki teased her.

  Ellen flipped her focus from LeAnn to Nikki. “Who the hell is Tony?”

  “Detective O’Connor,” Nikki explained.

  “You mean the hot detective?” Ellen grinned at LeAnn. “Oops.”

  “That’s him,” Nikki said.

  “Oh, my.” Ellen looked at LeAnn. “I can see why you’re flustered. Wait. I didn’t hit on him the other day, did I?”

  LeAnn chuckled. “That was Dallas. And Nikki might have a thing or two to say about that.”

  Ellen stared at Nikki. “Who’s Dallas?”

  “Tony’
s brother,” Nikki said.

  “How did you meet—”

  “Dallas is the PI who’s working my case. You met him,” Nikki explained. But she hadn’t told Ellen the details because she didn’t want her worrying.

  “That’s not all he’s helping you with,” LeAnn said. “Or are you sleeping on his pink sofa?” When Nikki shot LeAnn a frown, she said, “Hey, you said you were going to tell her. I figured that meant everything.”

  Ellen’s eyes widened. “Why, Nikki Hunt, are you staying at his place?”

  “Someone broke into my apartment. Dallas thinks they might come back.”

  “Really?” She studied Nikki with laser-sharp green eyes. “Are you letting him take advantage of you and use you for his personal little bang toy?”

  Nikki blushed. “Well, I…”

  “Hot damn!” Ellen punched a hand in the air. “It’s about time.”

  They all laughed. The ringing of LeAnn’s phone brought a frown to her lips. “I’m being paged. Darn it, I know I’m gonna miss the best part, too.” She grinned and walked out.

  As the door closed, Ellen looked at Nikki and her smile faded. “Why am I just now hearing this?”

  “You’ve had other things to worry about.”

  “Worry? I’m pissed you didn’t give me the details of how good the sex is,” Ellen said.

  Nikki laughed then bit down on her lip. “It’s crazy.”

  “The sex is crazy?”

  Nikki smiled. “That, too. I’m scared. He’s wonderful and, as corny as it sounds, he completes me. He makes me laugh, gets my jokes and… he eats French fries with his fingers.”

  “Wow. His fingers?” She laughed. “So what’s scary?”

  “I’m a breath away from falling in love with him. He told me up front he wanted to take it a day at a time. I don’t think he’s what you would call a relationship person.”

  “But you’re staying at his house. That doesn’t sound like he’s too scared.”

  “Only because he thinks someone is out to kill me. He even told me he wasn’t asking for forever. And that this is like a vacation. It’s temporary. I’m gonna get my heart broken, Ellen.”

  Ellen studied her. “You know what’s really throwing me for a loop? You’re more worried about your heart being broken than you are that someone might be trying to kill you—and let’s not forget you’re still the main suspect in a murder investigation.”

  Nikki dropped into a chair. “I’m worried about it all,” she confessed. “But, I can’t seem to do anything about the first two. Seriously, I can’t believe they can blame his death on me. I didn’t do it. Surely the evidence will prove that.”

  After another second Nikki continued. “I guess I’m trying to concentrate on the things I can change, the things that are in my control. And if I could walk away right now and save myself from pain.”

  “And what if he’s right and someone is trying to kill you? It could be the same person who did this to me.”

  “I have Mace.” Nikki looked at her best friend. “I’m sorry this happened to you.”

  Ellen frowned. “I’m fine now. It’s you who could be in danger.”

  “Don’t worry, I’m going to be careful.”

  The sounds of someone paging a doctor filled the room. Ellen continued to stare at Nikki. “About this guy. Maybe you shouldn’t be so quick to… jump to conclusions. What if you walk away and it turns out he’s just slow on the commitment thing?”

  “What’s the chance of that being true?” Tears tightened Nikki’s throat, but she wasn’t about to let them show. Ellen had all the whining rights. If anyone should be shedding tears right now, it should be her.

  “I may be overstepping my bounds here, but I’m not certain he’s the only one with commitment problems.”

  “That’s not true.” The room went silent for a several minutes. It wasn’t true, Nikki told herself. Sure she was scared and hesitant, maybe she had a bad habit of looking for potholes like Nana said, but she wasn’t commitment phobic.

  Was she?

  Ellen took Nikki’s hand in hers. “Okay, I’m done acting like my mom. You have to do what you think is right. And you know if you really need a place to stay, you could go stay at my parents’ house.”

  “Thanks,” Nikki said, and somehow she suspected that Ellen’s parents would honestly take her in. Not that she would go, but it was nice to have the option.

  “What are you going to do?” Ellen asked.

  “I don’t know,” Nikki said. “I really don’t know. But I’ll be fine.” And she wished she could believe that with more conviction.

  CHAPTER TWENTY-NINE

  “YOU WANT ME TO do what?” Henry Sterns asked Dallas. “Turn my computer systems over to a stranger? Do you take me for a fool?” He waved a hand at Tyler, who sat quietly beside Dallas in a leather chair.

  Sterns was in his early sixties, balding, about fifty pounds overweight and, if his red face was any indication, he suffered from high blood pressure.

  “No,” Dallas replied. “I took you for a smart man. If someone said they thought someone was stealing from me and had proof, I’d be interested in seeing it.”

  “Show me what you got.”

  “Sorry. It doesn’t work that way.”

  “You think Jack Leon was stealing from me?” Sterns snapped.

  “I didn’t say that,” Dallas said.

  “Then what the hell are you saying?”

  “We’re saying someone in your office is stealing from you,” Tyler chimed in.

  “Who?” Sterns demanded.

  “To answer that I’ll need access to your computers,” Tyler said.

  “And you think this has something to do with Jack’s murder?”

  “Yes,” Tyler and Dallas answered at the same time.

  “How do I know you’re not here to rob me blind?”

  “By just having access to your computer?” Dallas asked.

  “Oh, I could do it,” Tyler said.

  Dallas shot him a what-the-hell look, but he didn’t flinch.

  “But that’s not my plan. We’re here to help someone,” Tyler said.

  “Who?”

  “Nikki Hunt,” Tyler answered.

  “Jack’s ex?” Sterns asked.

  Dallas nodded. “Yes.”

  “Look, I don’t think she did it, but I can’t turn over my computers to you without talking to someone.”

  “Then talk.” Dallas passed him a business card then stood up. He and Tyler left the man to think over their offer.

  As they walked out of Sterns’s office, Rachel Peterson stepped in front of them. She looked angry, and ready to bench-press a couple hundred pounds, which was about how much Dallas weighed.

  “Is this him?” she asked.

  Oh shit.

  “Is this your boyfriend?” Rachel demanded.

  Tyler’s mouth fell open. “Say what?”

  Dallas answered, “I never said that. You assumed—”

  “What?” she asked Tyler. “You haven’t come out of the closet yet?”

  “Oh, honey,” Tyler said, getting into the story. “I came out of the closet, but sometimes I like to take this sweet hunk of man back into the closet. You wouldn’t believe the toys I keep in there.” He gave Dallas’s butt a quick smack, and then dragged him away from Rachel.

  As they walked outside, Dallas looked at Tyler. “I’ll give you a thousand dollars to never repeat that. But if you do tell anyone you touched my ass, I will shoot you.”

  “Please,” Tyler said. “You know me better than that.” Reaching the car, Tyler continued, “It would have to at least be ten thousand. And you might as well load your gun.”

  Monday evening Tony watched LeAnn walk out of the kitchen with a lump of disappointment in his gut. Every night they ate dinner together, laughed, and talked about their day. She’d even started helping with the dishes.

  And then she’d leave him.

  It hadn’t stopped him from trying, though. Every night,
he’d use the shower, ask her to join him, but she never did. As he tossed the dish towel on the counter, he heard a door open.

  He turned, hope filling him. “Change your mind about…” His heart stopped. Somewhere between his brain and lips the words got lost.

  “Change my mind about what?” She sounded completely innocent—as if she wasn’t standing there wearing nothing but a towel. As if her hair wasn’t hanging around her bare shoulders, as if the towel didn’t give him a generous view of her cleavage.

  “About…” His gaze lowered. The slit came way above her thigh. He swallowed, and let himself enjoy the view. “About a movie.”

  “Nah, I’m taking a bath.” She walked past and grabbed a wineglass. “Wine and a bubble bath.”

  His pulse doubled. She smiled and walked away. He stood there like a fool and watched her leave. Why hadn’t he made a move? Tried to kiss her? Told her she looked sexy?

  But damn. It had been so long since he’d seen that much of LeAnn’s skin. He missed her skin. More than skin, he’d missed that smile. Missed the flirty way she looked at him. He suddenly realized what he hadn’t seen just now on his wife’s face. He hadn’t seen the pain, the constant grief that had filled her eyes for so long. Were they finally moving on? Hope so intense that it almost hurt swelled in his chest.

  He walked to the bathroom door and heard the water running. He smelled the scented bubble bath she used. His mind went back to the skin. He knocked. “Need someone to wash your back?”

  “Nah. But thanks for the offer.”

  He leaned his forehead on the wood door that wasn’t nearly as hard as he was. Then he grinned. Okay, so LeAnn wasn’t quite ready for sex, but not only was she on to his game, she was playing right along with him. And that had to be good news.

  “Bring it on, baby,” he whispered. “Bring it on.”

  Later that night, Dallas watched Nikki get up and head toward his bedroom. What had seemed like a brilliant idea now suddenly felt foolish. A desperate attempt to fix something when he didn’t even know what the hell was wrong.