Pulse Points

by Mary Lynn Baxter

  Kasey couldn’t say anything. She felt herself drowning in those deep brown eyes.

  “I can’t believe this is happening,” he finally said in a raspy voice.

  “Me, either.” Though she had tried to keep her distance physically, she had failed. Just one more time and that would be it. Unfortunately she hadn’t kept those promises she’d made to herself. She was content, if not eager, to take the detour around them.

  “It’s fate. I have to think that.”

  “Tanner—”

  “Hey, don’t start crawfishing on me now.”

  Crawfishing? God, if he only knew.

  He draped a leg over hers and inched her closer, so close that she knew he was hard again. It would take only one tiny move on her part, and he’d be inside her and everything else but bodily pleasure would be forgotten.

  “Hear me out, okay?” he asked in a strained voice.

  She feared what he was about to say. Even more, she feared her response.

  “I’ve already told you I don’t like leaving you.”

  “You have no choice.”

  “We all have choices,” he admonished her gently.

  “Tanner—”

  “Shh. You promised.”

  “I did no such thing.”

  “Indulge me.” He paused, his eyes searching hers. “Please.”

  She swallowed around a lump the size of a goose egg, knowing she was opening herself up for heartache beyond any she’d ever suffered. A heart was a terrible thing to break. Two was even worse. Yet it seemed unavoidable; by indulging him, they were on a collision course.

  “We’re good together, right?”

  She nodded.

  “I knew that two seconds after I saw you again.”

  “I don’t believe that.”

  “Believe it. I can’t explain it, but something happened inside me, an emotion I’d never experienced before.”

  “But you were married,” she pointed out softly. “Are you saying you didn’t love your wife?”

  “I loved Norma. She was a loving and giving person, but I wasn’t in love with her which I often regretted.”

  “I’m sorry.”

  “Don’t be. We had a good life and I think I made her happy.” He paused and cleared his throat. “Let’s talk about us, about you coming back into my life.”

  “I’m not back in your life,” Kasey pointed out in a halting voice.

  “You can be.”

  “What are you saying, Tanner?”

  “That I love you and want to marry you.”

  Tanner strode into his kitchen in his skivvies. He’d made himself a cup of instant coffee only to take a sip, then dump it in the sink. It tasted bitter, like tar. Too bad he didn’t have time to brew a fresh pot and drink it leisurely. He had three meetings scheduled that morning, the most important one being a television interview that pitted him against Butler. He wasn’t apprehensive in the least. The interviewer was a woman he knew and for whom he had a great amount of professional respect. He was positive she would be able to keep the bit in Butler’s mouth. If not, he wouldn’t let his opponent goad him into saying something he’d later regret.

  Besides, he had the advantage. He was ahead once again in the polls, an accomplishment that both humbled him and frightened him. Greer and Butler’s ploy to smear him seemed to have backfired.

  Carl had been released from hospital with a clean bill of health from the doctor and was back on the job. The construction site had been inspected by his own people as well as the city’s, and to date nothing that would incriminate him or his company had been found. Thankfully those incidences had long ceased to be the gossip of the day. Some other poor mullet now had that honor.

  Still, Tanner had no intention of becoming too comfortable and letting his guard down. Between now and election day, he would continue on his chosen path which was to stick to the issues that would make Texas a better place to live for young and old alike.

  Yet underneath that shield of caution was festering excitement. He could admit that. His adrenaline was charged, and he felt confident he could face a bear with a switch and whip its ass.

  Especially since he had Kasey.

  Whoa, Hart. You’re getting way ahead of yourself. Much too cocky. She hasn’t made a commitment. In light of that brutal reminder, his adrenaline almost dried up.

  After telling her he loved her and wanted to marry her, she had pulled back and stared at him, alarm registered in her wide eyes. Her reaction had stoked his anger.

  “You knew, surely,” he’d said, trying to suppress his feelings.

  “I didn’t.”

  “I don’t know why. I’ve been acting like a lovesick teenager around you from the get-go.”

  Kasey averted her gaze. “I don’t know what to say.”

  That fired his anger. “I think you just did.”

  “It’s not that simple.” Her voice was barely audible.

  “Either you love me or you don’t. In my book, that’s pretty simple.” Tears gathered in her eyes, and he groaned. “For God’s sake, don’t cry.”

  “I’m not,” she denied fiercely.

  He didn’t argue. Instead he flopped onto his back and stared at the ceiling, feeling as though his insides were in a meat grinder. “I was so sure you felt the same way,” he finally added in a dull tone.

  “Maybe I do.”

  Tanner swung back to face her and was about to reach for her when she held out her hands, stopping him.

  “Please, don’t.”

  He expelled a harsh breath. “Okay. I’m listening.”

  “I just need time to digest all this.”

  He tried to see through the veil she had over her eyes, but he couldn’t. “So you’re not telling me to get lost.”

  Silence.

  “Dammit, Kasey.”

  “We don’t fit,” she said in a weak voice.

  Her labored breathing affected the rise and fall of her exposed breasts. He focused on them greedily, aching to touch them again, to suck those pink nipples into hard pebbles. He turned his head.

  “We fit, all right.” His tone was thick. “Perfectly.”

  “I wasn’t talking just about sex.”

  “Me, either.”

  “My life is in such a mess right now, Tanner.”

  “I’m here for you.”

  “I know. Just give me some space, let me sort through some things.”

  “Fine.”

  She turned and was about to get out of bed. He grabbed her arm. “You haven’t answered my question,” he said in a strangled voice. “Do you love me?”

  “I don’t know,” she cried before fleeing to the bathroom and slamming the door.

  Later at the door, he had kissed her; for a second, she had clung to him. Pushing her away had been the hardest thing he’d done. But until she knew her own heart, he had to let her go. He had told her he would be in touch.

  Now, after rehashing that conversation in his mind, Tanner wondered if she was playing him for a fool. No. She loved him. His gut instinct told him that. She was scared to make a commitment for reasons he knew and reasons he didn’t.

  He saw the past as the biggest hurdle to jump.

  And if it was time she needed, then time she would get. As long as she loved him, that was all that mattered. Realizing he’d indulged himself long enough, Tanner made his way into the bathroom. His hand was on the shower faucet when he heard the doorbell chime.

  “Great,” he muttered, turning and striding into the foyer. If it was Irene, he was not going to be happy. She had a bad habit of dropping by unannounced, a habit he was about to help her break.

  By the time he reached the door, the loud chimes had assaulted his ears several more times.

  “Dammit, Tanner, open the door.”

  “All right, already.” He jerked on the handle and stepped aside as a red-faced Jack Milstead crossed the threshold.

  “Is your TV on?” he demanded without preamble.

  “Nope.�
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  He handed Tanner the morning paper from his doorstep. “You obviously haven’t seen the news.”

  “You’re right.” Tanner forced himself to ignore Jack’s sarcasm and remain cool until he knew what had his friend so riled.

  “The shit’s hit the fan again.”

  “How so?”

  Jack tossed him the paper. “That reporter’s done another number on you.”

  Tanner grimaced.

  “It’s all there in black and white. But before you read it, I suggest you sit your ass down.”

  Tanner quirked an eyebrow, then scanned the front page. “I’ll be a son of a bitch.”

  “Is it true?” Jack asked, glaring at him. “Were you and Shirley Parker involved?”

  “I don’t like the way you say that word, Jack.”

  Jack’s glare hardened. “I don’t give a damn whether you like it or not. Is it true?”

  “I knew Shirley. I’ll admit that. But we weren’t involved, not in the way Daisy Greer has insinuated in this article.”

  “Did you have a relationship?” Jack pressed.

  “No, dammit, we didn’t.”

  Jack glowered at him. “Would Parker have said the same thing?”

  “I can’t speak for her.” Tanner’s voice was terse.

  “Well, it’s too bad we can’t ask her, isn’t it?”

  Tanner’s lips thinned. “Cut the sarcasm, Jack. It’s falling on deaf ears.”

  “Well, you can bet this article isn’t. That woman has dropped another grenade in our lap and it’s exploded. Your political career just might be over and done with.”

  Tanner stalked to the window, his mind in an uproar. If Jack knew what was circling in his mind like vultures over a dead animal, he’d really be livid. Kasey. His heart stopped beating for a millisecond, and he broke out in a cold sweat. What would she think?

  “I can’t believe you thought you could keep this hot potato a secret.”

  “I didn’t think about it one way or the other.”

  Jack cursed again.

  “Greer has blown it all out of proportion, Jack.”

  “Let’s just pray the police and the voters see it that way. They’re the ones who count. But after reading this article, I’m afraid both are going to think you’re a lowlife bastard who might have killed her.”

  Tanner clenched his jaw so tightly he feared it might snap.

  The phone rang.

  “Don’t answer that,” Jack barked. “It’s probably Irene, anyway.”

  “She won’t call. She’ll show up on the doorstep like you.”

  “Cancel all your appointments, and we’ll gather the troops in the war room and go from there.”

  “I’m scheduled for a TV interview with Butler this morning.”

  “Holy shit.”

  “Maybe I should keep it.”

  Jack’s face turned beet red. “Have you lost your mind?”

  “Not hardly.” Tanner’s tone was as hard and cold as steel. “But I will take your suggestion under advisement.”

  A heavy silence invaded the premises.

  “Tell me, Tanner,” Jack finally said, “were you fucking Shirley Parker?”

  Thirty-Six

  “Have you seen today’s paper?”

  “Good morning to you, too,” Kasey said in response to Ginger’s bluntness after answering the phone.

  “Go get your paper. Now. Then sit down.”

  “Not until you give me a hint what this is all about.”

  “You’d best see for yourself.”

  “I have a feeling I’m not going to be overjoyed.”

  Silence.

  “Ginger.”

  “Just go read the paper, Kasey, then we’ll talk.”

  “You’re frightening me. It’s about Tanner, isn’t it?”

  “Yes.”

  “Butler’s really done a number on him this time, huh?”

  “It’s not Butler.”

  It wasn’t so much what Ginger said, but the way she said it that sent chills through Kasey.

  “Stop stalling.”

  “Okay, okay.” Frowning, Kasey walked to the table, opened the paper and scanned the front page.

  Tanner Hart And Shirley Parker Involved?

  “Oh, my God,” Kasey cried, grabbing her stomach and sinking into the nearest dining room chair.

  “Are you all right?” Ginger demanded into the silence. “Of course, you’re not all right. What a dopey question.”

  “I’m shocked and sick is what I am,” Kasey whispered, trying desperately to come to grips with what she’d just read. Tanner and Shirley? No way. It made no sense. It was a mistake. It had to be. He would’ve told her.

  “Kasey, I know this has to zing you real bad, especially since you work so closely with him.”

  Hysteria bubbled close to the surface as last night’s event stampeded through her mind. He loved her and she loved him. Oh, God. She grabbed her stomach again and bent over.

  “Look, maybe this is just a bunch of garbage. This Greer woman obviously has it out for Tanner, so wait until you hear his side before you make a judgment.”

  “Thanks for calling me,” Kasey managed to say with quivering lips. “I’ll talk to you later.”

  “What are you going to do?” Ginger asked, anxiety upping the range of her voice.

  “Nothing at the moment.”

  “I think that’s wise.”

  Another bout of hysteria almost choked Kasey. He’s my lover and the father of my child, she wanted to scream. How could sitting idle be wise?

  “However,” Ginger went on, “your work for him is about done, anyway.” She paused. “Isn’t it?”

  “Yes,” Kasey said in a numbed voice.

  “Then you won’t come out any worse for wear if this brouhaha turns into a smoking gun.”

  “Okay.”

  “Okay what? Obviously you didn’t hear a thing I said.”

  “I’m sorry, Ginger, it’s just that I’m not thinking straight right now.” Her mouth was bone dry and her stomach burned like acid.

  “I know and I understand. He’s a great guy and until somebody proves otherwise, he’s still getting my vote.” She paused with a sigh. “All that other stuff aside, the idea that he popped Shirley is too ludicrous to be true.”

  “I agree,” Kasey said, trembling all over.

  “Promise you’ll call me, the minute you know something.”

  “I promise.”

  With that, Kasey hung up. For the longest time, she remained at the table, too paralyzed to move. Her mind, however, was on a roll.

  Tanner and Shirley.

  Tanner and Shirley.

  Tanner and Shirley.

  Those words, together, kept playing over and over in her mind like a skipping forty-five record.

  It was a mistake. It had to be. Like Ginger had said, Daisy Greer was after Tanner in order to make a name for herself. Sensational journalism was what that awful woman was about. A grandstander. She didn’t care about facts, or she wouldn’t have wasted her time or her readers’ by writing untruths.

  Yet where there was smoke there was fire. Trite as that may be, it held merit. Tears stung her eyes as she rubbed her head. He had told her he loved her. To think, she had almost told him that love was reciprocated, regardless of how foolish that would’ve been.

  Now, however, if he and Shirley had had a relationship, then…

  Kasey’s mind simply shut down, refusing to go there. Trembling, she stood, only to then race to the toilet where she lost the contents of her stomach.

  Richard Gallain’s eyes were on the ceiling. “There is a God.”

  If it wouldn’t have raised eyebrows, he would’ve pulled a Gene Kelly and danced through the halls of the precinct, kicking his heels together while he was at it.

  However, Gallain reined in those heightened emotions, though it was tough containing his excitement. He had finally gotten a break in the Parker case. Although he couldn’t take the credit per se—a
fact that rankled when he thought about it—he wasn’t about to let that stop him from refocusing his investigation.

  On Tanner Hart.

  Gallain scratched his head and smiled. If he’d been told things would turn on a dime and in such a freakish way, he would’ve laughed, and not with any humor, either.

  He had busted his ass for countless hours on the Parker case only to continue to come up empty-handed. But he hadn’t given up, though he felt like he was shitting in one hand and wishing in the other. It was obvious which one was getting full the fastest.

  Then Daisy Greer had waltzed into his office with a shit-eating grin on her face and given him a new lease on life. And a real shot at that promotion.

  For that reason alone, he had wanted to grab Greer and hug her. He’d refrained, however, fearing she wouldn’t think twice about cold-cocking him for such a move.

  “How the hell did you uncover this juicy bone?” he had asked after she’d filled him in.

  “Like you, I have sources, which will remain unnamed.”

  “How ’bout proof, Ms. Greer?”

  “That, Detective, is your department.” She paused. “Though my part is still ongoing.”

  “There’s more?” He felt an added rush.

  “Maybe, maybe not.”

  She was being deliberately coy. Why? Suddenly his good nature took a turn for the worse. “This is not a game, Ms. Greer,” he told her coldly. “This is a murder investigation. Need I remind you of that fact?”

  She remained unflustered under his sharp attack.

  “And need I remind you that you and this department have come up with zip so far?”

  His anger fired, but he cooled it. “Trust me, I would’ve eventually nailed her killer.”

  Daisy’s lips curled. “Sure thing.”

  “Is there anything else, Ms. Greer?” he asked, deliberately letting her insult slide. What the hell? She was one of those women who lived to grow balls. For the moment, he didn’t mind helping her do just that. But when he got tired of her and her mouth, he’d put her in her place. Gallain cleared his throat. “You mentioned there might be more. Care to elaborate on that?”