Long, Lean and Lethal

by O'Clare, Lorie

  Rain couldn’t decide whether her father would love Noah or think him a pompous ass. Oftentimes men who knew other men who acted just like they did hated each other’s guts.

  “I still am,” she whispered.

  “He was a lucky man,” Noah told her, his voice suddenly more gravelly than it was a moment before.

  She felt his cock stir against her ass and her breath caught in her throat. At the same time, her insides responded with a fierceness that matched the strength of her emotions. Instantly she swelled with need and his hands, which now caressed her arms, scalded her flesh as desire ripped through her.

  All she needed to do was turn around and she could fuck him. As much as she knew having sex with him would complicate things even further, it wouldn’t take any effort at all to gain the relief she suddenly craved.

  It took a moment for her to realize her cell buzzed in the other room.

  “Saved by the bell,” Noah muttered, backing off and allowing her space to move.

  “Fuck you,” she grumbled.

  “It crossed my mind.”

  His words sizzled in her brain and suddenly it was way too hot in the house. And it wasn’t from a malfunctioning air conditioner. She hurried into the bedroom, grabbed her phone, pushed the button to answer, and turned around to run into Noah.

  “Hello,” she said, tightening her grip on her phone so it wouldn’t go flying when she slammed into his rock-hard chest.

  “Huxtable, I think I found something.” Al’s scratchy voice was brimming with excitement.

  “Yeah? What do you got?”

  “Are you secure?” Al asked.

  Rain scowled. Her cell phone was department issued and had been on her every minute, other than when she and Noah were at the potluck, and then it was locked in the car. She made a habit of disassembling and reassembling it when she charged it.

  “Go ahead,” she decided, seriously doubting anyone would have been able to bug her.

  “You’re secure,” Noah said quietly, giving her the impression she was more secure than she thought.

  “Damn, sounds like he’s on top of you,” Al chuckled.

  Noah opened his mouth to say something and Rain pointed a warning finger at him. “He’s not. I assure you. What do you have?” she said, needing something besides his virile body and commanding presence to focus on.

  “Although this isn’t a surprise to anyone, ballistics came back today confirming there was a silencer on our murder weapon. You know that exit wounds are usually larger than entrance wounds,” Al began.

  Noah leaned into Rain, tilting his head with a faraway, relaxed expression on his face as he easily listened to Al speak through the cell phone.

  “Of course. Are your entrance wounds too large?” Rain asked, and realized her palm was flat against Noah’s chest. His chest hair tickled her hand and his heart beat with steady determination, pulsing with life as strong as the man.

  “At first I didn’t notice, but yes, exactly. Usually the entrance wound is smaller than the exit wound. With each victim, though, the entrance wound is at least the same size as the exit wound. Also, the inflammation and abnormal redness is indicative of a bullet fired through a silencer. The first two murders don’t show a silencer was used, but then our next three do. And all the murders in Kansas City and in Dallas report a silencer used on their murder weapon.”

  “The muzzle imprints appear inflamed?” Noah asked.

  “I think I just said that,” Al said, and then chuckled. “You two should ask me next time before we do a three-way. I’m pretty open-minded, but a girl likes to feel respected.”

  “I respect you, my dear,” Noah said too smoothly.

  Rain shot him a curious glance and he raised one eyebrow, almost appearing to be challenging her. She looked away quickly. Right now wasn’t the time to slip into a head trip game with him.

  “So okay,” Rain said, turning from Noah and barely able to take two steps before reaching the window. So much for pacing while she brainstormed. “Possibly our murderer learned a silencer was used on the other murders and so started using them here. Find out for me when it was first announced anywhere that a silencer was used on the murder weapon in either city. Also, get me all info you’ve got on the bullets. I know we’re dealing with a semi-automatic shooting .32 calibers.”

  “Probably a sub-compact that someone’s got in a purse or something,” Al suggested.

  Rain turned around and once again ran into Noah, who now had her pinned in the corner of the room. She glared at him and he straightened.

  “Put it on speaker then, sweetheart,” he whispered, but emphasized the word “sweetheart.” Was he actually finally listening to her and not going to call her princess anymore?

  Rain yanked the phone from her ear and then switched it to speakerphone while an odd pang of regret hit her. It didn’t bother her that she was strong willed enough to make Noah submit to her demands, and she sure wasn’t upset that he would choose another term of endearment. Nonetheless, the pang twisted inside her while she stared at his bare chest. There wasn’t time right now to dwell on why it bothered her that he wasn’t so strong, so bullheaded, that he would demand to call her the same name that her father called her.

  Lord, what was her problem when it upset her that Noah adhered to her wishes? She didn’t want a man who never listened to her or cared about her feelings.

  What the fuck! She didn’t want a man at all.

  “What makes you think our perp would carry a purse?” Noah asked, pulling her back on track. Obviously he’d been able to hear Al even before she was on speaker.

  “Just a hunch. And I don’t have a perfect track record with hunches,” Al added, laughing easily at herself. “But we don’t have one single witness—and we’ve got five bodies now. The murder is taking place at close range. A reason for that could be lack of confidence in hitting their target at a further distance.”

  “It would appear our killer is capable of appearing on a scene without standing out. So either they’re at the scene of the crime on a regular basis—”

  “Or they are normally an inconspicuous person,” Noah finished for her.

  “Your hunch is a good one, Al. They’re not overly confident in their ability to hit a target with a gun, so they’re firing at close range.” Rain raised her attention to Noah’s face. “They somehow have the means to obtain a silencer, which is an illegal device.”

  “You can buy them off the Internet if you know where to look, though,” Al pointed out.

  “So although they’re insecure about their firing abilities, they aren’t that lacking in confidence,” Rain added. “They have the will and the strength to walk up to people and pull a gun while aiming at their victim’s head.”

  “Which could just make them insane,” Noah threw in. Then turning and heading to the computer, his bare back a field of rippling, bulging muscles, he picked up her notepad where she’d jotted down the funeral information. “See if you can get someone assigned to be at the funeral. We won’t be there. I think this would be a good opportunity for us to visit a few of the local hangouts without having to worry about anyone from our swingers’ group being present.”

  “Ten four,” Al said.

  “Has anyone received confirmation yet on whether the murderer is the same person in Kansas City and in Dallas?” Rain asked, still holding the phone but watching Noah.

  “Negative. Not at this end,” Al offered.

  “I’ll get a positive on that one,” Noah said, without turning around.

  “I’ll talk to you soon,” Rain told Al, said good-bye, and hung up.

  Rain paused at the end of the hallway a few minutes later, unable to take her gaze from Noah as he leaned over the new television.

  “What are you doing?” she asked, focusing on his hard, firm ass.

  “Making sure this works.” He straightened, his dark, wavy hair in disarray when he turned around. “One of a few toys I prefer using on a case,” he added, and po
inted to the back of the television.

  Curious and not sure what he was getting at, Rain walked toward him warily. He rubbed her arm, encouraging her closer, until she stood next to him and could peer around the back of the set.

  “This is the latest audio jammer. Simply install it anywhere out of the way and it will jam all signals in a twelve-hundred-square-foot area.” He spoke like a proud papa as he pointed at a small, unimpressive black box that was fixed to the back of the stand that housed the new television. “Anyone trying to listen in on anything we say inside this house, or on our cell phones, will be blessed with an annoying high-pitched squeal.”

  “The gadgets the United States government gets to play with,” she said, sighing. “That’s why you said it was okay to talk to Al.”

  “Yup. Everything shows it is working properly. I’d say you two could have conspired anything and no one but the two of you would know.”

  “And you,” she said, straightening and grinning at him.

  Noah cupped her cheek and then leaned into her, brushing his lips over hers. “Always me,” he whispered.

  FOURTEEN

  Noah held the door for Rain as she entered Hinders’ Greenhouse two days later. This time there weren’t any other customers in the store and a man possibly ten years or so older than Noah stood behind the counter.

  “Afternoon,” the man said cheerfully, looking at them over his glasses. “Holler if you need help with anything.”

  “Thanks,” Rain said, and once again ran her fingers over the sculpture of the birdbath she’d noticed last time she and Noah were here.

  She pulled her hair up before they left the house, and he focused on her slender neck and the dark strands that glided over her nape as she walked in front of him, taking her time looking at various items. He got the oddest desire to run his finger down the slope of her neck. It was impossible not to touch her, and even though he kept his actions respectable, he found his hands on her every time they moved.

  “Look at this,” Rain said, her voice just above a whisper. She held up a gardening magazine and tapped the cover with her finger. “We could ask him about this.”

  Noah wasn’t sure exactly what she meant to ask, but he nodded. “Just get a conversation going. I can lead it toward questions we need answered.”

  “If he has the answers.” She looked into Noah’s eyes with those clear baby blues but then diverted her attention to the guy behind the counter. “I have a question,” she said, heading over to the counter.

  Noah forced himself not to take a moment to adore that perfectly shaped ass of hers in the blue jeans she’d opted to wear. The sleeveless sweater-vest she had on didn’t quite reach her hip-hugging jeans, and the trace of bare back looked delicious. The entire fucking package was a feast suited for a king.

  Noah couldn’t waste time drooling, though. He ripped his attention from her and stared past her at who they believed to be Mark Hinders.

  The man once again glanced up over his glasses, which he wore low on his nose, and offered her a pleasant smile. “What can I do for you?”

  “Honestly, I’m not sure. My husband and I want to do something with our yard. We just moved in, you see.” She sounded so sincere, complete with wringing her hands together as she spoke. And when she shifted, giving Noah an almost apologetic smile, he wasn’t sure he’d ever seen anyone undercover slide so smoothly into their role. “The yard has so much potential. But we don’t want to bite off more than we can chew. And well, some folks we’ve met here in town mentioned your store to us. Do you have a minute?”

  “I have all day.” He took his glasses off and left them on the counter, then walked around and stood next to Rain. “And it’s good to see that word-of-mouth advertising is still alive and thriving.”

  Rain smiled but didn’t say anything. Instead she walked over to the magazine she’d shown to Noah a moment ago. “You’re going to think us dreamers, but is creating a yard like this really possible?”

  Again Noah silently applauded her. Mentioning any names of who might have sent them here would upset Mark, if this was indeed their man. They needed to build a rapport with him first, establish trust, and show they were good people through conversation before pushing for information.

  “And by that she means can two people, who aren’t professional gardeners, pull something like that off?” Noah added.

  “Of course you could do this, if you really wanted this. It’s a gorgeous setting, peaceful and romantic. It depends on how badly you want it.”

  “It was the first thing she said when we bought the house,” Noah offered, and sighed to show he’d been dragged into the project. “You know how wives are.”

  “Yes, I do. Or I did,” he added.

  They had their man.

  Rain looked up from the magazine quickly, glancing back at Noah with concern in her eyes. After the emotional outburst she had earlier in the week, Rain showed Noah a side of her he would bet good money very few people ever saw. Her vulnerable side. Watching her now, Noah knew what he saw in her pretty blue orbs was legitimate. She understood the pain involved in losing a loved one and didn’t want to hurt Hinders any more than he had been by plying him with questions.

  “We saw the memorial in the window the last time we were here,” Rain said quietly, and touched her fingertips to his shirtsleeve. “I can’t imagine not having my husband in my life. What a sad tragedy.”

  “I wouldn’t wish this pain on anyone,” he said, and then coughed, stiffened slightly as he moved away, and did a damned good job of giving Rain a sincere smile. “And thank you for your condolences. But it wasn’t a sad tragedy; it was an atrocious act of jealous cruelty.”

  Noah snapped his attention to Mark Hinders and saw the pleasant expression on his face had changed to something bordering on demonic. Blind rage burned across his face like a red smear.

  “Jealous cruelty?” Noah questioned. “No offense, my friend, but that sounds a bit intense.”

  “Let’s just say it was a matter of believing a certain group was our friends when in fact they were worse than enemies.” He cleared his throat and made an effort to reach for the magazine.

  Noah couldn’t let it die yet. “Certain group of friends?” Now he lowered his voice, knowing they were alone in the store but glancing around to be sure. “I know we’re strangers, but we’re new to town. And we also were interested in finding special groups that were into the same lifestyle we enjoy. But then after one party, a lady who was supposed to attend is dead.”

  Rain moved closer to Noah and wrapped her arm around his. “And she was over at our house just earlier this week.”

  “Patty Henderson?” Hinders asked, and rubbed his forehead as he stared at them. It looked like he actually saw them for the first time, and took his time putting them to memory.

  Noah extended his hand, hoping if they took this conversation to a more personal level, Mark Hinders would share what he meant by “atrocious act of jealous cruelty.”

  “I’m Noah Kayne and this is my wife, Rain. We’ve just moved out here from D.C.,” he offered.

  “Mark Hinders, owner and proprietor.” He offered a firm handshake and then nodded to Rain.

  “My wife was told by the butcher down at the grocery store in our neighborhood about a potluck where we could meet folks like ourselves,” Noah began, intentionally baiting Mark.

  “That would be Butch,” Mark offered, nodding, but then returned to the counter and picked up his glasses.

  “We enjoyed ourselves at the party, but then when we found out one of the ladies who were at our house just a few days ago didn’t make it to the party because she was shot—,” Rain began quietly.

  “Well, now we aren’t so sure about this group,” Noah finished for her.

  Mark slid the glasses up his nose and they immediately fell to the edge of his nose, where he left them. “I don’t blame you. And my advice to you would be to find a new group of friends. Not that I would ever tell the police, but I know
who shot my wife. And I’ll get my revenge.”

  Noah glanced at Rain, who picked up the magazine with the nicely landscaped yard on it and ran her finger over the glossy cover. “Everyone seemed so nice,” she murmured, but then looked up at Mark quickly, her blue eyes glassy with moisture. “Well, except for—”

  She bit her lip, as if remembering suddenly that bad-mouthing others in public wasn’t something respectable people did. Noah sincerely wondered how much of her presentation was an act and how much was sincere.

  Mark walked toward her, pausing and adjusting a basket on the corner of a wooden table that was full of packages of seeds. “That’s a pretty yard,” he said, his voice thicker than it was a moment ago. “I could order in that fountain, have it here in a week if you want.”

  Rain looked up at him, smiling. “I bet your wife was a really neat lady. I’m sorry I didn’t get to meet her.”

  “She was perfect. Or at least to me she was,” he added with a wry grin. “I think she tangled with the wrong person, not that she deserved to die over it. We were talking it out.” He shot Noah a furtive glance. “This lifestyle has been our social life throughout our entire marriage. Both of us have been tempted to go beyond the boundaries, you know? Almost always we managed to remain where we belong. But I wasn’t always the ideal husband, so I couldn’t blame her for slipping, either.”

  Noah guessed that Lorrie had cheated on Mark with someone in the group. But Mark was right: that wouldn’t be grounds for shooting her, unless a person was grossly unstable. It might have led to actions, though, that would have ended in murder.

  “Do you have a catalog on fountains?” Rain asked, dragging Mark’s attention back to her. “I definitely love the rose garden bordering one side of the yard. We would need to find the ideal trellises to go with our setting.”

  “Yes. Yes.” Mark turned, rubbing his forehead and heading around the counter again. “Give me a minute. Lorrie always kept all catalogs in order. But she had a system, and I never messed with it. She would have killed me,” he said, his voice trailing off as he knelt behind the counter and fished through things on the shelves. “Let me check the back room. I’ll be right back.”