Long, Lean and Lethal

by O'Clare, Lorie

  Grabbing several more steaks out of the freezer, he got busy thawing them out. From the bits of information they’d shared with each other, Noah knew Rain’s father kept a tight leash on his daughter. As bullheaded as Rain was, Noah knew she wouldn’t do anything she didn’t want to do. But Rain loved her father a lot. Noah saw that. She didn’t press dating because it upset her father. Hugh Huxtable was selfish, keeping his daughter to himself. Noah would give the deceased man this much, though: he had brought up an incredible lady, with scruples and enough guts to take on the world and get what she wanted.

  There was one flaw, though. Rain wanted him. Her loyalties to her dead father were still so strong she wouldn’t admit it was okay to want him. And that was where Noah was torn. If he pushed her, Noah could have what he wanted. But would it be fair to instigate something neither one of them was sure they could handle?

  Noah continued brooding over this while preparing the steaks and adding more steaks once they were thawed. He glanced through the open door from the back deck when he heard women laughing inside. But when he heard a man’s voice, Noah put his tongs down and headed inside.

  “You haven’t eaten until you’ve had my man’s barbecue,” Rain sang out, grinning broadly at him, as she walked into the kitchen from the living room. She held a wine cooler in her hand and her face was flushed with color, which added to her incredible sex appeal. “Come here and meet everyone,” she said, wrapping her arm through his and guiding him into the living room.

  “Sure hope you don’t mind us crashing your private party this evening.” A man probably close to fifty, with a box of beer under his arm, stepped away from Joanna’s side. “Richard Swanson. I’ve heard good things about both of you.”

  “I’m glad to hear it,” Noah said, falling into the role of happy and carefree husband quickly. “Let’s get those in the refrigerator.”

  “So you two are new to town?” Richard asked, following him into the kitchen. “Joanna gave me the full rundown on both of you on our way over here.”

  “Joanna is a nice lady,” Noah said, opening the refrigerator and moving items to make room for the beer. “And yes, we are.”

  “Make room for my wine,” Jan sang, and grabbed his ass when she came up behind him. “I am getting drunk tonight!”

  “We’ve always got room,” he told her, winking and accepting the boxed wine. Her glazed-over eyes showed she was already well on her way to accomplishing her mission. “And I hope you all are hungry. Rain is right about one thing: I do love to grill.”

  “Everything smells so good. Although you know Steve and Susie are going to blackball you if they think you’re throwing a party behind their back,” Joanna announced.

  Her words sent a noticeable chill through the room, and for a moment everyone was quiet.

  “Don’t be silly,” Rain said, breaking the silence. “This is completely impromptu. People don’t really blackball anyone, anyway.”

  Jan made a loud snorting sound and then started coughing.

  “Joanna’s right, but fuck them,” a woman Noah guessed was Sheila Lapthorne announced, and then raised a fresh bottle of beer in a mock salute. “They don’t care about anyone but themselves anyway.”

  “I doubt they care about each other that much, either,” Jan said, and grinned at Rain. “Do you have any wineglasses, hon? And you will drink with us, won’t you? I brought enough for all of us. That little wine cooler won’t give you the buzz this wine will.”

  “Of course.” Rain moved through the group who’d congregated in the kitchen.

  Richard tilted his head and looked like he might start drooling as he stared at Rain’s ass when she opened one of the cabinets and stretched to pull down wineglasses she and Noah had purchased along with a lot of the other kitchen items he’d bought and charged to the FBI.

  Noah turned to catch Joanna scowling at Richard, but the moment she noticed him watching her, she winked and then grabbed her breasts, squeezing them as if that was an invitation for him to come do the same.

  “They sure as hell care about what all of us do, though,” Sheila said bitterly. “And I tell you what, you two will learn, don’t cross them.”

  “And don’t be deceived by Susie, either,” Jan said, grinning when Rain handed her a wineglass and then turning to Noah, who still stood in front of the refrigerator. “I’ve never known such a small woman to have more power.”

  “What do you mean?” Rain handed Noah her glass, too, and then crossed her arms over her chest, creating an incredible distraction with the cleavage she displayed. “I mean, I only spent some time with her at the potluck at your house, Jan, but she seemed pleasant enough.”

  “That means she wants something from you,” Richard offered, and then moved in, smiling wickedly when he put his arm around Rain and pointedly stared at her breasts. “And I know Susie Porter well. She doesn’t want what I want.”

  Everyone started laughing, and quick work was made of getting everyone’s drinks poured or beers offered. Noah was shocked when Rain checked the oven and he realized she’d wrapped potatoes and had them baking. But his shock was noticeable enough to render him busted when he gawked at the casserole dish she pulled out with hot pads.

  “Accuse me of not being able to cook again,” she snarled under her breath when he managed to reach her side.

  “Oh, that’s right!” Joanna announced, and hurried out of the kitchen and then back a moment later, holding a can in the air. “One can of French-fried onions.”

  “You’re a lifesaver.” Rain set the casserole dish on the back of the stove and popped open the can. She sprinkled the crispy onions over the bubbling green beans and grinned at him triumphantly. “Green-bean casserole.”

  “I’m impressed,” he whispered, and leaned into her, nibbling on her ear. “How did you know green-bean casserole was one of my favorite dishes?” he whispered so only she would hear.

  Although with the loud chatter surrounding them he probably could have said anything to her without them being overheard. And there were a few more things he would like her to hear. One of them being, he would do his damndest to fuck her after everyone left.

  “Are you going to share some of that tonight?” Richard asked, coming up on the other side of Rain and running his hand down her hair.

  Noah caught his meaning immediately. “Rain makes her own decisions in that department.”

  Rain looked up at him quickly; her surprised expression that quickly turned to a blush of embarrassment showed he’d caught her off guard.

  She looked over to Richard. “You never know what the night might bring,” she said flirtatiously. “But we sure wouldn’t want to do anything to upset Steve and Susie. I hate the thought of anyone feeling left out.”

  Richard’s expression hardened so quickly it was almost shocking. “Promise me right now that you won’t ever let that bastard manipulate you,” he hissed. “And don’t trust Susie, either. They want us to have sex with who they say, and damn us if we don’t comply. But I’m here to tell you, doing as they say isn’t the answer. They pushed and pushed, for the sake of simply seeing how far they could manipulate.” He took a breath and forced his expression to relax, searching Rain’s face as he did. “My wife, Roberta, was murdered three months ago. The cops don’t have a clue. But I do. The Porters pushed her too far, and when she tried pushing back, it cost her life.”

  Joanna wrapped her icy cold fingers around Noah’s arm and snuggled against him, pushing her way between him and Rain.

  “I told her not to try and take them on,” Joanna said, almost a bit too coolly. “Didn’t I tell her?”

  Rain shifted and ended up a bit closer to Richard. She glanced at Joanna, and for a moment it looked like Rain didn’t appreciate being pushed away from Noah. If he detected irritation in her face, it faded too quickly for him to confirm. Once again she displayed how well she pulled off undercover work when she didn’t take Richard’s wandering hands off of her but instead patted his arm and gave him a
reassuring smile.

  “I can’t imagine how hard it must be losing your wife and knowing, or I guess feeling pretty sure you know, why she died,” Rain said very quietly, although not so much so that Noah couldn’t hear her. “I bet you want to go after them and get revenge.”

  “That won’t stop anything. Richard knows that,” Joanna offered.

  She looked up at Noah and nodded once, but Richard exhaled and then finally took his hands off of Rain long enough to open his beer.

  “It won’t stop until they figure out they aren’t in charge,” Sheila said from behind Richard, proving their conversation wasn’t discreet even though they spoke quietly while the women behind them chatted among themselves.

  Jan hummed her agreement and downed her glass of wine. “Steve just wants to know that every woman in his world will put out for him whenever he wants them to.”

  “He’s not that bad,” Joanna chirped, and then nudged her cold, wet bottle of beer against Noah’s arm. “Open this for me, please?” she purred under her breath. “I can’t

  ever open bottles of beer without breaking a nail.” Batting her lashes at him while turning enough that her large, fake breasts pressed against his arm didn’t sell him on her attempt to appear helpless and vulnerable.

  Noah seriously doubted Joanna was either.

  “You’d bad-mouth him, too, if he weren’t padding your bank account,” Jan added.

  “Jan,” Joanna wailed, and took the open bottle Noah offered her.

  He met Rain’s concerned look and knew the only way to keep them going, and possibly learn enough to nail the bastard, was to allow the women to battle it out. Richard looked Noah’s way, too, raising one eyebrow as if silently suggesting a diversion would be a good idea.

  “Rain,” he said. “Do we have enough chairs for all of us to sit out on the patio?” He knew she probably didn’t have a clue, and there definitely were enough, but it was enough to distract the women, and for Jan to leave Joanna alone and head for the refrigerator to help herself to more wine. Once he had everyone situated, it would be a damned good idea to record their conversations.

  “I can help take chairs out,” Richard offered.

  Noah nodded and turned to the garage door, but Joanna grabbed his arm again. She actually pinched his skin when she held him where he was and leaned in close.

  “The truth is that those who don’t listen to Steve and Susie pay, not the other way around.” Joanna searched Noah’s face when he looked at her. Her tan face offset her blue eyes, which at the moment glowed fiercely. “Steve is an incredible man. Don’t listen to them. I know you’ll agree when you get to spend more time with both of them.”

  “I’m sure,” he told her, focusing on the intense glow he hadn’t noticed in her eyes before as she spoke. Possibly she had stronger feelings for Steve than she should have, especially if he was helping her out financially.

  “Even though you’re a man, I’m sure you’ve got it a lot like I do,” she continued, and then pulled a strand of her red hair forward and toyed with it while licking her lips and looking up at him suggestively. “Every woman here wants to fuck you, even your wife,” she added, and then giggled. “You understand when temptation grows so strong you can’t ignore it. Not everyone is strong enough to fight it. But those who don’t even try, who give in and fuck absolutely everyone, those are the ones who ruin it for people like you and me.”

  Not only did he not have a goddamned clue what she was talking about, but the way she kept pressing into him, rubbing her boobs against him, began annoying the crap out of him. But it was her eyes, a much different shade of blue from Rain’s, that worried him. In all of his years of interrogating, he’d learned to recognize the psychopaths, those mentally off or criminally hardened. If he didn’t know better, he’d swear that Joanna had lost a few screws on her way over here.

  “Here you go, sweetheart.” Rain interrupted his conversation with Joanna, if it could be called that, and handed him a couple wooden folding chairs from the garage.

  He turned away from Joanna quickly, and enjoyed the hell out of the view Rain offered with her corset top and her cleavage swelling as she handed him the chairs.

  “Thanks, darling,” he said, pulling his focus from her breasts to her face.

  Rain didn’t scowl, or show any sign of frustration or even jealousy over him talking to Joanna, but her blue eyes were as dark as thunderheads ready to explode. Rain didn’t like other women hanging on him, and that about made him swell like a peacock, proud as hell that “his woman” looked ready to fight for him.

  “If the food in here is ready to go, the steaks are good.” Noah stuck to Rain’s side, opening the chairs on the deck and then holding one for her to sit. “Enjoy your drink and chat with everyone. I’ll bring the food out here and we’ll make it a serve-yourself type of dinner.”

  “I don’t mind helping,” Sheila announced, opening her chair but then standing behind it.

  “We’ll all help.” Jan struggled with her chair and her glass of wine. She was getting drunk quickly, and he knew she would need a ride home later.

  It took more time than it should have taken to get everyone served. Noah ended up standing back by his grill and placing steaks on plates when they were brought to him. Rain didn’t seem to mind the chaos surrounding her with everyone drinking, shuffling around one another to put food on their plates, and seeming determined to cop feels off of everyone in the kitchen, and then again on the back deck. It was more of a blessing than whoever had picked out this house for use in undercover work might have guessed that large bushes grew down the property line on each side of the yard. If anyone saw the antics going on, they would call the police. Rain would have Noah’s head for that.

  Noah stood with the grill as his shield from the antics and knew without any doubt Laurel would never have tolerated the lack of organization he watched. She would have created an assembly line, barked orders. Noah shook his head. Laurel, on the one hand, wouldn’t have allowed an impromptu party, and she would have had it catered. Rain, on the other hand, appeared from the kitchen, watching everyone once they appeared with their plates of food and settled in their chairs on the deck, and grinned. Her smile didn’t fade when she walked up to him, holding her plate for the steak he’d saved for her. She held another plate in her other hand and offered it to him.

  “Extra green-bean casserole,” she informed him, looking very relaxed and at ease.

  “Save me a seat,” he said, pulling her close and kissing her affectionately while she still held both plates. He nibbled her lower lip and loved how her moist, swollen lips formed a small circle as she stared up at him with sensual blue eyes when he straightened. “I’ll be right back.”

  Noah didn’t take more than a minute when he entered the empty house and confirmed his recording equipment was on. He managed to sit next to Rain and enjoyed the food and the conversation, which had shifted from anyone in their group or swinging and varied from local politics to popular movies playing right now.

  “That was incredible food.” Richard placed his plate on the ground by his chair and then grabbed Rain’s knee. “I’m really curious if there is anything you aren’t good at.”

  “You are such a slut,” Jan said, her words slurring as she fell sideways against Richard.

  “It takes one to know one,” Joanna said, sitting across from Noah and stretching her legs so that her toes touched his.

  “You should know,” Jan retorted.

  The two women broke into a fit of giggles and Sheila met his gaze and rolled her eyes. For being possibly the oldest woman present, she was very attractive. She looked a bit gaunt in the face, but her light brown hair, which looked good trimmed short around her face, and the casual tank top and shorts she wore helped show off a tanning-booth tan that was damn near as dark as Joanna’s.

  “This is probably the best evening I’ve had in a long time,” Sheila told him, and then glanced at Rain, who sat next to Noah. “I can’t remember when
I didn’t feel tension in the air while with everyone.”

  “That’s because Noah and Rain are so perfect,” Joanna purred. “They wouldn’t try and manipulate or change how everything is supposed to be.”

  “My husband didn’t try to change anything,” Sheila said quickly, looking stricken by Joanna’s words.

  “Honey, don’t put yourself through this again.” Joanna reached out and touched Sheila’s knee. “You just said tonight was perfect. We’re going to keep it that way.”

  “Ted would kill me if I played without him.” Jan pulled her knees up to her chest and started giggling.

  Jan’s short skirt slid up her thighs and she wasn’t wearing underwear. As well, she was completely shaved between her legs. Jan was drunk and married. She lifted her gaze and stared at Noah with glazed eyes and then offered a small smile. There wouldn’t be any way he could tap that, in spite of Jan’s obvious invitation.

  “Only if he caught you first,” Richard told her slyly.

  “Your husband is the least of your worries. God forbid you do anything without Steve’s blessing,” Sheila said. “Or you know what.” She held her hands together like a gun and then made a popping sound with her mouth when she pulled the trigger.

  “Sheila!” Joanna hissed.

  “What are you going to do? Tell him I said that?” Sheila demanded.

  “I don’t understand.” Rain held her hand up, causing both women and the others to look at her. “If all of you are so convinced Steve is killing your spouses and friends, why don’t you go to the police?”

  “We can handle our own affairs without intrusion of the judicial system,” Joanna said, straightening and tugging on her shirt so that it stretched over her large breasts.

  “When my husband was shot several months ago,” Sheila began quietly.

  “Sheila,” Joanna said with a warning in her tone.

  Sheila ignored her. “No one else had been shot. There were some things from his past, and honestly, I thought an old ghost came forward. I didn’t know then that Lynn was dead. It wasn’t until Lorrie and Patty were killed I realized they all died the same way.”