by Christi Snow
Brian held in the sigh and clenched his jaw, trying to not get too annoyed with the teenager. He had a lot of stress in his life right now on top of rampaging teenage hormones. It was a testament to how good of a kid he truly was that he hadn’t lost it before now.
When they pulled in behind the cabin, Brian asked him, “Can you help us unload the groceries? Then we can talk about it and see if maybe all of us together can figure out a solution.”
Nathan rolled his eyes. “Of course, I’ll help, but it’s just my life that’s fucked up. It’s been that way from day one. There’s nothing you or Toni will be able to do to fix that. I’m just screwed.”
Brian gave him a reassuring squeeze of his shoulder. “Give us a chance. Sometimes it just helps simply to talk it through.”
The teenager sighed heavily. “Okay. Whatever.”
Nathan took the first load of bags out of the trunk and into the house. Brian could hear Sam’s barking in greeting. Toni met him around the back of the car and enveloped him in a hug. “You’re a good man, Brian Barnes.” Then she gave him a slow and seductive kiss that sent shivers of arousal racing to his cock.
She pulled back with a caress across his pectoral muscle and a flick of his nipple that had hardened through the fabric of his shirt. The pleasure almost had him groaning out loud. “Hmm, do I still get brownie points now that I’m trying to figure out how to kick the teenager and dog out of the house for the next hour?”
With a low, throaty laugh, she shook her head. “No, I’m afraid that won’t win you any favors. Anticipation, detective, it’s a good thing.” Her look was pure mischief. She knew she was driving him crazy.
This time he did groan out loud which just had her laughing at him as she walked off with a couple of bags of groceries. He leaned against the car, trying to ease the pain of his erection. Damn, it was going to be a long day before he could get her back into bed with him. He reminded himself that he also had to convince her that she wanted to join him in his bed, too. That wasn’t a foregone conclusion at this point yet. He could only hope.
As he glanced across the rustling aspen trees while waiting for his body to cool, he realized he wanted much more than Toni just in his bed. He wanted her in his life so he could smile like this every day. He felt alive when he was with her. It shouldn’t be such a revelation, but he’d never thought he would feel like this. A dry, mocking chuckle rose from his chest. His life was a mess right now, but she made it all feel right regardless of what else was happening.
He headed inside, smiling.
As they worked to unload the groceries in the kitchen, Brian instructed Nathan, “Okay, talk. Tell us what’s going on.”
“I can’t tell you everything because of confidentiality issues, but this client is huge in the computer world so this account is a big deal.” Nathan hesitated for a moment and brushed a hand across his neck as if trying to figure out exactly what to say. “The client isn’t happy with what I’m finding with his product and wants to meet with me to discuss the issues.”
Brian stopped mid-motion of putting a box inside the cabinet to frown at Nathan. “He wants to see you in person?”
Nathan nodded and chewed on his lip.
“Okay, let’s back up a minute. I know you work with computer programming, but I honestly don’t even know what exactly it is that you do.”
“I do some programming as well as developing new routines and upgrades in established programs, but I also do simulations for new programs. My specialty is going through proposed products to find bugs and issues in the code. That’s what I’m doing for this client, but this program that I’m working for this company is a huge upgrade to their operating system. It’s the core to their entire company and it’s already been announced that the product is coming out at a certain time.” He reached into the refrigerator for a coke. He lifted it toward Brian and Toni. “Want one?”
“Sure, I’ll take one,” Brian answered.
Toni frowned, ignoring the offer of the coke. “So what happens if the product doesn’t come out on time?”
Nathan shook his head. “I don’t know. That’s stock market stuff that I have no clue about, but I’m guessing it can’t be good for the company.”
“Wait a minute….stock market? This is that big of a company? They’re publicly traded?” Brian asked.
Nathan nodded. “Yeah, this is about as big as it gets in the computer industry. But that’s why they came to me. They know I’m no one so the odds of me leaking the details of their product are nil, but I have the skills they need. I just don’t have the connections in the industry yet. The problem is I discovered a fatal flaw in the programming. It’s irreversible and will have a cascade effect. The entire program needs to be scrapped and redesigned because what they have right now won’t work within a year of installation. The owner of the company doesn’t want to hear that. He wants to release the product and develop a fix that they can implement before the product corrupts the systems. The problem is, I don’t agree. I don’t think they will be able to develop a patch.”
“But I don’t understand.” Brian began to pace. “Why would the owner want to see you in person? That isn’t going to change anything about the design flaws, right? Is he questioning what you’re telling him?”
“He was at first, but once I pointed out the issue, he should have been able to put his team onto that specific section of the program and they would have quickly been able to see that what I was saying was right. That won’t change regardless. Honestly, I don’t know. He’s really angry about it all and having me somewhat unavailable right now sure isn’t helping anything. He was ticked this morning when I wouldn’t tell him where I was or agree to come to see him in Austin.
“When I accepted the job, I received half the pay up front so that isn’t the real issue, although, damn, I could really use that money.” Looking out the window, Nathan’s voice lowered. “The problem is that if he wants to see me, I should be available to my customers. It’s just a basic part of customer service even if it doesn’t change their complaint. It shows that I’m doing all I can to make my customers feel like they are in good hands. And if this guy decides to bad mouth me and my company, I’m sunk in this industry before I’ve really even gotten my company off the ground. I will lose everything and have to settle with being a coffee barista for the rest of my life. It’s just so frustrating to be stuck here with no options.”
When Nathan looked at them, his eyes were bleak with such pain it hit Brian like a physical blow. This kid had done absolutely nothing to deserve this and once again it seemed like it was the victim, not the criminal, paying the highest price for the crime. This was why he’d spent the last twelve years fighting to do his job on the police force, so that victims had a chance, a choice. He needed to call Zach and see if he’d found out anything before Nathan lost everything.
“I’m sorry that I was such an asshole earlier and took it out on you guys.” Nathan stared down at the floor for a moment, but then connected with Brian’s gaze. “None of this is your fault. I know that. I’m so grateful to both of you. There is no good reason for you to stand by me like you have and that sure as hell wasn’t the way to show you how thankful I am for that. I know what it’s like to not have support and,” he took a deep breath to control the emotions that were obviously surging to the surface, “I can’t imagine going through the nightmare of the last few weeks without you guys. Thank you. I’m so sorry about jumping down your throats earlier. I like that you’ve connected, really.”
With tears running down her cheeks, Toni jumped up and grabbed onto the kid. He dwarfed her in height, but she held him like she wasn’t going to let him go as she soothed him. “It’s going to be okay. We’re going to put these guys away and then everything will get back on track. Have faith, Nathan. Things feel bad right now, but it’s going to turn around. I promise you.”
She met Brian’s eyes and he could see the desperation there that she wasn’t voicing. She wanted to fix everyt
hing in this kid’s life. He just wasn’t sure it was a promise he could fulfill.
Chapter 7
“Tell me you’ve found something,” Brian said to Zach later that day as he watched traffic meander through town. He’d come to town to make the call just in case anyone was able to track the cell, although it should be secure. He was on edge and didn’t have a good reason for it besides Nathan’s annoyance with the situation with his client. Something about that just didn’t sit right, but he wasn’t sure if it was just because he was worried about Nathan or if it was something more sinister. Maybe he’d have some answers after he talked to Zach. He didn’t like things he couldn’t control.
“I have found something,” Zach answered. “I’m just not sure what it means yet.”
Brian could hear a keyboard click in the background as Zach pulled up the information.
“I discovered a few things about Mark and Matt that are very suspicious. They had another brother named Luke who died a couple of years ago in a car accident. Interestingly enough, there’s still an active bank account under Luke’s name at the same bank Matt and Mark also use. That account shows four large deposits in the last month.”
“How large are we talking?”
“For college guys—huge, and they’ve gotten progressively bigger. The first was for five thousand dollars. The second was twelve thousand and the last two have been for twenty-five thousand dollars each.”
Brian whistled. “That’s a lot of money for a dead man.”
“Yep, that was my thought. It looks like the money is coming from on off-shore account.”
“Of course it is.” Brian grimaced.
“I have a guy chasing down the name on it, but right now the name I have is obviously a dummy name. But that’s not all. There were also a series of suspicious phone calls on Matt’s cell phone three days prior to the attack on Nathan.”
“Three days before?”
“Yep, that’s why I’m assuming you guys in blue didn’t notice them, but there were three phone calls within a forty-five minute time frame from a number for a pizza delivery place. That in and of itself isn’t suspicious. What brings it into question is that Matt called it around the same time as the attack on Nathan. Then it showed up again the morning that Mark’s body was found. Matt called the pizza place. I don’t know too many kids who would be ordering pizza at nine o’clock in the morning.”
“Nine o’clock? Was that the exact time?” Brian could hear the keyboard clicking again as his brain scrambled to make sense of it all.
“Here it is, nine fourteen AM.”
“Damn. Yep, you’re definitely onto something. Not only would he not be ordering pizza at that time of day. That was also right after he found out Mark was dead. He showed up at the house between eight fifteen and eight thirty that morning. There’s no way he had an appetite for pizza for breakfast that day.”
“So the question is, who is really at the other end of the pizza joint’s phone number?” Zach mused.
“And how do they tie to Nathan Morrow? Or do they? Was Nathan just screwed because he looked at the wrong guy within Matt’s little boy gang at the wrong time? What are the payments for? And how does all this play into Mark’s death?”
They were both silent for a moment as they mulled over the facts before Brian said, “Okay, good work, Zach. Is there anything else to report yet?”
“One other thing. A burned out Cadillac Escalade was found outside of Plavis, New Mexico early this morning. You wouldn’t know anything about that, would you?”
Plavis had been the town they were outside of when the Escalade tried to run them down. What were the odds that this was the same Escalade? It had to be, but why was it burned out? They’d driven way out of their way to go to Plavis. How did Zach know that vehicle was somehow related to them? “What makes you think it has anything to do with us?”
“Just a hunch. My hunches are usually pretty reliable.”
Interesting. Could Zach really be that good or was there more to his hunch? Brian rubbed the back of his neck. He was jumping at every crossed lead. He just didn’t know who to trust anymore. “Was there anyone in it?”
“Nope, no driver.”
“Hmm, keep an eye out for more information on it, okay?”
“You’re the boss.”
Brian looked down at his watch. “I’ll call again tomorrow about the same time if that works for you?”
“Yep, that should be fine. Maybe I’ll have more answers than questions by then.”
“We can always hope.”
* * *
Preparing for dinner, Toni shredded lettuce into a bowl while Nathan sliced the tomatoes. She scowled at him. “I can’t believe you don’t even trust me enough to cut the food.”
“Toni, did you see the size of this town? I can guarantee you that there is no way they have an ER here. It was for your own safety. You would bleed out before we even made it off the mountain.”
She rolled her eyes at him. “Your faith in me is touching, really.” She pressed her hand against her chest with an overly dramatic flair.
“I have complete faith in you.” His mouth quirked up at the corners with humor. “It just happens to be faith that you are a complete menace in the kitchen.”
She huffed as she gave him a little shove.
“Hey, I’m holding a knife here. No horseplay when sharp weapons are present.”
“Horseplay? What are you, seventy-five?”
Nathan scowled as if she’d actually offended him.
She just grinned and distracted him. “So, you seem to be in a better mood than earlier. Are you feeling better about the job thing?”
He shrugged. “I don’t know if I feel better about what’s going on with this client, but I do feel better about everything in general. I’m just trying to take a different perspective on it. The attack could have killed me, but I’m here, pretty much healthy with the exception of this.” He raised his casted arm. “And I’ve found you and Brian. For the first time in a long time, I feel like I belong somewhere. I may be homeless within a month, but for now, I’m happy with where I am and who I’m with.”
“Aw,” she reached an arm around him to give him a slight hug, “I’m happy with where you’re at, too. And don’t worry. We won’t let you end up homeless. You’re a good kid, you know it?”
Nathan flushed red and ducked his head down to concentrate on cutting his vegetables for the salad. “So where did Brian go?”
“He had to go make a phone call in town.”
He looked at her expectantly. “So, do you really think you can trust him not to hurt you?”
“Nate, with any relationship the odds are you’re going to get hurt. That’s just the nature of the beast. And even those couples that live together for sixty years will tell you that they’ve been hurt at some point by their significant other. Emotions are involved. You get hurt. It’s how you deal with that turmoil that matters. I didn’t deal with it well before because of the awful circumstances at the time, but I’m okay now. You don’t have to worry about me in this. I know what I’m doing.”
That was a lie, since she truly had no clue where things stood between Brian and her. But, for the first time she thought they were on steady ground and she sure as hell wanted to explore the chemistry between them. This morning had been incredible.
“Is he okay about quitting his job?”
Okay, she might be on stable ground, but chances were good he may still be reeling a bit from the events of yesterday. It was hard for her to imagine Brian not being on the police force. She couldn’t fathom what a blow that had to be for him.
“I don’t really know. I doubt it. He’s been on the police force a long time, but getting him to open up about things like that is next to impossible. When it comes to things like emotions, he is such a guy.”
“I didn’t notice you complaining about that this morning when you were all over him.”
“Mmm, yeah, there are moments when that isn’
t a bad thing. At all.” She ducked her head. “But anyway, I think he’ll be back soon.”
They’d opened the windows to let in the cool, fall breeze and the unmistakable sound of gravel under tires echoed into the house.
“That’s probably him now.” She looked through the window, but the blue Impala wasn’t around back. Wiping her hands on a towel, she headed toward the front of the house to see who was there. She stepped out the front door to greet Trevor and Jamie as they climbed out of a red Jeep, but they didn’t notice her as they argued.
“Why the hell does it matter to you?” Trevor yelled as he rounded the front of the vehicle, scowling at Jamie.
“It matters to me because I’m the one who always has to play nice with the bimbos while they hang all over you. Good God, the last one actually asked me how much it would cost to build Barbie’s dream house and she was serious.” Jamie threw up his arms in disgust. “It’s time for you to grow up, Trevor, and get rid of the blow-up sex toys. Don’t you want more in your life?”
“No, I don’t. I can’t imagine having a little wife, picket fence, and the two point five kids with a dog.” Trevor crossed his arms and looked ready to deck Jamie to make his point.
“That’s because you don’t ever date anyone who would be worthy of having that with you. You need to at least try.” Jamie spoke softly, but his voice carried across the quiet of the forest. His shoulders slumped in sadness for the friend he obviously cared a great deal about.
Toni began to slide back in the front door when more crunching of gravel on the drive stopped her.
Thank goodness. Brian. A fluttering sensation spread from her stomach at the simple thought of seeing him again. Touching him. But first they had a dinner to get through with two very unhappy guests. When he gave her a jovial wave and pointed to the back of the house to show where he was parking the car, both men standing beside the Jeep turned her direction in surprise. Damn, she was caught.
Trevor continued to scowl, but Jamie had the good grace to apologize. “Sorry, we didn’t realize you were there.”