“She told you about me?” Olivia smiled bashfully at him. Nate was impressed at how easily she had read Tim.
Tim was already smitten. “Of course she did. You’re right. Rosie and I were dating. I’ll admit that the age difference was a problem. We knew that other people wouldn’t understand, so we kept it a secret. I mean, I was only ten years older than her, but when we first met she was only fifteen.”
“You can’t help who you love,” Olivia said, giving him a knowing smile. “I understand that.”
“You remind me a lot of Rosie.” Tim’s eyes went again to her legs. Nate felt his hands clenching around the metal bleacher. “I’m surprised she told you about me. I thought she kept it a secret.”
“She tried, but I could tell something was going on. Rosie was always smiling.” Olivia sounded normal, but her face was tense. “Eventually I got her to admit that she was in love. But she wouldn’t tell me who the lucky guy was.”
Tim seemed to like that. “Rosie was an amazing girl.”
“I always assumed she had been sneaking out to meet you the night that it happened.” Olivia was done beating around the bush. “Did you see her that night?”
Tim turned his body until his knee was almost touching Olivia. Nate found himself moving his hand closer to his gun.
“No, I didn’t. She told me she had plans with friends that evening. The following night was supposed to be the Homecoming Dance and she was going with that Dylan kid. I kind of just assumed she was with him.” Tim looked irritated again.
“That must’ve been frustrating,” Nate said. “Having a girlfriend that has a guy on the side.”
“Dylan was just a boy,” Tim snapped. “He was a kid. Rosie’s relationship with him wasn’t serious. They weren’t even having sex. She had a real man for that.”
Nate fought the urge to roll his eyes. “You’re sure you didn’t see her that night? Maybe after she left her boyfriend?”
“No, I didn’t see her.” Tim glared hard at Nate.
“When was the last time you talked to her?” Olivia asked. She put her hand on his arm and gave him a pleading look. “Please. It might be important.”
Tim’s face softened when he looked at her. “I spoke to her Thursday night. She said she was going to a movie with you.”
“Right.” Olivia had a look on her face that Nate didn’t recognize. “We’ve taken up enough of your time. Thanks for answering our questions.”
“Sorry I couldn’t offer much help. I really want Rosie’s killer to be caught.” Tim reached over and patted Olivia’s knee. Nate saw her entire body tense.
He waited until Tim was nearly at his car and then jumped to his feet. “Wait here. There’s something I forgot.”
Tim heard him closing in and whirled. He looked ready for a fight. “Can I help you?”
His previous charm was gone. Now that Olivia wasn’t within earshot, he had no one he was trying to impress.
“I know what you did to Rosie. It started right here in this parking lot.” Nate moved his hand over his gun. “If I ever see you doing that to another girl or even hear a rumor that you looked at a girl the wrong way, I will empty this clip into your chest.”
“You can’t threaten me like that,” Tim snarled.
“I can do whatever the hell I want.” Nate took one step forward. “And don’t ever touch Olivia again. I’ll cut off your fucking hand if you do.”
Tim’s jaw clenched and his chest puffed. He was a big enough guy and clearly athletic, but Nate had no doubt he could take him easily. The thing with men like Tim was that they were cowards. They only went after people they knew wouldn’t fight back. Touching Olivia right in front of Nate had been a very stupid idea.
“I’ll see you around, Tim.” Nate gave him a mockingly sweet smile. “Be sure to look over your shoulder.”
CHAPTER ELEVEN
Olivia was too far away to hear the exchange between Nate and Tim, but she knew it wasn’t a pleasant one. Nate’s shoulders were back and his hand was at his hip. He backed away from Tim slowly, only turning his back when he was over a dozen yards away.
“What was that about?” she asked, not sure she wanted to know the answer. If Nate had threatened Tim, that was something that was better off remaining between the two of them.
“I was just defending your honor,” he said with a tight smile. “Come on. Let’s get out of here before I accidentally shoot that prick.”
“You’re so manly,” Olivia joked, batting her eyes at him. “No wonder the ladies love Detective Tucker.”
Nate put a hand on the back of her neck and squeezed gently as he guided her toward the car. “Shut up, Thompson.”
“Is it time to start drinking yet?” she asked hopefully. It had already been a long day.
“Actually… yes.”
They had one last person of interest that Nate wanted to question before leaving town- Dylan Masters. While he was digging up dirt on Tim, he also tracked down Dylan’s place of employment.
“No way,” Olivia declared, grimly eyeing the building in front of them. “It’s barely even noon.”
“Exactly. We made it just in time for the lunch specials.” Nate shot her a wicked smile. “You can always wait in the car.”
Olivia seriously considered it. Anything had to be better than entering the Lucky Lady at noon on a Sunday.
“You’re enjoying this way too much,” she grumbled at him as she stepped forward at last.
Nate playfully punched her arm. “Chin up. You know you’re the only girl for me.”
“You say that now,” she said with a grimace. “But you don’t have naked women standing in front of you yet.”
“That can be fixed.” He winked at her.
“You’re the worst friend ever.” She squared her shoulders as he opened the door. “If you even think about buying me a lap dance, I’ll kick you in the testicles.”
He just laughed. Olivia did not find it at all funny when she was immediately accosted by a half-naked woman asking her if she would like a drink.
“Yes. Whiskey. Lots of it.” At least she could drink her way through it.
“Make that two,” Nate added. “Oh, and is Dylan working today?”
The waitress eyed him thoughtfully. “His shift starts in about an hour. You might be the first man to ever come in here asking after one of the male bartenders.”
“We’re old friends,” he explained smoothly.
“I see.” Then her eyes fell on Olivia. “A lot of girlfriends don’t even like their man to come to strip clubs. Good for you for coming along.”
“Oh I’m not-”
Before she could finish protesting, Nate threw an arm around her and kissed her cheek. “Livvy really is the best.”
“What the hell was that?” she demanded when the waitress was gone.
“Come on. Let’s get a good seat.” He grabbed her hand and pulled her through the crowd. It turned out that Nate’s idea of a good seat was one with a direct line of sight to the bar. That meant most of the stripping was happening behind them, which was just fine with Olivia.
With an hour to kill, they finished quite a few drinks while they waited for Dylan to arrive. The alcohol had the dual effect of making Olivia feel less uncomfortable being in a strip club, but more uncomfortable being with Nate. They were sitting directly next to each other and their bodies kept brushing and rubbing together.
“Did you really threaten Tim?” she asked, struggling to think of a topic that wouldn’t turn into them flirting with each other.
“He touched you. I’m the only asshole that’s allowed to do that.” Nate proved his point by softly stroking her knee.
Normally she would’ve kicked him in the shin and told him to keep his damn hands to himself. But nothing about her feelings for Nate had been normal lately.
“You see that guy over there? The one with two strippers surround him.” She nodded her head in that direction and the room shifted slightly. The alcohol was already having
an effect on her.
“The one with the semi-mullet? Classy fella.” Nate grinned at her. “You thinking of getting his number?”
“Been there, done that.” Olivia slammed down the last of her drink. “His name is Tanner. We dated for two years in high school.”
Nate’s face lit up like a firework. “Your first love? Here, in this strip club? It’s too good to be true.”
“Sadly, it’s true.” Olivia was glad that the waitress had returned with another glass of whiskey.
“Wait. You dated him for two years.” Nate’s eyes narrowed. “Is this the young man that deflowered you?”
“Don’t be such a loser,” Olivia scoffed. “Yeah, he was my first. Whatever.”
Nate sat up straighter in his chair. “We should invite him over here. I’d like to get to know your first lover better.”
“Don’t you dare.” Olivia grabbed his arm just as he was about to raise it. “I’ll never forgive you.”
Nate’s other hand was still on her knee and it move half an inch upward. Olivia swallowed hard and said nothing.
“Don’t you want him to see what he missed out on?” Nate teased, hand creeping further beneath the hem of her shorts.
“I’m sure he’d say that he traded up.” She looked pointedly at the two naked women grinding their butts into his crotch.
Nate kept his eyes only on Olivia. She had never seen him look at her this way. His eyes were piercing when he said, “Anyone that would let you go has to be the biggest idiot in the world.”
“You’ve had too much to drink,” Olivia said, cheeks flushing.
“Liv, why didn’t we ever date?” Nate definitely wasn’t kidding around anymore.
“I don’t know. Because we’re friends. If we had dated and it didn’t work out, you and I wouldn’t be sitting here together right now.” She couldn’t take his penetrating gaze anymore and looked down at the table.
Nate’s hand left her leg and went around the back of her chair. “That’s not it. I think we both know that it would work. We’ve barely spent a day apart in the last twelve years.”
Olivia glanced up, surprised at how close he was to her now.
“Are you really not attracted to me?” he asked directly. “Because I know that I’m attracted to you.”
“Nate.” Olivia was beginning to wish they’d had a few less drinks. This was not a can of worms she wanted to open right then. “Attraction has nothing to do with it.”
“Of course it does.” He leaned a fraction of an inch closer. “And you never answered my question.”
Olivia was finding it hard to breathe. Nate was so close and he smelled so good. She tried hard not to look at him, but eventually couldn’t prevent it any longer.
“Nate,” she said again, more than a little breathless. “Of course I find you attractive. You’re a good looking guy. But you’re my best friend. I don’t want us to do anything that will jeopardize that.”
“You like me,” he said, a playful smile turning up the corner of his mouth. “I knew it.”
“Why do you always have to be so impossible?”
She had barely finished the sentence before he grabbed the back of her head and pulled her close. His lips were over hers before she could protest. Then she no longer wanted to protest. Nate tasted like whiskey and forbidden desire.
Her heart was pounding when he finally pulled away.
“You were right,” he said, softly stroking her cheek. “Our friendship has definitely been ruined.”
“Shut up and kiss me again, Tucker.” Olivia figured if they were going to ruin their friendship, they might as well do it right.
Sometime during their thirty minute make out session, Dylan Masters arrived for his shift. Olivia spotted him on her way back from the bathroom. She caught Nate’s eye and nodded in the direction of the bar.
It had been over a decade since the last time Olivia had seen Dylan, but aside from an extra thirty pounds, he looked exactly the same.
“Hey Dilly,” she said, still under the influence of whiskey and hormones. “Buy a girl a drink?”
His eyes darted to where she was leaning on the bar. At first, his eyes registered confusion. After a closer look, he smiled. “Livvy Thompson?”
“You remember me.” Olivia was inexplicably touched. Rosie and Dylan had started dating right when Olivia hit puberty. At the time, she’d had a giant crush on him.
“Of course I remember you.” He moved down the bar until he was standing in front of her. “You look real good, Livvy.”
“You too.” Olivia wasn’t lying. Despite the extra pounds, he still had a great smile and a luscious head of hair. He also had a wedding ring on his finger. “Married?”
Dylan glanced down guiltily. “Yeah. Goin’ on five years. We’ve got a couple of rugrats at home.”
“That’s great.” She was genuinely happy for him. He had gone into a depression after Rosie’s murder and started drinking heavily. Olivia was glad to see that he had turned his life around. “I know you just got here, but any chance you could take a break for a few minutes to chat with me over there?”
He glanced to the table where she pointed. Nate was there, drinking a glass of water and looking bored. “Friend of yours?”
“Something like that.” She could feel her cheeks turning pink.
“He looks like a Fed.” Dylan’s face grew dark. Olivia knew that he was remembering the flock of detectives that had rushed into Mercy in the days after Rosie’s murder. He was right- Nate did look like one of them.
“He’s a detective in Chicago and an old friend of mine. I’ve asked him to look into Rosie’s case.” Olivia hoped that her honesty would pay off. “He just wants to ask you a few questions. Please.”
Dylan took a deep breath and let it out slowly. “Okay. Give me a few minutes.”
“I hope that was Dylan and you weren’t just flirting with the bartender,” Nate said when Olivia rejoined him at the table.
“Jealous?” It was a usual type of tease between them and Olivia was glad that it still felt normal. “Dylan will be over in a few minutes.”
“Think I have enough time for a lap dance?” His familiar smile was back.
Olivia rolled her eyes. “Really? You want one of these skanky girls grinding on you?”
“Who said anything about them?” He winked playfully at her.
“It’s like you want me to punch you,” Olivia replied. “What happened earlier-”
Dylan picked that exact moment to slide into the chair across from them. “I’ve got exactly ten minutes.”
“Thanks, Dylan. This is Nate.” Olivia reached for a glass of water.
“No need for pleasantries,” Dylan said. “Let’s just get this over with.”
“Appreciate that.” Nate leaned forward with his elbows on the table. “Where were you the night Rosie disappeared?”
“I was on the football team and we had a game that night. It ended around nine and then about an hour after that I left the locker room with a couple of the guys. The three of us bought some beer at the gas station on Route 12 and drove out to Miller’s Point.”
Dylan recited his story easily. It was almost like he had been rehearsing it over the years. Olivia knew that it was the exact story he had told the police during their investigation.
“How long did you stay out there?” Nate asked.
“Most of the night. We got pretty sauced and then none of us could drive home. I think I snuck through my bedroom window sometime after 3.”
Rosie’s autopsy report had said that she was murdered close to midnight. If Dylan was telling the truth, he had a solid alibi.
“You didn’t hear from Rosie at all that night?” Nate’s eyes narrowed almost imperceptibly.
“Nope. I talked to her at school and she said she had to stay home and watch her siblings.” Dylan suddenly looked very tired. “I told the police all of this when it happened. I’m not sure why we need to rehash it.”
“There’s so
me new information,” Nate answered easily. “Do you remember a guy in Rosie’s life named Tim? Did she ever mention him to you?”
Dylan recovered quickly, but not before Olivia saw the lift in his eyebrows and twitch of his lips. He knew exactly who Nate was talking about.
“Doesn’t sound familiar.” Dylan glanced over at the bar. “Are we almost done? I need to get back to work.”
“Almost.” Nate sat up straighter and squared his shoulders. “We spoke with Crystal earlier today and she said that Rosie had been cheating on you. Did you know about that?”
“It’s not true.” Dylan didn’t even have to think about his answer. “Rosie and I were in love. We were planning to get married after graduation. She never would have cheated on me. I need to get back to work.”
Olivia could see that Dylan was still grieving Rosie deep down. There was a hurt in his eyes that she saw in her own reflection. “Thanks for humoring us, Dylan.”
“It was good to see you again, Livvy.” He offered her a faint smile. “Though I have to say I’d be okay never seeing you in this place again.”
“Honestly, me too.” Olivia stood and gave him a hug before he hurried away.
“He was definitely hiding something,” Nate said as he stood next to Olivia. “You saw that, right?”
Olivia nodded. “Yep. He knew about Tim.”
“The question is, what else does he know?” Nate said. He tossed a stack of money on the table. “This was our last stop. Time to hit the highway.”
“You can’t drive,” Olivia protested. “You had a lot to drink.”
Nate said quietly. “No, I didn’t.”
It took her a second to string together what he had just admitted. Olivia hadn’t been paying attention, but she had just assumed that Nate had been matching her drinks. But now that she thought about, she didn’t remember him ordering more than a couple. That meant that he hadn’t been nearly as drunk as she thought when he made his move on her.
“Oh,” was all she said.
This news certainly changed things.
Ring Around the Rosie (An Olivia Thompson Mystery Book 1) Page 9