They weren’t five minutes into the drive when Sheri asked him for details about Mark and the FBI.
He gave her the short version. “He answered all their questions. They couldn’t find anything to hold him on. But tomorrow he’s supposed to come in for a lie-detector test.”
“Was he shocked? How did he act?”
“Taken aback. He thought he was going to see you.” And probably thought he was going to get lucky—bastard! “He was combative at first, but once he finally understood we were the police, he settled down.”
“Combative?” she asked.
“He took a swing at me. Nothing happened.”
“So you don’t think he’s behind this?”
Danny debated his answer but then decided to go with the truth. Not that he liked it.
“I wanted him to be guilty. I’m still not completely sure he isn’t, but both Chase and I agreed we’d better be looking at other suspects.” He and Chase had hung out at Sheri’s apartment a good thirty minutes trying to make sense of things after the FBI left. Before they left, Turner called and informed them that Jacob Thompson, the husband they had assumed hired Harold Pain to kill his wife, had come back in.
This time he told the truth. He’d hired Pain to follow his wife and take pictures of her buying drugs so he could use it against her. Danny remembered the pictures, and it fit.
All of a sudden he realized Sheri got quiet.
He looked at her and realized she felt she’d told him everything she knew and had covered any possible suspects. Still, he couldn’t help but feel they might be missing something.
“So the FBI don’t think he’s guilty either?” she asked, referring to Mark.
“They didn’t say. He admitted he’d know how to build a bomb if someone put a gun to his head, but my gut says they feel the same way Chase and I do. I think they want to see how he does on the lie-detector test. Chase told me he was going to go back and talk to Kevin’s fiancée and Kevin. They didn’t come off guilty, but there’s motive there.”
“Now you think Kevin might have done this?”
“I didn’t say I thought it. But exes are always considered suspects.”
She shook her head. “But he wanted me back. Not to blow me up.”
“Maybe he’s just wacko.”
“He’s not,” she said and looked out the window. “I don’t know about his fiancée, but Kevin wouldn’t do something like that.”
“How long were you two together?” Danny asked.
“Three and a half years,” she answered but didn’t look at him.
Danny’s shoulders tightened. Hearing her defend Kevin stung a little. “You really loved him?”
“I did,” she said.
They drove in silence for a while. She finally turned to him. “How long were you married to your ex?”
Not expecting the question, he emotionally flinched, but he pulled himself together to answer it. “Not quite a year.”
“Did you love her?” she asked.
“I wish I hadn’t.” He told the truth. He kept his eyes on the road.
“What happened?” she asked.
He could feel her waiting. He’d been prepared to tell her, to explain the reason he’d run out on her that night, but the words stuck in his throat. Glancing at the clock on his dashboard, he found a good reason to postpone it.
“We’ll be at the restaurant in five minutes. That conversation would take longer.”
When she didn’t say anything, he glanced at her. “It that okay?”
She nodded.
The silence suddenly crowded the car.
“I told Chase I’d talk to you and get some information on Patrick Owens. What all do you know about him?”
“That I don’t think he’s a terrorist, either,” she said and then sighed. “Actually, I only dated him for six weeks. So I don’t know a whole lot. But obviously, I wouldn’t have dated him if I thought he was into bomb-making.”
“Did he tell you he was awaiting a court date for a marijuana charge?”
“Seriously?” she asked.
“Yeah.”
“That’s it. I’m never dating again!”
He chuckled. “He wasn’t dealing or anything. It was just an ounce.” He turned onto Main Street. “If I remember correctly, he worked in construction, right?”
“A plumber,” she said and then moaned. “Owens’ Plumbing. In the beginning, he drove one of those trucks with the sign on it.”
“Where did you meet him?” Danny asked.
“At the coffee shop around the corner.” She frowned. “And I just remembered he started some work in my guest bath and never finished. He said he needed some new parts. I paid him and everything.”
Hence the reason I was in your shower when your mom showed up.
She looked out the window. “He was divorced. Had two kids. And a black Lab. So he filled my requirement of being a dog-lover.”
She twisted in her seat. “You don’t even have a pet, do you?”
“I used to,” he said. “I sometimes work long hours and didn’t want to have to leave one that long. But I love dogs,” he added quickly. “You can’t use that against me. Hey, have I not gotten along with Taco?”
“Yes. I won’t refute it.” Tease gave her tone a playful pitch.
Then don’t refute me. He pulled into the restaurant’s parking lot.
They got out. As they walked toward the door, the smell of grilled steak hit him.
“Man, that smells good. I’m starving.” He slipped his hand into hers. She didn’t seem to mind, and that made him feel really good . . . and hungry for something different.
“Me, too. I only ate a couple of bites of that salad.” She glanced up at him. “Did you eat lunch?”
He smiled. “No. But I had some cake.”
• • •
Her mom was already at the table when they arrived. She stood up. “Don’t you two make a stunning couple.”
“Well you’re not bad yourself,” Danny said.
And he was right. Her mom was wearing a navy dress, simple but classy and beautiful. She made sixty look good.
Not that she knew it. She’d always said God had given her a pretty enough face but a body she had to work on. And she did work on it. Especially since the cancer. She’d said nothing gives you a new perspective on life more than almost dying.
But her mother’s beauty wasn’t just skin deep. She was kind, giving and forgiving. The latter to a fault. Even during her own cancer, her mom hadn’t stopped volunteering at the pediatric ward where she rocked drug babies. The nurses there said there wasn’t anyone who could calm a baby like her mom. Sheri knew it was true, because in some ways, Sheri was still her mom’s baby.
When Lilly Thompson loved you, you felt it. She made sure of it.
That said, Sheri couldn’t deny that her mom, at times, was blessed with a touch of ditsy. But her soft heart more than made up for that.
She embraced Sheri and then leaned in for a hug from Danny.
Sheri noted Danny didn’t stiffen up like most men would. Nor had he when Mrs. Lamb hugged him. He either didn’t mind hugs, or was really good at faking it. She recalled Kevin had been so bad at it, her mom had given up hugging him. It wasn’t surprising that her mom hadn’t been torn up when they’d called off the wedding.
“So what have you two been doing this weekend?” her mom asked.
“A little of this and a little of that,” Sheri answered, realizing she hadn’t reminded Danny not to mention the whole bomb, break-in stuff. “How was your kickboxing glass?”
“Great. My Fitbit said I burned four hundred calories. And I went to the gym today and burned another four hundred.” Her mom looked at Danny. “Sheri is naturally thin. She takes after her daddy. She never has to worry about her calories.”
“I do, too.” Sheri said, really hoping the conversation wasn’t going to shift to her dad.
“Please. When you worked at that ice-cream shop when you were six
teen, you ate two scoops every day for a year and gained a pound.”
“See, I gained.”
Her mom just smiled. “I’d have put on twenty. But thanks to my workouts, I’m having sour cream with my potato and I’m drinking wine.” She picked up her menu and glanced at Danny. “What kind of wine should we have? I thought we could order two bottles.”
“I’m only going to have one glass,” Sheri said. She wasn’t even sure she could drink that.
Her mom dropped her menu. “But the wine is the best part when you have steak.”
“Yeah, but I’ve indulged two days in row.”
“Fine. I guess it’ll just be more for Danny and me. What kind of wine to do you drink?”
“I’ll drink whatever you pick out, Mrs. Thompson.”
Her mom lowered her menu and studied Danny. “You know, I forgot to ask. What kind of work do you do for a living? It has to be something physical because you are in such . . . good shape.” Her mom blushed, and Sheri saw Danny bite back a smile.
Oh, Lordie. Sheri had forgotten about Danny and her mom’s little shower-and-pink-robe episode. Or perhaps she’d just blocked it out of her mind. Maybe this dinner really wasn’t a good idea . . .
“I’m a detective for the Glencoe Police.”
Her mom’s expression widened. “Another cop?” She gazed at Sheri.
“Mom.” Sheri put a warning in her tone then gripped her napkin in her lap, remembering that her mom was tone deaf, especially when it came to warnings.
“He knows you dated before, hon. Besides, Danny isn’t anything like that other guy.” She gazed down at her menu and then up. “I loved how you described him in that one text you sent me.” She nipped at her lip as if trying to remember something.
Sheri felt the panic building, unsure exactly what she’d texted her mom about the other cop.
Chapter Twenty
“Oh, I remember.” Her mom looked at Sheri. “You said he was the lowest of lowlife slime balls in a pool of derelicts that the Darwin theory unfortunately skipped over and was probably a long-lost cousin to Tiger Woods.” She grinned at Danny. “I don’t get the Tiger Woods bit, but the other part was pretty funny.” She picked up her glass of water and took a sip. “Sheri didn’t date him long.”
Danny glanced at her and lifted one brow. What were the odds he didn’t know she’d been talking about him?
Not good, she decided.
“What case are you working on now?” her mom asked, changing subjects at a mind-warping speed the way only she could do.
“Uh, nothing special.”
“Did you hear about the bomb?” Her mom’s eyes widened.
Sheri kicked Danny under the table. He jumped.
Then she literally tied her napkin in a knot and wondered if she should fake a sudden onslaught of the disease of the week to get the hell out of here.
“Hello.” The waitress, a beautiful redhead, moved in just then, and Sheri breathed a sigh of relief for the interruption. “My name’s Pauline, and I’ll be . . .” her gaze moved around the table and stopped at Danny, “your waitress.” She blinked.
Danny seemed to lose a few inches of height as if trying to become less noticeable.
“Danny?” Pauline asked.
“Hi, Pauline.”
Sheri saw Danny’s expression. That had been the expression she expected to see on Danny’s face this morning when Anna came in. Which meant Pauline wasn’t another cousin. Nope. She’d bet her best bra that these two knew each other. Knew each other in the biblical sense.
A thread of jealousy stirred in Sheri’s gut, and she noted Pauline’s pretty face and curvy body.
“Are you two friends?” her mom asked.
Oh, mother of pearls! Sheri’s mind raced, trying to decide to go with a stomach virus, flu or the common cold with a touch of bronchitis.
Pauline looked from her mom to Sheri and appeared to question the wisdom of speaking up. Then she blushed. “No. I mean, yeah. But only briefly. Excuse me a minute.”
Her mom leaned in closer to Danny. “Did you used to date her?”
“Mom,” Sheri said and gave a little fake cough.
Her mom shrugged again. “You know he dated people. She’s probably a very nice young lady. Right, Danny?”
Danny nodded hesitantly. He cut his eyes to Sheri in an expression that looked like an apology.
Sheri went to grab the menu to hide behind and accidentally knocked over her water. The liquid shot across the table and into Danny’s lap. He jumped up. The front of his khakis was soaked.
“I’m sorry,” she said and offered him her napkin with a huge knot tied in the middle.
“No problem.” He grabbed her napkin as well as his.
Sheri went ahead and hid behind the menu. She really wouldn’t be surprised if this place served opossum.
• • •
In spite of how wonky the evening had started, it turned around. Pauline had recused herself from serving them. Danny had recovered from being doused with water and charmed her mom with his ability to discuss anything from wine to the pope, from real estate to grilling. He claimed to be a champion grillsman and promised to cook for her mom sometime.
Sheri did more listening than talking and actually learned a lot about him. And she found herself tucking all the bits and pieces of information into her memory bank. She also found herself watching for Pauline and checking to see if Danny was watching. He wasn’t.
The meal was good. Too good. But Sheri barely put a dent in her steak, potato and grilled asparagus. She’d only had one bite of the chocolate pecan cheesecake her mom and Danny devoured. Not that Sheri wanted any. She’d practically licked her lobster bisque bowl clean and ate too much hot French bread swiped with butter.
When it came time to pay the bill, Danny argued with her mom about paying. When her mom remained adamant, Danny insisted that next Saturday he was taking her out to dinner and buying. He even got his phone, put it in his planner and insisted his mom do the same.
“Sheri can even come,” Danny said and chuckled.
“Well, I hope so.” Her mom put her napkin on the table. “I have to run to the ladies’ room,” she said. “Would you join me, Sheri?”
“Sure,” Sheri’s butt was halfway out of the seat when she realized a probable reason her mother wanted to get her alone: to ask about her father’s letter. But too late, Sheri went ahead and followed her.
She took about a dozen steps, felt Danny’s eyes on her and glanced back. His gaze was on her butt, and he lifted his eyes when she turned. She read the heat in his eyes, and a smile spread from her chest to her lips.
When they got into the restroom, her mom proved Sheri right. “Did you get a chance to read your father’s letter?”
Guilt chased away the nice buzz of happiness she’d gotten from Danny’s heated look. “I’m sorry, Mom. We’ve been in and out, and I just . . . I needed to be in the right mood.” She wasn’t sure what mood that was, or if it existed, but her words held a trace of the truth.
Her mom frowned. “I just . . . I’m curious about what he said.” She wrapped Sheri in her arms. “But I understand. I do.”
Sheri was pretty damn sure her mom didn’t understand. Not about Sheri and her father. She’d worked hard to hide her daddy issues from her. But it felt good knowing her mom was trying. “Thanks.”
“I mean . . . for goodness sakes, I saw Danny naked.”
Sheri took a mental U-turn. “Mom,” she scolded, but she couldn’t help but laugh.
Her mom grinned. “Hey . . . if he ends up being my son-in-law, I’ll wipe the image from my mind, but until then, I’m keeping it!”
Sheri laughed harder. “You’re crazy.”
Her mom looked at her. “Not crazy. Just thrilled that you look happy for the first time in . . . in forever. Do you love Danny? Is that what I see in your eyes every time you look at him?”
The question gave Sheri’s heart a workout. “I . . . It’s too soon.”
&nbs
p; Her mom nodded. “I want you to have what I had. A man who loves you . . . to share your life with.”
Not one like her dad, Sheri thought. And she couldn’t help but wonder why her mom couldn’t see that she’d deserved so much better. But saying that would hurt her mom, and Sheri would swallow fire before doing that.
“I love you,” Sheri said, and her chest ached thinking about how close she’d been to losing this woman. If cancer got anywhere close to her mom again, Sheri just might have to kick its ass.
“I love you, too. And here.” Her mom pulled out a small package from her purse. “Your gift.”
Sheri opened it. Her eyes immediately filled with tears when she saw the pearls. “Mom, these were Grandma’s. You wore them when you were married. You shouldn’t—”
“I know. And my mom gave them to me on my twenty-first birthday. Now I’m giving them to you. I had them restrung and the clasp fixed. Maybe someday you’ll wear them to your wedding.”
• • •
Taco met them at the door with a whimper. Danny put the leftovers in the fridge and suggested they take Taco for a walk. That was fine with her because the butterflies in her stomach weren’t all from anticipation, but maybe a little nerves.
It was cool out, but Danny had grabbed two jackets and made her wear one of them. It made good walking weather. It was only eight, and they weren’t the only ones out, but with the moon shining through the trees, she felt as if they were in their own little world.
A world where the silence seemed to be lined with things yet to be said.
“Sorry about Pauline,” Danny finally spilled.
She looked up at him. “You don’t have to apologize.”
“Yes, I do. It made you uncomfortable. I know because . . .”
“What?” she asked.
He frowned. “I felt it with Patrick, Kevin and Mark.”
She shook her head. “You make it sound like I’m the one with the bad reputation. I can count the number of guys I’ve been with on one hand. Can you say that?”
He half smiled. “I’ve never been with a guy.”
Divorced, Desperate and Daring (Divorced and Desperate Book 6) Page 21