Not until now. “I just…” She closed her eyes a second, focused on choosing the right words.
“What?”
She opened her eyes and met his gaze, holding it for a long few seconds. “I don’t want to get you in trouble. That’s all.”
His mouth quirked and he shook his head before pressing a kiss to her forehead. “Honey, I’m a big boy. I don’t need you making decisions for me.”
Tim was done.
Done having this conversation and done with Lucie not trusting his intentions. He loved this girl, and she couldn’t get past her fear that he’d dump her.
Because of her last name.
So either he’d done a piss-poor job of proving it didn’t matter or she didn’t want to believe it. Either way, it had to stop.
Screwball investigations or not, he wanted her in his life. These last few months he’d been trying to mold Joe Rizzo’s daughter into his life. The life of a law enforcement officer.
How’s that working?
Not so good.
What he needed was to forget about Joe Rizzo’s daughter and think about Lucie. Sweet, lovable Lucie, who never quit. On anything. That’s who he wanted. Not the so-called mob princess. He’d been balancing on the wire between his cop world and her mob world. Wasn’t that the thing she’d been running from her entire adult life? People treating her a certain way based on her lineage?
Son of a bitch.
However evolved he considered himself, he’d done the exact thing she’d been complaining about. And he’d been on her about her investigations. Constantly telling her to stop, which, yeah, he wanted her to do. But was it fair? Wanting everything his way? No compromises.
That needed to change.
He met her gaze, that deep, haunting blue that gave him a hitch in his chest every time. “I love you. Period. All this time, I’ve been trying to balance it all. You on one side, my job on the other. And I’ve been hassling you.”
“You haven’t been—”
He held up a hand. “Fine. But I haven’t been agreeable. All of it snowballed. You don’t want to involve me. Meanwhile, I’m trying to protect you and you’re keeping secrets to protect me. Damned vicious cycle.”
He’d just never realized it until now. All this time, he’d been managing situations, handling them as best he could. His way.
He shook his head. “I’m done trying to scare you into not doing your screwball investigations. Today, that stops. I’d still prefer you not investigate, but I hate the secrets and I hate that I put you in a position to keep them. It’s you and me. Tim and Lucie. No Joe Rizzo’s kid. No cop. Just us. Together. Okay?”
Tears welled up in her eyes and that stupid hitch in his chest became a tight ball. Damn. Lucie crying might be the worst thing he’d ever seen.
She bobbed her head. “Tim and Lucie. I’d love that.”
“I mean, I could do without the screwy investigations, but…”
She laughed. “Me too! I hate them. I just get sucked in and…you know me, I can’t let go.”
“I do know. It’s the thing I love most about you. Which, hello? Also makes me insane. You always fight. No matter what. My girl never gives up.”
“It’s in the DNA. Whether it was right or not, Dad taught me the art of battle.”
Tim shrugged. “It’s not a bad lesson.”
“I’m learning that.”
“Good.”
He stepped closer, close enough to feel her breath on his face when he dipped his head to kiss her. As usual, she welcomed it, sliding her arms around his waist and bowing into him.
Tim and Lucie.
Lucie and Tim.
A fresh start. Zero baggage.
Lucie fought the emotion clogging her throat. Tim, the man she’d spent the last months parceling information about her investigations to, had just spilled his guts. Had basically taken the blame for all the tension-filled moments between them.
Adoring him was so, so easy.
She couldn’t blame him for how he felt about her investigations. They were adults, each with their own hang-ups and concerns. And there were worse things than a man who wanted to protect her. Now, it seemed, he wanted to find the compromise, the middle ground between completely stifling her and helping her.
The least she could do is be honest with him. As honest as he’d been with her.
I can do this.
She drew a long breath, held it for a second, and exhaled. She looked up at him, big, strong Tim O’Brien. He can handle it. “Full disclosure is about to happen. And remember what you just said.”
“Ah, crap.”
“Listen, Detective—”
Before she got too far into her defense, he pressed his index finger against her mouth. “No. I’m sorry. I shouldn’t have said that. Old habits.” He shook his head. “We’re not arguing. It’s us. Lucie and Tim. Give it to me straight.”
Oh, boy. He asked for it. “After you left us today, I went with Joey to walk Otis. While we were there, I saw Mrs. Lutz and I thought about all the contacts Mr. L has.”
“Okay.”
“And, you know, he kinda owes me a favor, given the whole almost making me someone’s prison bitch.” Tim closed his eyes, clearly battling for patience. He rolled one hand and she nodded. “Right. So…I asked Mrs. Lutz if they knew anyone who could check Molly’s finances. Nothing too intense. Just top-line stuff so we could figure out if she’s done anything suspect.”
Tim’s mouth twisted. “I can live with that.”
“Really?”
He shrugged. “I’d have done it. Did you break any laws?”
She took a few seconds with that one. “Eh, borderline.”
Tim closed his eyes, the battle really raging now. “What did you do?”
“Mrs. L put me in touch with a friend who works at FinCEN. I asked him to check if there’d been any reports filed on Molly. Basic stuff. Cheating on her taxes, moving large sums of money, things like that.”
“And?”
“Nothing. Clean as a whistle.”
“Really?”
“Yep. He called me right before I got here. There haven’t been any reports filed.”
“Doesn’t always mean anything. She could be good at hiding.”
“I agree. I have an idea though.”
One strawberry blond eyebrow lifted. God bless him, Tim was trying. She set her hands on his cheeks, went up on tiptoes, and kissed him quick, before he lost it on her. “I love this new openness. I feel like we’ve had a major breakthrough. I’ve hated hiding things from you, the one person who’s always so steady and filled with good advice. This makes life so much easier.”
“I’m glad you’re happy.” He twisted his mouth in a lame attempt to hide a smile. “It’s killing me. But tell me your idea.”
She squeezed his cheeks. “Dean.”
“The hacker?”
“Yes. I think we should call him and ask him to snoop in Molly’s email. That might tell us something. Particularly about her relationship with Reuben. Honestly though, I’m not feeling it on Reuben. He doesn’t seem like a scummy blackmailer to me.”
“And Molly does?”
“Good point.”
Tim considered the suggestion, tipping his head one way then the other. Prior to the conversation they’d just had, she’d have hesitated to even bring it up. Now, with this new sense of open communication, she felt a freeing lightness, the weight of all those secrets lifted from her.
“Okay,” Tim said.
Whoa. Did he just agree? “Fine, as in have Dean snoop?”
“Yeah. We’ve got nothing to lose. We’re spying on everyone else. And the money drop is tomorrow morning. We’re running out of time.”
“Yes, we are.” And speaking of the money… “We should plan on being at the drop. If the money disappears,” she slashed her hand across her throat, “I’m cooked.”
This suggestion might be pushing the boundaries of love, but what the heck. He wanted total honesty.
>
He crossed his arms, stared down at the floor a second. “A sting op.”
At best, a vague statement. Still, it wasn’t a no. Definitely history making strides in the Tim and Lucie relationship. Might as well push a little more, see how far O’Hottie would let this go. “I’m not familiar with that park, but we can get some dogs and walk them. We’ll plant people all around and wait until the money is picked up. Then we follow it.”
If he bought this idea, she’d know, without a doubt, he meant every word he’d said to her. Tim taking an active role in one of her formerly screwball ideas was monumental. Total dedication right there. A commitment.
Almost an engagement ring.
In her mind anyway.
Blame it on all the talk about a double wedding and the I-love-yous. What was a woman her age, with dreams of a family, supposed to think?
Lucia Rizzo O’Brien.
She rolled it around in her mind, let it settle. Something warm and fluttery stirred inside.
Wow. That felt…good.
Perfect, even.
Tim checked his watch. “The drop is set for 11:00 tomorrow. I’ll take a sick day and run out to the park in the morning, get the lay of it. Then I’ll meet you at your office. Can you get everyone together? Say 8:30 or 9:00. That’ll give me time to work up a strategy.”
Lucie nodded. “I can do that. Easy. I’ll call them tonight.”
Tim smacked his hands together. “Done deal. How about a quickie?”
Unbelievable.
“My endorphins are going,” he said. “Made me horny. It’s not uncommon.”
Ro was right. Men were total rutting pigs.
But, darn, she loved them. This one in particular.
She nestled into him, wrapping her arms around his waist, loving the feel of his tank top and that clean soapy smell. Tim and Lucie. Lucie and Tim.
Together.
She tipped her head up. “Maybe I want more than a quickie, Detective.”
He kissed her with a soft brush of his lips. “I won’t complain. Not when it comes to you. I love you. I want you always.”
“Me too. I was just thinking about that.”
“Maybe we should start talking about the future.”
“Are you ready for that?”
“Honey, I’m thirty-five years old. I’m not getting any younger. I want a family and I don’t plan on using a walker to coach my kids in sports.”
She envisioned Tim on a basketball court, shouting instructions and patting a kid on the head. She liked it. The idea of them as parents, her popping out babies. Redheaded babies.
She curled into him again and held tight. “Let’s talk about it. Not now, though. Tonight, I just want you.”
Lucie held on, loving the feel of being so close. His big body wrapping around her much smaller one. She went up on tiptoes and kissed him. The kiss intensified and he slid his tongue inside her mouth and—yay, me—her body responded. Nothing new there. Every time Tim came near, her clothes begged to be discarded.
Tonight was no different.
She slid her hands down to the waistband of his shorts and tucked her thumbs inside.
Tim backed away an inch and smiled. “Slut.”
“I know. It’s horrible.”
“I’ll never complain.”
“Good. Me neither.” She leaned in, tipping her head forward and resting it against his chest. Which gave her a perfect view of his growing erection. She brought one hand down and gave him a squeeze right through his shorts. Such. A. Slut. “Hello, mister.”
“I’ve missed you, Luce.”
She looked up, found his eyes on her in that hungry, feral way that made her feel loved and wanted. Beautiful, even.
And that was a gift.
“I love you,” she said.
“I love you.”
“Good. Now take me to bed and bang my lights out.”
Tim let out a laugh, one of his good belly laughs that made his face light up. Who said she sucked at seduction? This boy was putty in her hands? Well, given the state of his groin area, putty might not have been a totally accurate description.
Go, Lucie.
He hoisted her up over his shoulder, smacking her on the ass as he headed to the bedroom.
“Let’s do this,” he said. “Then we’ve got a blackmailer to catch.”
Chapter Twelve
Lucie’s operatives, all bright-eyed and ready for action, began gathering at Coco Barknell at 8:30 AM sharp.
Undeterred by the chatter, Ro sat at her desk answering emails while Joey dealt with Dad’s latest phone mishap. The two of them huddled up at the conference table, Dad in his usual dress slacks and shirt, his salt-and-pepper hair gelled into place. In contrast, Joey wore jeans and a long-sleeved T-shirt, his dark hair dipping below his ears and curling. Lucie took comfort in that. The normalcy of her brother and father. So alike, yet so different.
Joey poked around on Dad’s phone. “You must have hit the camera. Or did you attach the picture?”
Dad shrugged. “You’re asking me?”
Joey laughed. “Forget it. No harm done. It’s not like you sent naked pictures of yourself to Aunt Doris.”
Lucie gagged. Total nightmare.
Jimmy Two-Toes pushed through the shop door with Sonny trailing behind. Something outside grabbed the Jack Russell’s attention—or maybe it was just a thirty-eight-degree sunny day a dog could enjoy.
“No. Come with Daddy.”
Daddy?
Ro glanced over at her and bit her lip. Hey, even mob guys had soft spots.
Jimmy shook his head. “He hates being inside. Luce, you got any more of that food you gave him? It’s got crack in it or something. He refuses to eat anything else now.”
Impressive that. Considering Jimmy fed the dog rib-eye steaks.
“I don’t. I’ll see what I can do, though.” Lucie squatted to give Sonny some almost-world-famous Lucie love. She snuggled him, scratching behind his ears in that spot he liked. “You liked that food, didn’t you, boy?”
The doggie bells on the door jangled again. Mom and her friend Bev entered.
Mom tugged on the fingers of her gloves and whipped them off. “We’re here to help. All hands on deck.”
Excellent. Because if Lucie knew this crew at all, Ro would insist on coming and that would leave the shop unattended. With Mom here, she and Bev could handle the phones.
Mom pointed at Joey. “And before anyone says a word, Bev will handle the phones. I’m coming. I never get to do the fun stuff.”
“No,” Dad said.
Mom eyed him. “Listen, man-on-parole, I’m going. I don’t care what you say.”
Joey’s mouth flopped open. Literally nosedived.
Go, Mom. A few years ago, if Dad had given an order like that, she’d have fallen right in line. Just sucked it up like a dutiful, obedient wife. No going against the man of the house and all that nonsense. Once Dad went away, Mom discovered independence had its perks. Big ones.
Like not being told what to do by men in prison.
Bent on female unity, Lucie grabbed a folder off her desk and headed to the conference table. “I like that idea, Mom. You and Dad can be a strolling couple.”
Tim entered the shop, sending the doggie bells jangling again, and Lucie’s skin heated up. Ooh-eee, what a night they’d had. But she shouldn’t even be thinking about that in front of Dad.
“Morning,” Tim said to the room at large.
“Hey, handsome.” He set a duffle bag on the table and Lucie eyed it. “What’s that?”
“Radios. I borrowed them from a buddy. There’s six in there. The earpieces have a thin wire that hooks around your ear. Barely detectable.”
“Cool,” Joey said.
“We’ll need them. I went to the park this morning. The area where the drop takes place is big. Wide open. We’ll split the radios up so we can stay in constant contact.”
Joey reached for the bag, ready to begin playing.
“
Joseph,” Mom said, sliding into the chair across from Dad, “remember how you loved walkie-talkies when you were little? You were so cute, climbing into the attic and talking to me. I miss those days.”
Mom let out a little sigh and a small chunk of Lucie’s heart broke free. It had to be hard. Being on the back half of life, children grown and building their own lives. Well, mostly.
Living alone with Dad.
Lawdy.
Taking care with the radios, Joey emptied the bag and lined the contents on the table.
“I’ll show you how to use them,” Tim said. “First, let’s talk strategy.”
“Ooh, fun,” Mom said to Bev. “I’m sorry you’re going to miss this.”
“It’s all right. I’m too old to be traipsing in the cold anyway. My arthritis is killing me.”
Ro finally gave up on her emails and wandered over, her high-heels—the walking shoes—clicking against the tile. She took the open spot next to Joey.
Lucie nabbed the chair next to Mom, leaving the end spot for Tim, sending the clear message that the good detective was in charge. She flipped her folder open and distributed maps of the park she’d printed the night before.
“This is Cliffside park,” Tim said, “It’s five acres, but we’re only concerned with this corner.” He circled an area on the map and held it up for everyone to see. “We’re watching for the money drop. Keep your eyes peeled. Radio me if there’s anything suspicious. Anything that looks…off. I need to know. Antoine’s been instructed to leave the money in a hollowed-out tree.” Tim pointed at the spot on the map. “The tree is here. I saw it this morning. Once the exchange is made, I’ll tail the person who picks up the bag.”
Mom’s lips dipped to a frown. “That’s it? I put makeup on for this?”
Holding on to a laugh, Lucie took that one. “We’re trying to identify suspects. Once we know who they are, we can prove I didn’t steal the recipe. We’ll show our proof to Antoine, then he’ll decide what he wants to do.” She grinned. “In addition to dropping that damned lawsuit.”
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