by Jae
She doesn't need to. She's wonderful in her own way – and she looks fantastic! Kade had secretly admired the way the neatly pressed, but still comfortable black slacks fit Del's long legs and athletic frame. The white dress shirt she wore with it contrasted nicely to her coffee-colored skin and jet-black hair.
Mathew lightly touched Kade's bare arm when she failed to answer. "Who's that?" he asked again.
Kade half turned under the pretense of turning back to look at him, making his hand slip from her arm. He had touched her with fake casualness all evening, and it was beginning to irritate Kade. "That's Del Vasquez," she answered. "A very good friend of mine."
"Hmm." Mathew didn't seem to know what to make of that statement – or of Del. "So... you didn't bring a man home with you," he said with a hopeful grin.
Kade had been out on a few dates with Mathew her senior year of high school, and he still seemed to think she would someday come home and marry him. "I brought Del," Kade answered, secretly amusing herself because she knew Mathew would never grasp the true meaning of these words.
Mathew dismissed it with a grin. "But you don't have a boyfriend?"
"No, there's no man in my life," she told him, smiling to herself.
* * *
Del stood with her wineglass in hand, half listening to an amusing anecdote one of Sophie Matheson's guests was telling. Mainly, she was watching Kade from across the room.
Kade was surrounded by half a dozen men, who complimented her, kissed her hand, and offered to fetch her drinks.
It looked like a scene from an old fairy tale. The admiring underlings are waiting upon the heir to the Matheson throne, Del thought with amusement.
Del hadn't exchanged more than a few words with Kade since the dinner party started. Every time one or both of them finished a conversation, another guest wandered up to them and occupied them for another few minutes, keeping them apart.
It seems Mrs. Matheson's matchmaking attempts don't stop at her daughter. One or two of the male guests had tried to charm her, something that hadn't happened to Del in a long time. She had taken it in stride. After a few minutes of talking to them as an equal, not a flattered female, they had stopped acting like admirers and were now talking to her like old pals.
When she saw the latest man at Kade's side wander away, Del quickly excused herself and made her way over to Kade. "Having fun?" she asked with a smile.
Kade moved her head in a half circle that could equally mean yes or no. "I've had better evenings," she admitted after making sure no one was within hearing distance.
"For example?" Del asked, immediately interested in what Kade would consider a pleasant evening.
"Your birthday party was a lot nicer than this matchmaking festival," Kade answered, "and I had a lot of fun playing chess with you."
So she likes spending time with me more than she likes going to the classy events she was raised to participate in, huh? A wave of proud giddiness swept over Del at the realization. "So you liked getting naked with me, hmm?" she teased.
Kade gave her a stern look, but a hint of blush on her fair skin gave her away. "I didn't get naked," Kade reminded her. "You were the one who lost all her clothes."
"You were barefoot," Del said.
"So?" Kade was unimpressed. "If you think there's no difference between taking off my socks and taking off the rest of my clothes, then you have clearly never seen me naked." She threw back her head with a confident smirk.
Del's mouth went dry. She blindly reached for a glass of champagne that a nearby waiter offered on a tray. Lately, Kade had begun to flirt with her, and Del loved the sexual confidence she displayed. "Oh, I'm sure there's a big difference." Del laughed and teasingly stared at Kade's chest.
Kade looked at something directly behind Del. "Hello, Mother."
Del felt the color drain from her face, then suddenly rush back as she blushed in mortification. Very slowly, she turned around to face Kade's mother – only to realize that Mrs. Matheson was nowhere to be seen.
"Got you!" Kade smirked.
Del whirled back around. "You! You...!" She pointed her index finger at Kade, at a loss for words at the moment. "That was..."
"Mean?" Kade helpfully supplied. "Well, commenting on the size of my... differences wasn't exactly ladylike either."
Del tried to act hurt but quickly gave up. She liked Kade's rarely shown playfulness and the fact that Kade didn't let her get away with anything. An involuntary smile curled her lips. "Touché. If I promise to abstain from such comments in the future, you have to promise not to scare me like that again."
"It's a deal." Kade nodded gravely as if she had just negotiated a plea bargain.
"I can still compliment you on your looks, can't I? Because you look very beautiful tonight," Del said with honest admiration. Her gaze wandered over the tight black dress Kade wore. It left Kade's arms and shoulders bare, revealed just a hint of cleavage, and dipped teasingly low in the back.
"Thank you." Kade accepted the compliment with the grace of someone who had been told the very same thing a thousand times before.
Del held her gaze. "I really mean it," she said seriously. She wanted Kade to know that she was not just one of her many smooth-talking admirers. She truly appreciated everything about Kade – her beauty, her intelligence, and her personality.
"Thanks," Kade said, giving a nod of understanding. "You look wonderful tonight too."
Del looked down at herself, then back at Kade. "I know I can't keep up with the rest of your guests." She pointed at the other people in the room. Each and every one of them wore clothes that were worth more than Del's old, battered car.
"You don't need to," Kade said. "It's the fact that you're not like one of them that I like about you."
Del stared at her. Is it just wishful thinking, or did Kade really open up to me over the past few weeks? She's not holding back her emotions so much anymore.
A little uncomfortable, Kade broke their eye contact by glancing at the buffet. "I think I need a few of these roasted shrimp before they're all gone. Do you want any?"
Smiling, Del shook her head. She allowed Kade to retreat without comment, knowing Kade needed a moment alone to compose herself. In the meantime, she consoled herself with watching Kade's graceful form stride toward the buffet in the backless dress.
* * *
Kade heaped more shrimp than she really wanted to eat on her plate. She could feel Del's gaze resting on her back, heating up her bare skin. She knew most of the other people in the room were stealing glances at her too, but Del's dark eyes were the only ones that didn't leave her unimpressed.
A little uncomfortable with her growing awareness of Del, she was almost glad when her mother walked up to her.
"Are you enjoying your party?" her mother asked.
My party? Kade repeated silently, holding back a grimace. She knew this party served Sophie's needs first and foremost. The party wasn't about Kade's enjoyment, but about Sophie parading around her successful daughter and trying to find an acceptable son-in-law. "Yes, of course I am," she answered politely.
"Have you talked to Thomas yet?" Sophie discreetly nodded toward a man in his early forties who was an investment banker and talked about nothing else every time Kade saw him.
So far, I've managed to avoid it, Kade thought. "Not yet."
Sophie turned fully toward her, fixing her with a strict gaze. "I saw you talking to Delicia."
Kade set down her plate as a mixture of anger and nervousness made her fingers tremble. Does she suspect anything? "What's wrong with that?" she asked defensively.
"Nothing. I'm sure your friend is very nice."
Matheson language for "too common and not worthy of your attention," Kade bitterly translated.
"...but wouldn't you rather mingle with your other guests?" Sophie managed to make her question an order.
"Male guests," Kade said what her mother really meant. Usually, she faced her mother's attempts at matchmaking with her co
urtroom poker face, but tonight she had no patience for it. "Mother, please, stop trying to set me up," she demanded with barely restrained annoyance.
Her mother gave her the indignant look she had perfected over the years. "I wouldn't need to set you up if you –"
"What a wonderful party, Mrs. Matheson," Del interrupted, smoothly stepping between the two Matheson women. "Thank you for inviting me."
She didn't exactly invite you, Kade thought, still annoyed with her mother and this impossible situation. Del's presence calmed her, though. She could practically feel her blood pressure return to normal.
Sophie looked at Del in surprise. They all knew she hadn't invited Del, but Del continued to dazzle her with a bright smile, so Sophie had no choice but to react with the formal politeness that had been drilled into her. "You're welcome," she said stiffly. "I hope you're enjoying yourself."
"How could I not since I'm in the company of our charming hostess." Del smiled so warmly and honestly that Sophie blinked.
Her cool formality slowly melted away and was replaced with a hesitant smile. Sophie gave Del a nod, pointedly looked at Kade, and then walked away.
"Phew," Del groaned even though she was still grinning. "Thought you could use someone to bail you out."
Normally, Kade would have been annoyed at anyone playing the knight in shining armor, charging in to rescue her, but this time, she was glad for Del's intervention. She'd had enough of her mother's meddling, and she knew her mother wouldn't stop just because she told her so.
Del was probably the only person in the room who could get Sophie to back off. Sophie wasn't used to the warmth and sincerity Del projected in her smile. She didn't know what to make of Del, so she had retreated rather than face someone who was so different from all her acquaintances.
"How did you do that?" Kade grumbled. "Call my mother a charming hostess with such sincerity? She hasn't given you the time of day all night, and she told me in no uncertain terms that I should stop wasting my time with you and talk to all the eligible bachelors instead."
"I was looking so sincere because I meant it," Del said with a grin. "You invited me to come home with you, so you are the hostess to me."
Del winked at her, and Kade finally felt herself relax.
Del casually stole a shrimp from Kade's plate. "Come on. Let's go make your mother happy and mingle with the crowd."
CHAPTER 29
JAMIE SCRAMBLED up from her place on the couch next to Dawn when a key jingled in the front door. "That's Auntie Aiden!"
"Give her a minute, Jamie," Dawn said. She knew Aiden always needed a few minutes after coming home to turn off her cop mode. She had her little rituals, putting away her gun and her badge, that helped her with it, and Dawn had learned not to disturb her.
Jamie didn't listen, too eager to be the first one to greet Aiden. She raced across the living room.
"Must be the Aiden virus," Eliza said with a smile as she watched her daughter disappear around the corner. "I hear it's contagious."
Aiden strolled into the living room, her hand firmly clasped by both of Jamie's. "Hey," she said, clearly surprised to find the visitors in Dawn's living room.
Tim, Dawn's fifteen-month-old nephew, looked up from his building blocks. When he saw Aiden, he immediately reached for her and loudly demanded, "Up!"
Aiden looked a little overwhelmed, but she gamely bent down and picked him up.
"Oh, yeah." Eliza smirked. "Highly contagious."
Dawn stood too and leaned over Jamie to kiss Aiden hello. "How did it go?" she asked. "Find anything?" She knew Aiden and Ray had checked out another suspect who matched the description of Kade's stalker.
Aiden shook her head. Weary frustration showed in every one of her movements, and Dawn regretted inviting her mother, Eliza, and the kids over for dinner. It looked as if Aiden needed a quiet evening and a little pampering from Dawn.
"Is that a real gun?" Jamie asked, curiously touching the holster on Aiden's hip.
Aiden quickly put her free hand on the gun, preventing Jamie from getting her hands on it. "Yes, it is. It can be dangerous, so I want you to always remember that it's not a toy, okay?"
When Jamie nodded seriously, Aiden let go of the gun and gently ruffled Jamie's hair.
Dawn and Eliza exchanged a glance and a smile. She's so good with Jamie, Dawn thought with pride.
With Tim perched on her hip, Aiden walked out of the room to put away her gun and then toward the kitchen to greet Grace, who was preparing their dinner.
Jamie ran to catch up with her. From their places on the couch, Dawn and Eliza heard her ask, "Did you ever shoot anyone?"
Eliza groaned. "I'm sorry. I'm sure she gets that inquisitiveness from your part of the family."
Dawn didn't bother to dispute it. "Don't worry. Aiden can handle it."
"She's great with the kids," Eliza agreed. She put her chin on her hands and studied Dawn. "Have you ever talked about having kids?"
Every time Dawn saw Aiden with children, she had to think about what a great mother Aiden would be, but she knew Aiden had some issues with that subject, so she hadn't brought it up. "Well, we had the general 'What do you think about having kids' talk when we were still just friends, but we never seriously talked about having kids together," Dawn answered, her voice almost a whisper. She didn't want Aiden or Grace to overhear.
Eliza nudged her, looking down at her with an affectionate grin. "But you'd like to raise children with her, right?"
It was hard to keep a dreamy smile from her lips and answer matter-of-factly, "Eventually, yes."
Eliza slung one arm around her in an exuberant hug. "I'm so happy for you. I know this is what you wanted for yourself even back when you were still married."
Dawn nodded. She had thought about having a baby when she had been married to Cal but had eventually decided against it. Not only had she barely been twenty back then, but she had also known something was missing in their relationship, and she hadn't wanted to bring a child into that situation.
Jamie came skipping back into the living room. She was chatting incessantly with Aiden, who still carried a shrieking and laughing toddler. The sound level in the room suddenly went up a few decibels.
Eliza good-naturedly rolled her eyes. "You want kids?" She threw a mock self-pitying glance at Dawn and Aiden. "Take mine."
Aiden's eyebrows crept up, but she didn't ask why Eliza thought they wanted children.
Just then, Dawn's mother called for Dawn to set the table, and Dawn forgot what they had been talking about.
* * *
Dawn closed the door behind their visitors.
Aiden stacked the last of the dirty dishes in the sink and plopped heavily onto the couch, stretching her legs out with a groan. She leaned her head back and closed her eyes. It had been a long and frustrating day, and she wanted nothing more than to just go to sleep and forget all about it.
Dawn sat down next to her and gently rubbed her thigh. "You're beat, huh? I'm sorry I didn't ask you if it was okay to have them over for dinner."
Aiden shook her head. She kept her eyes closed, enjoying Dawn's soothing touch. "You don't have to ask me. It's not like you need my permission to have your family over."
"I want to ask you," Dawn emphasized. "You're the most important person in my life, so you should have a say in my decisions."
"Yeah, but having the family over for dinner is not a major decision," Aiden said. She never asked Dawn if it was okay to go out for a beer with Ray after work. She usually just called to say it would be a little later or she wouldn't come by tonight at all. Does Dawn want me to ask? she wondered.
"No, it's not," Dawn agreed. "But you had a hard day at work and with the kids clinging to you like limpets, you couldn't relax."
Aiden didn't deny that it had been a little overwhelming. It made her feel off balance to suddenly be around the two kids when she hadn't had any time to transform from the frustrated detective to the relaxed playmate. "If it had gotten to
be too much, I could have gone home," she said, not wanting Dawn to feel guilty. She let her hand drift down onto Dawn's leg, stroking it softly.
Dawn leaned her cheek against Aiden's shoulder. "But I don't want you to have to go home," she protested softly. "When we decide to move in together at some point, you won't have that option either."
Moving in together? Aiden abruptly stopped the soft touches she had bestowed upon Dawn's leg and opened her eyes. First she tells her sister-in-law she wants to have kids, and now she's talking about moving in together?