Aim For Love (23 page)

Greg tapped a finger on the steering wheel. Kaz felt sorry for him. Arresting a lifelong friend probably wasn’t at the top of his list of activities for the day.

“Don’t go doing anything heroic,” Greg said as they pulled up to the house. “I want to talk to your grandmother and to Miss Tavonesi. Then leave the rest to us. We know our business.”

“You used to tell me how to throw my curveball,” Kaz said, trying to keep his temper reined in.

“Yeah, I was stupid. Any fool can see you know how to do that.”

Tacked to the door was a note from Obaa-chan saying she’d driven to the retreat center for the day.

“I’ll be back tonight, then,” Greg said as Kaz pocketed the note. “Like I said, leave the investigating to us.”

“You are
not
going to miss spring training,” Obaa-san said when Kaz told her the news later that afternoon. “Tokugawa honor is at stake. We’ll put a lien on the farm or whatever, but you are going to Arizona if I have to drive you there myself.”

The thought of being in any kind of moving vehicle with his grandmother at the helm chilled him more that the prospect of scraping together the bail. And she was right—Judge Englebright had said they could post a property bond. That told Kaz that the judge knew he hadn’t committed the murder. But it didn’t get him off the hook.

Late that night as he calmed his distraught parents and convinced them not to cut their trip short, he realized how fast the news had spread—it wasn’t every day that a drug dealer was beheaded with a sword. A samurai sword.
His
sword. The news might’ve already reached Giants’ management. The mess surely wouldn’t help his chances with the team.

Chapter Nineteen

When she reached her rented bungalow, Sabrina couldn’t concentrate on her lines. She’d switched off her computer and phone, but her thoughts tangled and they thwarted her ability to focus. She still had twenty pages to memorize before the run-through the next day. Some of her co-stars would just read from the script, but that didn’t work for her. Working from memory was the only way she could get into character.

It hadn’t helped that freeways on the way back into LA had been clogged. She was used to heavy volume, but an accident on the 405 cost her an extra hour. Dropping off the rental car and waiting for a cab seemed like an endless stretch of hell.

But it had given her time to think.

Kaz Tokugawa had snuck into her heart. As she’d lain in his arms and drifted into sleep, she’d realized she loved him. Everything about him. His devotion to honor, his excellence, his undeniable sexiness and the way he made her feel. Never had she known the depths of feeling that she’d experienced making love with him.

And he was unavailable.

What a convenient term—vague and yet as all-encompassing as an ocean.

Seeing Kaz with Stacy before she’d left that morning had rammed the message home. Straight home.

She’d deceived herself.

She was damned good at that.

They’d made no promises, made no plans. They hadn’t even had time for a fight. Her heart had just sailed off on its own without checking any course settings or testing reality.

She’d just have to be thankful for the experience and move on. Chalk it up as another growth opportunity.

She was getting pretty damned tired of experiences for growth.

She shoved open the sliding glass door to her deck and shielded her eyes from the sun glaring off the glassy ocean. It was a rare calm afternoon with no marine winds.

At least she had her peaceful bungalow and the beauty of the sea. She’d have a few more of her things shipped down from Trovare next week and the place would start to feel like home.

Out of habit she checked her phone. There were three voice messages from Derrick and a mysterious text that said he had something important to show her. Something to do with Kaz Tokugawa.

Derrick knew how to bait her. She pulled up his number.

“Derrick?”

“Back among the living?”

“I’m back, if that’s what you’re asking. I’m not in any mood for cat and mouse dramatics.”

“I can only hope that I’m the mouse—I’m in the mood to be caught by the loveliest woman I know.”

When she didn’t answer, he added, “I have something very important to share with you. I think—no, I know you’ll find it enlightening. Can I make you dinner?”

Her fridge was bare and if she were honest, she needed his help nailing a couple of scenes that were dogging her. Facing the rest of the crew unprepared wasn’t an option. And damn him, Derrick had piqued her curiosity. “Okay.”

“Wow. I should’ve tried dinner as a tactic ages ago.”

“Don’t get too worked up congratulating yourself. I want to go over the script with you. And I have a few things to tell you as well.”

“Good enough for me.”

Derrick met her at his door with a glass of chilled champagne.

“Celebrating?”

“Maybe,” he said. “My only competitor for your affection may have been permanently vanquished.”

Her heart skittered in her chest. “Did something happen to Natasha?”

“She’s fine, as of two hours ago.” He shook his head. “I hadn’t considered Natasha competition.” He waved her in. “You’ll see.”

He walked over to his desk and tapped at the keyboard of his laptop.

“There.”

Nausea rose as she read the news report.

“Your fine samurai is a murderer,” Derrick said.

“It’s not possible.” Fighting dizziness, she dropped onto the couch.

“Looks pretty clear-cut to me. Apparently he was involved in a drug ring. If you hadn’t been isolating yourself to channel your inner princess and answered your phone, I could’ve spared you the shock.” He sat beside her on the couch. “Manslaughter will get him forty years. If the judge holds it to that. And I don’t think
this
shot will help his case any.”

He turned the laptop to face her. A full-screen photo on a tabloid site showed Kaz with his hands around Derrick’s throat and her shocked face in the frame beside him—the shot from Kaz’s sister’s art opening.

“You’re the one who’s off base. Kaz is innocent.”

“I do love that you always see the good in people.”

His sarcastic tone snapped something inside her.

“And I’ve been seeing your good side for way too long.” She thudded her champagne glass on the glass coffee table with a loud bang. “I’d better get out of here before my inner Xena blows your ass off this planet.”

Derrick gaped as she stormed out of his house.

She ran into David the stuntman coming up the sidewalk.

“I wouldn’t bother with him if I were you,” she said as she slid into her car.

“But, honey, bothering with him is one of my greatest pleasures.”

And just that fast Sabrina knew why Derrick wanted to spread rumors of marrying her all over the press: he didn’t want Hollywood to know he was gay. The knowledge of his plans should’ve made her angrier, but instead a bit of territory reluctantly opened in her heart. Hollywood often ate its own. She didn’t really want Derrick to be one of its victims. But he’d have to find another way to guard his secret.

On the way back to her place she did the math in her head.

There was no way Kaz could’ve murdered someone the night before. She’d been with him all night. At least until she’d fallen asleep. What time was that? What did it matter? There was no way he’d kill someone.

She checked her phone and found a message from the Valley County sheriff’s office.

Before she spoke with the authorities, she had to talk to Kaz. When he didn’t answer, she packed a bag and jumped into her car. If traffic cooperated, she’d be there in four hours. She called Natasha and told her she’d be back in two days. Natasha didn’t question her. Maybe the news had spread to everyone. If Derrick had a hand in spreading it, she’d wring his neck herself.

It was past midnight when Sabrina pulled up in front of the farmhouse. She rubbed at her eyes and then grabbed her bag from the back seat. The house was dark except for a light in the kitchen. She went around to the kitchen door and knocked.

Kaz jumped.

“I’m sorry,” she said through the door. “I didn’t mean to startle you.”

He stared for a moment, blinked and then unlocked the door.

“What the hell are you doing here?”

“You might work on your greeting skills,” she said with a smile that she guessed looked pasted on. She didn’t want to pretend, to act, with him.

She hadn’t spent much time figuring how he would receive her. She’d been too busy sorting through what she’d tell the police. And everything else that she remembered about every single moment she’d spent with him. His grandmother may have broken through the spell that Kristen’s character had woven in her, but nothing could undo the memories of Kaz’s touch or the world that touch had opened.

“I wanted to talk to you before I answered any questions.” She put her hand on his arm and felt him stiffen under her touch. “Why didn’t you tell them I was with you?”

“I told them you were here.”

“But you didn’t tell them I was with you
all
night. In your bed? That there’s no way you could’ve done what they are accusing you of?”

He closed his hand over hers. “Let’s sit down. You must be exhausted. Are you hungry?”

She tugged her hand away. Answers. She’d driven four hours for answers, not to talk about food.

“Kaz, why didn’t you tell them?”

He pushed back from the table and folded his arms across his chest. He was the one who looked exhausted. Heavy circles bagged under his eyes, and the light that she so loved wasn’t in them. Instead, lines of strain etched his face as he lifted his gaze to hers.

“Because at the time of the murder I
wasn’t
in bed with you. You may remember that you fell asleep. I looked at the clock before I went down to work in my study. I would’ve had plenty of time to kill him and get back here before either you or my grandmother were up and about.”

“We would’ve heard you leave.”

“You didn’t hear me leave the bed, did you?”

She shook her head.

“You’ll have to answer questions under oath, Sabrina. You’ll have to tell the truth.” He got up and drew a glass of water from the faucet. “Here. You’ve been on the road for hours. We can talk in the morning.”

“I want to talk now.” She took the glass and gulped the water. “While it’s fresh in my mind.”

But last night would stay fresh in her mind for a very, very long time.

“Sleep, Sabrina. We both need some.” He took the empty glass from her and held her in a transfixing gaze. “Thank you for coming. I’m sorry you’ll be dragged into all of this.”

“They’re accusing you of
murder
, do you get that? Of course I came.”

“Well, at least you and Obaa-chan believe me. Maybe somebody else will. But the evidence is pretty hard to argue with.”

She saw a flicker of defeat under his anger.

“And you may be a terrific actress, but I bet you’re a terrible liar. You’ll have to tell them I wasn’t with you all night.”

She opened her mouth to argue, but he put a finger to his lips.