Crime & Passion (36 page)

“You are helping. I’ve never talked to anyone
about this before. It’s nice to have someone I can trust, someone I
love. Thank you for caring so much. I haven’t had a lot of
that.”

“It’s nice to have you, too. I’m so happy
being with you.” She paused as another thought occurred to her.
“You said you don’t want to marry me out of convenience, but I have
a question for you.”

“Okay.”

“Will you move in with me? For real, I mean?
Not just because you feel like you need to protect me.” She held
her breath, waiting for his response.

He drew her hand to his mouth and kissed the
pulse point at her wrist. “If you’re ready for that kind of
commitment, I am.”

Madeline leaned across the console, reaching
for him. “I want to be with you. I’m ready for anything you want to
give me.”

Donovan smiled and moved his head down to her
neck. “Anything?”

His lips danced lightly across her
collarbone, whispering pleasure through her body. He gently palmed
her breasts, and her nipples tightened to hard buds beneath his
touch.

“Perhaps we should take this upstairs,” he
said, trailing his fingers down her stomach and brushing them
against her crotch. “We can celebrate our new living
arrangement.”

“You’d better hurry out of this car.”
Madeline’s breath came in short gasps. “I’m ready for you here and
now.”

A chuckle erupted from deep in his chest. “I
don’t think we need to give them a new reason to throw me in
jail.”

“Good point.” Madeline pulled the keys from
the ignition and opened her door.

Donovan came around the side of the car,
offering his arm.

She accepted it and smiled up at him,
surprised by this touch of chivalry. It wasn’t something she
usually associated with Donovan, but she really liked it. It seemed
there were many sides to this man, and she loved all of them.

They reached the building and Donovan opened
the door. “After you, darling.” A smirk crossed his face.

“What are you up to?” she asked.

He raised his eyebrows. “Not much...I just
want to enjoy the view.”

Using my own words against me, huh?
Madeline laughed as she stepped through the doorway, wiggling her
hips suggestively on her way to the elevator.

Donovan reached her just as she pushed the
button, wrapping his arms around her waist and pulling her close.
He kissed her back and neck above the collar of her shirt, driving
her even crazier.

She couldn’t stop the moan that came out.

“Ever made love in an elevator?” he asked,
practically purring the words into her ear.

“I’d like to try it.”

The elevator dinged and the doors opened.

“There you guys are!” Brice Carter stepped
out into the hallway. “I was about to call Madeline’s cell phone
when you weren’t home. I’ve got great news.”

Madeline tried to slow her pounding pulse as
Donovan’s body separated slightly from hers. She forced a pleasant
look on her face, pretending to be happy about Brice’s presence. No
matter what his news was, surely it could wait another hour or
so.

Or at least long enough for her and Donovan
to take a ride in the elevator.

“What did you need to tell us?” Donovan
asked, keeping his arms lightly around Madeline’s waist. She could
feel the hard length of him pressing into her back and figured he
was keeping her in place so Brice wouldn’t guess what he’d
interrupted.

Brice smiled. “The mayor heard about the
charges against you being dropped and came to the station. He
ordered Chief Stone to end your suspension.”

“He did?” Donovan sounded shocked.

“Ever since Suzie attacked Madeline, many of
the townspeople have been upset about you being a suspect. They
wanted the charges dropped and you back on the force.”

Madeline thought about her conversation with
Eric. Chief Stone must not have been happy with the mayor’s visit.
“So, Chief Stone sent you after Donovan?”

Brice shook his head. “Not exactly.” He
clasped his hands together in front of him. “There’s been a change
in our department. Stone refused and the mayor called an emergency
meeting with members of the town council.”

Donovan sucked in a quick breath behind her.
“What did they decide?”

“Stone can’t be impartial and hasn’t been
doing his job properly this last month. He’s on suspension. As the
most senior member on the force, I am acting Chief until they make
a final decision about what to do with him.”

“That
is
great news.” Madeline wrapped
her arms across the top of Donovan’s and squeezed. “You can return
to work, like you wanted to.”

“I’ll keep you off this particular case, of
course,” Brice said. “But I need you back for regular duties. Can
you start tomorrow?”

“On one condition,” Donovan said. “I don’t
want to be partnered with Eric anymore.”

“He approached me today,” Madeline explained
to Brice. “And let’s just say he is sympathetic with Stone as far
as Donovan’s concerned.”

Brice nodded. “Eric came to me right after
all this happened and we talked about that. He thought he was doing
the right thing, his duty as he saw it.” He shrugged. “He’s new to
this job and was following orders.”

“Yeah,” Donovan agreed. “I do understand
that, but I don’t want to work with him.”

“Fair enough. You can be a lone wolf. I’ll
keep Eric working this case with me so I can figure out if he’s
going to cut it on my force.”

“Your force.” Donovan chuckled. “How does
that feel, Chief Carter?”

“Damn good. It’s what I’ve always wanted.”
Brice started for the doorway. “Don’t be late tomorrow.”

Donovan reached out to push the call button
on the elevator and sucked gently on her earlobe while they waited
for the door to open. “That broke my mood a little, so I think the
frantic elevator ride, hoping to not get caught, is out. But I want
to get into our apartment and celebrate.”

Madeline shivered at the feel of his breath
against her, feeling happier than she thought possible. “I like the
way you think, Officer Andrews.”

Donovan sat in his police cruiser a week and
a half later, watching for speeders. The summer people had arrived.
Despite the notoriety of the murders and the fear of Pleasant
Views’ residents, there had been no downturn in people wanting to
spend their summer on the California coast.

That, of course, meant more folks committing
traffic violations, which would bring extra revenue to the city.
Donovan scanned cars absently as they passed. For a Wednesday, it
was rather slow.

His thoughts turned to Madeline, wondering
how she was doing at Woofy Cuts. Yesterday had been her first day
back. The people constantly gawking at her scars made for a trying
day and an even rougher night. She hadn’t wanted to go back this
morning, but Donovan convinced her she should. Soon enough, things
would get back to normal for her, but he wished it wasn’t such a
difficult transition.

Donovan grabbed his newly-issued cell phone
from his pocket. Madeline had insisted he learn how to text message
so they could keep in contact during the day.

He found her number and laboriously typed a
message:
U ok? I luv u.

Scanning a few more cars as they passed,
Donovan waited anxiously for his phone to beep, signaling her
response.

Today’s easier. Thanks for asking. See you
tonight.

Even though he read the message twice, she
still hadn’t said what he wanted to hear—love you too. Over the
past ten days, she’d expressed her pleasure at living together.
She’d helped clean out his apartment and move everything to her
house, making passionate love to him that night, stating it was his
house-warming gift.

No matter what he said to her, though, how he
phrased things to elicit a response, she never said she loved him.
Donovan pictured the ring hidden in the bottom of his sock drawer.
He had it sized to fit her finger while she was in the coma, never
knowing if he would be able to give it to her, praying every day he
would.

Now he feared she wouldn’t accept it, even if
he tried to give it to her.

His cell phone rang, startling him. No matter
what, he’d never get used to the damn thing. “Andrews.”

“This is your Chief speaking,” Brice Carter
said with a laugh. He still hadn’t gotten over his happiness at his
change in position. “I need you down at the station. I’ve got good
news.”

***

The fake smile stayed on Madeline’s face as
Mrs. Duncan openly stared at her scars. “Is the dog food all you
need, Mrs. Duncan?”

The older lady had been hanging around Woofy
Cuts for the past hour, pretending to look at the newest selection
of dog toys. The biggest shock to Madeline was that the insatiable
gossip hadn’t shown up yesterday to ogle her scars. Apparently Mrs.
Duncan somehow missed the message that Madeline was back to
work.

“Well, dear,” the woman said, tilting her
head to the side, “of course I heard all about your attack, and I
just wanted to express my sympathy.” She paused as she grabbed her
purchase off the counter. “If you ever need someone to talk to
about it...”

I
won’t
be calling you.
“Thanks,” Madeline forced herself to say. “Enjoy your evening.”

Mrs. Duncan took a step back, but continued
to stare.

Madeline kept her hands down and away from
her scars, but it took a lot of effort. She wondered if she’d ever
stop feeling like a freak.

Lindsey entered from the back room where
she’d been settling in two dogs spending the night in the kennel.
Her eyes met Madeline’s and her mouth tightened. “Mrs. Duncan,” she
called, walking briskly toward the woman. “It was so nice of you to
shop here today, but it’s closing time.”

She wrapped her arm around the woman’s
shoulders and all but shoved her to the doorway. After opening the
door, Lindsey took a step forward, forcing Mrs. Duncan to walk
outside.

“I’m sure we’ll see you next week,” Lindsey
said, backing into the building. “Stop back by when Jasper runs out
of food. Take care.”

After shutting and locking the door, Lindsey
turned off the open sign before facing Madeline. “You okay,
sweetie? I had no idea that woman was still here.”

Madeline shrugged and opened the cash
register, pulling out the money and separating the checks from the
credit card slips. “You know how she is. When Frank Johnson died,
she couldn’t wait to hear the story directly from me and spread it
around to all her little friends. My face is no different. Another
freak show for public entertainment.”

“You stop that, right now.” Lindsey stooped
below the counter to grab the ten-key and started adding the
amounts on each check. “You are not a freak. You’re a brave,
beautiful woman. Don’t let them get you down.”

Instead of responding to that, Madeline
counted the cash, writing the amount on the deposit sheet and
stuffing the money into the bank bag.

“Look on the bright side. You have
Donovan.”

Madeline sighed. “There is that.”

Lindsey’s eyebrows rose. “Trouble in
paradise?”

“Everything’s perfect...mostly.” Did Lindsey
really want to talk about her ex? Then again, now that she dated
Brandon, perhaps Lindsey had healed from the hurt Donovan caused
her. “Do you really want to hear about this?”

Lindsey nodded. “Even though I had my
reservations about him in the beginning, I want you to be happy.
What’s up?”

“It’s kind of stupid.” Madeline shrugged and
looked away from Lindsey, wondering for the umpteenth time whether
she was being unreasonable. She should be happy with her life, not
longing for more. “He said we would talk about marriage when we
weren’t forced into it. Now we’re living together, the charges
against him have been dropped, and we’re both working. It seems
like the perfect time to talk about marriage.”

“But he hasn’t brought it up?”

“Nope.”

Lindsey wrote the totals for the checks and
credit card slips on the deposit sheet. “You got him to live with
you, which is more than any other woman has accomplished.” She
shook her head. “Maybe Donovan really is incapable of marriage. If
you want to be with him, you might need to be content with a less
formal relationship.”

She knew what Lindsey said was true. She
should count her blessings instead of chasing trouble, but she
wanted to be married. It was important to have the security that
implied, at least to her. “I’m not sure that’s enough for me.”

“Have you asked him his plans?”

“I’m afraid too,” Madeline admitted. “What if
he’s changed his mind about marriage and I bring it up? I’m afraid
he might leave me.”

Lindsey nodded. “I pushed Donovan toward
marriage, thinking I knew what was best for him. It sent him
running.” She zipped the bank bag closed and headed for the coat
closet, grabbing their purses out and handing Madeline’s to her. “I
know now we weren’t meant for each other, and he never really
wanted to be with me. Things are different between you two, though.
I really think he loves you, but he’s just not the marrying
type.”

Someone knocked on the front door. They
looked through the glass to see Brandon standing on the other side,
waving and smiling.

“I’m happy for you and Brandon,” Madeline
said. “I tried to tell him a while ago he was chasing the wrong
woman. It was always obvious he loved you.”

Lindsey cheeks turned pink and she grinned.
“We’re taking things slow, but it’s been nice to have a man in my
life again. He and I want the same things. In the end, that’s all
that really matters.”

Madeline fished in her purse for her keys as
Lindsey set the alarm.
Will Donovan ever give me what I want, or
do we want different things?

***