Deeper (The Deeper Chronicles #1) (18 page)

“What are those?” she asked when he came closer.

Noah fanned out packets of condoms. His grin was too wide, and scared her in the process. Her body purred because of the longing emanating from Noah. His hand tracked a sensuous path from her leg to the side of the panties that covered the final part of her body. His fingers glided underneath the silky black fabric grazing her supple skin, and snatched it off.

She felt puckered lips—beyond soft lips that made her sigh—kiss her lower belly.

Followed by another that lingered near her navel.

“Oh, Jesus...”

She parted her thighs. His long fingers pushed into her then pulled out of her body, but not all the way. They both heard the slickness of her body’s reaction to him. His fingers disappeared again.

“Only me.” Noah’s warm breath washed over her and sent tingles of arousal where she needed his attention the most.

Ring.

His head popped up.

Avi sat up, blinking and focusing on Noah, who looked around in confusion.

He backed away from between her legs.

Avi lay there pliant and ready.

Ring.

He stood and swiped a hand down his face in frustration, smelling her in the process. He could kill whoever was calling right now.

“Of all the fucking times...” he grumbled, walking away. “Stay there, Avi,” he called over his shoulder, expecting her to follow his order. Reaching the far corner of the room, where a dark colored dresser stood, he grabbed the disposable cell phone from it. “What?”

“Hello?” The voice was out of breath.

Facing the wall, he whispered as low as he could, “Speak to me.”

Noah turned back to Avi, who was busy picking up clothing from the floor. He sighed.

“I’ve got a name,” Harry said.

“Uh huh.” Noah snapped his fingers.

Avi’s head sprang up.

Noah held up a finger.

She continued gathering her clothes.

This damn woman—

“Got it earlier from a CI.”

Noah’s thoughts were no longer on Avi. He walked toward the bathroom for some privacy.

Harry rushed down the sidewalk. “I swear somebody is following me.”

He walked to his car parked two blocks from the police station, hitting the key-fob and hustling inside. He took out his badge, displaying it, then went for his department-issued gun.

Harry blew out a noisy breath, placing his key in the ignition. “Ido. Ido from Queens. Look, I have to go.” Harry chuckled nervously. Whipping his head around to check for oncoming traffic, he turned forward then started the car and was about to reverse when a figure loomed near.

His hand covered his weapon he’d laid on his legs. Whoever was back there would have a fight on their hands. His growing family needed him more than ever.

“Look into that name,” Harry requested, ending the call.

The shadow approached, but Frank’s familiar face was illuminated by the streetlight.

Harry placed the gun in his holster then swung his door open. “What the hell are you doing lurking about? You almost gave me a damn heart attack.”

“Oh, shit. Sorry. You booked it out of there pretty fast.” Frank’s chest heaved from exertion. “That toxicology report finally came back.”

Harry left the car. “And?”

“Fentanyl was found in the chef’s system.”

With one hand on the door handle, Noah rested his head on the door.

He walked back into an empty bedroom.

S
he gave a final wave to Sofie and watched as the chauffeured car drove away.

I still can’t believe Jayson left me, knowing he was my ride home.
He didn’t owe her anything, because it wasn’t like they were in a relationship, but he still could have been a gentleman and told her he wasn’t staying.

Oh, well.
Another reason she was glad she decided they would only be friends. Avi walked up the front steps and through the security door. Once inside, she considered bypassing the metal mailboxes in the lobby, but decided against it. Dropping her bag near the steps that led to the hallway, she walked over. Her keys jingled with each step she took.

When she grabbed the few letters from the box, something fluttered to the floor. Avi picked up a white card with numbers scrawled across it in a handwriting that rivaled her students’ amateur penmanship. Her fingers ran over the thick embossing. Her heart hammered away when she spied the New York Police department logo.

Her brief interactions with law enforcement agencies were behind her. She was trying to move on. What the hell was this about? Hadn’t her weekend been crappy enough? The two lines of text printed on the cardstock brought beads of perspiration along her upper lip.

“Harry Manning.”

Avi replayed the tongue-twister names of the men and women who had inserted themselves into her life three years ago.

Manning? Manning?

The name didn’t ring a bell.

The names of all the cops and FBI agents who had made Avi feel like a common criminal were forever etched in her brain, but this Harry Manning was nowhere in her memory bank.

A shiver ran down her spine.

Her skin prickled.

Did any of her neighbors see this Harry Manning leave his card? She was a law-abiding citizen and made sure all her T’s were crossed and I’s dotted. She was meticulous about remaining on the straight and narrow.

So why would a New York City detective be looking for me?

Two weeks had passed, and she still had no answers.

Avi had no answers, because she was too much of a coward to call the number.

The card sat on her dining table, mocking her along with the most recent letters she needed to return to their sender. She blew out a breath and moved away from the kitchen window. She prayed the business card had nothing to do with Ellie. The card glared at her. She had been ambushed once and promised herself she would never be caught unawares again.

Sitting down, she grabbed her cell from the table and dialed the unfamiliar number. She sent up a silent prayer. She didn’t need any bad news.

“Speak to me,” the voice answered in a rush.

“Hello?” Avi said. “This is Avianna Linton. A business card was left—”

“A-Avi...”

Avi raised a skeptical brow. His use of her nickname stiffened her back and solidified her distrust. “This is Avianna Linton. I don’t know who you are, but—”

His deep chuckles halted her tongue-lashing. She drummed her fingers on the table.

“Avi. I mean Avianna.” Harry laughed again. “You sound so much like her,” he said wistfully.

“I don’t know you or whoever this
her
is.” Avi shook her head, reminding herself to be courteous. “I’m calling to speak with Detective Manning.”

She heard rustling and movement on the other end of the line, but the man said nothing more.

“Hello? Can you connect me to the detective?” She swallowed down the ‘please’ tickling her throat.

“This is he.” His voice quivered and his words came out garbled.

“Huh? Listen, I don’t—”

Harry cleared his throat. “I mean I’m Detective Manning, Avi. I mean Avianna.”

Avi rolled her eyes, silently asking the Man above for patience. She’d already had a tiresome day at work.

“Oh, okay then. Well?” Avi prompted, crossing all her fingers, toes, and eyes hoping his little gift had nothing to do with her mother.