Miss Frost Ices The Imp: A Nocturne Falls Mystery (Jayne Frost Book 2) (25 page)

Greyson’s brows arched. “Yes, I suppose so. I was thinking more along the lines of she might ask the imp to destroy Roger’s new marriage and business. Or worse.”

“You think she would have wished for the imp to kill Roger?”

He shrugged. “She might have. Then she could have asked the imp to make his body disappear. It would be the perfect crime.”

“Holy snowballs.”

Greyson sat on the loveseat. “Pretty much.”

I took the chair behind my desk. “But we can’t prove any of this. And you can’t exactly show the sheriff your pictures without explaining how you got them.”

Greyson tipped his head. “Therein lies the dilemma.”

I sat back. “We’re going to have to handle this ourselves. If we can get her to confess, and we can record it, then that should be worth something.”

“And how do you suppose you’re going to get her to confess?”

I sighed. “I have no idea. But I’ll come up with something.”

“Better come up with it fast. Judging by the interior of her house, she’s not going to be here much longer.”

“One more day.” I shrugged. “Birdie told me.”

Then I squinted as a new thought popped into my head. “I wonder if there’s a way to keep her in town a little longer…”

I showed up at Cooper’s that evening after work in my tiniest sundress, strappy sandals, a push-up bra and full makeup and hair. I was also carrying two takeout orders of peach cobbler from Howler’s and the DVD of Die Hard, which had been Coop’s favorite movie in college. Basically, I’d turned myself into a package he couldn’t resist.

Not that I thought there would be any resistance. He already knew I was coming over. He’d offered to make me dinner, and I’d said yes. Because for one, I felt like I needed some time with him after seeing Greyson unexpectedly, and for two, I was seriously hoping he might be able to help me with my problem.

There was also the whole Lark thing, but frankly, I’d be fine pushing that to the back burner and leaving it there. We’d also decided not to discuss the imp’s latest rampage through town, which had included three side streets covered in yellow slime, a dog at one of the parks suddenly becoming the size of an elephant, and loud popping sounds that seemed to serve no other purpose than to scare people.

Cooper opened the door almost as soon as I started knocking.

I grinned up at him. “Hey, sailor.”

I was rewarded with the right kind of look in his eyes. Desire. But then his gaze narrowed, and he shook his head. “I know I’m going to regret asking this, but what ulterior motive lies behind all”—he waved a finger at me—“this?”

I clutched my nonexistent pearls. “I’m wounded. And I just wanted to look nice for you.”

“I appreciate that.” He moved out of the way to let me in. “Especially since the last couple of times I’ve seen you, you were dressed to clean toilets.”

“I was not.”

“I meant
if
you cleaned toilets.” He winked at me. “Hi.” Then he kissed me. “I do appreciate the effort, whatever the reason. You look gorgeous. But then you always look gorgeous. Even when you’re a bum.”

I kissed him back. I couldn’t argue, because he was right that I hadn’t put in much effort before. “Thanks.”

“Is that cobbler I smell?”

“Yep.” I lifted the bag. “I said I’d bring dessert. What’s for dinner?”

He answered as we walked into the kitchen. “Salmon with dill sauce, asparagus and roasted fingerling potatoes.”

“Wow, fancy.” The house smelled like dill and garlic and something else I couldn’t name, but if the food tasted like the aromas floating in the air, it was going to be a fantastic meal. “I’m impressed.”

He shrugged. “Firemen like to eat.”

“Yeah, but you’re doing more than that.”

He seemed pleased with my praise. “Hey, I can cook.”

I set the bag on the counter. “I can’t. Not much beyond the basics anyway.”

“That’s because you had people to do it for you.” He shot me a teasing glance, but it was a true statement that I once again had no argument for. “Wine?” he asked.

“Sure. If it’s okay with you, could we not talk about Lark tonight? I know that’s partially why I came over, but I’m just not in the mood.”

“Fine by me.” He poured us both a glass, then handed one to me and lifted his in a toast. “Thanks for coming over.”

“Thanks for cooking. And cleaning up. You know, since I’m not dressed for it.” I pursed my mouth to punctuate that statement before clinking my glass to his.

He laughed. “Touché.”

We drank, and I felt better about having to ask him for help. This was Cooper, after all. He’d want to help me.

But dinner came and went, and before I knew it, we were side by side on the couch, opening credits rolling, and my question still unasked. He slipped his arm around my shoulders, and I settled in against him. His muscles were surprisingly comfy, but I couldn’t stop thinking about the ticking clock of Francine’s departure. I just hadn’t found the exact right moment to bring up the subject.

He kissed my temple, then picked up the remote and hit pause. “You okay?”

I twisted to look at him. “Why do you ask?”

“You feel tense.”

I hesitated.

He didn’t. “What is it, Jay? What’s bothering you?”

I sighed before answering. “It’s the imp. More than that, really.” I explained about how Francine was leaving and I still hadn’t figured out everything I needed to. How I felt like she was about to get away with something. I kept the part about my and Greyson’s
visits
to her house to myself. I knew there was only so much Cooper would let slide. I stuck to my original idea, before Greyson had discovered the shipping crate. “I’ll catch the imp eventually, but whoever it was meant for could still be in danger. I feel like if I just had a little more time—”

“Would another twenty-four hours do it?”

I narrowed my eyes. “Sure, but how am I going to manage that?”

He smiled. “You won’t. But I can.”

“How?”

“Both the sheriff’s office and the fire department have to sign off on the permits necessary for trucks that size to enter the town limits. I’ll just find an error on the permit tomorrow and delay the process.”

“You’d do that for me?”

“Absolutely. Would that help?”

“Tremendously. Thank you.” Logically, I knew twenty-four hours wasn’t that much longer, but at that moment, it felt like everything.

He leaned back a bit. “So is that what the outfit was for? To warm me up and put me in a helpful mood?”

Yes. But I wasn’t admitting to that. “Helpful? Is that the mood this put you in?” I glanced down at myself. “This dress must be broken.”

With a soft growl, he grabbed my hand and tugged me against him. I gave in. Happily. Cooper was a great kisser and we did a lot of that.

A lot.

Vertical kissing led to horizontal kissing, and things were really heating up when the movie suddenly came back on. We both jumped, and then I laughed as I reached under me and pulled the remote out from under my backside. “Pretty sure I did that.”

He took it from me and set it on the coffee table, then leaned over me, one hand on either side of me. I gazed up at him. He was so pretty it made my heart hurt. Fire danced in his eyes. “Might be time to call it a night, because I don’t think either one of us is ready to take the next step.”

I was sure he was ready, but it was nice of him to say otherwise for my benefit. “Okay.” Then I exhaled a long, slightly frustrated breath as he helped me up. “But the day’s going to come when I am ready to take that next step.” Soon, maybe.

His brows lifted. “Does that mean you’re about to make a decision?”

“No. Just…ready to do more than make out like teenagers.” The history that we had made it difficult not to think about doing more than just kissing. Because we’d already done more than kissing. And we knew how good it could be. I mean, if I was remembering our college escapades, he had to be thinking about them too.

He studied me. “You do that with me and I’m going to assume your choice has been made.”

I looked at him. “Are you saying if I sleep with you then I should sleep with Greyson, too?”

“Hell, no. But…maybe. No, wait, what am I saying?” He thought a second, then groaned. “I can’t believe we’re having this conversation. What are you doing to me, woman?”

I shrugged and got up, straightening my twisted dress. “If you don’t think I’m worth it—”

He pulled me onto his lap. “I’m still here, aren’t I?”

I smiled.

He kissed me once more. A soft, easy kiss that held none of the heat our earlier ones had. “Let’s get you home.”

He walked me back to the warehouse, which wasn’t far since he lived in one of the town houses near the fire station, then he said good night and I was in the elevator, headed to my apartment.

At the door, I put my ear to it and listened. I had no idea what an imp eating honey would sound like. But silence greeted me. My only option was to slip under the door soundlessly or risk spooking the creature.

I slid under, doing the same thing I had last time and landing in a seated position. I took my shoes off and sat quietly until the dizziness passed. I could see the box on the table. It looked empty from here. But the imp could be inside, already asleep.

I got up and tiptoed over.

The box was empty and the honey untouched. I tried not to let that ruin my spirits, but I’d been so sure the honey would work. Maybe it still would.

I put a can of cat food out for Spider before he could start yowling about it and went to bed.

When daylight woke me the next morning, I didn’t do a lot of moving. Instead, I lay there, staring at the ceiling. And not just because Spider was asleep on my hair. I had to figure out how to get Francine to confess. There had to be a way to trick her into it. Maybe Birdie could come up with something.

I had to talk to her about the list of names anyway. Might as well get her thoughts on coercing a confession out of someone.

I needed to tell Greyson that Cooper was going to buy us some more time with Francine, too, but I wanted to wait until I knew that was going to happen for sure.

Spider stirred, stretching and yawning right in my face.

“Nice breath.”

“Spider hungry.”

“Yep, I know the drill.” I disentangled him, then got up and padded out to the box. The routine was actually becoming routine, just like my disappointment at seeing the stupid thing empty every morning.

I yawned as I neared the box. There was an odd sound in the living room. Like something electronic had been left on and was humming with power. I glanced around, but there was really only the TV and the cable box, and they were both off.

I ignored it and looked into the box. That’s when the sound made perfect sense. It was snoring. From the imp now sleeping next to the empty bottle cap. It was about the size of a hummingbird and the same iridescent emerald green. Its wings were crystalline like a dragonfly and folded around its plump little body.

I froze in shock. For a few seconds I couldn’t even remember what to do next. Then my brain kicked into gear. I grabbed the lid and carefully eased it into place. My hands were shaking with excitement, and I was holding my breath, but three seconds later, I’d done it.

The lid was on.

And the imp was in the box.

Merry freaking Christmas, the honey had worked! I wanted to dance and shriek and make it snow, but first I had to secure that lid. I could not risk the box being opened again.

I grabbed a couple of hair ties from the bathroom and slid them around the box. They were pretty tight being stretched that far. There was no way that lid could accidentally come off now.

Spider strolled out, still looking very sleepy.

“Spider, I caught the imp. I caught it!” I picked him up and whirled him around, singing a happy little nonsense song I made up on the spot. “The imp is in the box, the imp is in the box, hi ho the dairy-o, the imp is in the box.”

He meowed. “No like, no like.”

“Okay, sorry.” I put him down and he wobbled toward his water dish.