Nowhere to Hide (26 page)

“
I show you logged on, Detective.”

“
Well, I’m sitting here in CID staring at a screen that clearly says I’m not. Can you check again?”

“
CID? No, you’re downstairs in workroom three at terminal TC-2374. You need to log out of that one before you can access from another unit.”

He bit off his reply. “Thanks.” He slammed down the receiver and took the stairs two at a time. In the workroom, four uniforms sat at terminals. Others were plugged into docking stations, working from their laptops.

“
Harrigan. Come slumming, have you? How’s CID?”

Graham followed the voice to a uniform he’d worked with on Patrol. “Not bad, Fisher. Thought I’d do a little detecting down here.” He wandered down the row of tables, checking terminal ID numbers until he found the one he was looking for. The screen was dark, but the computer hummed. He pressed a key and the Sheriff’s Office logo popped up. Along with his name.

“
You know who was using this machine?” he asked.

Fisher shook his head. “People have been in and out.”

“
Uniforms? Detectives? Anyone unusual?”

“
Shit, Harrigan, you’re the detective. I’m trying to get my work done. Yeah, maybe some plainclothes stopped in. I wasn’t paying attention.”

“
Thanks.” He logged off the machine. And gritted his teeth as he walked back to Schaeffer’s office to grovel for some more time.

With raised eyebrows, Schaeffer tapped his watch when Graham walked in.

“
Sir, I have a hard copy, but it’s at home. There were some problems with my computer and I can’t guarantee my original is still there. With all due respect, I’m serious about the job and would never take it lightly. I think my work to date has shown that.”

Schaeffer’s face relaxed a little. “It seemed out of character. I’ll take your written report tomorrow. For now give it to me verbally.”

Graham took a deep breath and started talking.

By Friday, Graham had talked with IT, changed his password, and made sure he printed hard copies and hand delivered all his reports to Schaeffer. He pushed aside his anger, the same way he had with the fallout from Proctor. If the detectives wanted to see him squirm, he wouldn’t give them the satisfaction. He reviewed what he had one more time.

Kimberly had finally agreed to file an official missing persons report, which lent credibility to his investigation and gave him a little more leeway.

The Gainesville detectives were busy, the St. Johns ME was backlogged, and so far, the best he had was that almost all the prints in Doris’ house had been identified as either hers or those of her friends. The unknowns were still unknown, which meant whoever they belonged to didn’t have a record. Colleen’s apartment had hers, Doris’, and a few unknowns as well.

Townsend’s truck was almost at the top of the list, according to the lab. He knew cases didn’t get wrapped up in an hour like on television, but he didn’t realize how many steps there were, and how each one added another delay. No word from the Fire Marshal.

Judges wanted physical evidence. No crime, no foul, no warrant. If he ever heard the words “probable cause” again, he’d probably deck whoever uttered them.

He gave one final check of e-mails and faxes before end of shift. His pulse picked up when he saw a message from the ME in St. Johns, but all it contained was the tox screen results on Townsend. Negative. He shut down, packed up, and called it a week. He drove home, spirits lifting as he anticipated seeing Colleen.

She’d suggested an early movie at Universal’s City Walk. He’d brought up dinner afterward. She’d been noncommittal. No matter. He’d revisit that one after the movie.

After showering and shaving, he lined a metal tin with waxed paper, layered two dozen chocolate and butterscotch chip cookies he’d baked the night before between yet more paper and sealed the lid. Flowers? He glanced at his watch. No time. The cookies would have to do. He dashed back to the bathroom, swished some mouthwash and tried to keep from laughing. He hadn’t been this nervous since his junior prom, when he thought Melinda Sue might let him get past second base. She hadn’t. What did that bode for tonight?

Stop. It’s a movie. You’re not going to make any moves on Colleen. So what if you’ll be sitting in the dark next to someone who keeps you hard as a rock. Deal with it.

Graham stood on the tiles of Colleen’s entry and rang the bell, drumming his fingers on the cookie tin as he waited for her to open the door. His heart skipped when he heard the deadbolt being released, and he couldn’t keep the idiot grin off his face. When she pulled the door open, he handed her the cookies and stood there, taking her in. She wore soft brown slacks and a deep green blouse. The swell of her breasts where she’d left the top two buttons undone trapped him. Forcing his eyes away, he noticed her bare feet.

“
Hi,” she said. “What’s this?”

“
What?” God, he couldn’t remember ever being tongue tied like this. “Cookies. How have you been?”

“
Busy.” She started to carry the tin to the kitchen. “Why don’t you sit for a minute?” She tilted her head toward the couch, and he crossed the room.

He absorbed the strain etched into her face, the dark circles under her eyes, the way her freckles stood out against too-pale skin, and a hollowness in her cheeks as if she’d dropped several pounds. He bit back the urge to ask what was wrong. Never tell a woman she doesn’t look good, no matter what. That much held for the entire gender, he knew.

“
What exactly have you been doing?” He watched her pry open the tin and sniff the cookies.

“
Mmm. Thanks. Dessert.” She closed the tin again and set it on the table. “It’s a medical convention. Basically, I type in data from their registration forms and print name badges. Biggest challenge is deciphering their writing.” She stifled a yawn and sat down on the far end of the couch.

“
You decide on the movie?” he asked.

“
I meant to ask you about that.” She played with her fingers but didn’t drop her gaze. “Would you mind terribly if we skipped it? Nothing excited me and I thought maybe …”

He waited, but she didn’t go on. “We don’t have to see a movie.” Was she going to cancel? “You want to get some dinner, make it an early evening?”

“
I’m not very hungry.”

“
Then tell me what you want, Colleen. I’ll do whatever you say.”

“
Kiss me.”

His heart leaped and he almost asked her to repeat it, but when he met her eyes, he knew he’d heard her properly, and it had taken every bit of her courage to ask. He slid across the couch and framed her face with his hands. Her pulse throbbed at her temples. He brushed his lips across her eyelids, one at a time, and then kissed each cheek. She smelled fresh, like citrus. When his mouth moved down to cover hers, he tasted peppermint. Her head tilted up, and she pressed her lips against his, digging with her tongue. Hot, probing, searching for something.

Her hands reached behind his neck, grabbed his hair, and pulled his mouth against hers with a fierce passion that left him gasping. Did she know what she was doing? What was he supposed to do? Panting, he broke away.

Her eyes glistened. “I can’t eat, I can’t sleep. You’ve taken over my life and I want you. Need you.” She was trembling.

“
God, Colleen. I want this. I want you too. But I have to know you mean it. That it’s going to be right.”

“
I’ve thought of nothing else all week.”

He pulled her across his lap and stroked her back. “I’m honored.” Damn it, he vowed to find the control to make it good for her. “Let’s take it slow, though, okay? There’s no hurry.”

She wiped her fingers under her eyes. “There’s wine in the fridge. And some cheese. I forgot. I had this all planned, and then you were standing at the door, and my brain froze.”

“
You stay here. I’ll get the wine.”

She jumped up. “That’s all right. I’ve got some crackers to go with the cheese. And some dip.”

He followed her to the kitchen and took a seat at the table. She opened a bottle of white wine, poured two glasses and set them in front of him. This was followed by a platter of three varieties of cheese with a bowl of some kind of dip in the center and a small plate of baby carrots, celery, and red bell pepper slices. She opened a box of water crackers and poured them onto a large plate, then reached for a box of Triscuits.

“
Take it easy,” he said. “I’m sure one box of crackers is enough for the two of us.”

“
Are you sure? I didn’t know what you liked and there were so many different kinds—”

“
This is plenty.” He lifted his glass.

Colleen touched her glass to his. “What are we toasting?”

“
I’m sure I’ve generations of Irish ancestors turning over in their graves, but I’m speechless.”

She took a sip of her wine and reached for a cracker. That citrus scent floated up again.

“
You smell delicious,” he said. “What perfume are you wearing?”

She furrowed her brows, puzzled. “Oh. I guess it’s my after bath stuff. Jean Naté. I don’t use regular perfume.”

He dunked a bit of pepper into the dip. “Dill. It’s good.”

“
Damn!” She jumped down from her perch and yanked open a drawer in the kitchen. “I forgot to light the candles.” She grabbed a box of matches and headed toward the living room.

With an ache in his chest, he set his wine glass down and intercepted her. “Relax. I’ll get the food, you bring the wine and let’s sit for a while. I’ll bore you with my week, and we’ll play the rest by ear.”

When they’d transferred everything to the coffee table and she’d lit three pillar candles, he insisted she have some cheese and crackers with her wine. A cinnamon scent filled the air.

“
You don’t look like you’ve been eating,” he said, “and I don’t want you drunk.”

“
I seem to find my appetite when you’re around.” She took another cracker, piled more cheese on it and ate. “Okay, so bore me with your week. Can’t be any duller than babysitting a bunch of gastric surgeons, not to mention the average age of my coworkers is about seventy-five.”

He finished a piece of cheese before he spoke. “No hits on the prints from Doris’ house, or here. Yours, hers, and a couple of unknowns.” He grinned. “And mine, but I eliminated myself as a suspect.”

“
Maybe the Roadrunner cable guy. He was here before the break-in. I still haven’t talked to Doris, and I’ve been working long hours, but nothing seems to be going on. Anything else?”

“
No warrants without probable cause and there’s no crime on this end yet. Gainesville promised to fax me copies of everything, the ME can’t tell me much more than the tox screen was negative, so Townsend was clean when he died.”

“
What about the fire? Was it arson?”

“
Still waiting on that, too.”

“
Anything from the truck?”

He shook his head, pleased that talking about his work seemed to calm her. He decided to leave out the part about the sabotage of his report. “Not yet. Lab’s backed up. Maybe I’ll have something Monday.” He sipped his wine. “Nice. Sauvignon Blanc?”

“
You like it? It’s nothing like what we had at the Thai place. I wasn’t sure you’d like a white.”

“
This is perfect, Colleen.” He set his glass down and took hers. After placing it next to his, he kissed her fingertips. She closed her eyes and she exhaled so deeply he wondered how long it had been since her last breath.

“
Come here.” He pulled her against him. “Relax. You don’t have to do this. Not if you don’t want to.”

She left her head buried in his shirt. “I want to. But I’m a little scared.”

“
If you’re scared, Colleen, maybe you’re not ready.”

“
No, it’s not that. I’m scared I’ll do … something wrong. Something stupid. You’re so … experienced, and I’ll end up making a fool of myself. But I want to. With you. Really.”

“
Look me in the eye and say that.”

She met his gaze, and hers didn’t falter. “I want to. With you. Tonight.”

He took a steadying breath. “Well, I know what to do, so as long as one of us does, we should be fine.”

She arched her head back, and he kissed her jaw line, moved down along her neck. He reached up and released her hair, letting it stream over his fingers.

She sighed and reached for his head again. “Kiss me.”

He nibbled her lower lip, pressed his mouth over hers, and she devoured him. He fought for control, determined to back off at the first sign she didn’t want this. That she was afraid her inexperience would somehow ruin things. At the moment, he couldn’t imagine how.

Her tongue danced over every part of his mouth, entwined with his. Whatever her inexperience, it didn’t include kissing. Her fingers in his hair sent shivers down his back. With one hand, he pulled her head to his and, with the other, he sought the curve of her breasts. He ran his fingertips over their firm softness, enjoying the way she wriggled against his touch. One by one, he opened the buttons on her blouse, sliding the garment over her shoulders. Tucking his fingers beneath the lace cups of her bra, he rubbed her already taut nipples to even firmer peaks, never stopping his kisses.

Her hands tugged at his shirt, pulling it out of the waistband of his slacks. He groaned as her fingers brushed his painfully hard cock. He searched for the clasp that released her bra, at last freeing those wonderful breasts. His fingertips slid down her arms as he slipped her blouse off, then the bra. She shuddered. He shifted her so she was lying down, then knelt beside the couch. Her eyes opened, held questions.

“
Relax,” he whispered. “Are you all right with this?”

“
Yes. Yes. Don’t stop.”