Nowhere To Run (To Protect And Serve) (13 page)

Mariah started to say something then changed her mind. She stood and kissed Jordan’s cheek.

“Take care of yourself.”

Jordan
jerked her head in answer then reached for the cold coffee fighting back tears as Mariah left the diner. She had to be strong for Jeremy.

She took a sip of the cold coffee then sat the cup back on the table and reached for the ticket. Before she could make a move, s
omeone slipped into the booth across from her and grabbed her wrist.

“Don’t say a word.” Her start
led eyes collided with familiar blue ones. Riley.

“What are you doing here?” Jordan tried to free her
self, but his fingers tightened around her wrist holding her in place.

“I could ask you the same thing
,” he countered. “Not exactly the place I’d expect to find Caesar Santiago’s fiancé hanging out. Nor the company for that matter.” His answer told her he’d been waiting for Mariah to leave. It wouldn’t take long before he knew all about her. From there he’d fill in the remaining pieces of the puzzle easily enough.

“Leave her out of this. She’s not involved.”

“I’d say she’s involved in it over her head.” She tried once more to free herself without avail. He blew out a frustrated sigh. “Jordan, if you want to keep her out of this then you need to talk to me. Stop struggling. I’m not going to hurt you.”

“How did you find me
?” Stupid question considering he was a cop.

“I followed you.”

The two detectives assigned to investigate Jeremy’s death have less than a stellar reputation. Your ‘friend’, Donovan in particular.
Caesar’s accusations sprang into her thoughts unwelcome.

“
You’ve wasted your time, detective. I have nothing to say. I can’t help you.”

“Jordan, listen—“

“You want some coffee, hon?” A waitress sporting tomato-red tresses piled high on her head, stopped next to their booth with a half-empty coffee pot in one hand and the other fisted against his boney hip.

Riley
released Jordan’s arm, but the waitress stood between herself and freedom. His gaze locked on Jordan’s once more. He was warning her not to try anything.

“
Sure. That’d be great.” Riley waited while the waitress turned over the extra coffee cup and filled it.

“Touch yours up, hon?”

Jordan’s gaze slipped to the barely touched coffee in her cup.“ No. Thank you, its fine.”

With a bored shrug of her shoulders, t
he woman moved on to the next table and out of hearing range.

“What do you want?”
Jordan finally managed wearily. God, she was exhausted down to her soul.

“I want you to listen, that’s all.
Dammit, Jordan, I care about you. What happens to you. You don’t have to fight this battle alone any longer. I can help. Why are you shutting me out all the sudden?”

She wasn’t about to answer that question. She shook her head.

“I just need you to listen to what I have to tell you because it might just save your life.” The gentleness in his tone surprised her.

Nothing else he might have said could have managed to achieve what those few honest words had accomplished
.

She looked into
Riley’s blue eyes and wanted to cry. She believed him. Even if she couldn’t trust him, she believed he meant every single one of those words.

***

“Alright, I’m listening.” She looked as if she hadn’t slept in days, but at least he had her full attention.

“
What say we get out of here? This place is too noisy to talk. And you look as if you could use some fresh air. When was the last time you got any sleep?” Riley paid the bill, threw some money on the table for the tip then stood and waited for Jordan.

She hesitated
. He hadn’t realized until then that he’d been holding his breath. Waiting for her. Why did it feel as if everything was riding on her taking that next step?

Maybe b
ecause it did.

Her
eyes locked with his. She still didn’t trust him. Santiago had probably fed her a string of lies about cops. He could feel her searching for assurances. Whatever she saw in him must have been enough because she got to her feet and followed him outside.

“
Want to take a ride?” He stopped in front of his pickup and attempted a smile.

She didn’t look too confident in the old truck.
But then, she had no idea it had been in the family for as long as I can remember. He’d learned to drive in this truck.

He tried to reassure her. “Trust me, its not as bad as it looks.”

A frown creased her brow. “I’m not going to the station with you.” She insisted. “I have nothing to add that can help you solve Jeremy’s case. I don’t know anything.”

Riley held
open the passenger door. “Riley. It’s Riley.”

The scowl didn’t readily disappear. “Well –
Riley
– I still don’t know anything that can help you. I shouldn’t even be talking to you.”

“
Okay, I understand. I just want you to listen.”

“To what?
Look, detective--”

“
Riley. You never had a problem calling me Riley before. Please, just give me a few hours. That’s all I’m asking.” He reached for her hand. The touch of his fingers stroking against her skin wiped away the last of her resistance. “What have you got to lose?”

“
Oh, I don’t know – my life maybe.” He barely caught the words. She pulled her hand out of his and hopped into the truck.

So s
he’d begun having doubts. Riley shut the door then climbed into the driver’s seat.    

They drove in silence
until he’d maneuvered through the heavy midday traffic and began heading out of the city.

Her head whipped around to eye him suspiciously.
“Where are we going, detective?”

“Riley.”
he corrected.

“I beg your pardon?” She watched him with a look of uncertainty in her eyes
.

“
Come on – it’s not such a difficult name to pronounce.” He tossed another smile her way before forcing his attention back to the road ahead.

She didn’t look the least bit
pleased with him. “Where are you taking me,
Riley
?” 

“Stop worrying
so much. Otherwise, you’re going to get some hellacious frown lines on that pretty face of yours.” When she actually glared at him, he added, “We’re going somewhere quiet.”

Her attention
jerked back to the passing scenery outside her window, but he could feel her tension. It was almost palpable. She didn’t trust him. He couldn’t blame her.

Some distance outside of the city, he pulled off the main highway onto a small
farm-to-market road leading to upstate New York’s cattle country.

Jordan glanced at her watch then subconsciously twisted her fingers together. The f
arther from the city they drove the more anxious she became.

“There’s a small town
a little ways up the road. It’s one of those quaint little tourist traps. You know the kind that sells crafts and such on weekends. But it should be fairly deserted today.”

She didn’t answer. She just kept
clenching her hands together in her lap.

“Are you hungry
?” His question seemed to take her by surprise. “You look as if you haven’t eaten in days.”

“I don’t know. I
guess I haven’t. Not since…” She didn’t finish. She seemed to have trouble focusing on anything. Lack of sleep not to mention food had a way of doing that to a person.

“Look, I
really have to get back to…I have…work – patients that need me. I didn’t tell anyone I would be gone this long. They’ll be expecting me back by now. ”

She was lying. Her body language was giving away plenty.
The only person she was worried about missing her was Santiago.

“I’ll have you back
at the hospital door in a few hours, I promise.” Riley didn’t wait for her to argue. He got out of the truck and opened the door for her.

Jordan’s gaze shifted to his. Resentment mingled with exhaustion
darkened the hazel to green. She blew out a breath scattering long, silky bangs from her face. Then got out of the truck.

The Cattle Guard
was one of those greasy spoon restaurants you read about in the ‘
places not to eat section’
of the Times.

Riley still
remembered the first time he’d eaten here. It was the first time his old man told him about his plans to retire here someday. His father loved the place.

“Well
, hi there, Riley Donovan.” Maya McGregor the owner of
The Cattle Guard’s
smile faltered only a smidgen when she spotted Jordan standing next to Riley. She’d been after him for almost as long as she’d owned the Guard. “I got this one, Midge.” Maya grabbed the coffee pot from its holder with enough force to send it sloshing over the edge. Clearly annoyed by the new developments.

She marched over to the booth Riley
had just slid into after Jordan, shooting him daggers with every step.

“Usual?”
Maya turned two coffee cups over, sending them clattering against their saucers.

“Um yeah. That’d be good.” He glanced at Jordan. She watched his exchange with
Maya with a spark of interest. “Make that two, Maya.”

The platinum blonde huffed off barely tossing a staccato
‘harrumph’ over her shoulder.

“Friend of yours?” Jordan
’s tone sounded strained. He glanced her way, studied her expression, and saw she was fighting hard to control laughter.

“I’ve known
Maya for years.”

“
Yeah? And how many of those has she had a crush on you?”

He thought about denying it, but figured at least she was talking to him
again. It was a start. “All of them.” As he watched, Jordan Scott burst into laughter. He liked the way her face lit up when she laughed.

“
How’d you find this place anyway?”

He wasn’t sure if she meant the town or the restaurant. “My father used to
bring me fishing up here. Then later on, he bought a place. Thought this was where he wanted to retire some day, but changed his mind.”

Her hazel
-green eyes grew serious as she watched him talk about his father. For just a little while, some of her worries seemed to melt away.

“W
hy’d he change his mind?” They were skirting around the darker issues for the moment, but Riley sensed he needed to tread carefully.

“Got tired of the long winters, he says. Once he
left the force he moved to the Keys.”

“
Your father’s a cop? Sort of a family tradition?”

He nodded. More like a calling than a
tradition, but he didn’t tell her that.

“
What about the place here?” He could tell she was only a little interested. Mostly she just needed a distraction.

“I bought it from him a few years back.
I plan on retiring here myself some day.”

“You’re not going to get tired of the long winters?”

“Me?” He considered the question while studying her face. It was nice. Not the knock-out-gorgeous type, but nice. The kind you wanted to protect. “I love the winters here. But mostly I love the solitude.”

“I see.” Her
gaze held his. A man could get lost in those eyes of hers. He felt her pulling him in, losing his equilibrium. It would be easy to lose much more if he let himself.

“
We can play at this all day long, but I think you know why I brought you here.” She slicked her tongue out to wet her lips. A nervous reaction for her. A dangerous distraction for him. It brought his attention to her lips. She had the pouty kind made for kissing. Riley untangled his gaze from her mouth with difficulty, focusing instead on her eyes. Sexy as hell, but at least safer than the mouth.

“He’s dangerous.
And he’s lying to you. He killed your brother, I have no doubt about that.”

He watched her shut down before his eyes.
It was like watching a different person emerge. “Then why haven’t you arrested him.”

“Because he’s
also good. He covers his tracks well. Kills off anyone who might rat him out. Just like he did Jeremy. Just like he’ll do to you when he figures out you know the truth.”

She broke eye contact first. “I don’t know what you mean.
I don’t know anything.”

He waited until Maya dropped two plates of pancakes and sausage in front of them, refilled their coffee and grumbled away before answering. “You do.
You may not realize it yet, but you do know something.”