Old Flames Never Die (Valentine Mystery) (6 page)

“No. Daniel may not like you, but any
cop would be thinking the same things he's thinking. In fact, this morning Daniel
was the only one giving you the benefit of the doubt.”

Jack shook his head. “I don't see it.”

Tess held up her index finger. “One, a
woman you had an affair with happens to have called you while you were both in
the same city within weeks of her husband's murder…”

“I didn't get the call and you were with
me.”

“Two, she calls you the minute you get
back in town and wants dinner a day and half after her husband is murdered.”

“You came to dinner with me.”

“Three, she indicates that you were the
last person she'd had an affair with.”

“I doubt that's true.”

“Four, she calls you while her home is
being searched and you show up within minutes. Really, Jack, what would you
think?”

“I'm more worried about what you think.”

“I think she's setting you up.”

“She has no reason to do that. We may
not have been in love, but our relationship was more than just sex. We cared
about each other. She's not a callus person.”

Tess took a deep breath and tried to
resist grabbing and shaking him. “If she killed him, she'd need to make sure
there was someone else to blame.”

“So blame his partners, his son or the
butler. It makes no sense to put it on me.”

“Except that a couple of months ago you
were the main suspect in another murder. A highly publicized murder. It
wouldn't be hard to have people wondering about that.”

She could see he was at least
considering what she was saying and took the chance to present her deal with
Daniel in a positive light. “My working with Daniel will help keep him on the
right track, which is off you.”

“I learned from Asa's murder that people
can construe things to look bad. But I'm telling you, Tess, it's not in Liv to
kill her husband or implicate me. You met her. I know you didn't like her
story, but she's not a bad person.”

Tess had to admit that Liv didn't behave
like a femme fatale. Even so, at that first meeting, the red flags were waving
before the meal was served. That meant Liv was a good actress or Tess'
instincts were bad. Since she hadn't been working for awhile, Tess had to
consider that maybe her liar-radar was off. Regardless of what she thought
though, Daniel and the police didn't like Liv's story either, and so she needed
to do what she could to protect Jack.

“If you need to work with Daniel to
settle your mind, then do it. I'm not the type of man to ask you to compromise
yourself.”

Tess knew his comment was geared towards
Daniel, who had on more than one occasion forced her to choose between him and
her values.

“I'm confident she'll prove you wrong,”
Jack continued. “And I trust that even with your bias now, you'll be fair
during your investigation. But because I believe she's innocent, I will do what
I can to help her.”

Tess didn't like the sound of that. It
was the sound of something in her heart starting to crack. Like he was choosing
Liv over her. But not wanting to look jealous, she nodded. “Okay.”

“And when it's done,” he said pulling
her back into his arms. “We will still be together.”

“What if she is guilty?”

“Then she'll go to jail.”

“But you'd resent me for that. She is
clearly more than just an old fling.”

“You're right. I did care for her. But I
didn't love her so much that it nearly brings me to my knees. Not like you.”
She must have looked pathetic because he gave her quick shake. “People in love
can disagree and still be in love. We're doing it right now. And no matter what
happens, that won't change.” Tess hoped he was right.

~~~~

That night in bed, Tess lay spooned
against Jack's warm body. Although they'd called a truce, she still felt shaky
about it, and it prevented her from sleeping. Jack didn't have the same
problem. He slept soundly next to her. She considered getting up when the phone
rang. Jack didn't stir so she reached over him for the phone.

“Jack,” she said trying to wake him.

“Mmm, I love sleepy sex.”

“No. It’s the phone.”

His eyes stayed closed, but his hand
reached over and fumbled for the phone. Relieved, Tess rolled back to her side
of the bed.

“Here,” Jack said handing her the
receiver.

“What? It's your phone.”

“You're the one who wanted to answer it.”

Tess grabbed the phone. “Hello?”

“Hello? Is this Jack Valentine's number?”
A woman asked.

Jack rolled, pulling Tess under him as
he nipped at her neck.

“Yes, who's calling?” Tess asked trying
to push him away in annoyance, even though each nip sent shivers straight to
her belly.

“Who is this?” the woman asked.

Awareness sprang to life. “It's for you,”
Tess said to Jack. “It's Liv.”

His head popped up, looking down on her
questioningly. “What does she want?”

“I don't know. Why don't you ask her?”

He took the phone and when Tess tried to
move away from him, he thrust his knees between her legs. “I'm not done yet,”
he whispered to her before putting the phone by his ear. “Hello?”

Jack was close enough to Tess that she
could hear Liv's side of the conversation.

“Jack? Is that you?”

“Yes.”

“Did I wake you? Are you in the middle
of something?”

“Yes and yes.” He leaned down and caught
Tess' lip with his teeth.

“I don't think I'm safe here.”

“Where?” he asked. Tess decided to join
in the game. Her hands slid down, grabbing his butt and squeezing.

“At my house. The police completely tore
apart my home. I feel so violated.”

“They're just doing their job, Liv.”

At the mention of Liv's name, Tess' hand
slipped between them, cupped him and gave a hard squeeze.

“Oh Christ, careful there.”

“Jack? Who's there with you?” Liv's
voice came over the phone.

“Tess.”

“Oh. I see. I hate to interrupt your
evening, but something isn't right here. I was hoping you could come over and
stay with me.”

“I can't do that, Liv.”

Another hard squeeze. He growled.

“Please. I've never been alone and after
what's happened, I just don't feel safe.”

“Why don't you go to a hotel?”

There was a long silence on the end. “Can
you drive me?”

“You want me to drive you to a hotel?”
Squeeze. Moan. 

“Please. It would mean a lot to me.”

“I'll call you back.” Jack poked the off
button , tossed it aside, and then pinned Tess to the bed. “I can play dirty
too.” Making good on his threat, he used his knees to push her thighs apart.

“Did you hang up on her? Isn't that rude?”

“Shut up, Tess.” His mouth captured her
lips and his body pushed inside hers. She might have thought how strange the
situation was; foreplay while Jack's former lover was on the phone, his hanging
up to make love, and no doubt calling her back after. A part of her wanted to
stop him because it
was
weird. But when he started moving, all thought
was gone, replaced by sensation; piercing pleasure, an exquisite torture
building and building until she thought she'd come apart. Only when the
pleasure finally sent her soaring, did she feel him let go and join her.

“I can't believe you did that,” Tess
said as she caught her breath.

He grinned. “You were the one grabbing
me. You know if you ever hope to have children, you should be more careful with
the equipment.”

Most women would be thrilled to have
Jack Valentine discussing children with them. But Tess could only feel terror,
especially now with the issue of Liv hanging over them.

“I don't mean that. I mean hanging up on
her to make love.”

“I was distracted. Isn't that what you
wanted?”

“Are you going to call her back?”

“Yes.” But he didn't reach for the phone
right away. She saw him study her face, no doubt trying to determine her
reaction. She tried to keep her expression impassive.

“Are you going to take her to a hotel?”

He waited a beat, but then said, “Yes.”

Her ability to keep her emotions in
check failed. “Even though you'll be walking into whatever plot she has
concocted.”

He sighed. “There's no plot, Tess. It
might still look bad, but that's only because you and deputy Dan want it to be.”

He could be right. But even if Liv
wasn't scheming, she was pulling Jack into something that could hurt him, his business,
and maybe his relationship.

“I wouldn't go if I didn't believe she
was really nervous.”

Tess rolled her eyes.

“Wouldn't you be if someone had broken
into your home and murdered your husband?”

“Yes. But I would have been nervous two
days ago when it happened. Not after I'd conveniently implicated my former
lover in a murder investigation.”

His eyes darkened and just like that
they were on opposite sides even though he was still seeped inside her.

“Come with me,” he said. “If you come
with me, then there won't be any hint of impropriety.”

“It’s the middle of the night. And she’s
ten minutes from a hotel. It will take us 20 minutes just to get to her home.”

“If it were reversed, Daniel would be
here in a minute. Or you'd be with him in a minute. And despite my feelings
about him, I would support it because I know how you feel about him.”

“It's not the same,” she said. “I never
slept with Daniel and he's not implicated in a murder.”

Jack studied her for a moment, and she
realized that she'd just answered a question he'd had about her and Daniel, but
never asked. He gave his head a quick shake, and focused on the fight at hand. “Why
do you do this, Tess? Why do you have to make everything hard? She's scared,
we'll take her to a hotel and be home within the hour.”

“Hard? If life is so hard with me—”

He cut her off by rolling away from her.
He scrubbed his hands over his face, looking tired and unhappy. Maybe she was
being too hard. She could go with him. It would protect him, which is what she
wanted.

“Fine, I'll go with you,” she said.

“Maybe you should stay.” He stood,
grabbing his phone and his clothes. “It will only cause more angst.” His
detached, cool voice felt like a slap in the face. But she didn't want him to
see her hurt, so she gave him a curt nod. He left her to shower and dress. As
she waited for him to finish, she searched her mind for something to say. She
hated fighting with him and wanted to reach out to him. But all she could think
about was his cold demeanor as he prepared to visit a former lover in the
middle of the night.

“She's being watched,” Tess said as he
reached the bedroom door.

He didn't turn to her. “I'm not doing
anything wrong. I'm tired of people thinking that I am.”

Jack downshifted even as he pushed the
accelerator through the turn. There was a time when driving fast, even recklessly,
was the only thing that got his blood pumping. Tess had changed that. She'd
brought life back to him when he thought he was dead inside forever. He took
another turn, and heard the squeal of the wheels as they worked to hold the
road. Now the speed and power wasn't about breaking the deadening numbness. It
was about aggression and anger.

Why couldn't Tess trust that he knew
what he was doing? Why did he feel like he had to bring her along to chaperone
just so she could see that Liv was only a friend? The more he thought about it,
the more resentment built. He shouldn't have to prove his love to Tess. It's
practically all he'd been doing since they'd reunited. And for what? He knew
she planned to move back to her own house when it was finished because she
couldn't bring herself to trust his love. If she didn't believe in him by now,
she probably never would.

And because of that, she was going to
help Daniel. Jack snorted at the thought of Daniel.
He must be beside
himself with glee that Tess has asked to work with him
. Jack's muscles
bunched at the thought of the two of them working together. He wanted to be
thrilled that Tess had never slept with Daniel, but he knew it didn't matter
how intimate they'd been. Daniel loved her regardless and would always try to
undermine their relationship.

And now Jack was adding fodder to the
fire. He knew someone was probably watching Liv's every move. Not only was he
about to give Daniel more ammunition, if he was seen at the hotel with Liv,
he'd give the whole community something to talk about. He should turn around,
get Tess and bring her with him. Assuming she was still at his house. He banged
his hand on the steering wheel. It would be like her to move out or at least to
the guest room when he got back. Was his friendship with Liv really worth that?
Tess may be unreasonable, but he was certain he couldn't live without her. He
pressed on the brake, slowing the car to turn around.