The Negotiator (10 page)

“Somethin’ the matter?”

Her voice was a full octave lower than most of the men in his squad. He closed his gaping mouth and tried and failed to form words.

“Whatcha lookin’ at? I got work to do.”

“Um, I was just wondering… What happened to Cally?” The woman gave him a blank look. He tried again. “Cally Savage, the girl who was here on Friday?”

“Fridee? That’s not my day. I do Tuesdees and Thursdees. Dunno who works Fridees. Used to be Maureen Smith did Mondees, Wednesdees and Fridees, but her arthritis is playin’ up again. I dunno who they got workin’ for ’em now.”

He absorbed this information slowly, disappointment flooding through him.
Today was Tuesday.
He’d had the last two days off. He’d missed her yesterday. Now he had to wait another twenty-four hours to see her again.

It was a shitty end to what had turned out to be a wholly shitty day.

CHAPTER EIGHT

“Come
on
, Jack, we’re going to be late for school.”

Cally sighed in frustration and picked up her car keys and handbag while she waited for her son to finish brushing his teeth. She’d spent another long night tossing and turning and was tired and irritable. Her precarious financial position, coupled with her stress over the home invasion and her disquiet about the possible stalker meant that sleep continued to elude her.

The fact the car had sped off just as she’d drawn near appeared sinister. Then again, maybe it was merely a coincidence that when she’d finally built up the courage to approach him, the man had chosen that same moment to leave. She couldn’t quite explain away the speed of his departure, and the questions had chased themselves around in her mind for the best part of the night until, by morning, she no longer knew what to think.

She sighed again. The thought of having a roommate was more and more appealing. It would go a long way toward allaying her fears. Then there was the money issue. She could no longer deny she was in dire straits. A roommate would contribute to the cost of the utilities and the rent she could charge would go somewhere toward keeping her head above water.

“Mom, I’m ready.” Jack materialized in front of her. “
Mom
, I said I’m
ready
!”

Cally blinked her eyes rapidly and her thoughts scattered like dandelion seeds in the breeze. “Okay, okay. I’m coming. Go and get into the car.”

Hurrying into the bathroom to make a final check on her appearance, she smoothed down the short skirt of her floral summer dress and leaned in close to examine the dark circles under her eyes. She smudged on a little concealer, rinsed her hands and strode back toward the kitchen, sending a wistful look at her bed as she passed by.

She had at least six hours of teaching twenty-four third graders and then another couple of hours of cleaning before she’d be anywhere close to returning to its inviting comfort. Swallowing a sigh, she lifted her head and squared her shoulders. Pulling the door closed behind her, she made sure the deadlock caught before making her way across the back yard to her car.

* * *

Andy saved the document he had open on his screen and shut down his computer. He still had reports to complete, but right now he couldn’t concentrate on anything but the clock. It was nearly six-thirty. Night was closing in and apart from the officers on night shift, the station was almost deserted. The administration staff had left an hour ago and the phones had fallen mostly silent.

Redding was still in his office and every now and then, Andy caught the low murmur of his voice on the phone. Tom was also rostered on with him for the night and had stopped by Andy’s desk earlier to ask him how he was getting on. They both knew he wasn’t being entirely honest when he assured Tom he was fine.

Tom invited him over for dinner later in the week and Andy thanked him and agreed to think about it, appreciating his friend’s thoughtfulness.

In an effort to forestall memories of yesterday’s tragedy, Andy had spent most of the last night encouraging lurid fantasies of Cally. Although it had helped to keep him from dwelling on thoughts of Wayne Tucker, he’d woken feeling tense and irritable and with a hard-on he hadn’t been able to fully assuage. Now his heart pounded in anticipation that he might soon get to see her again.

He couldn’t remember ever feeling so excited about a woman. He’d never been the type to go out trolling for girls. There had only been a handful of women in his life over the years and those few had been special to him, even Nikki.

It was just that none of them had been
the one
. Never before had his heart thumped so hard it felt like it was going to bounce right out of his chest merely at the thought of seeing the woman. Never before had he felt so disappointed when she hadn’t appeared. Last night, he’d been gutted when he’d realized it was Cally’s night off.

At the time, he’d convinced himself his reaction had been part of the aftershock of his tragic afternoon with Tucker, but in the early hours of the morning, he’d started to give credence to the cabbie’s words from nearly a week ago.

Maybe there was such a thing as love at first sight?
Will hadn’t scoffed at the idea. That, in itself, was something. Not that Andy was even thinking along the lines of love. Hell, he barely knew the woman. But, despite the emotional upheaval he’d experienced over the loss of Tucker, he couldn’t deny his mind kept returning to Cally, again and again. It had been almost forty-eight hours ago to the minute since he’d seen her, he thought, glancing at his watch again. She should be walking through the door right about…now.

As if on cue, the door opened and Jack bounced into the squad room. Andy’s heart jumped at the sight of him and his mouth went dry. The boy’s arrival meant his mother was surely close by.

Jack looked around the room. He spied Andy at his desk and his eyes lit up in recognition. A warm feeling spread through Andy at the pleasure on the boy’s face.

“Andy, you’re here!” Jack rushed over to him, his face breaking into a grin.

“Hey, Jack. Good to see you again. What’ve you been up to, buddy?”

“Nothing much. Just the usual; school and stuff.”

“School’s pretty important, you know. What grade are you in?”

“Four.”

“Wow, grade four. That must mean you’re about…ten?”

“Good guess. I turned ten on January eighth.”

“I’m on August eighth. How’s that for coincidence? We’re nearly twins.” He ruffled Jack’s tousled, blond hair.

The boy grinned, appearing to enjoy the attention. Andy reached for another chair. “Here, take a seat.”

“Thanks.” Jack grinned again and Andy’s heart took another blow. His thoughts glanced off Wayne Tucker and his children who would never see their father again. He forced the darkness away and concentrated on the carefree boy beside him.

Such innocence, as if nothing bad had ever happened to him.

He could only imagine how
he’d
appeared to adults at the same age. By then he’d learned the hard way it was safer to be seen and not heard…

He forced those memories aside and glanced toward the door of the squad room, but it remained stubbornly closed.
What if she hadn’t come?
He quickly squelched the irrational though and made sure his voice remained casual. “Where’s your mom?”

Jack nodded toward a second door which led off the squad room. Two interview rooms were on the left and three offices were on the right that eventually led to a utility room at the far end of the corridor.

“She’s back there, cleaning the offices.”

Just like that, Andy’s nerves resurfaced. His pulse picked up speed and he swallowed convulsively.

“Are you okay, Andy? You look a bit strange.”

Andy knew his smile was strained. For a young kid, the boy was way too observant. Not good when you were trying to appear cool, calm and unaffected.

How could a woman he’d only just met evoke such a strong reaction?
He was more nervous now than he was right before he engaged in a negotiation. That
definitely
made no sense.

Before he could examine that thought any closer, the door leading to the interview rooms opened and Cally walked in lugging a vacuum cleaner behind her. She caught sight of him across the room and her eyes widened in surprise.

“Oh, hi. I-I didn’t realize you were here.” A charming blush suffused her cheeks. “Um, I can come back later—”

“
No
!” Andy checked himself and modified his tone. “I mean, please, go ahead.” She walked toward the plug on the far side of the room. He couldn’t take his eyes off her.

She wore a faded orange T-shirt and a pair of white cotton shorts. His gaze skimmed over shapely hips and a pert bottom. She looked as inviting as the beach outside his condominium window on a hot summer day. Even more of a blessing was that she’d distracted him from memories usually dredged up by the sound of the vacuum cleaner. For that alone, he could love her forever.

* * *

Cally felt his gaze all the way across the room and it made her even more nervous. She fumbled with the plug of the power cord and tried a second time to fit it into the socket. Her hand shook, making her fingers clumsy. It seemed to take forever to get the thing connected. She breathed a sigh of relief when the metal prongs finally slipped into the holes.

Keeping her back to him, she switched on the vacuum cleaner with her foot, thankful for the noise which would save her from having to converse any further with the hunky police officer who’d filled her restless dreams.

Despite the chaotic emotions he stirred up inside her, finding him at the station was somewhat of a relief. Earlier that day, she’d drawn up a poster requesting a roommate. The principal had agreed to let her pin one on the staff noticeboard at her school and she was hoping to ask Andy if she could do the same at the station.

She lifted her gaze and glanced in his direction and was disappointed to find his chair was empty. She looked around the room, but he wasn’t there. He’d disappeared and so had Jack.

She frowned a little, not sure if she was comfortable with her son being alone with Andy. He appeared honest and genuine, but she barely knew him. Her instinctive reaction was to trust him, but she’d been wrong on that score before. She only had to think of Stewart Brady to be reminded of that.

Then she caught the sound of Jack’s excited chatter over the dull thrum of the vacuum cleaner and gave a stern shake of her head. Of course Andy hadn’t done anything untoward to her son. She had to learn not be quite so mistrustful. Not everyone set out to lie and deceive.

The two of them appeared in the doorway of the squad room and headed toward Andy’s desk. Her son trotted by Andy’s side, his animated face tilted backwards as he spoke. Andy leaned down so he could hear Jack over the noise. Her heart tightened at the tender scene. With their thick mops of unruly, blond hair, they looked enough alike it could be assumed they were father and son. Cally switched off the vacuum cleaner and moved closer. In the deafening silence her nerves returned full force.

“Hi.” Andy grinned at her, looking sexier than a man had a right to look, dressed in his work clothes.

His navy-blue police shirt was rolled up at the sleeves and was teamed with a pair of khaki drill pants. The shirt exposed the muscular shape of his forearms and a nice expanse of tanned skin that was covered in a sprinkling of golden hair. Becoming aware that she was staring, she blushed and took a few steps backwards. She came up hard against another desk.

“Ouch!” Her cheap, synthetic sandals slipped on the carpet. Losing her balance, she landed on the floor, colliding heavily with a corner of the metal desk on her way down. Papers, books and pens scattered beneath her.

Gingerly rubbing her hip, she cursed the bargain-basement footwear. She should have worn the sensible lace-up shoes like she’d intended. It was only that the weather was so hot and her vanity had gotten the better of her. She’d opted for the cute, but oh-so-impractical sandals, a decision she now sorely regretted.

Warm fingers encircled her bare upper arm and helped her upright herself. She stared into Andy’s eyes and her pulse beat madly in her neck. Mesmerized, she couldn’t look away.

“Are you okay, Cally?” Her name sounded almost like an endearment on his lips. His eyes were full of concern.

He was holding her way too close.
She stumbled backward, throwing a quick glance over her shoulder to ensure there were no other obstacles in her way.

“I’m fine; I’m fine.” Embarrassment flared hotly across her cheeks. Averting her face, she lurched in the direction of the vacuum cleaner, hoping to take solace in its noise.

“Mom, are you sure you’re all right?”

Jack’s voice reached her just as she was about to flick the switch. She was forced to halt her retreat and face him—which also meant facing Andy.

She gave her son a reassuring smile. “I’m fine, Jack, honestly. I’m so embarrassed I’d be happy if the floor opened up and swallowed me, but yes, sweetheart, I’m otherwise unharmed.”

She risked a glance at Andy and reluctantly returned the grin that lit up his face.
So what if she’d just humiliated herself in front of the most gorgeous man she’d ever come across? She’d get over it.
In about a hundred years.

His eyes sparkled with humor. “Why don’t you take a break and sit down for a few minutes?”

Knowing the bruise now forming on her hip was probably no worse than the dent to her pride, she sighed in defeat and accepted the chair he held out for her. He folded his long body into his seat and pulled his chair close.
Very close.
Butterflies jumped in her stomach.

His gaze remained steady on hers. “It’s good to see you again.”

Cally swallowed her nerves.
Please, God. Please don’t turn me into a blithering idiot.
It’s absolutely not right the first guy I have even the remotest interest in makes me so tongue-tied I’m almost mute. Whatever will he think of me?

“Um, thank you. It-It’s nice to see you again, too.” She bit her lip and inwardly grimaced at the banality of her reply.

“How have you been?” he asked, not seeming to notice her discomfort.