He froze when the closing door wafted the scent of orange peels and smoke over him. Was it possible the woman from the diner had been here? Rowan. He gave his head a shake.
“Nick? You okay?”
“The tattoo. Where’ve you seen that tattoo?”
“Look…” He rubbed his jaw. “I love my wife, okay?”
Nick gave him a disappointed look. “Soren…”
“Things have just been a little cold in the bedroom lately. I needed a little something on the side.”
Nick groaned, his respect for his coworker flatlining.
“Hey, the guy who doesn’t believe in relationships doesn’t get to judge me on mine.”
Never mind that people like Soren were exactly the reason Nick feared exclusivity. Poor Rhonda. “So where have you seen this logo before? I can tell if you’re lying, so don’t even try.”
“I went to this club with a girl a few moons ago. It was one of those app hookups. Hot as lightning. Hot as lightning, Nick.”
“Okay. So you went to a club with a hot girl…”
“The girl had that same tattoo.”
Nick’s eyebrows shot up. “Did she tell you what it meant?”
His eyes shifted from side to side. “Uh, no. We drank, we hooked up, and she took off.”
“Well, get her on the line. Ask her now.”
“I, uh, I don’t exactly have her number, okay? We connected the one time and afterward, well, her account is, um, gone. We went to a hotel, so, uh…”
“Jesus, Soren. Are you telling me you have no idea who this girl is or how to get in contact with her?”
“Yeah, pretty much.”
“Fuck.”
“We could try the club again. See if she shows up there.”
Nick brightened. “Yeah. Good idea.”
“Only, it’s hard to get in. Very exclusive. This girl was the only reason they let me through the door. They love beautiful women there.”
Nick straightened. “I can clean up.”
Soren chuckled. “Can you become a woman?”
That was potentially problematic. “Maybe one of the female detectives can do us a solid.”
That idea didn’t seem to excite Soren, but then, he wouldn’t be crazy about explaining how they connected the body to the club. Nobody liked a cheater.
Nick glanced up the stairs. “Hey, I want to ask some questions here, check if anyone saw anything. See if there’s a window overlooking the alley.”
“You want backup?”
“No. I got it.”
With a nod of his head, Soren returned to the crime scene.
