“Maybe. I don’t know. But I did tell him I’d like to be friends. So in that sense, I do plan on seeing him again.”
Dylan’s hands flexed again as he worked throughsomethingregarding her and Sheridan. Kelsi couldn’t figure out why he seemed so bothered by it. He certainly wasn’t interested in her, so what could it be? She wanted to push him on his weird behavior, but they had yet to discuss their plan of attack for getting through to Scarlett.
Kelsi turned her head sideways on the headrest to face Dylan. “So,” she began.
“So,” he mocked her in a lilting tone.
She slapped his arm, giggling when he yelped.
“You never hit the driver,” he said. “That is common sense 101.”
He was back to the playful friend she remembered, and it was messing with her head. A standoffish Dylan she could keep at a distance, but this version? He drew her back in.
“Okay, fine, from here on out I promise to keep all limbs on this side of the vehicle until we have come to a complete stop.”
He snorted briefly at her quip but stayed quiet.
Kelsi went on. “I think that we should flesh out our exact approach with Scarlett. You still agree that it seems like the lawyer is probably out for McGuinness’s best interests and not hers, right?”
He nodded, eyes briefly flicking from the road in front of them to her before turning his gaze back. “Yeah, I’d say so. It’s weird of them to have the same attorney. For him to pop up anytime a police officer so much as sneezes in her direction? Something is up.”
“That’s what I’m thinking.” She chewed on her lip. “Do you think the best approach would be to go unannounced into her office and hope they’ll let us in?”
“Yes,” he said without hesitation. “But I think we should give the receptionist fake names or, if possible, avoid giving names at all. I don’t want her to get spooked and call her attorney before we can talk to her alone.”
“Good point. If she’s heard about us being assigned to the prosecution, that could pose a problem.”
“She works in a boutique public relations firm, right?”
“Yeah, based on her LinkedIn. It’s a small place, but they seem to have some major names as clients. At least, major names for Richmond.”
“I think it will be a walk in the park, Red. We just need to get in the door.”
* * *
Thirty minutes later they pulled into the parking garage next to Scarlett’s office building. Dylan turned the truck into a larger corner space, put the vehicle in park, and cut the engine. The two of them finished their coffees and climbed out simultaneously.
Dylan grabbed her blazer from the back and held it open for her to put on. She slid her arms through the sleeves, and he smoothed his hands down the shoulders as he released it. His breath fanned across her neck for a moment before he stepped away, heading toward the stairs without a word. He clearly wasn’t experiencing the same hormonal frenzy she was, as her blood heated and goose bumps rose all across her body. She massaged the sore spot on her chest that twinged more with thedistance he put between them. Maybe he wasn’t affected by her like she was by him.
She took a deep breath before following him on slightly unsteady legs. There were a few people lingering around the building’s lobby, but it was quiet enough that their footsteps echoed off the marble floors and high ceiling.
A quick scan of the building’s directory posted next to the elevators told them the office they needed was on the fourth floor. They climbed into the elevator, using the journey to get into the characters they’d decided on during the drive.
Before the elevator doors opened, Dylan reached over and grabbed her hand closest to him, threading his fingers through hers gently. She felt the small contact down to her toes, which curled in her heels at the sideways smile he gave her.
“Ready, Mrs. Holloway?”
Her breath caught in her lungs and her eyes widened as he called her the name she used to dream about one day having. She squeezed his hand.
“Ready, Mr. Holloway. But fake names, remember?”
The doors opened with a soft ding, and they stepped into a sleek professional waiting room. The style was minimalist and decorated in simple black, white, and beige details. The room had four white cushioned chairs for clients to wait in, paired off and facing each other. Two black side tables sat in between the chairs on either side. The classic home and lifestyle magazines, typical to waiting rooms, sat on the tables, fanned in a perfect wave, not a single one out of place in the display.
A young woman sat behind the reception desk on the left, her blonde hair pulled back in a slick and severe bun that made Kelsi wince imagining the painful pull against her scalp. Her lips werepainted a blood red, and she was tapping her acrylic nails on the counter as if they were wasting her time by not rushing over to her.
“How can I help you?”
Her nasally voice was bored, and she popped a bubble, vigorously chewing gum while Dylan and Kelsi had a thumb war under the counter to decide who had to speak. Dylan’s thumb pinned hers, and she cursed him every way she knew in her mind. Her brain short-circuited as his thumb lightly stroked hers in apology, but her hormones ran with it.
