She shrugged. “He’s married and has a few kids, but every time he sees me, he gives me the once over as if he’s undressing me and trying to imagine if I’m wearing granny panties or a thong.”
“Neither,” Rory said. “At least not now. Not during working hours.”
“Oh, really?” she asked, sitting back. “Are we going to play that game?”
“I feel as if I’ve got to since you brought it up. Will you tell me if I’m right or not?”
“Only if I get to guess yours.”
“I’m all about equal opportunity,” he said.
“Deal. What am I wearing underneath?”
“Lace,” he said. “Bikinis, but not a thong, not a ton of material. You want the world to see you as powerful, but inside you’re a girlie girl and like to know that you hold that secretno one can touch. See me but don’t really see me. That is what you’ve got going on. I’m willing to bet your bra matches your underwear.”
“Hmm,” she said as she stuck her fork in her salad, then put it in her mouth to crunch loudly.
He laughed and pointed at her. “I’ll take that as a yes. So I’m going to guess it’s a light pastel color since your sweater is. You wouldn’t want anything showing through on top.”
She leaned in closer to him. “It’s pink...and lace. And I’m not sure I like that you could figure that out.”
“I don’t think you’re that hard to get a read on,” he said.
“You’d be surprised. So my turn. You’re not a brief guy and boxer briefs would be too ordinary for you. I’m betting you like boxers, as it goes with your carefree personality that you don’t want anyone to know.”
He snorted. “No one thinks I’m carefree.”
“Sure, you are,” she said. “You can pick up and go where you want and when. You work when you want too. I think you’ve got structure in your life, but you also know that life can change on a dime and you pick up the coin and change directions when it lands in front of you. So boxers, letting it all hang out to go where you decide.”
He coughed on his bite of food. “No response, other than you’re right about my style of underwear.”
“Look at us,” she said. “Getting to know each other. Now tell me, how much have you gone through of the records?”
“Not as much as I’d like,” he said. “I sorted by category for now. I wanted to see the evidence against Cooper, and it was circumstantial at best. I’m surprised the DA wasted time on a case. No way that would have gone to trial anywhere else.”
“That’s it exactly,” she said. “Which is why those who knew Cooper, knew beyond a doubt it wasn’t him. I think his alibi would have come forward prior, but no one asked. Shewas a little old lady who talked to everyone and watched the neighborhood like a hawk. But they also thought she was losing her memory.”
“So they tried to discredit her?”
“They did,” she said. “But Liza’s daughter called shortly after the time of the murder and Liza had told her daughter she’d been outside talking to Cooper and bringing him water for over an hour. Again, no one bothered to look intothat. I’m positive it was Cooper’s attorney who went back through talking to people and then following up with Liza’s daughter.”
He shook his head. “I feel as if things weren’t done right back then. Sloppy and rushed to get it done.”
“It’s sad to say, but that might be the case.”
“Which will hurt more than help now,” he said sadly.
“If there is something to find, we will,” she said. “I promise you that.”
Hours later, Rory was sweating his ass off. How did it get so hot?
That damn kiss with Gale, that was it.
He couldn’t get it out of his mind, or the soft, gentle one she gave him on the cheek when she left.
He couldn’t just leave it at that, and pulled her closer, held her tighter, kissed her deeper.
If the first one was testing and teasing, this one was tasting and possessing.
