Steven’s voice boomed down the hall, followed by the unmistakable squeals of my children. I pressed my forehead to Nick’s, lightheaded and breathy. “If we stay in here much longer, they’re going to wonder what we’re doing.”
“All the more reason to stay,” he murmured, leaning in again.
There was a knock on the adjoining door to Georgia and Sam’s room before it cracked open. I stiffened at the familiar scarred face that peeked into Nick’s room.
“I hate to break up this little reunion, roomie, but if you two dally in here much longer, there might be a crime scene in the hallway.” Charlie Cox, Nick’s former partner and closest friend, greeted me with a casual nod, as if he hadn’t stolen a suitcase full of money from me, threatened my life, and dumped me out of his car with a warning to leave town less than forty-eight hours ago. Charlie was a dirty cop—albeit a retired one—and he’d been making a comfortable living since as a “fixer” for Feliks Zhirov. Nick had no idea his former partner was passing information to the Russian mob and recruiting cops to handle Feliks’s dirty work. And Charlie had made it clear that if Vero and I didn’t want to end up dead or in prison, we wouldn’t breathe a word of it to anyone. “Good to see you, Finlay.” Charlie winked at me with his good eye as he pulled the door closed again.
“You okay?”
I dragged my gaze back to Nick at the sound of his voice. “Just surprised. What’s Charlie doing here?”
“He offered to come. Guess he figured I could use the help. He’s going to stay and keep an eye on you and Vero while Garrett and I poke around town and look for Toscano.” Was it time to panic yet? Because I was definitely panicking. Nick grinned as he tucked a lock of hair behind my ear. “You and Charlie were thick as thieves at the academy last week, I figured you wouldn’t mind.” I tried not to wince at his choice of words. Ihadliked Charlie, quite a bit. Right up until he’d shown me who he truly was.
I had no grand delusions that Charlie was here out of concern for meorNick. If Charlie offered to come, it was because Nick was about to step on Feliks’s toes, and it was Charlie’s job to run interference. Deep down, Charlie liked Nick, maybe even loved him, but money had a way of making people careless, and I had no doubt Charlie would throw every one of us to the wolves if it meant preserving his seat at Zhirov’s table.
“What about Joey? He’s your partner. Shouldn’t he be here instead?” Even Joey Balafonte would be preferable to Charlie.
Nick shook his head. “I needed someone I can trust. And Joe…” Nick’s mouth thinned. Joey and Nick had been partners for months before he’d learned that Joey was a mole for Internal Affairs, investigating their department. Overnight, Joey had become a pariah to everyone he worked with, which was a shame because Joey was actually one of the good guys. He was also the only person in the department who suspected Charlie wasn’t. But while Joey and I were technically still on the same team, he was also growing a little too suspicious of me.
Nick sighed deeply and rubbed his bloodshot eyes. “Joey’s got a concussion. He should be home getting some rest.”
“Maybe you should be, too. Haven’t you earned a little time off?”
“I am off. Commander’s orders,” he explained. “Mandatory leave pending an internal investigation into the incident on the fire tower the other night. Joey and Wade, too.” He gave my hand a reassuring squeeze. “Nothing to worry about. It’s all standard procedure. And since I’m not on the clock,” he said, placing a soft kiss on my collarbone, then another on my neck. “And I’ve got no statements to take…”Another a bit higher. “And no reports to write…” Another below my jaw. “… you have my undivided attention…” I arched into him and shivered. “So how about you let me take you out to dinner tonight? And after that…” His lips grazed the shell of my ear. “… what do you say we come back here?”
“What about Charlie and Agent Stokes?”
His breath fanned my face, his mouth grazing mine. “Garrett’s here on the FBI’s dime. He’s got a single down the hall. Charlie can crash with him for a few hours.” He took me gently behind my knee, easing me onto his lap as he kissed me thoroughly, throwing both of our libidos into overdrive.
Voices carried down the hall. First Steven’s, then my sister’s, their argument growing louder. Nick dropped his head against my shoulder with a frustrated sigh.
“We should probably go break that up before he gives my sister a defensible reason to shoot him.” The last thing I needed was one more crime scene to clean up. I rolled off Nick’s lap and towed him to his feet, forgetting the healing gunshot wound in his thigh.
“Sorry,” I said, mirroring his wince. He favored his injured leg as he followed me to the door. The ruckus outside grew louder as I opened it. Zach and Delia squealed, assaulting Nick with tackle hugs the moment they spotted him and plowing into his thigh. Nick held back a wince as he scooped them up, one in each arm. Steven’s jaw tensed as he looked on.
“We saw you on TV!” Delia exclaimed. “Where’s Officer Roddy? And Officer Ty?” she asked, lisping through her missing front teeth.
“They couldn’t come this time, kiddo. They had to work.”
Delia pouted. “Willyouwatch cartoons with us?”
“Absolutely,” he said. “But only if I get to pick the show.”
“You can watch TV after you both have something to eat,” my mother interjected. “Delia and Zach haven’t had breakfast yet, and if we don’t feed them soon, we’ll have a mutiny on our hands. I’m sure there must be an open restaurant nearby.”
“One of us should go with you,” Nick said, directing a meaningful look at my sister.
“I’ll go,” Georgia offered, reaching for Zach.
“Why don’t we all go?” my mother suggested. “You all must be hungry after driving all night.”
“I’m starving,” Sam agreed. “I’ll get my coat.”
“I could eat,” Nick said. “You coming, Charlie?”
Charlie’s eyes caught mine and held. “I was thinking I might stay here and catch a little shut-eye. You all go on without me.”
“What about Vero?” my mother asked.
