Sage lifted the bottle, and shook her head. “Not a chance! I’ll be right here on the sofa!”
“Excellent!” he replied, grinning, then left the house, making sure that the new lock on the front door caught.
A half hour later, he sat down at his desk in the police station.
“Everything good to go?” Arik asked, typing something on his computer.
“Yep,” Simon replied. “Found out some interesting information on the ladies too.”
“Do tell,” Arik prompted, turning so that he could see Simon.
“Interested?”
“Am I dead?” Arik asked sarcastically. “Sage is gorgeous! Jade is lovely too, but there’s something about Sage….”
Simon smiled in agreement, relieved his best friend and partner wasn’t interested in Jade. There would be problems if he was.
“Their father stopped by for a visit,” Simon announced.
“I thought he lived in New York,” Arik commented, typing furiously. Obviously, his partner was working on a background check of the ladies. “The father is some famous artist that prides himself on controversial paintings. His works sell for astronomical amounts. He’s also been featured in several art magazines.”
“He’s an ass,” Simon snorted. “Apparently, the DeSantis sisters moved all the way to Wyoming to get away from him.”
Arik blinked. “Seriously? He’s that bad?”
“Yep,” Simon confirmed, sorting through the pile of paperwork on his desk until he found the report he’d wanted. “The guy came to the house, demanding that his daughters return to New York, give up the careers they’ve built and move back in with him, so that he can ‘supervise their talent’.”
Arik snorted. “Right. As if those two need help with their careers.”
That comment sounded odd. “What does that mean?”
Arik swung his monitor around. “Jade is a master of mosaics, or something along those lines. People commission her work from all over the world.” He tapped his pen against the monitor. “She’s pretty famous in the home décor world. She charges insane amounts for her pieces, although not nearly as much as her father does. But seriously, she’s incredible.” He pulled the monitor back around so he could see. “Check this one out,” he said, then turned the monitor back around to reveal a full wall mosaic of a beach scene, complete with people sitting on the beach, ocean waves, fish in the background, and lots of detail.
“That’s amazing!” Simon replied, truly astounded. “Jade did that?”
Arik grinned. “Yep. Wonderful, right?”
“What does Sage do?”
Arik’s eyes lit up. “Ah, that’s where it gets really interesting.” He turned the monitor again, tapping on the screen.
Simon thought about the man from earlier and his lips curled with disgust. “The father seemed to really hate whatever Sage does for a living. He wouldn’t even speak the words.”
“She’s a writer. She writes murder plots that are pretty heavy with mystery and romance.” He tapped the screen. “I read this one about a year ago,” he said. “It took me less than a weekend to read it. I couldn’t put it down!”
Simon read the title on the cover and nodded. “I read that one too. It was damn good!” He shook his head. “How can he not be incredibly proud of his daughters’ successes? What the hell is wrong with him?”
Arik shrugged. “No idea. You’ve met him. You tell me!”
Simon leaned back in his chair. “The sisters just moved here,” he paused, grinning, “and they made a vow to avoid men.”
Arik stared and slowly shook his head. “They know that’s not going to happen, right?”
Simon chuckled. “Well, I didn’t mention it.”
Arik leaned back in his chair as he shook his head. “They are delusional. Sage is mine.”
“You’re going to have to convince her of that.”
Arik shrugged. “I’ve already put a plan in place. What about you and Jade?”
“Ditto!”
The two men shared a smile, then Simon leaned forward. “What have you heard from Tonya?” he asked, referring to the coroner.
“Albert was murdered. Hit over the head with a heavy object about two weeks ago.” After that, the two focused on work, eager to solve the case.
“So, what the hell are you two talking about?”
Simon and Arik turned as their counterparts, Detective Dean Gibson and his partner, Detective Mack Finson, sat at their desks. “Any luck finding Albert?” Dean asked, pulling a file closer. Mack, the silent one of their group, leaned back and crossed his legs at the ankles as he watched and listened.
“Yeah,” Simon announced. “We found him. Unfortunately, we suspect that there was foul play.”
Dean shook his head as he glanced over at Mack. “You called it,” he sighed.
Mack shrugged, but didn’t reply. He looked over at Simon, silently encouraging the man to continue.
“We found him in the old barn out on Southgate Road. His head was bashed in.”
Mack’s eyes hardened. Dean leaned forward, his elbows resting in his knees, the muscles in his shoulders and back straining the material of his white shirt. “Could it have been an accident?”
Arik shook his head, putting an ankle on his opposite knee. “Not unless Albert had the bad luck to fall out of the barn’s loft onto something about an inch in diameter, repeatedly.”
Mack shook his head and Dean’s mouth pressed together. “That’s not good. Albert was a good guy.”
All four men nodded their head in agreement.
“When are you having us over for a cookout again?” Arik asked of Dean.
The man grinned and leaned back. “Well, I guess it is time to annoy my neighbor again, isn’t it?”
“Damn straight,” Simon laughed. “Although, I don’t understand why you don’t just ask her out already. She’s beautiful and sweet. And believe it or not, she’s pretty funny too.”
Dean tensed and he shot a nasty glare at Simon. “Don’t even think about her!” he growled, poking his finger in the air menacingly.
Simon laughed as Arik snickered. “Don’t worry about Simon,” Arik explained. “He was blown away by the new owner of that ranch we visited.”
Dean’s body immediately relaxed. “Is that so?” he asked curiously. “What’s she like?”
It was Simon’s turn to level a glare at the other detective. “Back off!”
Dean lifted his hands in the air, palms out. “Not even interested. You know how often I’ve had you idiots over to my house, just so that I can rile my neighbor.”
Mack rolled his eyes and turned to his computer. “She hates you.”
Dean laughed. “She loves me,” he countered. “She just doesn’t know it yet.” The other three men chuckled, but none of them believed that the he had a chance with his cute neighbor. He was good looking enough and about as tall as the other three. But they all thought that Dean was going about this courting ritual in the wrong way. The woman in question was a high school teacher and about as prim and proper as they come. She’d never deign to go out with a rough and tumble guy like Dean. They were polar opposites!
Chapter 3
She wasn’t answering the door. Simon peered into the side window, looking for Jade. He didn’t get the sense that she was in danger but…her car was parked in the driveway. So, why wasn’t she answering the door?
“Should we come back later?” Arik wanted to know, leaning against one of the posts on Jade’s front porch.
Simon glared at him. “She might be hurt,” he snapped.
Arik’s knowing smile made Simon want to bash his friend’s nose.
“Don’t go there,” Simon warned, stepping off the front porch and moving around to the back. “Maybe she’s working outside. It looks like she’s sorted through most of the moving boxes.” There was a stack of empty boxes waiting outside the garage door, as if they were ready to be taken to the recycling center. How Jade was going to get the whole
pile into her tiny Mini Cooper, he’d love to know. It wasn’t just that the recycling center was about ten miles from here and it would take her about thirty trips to get all of them to the center with her tiny car. It also worried him that spring might have arrived, but that car wouldn’t be safe if one of Wyoming’s freak snow storms hit. The snow sometimes came down pretty hard here in the mountains, and they didn’t always have adequate warning.
Obviously, she’d have to do something about that car. She’d have to trade it in for something bigger and more rugged if she wanted to make it through the snowstorms out here.
“Want to try the barn?” Arik offered.
He sighed, rubbing his forehead. “Yeah, sure. Why not? She said she was going to work out there.”
“She did?” Arik asked as they rounded the corner of the small house. “How would you know that?”
“Shut up,” Simon muttered, causing his partner to laugh out loud.
“Just asking,” Arik explained.
“I came out here a couple of days ago to take window measurements. Remember?”
“Right,” Arik replied, skepticism dripping from his tone.
Simon gritted his teeth, but kept silent. It wasn’t as if he could say, “It isn’t like that!” Because it was exactly like that. Simon wanted Jade in a painful way. He liked her. He liked talking to her and liked looking at her. She fascinated him on so many levels! So, this was more than just casual sex. But dear heaven, he wanted her! He knew that Jade wasn’t actually trying to tempt him, which only made her soft, round, lush figure and those doe-like eyes even more enticing!
“Do you think…?”
Both men froze as they took in the sight in front of them. Jade was there and she was safe. That thought popped into his mind first. But then his mind just blanked because Jade was…well, she was…oh hell!
Jade must have come down to work during the early hours of the morning because she wore cute, fluffy slippers on her feet, a long tee-shirt that…he might have chuckled at the bikini-clad woman pictured on the back of the tee shirt, with huge knockers and a cartoonishly tiny waist, but to be honest, Simon’s brain had shorted out.
Jade bent over the work table, revealing baby-blue panties this time. Immediately, he swung around and…!
Arik already had his hands up and was backing away. “I’m leaving!” he said before Simon could do something violent to stop his friend from seeing Jade’s cute panties and long bare legs.
Simon watched as Arik left. When he rounded the corner, Simon turned back around and…she was dancing! Damn it, now he could see the ear buds in her ears. She danced in the crisp, morning air, singing along to whatever was playing.
Now that Arik wasn’t watching, Simon could take a moment to appreciate Jade’s long legs and cute panties covering an adorable ass. How often did she come out here to work like this? From the way she moved, it seemed like a normal occurrence. Had she done this while living in New York? He doubted it. It was too heavily populated and he doubted Jade was an exhibitionist.
Stepping closer, he continued to admire those legs, even as he struggled to be a gentleman and look away. He didn’t succeed.
“Jade!” Simon called out.
She didn’t hear him. She continued to dance and hum along to the music.
“Jade!” he called louder, reaching out to touch her shoulder.
That got her attention. Jade screamed as she swung around, her eyes huge with surprise and…fear? Simon hated seeing fear in her eyes! Damn it, the last thing he wanted to do was scare her.
“Hey,” he said softly, taking her hands so that she wouldn’t accidentally hit him. Then, he’d have to arrest her and…the thought of her in handcuffs sent his thoughts spinning. Not a good image when he needed her help again.
Well, not so much her help as…why was he here again? As he looked into her eyes, saw her lips curl up into a welcoming smile, Simon forgot everything. Except Jade.
“What are you working on?” he asked, falling into those pretty, emerald eyes of hers.
Her mouth opened and closed, her lips softened and he noticed that she looked down at his mouth. Simon was only human and he couldn’t resist the allure of a beautiful woman silently asking him to kiss her. Lowering his head, Simon brushed his lips against hers. Back and forth, their lips brushed, teasing and testing before he increased the pressure. His hands on her hips tightened as he pulled her closer, deepening the kiss even more until there was no space between them. Her arms wrapped around his neck and he lifted her higher, fitting her body perfectly against his own.
“Sorry to interrupt,” Arik began from behind them.
Simon looked around, startled by the interruption. Looking over his shoulder, he saw Arik standing with his back to them. Wise man, Simon thought.
“But we do have that pesky little investigation to finish up?”
“Oh!” Jade pushed at his shoulders and wiggled her way off the worktable. Damn, he hadn’t realized that he’d put her there, but it made sense. She was easier to reach on the table! “Um…” she pushed at his shoulders again. “You can’t be in here.”
“Why not?”
“Because this is my work area.”
He looked around, noting the dark beams and open areas that would be brutally cold in the winter months. “The barn?”
“Yes,” she replied and turned around, tugging the tee shirt down a little more. “I work in here and…well, it’s my private space.”
“You told me that I could look in here whenever I needed to for the investigation.”
She sighed, rubbing her forehead. “Well, yes, I did. But…” she glared at him. “You aren’t investigating at the moment!”
He chuckled. “Yeah, well, you were dancing and it was hot.” He leaned closer. “Besides, you wanted me to kiss you.”
Jade opened her mouth to deny his claim, but snapped it shut. “I have to work. You have to investigate. So, why don’t we both get on that?”
Simon laughed, delighted with her flustered reaction. “Do you usually work in just a tee shirt?” he asked, stepping back further to admire her legs again.
“Oh! No!” she pulled the tee-shirt lower. “Stop looking at me.”
“These might help,” Arik interrupted, carefully keeping his back to them while holding up a pair of jeans. “I took the liberty of grabbing these from your room, just in case you…um…got cold.”
Jade made a rude sound and grabbed the jeans, and quickly pulled them on. “Okay, I’m decent now,” she told Arik. “Thank you for grabbing these,” she added, smiling sweetly in Arik’s direction.
Simon glared at his partner, then at Jade. “Hey! He saw your panties too!”
Jade had the audacity to roll her eyes. “Yeah, but he was polite about it. And he didn’t kiss me!”
Simon didn’t bother to respond. Instead, he turned to glare at his friend, who only lifted his dark eyebrows at him.
“Right. Let’s get to it,” Simon grumbled and turned to look at Jade, wishing she wasn’t wearing those jeans. Her panties were adorable! “Arik had an idea. We want to climb up into your loft.”
Jade had to tilt her head way back to eye the loft. “That’s a loft? I thought it was just a bunch of boards.”
He sighed, mentally shaking his head at her city mentality. “Why would anyone stick a bunch of boards up there if not to store stuff on?”
She shrugged and crossed her arms over her chest. “I don’t know. I’m figuring all this out as I go.”
He chuckled softly, mumbling “City folk,” under his breath. But he moved over to the ladder, another mystery she’d wondered about but hadn’t had time to investigate, and climbed up to the loft area. He had a measuring tape in one hand and he dropped the heavy end down to Arik. “You’re right,” Simon said. “The dust has been disturbed. I think we have the ‘how’,” he said and took several pictures on his cell phone. “Now, we just need to figure out the who and the why.”
He climbed down and both men walk
ed over to her worktable, fascinated by the square pieces of glass scattered everywhere. “What’s this going to be?” Simon asked, intrigued by the strange drawings. She must have just started this project because yesterday there had only been piles of glass squares organized by color. Now the project was starting to take shape, although what that shape might eventually be was still a mystery.
“Well, this is a project for my bedroom,” she said, her eyes indicating that she didn’t want to tell them very much. “It’s a personal project. I took this month off in order to move and get the house fixed up and ready.”
“Ready for what?” Arik asked.
“Ready for me to get down to work,” she explained. “It might not look like it right now, but I’m an extremely organized person. I hate when things aren’t in their place.” She grimaced. “I also tend to work a lot at night, so everything has to be organized. In my line of work, it wouldn’t be good to wander around at two o’clock in the morning and step on a piece of broken glass. Which is why everyone has to wear foot coverings when entering this work area.” She looked down, nodding approvingly at their thick-soled boots.
“And your slippers are adequate protection?” Simon asked, not believing it for a moment.
She laughed. “I’ve fixed these with a special sole. They keep my feet toasty warm too. That’s one thing that I learned pretty quickly while working on my projects.”
“We need to get back to town,” Arik announced, slapping Simon on his shoulder.
Simon ignored him and stepped closer. “Will you have dinner with me tonight?” he asked.
Jade smiled, warmed by his request. Still, she shook her head. “No, I can’t.”
“That ‘no men’ thing?”
She chuckled. “Yeah. That ‘no men’ thing.”
He moved closer. “So, what was the kiss earlier?”
She shrugged, but her eyes twinkled. “An aberration that won’t happen again.”
Simon pulled back, itching to test her theory and prove her wrong. But Arik was still watching so he restrained himself. “We’ll have to see about that.” He touched his hat as he turned and left her domain. “Until next time, Beautiful!”
Spring Seduction (Wyoming Fever Book 1) Page 4
