by Destiny Ford
“I’m coming with you,” Hawke stated matter-of-factly. “We’ll take my car. And tonight, I’m giving you a self-defense lesson.”
I got the hood clean and stepped back, surveying the paint and my handiwork. “You know self-defense?”
Hawke gave me one of his sexy half smiles that implied a lot more than any words could. “I know a lot of things I could teach you, Kitty Kate.” I nodded slightly as I opened my eyes wide. I knew exactly what he was talking about, but wasn’t sure I was ready for that lesson.
I rinsed the soap off while Hawke watched. When I was satisfied it was clean, I washed out the soap bucket and walked toward the back door. “You’re welcome to come inside,” I said.
He followed me into the house.
“I’m going to take a shower and change,” I said.
“Am I welcome in there, too?”
I didn’t answer the question out loud, but my heart started beating faster as I turned away, trying not to bolt down the hall. From behind me, I heard Hawke’s voice. “Sure was nice of you to wear a white shirt to clean your Jeep.” I looked down and could clearly see through the front of my tank…the one I was wearing without a bra. I hadn’t even thought about the color when I started the car wash. At the time I’d just been trying to get the crap off my SUV. Damn it!
I wasn’t about to tell that to Hawke though so I settled for, “You’re welcome.” I threw my wet clothes in the laundry basket and stepped into the bathroom.
I was half-expecting, half-hoping to see Hawke lying naked on my bed when I came out of the shower. He wasn’t, and it was disappointing. I threw on some jeans and a black shirt, dried my hair, and pulled it into a half-ponytail. I put on some light pink lipstick, brown eye shadow to emphasize my blue eyes, and mascara.
When I walked into the living room, Hawke was flipping through one of the women’s magazines sitting on my table, a read he’d no doubt been drawn to by the cover highlighting one of the articles: “Fifty Sexy Ways to Thrill Him in Bed.”
“Learning a lot?” I asked, struggling to latch my watchband to my wrist.
He put the magazine back on the table. “I’m more interested in how much you’re learning from these magazines.”
I arched an eyebrow, giving him a wicked smile. “Wouldn’t you like to find out?”
He stood up and walked toward me. He took the watch from my hand and fastened it gently to my wrist. “Careful, Kitty Kate,” he warned, his hands lightly rubbed my pulse point. “I might take advantage of an offer like that.” My eyes went wide and Hawke smiled.
“What makes you think I’m the type of girl who does things like that without being married?”
His smile shifted from amused to shrewd. “Because a good girl wouldn’t have known what I was doing to her milkshake, but clearly, you understood.” My cheeks, and other parts of me, got hotter before he continued, “So, what are we doing today?” he asked, putting the magazine back on the table.
I stared at him, shocked he was still so intent on being my bodyguard. “Honestly, I’m fine. You don’t have to waste your whole day with me.”
He caught my eye in the way he’s so good at; the way that makes me feel like I can’t turn away and don’t want to. “Spending time with you is never a waste.”
I tried to laugh the comment off. “Because of my professional prowess?”
He still held my eyes. “Because of everything you are.”
It felt like the house was getting hotter by the second. It was a good thing I’d had the forethought to wear black. If I was going to spend the whole day with Hawke, I didn’t want him to see me sweat. “I need to drop the Jeep off at the car detail shop, and I was thinking we could talk to Julia Bradford again. I was at my parents’ house last night and they said Brian Bradford was trying to get a business deal with the state. My dad thought that’s why Chelsea’s funeral was pushed through so fast. When I spoke to Julia about it though, she said they tried to get it over quickly to minimize the chances of people finding out Chelsea had been pregnant.” I picked up my purse. “I’d like to ask her more about her husband. He’s never been home when I’ve stopped by, and the only time I’ve seen him was at Chelsea’s funeral. I get the impression he’s a workaholic.”
“I think that’s a good plan.” Hawke stood up, pulling his keys from his pocket.
“I just have to stop by the Tribune to pick up the memory stick for my camera. I was running late for dinner at my parents’ last night and forgot it.”
“It sounds like you had a hectic night.”
I looked at him. “Like you wouldn’t believe.”
Hawke followed me to the car detail shop. When we finally made it to the office, it was almost noon.
“Hey,” Spence said when he saw me walk in. “Did you get your SUV,” —his voice trailed off for a second as he noticed Hawke following me— “clean?”
“I scrubbed it this morning, and I just took it to the detail shop,” I answered, looking around my desk. “The paint should be all right once they wax it.”
Hawke sat in my chair as Spence pulled me into his office and away from Hawke. “I thought you said you didn’t need any help? I would have come over.”
“I didn’t need any help. I was fine. The police came and I cleaned the Jeep.”
“Then what is he,” Spence nodded slightly toward where Hawke sat in my chair, fiddling with his cell phone, “doing here?”
“He just showed up at my house. I didn’t invite him, and he didn’t help either. He didn’t even get there until I was almost finished.”
“What did he want?” Spence held up his palm and closed his eyes. “Actually, I can probably guess.”
I rolled my eyes at him. “We’re still working on Chelsea’s case together, Spence. That’s why he’s here.”
“Sure it is.” He paused, biting the corner of his lip in contemplation. “I’m worried about you, Kate.”
I inclined my head. “Join the club.” I walked out of the room to my desk. As I passed by Hawke, I couldn’t help but notice the smirk on his face. The Tribune office was small. If Hawke had been paying any sort of attention, he’d just heard my entire conversation with Spence. I grabbed my memory stick, camera, and purse. “Are you ready to go?” I asked Hawke.
He nodded, following me out the door. As we walked to Hawke’s Mustang he put a hand on my arm to stop me. I turned and he met my eyes with an intense look. “Spence’s guess would’ve been right.”
With Hawke’s declaration hanging in the air, we drove to the Bradfords’ house. I rang the doorbell, the sound overwhelmed by the high-pitched yelps of Cuddles. As soon as Julia opened the door, Cuddles went crazy wagging his tail and jumping up to greet us. He was a good watch-dog until someone opened the door, then the best he’d be able to do is lick them to death.
“Hi, Julia,” I said, rubbing Cuddles under his chin. “If you have a couple of minutes, I have a few more questions.”
Julia looked from me, to Hawke, and back to me again. “Is your . . . friend coming in too?”
I smiled. “This is Ryker Hawkins. He’s helping me with the investigation.”
“Oh, I’ve heard of you.” Julia held out her hand and Hawke shook it. “It’s nice to finally meet you.”
“Nice to meet you too, Mrs. Bradford.”
I looked back and forth between the two of them. They showed no sign of recognizing each other or meeting before. Huh. I guess Hawke wasn’t the P.I. Julia hired after all.
We went into the bright sitting room I’d become familiar with during the past few weeks. I sat on the couch sinking in again. Hawke sat next to me, though he managed not to be engulfed in cow hide. Being there with a sidekick and trying to solve a crime made me feel like we should have badges and work on a police detective show.
“What can I answer for you?” Julia asked.
I flipped open my notebook. “I was just wondering about your husband, Brian. He hasn’t been around when I’ve stopped by before.”
“He’s gone most of the time working on things for his company. He stays in Salt Lake a lot.”
“I’ve heard he was trying to get a business deal pushed through with the state when Chelsea died, is that correct?”
“Yes. He’s been working on it for over a year and it was finally coming to fruition.”
“What’s happening with it now?”
Her hands were folded over each other in her lap, her back stick-straight, shoulders tense. She looked a little nervous. “I think it’s on hold. Brian hasn’t really talked to me about it.”
“Why would it be on hold now if he thought it was going to go through?”
She shrugged. “I’m not sure. When Chelsea died, he had to take three days off to help me with funeral arrangements. Maybe taking time off caused the contract to stall.”
He only took a few days off though. It didn’t seem like that would have affected his contract negotiations. “When I talked to you before, you said you tried to push Chelsea’s autopsy and funeral through quickly so people wouldn’t find out she’d been pregnant. Was that the only reason, or did Brian’s contract have something to do with the speed as well?”
Julia took a deep breath. “Brian and I both felt like we should get the services over as soon as possible and move on. We thought it would draw less attention to why Chelsea had been gone. But Brian also wanted to have it out of the way so he could get back to work.”
“He didn’t take any additional time off to deal with Chelsea’s death?”
Julia tightened her lips, taking several seconds to answer. “Brian is a very stoic man. Making sure he provides for his family is important to him. I think he just mourns differently than other people—and maybe he hasn’t even hit that stage of grief yet.”
I turned to Hawke who hadn’t said anything the entire time we’d been there. Instead he just seemed to be watching Julia and her body language. I could tell having The Incredible Hulk in her living room was making Julia uneasy. “Thank you, Julia,” I said. “I appreciate your help.” Hawke and I both stood up.
“Are you investigating Brian?” she asked, her tone conveying her confusion.
“Not Brian, exactly,” I answered. “We’re just trying to explore all connections to figure out who would have a reason to kill Chelsea.”
“I see,” Julia answered as she walked us to the door, worry lines forming on her forehead. “Please let me know if you need anything else.”
“Thank you again,” I said. Hawke hung back, saying something to Julia. I wondered why, but chalked it up to him offering her comfort. As we walked back to Hawke’s Mustang, I couldn’t shake the thought that maybe Brian Bradford really did have something to do with his daughter’s death.
“She was tense. I’m not sure she was being entirely truthful,” Hawke said. He started the car, pulling away from the Bradfords’ house.
“Goliath was sitting on her living room couch,” I pointed out. “No wonder she was apprehensive.”
Hawke grinned. “What did you think of her answers?”
“That she’s telling the truth. I don’t think she knows much about her husband’s businesses. If Brian was involved in Chelsea’s murder somehow, Julia doesn’t have a clue.”
“Why do you say that?”
“Because I’ve talked to her over and over again. She was devastated by Chelsea’s death. You saw her at the funeral. She couldn’t stop crying. She still has a difficult time with it. I’m sure she always will,” I said. “Plus, she’s upset enough that if she had anything to do with the murder, or knew anything about it, she wouldn’t be able to hide it. She’s clearly a mother grieving the loss of her child. I saw the determination on her face when I told her I thought there was more to the story. She seems to think so too, or she wouldn’t have hired a private investigator.”
Hawke listened intently to my points before pulling into a sandwich shop. “Come on. It’s way past lunch time.” I got a BLT and Hawke ordered some sort of Italian sandwich with a lot of sauce. “Let’s eat at the park,” he said. “Maybe there will be fewer people with camera phones there.”
We got back in the car and I looked over at him. “Did you see the video?”
“Yep.” He gave a smug smile.
“That video got me in a lot of trouble,” I said. “I always seem to get into trouble when you’re around.”
“In trouble with whom?”
“With my mom, Spence, and Drake.”
“Why?” he asked, pulling into a parking space. We got out of the car and walked to the picnic tables.
“It’s a long story,” I answered.
He gestured at the table and food. “We’ve got time.”
“Well,” I said, unwrapping my sandwich. “The video got around pretty fast.” Hawke nodded as if he already knew that. “Spence wasn’t happy about it. He thinks you’re selfish and manipulative by the way.” The corners of Hawke’s mouth twitched. “And I had to go to dinner at my parents’ house last night. I was already late and invited Spence along to stop my mom from asking me questions about the video—and the corner booth at the Mexican restaurant. Spence agreed to come, but when we got to the house, I found out my mom had already invited Drake.”
Hawke’s mouth turned into a full-on grin.
“My mom confronted me about the video and you being seen at my house. She was also mad that I’d invited Spence even though I was also apparently dating Drake—she has a problem with listening to rumors instead of me. She called me a hussy,”—Hawke started to laugh—“and told me to stop sleeping with and dating so many men because my reputation wouldn’t be able to survive in such a small town. When Drake arrived, he got me alone and was pissed about me still spending time with you when he’d warned me to stay away. He tried to charm me into submission, which might have worked if he hadn’t started quoting lines from old movies.”
“All of that happened from one innocent bite of milkshake?” Hawke asked after he stopped laughing.
I stared at him. “That bite of milkshake was one of the least innocent things I’ve ever experienced, and you know it.”
Hawke smiled. “If I’d known you were sleeping with Spence and Drake, I’d have gotten in line.” I picked up a piece of lettuce that had dropped from my sandwich and threw it at him. He held up his hands to shield himself from my sandwich assault.
“I’m not sleeping with anyone.”
“I could fix that problem for you.”
I stared at him, stunned. “I don’t doubt it.”
He watched me for a few heartbeats, his eyes steady. “So Drake and Spence both told you not to spend time with me.”
I nodded.
“But you’re still here. With me.”
I lifted a shoulder, tilting my head in a half-shrug. “You haven’t given me a reason not to be,” I said, taking a bite of food. When I finished it, I continued, “And Drake and Spence haven’t given me a solid reason for why I should listen to them. I think they don’t actually have one and they’re both going off of rumors they’ve heard from each other. I have first-hand experience with gossip and things being blown way out of proportion, so I try not to listen to it.”
Hawke gave me a level stare. “That’s one of the reasons I like you. You’re stubborn, independent, willing to see all sides, and not afraid of anything. You don’t realize how sexy that makes you.”
I wasn’t sure what to be more surprised at: the fact that Hawke admitted he liked me—which most men seemed to have a problem articulating—or that he thought I was sexy. Both revelations made the heat start creeping up my face. I took a quick drink of my icy fruit punch hoping the cold would stun my blush.
Hawke didn’t let it go unnoticed. “Does that make you uncomfortable?”
I gulped down my punch. “Which part?”
He looked at me while he ate. “The part about me liking you, or the part about me thinking you’re sexy.”
“I wasn’t uncomfortable. Just surprised. Most men are hesitant to admit things like th
at.”
He smiled, wiping his hands on his napkin. “In case you haven’t noticed, I’m not most men.”
I nodded and looked away so he couldn’t see my wide eyes or bottom lip—which I was trying not to bite through. “I’ve gathered that about you.”
We ate in silence for a few minutes until Hawke said, “It must have been awkward having Spence and Drake both hanging out at your parents’ house.”
“Yeah,” I agreed. “Not the best time I’ve ever had.”
“How did they react when they realized they were both attending family dinner?”
“Drake was pissed. Spence didn’t say anything to me about it. He lets things roll off of him most of the time.”
Hawke took a drink. “Don’t expect that to continue.”
I wrinkled my brow, confused. “What do you mean?”
A disbelieving look crossed Hawke’s face. “Kitty Kate, it’s obvious Spence is interested in more than just the standard boss / employee relationship. If you can’t see that, you’re not paying attention.”
My mouth gaped for a minute before I quickly picked my jaw up. I hoped it had come across as shock about Spence wanting a relationship instead of shock that Hawke didn’t already know Spence was gay. I stared at him and wondered if it was possible Spence’s ruse had fooled even Hawke. If so, Spence, and maybe even me, deserved a pat on the back. I didn’t imagine much got by Hawke. He was like a modern day Sherlock Holmes. So, if Spence being gay had flown under his radar, congratulations were well deserved.
“Spence and I both have the same opinions about relationships.” I shrugged. “It’s just harmless flirting.” I finished my sandwich and balled my paper wrapper up to throw in the trash. “I don’t have time for drama. It’s not my problem if they want to act like a couple of teenage boys.”
Hawke gave a slow smile. “You are the center of the problem, Kitty Kate.”
I stood up, grabbed my trash and Hawke’s, and threw it all in the garbage can behind me. “I’m not dealing with it now.”
