Harlequin Romantic Suspense March 2021

by Anna J. Stewart

  It had been over a month since she’d felt this level of anticipation and excitement. She’d begun to wonder if her father’s and uncle’s deaths had robbed her of the ability to do anything but maintain the status quo at True, but tonight was proving to be the beginning of—what would she call it?—a reckoning? A reawakening, maybe.

  She needed to get all her ideas out and organized as soon as possible so she could start testing and tasting. And maybe, if he was very, very lucky, Cruz would benefit from both. The idea of cooking for Cruz, using him as her guinea pig, sent an unexpected and unfamiliar thrill of exhilaration through her. The good detective was featuring more and more in her thoughts, and she wondered where they’d end up, when all of this was over.

  “Other than bed, you mean.” Yeah, Tatum grinned as she stepped through the automatic sliding doors of Barley & Bakes Market. They’d definitely end up there. Instantly she was welcomed, both by the night staff as well as the comforting aroma of briny olives, fresh fish and meat, and the promise of oven-baked bread awaiting the first bake of the day.

  Cart obtained, Tatum put all plans and preconceived ideas out of her head and began meandering up and down the aisles, beginning in the gourmet imported-food section where she filled her cart with jams, chutneys and a selection of cheeses that would be lucky to make it home. She was already veering away from the typical fare she’d been serving of late. There was only so much pasta she could make, only so many ways to cook chicken and steak. She wanted new. Different. “Unexpected.” She needed to think beyond her normal borders, challenge herself. She found herself examining the fresh olive bar and the imported saffron that was on sale. Spanish. She’d read most everything Constance Swan had ever written, and Swan had mentioned Spain multiple times.

  Images of freshly roasted seafood, tender chicken and spice-kissed saffron rice had her thinking paella and tapas. Something caught in her mind and began to spin. How could she make those dishes her own?

  Her cell phone went off, filling the empty aisles with the melodic tunes of Julia Child’s theme music. Who would be calling her at this time? She dug inside her purse, pulled it out and didn’t recognize the number on the screen. “Probably a midnight owl telemarketer.” She still answered. “Hello?”

  “Is this Tatum Colton?”

  The officious-sounding voice had her thinking instantly of Cruz. “Yes. Who is this?”

  “Officer Pearson, ma’am. Your sister January asked me to call. I’m afraid there’s been an accident.”

  “Jany?” Shopping spree forgotten, Tatum yanked her bag out of the cart and raced to the door. “Where is she? Is she all right? What happened?” She looked up and down the street, judging the quickest route to her condo.

  “Car accident, I’m afraid. She’s being taken to the hospital. She’d like you to meet her there. Mercy General.”

  “Yes, of course.” Heart racing, she was mentally calculating how long it would take her to run home for her car. “I’m on my way now. Please tell her I’m on my way.” Cell still clutched in her hand, she stepped out into the parking lot.

  The sound of squealing tires didn’t register until she caught the flash of headlights out of the corner of her eye. She froze, almost an instant too long, as the car barreled right at her. In the dim light, she saw a flash of gold inside the car. A thick-banded ring. She leaped to the side and bounced off the trunk of a parked car. As she rolled off, the tail end of the speeding vehicle clipped her at the last second and sent her plummeting face-first to the ground. Her purse soared out of her grasp, but her fingers tightened around her phone as she rolled, feeling every inch of asphalt along her side. The air was driven out of her. Her head spun and she looked up, blinking her vision clear as the car continued its race away. She angled her phone, managed to tap her camera open and click as the car skidded and turned out of sight.

  Footsteps sounded all around her, voices shouting, uttering commands. Gentle hands touched her arms, her torso, but nothing computed. Nothing made sense. She couldn’t answer the questions she was asked, and didn’t want to move. There was only one thing she could think to do. Hands shaking, she lifted her phone and called Cruz.

  CHAPTER 11

  “So you’re a cop.” Ty finally joined Cruz in the minuscule kitchen of his house, poured himself a cup of the coffee Cruz had taken the liberty of brewing. One a.m. didn’t seem a great time for caffeine, but it didn’t look as if he was going to be getting any sleep tonight anyway.

  “I am.” Cruz, seated at the small circular table by a window overlooking a backyard containing an old swing set and a collection of baseball equipment, toasted him with his half-full mug. “How are they?”

  “Asleep. I think.” Ty retrieved a container of leftover Chinese, held it up in question. “You hungry?”

  “No, thanks.” Thinking of the snacks Tatum had made for him, he found himself looking forward to eating them once he was on his way home. “So you’re a grandpa.”

  Whatever suspicions Ty had of Cruz vanished beneath the flash of pride. “Two times over. My daughter, Deena, she works nights as a bookkeeper for a chain grocery store. Up until a few weeks ago she had a sitter come stay with them, but since Eddie got out—” he slipped two cartons into the microwave and set the timer “—she was afraid something like this might happen.” In that moment, Ty looked exhausted. “I was never much of a father to her. Was in and out of prison for most of her life. Last time I got out I promised that was it, that I’d be here for her no matter what. When she asked for my help watching the kids at night—”

  “You couldn’t say no.” Cruz nodded. “You don’t have to explain taking care of your family, Ty. It’s nice to know where you’ve been, though.” It felt good to have his first impression about Ty confirmed. The man had turned his life around. He’d put family first.

  “That sounds like relief to me.”

  “It is.” He’d never been so grateful to be wrong.

  “You going to tell me why you’re working at True or do I have to guess?” The microwave beeped. After Ty dumped what looked like sweet and sour chicken and fried rice into a bowl, he sat across from Cruz and dug in. “Is Tatum being stalked?”

  “Stalked? No. Why would you think that?”

  Ty shrugged. “You seem to always be around when she needs you. And you certainly watch her every minute you’re in the same room together. I thought maybe you started out protecting her and it’s changed to something...else.”

  Cruz squirmed. Put that way, a lot of what Ty surmised seemed right. “I don’t watch her that closely. Do I?” He’d never been that careless before and he didn’t like the idea that he’d been so now.

  Ty grinned and some of the tension melted away. “So whatever’s going on between you two doesn’t have anything to do with why you’re working there. Tatum’s pretty picky about who she lets work in her place. Richard’s suggestions are always a hard sell. She likes giving people a chance, but sometimes they just don’t work out. You, uh, haven’t worked in a kitchen before, have you?”

  “Does my mother’s count?”

  Ty shoveled in more chicken. “Not really. You’re good at it, but it’s not where your heart is. Knowing you’re a cop?” He took an extra beat, seemed to be peering into Cruz’s very soul. “That definitely makes more sense. You don’t have to worry about me blowing your cover. Provided you’re there to help Tatum and not hurt her.”

  Was that warning the True company motto or something? “I’m investigating the new influx of drugs to the area. Heroin in particular. You know anything about it?”

  “Heroin?” Ty shook his head, but there was no deception in his expression that Cruz could find. “Only thing I know is that overdoses are up, and whatever people are using is as pure as you can get. That’s one side of things I never got into. You need an example of why, you just have to look at Deena’s ex. Kid was as straitlaced as they came in high school, the
n he went away to college and got hooked. Doesn’t stop her from loving him. Thankfully, it does stop her from being with him. What does a drugs case have to do with Tatum?”

  “My case puts True right in the middle of the distribution area.”

  “True?” Ty sat back in his chair, wiped his mouth. “Nah, man. You have that wrong. No way Tatum has anything to do with drugs.”

  “I didn’t say she did. But someone who works there does.” He was taking a chance, a big one, by coming clean with Ty, but there wasn’t much more he could do on his own. He needed some extra cover, cover he didn’t want Tatum to have to provide. “That knock on Tatum’s head? She got that when someone broke in the other night. They shoved her in the freezer. Knocked her silly.”

  Realization dawned in Ty’s eyes. “Well, that explains that. Never did buy she tripped. Woman’s more graceful in the kitchen than Misty Copeland is on the dance floor. My granddaughter, Katie,” he added at Cruz’s blank stare, “she’s taking ballet lessons. Misty’s her idol.”

  “Right.” Cruz’s lips twitched. “Near as we can tell, nothing other than my employment file was taken. And then it was returned the next day.”

  Ty swore. “Meaning someone working at True, or at least with a working knowledge of True, was responsible. All right.” He took a deep breath, resumed eating. “So what’s the game plan? You getting a look at everything you need?”

  “I’m examining the financials, but nothing’s popping. Is there anything I should know, maybe something Tatum doesn’t know, that you can share?”

  Ty didn’t answer for the longest time, and when he did, there was an odd determination—or was it resignation—in his voice. “I’ve never been one to snitch on anyone,” he said finally. “If I thought it would help Tatum, I would. Keeping that in mind, I think you’re wrong about this, Cruz. I’ve been around criminals most of my life. I am one. It’ll be in my obit when I leave this earth. I know that world and it’s not at True. Not that I’ve seen. Not that I’ve felt. You’re wrong, Cruz. You’re just wrong.”

  It wasn’t something he wanted to hear; admitting that meant he’d taken a wrong turn somewhere, wasted time and energy and promises to find the person who had shot Johnny. In a way it would be easier to admit defeat and walk away, go back and see where he’d gone wrong, but...there was something there, in the back of his mind, that wouldn’t allow him to let go.

  “I’ve got over a decade as a detective telling me otherwise.” He didn’t know how else to explain it. “But if you honestly believe there’s nothing there...” Cruz’s cell phone vibrated in his pocket. Used to late-night calls from the station, he pulled it out, glanced at the screen. Seeing Tatum’s name pop up had him both smiling and wincing at Ty’s snort of instant comprehension. “Stop it,” he warned the older man, who held up his hands in surrender. He clicked to answer. “Tatum, you’d better be calling me from—”

  “Car. Parking lot. Took picture.”

  “Tatum?” Cruz shot to his feet, held up a finger when Ty followed him. “Tatum, what’s wrong? Where are you?”

  “Car. Plate. Picture. On my phone.”

  He strained to hear, but all he could pick up were voices shouting and the sound of a siren. “Tatum?” He was yelling now and heading toward the door. “Tatum? Answer me.”

  “Hello?” Someone else’s voice came on the line. “Um, I don’t know who this is but the lady’s passed out. She got clipped. Not sure how bad. We called an ambulance. I can hear it now.”

  “Tell me where you are,” Cruz demanded.

  “Parking lot of Barley and Bakes Market. It’s on—”

  “I know where it is. I’m on my way.” Cruz disconnected, faced a worried-looking Ty. “Tatum’s been hurt. I need to go.”

  “Yeah, go, go. Call me when you know something.”

  Cruz barely heard him as he was already running.

  * * *

  “For the tenth time, I don’t want to go to the hospital. I want to call my sister!” Tatum didn’t know how many more times she could repeat herself. “Please.” She looked to the female EMT currently taking her blood pressure. Again. “Please just get me my phone.”

  “Ma’am—” The woman’s partner had his hands locked around Tatum’s ankles, attempting to keep her still on the stretcher. “You need to let us do our job.” The stern tone of his voice reminded her of Cruz. Instead of the notion calming her, it only irritated her. The crowd that had formed in the parking lot wasn’t huge; it wouldn’t be this time of night. But there were enough people for her situation to be embarrassing. The manager from the market had come out with a bottle of water for her while they’d waited for an ambulance. Once she’d regained consciousness. She didn’t remember passing out. She wasn’t entirely sure she had. But she did have one whopper of a headache. Worse than the one after her freezer encounter.

  “I’ll make you a deal.” Tatum stopped trying to kick her way off the stretcher at least. “You get me my phone and I’ll let you haul me wherever you want.”

  The male EMT looked to his partner, who simply shrugged and moved the stethoscope from the crook of Tatum’s arm to her chest. “Her vitals are okay. Not great,” she added at Tatum’s snort. “From what we’ve been told you bounced off a car and landed pretty hard.” She set the stethoscope aside and reached for a penlight, flashed it into her eyes. “We’re going to take you in for a CT scan if nothing else. What’s this?” The woman pressed her finger lightly against the bruise along her scalp.

  “I bashed my head at work a few days ago.”

  That seemed to settle things. “Yeah,” the woman said. “You’re going in to check for a concussion. Ms. Colton... Tatum,” she said when Tatum started getting restless again. “You need to be checked out, and fighting us isn’t going to make this any easier.”

  “I need. To call. My sister.” Humiliated tears formed in her eyes. She couldn’t think beyond the idea that January was hurt in a hospital somewhere and she was here, being poked and prodded in a parking lot. “Please find my phone.”

  “I’ve got it.” The male EMT returned, held up her phone.

  Tires screeching into the lot had a scream forming in Tatum’s throat. That sound. She’d never forget that sound for the rest of her life. The next thing she knew, Cruz’s SUV pulled to a stop and he jumped out, heading straight for her.

  “Cruz.” She couldn’t help it. She reached for him, and when she grabbed hold she instantly felt calmer. “I need to call January. She’s been in an accident. I need to know if she’s all right.”

  “Okay, we’ll do that.” Had he just patted her hand? “Just give me a minute.”

  “No, now!” Tatum blinked the tears free. “Cruz, please. If something’s happened to her—” She couldn’t finish the sentence. If January was hurt or worse... Tatum could barely breathe around the terror threatening to strangle her. She couldn’t lose anyone else she loved.

  “Tatum.” Cruz’s voice gentled and intensified. He caught her face in his hands and forced her to look at him. “I’m going to check on your sister. I promise. But right now I need to know what happened and how you are.” He looked to the female EMT. “Detective Cruz Medina. Tell me what you know.”

  Tatum could only imagine what the EMT thought about her, but she didn’t care. She sat there, shaking, worrying, as the EMTs listed a litany of possible injuries and why she needed to be taken to the ER.

  “You were hit by a car.” Cruz’s deadpan statement had her wincing. “For the love of... Tatum, why are you arguing with them?”

  “I got a call from an Officer Pearson.” She was so tired of explaining. “He said January was in a car accident and I should get to the hospital.” She ground out each word as if it were glass under her frustrated foot. “Now let me call my sister!”

  “Do you have her phone?” he asked the EMT, who handed it over. “Tatum, I’m going to check on January fo
r you, okay?” He pocketed her phone, caught her face once more. “I want you to go to the ER in the ambulance. I’m going to follow you there and I’ll let you know about your sister when I get there. All right?”

  “You promise?” She hated that her chin wobbled. Hated that she sounded so...pathetic. “You said you wouldn’t lie to me, so if you promise, I’ll believe you.”

  “I promise.” He bent down, pressed his lips to her forehead. “I’m glad you’re all right.” She reached up, wrapped her hand around his wrist and felt the unsteady, frenetic pounding of his pulse.

  “You were worried about me.” The joke had him smiling. A little. “I’ll see you at the hospital.”

  She swore she heard the male EMT mutter “finally,” but she chose to ignore it as they belted her in and lifted her into the back of the ambulance.

  “My purse!” she yelled at Cruz, who nodded and retrieved it from an onlooker. The last thing she saw as the ambulance siren sounded and the vehicle pulled away was Cruz dialing his phone.

  * * *

  “Yeah, Ty, she’s okay. As far as I know.” Cruz started the call before pulling his SUV into the emergency lot of the hospital. He felt like he’d been on a roller coaster of emotions ever since Tatum called. The abject fear pulsing through him on the unending drive to the market was not something he was used to. Adrenaline, yes. Anticipation? Of course. But not knowing what he’d find when he got there, the idea she’d been seriously hurt or worse... He swallowed and forced himself back into cop mode. His feelings were going to have to wait. “They’re going to run some tests, I’m sure. She knocked her head again and had some bruises and scrapes, but I think she was lucky.”

  “Was she?” Ty’s question wasn’t anything Cruz hadn’t already thought himself. He’d been so focused on everything around Tatum he hadn’t considered she was deeper in this than either of them realized. This was twice someone had tried to hurt her, twice someone in the shadows had struck out, the fear of whatever threat she posed more powerful than their desire to stay hidden. He’d missed that and it had put her in danger. What else had he missed? “After what you told me about what you suspect, Cruz, this can’t be an accident.”