Phish NET Stalkings

by Denise Robbins

  He knew he had to get to know her better, and he wanted that, but he couldn’t do that if they weren’t together. He had to see her. He needed to see her.

  At the stop sign, he glanced left and right then took the right turn, the opposite direction of his home. Okay, he could slow it down some. He wouldn’t take her to bed. He would just stop by to see her, maybe kiss her. He shook his head in denial. There was no way he would just kiss her and leave it at that.

  He had an idea. He would stop for a pizza. They could have a late dinner together. Like a date. There, that was slowing things down. Yeah, he could do this. No wham bam, thank you ma’am, but an old-fashioned date. Not quite old-fashioned since he was going to pick the pizza up and take it to her place, but at least there would be food and maybe a bottle of red wine involved.

  He nodded to himself and took the next right onto the highway and headed to the local brick-oven pizza place he enjoyed called 900 Degrees.

  * * * *

  Jane stared at the door as if it might bite her. “Who the heck…” The question trailed off as light dawned. No way. He wouldn’t. Hadn’t she told him that morning that they shouldn’t see each other again? She glared at the door as if doing so would make him disappear, leave, vamoose.

  Instead, he knocked again. Maybe it wasn’t Cooper. Maybe it was the local paperboy collecting.

  She didn’t get the paper delivered.

  Dropping the wrapping paper, she got up off her knees and moved to the door where she checked the peephole. Sure enough, Cooper Chance stood on the other side of the door grinning from ear-to-ear and holding a box. Keying in her code, she turned off the security system, unlocked the door. She opened it only far enough so she leaned against the edge of the door. “What are you doing here?”

  Apparently, her curt tone didn’t deter him at all because Cooper leaned in and kissed her on the mouth. Damn him!

  “I brought food. Have you eaten?”

  Of course, her stomach gave her away when it grumbled at the delicious aroma of Italian spices. Traitor, she grumbled silently as she rubbed her belly.

  Cooper chuckled and stepped past her. “Where shall I set this?” He indicated the pizza box with a nod of his head. “Do you have any glasses?” He lifted a bottle of wine and gave it a little waggle.

  He wasn’t going to go away. Well, she was hungry and she did like pizza and red wine, so what the heck. She shrugged and turned toward the kitchen. “Have a seat. I’ll get the glasses and some napkins.”

  When she returned she found him sitting on the floor, his back pressed against the sofa, the pizza box set in front of him.

  Handing Cooper a corkscrew, she set the paper plates, napkins, and glasses on the coffee table. She spread out a red and white checked cloth she found in the cupboard. After placing the box in the middle of the tablecloth, she sat cross-legged next to Cooper and held out the glasses for him to pour.

  “I hope you like Chianti. I thought it appropriate.”

  He took the glass from her, brushing her hand with his fingers and that fuzzy sensation of heat and electricity pulsed through her. “I like Chianti, and I love pizza.”

  “Good.” He smiled at her. “Then here’s to good wine, great pizza, and a beautiful lady.”

  She felt her cheeks heat. Why did she have to blush? “Thank you.”

  “Salut.” Cooper tapped his glass to hers and then they both drank.

  “That is good.”

  “Wait until you try the pizza.” He set his glass aside and opened the lid to the pizza. Her stomach did another grumble and Cooper chuckled. “None too soon.”

  He reached in and pulled a slice out. Setting it on a paper plate, he handed it and a napkin to her. Then he took his own slice.

  “Don’t wait on ceremony,” he urged.

  She didn’t have to be told twice. After folding the slice at the wide edges, she lifted it up and took a large bite. “Mmm.”

  “How was your day, dear?”

  She almost choked on the second bite before she caught herself and wrinkled her nose at him. “It was actually very good.”

  “Tell me all about it,” he said and took another bite of his own slice.

  “Well, I ended up going to these two flea markets.”

  “Ha!”

  She lifted one brow. “What?”

  “You went to a flea market?”

  “Yes. I love flea markets. You never know what kind of hidden treasure you will find in someone else’s junk.”

  “What did you find?”

  Wiping her face with one of the napkins, she got to her feet and went to where the box with David’s birthday present sat. She returned to her seat, opened the lid and lifted one out. “This is one of the things I found. It’s David’s birthday present.”

  “Frogs?” Cooper asked as he took one in his hand then turned it this way and that until… “Holy shit!” he laughed. “That’s hysterical. I don’t think I’ve ever seen a frog with the correct plumbing before.”

  Jane giggled and handed him the second one to check out. “He is going to love them!” she exclaimed.

  “What on earth made you come up with that idea?”

  She tucked the ceramic frogs back into their padding and box and set them aside. “It’s how we became partners.”

  “Huh?” he grunted as he picked up her wine glass and handed it to her.

  “It was finding a pair of frogs like these that set David and me up with enough money to start our own business.”

  Cooper’s eyes bugged out and he swallowed hard his bite of pizza. “They’re worth that much?”

  “They’re worth whatever someone is willing to pay.”

  He shook his head. “What else did you pick up at these flea markets?”

  “Oh! Wait until you see. Grab some pizza and follow me.” Jane grabbed her own slice and got to her feet. She wended her way through the kitchen, past the mudroom, down the short steps to the basement and into the garage with Cooper right behind her. At the back of the truck, she lifted the latch and dropped the tailgate. With pizza in hand, she crawled up into the back of the truck.

  “Isn’t she beautiful?” She gestured with her free hand, running it along the smooth wood surface of one leg.

  She watched Cooper scratch his head and his brows crease in the center of his forehead just above his nose. “Um…yes.”

  The hesitation in his voice had her laughing. “Why would someone leave something so beautiful out in the rain? It just boggles the mind. Imagine it all cleaned up, stained, and waxed. It will look brand new.”

  “You’re going to restore it?” Cooper asked between bites.

  “Yup. Just as soon as I get the cabinet out of the truck and into the dining room. I’m going to refinish it right there.”

  “Well, come on.” He shoved the last bite into his mouth and wiped his hands on his pants. “Let’s move this into the house right now.”

  She gaped at him. Was he serious? Why would he help her?

  “You get down and guide the cabinet to the ground. Then we’ll get it into the house.”

  He didn’t give her a chance to reply. He simply placed a hand at the base of her back and scooted her to the tailgate. She shrugged. Well, who was she to look a gift horse in the mouth? She had planned to ask David to help but Cooper was stronger, so why not let him? She crawled out of the back of the truck holding the padded blanket around the legs, and guided the cabinet to the cement floor.

  He hopped out of the bed of the truck. “Okay, you take the legs and I’ll take the actual cabinet part. You guide while I walk backward.”

  Somehow, they managed to get the cabinet in, up the stairs, and into her dining room without hitting a wall.

  “I can see the potential now that it’s in this room under these lights. You are a woman with many sides.” He leaned in for a brief kiss.

  His lips were warm and pliant and she wanted the kiss to last longer, but he pulled back, picked up the padded blanket and folded it.
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br />   “Should I reheat the pizza?”

  “Nah. I like it cold.” He took her hand in his and guided them back to the living room where he topped off their glasses of Chianti and handed her another slice.

  “Oh, no,” she said with a shake of her head. “I’m full.”

  “It’s a small one.”

  “No. No thank you.”

  “We’ll share.” He took a bite then held the slice out for her.

  “Come on. You don’t want me to eat alone, do you?”

  She hated to be rude so she took a bite. When she finished it she asked, “Tell me about your day. When you left this morning, you mentioned something about a person being dead. I hope it was an accident.” Had it only been this morning that she had seen him last?

  Cooper wiped his mouth with a paper napkin. “Uh, I can’t really discuss an active case with you.”

  Shit! Here he goes again keeping secrets. It wasn’t like he kept secrets because he wanted to. He had to. He couldn’t jeopardize an open and active case. People had a tendency to talk and let things slip no matter how cautious and careful they tried to be.

  “I read something in this morning’s paper about women being attacked. Is that another case you can’t discuss?”

  He swallowed the bite of pizza along with the lump in his throat. The tone of her question stung. “Unfortunately, yes. I can tell you, please don’t walk the streets alone.”

  “I thought it was hookers who were being attacked,” she pushed.

  “Right now that appears to be his MO, but better to play it safe.”

  Jane bobbed her head once. “Understood. So what can you tell me about your day? Or you?”

  He leaned back against the sofa, pulled Jane next to him, and slung an arm over her shoulders. “I met the cutest little boy today.”

  “On the job?”

  “Yes.”

  “What did he do?”

  A bubble of laughter erupted from his chest. “He didn’t do anything. His mother is dead so now we have to locate his next of kin.”

  “That’s so sad.”

  “Yeah, yeah it is.”

  “Do you use computer forensics to help you locate the boy’s relatives?”

  “Uh, no. But that’s not a bad idea.” Why hadn’t he thought of that? Had he been away from cybercrime that long that he didn’t think that way any longer? What the hell was wrong with him? Did Janette have a computer in her apartment? He closed his eyes, brought the image of the small, two-bedroom place into his mind, and walked through it, taking inventory of it. The babysitter had a laptop. The babysitter said Janette took classes and that she helped Janette with her homework sometimes. In the living room next to the television, he brought the picture of the cable modem and wireless router back to his mind. Then he remembered the computer. Janette tucked it into the corner of her small dining room. She probably let Joey use it when she was around. Based on what he knew of the woman as a mother he could see that she would be cautious of the little guy’s use.

  Damn! First thing tomorrow morning, he would go back over to Janette’s and search through her computer.

  “How do you know about computer forensics? Most people don’t even know that exists, or if they do they never consider it as part of a police force.”

  Jane stiffened at his words, but he continued, “Look, I know you have had some experience with the police.” Again, he felt her retreat as she tried to pull away, but he held her close, close enough to feel her heart race against his chest. “What happened to you? Did some jackass pull you over for a speeding ticket and hit on you?”

  She shook her head.

  That was good. He would hate to think that one of the officers on his force was an unprofessional letch.

  “Then what?”

  “Nothing. Nothing, okay.”

  “Jane, listen to me.” He set her away from him, cupped her face in his hands and gazed into her dark eyes. “I’ve seen you react to my badge. I admit I didn’t understand the first couple of times, but now I recognize the panic attack every time you see my shield.”

  She started to shake her head to deny his accusation, but he stilled her movement with a soft, gentle kiss against her lips then her forehead.

  “You do. I’ve witnessed your frozen face, the flush of hives on your neck and lower cheeks, the increased breathing and heart rate. What happened?”

  She shook her head. She wasn’t telling him. Maybe she just needed more time. Maybe she would learn to trust him. Somewhere in his gut, a fist tightened. He wasn’t so sure.

  He kissed her again, wiped the one tear that had slid down her cheek, and released her face. He leaned back and tucked her head against his shoulder. “How do you know about computer forensics?”

  “My mom.”

  That was all she said. Nothing more.

  “You said your mother was dead.”

  Her head shook against his shoulder. “She was ki—died when I was eight.”

  Killed? That was the word she had been about to use. Her mother had been killed. Murdered? Accident? She wasn’t going to volunteer any more information and if he pushed her she would just clam up tighter than his ass in a California bathhouse.

  He checked his watch. It was almost midnight. He should go home, but he didn’t want to. He was enjoying just sitting there against Jane’s sofa and her tucked against him talking about their day. It was so…normal. He wanted that normalcy, that affection, that sense of home. More than anything.

  “It’s late. I should probably get out of here, let you get some sleep.”

  Jane’s lips caressed his jaw, his chin, and then bit his earlobe.

  “Jane? Are you sure you want to start this?”

  She straddled him, cupped his face in her delicate hands, and pressed her lips to his. “I don’t know what I’m doing, but I can’t stop myself,” she murmured as she took his mouth again and this time he took hers right back.

  “Do you really want to leave?” she panted, her breasts heaving against his chest.

  Hell no! He didn’t want to leave. He wanted to stay there. He wanted to be buried so deep inside her that he would never find his way out again. There was something about Jane that drew him to her. “A moth to a flame,” he muttered.

  Her eyes glittered in the soft glow of the lamplight. He raked his fingers in her silky hair and felt her heat against him. Nipping at her neck, his lips traveled up to her mouth and he took it like a man starved.

  “I won’t stay,” he said as he flipped her onto her back. “We both have work tomorrow. But I’m going to have you, Jane. I’ve missed you all day and wanted this.”

  She arched beneath his touch and that was all the answer he needed.

  NINETEEN

  “Yes!” she yelled as she dropped the phone into its cradle.

  “We did it! We did it!” Jane sing-songed, dancing around her desk shaking her bootie.

  “Is everything—”

  She halted mid-shake and spun around. Her assistant stood stock-still and wide-eyed in the doorway staring.

  Cheeks flushed, Jane straightened and cleared her throat, shoving down the skirt that had crawled up her thighs during her little jig.

  “Yes, Tony?”

  When her assistant didn’t respond but stood there gaping with his chin to his chest, Jane spoke again. “Are you trying to catch flies?”

  Tony’s lips clamped shut and he blinked several times before he stood up straight and put words to thoughts. “Uh. No. S-sorry,” he stammered and ran a hand down his face as if to clear his vision. “Are you okay? I heard yelling.”

  Jane tossed her head back and laughed. “Terrific. I’m fantastic! We’re fantastic! Never better.” She took a deep breath and attempted to calm her excitement. “We did it, Tony. We did it!” she exclaimed, lifting her arms above her head and giving a little twirl.

  She stopped and dropped her arms to her sides when Tony chuckled. “Did what?”

  “We got the Hollywood film company contract.
Our organic cosmetics will be used on every actor and actress they hire for the next five years.”

  Tony gave a high-pitched whistle then did the Marine Corps call. “Oorah.”

  “So, we’re celebrating?”

  “Celebrating. Yes! Let’s do it. Let’s have a party. A Hollywood party.”

  “It’s almost Halloween. We could do a costume party.”

  Jane crossed the carpeted floor of her office, clutched her assistant’s wide shoulders in her hands and planted a noisy kiss on each cheek. “Brilliant idea.” She stepped back and watched as the blush color his cheeks a bright pink. “You start making the list of preparations and I’m going to call on David, tell him the good news.”

  “Yes, ma’am.” Tony spun on his spit-shined shoes and left her office.

  On stocking feet, Jane rushed back to her desk, slid her feet back into the heels she had slipped off underneath the desk. From her bottom drawer, she snatched up her purse and slung it over her shoulder. On her way out she paused at the mini-fridge she stocked with water and soda and extricated a bottle of champagne she held in reserve for special occasions. The new contract, the biggest contract they had ever been awarded definitely qualified as a special occasion.

  Sliding the bottle into her bag with a Sock Monkey embroidered on the sides, she grabbed two glasses and turned to stroll out when her phone buzzed.

  “Amy on line one,” Tony announced through the intercom.

  “Shoot.”

  She heard Tony’s laughter through the speaker. “You want me to tell her you’re in a meeting?”

  “No,” she whined as she set her purse on top of her desk. “Put her through, please.”

  It wasn’t as if she didn’t want to talk with her best friend. She did. It was just that Amy had a tendency of putting a damper on her wins. It was as if Amy was jealous, which didn’t make any sense. The woman had everything. She didn’t even have to work for it.

  When her phone buzzed again, Jane leaned her hip against the edge of her desk and picked up the phone. “Hi, Amy.”

  “Hey! Do you have time for lunch today?”

  “I’d love to, but I’m having champagne with David.”