by Regan Black
“Danica Gage?” Brayden’s eyebrows arched toward his hairline. “About as much as you, I guess. She’s well-respected around town and among the police force. Dedicated. She’s a remarkable trainer, but you know that.” He reached down and gave Stumps a rub under the chin. “What is it you’re really after?”
Shane wanted to know if he could trust her. More, he wondered if he could trust himself around her. His hatred for her grandfather, and her family as a whole, seemed etched on his bones after a decade of wearing that hate and fury like armor. He respected her and he didn’t want to get close only to lash out from habit and hurt her. Better if he could forget that kiss, forget Danica and forget this conversation.
“Hey.” Brayden gave his shoulder a shove. “You need a coffee or something? Either talk to me or get out of here so I can get to work.”
“What work?” Shane teased. “Only dogs have gone missing around here lately.” This experience of having a brother had perks. “And I know where they are.”
“Yeah? Prove it, hotshot.” Brayden shoved him again. “Talk.”
“Right.” Shane cleared his throat. “Danica just isn’t what I expected. Outside of the training center, I mean.”
Brayden whistled, earning the attention of both Stumps and Echo. “You like her.”
“Shut up.” He was a professional investigator looking for background on a witness. Of course he’d come to Brayden for personal advice, too. “Not on purpose,” he confessed. He didn’t get involved with clients or witnesses. Or anyone. “Besides, she’s a Gage.”
Brayden chuckled. “It’s not like she had any more choice about being a Gage than you did being Rusty’s kid,” Brayden said. He sat forward. “Is she convinced that Demi’s guilty?”
Naturally, that singular factor would be a priority for Brayden to develop an opinion about anyone in town. “I don’t think so,” Shane replied. That really should have been a primary concern for him, too. “She claims she believes Demi’s innocent, though she is grieving her brother.”
“Then what’s on your mind?” Brayden pressed.
“Do you know if she was ever in any trouble?”
Brayden shook his head. “Not that I know of,” he replied. “Always a sweet kid, dedicated, as I said. She and her grandpa were inseparable. Everyone around here was surprised she didn’t join the RRPD. What sparked all these questions?”
“I’m not sure.” If he could talk to anyone about this, it should’ve been Brayden. He knew his half brother wouldn’t fly off the handle. Yet the idea of wrecking her reputation by sharing her claim that she’d killed someone turned his stomach. “I’ll figure it out once Stumps and I find and catch the dog thief.”
Brayden snorted. “We will all bow to your expertise.”
“As you should,” Shane said, puffing out his chest. They both laughed.
Shane supposed this conversation, his questions about Danica, boiled down to missing his mom. She’d been his rock, encouraging him at every turn to ignore his circumstances and dream big. He couldn’t put all the blame for her death on Sergeant Gage, though he’d often wanted to. In his darkest hours, when Shane needed her most, Sergeant Gage denied him just as the law allowed. He’d never had another private conversation with his mother. Shane couldn’t fault Gage for that piece of the fiasco. It had been one of the few parts of the process done right. It was, however, one more reason Shane considered his primary task making sure the police force did their job right the first time.
“Daydream somewhere else, man.” Brayden turned to his computer. “You’ve got a thief to find.”
“Right.” Shane bent down and gave Echo some attention.
“Better not let it go three for three,” Brayden mocked as only a brother would.
“I’ll camp out in the kennel myself if necessary,” Shane said, ignoring Brayden’s eye roll.
At this point, solving the case seemed simple compared to figuring out what to do next with Danica. He supposed if there was going to be something personal between them, it would depend on her. Whatever last night’s kiss did or didn’t mean, they still needed to track down her attacker.
He went over the facts as he knew them so far as he and Stumps left. His next stop had to be the Larson office. The brothers had been bold enough to keep Nico in plain sight. He had no reason to think they’d bother hiding a puppy.
After the microchip debacle with Nico, there wasn’t much point in taking a scanner over. If they had the puppy, they would have changed the chip by now. Really all he could do was go have another chat with the twins. If they had a new Malinois puppy, he could develop a plan to expose how they acquired it.
He and Stumps checked in at the RRPD secretary’s desk on their way out. Lorelei Wong was one of his favorite people in the department. She loved all the dogs and she never treated Shane like a second-rate officer. “Did anything come in from the Larson realty office?” he asked her. “I’m expecting a receipt for a recent Malinois purchase. Probably would have been addressed to Chief Colton, but it could have been addressed to me.”
She looked through email as well as the Received box on her desk. “Nothing here, Shane.”
“All right. Thanks for checking. Hopefully they’ll follow through soon.”
The chief had tasked him with recovering Nico, and although he knew where the dog was, he couldn’t see a clear, legal path to reestablishing the training center ownership and getting the animal back. He thought of Danica’s face when they’d left Nico with the Larson brothers yesterday. He couldn’t bear a repeat of that with the puppy. No matter that her feelings shouldn’t be a factor in how he worked the case—he couldn’t put her through that grief again.
Who was he kidding? He couldn’t do it to himself. Mad, he could handle. Sorrow, as well. Bad stuff was part of life and people had to deal with it. But when Danica’s eyes had filled with that overwhelming worry for a good dog left to the control of the Larson twins, he’d hated feeling helpless. Yes, he needed to meet with the Larson brothers, but he’d prefer going in armed with more than a reminder to send him a copy of a receipt.
He let Stumps snuffle and poke along during the walk back to the house. Walking didn’t cost him much more time than driving and it gave him space to think. More important, walking was another affirmation that he was free to come and go whenever he wished.
The only fences and boundaries he wanted in his world were for the sole protection of his K9 partner.
CHAPTER 9
When lunchtime rolled around, Danica volunteered to pick up the food for everyone. The order placed, she insisted on taking Tyler with her. It wasn’t because she was afraid, she told herself. It was to protect Tyler in case Shane came by the training center with an update as she expected. She didn’t want Tyler to get caught unaware or feel pressured by even a casual conversation. She could give him some space, if nothing else.
She carefully avoided any and all reference to his black eye, the bullies and the second theft. She didn’t want him to feel ganged up on, either, so she kept the conversation on the agility training, pleased when Tyler laughed with her as they relived the more humorous moments.
Hayley had chosen the restaurant today, which meant they were headed for a posh little place in the middle of Red Ridge, right across the street from the office building the Larson twins owned.
She wanted so badly to march into that office and just take Nico back. One more reason to be grateful she’d brought Tyler with her. The Larson twins always made her feel nervous with the entitlement and ownership that radiated from their expressions when they looked at certain people. It reminded her of the imminent threat of smoke creeping under a doorway.
Having been on the receiving end of those barely-veiled threatening expressions yesterday, she hoped she never had to feel such a creepy gaze directed her way again. Plenty of rumors had circulated through her school years about the cru
de stunts the twins often pulled on their girlfriends and others, as well. She didn’t know how they managed to close real estate deals. Given a choice, she wouldn’t sign a contract with anyone who made her wonder when the knife would strike.
She parked the car at the curb and she and Tyler climbed out. A sharp yip had them both turning toward the unmistakable sound of a puppy. Across the street, a Belgian Malinois puppy had spied Tyler. He reared up, his front legs scrambling as he fought the leash holding him back.
“That’s him,” Tyler said, stunned. “The stolen puppy.”
Danica inventoried the black face, fawn body and a white spot on the chest and had to agree. “We don’t know for sure,” she said.
Reflexively, Tyler moved toward the puppy. Danica caught his arm just in time as the person on the other end of a retractable leash came into view.
Evan Larson.
Danica swore under her breath. She pulled out her phone and called Shane. The phone rang once, twice. “Come on. Pick up,” she muttered.
“Shane Colton.”
His voice, all business, gave her hope. “The Larsons have the puppy,” she said without preamble.
“How do you know?” he asked.
“I’m staring at him right this second. We’re near the Larsons’ office to pick up lunch and the puppy is right there on the corner.”
“The dog is loose?” Shane asked, incredulous.
“No.” She swallowed, determined to maintain her composure. “No, Evan Larson has him.”
“Don’t confront him, Danica.”
“He’s recognized us,” she said. “The puppy recognized us.” Her voice cracked as Evan retracted the lead and tugged the puppy roughly, turning to walk him in the opposite direction. “Shane, we have to do something. He has no idea how to treat a dog.”
“Nothing is the best thing you can do right now.” He paused. “The only thing.”
She hated that he was right. As much as she wanted to charge after Evan, she couldn’t put Tyler in that situation. “Doesn’t feel like it.”
“I know.” The palpable empathy in his voice went a long way to soothing her. “We will get both dogs back.”
“Evan doesn’t even like the dogs,” she grumbled.
“I know that, too,” Shane said. “Pick up the food and get back to the training center as soon as possible.”
“Okay.” She blinked away tears of frustration.
“One more thing,” Shane said before she could end the call.
“Yes?”
“Who is ‘we’?” he asked.
“Tyler is helping me pick up lunch.”
“Good.” Shane sounded too relieved by the news. “Both of you get back to work and stay there. I’ll be over as soon as I can.”
“All right.” She ended the call and shoved the phone into her pocket.
Tyler was still ready to spring into action. “Well? What do we do?”
“We pick up the food and let the authorities handle it.”
“We are the dog authorities,” Tyler insisted. “There are two of us,” he added.
She tipped her head toward the restaurant. “I thought the same thing,” she admitted. “But if we go after the puppy, we could be charged with harassment or worse. I’m sure the dog is microchipped and registered to Evan or Noel already.”
Tyler swore, echoing her own thoughts. She didn’t have the heart to remind him to watch his language. His expression dour, he withdrew into himself as they collected the lunch order and returned to the training center.
They’d just finished distributing food to everyone when Shane walked into the break room with Stumps. Danica could see from his thunderous expression that his day wasn’t going much better than hers. She had the outrageous urge to greet him with a kiss. Surely that would improve the day for both of them. Fortunately, she remembered where they were and what they were to each other. After greeting Stumps, she offered Shane half of the sub sandwich she’d ordered.
“I could eat. Thanks.” He pulled out the chair next to Tyler, who offered to get him a drink from the refrigerator.
“Water is great,” Shane said. His eyebrows arched as if Tyler’s courtesy surprised him.
“Does Stumps need anything?” she asked.
“He’s good,” Shane replied. “I gave him a break and some water before we left the hospital.”
“Did you learn anything about the thief?” she asked.
Shane gave an abbreviated shrug. “Not a lot to go on, but we’ll keep working every detail.”
Tyler returned with the water and sat down. Although she was curious about the guard’s statement, she decided more questions could wait. She didn’t have to remind Shane that recovering the dogs was paramount. To her surprise, he kept the conversation light and friendly and chuckled a bit when Tyler relayed the remaining puppy’s initial failures on the agility course.
“He’ll get it,” Shane said with confidence. “Half the time when we try those courses with Stumps, I swear he goofs off just to test my patience.”
Danica leaned over and grinned at the corgi lounging at Shane’s feet. It was a fair assessment. “Stumps could have been good at a thousand things,” she explained to Tyler. “I think he revealed his preference for evidence collection for the sake of variety.”
Shane also glanced down at his partner, who was obviously soaking up every minute of being off duty. “I believe it.” Shaking his head, he turned back to Tyler. “How’d you get the shiner, kid?”
Tyler shoved a french fry through a puddle of ketchup. “Typical bully crap,” Tyler replied.
“Need a hand?”
Tyler’s dark eyebrows knitted as he frowned. “What do you mean?”
“Help. I could give you an assist,” Shane said. “When a bully knows the target has backup nearby, it usually makes a difference.”
Tyler shrugged.
Danica sensed another prison story there, if not a blatant reference to her grandfather’s bullying of Shane through the case. She added it to the column of things she didn’t feel she had the right to ask him.
“You have an older brother?” Shane asked.
“No.”
“Good friend who’s bigger than you?”
“Uh, no.” Tyler’s gaze darted to Danica and then down to his empty paper plate. “I’m good. It’s over.” He gathered the remains of his lunch and shoved it all into the original sack. Pushing back from the table, he picked up the trash. “Thanks for the offer.”
“Consider it open,” Shane said as Tyler walked away.
Danica studied him. “Did something the guard said change your mind, or is this an attempt to slide past his defenses?”
“That would be a neat trick,” Shane murmured. “The kid has substantial defenses.” He stuffed his mouth full with the last of the sandwich.
Having brothers, she recognized the ploy to avoid answering and waited him out. “Which is it?” she pressed when he finished chewing. “Interrogation or olive branch?”
“A little of both, really. He’s important to you.”
His stark honesty startled her. “Oh.” She didn’t expect him to lie. She just hadn’t expected him to be quite so forthright. And why did Shane care who was important to her? He wasn’t known for soft-pedaling the facts with his clients.
“If the kid is involved, my guess is the situation has gone way beyond his comfort zone,” he added.
She leaned forward. “He isn’t involved,” she whispered.
“Are you going to eat that pickle?” Shane asked as if she hadn’t spoken at all.
Apparently, having half a sandwich had merely sparked his appetite rather than satisfying it. “Go ahead.” She glanced down at her plate. “Take the rest of the sandwich, too, if you want.”
His sandy eyebrows furrowed at the offer. “You didn’t eat
much.”
Her appetite hadn’t returned after seeing the way Evan handled the puppy. “When I called, I got the impression you already knew the Larsons had the puppy,” she said.
Shane nodded, wolfing down the rest of her sandwich in big bites. “I’d gone by about an hour before you called. No sense bothering to take the microchip scanner after yesterday.” He balled up a paper napkin in his fist, his mouth an angry slash across his handsome face. “I didn’t think they’d have the audacity to walk the dog through town in the middle of the day or I would’ve warned you.”
“They’ve always wanted people to know they have the power,” she said. “With any luck their arrogance, will give us an opening.”
“Agreed.” The slash turned to a warm, charming smile.
She blinked, her thoughts scattered by the expression. “So, um, what’s next?”
“Work, I guess,” he replied. “You enjoy the rest of your day and Stumps and I will enjoy the rest of ours. We’ll compare notes later,” he suggested.
“You know that’s not what I meant. Do you have a plan?”
“Oh.” He sat back, his gaze so steady she wanted to fidget. “Since it’s Friday, I was thinking something traditional like dinner and a movie.”
Was he asking her out? She felt her mouth drop open as she floundered for the right response.
He reached over and tapped her chin. “Speechless I can work with. Thanks for lunch. I’ll pick you up at seven.” Clearing the trash from his place and hers, he and Stumps walked off.
For several stunned minutes, Danica sat there wondering if hell had just frozen over. In the past few minutes, Shane had been almost as charming and warm as he’d been before the murder trial. Admittedly, she’d really only seen that side of him from a distance.
Then she realized that last night’s kiss, though it felt like spontaneous combustion on her side, likely had been delivered only to shock her. Dinner and a movie aside, Shane couldn’t be putting as much romantic significance on that kiss as her fluttering heart wanted to put on it.
