She Walks the Line (Harlequin Super Romance)

by Fox, Roz Denny

  Just as she closed her eyes, her bedside phone rang. Mei reached for it apprehensively, but found herself smiling when Cullen’s low, sexy voice rumbled in her ear.

  “I called to say that everything about you is incredible. So get used to hearing me say it.” He hung up with a soft click.

  Mei smiled again as she replaced the receiver. It was a lovely ending to her day.

  CHAPTER ELEVEN

  MEI LU ROSE EARLY, dressed in jeans and a scuffed pair of cross-trainers for a brisk hike to the kite store. Mr. and Mrs. Wu, remembering her, greeted her effusively.

  “Today is excellent day to fly kites,” the kite maker said with a toothless grin.

  Mei Lu felt her excitement swell. “I need four. The other day I fell in love with a butterfly and one of the good-luck kites. But I want to check your inventory again and be sure I choose right for each person. No multilines, reels or ground stakes. We want to run down hills in the park and let the wind take our kites up.”

  “You want happy kites,” the owner’s wife said, fluttering her fragile, paper-white hands. “This is good. I have favorites. Come see them.”

  “You have so many—how does anyone decide?” Mei marveled at a ceiling covered with colorful hanging kites.

  “The right kite speaks to you.” Mr. Wu trekked behind the women, giving his advice. “My grandfather and his father made kites from muyuan wood. Hard to find now. Very expensive. I use bamboo, as do most makers of kites.”

  “And silk,” Mei Lu said, lightly touching the exquisite butterfly. “Yes, this one for Belinda. Oh, I see a different one I like for Bobby. The owl.” She then debated between an eagle and a brightly colored phoenix that had a long, trailing tail. “The phoenix,” she finally said. “For the children’s father.”

  “And what will you fly?” Mrs. Wu asked, holding up first a swallow, then a bluebird, and last a goldfish, slender but with exquisite iridescent shading.

  “The fish.” Mei Lu imagined how graceful it would look in flight.

  Mr. Wu bowed. “I will connect the line-winder bobbins and roll the kites so they will fit in your car trunk.”

  “I’m walking today,” Mei Lu informed him when she reached the counter. She pulled her debit card from her shoulder bag and her badge folder flew out and fell open on the counter. “Oops.” She grabbed the shield and returned it to her purse. It wasn’t until Mei had finished her transaction that she noticed the couple had shuffled close together. The Wus clung to each other, frozen. “It’s okay,” Mei said gently. “I am with the police force, but you’ve done nothing wrong,” she assured them.

  The man patted his wife’s hand and pulled free of her in order to bend and retrieve a tray filled with kite bobbins. “Forgive us,” he said, absently lapsing into Chinese. “My wife’s family suffered much at the hands of authorities in old Peking. She was young, but she remembers. And recently we were questioned. A man, a countryman not known to us, died by the knife. This happened just up the street.”

  “Oh, I know,” Mei Lu said, as she took her debit card from the still-shaken woman. “That’s how I found your shop. I’m doing follow-up investigation on that case. A second man died on the docks. We think the deaths are connected.” She sighed, watching the proprietor adroitly weave line from the spools onto the kite strings. “People in this community aren’t talking. I believe someone knows more than he or she is telling.”

  “Not us,” the old man said quickly.

  “No. I didn’t mean you,” Mei Lu told him with a smile. “But if you hear anything, or see other strangers in the area who may have a tiger tattoo right here—” she pointed to the web between her thumb and forefinger “—I hope you’ll trust me enough to notify me at once. For his sake, as well as the community’s. I’d hate for anyone else to die.” Mei slid her business card across the counter and under the man’s gnarled hand. As she picked up her purchases, she added, “I carry a phone. You can call that number day or night.”

  Mei Lu left doubting she’d ever hear a word. The Wus had let her leave without the usual Chinese blessing for a first customer of the day—an almost unheard-of oversight.

  Cullen’s car rolled up seconds after she walked into her house. Still pink-cheeked from the exertion, she opened her door and saw the twins tumble from the back seat. Mei heard Cullen tell them to stay in the car.

  “It’s all right,” she called. Although maybe not, considering the way Mei had the wind knocked out of her just seeing Cullen in his outdoorsy jeans and lumberjack shirt. His dark hair was ruffled by a stiff breeze, and that reminded Mei Lu of how rumpled it’d been during last night’s tussle on her bed.

  The twins and their father arrived on her steps at about the same time. Mei had shut Foo inside. But he leaped against the door, letting his displeasure be known.

  “Can we see your dog?” Bobby asked excitedly.

  “If your father doesn’t object, I actually thought we might take him along.”

  Cullen didn’t seem too sure, but when plied by wheedling kids, he capitulated. “Oh, all right. Why not? He won’t bite rambunctious kids, will he? They’re bouncing off the walls today. Neither of them has ever flown a kite before.”

  “Well, then you’re all in for a treat.”

  Belinda jumped from step to step, and did a sort of hop-scotch with her feet when she landed on the small porch. “Can we see our kites?”

  “Yeah,” Bobby said, ascending more slowly than his sister. “Dad said they were Chinese kites and they look different from the kites we draw in pictures.”

  “The store wrapped them. It’s probably best if we don’t undo the wrapping until we get to the park. Hey,” she said, noting their suddenly long faces. “The park isn’t that far away. You kids can carry the kites to the car while I get Foo’s leash and his traveling food and water.”

  The children were appeased enough to enter Mei’s house at a more decorous pace. Bobby checked out the room, then remarked, “You sure have a squirty house.”

  Cullen prodded his shoulder. “Bobby, that was rude. You’ve got to learn to think before you blurt out remarks like that.”

  The boy frowned, and Mei smothered a laugh when he said, “Squirty’s not a bad word, Dad. And her dog’s great.” As if to punctuate his statement, he dropped down and rolled around the floor with Foo.

  Cullen, who had his gaze on Mei Lu, saw her indulgent smile. He gave up with a shrug. “Those are the kites, I presume,” he said, pointing to the wrapped bundles.

  “Yes, and each one already has a line-winder attached. The string,” she explained as the three novices gaped at her. “The last thing we want to do is get the lines tangled up, either before or after we start flying the kites.”

  Bobby nodded, jumping up after he’d sent Foo chasing a ball. “Which kite’s mine, Mei Lu?”

  She sorted through the packages and gave the children theirs. “Cullen, can you carry ours?”

  Foo, hearing the rattle of his leash, danced over to Mei. Though he was panting hard from his roughhousing with Bobby, the dog’s eyes were bright with anticipation.

  “Your dog acts like he knows he’s going to go to the park,” Belinda said. She’d hung back as Bobby played with Foo. Now she went down on her knees and stroked the dog’s soft ears.

  Mei Lu showed her how to scratch his back. “He loves to ride in the car, kids. But he has to behave. In my car I have a harness that’s like your seat belts. Since you don’t have one of those, he has to lie quietly between you in the back seat. He can’t be up moving around. He could get hurt, or distract your dad. That could be dangerous.”

  The kids nodded solemnly. And once in the car, they took their responsibility seriously. As a result, they were quieter than usual.

  “Hey, this is great,” Cullen muttered half under his breath. “This dog idea may have benefits I’ve never explored.”

  Mei glanced into the back seat. Foo was thrilled with all the attention. His eyes were closed and he wore a blissful expression as both kids
constantly petted him. “I can probably rent him out to you during the day. I’m not happy about having to leave him alone so much when I’m working.”

  “Speaking of work,” Cullen said, “what’s the word on your car?”

  “The mechanic phoned this morning. After he told me I should take the car out and shoot it, he said I’d be lucky to have it back by Friday. Instead of flying kites today, I ought to just go and buy a new car.”

  “Not nearly as much fun,” Cullen said.

  “No, and I did want to mention this about my morning buying trip.” Mei went on to tell Cullen about the reticent kite-shop owners. “I’ll bet someone who has a shop in the vicinity of the club has information on our courier. If not on him, then on the letter-writer’s contact. I noticed a lot of little shops along the route I walked. I figure I can spend the rest of this week trying to pry information out of someone.”

  “I don’t know, Mei Lu. I’m not keen on that idea. People haven’t come forward for a reason. You said the waitress was scared, and now it sounds as if the kite-store owners are, too. You could shake the wrong tree out there.”

  “Isn’t that what we want?” She directed Cullen into the park entrance, not giving him time to voice the objection she could see forming on his lips.

  It turned out the park Mei had hoped they’d have to themselves was already crowded with kite-flyers. Bobby and Belinda had spotted them, too, and twisted around in their seat belts to see the sky.

  “At the west end there’s an empty hill. If we hurry,” Cullen said, “I think we can lay claim to it.”

  Mei Lu had to leash Foo and grab the bag she’d loaded for him. As well as dishes and food, she had a stake and cable she used if she went to read or eat lunch in the park. She’d pretty much resigned herself to the idea of spending her time teaching the kids and maybe even Cullen to fly their kites. To her surprise, when she finally caught up to them, they were deep in discussion with an Asian family who had a boy and a girl near the ages of the twins. Those kids were showing Belinda and Bobby what to do. And the two men chatted like old friends.

  Mei tended to Foo. The mother of the other pair came to introduce herself. “I’m Angela Yee. It’s truly a small world, isn’t it. Our husbands met on a job your husband did for Ron’s insurance office. It seems they shared kid pictures and stories over several lunches. I decided to take a break from racing up and down the hills to meet you.” She smiled. “The kids are on spring break, so Ron took the day off work.”

  Mei extended a hand. “Mei Lu Ling. Cullen’s not my husband. But, as you said, Bobby and Belinda are his. The dog’s mine. Meet Foo Manchu. I live in the area. Cullen lives across town.”

  “Oh, sorry I jumped to conclusions. I should’ve realized the children weren’t yours.”

  “Don’t apologize. I’m delighted to make your acquaintance—and to have your husband’s help in teaching them how to keep their kite strings from tangling.”

  Angela turned and shaded her eyes. “I don’t think you need to worry. They all have their kites up.”

  Mei unabashedly applauded them. Her attention lingered on Cullen’s lithe, athletic form. She felt he didn’t often relax. Well, he had seemed pretty relaxed last night, but that was relaxation of an altogether different sort. She found herself blushing at the memory.

  “You two are dating, though, right? It’s obvious that you care for him a lot.”

  Angela’s comment brought Mei up short.

  “I have an Asian friend who’s engaged to a Caucasian,” Angela went on. “She’s having a hard time with his children and his parents. None of them accept her. Maybe you have some hints.”

  “Cullen and I aren’t—we’re co-workers, you could say. That’s a shame about your friend.”

  “Well, he comes from a wealthy old family.”

  “Oh.” Mei thought that description fit her and Cullen—except that they weren’t engaged, of course.”

  “My friend is so sweet. Her parents objected at first, but they’ve come around. Kim says they love and accept Roger now.”

  Mei filled Foo’s water bowl from a bottle. “If anything were to develop between Cullen and me, I can see my parents having a fit. At least my mother. She thinks I should marry someone in China. Would you believe it? But…I’m probably never going to have to cross that bridge where Cullen and I are concerned,” she added, capping the water and tucking it back in her bag.

  “Hey,” Cullen called just then. “The wind’s fine, Mei Lu. Don’t stand there talking all day.” He moved closer so he could talk without shouting. “Ron says that according to the weather report, this gusty wind isn’t going to last much past noon. Come and meet him. My last recovery was for his company.”

  Mei Lu went to be introduced to Ron Yee. “Cullen, you might want to take breaks now and then,” she advised. “You fly that phoenix without one, and tomorrow your arms will feel like they’re going to fall off.”

  He grinned like a schoolboy.

  “Save your breath,” Angela said, walking up behind her. “Men never listen to advice from a woman.”

  “And that doesn’t bother you?”

  “Used to. I’ve decided it’s a defect built into the species.”

  The two women shared a good laugh as they returned to where they left their kites. “On that note, I think I’ll go show Cullen what a born kite-flyer can do.” Mei unrolled her three-tiered goldfish and prepared to carry it to the top of the hill.

  Angela picked up her own kite. “Mei Lu,” she said, “if we lose the wind around the time my know-it-all husband claims, would you guys be interested in going somewhere for lunch?”

  “Cullen’s driving. I’ll ask if he has to get back to work. Otherwise it’s fine with me.”

  “Great.” Angela hefted her kite, a dragon head with at least a twenty-foot tail.

  Ten minutes later she and Mei Lu began to show off their prowess by making the kites dip and dance and swoop. Cullen reined in his phoenix and sat down by Foo to observe. Ron Yee did the same and the men laughed together, freely admitting they’d been bested.

  The kids were still going strong by the time Mei Lu and Angela called it quits.

  Cullen thought he’d never seen Mei Lu more full of life or more beautiful. Her face glowed from the exercise. Her eyes sparkled, and he wished he’d brought a camera to record how she and his twins looked against a picturesque background of green grassy knolls and blue skies. He swallowed back an unnamed longing, and turned his attention to stroking the dog.

  “That’s the most fun I’ve had in—well, I can’t recall when,” Mei said, letting out a big, happy sigh as she sank to her heels. “Cullen, Angela’s invited us to join them for lunch.” She turned to the other woman, who’d flopped down, flat on her back, her head cradled in her husband’s lap.

  Ron grinned at Cullen. “Hey, that’d be great! Only don’t expect gourmet. We told the kids we’d go someplace with an outdoor playground.”

  “Anything’s okay by me, if Mei Lu’s good with it.”

  “It’ll be fun,” she said. “Today’s still cool enough to leave Foo in the car. So the only thing we have to do is ask the twins.”

  “They’ll jump at the chance. They’ve only got a few more days left in Houston this trip, and we haven’t done a lot in the way of social activities. Their mom gets home on Saturday. On Sunday they’re headed back to Austin. Until summer break,” he added, a noticeable sadness stealing over him.

  “Must be rough,” Ron Yee said. “Oh sure, my kids get on my nerves sometimes. But I can’t imagine not having them greet me every night.”

  “Yeah, well…you’re lucky.” Cullen got up off the grass and whistled for the twins. All four kids came running.

  From the way the twins jumped up and down, flinging their arms around, Mei Lu suspected that they agreed wholeheartedly with the lunch plans.

  Cullen returned, leaving the Yee children to show his two how to roll their kites. “Ronnie and Jennifer only had to mention the big s
lide at the restaurant playground. Our plan met with Bobby and Belinda’s approval, can you tell?”

  “It’s not-bad food,” Angela said, climbing to her feet. “The kids and I go there if Ron’s out of town. The play area’s fenced, but we can sit out at picnic tables under some nice shade trees. And, Mei Lu, I’ve seen people there with dogs.”

  “I’m ready. All I have to do is collect my kite and Foo. I skipped breakfast to buy kites, so I’m more than ready to eat.”

  “I thought yours looked new. They’re fabulous,” Angela exclaimed, walking over to inspect Mei Lu’s goldfish. “Ours need to be replaced. Where did you get those?”

  The two women led the way to the cars, Mei Lu telling Angela where to find the kite shop. Cullen remained behind with Ron to wait for the kids.

  Bobby and Belinda Archer raced around their dad, keeping pace with their new friends. When they reached the cars, Bobby threw his arms around Mei Lu in a surprising gesture of affection. “Flying kites is so cool. Wait till I tell my friends at school.”

  Mei felt a burst of happiness as Belinda echoed her brother’s sentiment. “I’m glad you two had fun,” she said. “Foo and I enjoyed ourselves, too.”

  “If you’re gonna come to our house this afternoon to work with Dad, can you bring Foo?”

  “What about Mopsy?” Mei Lu wasn’t sure how Foo would react to a rabbit.

  Belinda danced around in circles. “We’re s’posed to keep Mopsy in her cage. And we will, we promise, if Foo comes.”

  “It’s fine with me, if it’s okay with your father.”

  Bobby Archer screwed up his face. “Dad’s always gotta ask Mom anytime we wanna do new stuff.”

  “It’s what all parents do,” Jenny Yee chimed in, nodding sagely.

  “Yeah, but Mei Lu’s not our parent.”