by Nancy Gideon
“Yes.” A pause. “Were you involved with him before me?”
She made an exasperated sound. “Before you was before you. It doesn’t matter.”
“You’re not going to tell me?”
“It doesn’t concern you. You, of all people, are well aware that I was no dewey-eyed virgin the first time we got together. I’m not bugging you to tell me your history.” But now that she thought of it, a curious shaft of jealous discomfort jabbed through her.
“I don’t have a history. There’s just you.”
“What?”
“When would I have time for any torrid affairs, detective, when I spent every free second murdering cops and little old ladies and kittens?”
His sarcasm blew right by her. “Just me?”
“Before I met you, I never thought about it.” His voice lowered to a husky rumble. “After, I never thought of anything else but you.” His shoulders moved in a heavy sigh. She could almost see the energy draining from him as he said, “I should go. Is there anything you need before I leave?”
“I need you to come here.” He didn’t respond. “Max, please come over here to me. Don’t make me have to get up.”
He came reluctantly, his features erased of any emotion. At the couch he sank down onto his knees, avoiding eye contact with her.
The instant he was within reach, her arms were about his neck, pulling his dark head down to her breast. She held him quietly, her cheek pressed against his hair. And finally all her compressed feelings came loose.
“I’m sorry, Max. So sorry.”
“About what?” he murmured. “That I didn’t have sex before I met you? I’ve been trying to make up for it ever since, and you’ve been very obliging.”
“I didn’t do anything,” she confessed miserably. “I didn’t do anything to stop them.”
He sat up and turned to face her. His eyes, those beautiful eyes, were clear and wide and remarkably free of any blame. “Is that what has you so upset? Charlotte, sha, I don’t expect you to swallow what I’ve been, what I’ve done, without a bitter taste. I know my past is a terrible burden to you. And there’s never a day goes by that I’m not grateful that you’re strong enough to bear it. Don’t ever apologize to me. Not ever.”
He leaned forward and her lips parted, hoping for his kiss. Instead, his mouth touched lightly to her brow.
“Take me to bed, Savoie. Sleep the rest of the day away next to me. Be with me. Just stay with me, Max.”
He scooped her up and whisked her down the hall, freeing one hand long enough to rip back the covers on her bed.
“Clothes on or off?” he asked gruffly.
“Off. Yours, too.”
“I thought you wanted to rest.”
“We will. Eventually.”
“Shower first or later?”
“After. I want you all hot and sweaty and naked and mine.”
He sat her down on the edge of the bed, where they took turns stripping off each other’s shirts. As Cee Cee was nibbling down his chest, he stopped her.
“You didn’t sleep with Schoenbaum or Junior Hammond, did you?”
Her expression registered her distaste. “God, no.”
“Okay. Continue, please.”
She was already at his zipper.
“Let me get my shoes first, cher.”
But she’d already pushed his clothing down and was running her tongue along his hipbone. Her hands skimmed down his back, palming the hard curve of his flanks.
“Geez, Savoie, is there any part of you that isn’t perfect?”
“Well, I don’t know how to drive a car, and I thought the Saints were a baseball team.” Then he lost his ability to speak as she caressed him.
“I want you so much, you’ve got me jumping inside like frog legs on a skillet.”
He made a gaaking sound. “That isn’t a particularly appealing image.”
“Crawfish, then. Since we’ve finished the shucking, let’s move on.”
Her mouth slid down him, strong and hot, and he nearly lost himself right then. Within a minute, his breathing was labored and she had him trembling uncontrollably.
“Let go, baby. Let go,” she coaxed.
There was no way he could not comply.
The instant she released him, he flopped onto his stomach with a groan. She tapped the back of his thigh.
“Feet.”
He bent his knees so she could unlace his Converses and strip him down the rest of the way. When his legs dangled limply off the edge of the bed, she gave his tight butt a light smack.
“Scoot over.”
He collapsed on the opposite side without opening his eyes and murmured softly as she kissed his shoulder.
“Get some sleep. I’m going to expect you to service me enthusiastically later.”
He smiled, eyes still shut. “I love my job.”
She soothed her palm up the sleek length of his back. “And I love you.”
But he was already gone.
A SHARP TWINGE from her ankle woke Cee Cee from a heavy slumber. Her digital clock read 6:30. The last of the day’s heat was just creeping across the sill in filtered beams of sunlight. And the bed beside her was empty.
She tried to sit up, and the pain tore a curse from her.
“Hey, what are you doing? Don’t get up.”
In her doorway, Max was all sleek and freshly showered, wearing sweat bottoms that she’d borrowed once and never remembered to return. He looked and smelled amazing.
“I thought you’d left.”
“And pass up on the chance to smother you with annoyingly good intentions while you’re incapacitated?” He grinned. “Not a chance. I was just getting you something to eat.”
Her brows shot up. “In my kitchen?”
He made a rude noise. “Only if you wanted me to stir-fry some of your rodent food. I took a tour of your take-out joints.” He came to lift her shoulders up and tuck the extra pillow behind her.
“You’re fixing me dinner?”
“I can’t exactly take you to a restaurant dressed like this, now can I?” His head ducked down for a quick taste of her bare breast before heading back to the hall.
“Max?” Her pulse had jumped into a hurried gallop.
He looked back over his shoulder. “Yeah?”
Her heart gave a funny little quiver. “Nothing.”
He returned carrying a tray. “I got you some sesame noodles, a couple of egg rolls, and a cup of hot and sour soup.”
“Where’s my fortune cookie?”
“Sorry, I ate it. I’m going to be lucky in love.”
“Then that’s good fortune for both of us.”
He smiled and sat cross-legged on the bed facing her, the tray balanced in his lap. He fished in the noodles with a pair of chopsticks. “Open.”
“I only sprained my ankle, Max. I can feed myself.”
“Where’s the fun in that? Let me spoil you a little, detective. It’s not often you’ll give me the chance, and I enjoy it.”
She enjoyed it, too. Too much. She sighed and made like a baby bird. He poked in the noodles.
“Aren’t you having anything?”
His gaze slid away in subtle evasion. “I’ve already eaten.”
She didn’t need him to explain. Calling on his inner beast to repair the battering he’d undergone required red meat. Red and raw. And though it didn’t bother her, it made him uncomfortable, so she let it go.
“Split an egg roll with me.”
He did so, chewing thoughtfully as he watched her.
“What?” she demanded.
“Hmmm?”
“What? Is there something else?”
“No.” He was smiling. “Have some soup. Careful, it’s hot.”
She slurped it up, watching him over the rim of the cup. His stare was intense and unblinking. She handed him the empty cup and insisted, “What? And don’t tell me nothing.”
“You are so beautiful, I can’t look away.”
He reached out to rub
his knuckles beneath her jaw, then cradled the side of her face, drawing her forward to meet the soft touch of his lips.
“Tray,” she whispered, leaning back slightly so he could slide it onto the nightstand. She melted beneath his kiss, letting him lean into her until the feel and scent of him surrounded her. She sank her fingers into his hair as he began to nip and lick his way down the arch of her neck to the thrust of her breasts. Her eyes closed as she moaned a low sound of encouragement.
And then her cell phone rang.
Max paused, his head resting between her breasts, while she flipped open her phone.
“Caissie. Babs, what’s wrong? No, that’s all right. Oh, geez. I’m so sorry. Sure. Sure, no problem. Okay. No. Don’t worry about it.”
Max eased back, alerted by the tone of her voice, by the twist of anguish in her expression. “Charlotte?”
“Tina’s parents have been killed,” Cee Cee told him quietly. “They just got the call. They have to go to Fort Worth and don’t have any place for Ozzy. Alain asked if he could stay here, and I said okay. It’s okay, isn’t it?”
“Of course.”
“They’re on their way over.”
He was instantly off the bed, pulling clothing out of the dresser for Cee Cee. He was suddenly very afraid that nothing was okay, and the Babineaus were bringing an unexpected and terrible danger right to the door.
Eleven
I APPRECIATE THIS,” Alain said as his wife and stepson entered Cee Cee’s apartment. Tina was pale, red-eyed, and worn looking.
“Don’t give it another thought,” Cee Cee said.
“Mama, look. Guinea pigs.”
While Oscar pulled Tina over to the cage, Cee Cee asked Alain softly, “What happened?”
“I don’t know yet. They didn’t tell us much. Some kind of home invasion. Pretty ugly, I’m guessing, from what they didn’t say. I’ll give you a call tomorrow and let you know the particulars. Thanks for stepping in.”
“I never thought I’d be a first choice for babysitter.”
“Actually,” Babineau said uncomfortably, “it was Savoie he was asking for.”
“Max? Max didn’t even know he existed until today.”
“Well, apparently he made an impression. A lot more of one than I’ve ever been able to.”
Cee Cee pressed his arm. “Don’t do that, Alain. Just be there for Tina. She’s going to need you.”
“Right.” His stare fixed on Max, who’d just entered the room. “Savoie, that little guy means everything to us.”
“Understood.” He looked to the boy and smiled. “Heya, sport. Gonna spend some time with us?”
“Mama said it was okay.”
Max and Tina exchanged a long look, then she nodded. “It should only be for a day or two at most. I’ve packed everything he needs. He’s a really good boy.”
Max put out his hand and Oscar slid under it easily. “We’ll be fine. Don’t worry about anything. We’ll keep him safe.”
“Tina, we should get on the road.”
She glanced at her husband and nodded, then her arms wrapped about her son. “Be good. Do what you’re told. Take your medication.” She turned to Cee Cee. “Make sure he takes his pills. Just remind him.” Tears began to gather in her eyes.
Awkward with a show of sympathy, Cee Cee embraced her rather stiffly and was startled at the other woman’s demonstrative hug.
“Don’t worry. Ozzy will be fine. Take all the time you need. This is something you can’t hurry. Okay?”
Tina nodded against her shoulder and then stepped away. “Thank you. Thank you both.” She rushed out and Babineau followed.
Shutting the door, Cee Cee turned back to the boy. What the hell did one do with a ten-year-old? For the moment, he seemed intrigued with Porky and Baco. Max glanced up and smiled when he caught her anxious look. He came to join her where she was hanging on to the doorknob, balancing on one leg like a graceless flamingo.
“Detective, sit down before you fall down.” He picked her up before she could protest and deposited her on the couch. Then he reached for the phone.
“Who are you calling?’
“I’m going to have a car pick us up and take us out to the house.”
“Why?”
“Helen knows about kids. And it’ll be safer. There’s security there.”
Safer. That’s the second time he’d spoken about it as if it should be a primary concern. And she was wondering why he thought so.
“Can I take the pigs out?” Oscar wanted to know.
“One at a time. Be careful of them. They’re fast.”
The boy opened the cage, which started the fat, little hairballs skittering. He watched them patiently, then grabbed, his hand moving so fast, Cee Cee just stared as the boy cradled the frozen rodent to his chest. The only hand she’d ever seen move that fast belonged to Max Savoie.
“Be gentle with him, Ozzy.”
“I will.” He began a careful stroking that soon had the small creature chutting and purring.
She glanced up at Max, who was at the sliding glass door. He was staring outside, so still that the hair prickled on her arms. Something was going on. Something Max wasn’t sharing that had him on edge and on high alert.
After fifteen more minutes passed, he announced quietly, “Let’s go. Oscar, we’re going to go stay at my house. There’s a lot more room there.”
“Can I take the guinea pigs?”
“I don’t have a place for them there,” Cee Cee told him. “But you can come back over here tomorrow with me to feed them. Okay?”
He gave the fluffy animal one last pat and returned it to its cage. “Okay.”
Max secured the sliding doors, saying crisply, “Oscar, get your bag. Straight out to the car.” He snatched Cee Cee off the couch as if she were another piece of baggage.
“Max, what the—?”
“Later.”
The driver opened the door to the big black town car, expressing no curiosity over the boy or why his boss was carrying his police detective girlfriend. He’d worked for Jimmy Legere too long to ever have questions.
“Thank you, Pete. Home. The scenic route.”
Pete nodded, knowing he should look for a possible tail.
Sitting between the two of them in the wide backseat, Oscar Babineau’s lower lip began to shiver.
“My grandpa and grandma are dead,” he announced in a frail little voice. “They didn’t tell me, but I heard Mama and Alain talking. I hear them when they don’t think I do.”
Cee Cee exchanged a look with Max; his was carefully veiled.
“Are you going to find out who killed them, Detective Caissie?”
Though it was totally out of her jurisdiction, she heard herself say, “Yes. Your dad and I will find out and make sure they’re punished.”
Oscar nodded, accepting her word without question. He didn’t cry as he leaned against her, nor did he refuse her clumsy embrace. But his slight form trembled until Cee Cee thought her heart would break.
With the resilience of youth, Oscar was all attentive interest as the gates to Legere’s estate parted. His wide eyes took in everything as he followed Max out of the car at the sprawling plantation home.
“Wow. Is this where you live, Max?”
“I grew up here.”
“Wow. Look at all the room to play.”
Max glanced about, surprised. “Yes, I suppose there is.” Though he never had.
Helen and Giles were on the porch, awaiting their arrival.
Max placed his hands comfortingly on the boy’s shoulders as he introduced them. “Helen, could you take Oscar’s things up to the room next to mine? Giles, why don’t you show Ozzy around while I talk a minute with Detective Caissie.”
“Sure.” The big man came down the steps, smiling to calm the separation alarm in the boy’s face. “You like cars, bub? We got some honeys. Only thing the boss man there is afraid of.” He grinned at Max, and the boy relaxed enough to trot off with him.
Cee Cee was struggling to get out of her side of the car when Max came around for her. Resigned to her fate, she lifted her arms to him and let him hoist her up.
There was no escaping the intensity of her dark, probing cop’s eyes. “How is it possible, Max?”
He was wondering the same thing. “You answer my questions, then I’ll answer yours. Deal?”
She regarded him suspiciously, then nodded.
They settled on the side porch, where they had a good view of the yard. Max had Cee Cee’s foot in his lap and was gently rubbing her badly swollen ankle. He bent to kiss her big toe, then was all business.
“Tell me everything you know about them.”
She sighed. “Not much. Father Furness introduced them. It was puppy love at first sight.”
The corner of Max’s mouth lifted. “What a jaded romantic you are, detective.”
“Yeah, well.” She shrugged. “She was one of the father’s projects—you know, putting together the broken pieces. Like with me.”
He understood: a rape victim. He eased his hands higher up her leg, massaging her calf with a light, soothing pressure. “She’s Oscar’s natural mother?”
“As far as I know, yes.”
“And his father?”
Cee Cee shrugged. “No idea. She never talked about it to Alain. He said it didn’t bother him, but I know it drove him crazy. Knowing someone had hurt her and not being able to do anything about it.”
“Yes.” He understood the helplessness and fury. At least he’d been able to deal personally with Charlotte’s attackers.
She reached down to hold his hands. “Oscar’s one of you.”
“Yes.”
“Tina, too.”
“Yes.”
“Alain doesn’t know.”
“I’m not sure Tina really knows.”
“How could she not know what she is?”
The same way he hadn’t known: because there had been no one to show him. No one to teach him. Forcing him to grow up surrounded by fear, separated by the difference he didn’t understand.
The sound of Oscar’s laughter drew his attention to the yard, and he saw Giles swing the boy up onto his shoulders and gallop about the grass with surprising animation.
Bittersweet regret swelled inside him. He couldn’t remember ever having such a moment, such joyful innocence. Not ever. The intense longing for what he’d missed twisted fiercely in his soul.
